10 Ways to Stay Calm in Stressful Situations

Hey Boo!

Anger is a natural emotion, but when anger becomes overwhelming or frequent, it can negatively affect your personal and professional life. Managing your anger effectively can lead to better relationships, improved health, and a more peaceful state of mind. Here are some tips to help you manage anger in a healthy and constructive way.

Recognize Your Triggers

The first step in managing anger is to become aware of what sets you off. Take note of the situations, people, and thoughts that tend to provoke anger. Once you’ve identified your triggers, you can prepare for them or avoid them altogether. If avoidance isn’t an option, work on a plan to remain calm when these triggers occur. (Try shifting your focus from the triggering aspects of the task or situation and instead focus on the urgency of the matter. Commit your attention to getting through the situation in the best way possible and then decompress as soon as you are able to.)

Take a Time Out

When you feel anger rising, give yourself a brief break. Step away from the situation to collect your thoughts and calm down. A five minute walk, deep breathing, or simply sitting quietly can help lower the intensity of your emotions and prevent you from saying or doing something you’ll regret.

Practice Deep Breathing

Speaking of deep breathing…Controlled breathing is a powerful tool for reducing anger. When you’re upset, your heart rate and breathing quicken. By taking slow, deep breaths, you can signal to your body that it’s time to relax. Try inhaling for a count of three, holding for three, and exhaling for another count of three. Repeat this until you feel your anger subsiding.

Use “I” Statements

When discussing what’s making you upset, avoid placing blame on others. Instead of saying “You never listen to me!” Try something like, “I feel frustrated because I don’t feel heard.” This shifts the focus to how you feel without attacking the other person, which can lead to a more productive conversation and resolution.

Engage in Physical Activity

Physical exercise is a great way to release built-up tension and manage anger. Whether it’s going for a run, hitting the gym, practicing yoga, or dancing, moving your body helps to reduce stress hormones and improve your mood. It also gives you time to reflect on what’s bothering you.

Practice Relaxation Techniques

Incorporating relaxation techniques like meditation, progressive muscle relaxation, or visualization into your daily routine can make it easier to stay calm in stressful situations. These techniques help to reset your emotional response and prevent anger from building over time. (Other relaxation techniques include yoga, listening to calming music, aromatherapy, and taking a warm bath.)

Know When to Seek Help

If your anger is frequent or intense enough that it’s affecting your relationships, job, or overall wellbeing, it might be time to seek professional help. A therapist can help you identify the root causes of your anger and teach you strategies to manage it more effectively.

Focus on Solutions, Not Problems

When something causes you to be upset, shift your focus to something positive rather than dwelling on the issue and how you feel about it. Ask yourself, “What can I do to resolve this?” By focusing on what you can control, you’ll feel more empowered and less overwhelmed by your emotions.

Keep a Journal

Writing about your anger can provide a safe outlet for expressing your feelings, Keeping a journal allows you to reflect on why you’re upset, recognize patterns in your anger, and come up with strategies to address those emotions more constructively in the future.

Use Humor to Defuse Tension

Humor can help reduce tension and make it easier to see the situation from a different perspective. While it’s important to avoid sarcasm or mocking, light humor can sometimes diffuse a tense moment and help you relax. Laughter is a great way to lighten the emotional load.

*Remember to proceed with caution while using this tip. It’s important to not make light of another person’s anger, so make sure you read the room before using humor.

Anger doesn’t have to control your life. By practicing these anger management tips, you’ll be able to handle stressful situations with more patience and clarity. Remember, it’s not about suppressing your anger but learning how to express it in a way that’s healthy and productive.

Do you have any tips for managing anger that work for you? Please share them!

Until Next Time Beautiful Soul, keep Glowing…

    The Secret to Making Lasting Changes

    Hey Boo!

    Think you can’t change? Many of us already know that we need to improve our state of well-being in order to extend our lives as we age. Making changes is traditionally difficult, but the good news is that it’s never too late to make changes for the better. The first step is to understand what’s important to you, and then determine the choices and decisions that represent where you want to be. Maybe you want to start a new career, lose weight, stop smoking or start exercising. Whatever the change is, be sure you understand why you want to make the change.

    Take a moment to think about a time in your life when you made a successful change or developed a new habit. What was your motivation for the change? What was your attitude at the time? What obstacles or barriers did you have to overcome? Your level of readiness to change will determine how successful you are, and how much time it will take. Once you make the decision to change, you must practice that new behavior one day at a time until it becomes a habit – a lasting change.

    Embracing the concept of change is a big thing, because interestingly, many people think they don’t have a choice when it comes to change. But why is that? For some it’s fear, guilt, love, pain, time management, or even tradition. What motivates one person may not be the same thing that gets another person to act. Everyone reacts differently to changes, whether voluntary or mandatory.

    To start making a change, let go of certain assumptions or ways of doing things, to make room for new ideas. Work on this one day at a time until you feel comfortable.

    To make a lasting change, you start wherever you are and stretch a tiny bit more each time. If you fall off the wagon, or experience resistance, identify the cause or circumstances— who you were with, where you were, or your emotional state. The key is to get up and get back on the path again. You may go forward and backward a few times because making a lasting change is challenging and takes consistency and trial and error. Your level of readiness to change will determine how successful you are, and how much time it will take. But you need to be ready, able and willing to make change happen.

    Until Next Time Beautiful Soul, keep Glowing…

    A Practical Guide to Behavioral Change

    Hey Boo,

    In a world that’s constantly evolving, the ability to change behaviors- whether personal or within a team- is a powerful asset. Behavioral change can lead to improved productivity, healthier habits, and a more fulfilling life. However, activating behavioral change isn’t always easy. It requires understanding your thought processes, employing strategic techniques, and maintaining consistency over time. This guide will show you how to successfully activate and sustain behavioral change.

    Set Clear and Measurable Goals

    Behavioral change begins with a clear understanding of what you want to achieve. Abstract goals like ‘get healthier’ or ‘be more productive’ often lead to confusion and lack of focus. Instead, break down these broader objectives into specific, actionable goals.

    For example:

    Exercise for 30 minutes, 3 times a week

    Limit social media use to 1 hour per day

    These goals should be measurable and time bound to track progress. The SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound) goal setting framework is a useful tool here.

    Understand the Triggers and Cues

    Most behaviors are linked to specific triggers or cues. For instance, you may unconsciously grab a snack every time you sit down to watch TV. Recognizing these patterns is key to changing them. Start by:

    Identifying the behavior you want to change.

    Pinpointing the cue or trigger for that behavior. This could be a location, time of day, emotional state, or even people you’re around.

    Once the trigger is identified, you can work on modifying it or replacing the undesired behavior with a positive one, also called a life giving activity.

    Leverage the Power of Habit

    According to Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit, habits operate on a “cue-routine-routine” loop. To change behavior, you need to modify this loop:

    Cue: The trigger that initiates the behavior.

    Routine: The behavior or action itself

    Reward: The positive reinforcement you get from the action.

    By keeping the same cue and reward but changing the routine, you can reshape habits. For example, if you snack when stressed, find a new routine like drinking tea or going for a short walk. This will satisfy the craving for stress relief without the unhealthy behavior.

    Use Positive Reinforcement: Positive reinforcement is a proven psychological technique to promote behavioral change. Reward yourself for sticking to new behaviors or achieving small milestones. Rewards can be intrinsic (a sense of accomplishment) or extrinsic (a treat, an experience, or a material reward). However, the reward should be tied to the effort and not undermine the goal (example: don’t reward a healthy week of eating with a day of overeating)

    Harness the Power of Social Influence: We humans are social creatures and our behaviors are often influenced by the people around us. This can be used to your advantage.

    Surround yourself with people who encourage and model the behavior you want to adopt.

    Join communities, online or in person, where your new behavior is celebrated and supported. Seek out an accountability partner who can keep you on track and provide feedback.

    Social influence creates a sense of accountability and normalizes the new behavior.

    Start Small and Build Momentum: Often, people try to change too much too fast, leading to burnout, discouragement, or failure. Instead, focus on small incremental changes. For example, if your goal is to exercise regularly, start with 10 minutes a day instead of jumping into hour-long workouts. These small wins build momentum and make larger goals feel more attainable.

    Use Visual Reminders: Visual cues can be a powerful tool to reinforce new behaviors. Some common strategies include:

    Keeping a habit tracker where you mark off each day you complete the desired action.

    Placing reminders in visible places (Sticky notes or your mirror, phone alarms)

    Creating vision boards that reflect the results of your desired behavioral change.

    These visual tools keep the goal front and center in your mind and increase your chances of sticking to it.

    Plan for Setbacks: Behavioral change is rarely linear. There will be moments when you fall back into old patterns, and that’s okay. The key is to recognize that setbacks are part of the process, not a sign of failure. When a slip-up happens:

    Analyze what triggered the old behavior.

    Reaffirm your commitment to the change.

    Adjust your approach if necessary and keep moving forward.

    Having a plan for setbacks makes it easier to bounce back and avoid guilt of frustration.

    Consistency Over Intensity: Consistency is more important than intensity when it comes to lasting behavioral change. Daily or regular practice, even in small amounts, is more effective than intense but infrequent efforts. Aim for sustainable actions that you can integrate into your daily life.

    For example, if you want to develop a meditation habit, it’s better to start with 5 minutes a day consistently rather than attempting an hour-long session once a week.

    Track and Reflect on Progress: Regular reflection helps you assess what’s working and what isn’t. Keep a journal, use a habit tracking app, or simply spend time each week reviewing your progress. These practices:

    Reinforce the positive changes you’ve made.

    Highlight areas for improvement.

    Encourage further growth.

    By reflecting on your journey, you’ll remain motivated and aware of the progress you’ve made, which can help maintain the behavior in long term.

    Activating behavioral change is both an art and a science. It requires self-awareness, strategic planning, and persistence. By setting clear goals, understanding the psychology behind habits, and staying consistent, anyone can create lasting change in their behavior. Whether you want to be healthier, more productive, or achieve personal growth, these steps will help you initiate and sustain meaningful change.

    Go forth and be great, Boo. You got this!

    Until Next Time Boo, keep Glowing…

    How to Find Your Real Self Again

    Hey Boo!

    On the surface it seems an odd idea that you could actually be anything other than who you really are.  But from the time we can talk, we’re being programmed to “fit in”.  We find ourselves conforming in order to please the people we love, and who love us.

    But sometimes that means that you have to suppress what you know is the real person inside.

    And yet, your relationship with yourself is the most important relationship you’ll ever have.  Without a healthy relationship with yourself, it’s practically impossible to have healthy relationships with anyone else. 

    If you’re ready to get reacquainted with someone you haven’t seen in a while – yourself – start with these 4 ideas to help you rediscover the real you. 

    • Quiet the noise in your head

    You know those voices well, the ones that are constantly nagging you to pick up the dry cleaning, talk to the school teacher, juggle the bills, schedule the family appointments, keep the boss happy, etc.  With all that noise going on, it will be impossible for you to hear anything else.  This MUST be the first step.  How do you do that?  By setting up systems, simplifying, and establishing enough extras in your life to allow you to operate from a position of abundance, instead of lack.

    • Practice thinking about yourself in healthy ways

    In order to do that, you must first believe that you are valuable, and your Real Self has something to offer the world.  Since you talk to yourself more than everyone else in your life combined –that’s a lot of talk!—it’s up to YOU to establish healthy communication in your thinking.  Consciously listen to how you talk to yourself; write down the unhealthy things you say; challenge them; and replace them with facts. Self-Talk: “You never do anything right.”  Challenge: “Of course I do things right.  I did (example) right.  I did (example) right.  This time, I just made a mistake.  I’ll learn from it and have better success next time.” 

    • Listen to your heart

    Sounds easy enough, but by the time we’re adults, most of us have stopped listening to our hearts and go only with our heads.  Those two must reconnect in order to find your real self.  It’s easy to become accustomed to thinking about your feelings instead of really feeling them.  Instead of asking yourself what you think about something, ask why it’s important. 

    • Be careful not to get hung-up on a specific goal

    What you’re really after is a feeling — respect, love, appreciation – as opposed to the company car, or a great guy/girl.  Keep an open mind to the feelings and be willing to adjust the methods you use to achieve them.  Determine not just your goals, but how it satisfies who you really are.  The mask will come off and your real self will come shining through. 

    A person you can know and love – you! – is waiting for you to take the time to listen and understand and accept.  When you accept your Real Self again, you’ll make smarter choices, and those choices will stick because they actually fit who you are.  Now, that’s what you’re really looking for, isn’t it?

    Until Next Time beautiful soul, keep Glowing…

    How to Identify Your Limiting Beliefs

    Hey Boo!

    Have you ever made a statement like “I can’t afford that” or “I don’t have time, and I am not strong enough”? Limiting beliefs are those that confine you and incorrectly define you. 

    Limiting beliefs are the lies or excuses we tell ourselves that ultimately stifle us or delay success. The majority of limiting beliefs are subconscious and started in childhood when rules and limits were imposed. As crucial as these rules and guidelines were for your safety or success in school, this is likely where you started developing limiting beliefs. These limiting beliefs can hold us back from living a whole life as adults. We still have rules to follow, but there are less and achievement is endless. While you do not have to adhere to the same standards and regulations as a child or young adult, that does not mean your mind has changed to know any better.

    It is your responsibility to recognize and break down these limiting beliefs to accomplish all the impressive goals you have. This blog will show you how to identify your limiting beliefs and overcome them so you can achieve greater heights in life.

    Identify Your Beliefs

    There are a few ways to identify your limiting beliefs, and all require personal reflection. It may even be helpful to bring in a close friend or coworker to help identify your limiting beliefs through an open conversation. It can be challenging to identify limiting beliefs, but here are a couple of exercises you can do to help find them.

    Make A List Of Your Own Beliefs.

    Take time to write down any beliefs you hold that are important to you and influence your everyday life. Then, you can group these beliefs into different categories, like finances, family, relationships, and health. When you’ve done this, consider the ones that limit your growth and the ones that help.

    Analyze Your Behavior

    You can also assess your behavior to identify limiting beliefs. For example, consider situations where you have acted negatively or in unhealthy ways and why you behaved that way. Limiting beliefs may be the underlying cause of your toxic behavior if you examine it closely.

    For instance, if you find it difficult to talk about money or a financial situation, you may possess the limiting belief that money or conflict is terrible, which makes having difficult but necessary conversations regarding budgeting, retirement, and general finances in life. Consequently, causing relational conflicts when money is involved, e.g., marriage and business.

    It may also be an excellent time to bring in a trusted individual to help you identify your limiting beliefs during this analyzing process. For instance, watch where your inner dialog goes when someone compliments you. Is it gratitude or distrust? If it is distrust, there is most likely a limiting belief looming in the corner of your mind. Analyze that moment and see if you can figure out the limiting belief and what new, more positive mantra can replace it. 

    Where Are You Repeatedly Challenged?

    Think about times when you repeatedly struggle. Perhaps, you never have luck in romantic relationships, or you procrastinate consistently when a specific task needs to get done. These challenges may indicate a limiting belief. Whenever you write down an area of challenge, take note of which of your thoughts may be holding you back. In other words, if you’re constantly struggling to squeeze in a workout, find out what you think about health and wellness and how accessible it is for you. What is the limiting belief, the consistent excuse, or the lack of confidence preventing you from achieving this goal?

    Applying Change to Break Down Barriers

    To start letting go of limiting beliefs, we need to let go of certainty. As humans, we love stability, comfort, and certainty. However, certainty can also hold you back. It’s what prevents you from leaving unhealthy relationships, starting that business you want to have, traveling to that far away place that intrigues you, and keeps you from quitting that job you hate. Certainty can be a dream killer. Combining certainty with limited beliefs will keep you stuck in unhappiness and unfulfillment for a very long time. So let’s start with killing certainty and then change those limiting beliefs. 

    Once you understand that certainty needs to go, it’s time to start changing self-talk. More often than not, negative self-talk tells you why you can’t achieve your goals. Unfortunately, self-talk is constant, and we must switch out negative self-talk with positive, life-giving, empowering thoughts. Once you identify your limiting beliefs, choose a new empowering belief to replace them. Then, apply this new belief whenever you feel the only limiting belief creep up. Doing this will create a new habit of thought and slowly change your mindset and eliminate limiting beliefs over time.

    Until Next Time Beautiful Soul, keep glowing…

    The Power of Positive Thinking

    Hey Boo!

    Have you ever wonder how super-successful people become super- successful? Is it privilege, or luck? Or, is it possible that the world’s greatest achievers think completely differently from the majority?

    Do you think the Wright brothers could ever have achieved what they did if they hadn’t believed it could be done?  What about Simone Biles or Sha’Carri Richardson? How different would their stories be had they let negative words or thoughts decide their fate?

    Success in any aspect of life (financial, professional, romantic, etc.) is neither achieved or maintained in a state of negativity. Think of your thoughts as seeds- you can’t grow a positive outcome from negative thoughts.

    I myself have been in the company of negative thinkers and let me tell you that their influence if allowed to go unchecked is very powerful and destructive. Look at what happens if you place a piece of rotting fruit in a bowl of fresh fruit. All of the surrounding fruit begins to rot as well. This is why it is paramount that if you want to be successful in life, you must surround yourself with positive thinking individuals and to share your positive thoughts and attitudes with likeminded people.

    It is also equally important that you write your goals down and place them in a position where you can see and read them on a daily basis.

    In the late 1950’s, 1500 students at Yale University were sent a questionnaire covering various parts of the college experience. Here are the last two questions:

    1)         Do you have an ambition in your life?

    2)         Have you written it down?

    Twenty-five years later, a postgraduate decided to carry out further research on the last two questions. Here are the results of his findings.

    Over 75% of the students who completed the questionnaire had ambitions for their lives.

    Only 3.3% had actually written their ambitions down.

    After tracking down as many of the 3.3% (51 students) as he could, he found that all of them had gone on to realize their dreams – in commerce, in government and in the professions.

    Of the others he had managed to contact, (the ones who didn’t write their ambitions down) they told him that most of what they had achieved had happened more by chance than design. They had ended up in careers they hadn’t planned for because they didn’t define what it was they were actually seeking to do. Is it safe to say that by writing your goals down you are actively programming or reprogramming your brain to change the way you subconsciously perceive?

    Not having been party to the experiment which was carried out at YALE, I can neither confirm or deny it. But I do believe in the strength of being intentional and the power of positive thinking.

    Until next time, beautiful souls keep glowing…

     

    Do you have a Worthiness Wound?

    What a Worthiness Wound is and How to Heal it.

    Hey Boo!

    As some of you may know, I’ve been doing a Heal Your Worthiness Wounds Challenge on my social medial platforms. Well, as the challenge went on, I received a question from a follower that wasn’t quite sure if he had a worthiness wound or not. I thought that this could be someone else’s experience as well, so I put together a blog so that we can talk about what a worthiness wound is and how to recognize it if you have one.

    A worthiness wound is a deep-seated belief that a person is inadequate, less than, or undeserving. These wounds can form during childhood or as a result of a traumatic relationship. Worthiness wounds can hinder your personal growth and lead to self-sabotage, so it’s very important that these wounds are identified so that you can heal and flourish in life.

    Here is how worthiness wounds appear in your everyday life and hold you back from becoming your best self and having a pretty awesome life. Do any of these apply to you?

    You doubt yourself and your abilities

    You are afraid to take risks

    You are afraid of failure

    You are afraid of success

    You feel unworthy of love and happiness

    You feel like you have to do everything perfectly

    You feel like you are not good enough

    You put others needs before your own

    You compare yourself to others and feel like you come up short

    You give up easily

    Did you see yourself in any of these examples? Do you have a worthiness wound?

    Worthiness Wounds and Self-Sabotage

    If worthiness wounds aren’t addressed, they lead to all kinds of self-sabotaging behavior. Here are some examples:

    Staying at a job you hate because you don’t think you can find another one.

    Staying in an unhealthy relationship because you don’t feel worthy of love and respect.

    Tolerating bad treatment from others because you don’t feel worthy enough to set boundaries.

    Not pursuing your dreams because you don’t feel adequate to achieve them.

    Constantly comparing yourself to others and not feeling good enough.

    Allowing others to take advantage of you because you don’t feel like you deserve better.

    Having a hard time accepting compliments because you don’t believe that you deserve them.

    Finding it difficult to ask for help because you believe that you should be able to do everything on your own.

    Constantly putting yourself down and focusing on your flaws instead of your strengths.

    Are you experiencing any of these things? Can you think of any other examples of self-sabotage that have come up in your life after reading this?

    If after reading this you feel that you have a worthiness wound, you can find the Heal Your Worthiness Wounds challenge journaling prompts that I’ve shared on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. Happy healing Boo!

    Until next time beautiful soul, keep glowing…

    4 Simple Steps to Conquer Self Esteem

    Hey Boo!

    Since we’ve been talking about worthiness lately, I thought it would be fitting to blog about self-esteem. Self-esteem plays a vital role in your sense of worthiness, and if you’re wounded in that area it can be quite a fight to recover from it. But you can win the battle over low self esteem with these 4 simple steps…

    1. Affirmations

    Affirmations are simply positive things that you say out loud to yourself every day. This can be very difficult at times because you may not actually believe what you are saying. SO why would you say something to yourself that you don’t believe?

    Increased self esteem has to start with you. So, if you are shy and intimidated by people, start to say something like the following: I am self assured and charismatic. I am confident while speaking with others.

    Repeat this to yourself out loud at least 10 times before you leave your room. When you say this, don’t just mumble it either, say it as many times as necessary until you say it with passion and conviction.

    1. Read to grow

    Again, increased self esteem starts with you. Read something everyday for at least 15 minutes that will help you increase your self esteem. This can be an article, a book, or even an audio series. The more you learn the more you will grow. The more you grow, the more your self esteem will improve.

    1. Take action everyday

    Do something every day, starting with something small, that directly deals with your low self esteem. For instance, if you can’t talk with people because you feel insecure and inferior, just start off by saying ‘Hi’. As you get more comfortable with this, then start to make small talk. You will begin to feel more confident and more confident until one day, you will find that you have overcome low self-esteem in that area.

    1. Stop the negative thoughts

    Negative thoughts are like landmines. As soon as you step out to face your fear, a negative thought comes and tells you that you can’t do it and BOOM; you believe it and lose that round. Instead, diffuse negative thoughts before they have a chance to do damage.

    A great way to do this is with a rubber band! Put a rubber band around your wrist. Every time a thought comes into your head that tells you that you can’t, you will never succeed, you are a loser, or anything negative, SNAP the rubber band on your wrist.

    You may be snapping that band until your wrist is red and sore. Before long though, you will stop the negative thoughts because you don’t want to hurt your wrist anymore.

    These four steps will help you increase your self esteem and become the person you really want to be. Just remember this: you are not going to change over night. It will take time but as long as you are progressing, you are winning the war.

    Until Next Time Beautiful Souls, keep Glowing…

     

    Shifting Negatives Into Positives

    Hey Boo!

    If you want to move your life ahead, you should replace the negatives in your life with positives.  This article will show you how to take the negative influences in your life away and replace them with positives, so you will have increases in morale, and productivity. Focus on the positive for success and peak performance.

    Most of us are not aware of the amount of negative influences in our lives.  We are bombarded with negative messages from the media, the people around us, and most damaging of all, ourselves.

    The first step in the process in replacing negatives with positives in your life is to make a decision to start looking for the negative messages and ways to replace them with positives. Decide that you will focus on the positive in this world. 

    Begin to drastically cut down on the amount of news you take in.  Most people start their day with the news. And of course most of the news is bad news, fires, floods, etc.  Then it is on to traffic and weather, which also stresses the negatives.  So, by the time you have finished your coffee, you have had enough bad news to last a week. Does all this bad news make you want to throw open the door and happily charge into the bright, new day? Quite the opposite, right?  And how about the way we end the day?  Many of us watch the news before going to bed and get a big dose of negative information just before trying to go to sleep.  Is it any wonder so many people have trouble sleeping?  The mood we are in before we go to sleep carries over to the next morning, so you are setting yourself up for starting the next day in a bad mood. Odds are you don’t need all that negative information you are taking in from the news, and you will function just fine without it. 

    Replace the news you were taking in with such things as motivational tapes, uplifting music and sites that stress good news. Also reading empowering books helps a great deal. Books can be a fantastic way to recharge your life.  Look for success stories, biographies of successful people, etc and see what works for you.  You will begin to feel better immediately.

    Your next step is to limit the amount of TV you watch.  A recent study showed that 78% of the people watching TV are not interested in the program they are watching at any given time.  So, watching TV is probably making you bored at best, and taking you away from activities that would be more fun.  Prime time is the period when most people are watching TV; you can make it your prime time by turning off the TV and using that time to move your life ahead.

    Next you need to limit your exposure to negative people.  Most people don’t realize how draining it is to be around negative people, but they drain your energy and spirit in many ways.  Negative people pull you down, so work to remove them from your life to the extent you can.  Never get involved in the office pity party, or complaint sessions that come your way.   Seek out people that support you and that you feel good being around and use these people to replace the negative people in your life.  

    The most damaging source of negativity is ourselves.  Most of us generate lots of negative self talk that our minds accept as the truth and results in our being held back in many ways.  We focus on our shortcomings, our problems, and spend our time predicting more bad news for ourselves, generating lots of fear and worry, while undercutting our ability to try new things, etc.  Begin to focus on the positive aspects of you.  What are your unique strengths, what have you accomplished, how are you different from other people?  Use visualization and affirmations to build images of yourself accomplishing the things you want and use these to replace the negative images.  Give yourself lots of credit for everything you do right, so you are getting even more positive news about yourself.  Also, set aside three minutes every day to think about all the good things you have in your life right now.  The process of thinking of the good things in your life, will generate good feelings for you that will last much of the day.

    Don’t forget to take care of your body.  Eat foods that fuel your body for the day ahead, (Im’ still working on that myself) cut out some bad habits and get regular exercise in order to boost your self-esteem while building your strength and endurance, so you can accomplish more.  

    Helping others will also help you feel better about yourself.  Take time to get involved in a charity, animal shelter, or other activities that help others.  You will get good feedback and positive energy from others and develop a genuine sense of pride and accomplishment. Remember that what you put out comes back to you, so make sure it is good that goes out.

    By replacing the negatives in your life with positives, you will make yourself and probably the world a better place.  You will feel better mentally and physically, plus accomplish many of the things you want to.  Nothing is ever accomplished without action, so start now to move your life ahead.

    Until next time Beautiful Soul, keep Glowing…

    4 Personal Development Power Tips

    Hey Boo!

    No matter what your dream is, working on your personal development is sure to get you there. Personal Development, at its basis, is anything that allows us to grow into an ordered life that is of our choosing. This is one of the most cherished goals among self-improvement practitioners. There are some excellent methods available for achieving it. However, it is easier said than done. Here are a few hints and tips to get you started.

    • Clean the clutter from your life

    There is a personal development saying, “a tidy desk is a tidy mind”. Oftentimes, your outer environment is a reflection of the way you think and feel. Is your living or working space always cluttered?  It’s important that you start to order your environment to reflect the ordered life you are building. Clear away unnecessary clutter from your surroundings. This may sound like a meaningless task but you are sending a very clear message to your subconscious mind that you intend to get organized. When you begin to organize your living and working environment it allows you to develop the basic skills needed for organizing your life. This can be achieved through goals. You should structure your goals in such a way that each one builds on the other and ensure that they are not in opposition to one another.

    • Don’t be too set on achieving your goals in exactly the manner you intend to

    A major factor in the non-attainment of goals is the inability to restructure plans and change direction when circumstances dictate these should be done. Remain flexible.

    • Don’t focus on the mistakes

    Simply analyze them and learn the lesson they are trying to teach you. By staying focused on your failures, problems or toils you are actually creating more of them, or at least keeping them in your experience. Focus on the solutions or at least focus on the fact “you’re still in the game”. You still have the opportunity to learn, grow, and turn things around. Consider any mistakes you’ve made as life lessons. Apply what you have learned from them and use them as references (of what not to do) in the future.

    • Make sure you follow through on your plans

    Persistence can accomplish things that nothing else can. How many times were you close to the end of the rainbow, and without even knowing how close you were, you quit? You may be someone who has drive at the start of a venture but finds your enthusiasm waning as you progress, lacking the motivation that is needed to “keep you keeping on” during times of hardship. Those who persist, especially in times like these, are those who ALWAYS win!

    Key Takeaways:

    To increase clarity and encourage organization, be sure to keep your work environment clean and clutter-free. Remember that your outer environment I often an indication of how you think  and feel.

    Don’t be so dogmatic when it comes to the how. Have a goal and plan of action to get you going in the right direction, but keep in mind that things may not go exactly as you planned down to the letter.

    Don’t harp on the mistakes that you make along the way. It’s part of the journey. Learn from your mistakes and move on. It’s okay.

    Be sure to follow through! We sometimes self-sabotage by not being consistent. The only way that you can truly fail is if you give up.

    Until next time beautiful souls, keep glowing…