How to Think Positively in Tough Times

Sometimes it’s hard to look on the bright side even when things are going fairly well. When you’re going through tough times, gaining the “glass is half full” mentality can be a feat in itself!

Don’t Get Overwhelmed

When you’re in the middle of a stressful situation, it’s important to disallow over-anxious and over-analyzed thoughts. You really don’t want to overwhelm yourself with an over-stimulated mind because the added stress will only strain your mind further and you’ll find it nearly impossible to think positively.

Ways To Look On The Bright Side

How you go about transforming difficult situations into positive outcomes will differ each time. Your goal should be to discover a set of strategies that works well for you. It might take some experimenting, but that’s okay!

Consider the following ways to achieve a positive mindset:

1. Avoid feeling sorry for yourself. Feeling sorry for yourself only wastes precious brainpower and it’s not going to help you out in the long run. Instead, strive to gain the wisdom to accept your situation and focus on solutions, instead of sorrow or worry. Everyone has to travel through tough times at some point; it’s just a part of life!
2. Find the life lesson. It may be hard to find the silver lining, but it’s almost always hiding somewhere. All of your experiences – both good and bad – contribute to your life’s knowledge. Be thankful for what you know!

• Reflect on the fact that you’ve gained wisdom and knowledge that may help you make better decisions and cope well in the future.

1. Start small. Take some time to reflect on the difficult situation. If you’re having trouble finding a positive manner of thinking, just start by smiling at yourself in the mirror. You might not feel happy right away, but it sure will be hard not to feel happy when you see a beautiful smiling face staring back at you!
2. Stop worrying. When you’re going through a tough situation, sometimes your worries can overtake you. The future might seem scary and bleak and you’re not sure what you should do. As you know, worrying isn’t going to help the situation in the least. Instead, the moment worry creeps in, redirect your mind onto something positive or reassuring.

• You can also consider the use of positive affirmations to help you through tough times. The more frequently you repeat your affirmations, the sooner you’ll ingrain the positive beliefs into your subconscious.

• Stay calm and start brainstorming some practical solutions.

1. Be brave about change. Change is inevitable and most often you don’t even notice that it’s happening. During tough times, however, you’re likely more sensitive to the changes that are taking place.

• Think about change as an exciting adventure. You’ll never know what you can discover and learn until you’re open to change.

Help From Others

When you’re going through a tough time, your instincts might be to pull inward. Perhaps you don’t want people to see you in a vulnerable state or you want to solve your problems all on your own. However, you must resist this urge to shut people out! Remember, you’re never alone. Your family and loved ones are always there to help you get through any challenging situation, but only if you allow them to!

Of course, your loved ones may not be able to solve your problem outright, but they can provide you with a fantastic support system and help you brainstorm different avenues for problem solving.

As hard as it may seem now, it is possible for you to think positively when you’re enduring tough times. Use these simple positive thinking strategies to help you change your mindset quicker than you ever thought possible!

How to Live Without Regret

It’s hard to keep regret out of your life. No matter where you find yourself today, there’s a chance that you’ll have certain things you wish you did differently. When you strive to look at your situation with a different perspective, you’ll gain a better understanding about life and you’ll learn to live without regret.

While you won’t be able to completely eliminate regret in your life, you can take steps to reduce it. Strive to keep your life organized and live your life your way.

Establish Your Priorities

One way to begin living without regret is to sort out your priorities. Ask yourself what ultimate goal you’re working towards. Are you happy with where you are and where you’re going? If you’re living your life according to plan and you’re happy, then you have nothing to regret.

If changes need to be made, taking small steps may be of help to you. Once you’ve made decisions that you’re comfortable with, you may feel as if a weight has been lifted from your shoulders. This is regret leaving your life!

Live By the Golden Rule

Everyone can benefit by living his or her life with the golden rule in mind. The golden rule is known in all of the world’s religions. It’s special because it’s a concept that we can all agree on, despite our differences.

Simply stated, the golden rule is: “Treat people the way you’d like to be treated.” If you do this, you’ll definitely keep your regrets to a minimum. You’ll be learning how to treat people with kindness no matter what. You’ll be learning how to treat people fairly and you’ll gain empathy. When you put yourself in someone else’s shoes before you act, you’ll be less likely to engage in an act that you’ll regret later.

Take Swift Action

The next step is to take swift action in your life. You only have one life and the time is now. If your goals are clear and you know what you want, what are you waiting for? A common regret is not doing the things that are truly important to them. You need to do these things instead of putting them off until tomorrow!

Have you always wanted to start your own business? Start one! Would you like to get back in touch with your father? Do it! Yes, it’s difficult, yet it’s also simple once you’ve made the commitment to act.

Spend Time with Loved Ones

Spend all the time you can with your loved ones. If they live far away, visit when you can and call often.

Make time for your immediate family by scheduling dinners together or family nights out. Delve deep into the relationships you have with your family. A common regret is sticking to surface topics when it comes to your family. Find out the hopes, fears and even regrets of your family members. Sharing your regrets can be another way of coming to a resolution!

Forget Regret

Ultimately, it always comes down to the fact that you can’t change the past no matter how hard you try, nor how often you think about it. All you can do is take action now to change what happens in the future.

Regret clouds our current thinking and stands in the way of a happy future. But you have the power to blast through regret and move forward with your life!

Take a Deep Breath

In our society of ever increasing use of prescription drugs to reduce stress levels or anxiety, many entrepreneurs are too quick to grab for a bottle – some type of magic pill to solve their stress or anxiety issues. 

In fact, you may have noticed that in an age of fast food restaurants, drive thrus, microwave ovens, and blackberries, it seems that our demand for instant satisfaction has surfaced in every area of our lives.  And as a result, it impacts our emotional well-being on a monumental scale.  And I have often said to others … if only I could get the world to stop spinning for just an hour or so, then I could truly relax and feel better!

In this article today, we’re going to discuss methods that you can use to help you to SLOW DOWN, and take some time to enjoy life in our fast-paced society.

Whether you’re a work-at-home entrepreneur, or an employed individual working for a corporation, the opportunities to escape from our work lives get tougher with each passing year.  Email, instant messaging, cell phones and black berries have even made it impossible for some – and feel they are strapped to their desks 24/7.  And if this sounds like you, you might even resent the fact that you can never seem to “get away” from work.

Whether you love your job or your hate it,  if your thoughts are always on work (whether you’re at the office or not) it will eventually come to a head … a point where your world will come crashing down and you will have reached a breaking point.  To prevent this from happening, the first step is to come to realize that you’re headed down that road.

We all have different methods of coping with stress.  And often one of the first areas that we sacrifice is adequate sleep.  Whether it’s intentional or not, we may find ourselves, awake too late into the evening, or even waking up throughout the night.  And when morning eventually arrives, it doesn’t feel like our sleep was restful.

You may have heard some people say that a change is as good as a rest.  And there’s definitely some truth to this statement.  That’s because when you change to a different set of activities you are not only thinking about different things but also exercising different muscle groups in our bodies.

Take for example an individual who works at a computer throughout the day.  Physical stress on the body includes the back, arms, wrists, hands, and eyes.  By sitting in an adjustable chair – or switching to another one close by, you are modifying the posture of your body.  A simple adjustment up or down (even as little as one or two inches).  This reduces the stress on all these muscle groups that are being used and strained throughout the day.

Other minor changes that you can do to your work environment are to ensure that your computer monitor is at the ideal height for your body, and to make sure that no part of your body stretches too far as you reach for your mouse, keyboard, or other input device.

By placing your printer “out of reach” rather than within arm’s length, you force yourself to stand up and perhaps walk a few steps to retrieve your printed documents.  Once again, this is because a change is as good as a rest.

People who work in a corporate office or other large company often enjoy scheduled breaks or brief chats at the water cooler.  If you’re working alone at home, this is sometimes harder to do, and you might even feel unnecessary.  But by including short breaks in your day (even if only for five to ten minutes), productivity will increase and you’ll more than make up for the few minutes that you have taken away from your busy work time.

So in conclusion, remember that a change is as good as a rest.  Identify ways that you can incorporate CHANGE into your work day, and your body will feel less impact from the stress of sitting in the same position, hour after hour, day after day.

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!

Stress Free Living – Coping With Your Past Is Never Easy

Conflict is never an easy thing to deal with, but old, deeply rooted conflicts can really affect your body, mind and spirit. When you allow a past conflict to stew and become a defining part of a relationship, it can be challenging to move forward, but it’s not impossible, it’s just a matter of taking the right conflict resolution approach.

Look at the Conflict with an Open Heart and Mind

Many times a past conflict can be resolved by simply looking at it with a fresh, calm perspective.  When you learn how to look at a past conflict without raising your blood pressure or losing sleep, you’ll be much more likely to find an amicable resolution.

The first thing you should do is look at the conflict objectively.  You need to raise all of the issues on your mind, but you must always be respectful. Actively listen to the other person, then ask that they do the same for you. Remember to focus on the problem, not the person because personal attacks have never solved anything! If you’re having a difficult time communicating, a third-party can help mediate the discussion so that all parties are equally heard.

Use your mutual interests and concerns as a starting point.  For example, if you were fighting with a sibling over a parent’s estate, perhaps you were both trying to ensure that the estate was as fair and balanced as possible.  Go forward from this point so that you start at a place where you both agree.

Brainstorm resolutions that everyone can agree on.  Conflict usually occurs when one or both parties sense inequality, so get together and brainstorm ideas that will help you resolve the conflict.  You may find that you are actually building on one another’s ideas. That’s a good thing! The goal is to come to a resolution that provides mutual gain.

Create standards of how things will be going forward and create all of your agreements surrounding these standards.  This will help to ensure that you don’t have the same obstacles in the future.  By setting specific standards, everyone will be able to communicate in the most respectful and effective manner moving forward.

Accept What You Cannot Change

We all hear that we should accept the things that we cannot change, but this is easier said than done. When it comes to past conflicts you should always seek to resolve them first. If you cannot, it’s time to accept the things that you cannot change.

• Give up control.  When you give up trying to control what is uncontrollable suddenly the stress of dealing with the conflict dissolves. You will feel like a mountain has been lifted off of your shoulders and you may find that you have a whole new look on life as well as the conflict and the person or people involved with it.
• Share what you feel.  When you are feeling angry, hurt or upset, try sharing your feelings with a trusted friend or family member.  It’s easier to move past conflicts when you have sounding boards at your disposal.  You don’t necessarily have to talk to someone who was involved in the conflict, just share your feelings openly and honestly. By getting it out of your mind and off your chest, you’re able to find peace within your heart.
• Look for the positives.  There are always positive things that come from every situation, even the bitterest of all conflicts. For example, you may have realized the importance of communication, interpersonal relationships, or forgiveness.  When you can find something positive about a past situation you’ll find that coping with conflict is much easier.
• Focus on forgiveness.  When you focus on forgiveness, the pain associated with conflict suddenly disappears. After all, we all make mistakes from time to time. When you realize that we live in an imperfect world it’ll be easier to let go of the hurt feelings and anger associated with the conflict.

How To Live a Balanced Life

Is your life more hectic than ever? Do you find that you become tired more frequently, lose patience easily, experience moodiness, and are so stressed that you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel? Have you lost contact with your friends? Has fun completely gone out of your life? While we tend to think we can do it all; the problem is we can’t.  We forego simple pleasures, take on unnecessary burdens and, quite frankly, put other’s needs before our own. This is a recipe for ill-health, depression, and overall sadness.  It’s time to sit down and determine how to live a balanced life.

Performing selfless acts is noble, but it takes a toll we may not be aware of. There is nothing wrong with being selfish. While everyone seems to be concentrating on themselves, you are focusing on them.  The first step to a balanced life is to think about you and your needs. If you fall apart, you won’t be of any use to anyone.  Selfishness is not defined by an inability to help others; it is the means by which you regenerate yourself by focusing on your own needs.  Simple ordinary pleasures can make a world of difference in your life such as: a manicure, a day out with friends; a new outfit.

You’re mental and emotional state has more to do with the balance within than you realize.  Worry drains us; yet we can’t seem to control it.  We tolerate many things which essentially drain our energy, leaving us feeling empty and void of feeling. Sleepless nights ensue, and the cycle begins all over again the next day. Confront the problems head on; let the water out of the tank before it bursts open. Worry about the things you can control.

Protect your space from intruders who are intent on invading your thoughts and inner peace.  If someone is rude or makes a disparaging remark; walk away. If a situation arises creating angst, deal with it then let it go.  Don’t let it disrupt your life by claiming it as your own. You didn’t create it, nor are you responsible for it.  Try not to solve the ills of the world or place the burden on your shoulders.  Life is hard enough without placing unimportant needs ahead of your own.

A path well taken is one of integrity and honesty. Love yourself; look in the mirror every morning and acknowledge the unique person you are.  Empower yourself to accomplish your most intimate goals.  Acknowledge the kindness and good in you; you may be hard pressed to fine anyone who will. Conduct yourself with dignity and honor. Finally, take charge of your life; nurture it, reward it; and the balance within will reveal itself through the smile on your face, and the gleam in your eyes.

Diagnosing Your Stress Reflex

There are some days that just go terribly wrong.  Your schedule gets thrown off kilter, you get into spats with the people you love, and like Murphy’s Law – anything that can go wrong, will go wrong!

When these kinds of days occur, how do you normally react to the stress?  The methods you automatically turn to in an effort to help you deal with the increased anxiety levels is known as your stress reflex.

Just as your knee jerks when the doctor taps it, there are certain things you do when stress gets the best of you.  It may be that you head straight for the kitchen and drown your sorrows in a big bowl of Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream.

Or maybe you snap at the first person who crosses paths with you.  Your stress reflex kicks in when the pot boils over.  We like to refer to it as the straw that broke the camel’s back, but what it actually means is – you’ve had enough!

When stress levels get to this point, it’s too late to react with your emotions intact.  You need to find ways of coping with stress as it builds, to diffuse the situation before it gets out of control.

Evaluate what your stress reflex is.  You may not have ever thought about it before, preferring instead to not think about anything when stress takes its toll and sends you into a flurry of coping mechanisms.

One you have a finger on the pulse of how you manage stress when it tips the scales, you’ll be able to steer clear of detrimental behaviors and find an outlet that is healthier for you when this type of anxiety seeps into your life.

Your stress reflex may depend on many factors, such as whether you’re male or female. Men and women tend to react differently to stress.  The benefit in pinpointing your stress reflex isn’t to turn off the anger switch forever.

In fact, getting mad to a certain degree can be healthy for you.  Instead, you want to prevent damaging reactions that can affect your personal health or endanger others, such as the case where road rage occurs because a bad driver cut you off after a stress-filled day at the office.

The next time you feel stress beginning to boil over, watch to see how you react to the situation.  Do you blow your lid like a pressure cooker, eat the entire contents of the kitchen, or get physically sick to your stomach?  Keep a journal and then find ways to react differently.

So what’s your stress reflex?

Stress Free Living Tips

1. Unclutter your life
2. Smile
3. Be prepared for rain
4. Tickle a baby
5. Pet a friendly dog/cat
6. Don’t know all the answers
7. Look for a silver lining
8. Say something nice to someone
9. Teach a kid to fly a kite
10. Walk in the rain

How Meditating Can Ease Anxiety

 The fast-paced, hectic world we live with an unhealthy amount of stress. Stress develops into, or manifests itself as, worries and fears, leading to feelings of anxiety. Have you fallen into this frustrating path?

 You can ease anxiety by understanding your worries and fears.  A natural way to ease anxiety is the use of meditation.

 Meditation is a basic technique that can get you in better touch with yourself. It relieves stress, relaxes your body, and calms your mind.

Starting Out With Meditation

 There are different ways you can approach a meditative practice. Start by picking a time everyday when you can calmly be alone without distractions. Begin your meditation by taking deep breaths and focusing only on each breath as it goes in and out.

 On a particularly stressful day, you might have more difficulty focusing on your breath. The thoughts of whatever is stressing you may keep getting in the way. When this happens, acknowledge the thought and then go back to concentrating on your breath. Eventually, you’ll feel your mind grow calm.

 As you calm your mind, begin purposefully taking notice of your thoughts. All you do is notice your thoughts, and then return your attention to your breath again. If any thoughts make you uncomfortable or tense, relax your muscles and then focus on your breath again.

 Try not to stress yourself out further by getting frustrated with the meditation process. As you continue to practice, it will get easier.

So what’s  your best stress free living tip?

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