I have a 6-year-old boy so the movie “Cars” has been a big hit in our house. He saw the movie in the theater and we have all watched it several times since it came out on DVD. I have come full circle in my appreciation of the movie. The first time I wanted to see it because he had enjoyed it so much. Then repeated viewings got on my nerves. However now I have come to appreciate the important life lessons my son — and I — can learn from this family-friendly movie. Even if you do not have a child who wants to see the movie, I suggest you check it soon to see what you can take away from the experience.

The single most important lesson that we can take away from “Cars” is the importance of teamwork. The main character learns an important lesson that is easily understood by children that no one can succeed alone. Lightning McQueen learns that not only do we need friends in our times of need but that we gain from helping others as well. By the end of the movie, he fully appreciates the value of friendship in living a happier and more fulfilled life. We can all benefit from learning how to be a good friend.

When the movie opens, Lightning McQueen is a winner and he considers winning the most important (if not the only important) focus of his life. Obviously, this holds true for much of what our society and culture teaches children (directly and indirectly) when we know as mature adults that winning is not everything. Lightning learns that there are many things more wonderful in life than winning. By the end of the movie, while he still wants to be a winner he is a much happier person because he has other ways to measure himself a success.

Finally, “Cars” teaches us that doing the right thing can be rewarding. This encompasses lessons that Lightning learning including completing a job well done and helping others. In the end, his decisions to do the right thing rather than focusing on winning at all costs turns out to be far more rewarding.

While I am the first to admit that most of us need to mitigate the impact of media and popular culture on our children, I think it is important to celebrate the movies and television shows that have a positive effect. The movie “Cars” is a positive influence on children because it teaches three important life lessons including working together, winning is not everything, and being a good person can be rewarding.

Psychologists believe that our capacity as human beings depends on what our minds truly believe to be possible. “It’s all in the mind”, as they say. In order to show how simple this idea is, a concrete example may serve to illustrate it. Two students, without their knowledge, were subjected to an experiment. Both were of the same grade level, age, and nationality. They were instructed to take a long jump activity as part of a physical education class. Girl 2 was shorter than girl 1. It was expected that the shorter girl would initially feel hopeless because of the obvious size advantage of the other girl so, without receiving any motivation inspiring words from her coach, trial 1 was allowed to begin. As was expected from trail 1, the shorter girl lost by a distance of around 5 inches.

Trial 2 followed immediately after trial 1. With some proper coaching and motivational words this time, the shorter girl won by 1.5 inches! How did this happen? It happened because the power of belief and attitude. What happened exactly was that an explanation about the height advantage of the girl was re-contextualized for the shorter girl. She was told that she actually had an even advantage with the taller girl because of her lighter weight. When she saw the taller girl as being “heavier” than her, it was enough motivation to inspire the shorter girl to focus on her own strengths and to use them to win. It’s all in the way you look at it.

Inspirational words can totally change the direction of our lives. We often see life as a scary place with dangers around every corner. We may not even recognize the fact that many of our fears are hidden inside us and controlling us at every turn. Others, on the other hand, may see life as a series of opportunities to challenge themselves because they have overcome these hidden fears and opened themselves up to a world of extra energy that was also hidden inside them but covered and stifled by the fears that surrounded it. It doesn’t take a major change in many cases to alter the direction of your ship. One small turn on the wheel can eventually result in a completely different section of the globe that you will sail to! As soon as you change one of your coordinates, the direction of your entire life will also change. You will begin to see everything around you as reflecting of this new change and it will provide you with even more inspiration to try even greater things.

Inspirational words can really be found everywhere. It’s just a matter of being able to see them. From our homes, our schools to our workplace, there are opportunities to find inspirational words. From the movies we watch, the books we read, the music we listen to and the people we talk to every single day of our lives, we can be inspired to do great things. These are words, which may just be simple words, can hit the deepest part of our souls and awaken us to be reminded of the true essence of who we are. From there we will find ourselves capable of living our lives more peacefully and more harmoniously with others.

Next time you think about where you want to find some inspirational words, just look inside yourself and ask yourself what’s stopping you from picking up one of the thousands of books out there that teach the most simple truths of all. What’s holding you back from making a commitment to read just five or ten pages a day to improve your life? The inspiration is deep inside yourself and the words that you are looking for outside are only a means to help you find that place inside that you already had to begin with. The greatest inspirational words there are those that will come right out of your own heart and mind. They will be the ones that bring you to make a change and to reach for the stars.

Insomnia is the sleeping disorder that prevents a person from getting a quality night’s sleep. In fact, insomnia can keep a person up for many days. This leaves the person feeling tired, wasted and weary. Your body needs sleep to recharge, it needs quality sleep in order to perform at its best. Therefore, if you suffer from insomnia and you just can’t seem to fall asleep at night, it is important that you find some form of insomnia treatment quickly. To find the right insomnia treatment, however, you need to find out just what’s keeping you up all those sleepless nights.

Is It Something You’re Doing?

Sometimes, insomnia is caused by what the person is doing. That’s right, you could be causing your very own insomnia. The reason you can’t sleep can be due to the fact that you’re eating certain foods or maybe you’re drinking too much coffee. Caffeine from coffee and other foods can keep you tossing and turning, unable to sleep, so a good insomnia treatment would be to try and eliminate such things from your diet. Experiment with different foods and see if that helps relieve the insomnia symptoms.

Another insomnia treatment that you can try is to get plenty of exercise during the day. The more energy you use up during the day, the less energy you’ll have at night. Your body will want to rest, and finally you will eventually fall asleep. Try taking up a sport or an exercise as an insomnia treatment. Look at it this way, not only will you probably find sleep but you’ll look and feel great too!

Stress and other emotional feelings can also cause insomnia, too. If you have some event coming up that’s causing you stress, anxiety or fear, try avoiding that situation altogether, or try looking at it positively. Remember, these are your own feelings and it’s up to you to relieve them. If you’ve tried to alleviate them as part of an insomnia treatment and you just can’t seem to get rid of them, try some stress relief exercises, such as Yoga, Tai Chi or even meditation. Or, just slowing down and taking a different outlook on life can do wonders for your well being as well as your ability to get some sleep.

If you’ve tried all of these insomnia treatment and nothing seems to help at all, then it’s time to see your doctor. There are many over the counter medicines that can help you fall asleep. However, try the above insomnia treatments first before the medicine. Most often, you’re wide awake night after night because of something you’re doing. Pay attention to your daily life routine and find out what’s keeping you from a nice, restful sleep.