Living in a fast paced society, we juggle our lives in every aspect and to stay organized we build a to-do list in our heads of what needs to be done today, tomorrow, or eventually.

This can be overwhelming and stressful when your list of tasks keep repeating in your head, therefore with the help of a to-do list you expel those thoughts from your head on to a paper or smart phone app, computer, etc.

To simplify your life I have come up with a system that will get your life on track to being more organized resulting to being less stressed out.  It is a pretty simple process that I use when my to-do list is dozens of lines long and seems impossible to complete.

I call this system the ‘Post-it to-do’ method.  Basically the systems principle is if you can’t fit it your to-do list in a post it then your to-do list for the day is too long.

1. List all your to-do items on a paper (I have tried to create my to-do lists electronically via computer, phone, tablet, but I realized to keep it simple and just write it on a piece of paper but whatever method works best for you will do.)
2. Prioritize the most important based on timelines (for ex. Assignment is due in two days)
3. Choose one simple task to-do and put this as your first task. The reason for this is that you will have a good start with a productive mindset.
4. List your top underlined to-do’s on your post it.

Tips to doing the post-it to-do method

• If your to-do list doesn’t fit on a post it then most likely you can not finish the task for the day
• Don’t cheat yourself by writing small, you can only do so much in a day
• You know the estimate time your task will take, so organize your list accordingly
• Do not feel bad for not completing everything, there is always tomorrow
• If you finish everything on your post-it to-do list then

I usually like to write my to-do’s on paper but in this day and age of technology there are some apps you can use on your smart phone.

8 Simple Principles of Money You should know

There is a common misunderstanding that average and ordinary folks like you and I can’t and will never become millionaires. That couldn’t be further from the truth.

The fact is, we have the power to accumulate wealth beyond our dreams.

Many people who have never earned a six-figure income become financially independent. How do they do it?

Doesn’t it take a high level job with a big salary? Or a large inheritance? Or winning the lottery?

The answer is no.

No matter what our income level, we can achieve financial security, if we take the time to learn 8 simple principles of money that you should know.

Did you know we spend more time planning a two week vacation than our entire financial life?

It is true, so it is time to set your priorities strait.

YOU CAN get out of debt.
YOU CAN build savings.
YOU CAN get on the path to financial independence.
YOU CAN get on the path to financial independence!
By applying the 8 simple principles of money, you can achieve financial security and ultimately reach your goals. But nobody else can make it happen. It’s up to you.

There’s a motto you need to start living by and that motto is: If it’s meant to be, it’s up to me!

You have the power to change your financial life forever.

Did you know one of the biggest financial mistakes most people make is dependence?

Dependence on others allows “outside” factors in people’s lives to control them. The secret to financial security is learning to control the things you CAN control.

We need to take control back.

Back from who?

From banking institutions, insurance companies, trust companies and credit unions. We’ve given them all our money and in return they have taken all the power. We have to be able to understand what we can and what we can’t control.

Things You Cannot Control in your Finances:

• The future of Government Benefits
• Your employer
• Taxes
• Inflation
• Rising costs
• The risk of a single investment

Things You Can Control in your Finances:

• Saving for retirement
• Other sources of income
• Ways to reduce your taxes
• Maximizing your savings
• Saving more
• Diversity of your investment choices

The 8 Simple Principles of Money:

1. Pay yourself FIRST

Paying yourself first means putting yourself and your family before any other demands on your money. After all, you work for you and not for your cable, internet, or cell phone provider.

Paying yourself first is a form of self-respect.

Deposit a set amount EACH AND EVERY MONTH into an investment program, no matter what other financial obligations you have. It’s amazing how fast your money can grow if you invest even a small amount regularly, at a good rate of return. We’ll be discussing that another time.

2. Adjust your priorities

It’s been said that: If you make $10 and spend $9 = happiness
If you make $10 and spend $11 = misery

As you begin your journey to financial independence, remember this key point: It’s not what you make, it’s what you keep. Right now, Canadian households are spending 162% of what they make. Keeping up with the Jones’ is putting people in financial slavery.

3. Change your thinking (Stinkin’ Thinkin’ = Net Worth Shrinkin’)

The way you think about money is everything. Your mindset is a powerful thing, especially when it comes to money. That explains why so many of the people who win the lottery end up losing it all. It helps you understand how so many millionaires are self made.

What is the difference between the two groups?

It’s how they think.

If you think you don’t deserve to be financially secure, you’ll never be financially secure. However, if you “upgrade and improve” your self image and believe you deserve the freedom and peace of mind that financial security provides, you’ll have a better chance at doing what needs to be done to obtain wealth beyond your dreams.

4. Adjust your lifestyle

Along with setting priorities comes one tough rule of life: you can’t have everything. You have to make conscious decisions about every purchase. Go to www.mint.com and download the app. It really helps you keep track of your financial life.

An important concept to understand is want vs. need.

A need is something you have to have, something you can’t do without. You “need” food. You “need” shelter. A want is something you would like to have. You “want” ice cream. You “want” a bigger house. If you want to achieve financial independence, you may have to make sacrifices for a period of time and go without some of your “wants.” It’s not that tough, but it is very, very important to your financial health.

5. Earn Additional Income

If your family income is very modest, things may be so tight that it’s tough to invest more than $50 a month. If you want to make significant progress, consider taking a part-time job to get the extra income needed to start your investment program.

6. Re-align your assets

This is another way to take control and free up income for savings. There are two major areas in which families are not getting their money’s worth that are great areas to target for adjustment:

a. Low-interest savings accounts or accumulations with banks and insurance companies. You can take money from a 1% savings plan and invest it in an area that has the potential for higher returns.

b. High-cost life insurance. You can replace your outdated, expensive cash value insurance policies with term insurance and potentially save thousands of dollars in premium over time! Both of these areas will be covered in more detail at a later time.

7. Avoid The Credit Trap

Credit cards are good for convenience but that’s it. Be careful to avoid the pitfalls of “plastic money.” Pay your balance in full each month and you’ll not only avoid interest charges but you’ll prevent your balance from escalating out of control and will improve your credit score.

To keep your monthly charges under control, pay with cash. You’ll probably find you spend less when you have to hand your money over. See how many options you have? You DO have a choice about your financial future.

Here is 9 easy steps of getting out of credit card debt.

8. Set goals and have a plan

You can’t reach your destination if you don’t know what it is. Setting goals gives you two things:

1. An incentive to make the necessary sacrifices
2. Benchmarks along the way to gauge your progress

After you’ve set your goals you need a road map to get you there. You need a financial game plan. Together with your goals, a game plan is the cement that holds together your financial foundation. Out of sight, out of mind.

Debt is a scary and stressful when you are faced with the monthly statement. It is the constant reminder of the debt that you have accumulated throughout a couple of months.

Original Image on Flickr

Instead of ignoring it, it is time to face these credit card debts and live stress free of debt.

9 Easy Steps To Get Out of Credit Card Debt

I have added an example you can follow.

1. Make a list of all your credit card debts.

• Visa
• Master Card
• Line of Credit

2. Write amount owing for each credit card

• Visa – $7000
• Master Card – $5000
• Line of Credit – $4500

3. Write the interest rates for each credit card.

Rate each card starting from 1 as the highest interest card, then 2, the next highest, etc.

• Visa – $7000 – 11% interest (#2)
• Master Card – $5000 – 20% interest (#1)
• Line of Credit – $4500 – 8% interest (#3)

4. Write the minimum payments for each credit card.

• Visa – $7000 – 11% interest (#2) – Min $100
• Master Card – $5000 – 20% interest (#1) – Min $200
• Line of Credit – $4500 – 8% interest (#3) – $150

5. Calculate the total minimum payments for all cards.

• TOTAL MINIMUM PAYMENT = $450

6. Do you have any extra money this month?

In addition to the total minimum payments in 5 that you can put towards your credit card debt?

This can be determined by creating a budget which I will discuss in another post.

• Extra money = $300

7. If ‘Yes’ to 6, then put this extra money into the highest interest rate credit card.

We chose the highest interest rate credit card because this is what is costing you most each month.

• Monthly payments to Master Card will be $200 minimum + $300 extra money = $500 per month.

If ‘No’ to 6, then make sure to pay the minimum payments but it is time to dig deep and start making more money or find ways to save money in different areas of your life in order to pay for these debts.

8. Once the Master Card is paid off, you can start paying the next highest rated credit card which is Visa.

• Monthly payments to Visa will be $100 minimum + $500 from what you were paying previously on the the Master Card = $600 per month.

9. Then you repeat steps 8 according to how many credit cards you have to pay off.

I dislike being cold and getting up to get in to the outdoors for a workout is just not appealing but I’ve managed to turn my mentality from being lazy to being motivated. Hopefully this will be a a little kick in the butt to get you back in shape.

These are 5 fitness tips to keep you motivated during the winter:

1. Join a class.
2. Get a workout buddy.
3. Join an organized sport.
4. Plan a warm get away.
5. Try A Winter Activity.

1. Join a class.

Whether it is yoga, spinning, dance, or martial arts training, joining a fitness class will make you accountable to be active and stay active. Some days I skip some of my workouts but I am guaranteed to go to my yoga class for it is only taught on two days a week and if I miss it then I can not do it on any other day. It just forces you to put it on your schedule and you will feel accountable.

2. Get a workout buddy or personal trainer.

I have found somebody to rely on, on days when I don’t feel like getting out of my house. I think I provide the same service for that person. Some days it is tough to get up but if you have a workout buddy who has similar fitness goals, that little push is just what you needed get your lazy ass up and going.

3. Join a Sport League.

Similar to joining a class, joining a sport league keeps you accountable to exercise for you have to be there for your game and/or possibly for your team, if it is a team sport. I am enrolled in an indoor beach volleyball league held every week and I actually look forward to it for I love volleyball. Joining a sports league keeps you active without you realizing it for it is something you enjoy.

4. Plan a warm get away.

Since it is cold we are prone to hide behind our jackets, sweaters, and scarves. Our winter gear hides our figures where as in warm weather we tend to show more skin therefore we fall in to the trap of not really caring how we look, so during the cold months we let our fitness slip. So why not plan a trip to get away somewhere warm such as the Caribbean or Mexico? It is the perfect way to stay in shape for you want to look amazing on your vacation. Also it will make you feel confident in sharing your photos on Facebook because you are in ‘to die for’ shape and you will make everyone jealous because you went somewhere hot and you look smoking hot!

5. Try a Winter Activity.

If you can’t win over winter, might as well join in and make the best of it by trying a winter activity such as skating, skiing, snow boarding, tobogganing, etc. So pull up your snow pants, throw on a jacket, slip on your mittens, and hat and enjoy the winter wonderland.

I barely drink pop but once in awhile I have a craving for that cold carbonated drink to quench my thirst. It also mixes well with one of my alcoholic beverages also known as a chaser.

The sound of opening a pop can is just refreshing and seems to always sound the same as you pull the aluminum tab of the pop can to open it. Whenever I hear that sound it makes me crave for some myself.

The first sip of cold soda just tingles and feels amazing as it goes down my throat.

If I had the opportunity to open pop cans without drinking it, I would fully do it. I bet I’d have sore thumbs after but I suppose it is worth it.

The sound of opening a soda can is just one of the simple things in life that make me smile.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vuyS3JqOLdQ

Now I’m craving a can of pop … sorry if I did the same.

Bottoms up.

It is the feeling of reuniting with someone you haven’t seen in a long time, whether it be a lover, friend, or family member. It gives me the feeling of joy.

“I like to see people reunited, I like to see people run to each other, I like the kissing and the crying, I like the impatience, the stories that the mouth can’t tell fast enough, the ears that aren’t big enough, the eyes that can’t take in all of the change, I like the hugging, the bringing together, the end of missing someone.” ― Jonathan Safran Foer

I watch people come out the terminal doors with their luggage in tow. They have looks of anticipation, searching for the person they are supposed to meet at the airport. Looking left to right as they exit, feeling kind of lost until they hear their name being called or even just when eye contact is engaged between the two. This is the moment when the looks of anticipation turns in to a smile and suddenly the two parties move faster to meet.

They could have travelled half way across the globe or maybe just a few hours flight, one can’t really tell for the fatigue of travelling is outweighed by the feeling of joy one feels when reuniting with someone they love.

No matter how far the distance and time spent separated, feelings of euphoria transforms into hugs, kisses, or tears of joy.

No words are needed for body language tells the story.

I don’t mind waiting for the person I am meeting at the airport for the positive feelings that surround me is simply amazing. I know I am about to reunite with someone I love for the flight has landed a few minutes ago.

The anticipation is killing me with excitement but it is one of the simple things in life I live for … picking up someone from the airport.

Then university or college comes in to play and shifts things once again. This is when my perspective changed. I went on my yearly physical with my doctor where she asked,

“What you do for exercise?”

So I answered with,

“I do what I can when I can for as an engineering student, I am tacking over 25 hours of in class and then studying on top of that.”

My doctor looked at me with a dead stare and said,

“You think you are busy? I have 2 kids and a husband. If you think you don’t have time then you are delusional.  You have time, you just have to make time.”

It really changed my perspective on things in my life until this day. She was boldly on point.

“Never complain, never explain. Resist the temptation to defend yourself or make excuses.”  ― Brian Tracy

We constantly make excuses for being too busy to work out and exercise, whether we are in school or work, we always make an excuse NOT to be active.  The reality is we are too lazy to exercise for keeping active is work.  I know it ain’t easy for I have days where I just rather sit on my couch and watch old episodes of Sex in the City with a bag of chips in my hand, but I have set my health as a priority.

When you reach 25, you are walking up a downward escalator and we have two choices to keep up or be ahead of the downward escalator. It is your choice!

After this visit with my doctor I joined my school gym then eventually added Aikido to the mix.  This brought me to be active 3-4 times a week.

Now this kept me in pace with the downward escalator but once I graduated and started a job and things started to slip and I was going down with the escalator.

I made more money than I could handle therefore spent more money eating out and drinking. I gained 10lbs and most won’t say I was fat but my mother would tell me more times than one that my ‘boy-on’ aka belly was bulging. I am 4’11” so weight as much as 10lbs was significant on me.

I was still active 3-4x a week but I ate poorly.  I didn’t love my body but I accepted it for I wasn’t huge in this societies standards.

Then I met a personal trainer and he didn’t think 4x a week was enough considering I took Friday to Sunday off.

My mentally was stuck on,’I’ll never work out on a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday’. Then he just asked “Why?” in which I asked with a dubious answer which was, “It is the weekend!” Now that I recall and type that it seems really silly. At the time I was adamant that it was a valid excuse.

This is when I shifted my thinking once again going beyond my mental limitations.

Three days off consecutively without any physical activity was too long to be inactive and was counter productive.

Eventually I changed my workout routine from 4x to 6-7x a week. I scheduled workouts for 7 days a week but if I missed one day I was fine for I had a routine for 6 other days.  It gave me focus on that specific day of the week and it became a daily goal and priority.

So now that I changed my workout regimin, my eating habits had to change also, this is and continues to be my most challenging for I love to eat!

I started living with my boyfriend and I used to plate our meals and it was equivalent in portion size and he would question it for I was half his size. This made me question it too and I started to watch my portion size comparing what he had on his plate to mine.  Therefore, instead of having 3 eggs, I would have 2, or if he had 2 slices of bread, I ate 1, etc.

I wasn’t hungry or starving. I realized the importance of the amount of food we intake, it was more than I needed.

My lifestyle changed significantly where people thought I worked out a lot for I made it part of my lifestyle versus a task I had to do.

I made it a part of me. I didn’t spend more than an hour at the gym a day unless I was doing yoga. It wasn’t more time then watching a tv show.

I figured an hour of health was more important than an hour of TV.  This goes back to me giving excuses of having no time. We always have time, we just have to make time. We spend more time commenting on our facebook status updates and photos that we fail to realize the precious time we could of used to improve ourselves instead of our online social status’.

I am in the best shape of my life, lost 12lbs, and have more energy than a 5 year old.  To sum up what I have learned and hopefully you can take from my story on …

How to Be Active and Stay Active

1. Stop making excuses
2. Make your health your priority
3. Break down your mental limitations
4. Think of your health as part of your life, not another task
5. Get support from others
6. Find an activity you love, so it doesn’t feel like a workout
7. Love yourself to stay fit, you owe it to yourself and those who love you

So get up and go.

Get active.

I know how difficult it could be but it is time to change your perspective before you become another fat statistic.

Be active today, for there is no better time than now!

It is Friday before long weekend and many coworkers had an early start to their long weekend but I on the other hand decided to come in to save vacation days.

Friday’s before long weekends at work are usually more relaxed for there are no major deadlines to meet and the energy in the office is positive.

It is not a normal day at work where you feel like being productive for you are just counting the minutes until your workday is over and everyone is antsy about clocking out physically though you may have clocked out mentally once you arrived at work.

These days usually do go slower than any other day for it seems when you anticipate something, the minutes leading up to it seem like hours.

“Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.” ― Aristotle

Plans are made and awaiting to be implemented.

Tick.
Tock.
Tick.
Tock.

Before you know it, you finally made it through Friday before the long weekend.

So the other day I decided to talk to in to the fan and it transformed my voice in to a robot, lol.

I remember doing this as a kid and it always amused me and until this day it still amuses me. I am kind of silly at times and I guess that is what makes me who I am. I will always have that kid in me that will live forever and what’s not to love about that?

In times where we are getting older and take on more responsibilities we get lost in our lives that sometimes we just have to live like a kid again. Life is too short to be serious all the time.

If you are stressed or having a rough day, turn on your fan and sing a song in to it and it will take some or all of your stress away.

A high tech version of talking in to a fan is the T-Pain app where you can auto-tune your voice. Try it someday! It is loads of fun and it is simply amusing.

I am guilty of spending 30 minutes auto tuning myself singing “Dancing in the Dark” by Dev.

Text messaging, e-mail, Twitter, and FaceBook have narrowed the gap for communication but at the same time limits us from having more personal interactions such as talking to someone on the phone.

Photo Credit:Coal Miki on Flickr

When you are able to talk to someone special whom you haven’t talked to in a long time, their voice brings a comfortable familiarity which was lost through the electronic lines of communication.

I am guilty of falling in to this trap, as many of us are. With our iPhones, BlackBerries, Androids, etc., we have become submerged in less personal ways of communication.

Sometimes we need to break free from this and call someone who we’ve haven’t talked to in a long time to hear their voice and have a friendly conversation.  It is infectious hearing someone smile, laugh, be excited, happy, etc., then seeing a smiley or LOL on a text message.  I think people over use LOL’s in text messages and I wonder if it is real for I seen my friend send an LOL text but wasn’t laughing at all, lol.  I’m sure we are all guilty of doing this but it is meant to convey that something said was funny.

Occasionally, I talk to someone on the phone, Skype, or FaceTime but I don’t think I do it enough. I don’t even go over my minutes on my phone which is limited to only 200 minutes in the day.  Maybe it is the fact people work during the day but even my unlimited evening minutes  don’t even go over 500 minutes.

I think that talking to someone on the phone is such a rarity that when someone calls, you think something is wrong for it seems people only call in emergencies or if they are driving.

So call that friend you haven’t talked to or heard from in a long time. Laugh about the good times and catch up, you’ll be surprised how it can bring a smile on your face.