Category: INSPIRE

The journey from negative to positive is no simple one. Despite an endless stream of upbeat self-help books and articles, the great majority of us simply can’t change our lives completely overnight. Gradual change is harder, but as always, necessary. There are no shortcuts, we are always told, but this is only partly true. On top of the time wasted, there is always guilt and shame – and often awful stress – over procrastination, both at work and home. That’s how decision-making and our productivity become so warped and clouded by the reaction, not proactive thinking.

Here are the strategies that can be used to turn negative emotions into high performance:

• Having a routine in place to minimize the required time to make decisions on what is required each morning will help you stay on top of things and void any guilt/shame when making the decision. I am talking about having your lunches, clothes, items and other things ready the night before the day ahead – especially for work. Take these things from your place so you can focus on growing you in the morning. Exercise, better eating, and spiritual growth.
• Being accountable to others will help use any potential shame as a force for productivity.
• Feeling guilty about what you eat? These are the first, easy and clear things you should be changing and you can use these moments to enable smaller habits such as for an example:  in order to get to breakfast, you have to drink water first to start your digestion. Then turn into a glass of water before every meal and eventually other small, but critical changes for better digestion.

These are just some of the ways you can use your negatives and turn them into a positive to work for you. 

We all dream of becoming a successful person one day. This specific thought of “becoming a successful individual” has been instilled in our minds ever since we were children. And as we grow up, it seems that our main focus or target narrows down to this particular concept. We try hard to achieve our goal. We really try hard. But is it really that hard to become a successful person?

Let me remind you – There are no shortcuts to success. Becoming a millionaire by buying lottery tickets can happen once in a million times. So there’s no point in wasting time in buying lottery tickets and praying for a jackpot. Go out there, move at the pace every successful person is moving with, make mistakes, learn from them, teach yourself skills, and conquer the world. No, don’t do that. Just conquer your world, be successful, and be content.

But the key to this is to turn those negative emotions into high-performance enablers.

“You can, you should, and if you’re brave enough to start, you will.” ― Stephen King

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Even though we don’t have control over others and external situations, we do have control over ourselves and our choices. Blaming others and events for our misfortune is an easy way out, but it doesn’t help to solve your problems. Taking on life goals or new commitments and successfully seeing these through comes down to you and your ability to deliver. Taking responsibility and admitting you screwed up takes courage. But, once you own up to your mistakes and realize you are in control of your life, you will make decisions that move you forward.

Society throws life goals at you and expects you to do this (clichés):

• Get married before you are 30
• Retire with $ 1 Million
• Become a manager
• Buy / Own a house
• Marry someone beautiful/handsome
• Make my parents proud of how much I earn

When really it should be about this:

• Get married before you are really ready!
• Retire with loads of precious memories
• Become an influence
• Build a home for the homeless
• Marry someone with inner beauty
• Make my parents proud of how happy I am

So how can you do this?

You should be working smart while at the same time believing that you have the power to make your life better.

Here’s how to work hard:

1. Be grateful for what you have.
2. Use what you have.
3. Discover your strengths.
4. Work smart while working hard.
5. Find your motivation.

Even if you don’t agree with the above – the point here is: You are in control of your life. You don’t have to follow the crowd, you don’t have to meet the needs of society. Take control of the wheel and find the happiness, the lifestyle and the real you have been searching for.

“Incredible change happens in your life when you decide to take control of what you do have power over instead of craving control over what you don’t.” ― Steve Maraboli

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If you had been given the greatest power and you could use it at any time, what would you think and how would you use it? The choice is yours. Well, let’s just say you have been given the greatest power and you can decide to use it whenever you want.  That power is a choice. You have been given the power of choice and free will.

At any given time you have a chance to make a choice. A choice anytime to do more, be more, change something, work harder, reflect, learn, listen, give, share, encourage, solider on and so much more! It is never too late to start a new goal or a new change for the better. Don’t worry about the year being nearly over… If you want a change – start it today! Get a head start for next year! Or simply start and just do it. You have the power, like everyone else but don’t be one of these people who are all talk and no action. Ask yourself the hard question you need to ask.

How much do you want it?

You can’t help everyone. But everyone can help someone. – Ronald Reagan

Help yourself.

If you have lost your motivation or drive to be more and be the best you – think about these 3 inspiring ways to get back to it:

1. Get back to your hobbies.

2. Start remembering your purpose in life.

3. Get into good habits.

So what will you do?

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Now that the final countdown has begun (30 days) it is time to evaluate and begin to assess how the year has been. Identify what have you conquered this year – and don’t be so hard on yourself. Think about the detailed and different things you have accomplished. Some of you would have finished school, started a new job, a new journey and discovered new things. Maybe some of you have lost a tonne of weight, or become the next best thing at a hobby or skill. Maybe you have hit it big with your investments, maybe you have fallen in love. You have the perfect chance to evaluate the done, and to think about the opportunities ahead. 

Regardless. Don’t look back on the year and think it was a failure or that it was a waste of time. Look back on the year of the moments you have become something more, look back and see just how far you have come! You are a champion! If you think you are lacking in achievement… or struggling to identify the wow factor of your year – break it down to experience, break it down into growth and what you are doing. Are you doing the same thing a year ago, or something more, something harder or something at a different pace? Maybe you haven’t started your next amazing thing, but you have completed or planned to start this in the new year – even this is an achievement. 

If you are determined to think the failure was your year, why not try to realize that failure is simply is an opportunity to start again! This time with lessons learned. So before we go to the new year, start preparing yourself for your best year yet! Will you do it? Will you put in what it takes to step it up, to make the changes, to be the best you possible?

“I’ve come to believe that all my past failure and frustrations were actually laying the foundation for the understandings that have created the new level of living I now enjoy.” – Tony Robbins

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It’s official. We are about to enter the final month of the year. Are you motivated enough to make a difference? Firstly you are probably thinking where on earth did the year go… and secondly, you may be thinking how does this impact you. Well for those who may have decided not to chase a resolution or a goal this year and you’re now regretting that decision… This final month about to commence gives you the opportunity to still take a part in being an achiever this year.

The next month or 31 days is your final chance to practice a 30-day challenge. Why 30 days? Well, there is a common thought that 30 days is expected time to make it or break it in terms of forming habits or breaking bad ones. However, for some people, it will take less and for some people, it will take longer.

Steve Pavlina puts it best:

“We often psyche ourselves out of getting started by mentally thinking about the change as something permanent — before we’ve even begun…But what if you thought about making the change only temporarily — say for 30 days — and then you’re free to go back to your old habits? That doesn’t seem so hard anymore. Exercise daily for just 30 days, then quit. Maintain a neatly organized desk for 30 days, then slack off. Read for an hour a day for 30 days, then go back to watching TV.”

It’s important to make sure that when you attempt to break a habit in 30 days or in this care creating a new habit, you’re picking something you can you actually engage in on a daily basis, if not prioritize and make time for. Seems obvious when you think about it, but if you try to make a new habit that you don’t do on a daily basis, it’s a bit harder to gauge your success in a limited 30-day window.

So there is my small challenge for you. Plan today and make a note of what you will test out for the next 30 days. Based on the results this may just surprise you enough to take it the next level and set yourself some sky high journeys for next year.

Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going. – Jim Ryun

The question is. Are you motivated enough?

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Have you ever considered the greater impact your morning is having on your broader life? Seriously – have you ever taken the time to really understand how your life can be a direct reflection of your morning? Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t – but humor me for a moment and just hear me out:

The traits of a morning person bring benefits that I believe will make you a better person more and more each day, but these traits also become relevant to your broader life.  I have found that the below 3 points are what my mornings are made up of. This is how they reflect a deeper/greater impact on your life. 

Routine 

I have found that for any morning to have any sense of flow and structure you need a routine and a good one at that. Now, this doesn’t mean you need do the same thing every day for the rest of your life, but it means you should have a structured morning each day whether it be the same as the day before, or maybe an alternating routine, or even a completely different routine on the weekend. The idea here is to have something which becomes second nature to you. Once your routine has become a morning usually, your mind and body will learn to adapt and go with its natural flow. This will put your whole morning into a kickstarted state when you wake, as your whole body and state of mind will be already doing what it should be… but subconsciously.

How is this going to overflow into your life? Routine encourages muscle memory but also enables a way to simplify your life. Having things set out and planned ahead, due to routine, allows you to have more time to spend on other things and potentially more important things… rather than having to work out what you were going to wear or what food you will be eating today. Routine also enables or increases your consistency and even your reliability. Having a routine which works, which increases your ability to be productive will allow you to be consistent, dependable and in the end reliable. These are important traits when growing in the professional world and they will always be important for both your personal growth and external growth.

Attitude

Attitude is the key to any good day. Take away routines and you are left just another day. But attitude creates a day into what you want it to be. By setting my attitude the moment I wake up, this is usually the tone and theme of my day. Setting your morning tone basically influences the remaining actions of your day. Attitude will also be determined by your purpose and intent of the day – if this is combined with a routine which proactively enables you to be ready and content in the morning – your attitude is going to be (without even trying) a reflection of this. The compounding of this will start to trickle across other areas of your life. Routine and even the increase of willpower across the rest of your life in your everyday actions or goals will naturally trigger your attitude to be of happiness more and more.

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” – Leonardo da Vinci

Excitement

Excitement is all about taking the little things of your day and turning them into the highlights, the high points and using these as motivators and encouragements. When we’re excited we release endorphin’s and we kick into gear with a boost of adrenaline. We overcome fears. We take chances. We make tough decisions. We push the boundaries. We explore our potential. We become solution-focused and we become more resourceful. Chat with any successful person about their goals and their passion and you’ll see what I mean about excitement. If you’re not excited (on some level) about your goals, then you may need to find some different ones. Your mornings can be filled with these moments, with this same sense of excitement through both routine and attitude but also by taking elements of your life and applying them to your morning. This could include: music, food, exercise, free time or anything or everything which makes you feel that little extra pumped. Find some of these and sprinkle them into your morning – and just see how this will influence your day and each day for the rest of your life for the better.

Do you think you are up for it? Will you give it a go? Would you do it differently? What are some key areas/elements of your morning?

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Different experiences in life can shape who we are and how we grow. They can help mature us to beyond our years. Older generations dismiss 20-somethings and say, “You still have a lot of maturing to do.”

However, many societal innovations and business accomplishments are discovered by people who are still quite young. This is what we call an ‘Old Soul’ and there is nothing wrong with being an old soul. 

What could potentially pull you into a category of an old soul? There are many things people with old souls experience. Here are just a few:

• You could not wait to be old enough to get a real job. 
• You don’t understand the point of random hookups and staying in relationships that aren’t going anywhere.
• Your search for a deep and compatible companion who could last forever.
• People always turn to you for advice and to be a shoulder to lean on.
• You enjoy the simpler things in life, like a real book because you love the smell of paper and ink instead of swiping on a Kindle.
• You keep a tight and intimate circle of friends. You understand the dangers of toxic relationships and don’t want to waste your time on shallow friendships.
• You understand who you are and where you want to go in life. While others went to college to find themselves, you already knew what you wanted.
• You get slightly offended when someone tells you how young you look. You might interpret this as not being taken seriously or seen as an equal.
• People find it easy to trust you with a lot of responsibility because they know you can handle it.
• You’ve never really been a fan of partying because the idea of uncomfortable shoes, drunk strangers hitting on you and being sick the next day makes you cringe. Also, losing control over your body and mind is your personal hell.
• You have a natural talent for reading people. Usually, no one can hide a secret from you or move on after an “I’m fine” because you understand microexpressions.
• You all-around feel like you’re older than your peers. You’ll look at their actions and choices and feel confused. You’re often thinking to yourself, “I was definitely never like that.”
• You see the bigger picture. Old souls have the tendency to look at life from a bird’s eye view, seeing what is the wisest and meaningful way to approach life.  When confronted with issues, old souls tend to see them as temporary and passing pains that merely serve to increase the amount of joy felt in the future.

How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are? – Satchel Paige

Photo Credit: Instagram: Photo by @s.dem_ | Location: St Paul’s Cathedral

Adapting to new challenges and new change all boils down to the story you tell yourself and the hero you will be. You should always be the hero of your story and even if you don’t make yourself out to be – usually you will be regardless. Each story involves the hero not believing he or she can do it, wanting to give up and give in to the easy route. Imagine if the great stories of all time went along the lines of our stories and ‘Frodo heads back to the Shire because he believes he doesn’t have enough discipline to stick with something very long.’

The story we tell ourselves goes along these lines. They’re different for each of us, but if we’re not succeeding at something, it’s quite probably because we are telling ourselves the wrong story.

Try it now: think of a habit change you’re trying to make or that you’ve tried but failed at in the recent past. Maybe exercise meditation, writing, defeating procrastination, etc. Now think about what story you told yourself about yourself. What image did you see in your head of yourself? Was it a brave hero triumphing over all odds, never to be deterred by the forces marshaled against him by the cold harsh universe? Or was it of an ordinary character who probably would give in to the donuts and Netflix when things got hard?

Maybe you can’t hear the story you’ve told yourself. try to sense what feeling is in your heart as you think of yourself conquering this new habit change or life change. Does it feel full of doubt, anxiety, fear, dread? Or is it full of joy, triumph, deep caring? Whatever you are thinking – that is the song your heart is singing… what goes in will come out. 

We fail because of this story. It stands in our way, more than the actual thing we’re facing. When things get tough or uncomfortable, we tell ourselves: it’s OK to quit, it doesn’t matter, we’ll do it next time, we’re not disciplined enough, we suck at this, we can’t do it, it’s too hard and so on and so on. We make excuses… or try to justify our failure. 

So what can we do if our story is working against us?

Change the story. Create a song to sing about yourself as the epic hero of your dreams. Sing this song daily, and be proud of it. Go after the dream, fight the forces of distraction and dullness and self-doubt, rise up to be your best self. You are the writer of your story, the composer of your song, and every moment is a chance to rewrite it, a new draft ready to be crafted into something better.

“Life belongs to the living, and he who lives must be prepared for changes”– Johann Wolfgang

Article composed based on original from Zenhabits

Photo Credit: Instagram: Photo by @s.dem_ | Location: London

This journey we take will come with a cost. It won’t always be perfect, it won’t always be easy, it won’t always seem right… But sometimes in order to get to the next step in our journey, the next chapter or the right path, we need to go through some mess. Our character is built and defined through the experiences, the choices, the consequences and of course, the values learned from all these. Keep soldiering through, keep pushing on! As your journey will take you where you need to go…

Regardless of your background, all of us find ourselves too absorbed in day-to-day stresses. When the responsibilities of life weigh on you too heavily, however, it can be easy to obsess over where we’re going. Too much concern with our goals over our reality can be tiring and make you lose perspective. Learning to enjoy life’s journey is a critical part of being content and happy. To focus on enjoying your journey more, and everyday stress less, these five life approaches are indispensable:

Live in the Present.

Enrich your life.

Stay positive.

Unplug.

Relax.

It is good to have an end to journey towards; but it is the journey that matters in the end. – Ursula K. Le Guin

Photo Credit: Instagram: Photo by @s.dem_ | Location: Melbourne

Consistency and correctness go hand in hand. What with that in mind: You have officially completed 90% of the year. The remaining 10% or 36 days are still just as crucial as the days that have gone by – if not more important. 

If you have made it this far in continuing to commit to your goals and resolution this final 10% is only going to grow and help strengthen your willpower more as well as build even better self-control. Each day is a chance to continue to grow and build your skills and character and in this case, consistency is as important as correctness. How can you ever be true to your word if your actions are constantly inconsistent? Inconsistency is inherently sketchy and causes people to believe you have an alternative motive. You wouldn’t want to have come so far this year to only end up proving to people you can’t deliver let alone prove to yourself you have what it takes. 

“I’ve learned from experience that if you work harder at it, and apply more energy and time to it, and more consistency, you get a better result. It comes from the work.”– Louis C. K.

There is a multitude of benefits that behaving in a constant manner will offer. Patterns are important to elevate your confidence, seeing as when you make a commitment to something and follow through, you learn to trust your intentions. Your reputation will also benefit from consistency because when your behaviors reflect your words and promises, people will trust what to expect from you. There is a saying, which reads, “your reputation precedes you.” If you are known to follow through, people will appreciate that and remember you for it.

If you think you need to work on your character, the first place to look is at the patterns of your actions. Consistency is key!

Photo Credit: Instagram: Photo by @s.dem_ | Location: Melbourne