Don’t Let Your Brain Get Flabby – Quick and Simple Brain Exercises

Did you know that the brain acts like the muscles in the body? Every time you use your brain, it becomes stronger and more effective. Just like working out, your brain will become more responsive, efficient, and effective when you do brain exercises. You will simply feel stronger, sharper, and more attentive than ever before.

Brain Exercises for You to Try

Some brain exercises may make you feel a little silly at first, but they are worth all of the perceived embarrassment and uneasiness. Try to put any worries aside while you exercise your mind. You’ll soon notice benefits that you couldn’t possibly have experienced any other way.

One of the best brain exercises is simple but effective: Step outside of your comfort zone and learn something new. Even if you pick up a new book about something you knew nothing about before, you are exercising your brain and using parts of it that you may have never used before. Learning really does exercise the brain. Just think of all the exercise you’ve given your mind since you were a child!

Sharpen Your Mind Through Song

You may not be aware of this, but singing is another way to exercise your brain. When you are encountering a problem or are thinking about solutions, try singing through it.  Singing uses a different part of the brain than speaking does, so when you sing through your concerns, you are giving the other side of your brain a workout! You may also find that you are able to uncover more creative solutions or unique answers to plaguing questions than ever before.

Engage In Some Mind Benders

Puzzles are a great way to put your brain to work.  Putting together a puzzle is not only a relaxing and fun way to spend your time, but it also helps you use your brain in a unique way that you wouldn’t typically do. Pick up a new puzzle every once in a while and have fun putting it together while you give your brain a workout! 

You can also try crossword puzzles, Sudoku, or word searches. These all are great ways to become a more efficient and effective thinker, but they are also fun!  By engaging your mind in rigorous exercise, you will reap significant benefits in terms of your health, happiness, and productivity. Who would say no to that?

Creating a Healthy Mindset

Another way to exercise your brain is to create a healthy mindset. We all have negative thoughts that hold us back from doing the things that we need to do. One way to exercise your mind is to replace negative thoughts with positive ones. You can do this by repeating positive affirmations or motivational quotes throughout your day. Or perhaps you can print your favorite quotes and tape them to your fridge, bathroom mirror, computer screen, or other places that will get your constant attention.

The more you use positive statements, the healthier you will feel. This exercises your mind in the most positive way, and is a way that truly could change your life, one thought at a time!

Is It Time To Simplifying Your Life?

If you’re stressed and can’t seem to find a moments peace, it’s probably time to simplify your life. We often make our lives more difficult than it needs to be, so when we dial our busy lives down a notch or two, things become much simpler and your stress level fall, suddenly life will be much more enjoyable and easier to manage. 

Not everything has equal importance.  So what really matters? Here are a few ways to de-stress during these stressful times.

6 Simple Ways to Simplify Your Life

1. Determine what is important. Make a list of all activities you have going on in your life right now.  You should look at the first four or five and make sure that you are putting more of your energy into these things.  It is the first four or five things in your life such as your relationship, family, and work that should get the most emphasis on a day-to-day basis.  Once you make this list, it’s a whole lot easier to see where you’re spending most of your time (and where you should be spending more time).
2. Reconsider your commitments.  Many times we simply over-commit ourselves.  You should look at the “extras” in your life and see how they align with the things that are most important to you.  If there are things that you are committed to doing that you don’t enjoy or don’t add meaning to your life, consider giving them up.  You can reduce stress and make your life more relaxed when you release yourself from commitments that are only tying you down.
3. Say no.  Many times when we’re stressed it’s because we don’t know how to say no to the people in our lives.  Saying no to kids, family, friends, and even the boss is important.  I know it can be tough to say no, but you can say it with grace or by delegating the request to another capable person.  If you’re finding it difficult to stay firm, remember that you are not superman or superwoman. You can’t possibly take on the world by yourself!
4. Simplify your work.  Every day when you’re at work you likely have a 10-page to-do list. In reality, there are things that just aren’t all that important and aren’t worth the effort. And yes, there will be some things that you’ll never get around to. That’s okay! Accept that fact and re-evaluate your activities to determine what is really essential and do away with the rest.
5. Involve the family.  There is as much to do at home as there is at work.  Make your family your team and involve them in the home activities.  Get everyone involved in the little tasks around the home such as taking out the trash, dusting, and doing the dishes.  For example, you can require that each family member pick up 20 things around the house before bed.  This way, cleaning the house is a lot easier and you can spend more of your time relaxing instead of worrying about every little task around the home.
6. Clear the clutter.  In your home and office there are probably a lot of things that are cluttering your space.  Everything must have its place – even if it’s in the trash!  When you clear the clutter from your space, you’ll find that cleaning, finding things, and simply going about your daily life is a lot simpler and a whole lot less stressful.

As you can see, simplifying your life does not have to be difficult.  You just need to get back to basics and do away with everything else.  Living a simple life is living a happier, less stressed life and that’s something that we can all aspire to do.

Stress Free Living – Finding Inner Peace

Have you ever woke up in the middle of the night with a panicky feeing about all you need to get done the next day? Are you ever overwhelmed about where to start because you have so much to do and no time to get it done?

Everyone has these feelings from time to time, but you can learn to find inner peace. A peaceful mind is a more calm and serene mind, and in learning to remove anxious thoughts, you also find more joy in your life!

How to Achieve Peace Within

When you have a mind that will not stop, you usually are hard-pressed to find inner peace. The more your mind races, the more anxious and frustrated you may become, and this can lead to unproductive days, weeks, months and sometime even years. You don’t have to continue to live this way. There are many ways to calm your overanxious mind and you really can learn how to live a more calm and peaceful life.

If your mind starts running a million miles a minute and you’re not sure which way to turn next, try to pause and repeat a positive affirmation. When you use the power of positive self-talk, you will program your mind to work in a new and different way.

When things seem as if they are getting out of hand, you can use an affirmation such as, “I trust my ability to relax. I am calm and peaceful.” Although this may not be the case at the moment, if you repeat this constantly you will start to believe it. This will help you change your inner dialogue in those moments when you are tempted to succumb to the craziness surrounding you.

Positive affirmations are important because they give you permission to turn off the negative dialogue in your mind and replace it with positive thoughts. The negative dialogue feeds the feelings of turmoil, and when you replace them with peaceful affirmations, you change your life, one positive statement at a time. 

If you have a hard time believing that this strategy will work for you, give it a try with an open heart and mind. It really does work!  In no time at all, you’ll feel more peaceful in every area of your life.

Many of us feel like we cannot do anything about the crazy lives we lead and the inner discontent we feel. I can assure you that this is not true! When you use positive affirmations, you can reprogram your brain so that there is only room for positive thoughts. You will be surprised to find how quickly a positive affirmation such as, “I trust that there is a plan for my life, even if it has yet to be revealed to me” can work for you.

If you feel like your life has gotten off course and you don’t think it’s possible to lead a calm life, why not give a peaceful affirmation a chance?  If you repeat affirmations often enough, you’ll soon begin to believe them, and you’ll turn a seemingly simple statement into reality.

So how do you find inner peace.  Be sure to post a comment here.

Stress Free Living Tips for Dads

Many people think that dads have the easy job, but this is not true.  When you look at the job of a dad you’ll see that they are expected to move easily between their professional and family lives, all the while remaining calm, relaxed, productive, and attentive. 

If you’re a dad you are likely experiencing stress on a daily or weekly basis.  There are some great stress management tips that you can work into your life so you can continue to be the very best dad you can be, regardless of how old your children are.

Stress Relief Tips Just For Dads

1. Make sure that you are taking care of yourself.  Not only does your family count on you being well, so does your employer, friends, and others.  Eat right, get enough sleep, and make sure you are taking vitamins.  When you combine these things, you help to fight off stress by building up your immune system so you are more likely to be healthy.
2. Be a member of a team.  Make your family your team.  If you try to do everything on your own, you will suffer burnout in short order.  When everyone pitches in around the house, you will find that you have a lot less stress overall and you can be a more attentive and involved father.
3. Make time management a priority.  When you are a parent you have a lot of different things vying for your time.  That’s why you’ll want to manage your time well so you can be where you need to be, when you need to be there.  You can do simple things to make your life and the lives of your family members easier. For example, create a chores schedule, work together with your spouse to prepare meals ahead of time, or create a schedule to pick up the kids.  When you manage your time you will be able to get more done without the headaches.
4.  Create a support network.  When you are stressed out or angry you should be able to talk to someone to vent. Sometimes just being able to say how you are feeling or what is stressing you out can help a lot.  Your support network can consists of your spouse, friends, or even family members. 
5. Communicate with your spouse.  When you have kids it can be difficult to get a full thought out in one breath because of constant interruptions.  That’s all the more reason to make a concerted effort to communicate well with your spouse.  This will allow you to work better as a team so the family unit functions well, but it will also help you be attentive to one another’s needs. After all, you need to love and support each other first!

Being a dad is a rewarding experience, but it can also be stressful at times.  The strategies mentioned above can be worked into any dad’s schedule so stress is always kept in check.  When you start to incorporate these strategies into your life, everyone will benefit because a relaxed dad is a friendly, interactive, and present dad and that is what every child wants and needs from both of their parents. 

The great thing about these stress tips for dads is that they are easy to incorporate into your life, so becoming less stressed doesn’t need to be a stressful experience!  Take action, today, to proactively manage your stress and your entire family will benefit.

Stress Free Living Tips for Moms

Being a mother will likely be one of the most difficult things you have ever done, but on the other hand, it will be one of the most rewarding jobs of your life.  As a mother, you often forget to take care of yourself because you’re caught up in the madness that is life.  It doesn’t matter if you’re a stay at home mom or you work outside the home, being a mother is stressful!  Luckily, there are some great strategies to help you deal with mom stress.

Stress Tips For Every Mother

Get the kids on a schedule.  The best thing that every mother can do for herself is to get her kids on a schedule and keep them on it.  When you try to stick to a routine you’ll feel more comfortable handling breakfasts, lunches, naps, and bed times.  When you don’t have a schedule, you may begin to feel scattered or disorganized and your stress levels will increase exponentially!  Things are always unpredictable when kids are involved, but when you have even the simplest structure, your days will be a little more predictable and you’ll save your sanity!

Don’t be afraid to put yourself in time out.  Many mothers feel like they just have to keep pushing forward when they are about to come unglued.  Moms get stressed and often need to take a breather, just like kids!  Instead of continuing to push forward when you are about to snap, walk into another room and just breathe deeply for a few minutes.  While you are breathing, picture how you would like to respond to the situation and then remind yourself that it is important for you to follow through in a calm manner. After all, you’re a role model for your children.  A minute or two in “time out” can make for a great day for the whole family!

Eat healthy.  If you ask 100 moms what their diets are like, at least 85 of them will look at you and cringe.  Unfortunately, there’s a tendency to just eat what you can, when you can.  Even if you are on the go you need to make a conscious effort to eat well.  When you eat nutritious foods, you are providing your body with the energy it needs to keep up with your kids and cope with the stress you encounter every day.

Create a support system.  Teaming up with other moms makes a great support system.  Even if you can’t get together every couple weeks, it is nice to know that you have someone you can call who won’t question your abilities but will just listen and empathize.  All mothers feel the stress that comes with the job, so make sure to surround yourself with other moms that will be happy to listen to you when you need a shoulder to lean on; and be sure to return the favor!

Make time for yourself.  As a mom, you may forget that you’re important too! This is why you need to make time for yourself every day.  You may think that there is no time, but there is if you get help or if you sneak in some relaxation after the kids go to bed or before they get up.  Give yourself a manicure or pedicure, drink that cup of tea slowly, read a book, take a long bath, or get a massage.  Your relaxation time doesn’t have to be extravagant, but it needs to be there.  Even 15 minutes every day can make all the difference!