Tag: Visuals

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?

Photo Credit: Instagram: Photo by @canva | Location: Unknown

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

Whats your current direction? Where are you headed? Everyone is always going to be giving their advice about what you should be doing. There have opinions about how much money you should be making, where you should live, when you should get married, etc. All of this advice is given with good intention. What matters the most is where your heart is directing you. You should decide to start making decisions for yourself that are in line with your values and life direction. Listen to the “should’s” and then listen to what your heart says.

Even if you don’t have a life plan, consider the direction that you are going.

“If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much.” — Jim Rohn

We dream that we would have this or that by x in time – and usually, this won’t be the case… Your life path should lead you to more clarity about who you are and what you want to do in this world. Rather than putting passions to the side, use your network and resources to really dive in deeper. More importantly, don’t forget about the people around you. They need to know that you love them. A good way to do this is to let them engage your passions with you.

Never give up on your passions and dreams, without neglecting people you love.

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

If you had asked me years ago to go for a run – I would have giggled and said to you – keep dreaming. Yet here I am today and I can honestly say as a runner that Running is the best thing I have started doing and included in my busy schedule. Now with over 2,000 km’s ran I can say, I believe running is for everyone. Being skinny, obese or fit, it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t have to be 10 km’s to consider ourselves runners, but 20-25 minutes of running for beginners is quite good. Running is a tool to ignite and restart the body and mind.

Running is beneficial in every aspect:

• It is beneficial for overall health; it can raise the levels of good cholesterol;
• It can boost our immune system and it can help in every way, literally.
• Running can help us lose weight. Actually running is the second most effective exercise considering burned calories per minute. First is cross-country skiing.
• It act’s as a ‘positive drug’ giving you a sweet torture to your body, followed by a joyful experience

4 Lessons You Can Adopt From Running (you should run to feel this for yourself):

You Should Never Underestimate Yourself

“It’s not who you are that holds you back. It’s who you think you’re not.” – Denis Waitley

Fauja Singh is 102 and is believed to be the world’s oldest runner. Since taking up running, aged 89, he has run nine full marathons. Singh retired from competitive races in February after completing a 10K race in Hong Kong. But he still jogs every day in east London. He talked to Nadeem Badshah about what running means to him and how he keeps himself in shape. If this amazing man can do it – so can anyone else. Running can make us self-confident and boost our self-esteem. The experience in achieving a goal is widely known. Simply by the fact that we set and achieve a goal (to run 30-35 minutes or run 6-7 miles or roughly 10km) we feel much happier and empowered.

Runners Meditation

Our brain is relieved from bad thoughts and it is forced to think of our left-right legged frequent steps. Although it feels automatic, the brain is forced to give commands to every part of our body. By the fact that it gives commands to the body and makes symphonically perfected movements, it is relieved from the aberrations accumulated from everyday life. After only a few minutes of running, the brain starts to relieve hormones that naturally improve our mood. One of them is the endorphin or so-called “feel-good” chemical.

The Accordance of Body & Mind

Imagine as the body argues with the mind that he is always a pessimist. The mind always hurts the relationship between them and the body always wins the argument. The best way to see body and soul as one is with running. It’s the balance between the physics and psyche. If we lurk a bit inside the process of running, we can conclude that by the process in the physical world, the body forces the mind to make ourselves feel good. By doing the movement of running, the body drags the mind’s attention away from the negativity and, in a positive way, forces the mind to produce feel-good chemicals.

“The Feeling”

Since we deciphered three of the codes, “the feeling” is the outcome of all three. It’s the feeling when we stop, when we stretch, eat a banana, and get a hot, steamy shower. While we are busy torturing our brain to release feel-good chemicals, we get prepared for the final feeling. I call it “the desert”, except its not physical cake or something sweet. It’s like feeding the brain with the cake without touching a spoon.

We cannot explain how being in love feels or how being drunk feels. We can’t explain “the feeling” either, but we can give a pretty good example of how to get to it. GO RUN.

The 4 Lessons You Can Learn From Running originally was written by – NIKOLA GJAKOVSKI
Nikola Gjakovski is an International Marketing Manager. Dog’s lover, Spa Center owner, Healthy Food Store owner, ex kick-boxer and adrenaline junkie. His passion is motivating the individuals to make this world a better place. He discovered his talent through his life experience all over the years. You can meet this guy at www.simplecapacity.com

Photo Credit: Instagram: Photo by @_clfurlong_ | Location: Melbourne, Australia

Take a moment today, take a chance to re-evaluate who you are and what you are gunning for in life. What’s your passion? Humor me for just a moment. I don’t care when it is today – but take a chance. What if I told you that you could live a life, in which you ruled the timing, you worked when and how you wanted. You didn’t have to take orders but make your own path. What if you could do anything or everything you have ever wanted to do and you would never have to worry about money again? Sounds too good to be true right, while at the same time you are thinking WHERE DO I SIGN UP or WHERE DO I START. Well if you are thinking one of these, or maybe you are simply curious… I dare you to read on…

So before you can have this amazing new lifestyle you need to do two things.

1. Go through a process of SELF-DISCOVERY. It will be the best lesson you will ever learn.
2. Get a pen and paper and ask yourself a bunch of questions (listed below) and see your results.

From there, you can take a blueprint, a plan or food for thought and have something to move forward with. You can take action and actually start working towards a new lifestyle design. So let’s do this.

1. A process of self-discovery.

– original article by Isamar Avery

Sometimes we find ourselves so totally lost, like you are following the path that has been designed for you, but you have no control or say, like a puppet, and still find yourself in the middle of nowhere without a map or compass to guide the way, or a mobile to call home. That is what life is: a paradoxical Bermuda Triangle. You have no one but yourself as a resource to stay afloat. (you do have God – don’t ever doubt it or him. Want more info on God? You can ask me about that anytime)

We spend the best years of our lives going to school to learn how to be something. After learning that something we go into a life long career to pay a mortgage or to be a cog in a machine, with a big dream to one day hit it big…. but with no plan on how you will. In the real world, books won’t lead you out of the woods. You can’t look for answers in the dictionary, and a map will never lead you where you ought to go. They can guide you but the answer comes down to the discovery of the self and how it is the most valuable lesson you were never taught.

Here are 8 Self’s you need to get to know: (read full article here)

• Self-taught

• Self-aware

• Self-drive

• Self-worth

• Self-realization

• Self-trust

• Self-hate

• Self-love

2. #askyourself

Finding your passion is never an easy process – but one way and a way which reveals the most is through pen and paper and your mind. So go grab some paper and write down these questions and get your mind in the right place for this process.

1. Make a list of things that you are good at. Skills and strengths. For example, are you good at sports? List the sports you’re good at. Other examples: reading, writing, filing paperwork, algebra, running, driving, caring for animals, etc. List any and all skills that you have.
2. Make a list of things that you enjoy. Things that are fun for you, or that you are passionate about. Anything at all…animals, reading, playing games, exercising, celebrities, helping people, algebra, etc. List any and all things that you enjoy doing and/or are passionate about.
3. Make a list of careers that you could pursue using the things from BOTH lists. If you like animals, you could list things like “veterinarian” or “animal shelter worker”. If you are good at math, you could list things like “math teacher/tutor”, “computer science”, or “finance”. Make a list of careers that you could pursue using either your skills, or your passions.
4. Now look at your first two lists and ask yourself: is there anything that you are BOTH good at AND enjoy doing? If so, you are lucky! Not everyone has a skill that they also enjoy doing. Look at where this specific activity fits into the third list you made of possible careers. Ask yourself, is this activity something that you would like to pursue as a career? It can be very enjoyable to do something you love for work.
5. If there is NOT something that you are both goods at and enjoy doing, don’t worry! Many people are in this situation yet are still able to live happy fulfilling lives. You’ll just have to think a little harder about what you want your future to be like. If this is the case, here’s what to do next:
6. Choose something from your lists to try. You cannot find out what you want to do without trying some things, especially when you are young and have less experience. The more experience you have, the more you will learn about yourself, your abilities, and what you want out of life. So choose a few things and pursue them as best you can.

If you are not sure what to try, here is an answer about passions and strengths that might help you to narrow it down: How do you get to know your passion?

Still, don’t know? Have a look here: How do I discover my passion?

Want a book to read about it? –  $100 Startup: Reinvent The Way You Make a Living, Do What You Love and Create a New Future by Chris Guillebeau

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” ~ Mark Twain 

Photo Credit: Instagram: Photo by @barefoot_islandgirl | Location: Ko Phangan, Surat Thani, Thailand

In a fast-paced society keeping up with it all, staying sharp, on point and being ready for anything will be the last thing on your mind or it is something your working day to maintain. What if I told you there are 5 yet simple important ways you can sharpen your thoughts and bring your mind and its engagement levels to a new level. It’s not rocket science to hone up your brain power. In fact, there are some really simple steps by which you can sharpen up your thoughts to a great extent. Here are the tips for you to stay sharp:

An Active Body

An active lifestyle enhances blood circulation throughout the body and energizes the brain to think stronger & deeper. It does not mean you have to burn sweat like insane; just a daily 20 minutes of brisk walking would be fine to keep you sharp. However different exercises work for different people. I have found getting out for a HIIT Sprint for 2km will get my mind back on earth, refreshed and ready to rumble!

Organize The Data

Your brain loves order & it gets tougher for it to remember things if there is severe lack of order. Thus, you must take time out to organize the needed data so that it gets easier to recall in a proper meaningful way. More complex is the subject matter, more important is the organization.

Challenge Yourself

This is one of the most important things when it comes to sharpening up your thoughts. If you are too much into playing safe & keeping the brain in comfort zone, you would soon be losing out on your mental edge. The brain gets lazy in too much of comfort and hence you have to stimulate it from time to time with new challenges. So, never be scared of plunging into the new projects or campaigns in your company. Take a growth mindset and see what you can do, see where you can go.

When you have two good options, always go with the one that scares you the most, because that’s the one that’s going to help you grow. – Unknown

Brain Exercises

There are some typical exercises that supply the needed stimulation to your brain which in turn helps to hone up your thought process. It could be solving a maze or a crossword puzzle or a game of scrabble. You can even take out your old high school math book for a practice session as math problem solving is one of the best exercises to stimulate your brain power. The main point here is to keep your brain proactive, energized, sharp and alert.

Read Well

The more you read better would be your thought process and perception. So, develop a reading habit and take an interest in reading whatever falls on your hand. It could be a magazine or the daily paper or a book or some journals and so on. You have to nourish your brain with information from various sources which will help it to develop a rational, knowledgeable mindset & perception. Need some new books to read – check out these recommended books.

Photo Credit: Instagram: Photo by Jamie Street on Unsplash | Location: Unknown

We all have lessons to learn. So why not learn from the best? Known as the greatest basketball player of all time – if you’re not already aware… Jordon is so much more than a world-class athlete. Many qualities and skills together with a powerful mindset are needed to become that good at something, to reach the top of a career and to stay consistent with it. He is a role model, has inspired generations, and is the reason many people fall in love with basketball. He managed to unleash his full potential and is an example of success, action, and ambition.

Here are 10 big lessons we can all take from Michael Jordon:

1. He accepts failure

“I can accept failure, everyone fails at something.”

2. Always try again

“…But I can’t accept not trying.”

3. Practice daily

“I set another goal…a reasonable, manageable goal that I could realistically achieve if I worked hard enough. I approached everything step by step.”

4. Take action

“Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen.”

5. Enjoy the game

“Enjoy every minute of life.”

6. Let go of expectations

“If you accept the expectations of others, especially negative ones, then you never will change the outcome.”

7. Be dedicated

“He didn’t miss games. He played hurt, with pain, when he was sick. He came out and performed at an intense level. I don’t think anybody ever went away disappointed after watching Michael.” – Phil Jackson

8. Be humble

“There will be a player greater than me.”

9. Stay focused on your goals

“The game has its ups and downs, but you can never lose focus of your individual goals and you can’t let yourself be beat because of lack of effort.”

10. Leave fear behind

“Limits, like fears, are often just an illusion”

Everything in life is possible. We just need to have a definite desire and take action upon it every single day.

Photo Credit: Instagram: Photo by Sarah Crutchfield on Unsplash| Location: Unknown