Awareness

Think

You are what you think!  And you can’t change anything if you can’t change your thinking.

But are you ready for the good news?

YOU CAN change the way you think.

And if you can change the way you think, you can master a new way to be.

An effective mindset is one that makes the best use of all your available resources – your time, energy, opportunities, etc. – and uses them to support growth and positive change. 

 It’s not about trying to do everything and be everything.  And it’s not about living a perfect life.  It’s about being present, being accepting, and making the very best of what’s in front of you.

Be

Character

Our character is often revealed at our highs and lows. 
 Be humble at the mountaintops. 
 Be steadfast in the valleys.
  Be authentic and mindfully patient in between.

Loyalty and Honesty

Grateful

As human beings, when we aren’t grateful for what we have, we aren’t capable of being happy.

This is not just some self-improvement mumbo-jumbo either.  It’s been scientifically proven.  For example, researchers in numerous positive psychology studies  have split study participants into two groups and instructed one group of study participants to reflect on the little things they are grateful for at the end of each day, while the other group just goes about their normal routines.  Then, after several weeks, both groups are interviewed, and it becomes clear that the first group enjoyed considerably greater life satisfaction than the other group during that time period.

Why does this happen?

The simplest explanation is that forcing ourselves to focus on thoughts and actions related to gratitude, regardless of circumstances, helps our brains develop positive emotions.  In one notable study, researchers asked participants to smile forcibly while thinking of something specific they’re grateful for.  They found that this consistently stimulated mental activity associated with positive feelings and emotions.

Okay

Lifestyle

Choosing

The key is to realize that no matter what happens, you can choose your attitude and inner dialog, which dictates a majority of everything that happens next. 
 Truly, the greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another – to train our minds to see the good in what we’ve got, even when it’s far less than we expected.

Loyalty and Honesty

Responding

Rarely do people do things because of us.  They do things because of themselves. 
  There is a huge amount of freedom that comes to us when we detach from other people’s behaviors. 
 So just remember, the way others treat you is their problem, how you respond to them is yours.

Creating Beauty

Failure

If you avoid action because you’re stuck fantasizing about the possibility of failure, you guarantee failure. 
The truth is we all fail sometimes.But the greater truth is that no single failure ever defines us.

Trees

Responding

The way people treat you is their problem,
 how you respond is

yours.

A Double Standard

A New Habit

What you pay attention to increases. 
Focus exclusively on what matters and let go of what does not.
Focus on what you CAN do about a situation and go and do that.
Learn the habit of letting go of all things outside of your control.

Imperfect

Anxiety and Stress

Stress comes from the way you respond to life events, not the way life is.
Nothing has power to cause you anxiety without your cooperation.
The meaning of anything that occurs in your life is the meaning you give it. 
Inner peace begins the moment you choose to be mindful by not allowing another person or event to dominate your emotions.

Dr. Crewson Andrew Martin

Purify

Gratifying Exhaustion

There is a huge difference between empty fatigue and gratifying exhaustion.

  Life is short.
  Invest in activities that move you forward.  The value of doing is so much greater than the value of being safe and doing nothing for the rest of your life.

Trust

Stop

Paradise is not a place – it’s a state of mind. 
Whenever the grass looks greener on the other side… Stop..., stop comparing, stop complaining, and start watering the grass you’re standing on.The grass is ALWAYS greener where it is nurtured and cared for.

Acknowledge

The most fundamental lapse of mindfulness and the most common harm we do to ourselves is to practice willful ignorance by not having the courage and the self respect to slow down and look at ourselves honestly, gently and with love.
We can not change what we do not acknowledge.

Be The Good

Full Responsiblity

Sigmund Freud once said, “Most people do not really want freedom, because freedom involves responsibility, and most people are frightened of responsibility.”  Don’t let this be you. 
 When you blame others for what you’re going through, you deny responsibility – you surrender full power over that part of your life.  In reality, the price of happiness and success IS responsibility.  
 No one else is responsible for you.  You are in full control of how you choose to deal with the current state of your life. 

Chapters

Gratitude

Taking time every day to think about what you’re thankful for isn’t merely the “right” thing to do, it also helps you feel more relaxed and content, because it reduces the stress hormone cortisol by over 20%. 
 Research conducted at the University of California, Davis found that people who worked daily to openly

express their appreciation and gratitude experienced improved moods, energy levels, and physical health, even during bouts of stress.  It’s highly likely that their lower cortisol levels played a major role in this. 

The News

Truths

Too many of us prefer gentle lies to hard truths.  But make no mistake, in the end it’s better to be hurt by the truth than comforted by a lie.  And beware of half-truths too – you may have gotten hold of the wrong half.
  Open your eyes. 
 You must see things how they are instead of how you hoped, wished or expected them to be.  Sometimes it’s hard to accept the truth when the lies were exactly what you wanted to know, but be strong. 
 Life is too short to live a lie

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Masks

Freedom To Love

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/anger-in-the-age-entitlement/201009/freedom-love

Stress Management

The ability to manage stress when you’re under pressure directly affects your overall performance in all walks of life.  In fact, several scientific studies over the years have found that successful people, in various fields of study, are highly skilled at managing their emotions in times of stress in order to remain calm and in control.

There’s actually new research out of Cal Berkeley that reveals an upside to experiencing momentary stress, and then reinforces how important it is to keep long-term stress under control.  The recent study found that the onset of stress challenges the brain into growing new cells responsible for improved memory and cognitive ability.  However, this effect is only seen when stress is temporary.  As soon as the stress continues beyond a few moments into a prolonged state, it actually interferes with the brain’s ability to function and grow new cells.  

And there’s more to the story too.  Besides decreasing your brain cells and intellectual performance, stress also increases your risk of heart disease and depression.  Fortunately, though, unless a grizzly bear is chasing you, the bulk of your stress is unnecessary and under your control.  Successful people have well-honed coping strategies that they employ in stressful situations.  This lowers their stress levels regardless of what’s happening in their environment, ensuring that the stress they experience is temporary and not prolonged.

I Choose

Self Doubt

You can’t get rid of something until you recognize that it’s there.

If you won’t admit that the main reason you are not meeting your goal is because you are doubting yourself you will continue to struggle to break this habit.

What may seem like an obstacle is most likely your self-doubt monster rearing its ugly head to justify why you can’t or shouldn’t do something.  We’ve all said it before, “I don’t have time,” or, “I don’t have the energy,” or, “I don’t know how.”  But let’s be honest: those are the things we tell ourselves when we don’t think we have it in us.

Yes, life can be busy.

You must be mindful of how you feel.  You must face the truth.  By recognizing that self-doubt is holding you back, not your busy schedule, you’re one step closer to rediscovering your self-confidence.