About 18 months ago when we moved from our house just outside of Fort Lauderdale, to our lake-home here just outside of Tampa, I began reading the local paper again.

I’d stopped for many many years, but I wanted to get a sense of “what’s going on” here in our new home area, and I figured, what better way to do it than by reading the Tampa Tribune?

I usually skipped the “main” section and instead read things like the business section, and the metro and local sections.

No more.

Here are some of the headlines in today’s metro section:

“State Pays Up To Treat Jailed Mentally Ill”

“Dead Boy’s Dad Arrested On Drug, Gun Charges”

“3 Charged In Girls Death. Drugs likely involved in the 17-year olds slaying, police say.”

“Police Suspect Deadly Shooting Was Self-Defense”

“Friends Tell Of Last Times With Torture Case Victims”

I could go on and on here, but I think you get the drift. Mind you, this section is only 8 pages long, and Tampa is a much safer “city”, then… let’s say New York, Los Angeles, and certainly Miami.

I can’t take even THINKING about events like this happening, let alone actually reading those articles (which I would never do). Letting stuff like that get into your head, is the same as letting dirty water get into your bathtub — you can’t really scrub yourself “clean” with dirty water, and you certainly can’t keep your mind “clean” with negative thoughts inside of it — even if they’re just lurking in the background.

And even though the universe rewards ACTION, and not thinking… since your actions are 100% guided by your thoughts, why not do EVERYTHING in your power to eliminate anything negative from creeping inside those thoughts?

There’s no shortage of negative energy out there, you’ve got to work to avoid it — but this “work”, and if you want to call it that (I call it survival.) — is critical to your success AND your mental health.

So, I just re-subscribed to USA Today, where I can get the pulse on the American public, without all the torture and shooting in tow.

Take Time Off — You DESERVE It!: On page 9 of this month’s Offline Seductive Selling Newsletter, I reveal the HUGE upswing in your life that comes from “time off” — something I learned a hard lesson about recently. Check it out and take a fre.e test-drive subscription, right here — so you don’t make the same stupid mistake I made, and suffer the same stupid consequences: http://www.kingofcopy.com/ssnl

Now go sell something, Craig Garber

P.S. Looks like my Seductive Selling Radio Show will be delayed a few more weeks, stay tuned for more info.