About Us
Years ago, lodged deep within chasms of soft, rippling, gray matter, a tiny thought began to form. This thought claimed to be like no other thought before it. It emerged as a creature of immense wisdom, knowing that it could only grow by observing others. It silently watched men and women, young and old, relate to each other. As the thought formed, it developed as neither masculine nor feminine, but acquired only the positive qualities associated with each gender. These attributes shaped a loving, caring, and accepting personality, which the thought recognized as important. It knew the benefits associated with the capacity to share, to support, and to encourage. It discovered how to set goals, and then, learned how to attain them. This thought's future depended upon the man who created it. Would this man choose to share this thought with others, or would he conceal it deep within himself?
This tiny thought began with one man's desire to learn how people change. He was curious why no one welcomed change, least of all himself. As he listened to others, he began a journey--a quest to discover how people change. For many years he provided guidance, observing people who were changing. He helped some and could not help others. But he continued, until one day when he discovered an extraordinary idea--a thought like no other thought that he had had before. This thought encompassed many positive qualities: It was loving, caring and accepting. Its basic needs were to share, to support and to encourage. The thought seemed to grow as the man observed people who encountered change. Some people feared change so much that they hid, did nothing, and hoped that the necessity for change would go away. Others, although they too were apprehensive, greeted change with excitement as they discovered what new opportunities lie ahead. The fundamental difference in the attitudes of these people was the presence of this single thought. Those who were familiar with the thought handled change easier than those who were not accustomed to it. Those who mastered the thought and accompanying thought processes had the tools to not only solve their problems, but also to realize their dreams.
The man knew that this thought offered people freedom, happiness, peace of mind, and power over their own lives. These benefits, benefits of success, appear automatically when a person's life focuses on this extraordinary thought. What is this thought? "I want to take care of myself," said the man, "I want to take care of me".
The man understood people well. He knew that in order to convey this thought to others, he would have to present it in a completely unorthodox manner. He needed a method and system that would help everyone understand the concept, change and experience the benefits from “taking care of me”. He knew if he wrapped this thought in the methodology of counseling, his thoughts about “taking care of me” would die. Counseling is such a turn off for so many people. He didn’t want the thought to be associated with illness or treatment. He knew the thought had to be alive and growing in the lives of people.
The amazing, empowering thought could not be contained. He struggled with making this thought acceptable, desirable and accessible. This man did not want to write a flowery, self-help book. He didn’t want to write a book for information and education as these books are often read with excitement and soon lost on a shelf somewhere. He knew no one in his or her right mind would read an academic book, and then find a way to make the thought come alive in his or her life.
As the man observed people change and the growing thought in the lives of people, it struck him like a bolt of lightening and then like a guiding star, the North Star. When people embraced and actualized the life focusing thought, they became mentally fit! No matter what obstacles crossed their paths, they just didn’t survive. They thrived and prospered.
The method and system for actualizing the thought was crystal clear and illuminated. The thought would come to fulfillment as a mental fitness program THE NORTH STAR MENTAL FITNESS PROGRAM.
NORTH STAR INSTITUTE, INC. is proud to introduce you to the empowering, enlightening thought “I am committed to taking care of me”.
Now, who is the man. The man is Dr. Harold Sommerschield, who prefers to be called Dr. Hal. Dr. Hal is a licensed psychologist with over 30 years of experience in private practice. He achieved his degrees from the University of Michigan, Northern Baptist Theological Seminary, and from Michigan State University. Although he has these academic degrees, Dr. Hal is not stuffy. He wears blue jeans to work. He began his career with two goals: to learn from each client as well as to help each client change. How people change has been his primary focus since studying Freud and his theory of change in his senior year in high school. The thought, the tools or exercises in THE NORTH STAR MENTAL FITNESS PROGRAM were not learned in school, but have been taught to me by my clients over 30 years. Dr. Hal had copyrighted two mental fitness programs prior to this program.
I am happy to share with you what I have learned and I hope to learn some more from you. Please don’t just read about the thought. Do the exercises and let the thought grow in you, and your life will blossom. Please share with me what you learn and how your life thrives as the thought becomes a guiding light for you.
As a therapist, I have seen many clients improve the quality of their lives, while other clients have failed. Both successful and unsuccessful clients have helped me identify the 15 strategies for decision-making and creating mental fitness. These 15 strategies can be learned by people of all ages. These 15 strategies can be used to reduce symptoms, solve problems, achieve goals and actualize dreams. When these 15 strategies are applied in a mental fitness format, people have improved mental health and are psychologically prepared to successfully cope with the many stresses and conflicts in everyday living.
My goal is to help you find solutions for the recurring, painful problems in your life, so you can have the quality of life you wish as well as your dreams.
The true measure of a man is not how he behaves in moments of comfort and convenience but how he stands at times of controversy and challenges.
-Martin Luther King Jr.
