How do you fulfill your dreams when you don’t know where to start and worry about the time and money that it may take you?

It can sometimes feel rather overwhelming to make the type of major life changes that lead you to meet the goals you’ve always dreamed of reaching. So if you find yourself pondering that, “where do I begin?” question, try these 4 simple steps for identifying the path to fulfill your dreams without getting “off track”.

Fulfill Your Dreams: Step One

Pretend for a moment that you have all the courage you could ever possibly want, and that money is just not an issue for you (no matter how much in reality it may be). Take a clean sheet of paper and at the top of it, list one area of your life you’d like to change. This might be something with your relationship status, career, spiritual connection, a creative endeavor, your physical condition, something environmental or anything else you choose.

Fulfill Your Dreams: Step Two

Once you’ve chosen the area you’d like to work on, draw two vertical lines down your piece of paper to divide it into thirds. On the far left side, write down what you dream this area of your life could be. Let yourself have the freedom to make the dream as far-reaching as you could want it to be. Identify your highest potential in this area of your life that you are working on right now. Let yourself be as imaginative and upbeat as possible. Then, just as you’re able to pretend you have the ultimate amount of courage, pretend that no limitations—self or otherwise— exist.

Fulfill Your Dreams: Step Three

On the extreme right side of your sheet of paper, write down a summary or list of the factors as they currently are in your life relating to each aspect of the goal you have on the left side of your sheet. In other words, what is your situation in this area of your life now? On the left side you have the ideal and on the right side you have your present situation. Make sure you thoroughly identify your status quo, even if it’s a painful prospect to acknowledge.

Fulfill Your Dreams: Step Four

Now, finally, in between what is ideal on the left and what is real on the right, find the transition factor in the middle column of your paper. What are the steps you are willing to take that can help you to shift your situation from what is now, to where you want to be? This is the path for transitioning your dream to reality. In other words, use the middle column to reconcile the right and left sides of your paper to identify that path to your ultimate goal.

If you complete this exercise, you’ll be on the right track to begin a life-changing journey inspired by your own dreams. There is never a better time than now to take any area of your life from where it is, to where it could be!

Word of caution: “Start working to fulfill your dreams, otherwise someone else will put you in work to fulfill theirs.”

-Author Unknown

The author of this article is Michael S. Broder, Ph.D. 
He is also an author of a best-selling book 
Stage Climbing: The Shortest Path to Your Highest Potential

Short inspirational quotes are like little sparks. They seem small and often insignificant, but they hold the power to fire up our motivation and lighten up our days.

In fact, life’s greatest wisdom is usually enclosed in short inspirational quotes, sayings and proverbs, not in books and books of knowledge. They speak the most to our heart. Like powerful success mantras they keep us going when things get tough. They remind us to zoom out and stay focused on the things that matter most. They give us a boost of motivation and make us strive a little harder, dream a little bigger and be a little more patient with ourselves and others.

Enjoy 40 Short Inspirational Quotes below. Pick your favorite ones and use them as your success reminders. Put them on your desktop wallpaper, attach them to your fridge, write them down above your to-do list, but most importantly share these short inspirational quotes with others!

40 Short Inspirational Quotes

Live Fully:

1. “Live and let live.”
~ Yiddish Proverb ~
2. “May you live every day of your life.”
~ Jonathan Swift ~
3. “Life is a promise, fulfill it…”
~ Mother Teresa ~
4. “I’ve got nothing to do today but smile.”
~ Simon and Garfunkel ~
5. “Life is to be enjoyed, not endured.”
~ Gordon B. Hinckley ~
6. “Make each day your masterpiece.”
~ John Wooden ~
7. “Life is a choice.”
~ Author Unknown ~
8. “Live simply so others may simply live.”
~ Mother Teresa ~
9. “You get what anybody gets – you get a lifetime.”
~ Neil Gaiman ~
10. “Life is just a chance to grow a soul.”
~ Powel Davies ~

Love Fully:

11. “Loving can cost a lot but not loving always cost more.”
~ Merle Shain ~
12. “Life teaches, Love reveals”
~ Author Unknown ~
13. “No Feeling is final.”
~ Rainer Marie Rilke ~
14. “Be Curious, not judgmental”
~ Walt Whitman ~
15. “Big egos have little ears.”
~ Robert Schuller ~
16. “Make yourself necessary to somebody.”
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~

Strive for Success:

17. “Nothing recedes like success.”
~ Walter Winchell ~
18. “Success can’t be forced.”
~ Loretta Young ~
19. “Beginnings are always messy”
~ John Galsworth ~
20. “Opportunities don’t happen, you create them.”
~ Author Unknown ~
21. “The grass is greener where you water it.”
~ Neil Barringham ~

Embrace your dreams:

22. “In Dreams Begin Responsibilities.”
~ Delmore Schwartz ~
23. “Aim for the highest.”
~ Andrew Carnegie ~
24. “Powerful Dreams Inspire Powerful Action.”
~Jonathan Lockwood Huie ~

Keep on going:

25. “Turn your wounds into wisdom.”
~ Oprah Winfrey ~
26. “Failure is success in progress.”
~ Author Unknown ~
27. “Failure cannot cope with persistence.”
~ Napoleon Hill ~
28. “The shortest answer is doing.”
~ Lord Herbert ~

Choose your attitude:

29. “Choose the World You See.”
~ Jonathan Lockwood Huie ~
30. “Reflect upon your present blessings.”
~ Charles Dickens ~
31. “All limitations are self-imposed.”
~ Oliver Wendell Holmes ~
32. “The greatest prayer is patience.”
~ Buddha ~
33. “You are your choices.”
~ Seneca ~
34. “Luck is believing you’re lucky.”
~ Tennessee Williams~
35. “Everything you can imagine is real.”
~ Pablo Picasso ~

Various Pearls of Wisdom:

36. “Knowledge is Power.”
~ Francis Bacon ~
37. “Wisdom begins in wonder.”
~ Socrates ~
38. “Success is the worst teacher”
~ Trace Cohen ~
39. “Worries end where faith begins”
~ Author Unknown ~
40. “The past has no power over the present moment.”
~ Eckhart Tolle ~

What are your favorite short inspirational quotes?

Share your quotes in the comment section below!

Body language is a powerful non-verbal communication tool, allowing you to decode subtle messages and even spot a liar. However, before you learn how to do this, I want you to ask yourself one question – why would you want to stop a liar?

They say that with great power comes great responsibility. Mastering the art of body language is a great power and you should be ready to assume the responsibility that comes with it. For one you will start noticing that people tell more untruths than you would have ever imagined. In fact, researchers have discovered that 60% of people lie at least once during a 10 minute conversation with an average telling 3 false things during that time span.

Most of the untruths that we say are white lies, such as “those jeans look great on you”, “sorry, I didn’t hear your phone call” or “there was a lot of traffic on the road”.

We do it quite often ourselves and we accept that others should be “tactful” enough in order not to hurt our feelings as well.

However, sometimes the issue is too important and we need to be sure if the person is telling the truth or is trying to hide something from us.

Here are some of the little-known body language signs that will allow you to spot a liar and get down to the truth:

1. Lying with the eyes.

Usually when people tell a lie their eyes give them away in two ways, depending on how well they are prepared and their efficiency at lying. Inexperienced liars (including most kids) usually avoid making eye contact for two reasons: they are ashamed and they are making the story up as they go.

Experienced liars know this and rehearse their lies before telling them, so they make it a point to hold eye contact for as long as possible. In this case their blink rate slows down and you may get a feeling that the person is staring at you or giving you an innocent wide-eyed Bambi look. (read more about body language of the eyes here).

2. Lying with your hands.

Hands are associated with honesty and openness of the heart. We embrace people with our hands, we close a deal with a handshake and we say that we “wash our hands of something” when we don’t want to accept responsibility for something we don’t believe in or consider unjust.

It is only natural that our hand gestures can give us away when we are being deceptive.

• When a lie escapes our mouth, our first instinct is to conceal it in some way. If a person is making repetitive and slight movements to cover up their mouth by touching their lips, throat or touching the base of the nose, it is a signal to you to stay on guard for their lies.
• Hiding hands by putting them into pockets, clenching them together or holding them behind the back are subconscious hand gestures that we use to prevent another person from discovering the truth.
• Another sign of spontaneous lying is excessive hand gesturing, especially twirling with hair, drumming fingers, adjusting clothing or nervously playing with another object, like a ring or a pen. It can also be a sign of nervousness, so you will have to interpret this gesture in the context.

3. Lying with your lips.

Deceiving someone is not a pleasant task. Our mind and body protests against it and it goes to a much deeper emotional level than you would imagine.

One such gesture is sticking your tongue out slightly to, sort of, lick the lips. An interesting thing about this gesture is that it is not only a sign of nervousness. Its origins go back to when we were toddlers and would reject food we did not want to eat by sticking our tongues out. As we grow older we might have the same reaction to lies that don’t sit well with us. We try to reject them!

4. Lying with our voice.

A person, who knows that they are not being honest, tries very hard to control their voice and prevent themselves from portraying their true emotions. Often they overdo it by speaking in a low, monotonous tone. If you notice such speech alterations, pay greater attention to the person’s body language, because there is a high chance that the person is hiding something.

Another way lies affect communication is called “speech hesitations”. Frequent pauses, throat clearing or filler pauses such as “ums” and “ers” may indicate that a person is making the story up as they are talking and needs some time to reflect on what to say next. Paying attention to these verbal clues will help you to spot a liar easily.

5. Lying with our body.

Just as we don’t want to give our lies away with our tone of voice, we try to control our body language. The only way we can do this is to try to keep gestures and facial expressions to a minimum. As a result, our body looks stiff and facial expression guarded. Of course, there are people who can sweet talk others and even seem relaxed, but the vast majority of us are not experienced at lying. So just the thought of being viewed in a negative light or being called “a liar”, makes us nervous.

6. Lying with our mind.

Sometimes our mind can act as the devil’s advocate, trying to bend the truth, find loopholes and come up with rational justifications of our irrational actions. It also uses some pretty advanced deception techniques by picking some obscure point and talking about it excessively instead of confronting the main question.

The strategy between non-stop talking is very simple – shift the conversation away from the unpleasant topic and do not let another person ask other clarifying questions that could uncover the lie.

Note: Just one gesture or facial expression indicating deception does not automatically make someone a liar. You need to look for clusters of these body language signals.

And one more thing… before offending someone or labeling him or her as a “liar”, stop and think how often you have expressed politically-correct “untruths” or bent the facts to make yourself look better?

Actually, here is a great experiment I want to offer you. Next time you catch yourself telling a half-truth, pay attention to your own body language.

Can you recognize some of the ‘how to spot a liar’ gestures that give YOU away?

I know that I am guilty of #1 and #6.

“If someone isn’t what others want them to be, the others become angry. Everyone seems to have a clear idea of how other people should lead their lives, but none about his or her own.” ― Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist

The young woman was walking on the beach, when she saw an old lady sleeping in a winter coat right on the sand. She was lying just a few feet away from the beach entrance and people were constantly walking passed her.

It was Sunday, the day when people were supposed to go to the church, share a meal with their family, meet with their friends. But this woman was all alone. Judging by her wrinkled face, she had lived a long life, probably working, falling in love, raising children, only to find herself sleeping on the ground and being looked down on years later.

The young woman had $10 in her pocket and she felt that this old lady needed it much more than she did.

The problem was giving her the money. Leaving it beside her was too risky as someone else could pick up the $10 bill. While waking her up was not at option either. So the young woman decided to sit down and read the book she brought with her, while she waited for the old lady to wake up.

About half an hour later the woman slowly got up and started walking towards a nice condo building. She stopped in front of it and took the key out of her pocket. She was not a poor, lonely, homeless old lady as the woman imagined her to be! She was her neighbor!

For the past 20 years the old lady had taken a nap on the beach, but with age it had become more challenging to make the long trips onto the sand or carry a blanket with her. So now she would just put on her oldest winter coat and go downstairs to take her nap…

Sounds a little eccentric? Maybe, but it does not change the fact that the young woman felt like an idiot afterwards.

And I know this for sure, because I was that woman.

I’ve told you this story to remind you – stop judging people by their cover and don’t assume that you know what is best for them. My assumptions and my sincere effort to help, would have only offend this woman.

And even though she has never found out about it, I still owe her an apology. I judged her without knowing anything about her life. I assumed that I could help her instead of actually asking if she needed my help in the first place.

In many ways, it’s much harder to stop judging others, than to take a hard look at our own life and shortcomings. Judging people does not require compassion or intense self-reflection. Our brain does it almost automatically, saying “I’m better than you” when we judge others or “You are better than me” when we judge ourselves.

Making assumptions or judging is one of those destructive habits that hurt us more than we often realize.

Here are The 5 Biggest Negative Effects of Judging:

1. It hurts other people.

The fact that other people might not hear you saying or thinking something about them, does not make it any better. Because our thoughts and words don’t just disappear. They are real energy and when we judge someone, it is always negative energy. So it still does more harm than anything else.

2. It hurts your own happiness.

Usually when we judge other we end up feeling guilty afterwards. But this is not all. Psychological research actually demonstrated that how positively we see other people, shows how satisfied we are with our own life and how much we are liked by others.
The researchers found that positively judging others effects how enthusiastic, happy, kind-hearted, courteous, emotionally stable we are and vice versa. If you only make an effort to stop judging others negatively, your own well-being and happiness will improve greatly.

3. It makes you more close-minded.

The more stereotypes that get formed in our mind, the narrower our view of the world becomes. It’s like building high walls around ourselves and then getting trapped in a deep well. Our perception of reality becomes a tiny opening above our head and we are no longer able to see, experience or appreciate the richness and diversity of the world. Breaking free from the habit of judging is actually one of the biggest steps that you can take towards embracing a more fulfilling, abundant and satisfying life.

4. It puts negativity into the world.

No matter how you rationalize your judgments, they do not add any positive thoughts or emotions into the world. First they bring other people down. Then they bring you down.

When a journalist once asked Mother Teresa “What can we do to promote world peace?” she answered “Go home and love your family.” If we stopped judging our own children or spouse, we would have much more loving relationships. If we stopped judging our co-workers, we would have a much more enjoyable atmosphere at work. If we stopped judging people we meet for the first time, the whole world would become a much better place. Don’t you think?

5. It affects your self-esteem.

If you have the habit of judging others, you probably judge yourself harshly as well. It’s a vicious cycle. The more you judge how other people dress, the more you worry and become self-conscious about your own looks. The more you judge others for their lack of common sense, the more you feel the need to prove your own intelligence. Judging others plants a seed of fear of being judged. Think about it, confident people just don’t feel the need to put others down in order to make themselves feel better. Self-conscious people do that.

What I want to offer you is a little experiment – try to stop judging people you know for the rest of the day. And for every time you slip and think something negative about another person, just make an effort to find 5 positive traits about them. Why 5 traits? Because studies show that it takes at least 5 positive comments to neutralize one negative remark.

Try it and tell me how easy it was for you to stop judging people?

We often ask for relationship advice from our friends, parents, co-workers and even strangers (because sometimes it is easier to pour your heart out to a complete stranger than to a best friend).

Sometimes we get good advice, sometimes we just get an understanding shoulder to cry on and sometimes we get heart-felt and sincere advice, that is. . . NOT good. Bad, actually. Terrible, to say the least.

Because any advice that you receive from people that like you, is rooted deeply in their personal beliefs, past experiences and popular assumptions. And there is no guarantee that THEIR beliefs, opinions and past experiences will help you with YOUR relationships.

So why look for the right person to help you with your relationships, when there is timeless and very practical advice that spiritual people from all ages have left us.

I guarantee that if you follow at least some of it, your relationships with other people will bloom, arguments will get resolved and past hurt will be forgotten.

5 Quotes by Spiritual People: All The Relationship Advice You Will Ever Need

1. “Be the change you want to see in the world.” – Gandhi

This is probably one of the most widely-known and frequently repeated quotes and for this reason it is also one of the most overlooked as well. The problem is that we understand it too literally. When we hear about changing the world, we think of grand problems like world hunger, racism or global warming. We also believe that it takes someone like Gandhi to make a difference.

But if you take this pure gold advice and apply it on a smaller scale, like daily interactions between people, then you will get a real life transformation.

Because instead of blindly reacting (and overreacting) to situations, you will become more conscious about your actions. Do you want a driver not to honk at you three times, because you got distracted and did not go as soon as the light changed to green? Do you want your spouse to say “I’m sorry” and put the differences behind you. Do you want people to be more understanding and tactful when you are having a bad day? Then start with YOU.

Because if you want your world to be a better place, you should be the first one willing to change.

2. “Treat people the same way you want them to treat you.” – Jesus

If you want to be treated well, start doing the same. Make it a rule to treat others well, despite how they may treat you. It does not mean that you should be a doormat and let people walk all over you. You have to defend your rights and what you believe in, but it does not mean that you should try to hurt or humiliate another person, just because you have been treated badly first.

Don’t let toxic people drag you to their level. Protect your inner peace from the spikes of negativity and anger. I know that it is not always easy to “turn the other cheek” and respond with kindness to negativity, but at least try to rise above it.

3. “If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.” – Dalai Lama

One of the best spiritual practices that you can adopt in life is to always try to place yourself in another person’ shoes. If you learn just this one skill, you will excel in any area of your life, be it your relationships or your career.

Whenever you face another person, be it your spouse, your boss or a total stranger, try to understand what are they going through, what it is like to be them, why do they say what they say and do what they do. You will soon discover that every single one of us has loved someone, lost something and is still longing for happiness.

So if you see sorrow and pain in another person’s eyes, take a small step to ease it. We are all equal particles in the Universe and other people’s joys and sufferings affect us as well (even when we don’t realize it).

4. “We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. also added that there is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. None of us is perfect. We have all made mistakes and have done something we are not proud of. And just like we often find justifications for our own shortcomings, we need to make an effort to forgive others. Whatever they have done is up to them. It is their karma. It’s between them and the Universe.

You, however, are responsible for your own feelings and actions. Such negative emotions as resentment, hatred, anger and a secret desire to see another person punished, bruises YOUR heart, not theirs. You are the one keeping yourself unhappy in the process. Forgiving those who have done you wrong is not something you do for them. It is something you do for your own well-being and peace of mind.

5. “There is nothing more dreadful than the habit of doubt. Doubt separates people. It is a poison that disintegrates friendships and breaks up pleasant relations. It is a thorn that irritates and hurts; it is a sword that kills.” – Buddha

When we think about negative emotions, lack of trust is never the first one that comes to mind. Many of us have come to believe that we can only count on ourselves if we want to achieve anything worthwhile. Our past experiences tell us that there are no guarantees when it comes to relationships. That people may sometimes hurt us, betray us or promise something and then forget about it. So we think that it is better to expect the worst and not to give people a second chance to hurt us.

The problem is that if we don’t trust our partner 100%, if we give another person an assignment and expect them to mess up, then we are the ones creating what psychologists call “self-fulfilling prophecies”. Our positive or negative expectations about circumstances, events or people actions affect and change people’s behavior causing those expectations to be fulfilled.

You can use this knowledge to improve your own relationships, learning little by little to trust people and to expect the best from them, creating new positive self-fulfilling prophesies. If your husband comes home after a long work day, don’t assume that he will be stressed out or in a bad mood. If your friend usually arrives 10-15 minutes late for appointments, make a mental effort to imagine them being on time for every encounter with you. If your boss does not act very friendly around you, don’t assume that he is an arrogant jerk and that you will never get a raise from him.

Don’t let doubts ruin your relationships. Expect the best of people and you will be amazed at how often they will surprise you!

How many things have you regretted doing in your life? I bet quite a few, just like everyone else.

Well, below is my list of 7 things that I know I will never regret doing and this knowledge is actually empowering in so many ways. For example, it is nice to feel that you can not mess up (for a change). It’s liberating not to make a decision between “the thing you want to do” and “the thing you know you should be doing”. Not to mention, that it is awesome to be 99% sure that there are some experiences that are guaranteed to bring you peace of mind and satisfaction.

7 Things you’ll never regret doing:

1. Forgive a past hurt.

Decades-old grudges, unresolved arguments, long-held misconceptions, and insignificant, tiny lies are splinters of our emotional lives. They distress you and hold you back more than you can imagine. End them.

Smooth over tensions. Put past hurts away. Forgive, let go of this heavy emotional baggage and make space for love, joy and compassion into your heart.

2. Organize a spontaneous day off for your kids.

How cool would it be not to wait until the weekend, but instead plan a trip to the zoo or go to the movies with your children on a workday?

Who as a child did not dream about skipping a day of school to do something fun? It is like a Birthday, only better, because you never expect it.

Yes, school is important, but it is also crucial to remember that weekends are not the only two days a week when you are allowed to have fun and do something exciting.

3. Bring fresh flowers into your home.

Since we usually receive flowers for special occasions, having them in our house always creates a soul-soothing atmosphere of joy and celebration. And as no day in our life should pass by unnoticed or unappreciated, a big bouquet of colorful tulips or fragrant hyacinth could be just the reminder you need to take a second and savor small pleasures.

4. Visit a spiritual place.

It does not matter what religion you practice or if you have your own idea of God, visiting spiritual places is always an enriching experience.

Next time you pass by a church, a Buddhist temple, a synagogue, or a mosque, take a few minutes to enter and just stay there for a while.

Any place where people pray or meditate together, where they try to be their best, is where positive energy and peace are felt the most. And, therefore, it is always a good place to be.

5. De-clutter your home.

Getting everything in order all at once, may seem like one of Hercules’ twelve labors, but no one says that you have to approach it all at once. Start with just one room and make it shine.

A de-cluttered, simplified and ordered space around you will bring mental clarity and peace of mind. It is not a coincidence that many people compare simple tasks such as ironing or washing dishes to meditation.

6. Bring one thing you procrastinated against to completion.

Maybe you have been postponing paying a bill or answering an email. These uncompleted tasks buzz into your head like a hive of angry bees and little by little drain your energy. If you have 10 free minutes today, get it off your chest and get it over with. It is totally worth it.

7. Give something to a person who admires it.

It may be hard to do it if no one asks you for anything? But then again, people send you subtle messages about things that they like all the time. You just have to pay attention.

I have a friend who has a unique quality of giving people small presents that they would never expect to receive. Every time I invite her for dinner at my house, she brings me something very personal that makes me feel truly special. Like a cute green bottle of truffle-flavored olive oil. Or a pack of “Green SuperFood” powder, because she knows that I love making fruit shakes in the morning. Or an electric tea kettle, because I usually boil water in a pan.

You don’t have to be a mind reader to show other people that you care about them enough to notice what they like.

Does your friend comments on one particular magnet that you have on your fridge? Why not give it to them? Or maybe your co-worker tells you that she adores dark chocolate. Well, you know what to bring her for her Birthday next time. Of course, it takes more effort on your part to notice and remember little things like these, but I guarantee that you will never regret doing it.

I wonder what some things that you would never regret doing are?

Take time to share your thoughts in the comment section below!

Is there even such a thing as “Rules of Happiness”? I believe so. The #1 Rule in my happiness agenda is “Living my life in the happiest way I can while trying my best not to cause unhappiness to anyone else.”

Because every single person on the Planet has the right to be happy, and you are not an exception. Happiness is our natural state and we strive to achieve and hold onto it for as long as we can. Happiness comes in small and spontaneous bursts of joy.

It dawns on us as a sense of accomplishment, when we realize we have completed every single task on our to-do list. It is reflected in the silly smile on our face when we are in love. It shines back at us in the eyes of our parents on our graduation day.

Happiness comes in so many forms, shapes and sizes. But it is not a passive feeling that simply comes and goes. Above all, happiness is also a choice.

Even when things are not going according to the plan, we have the right to choose to be happy. Even when we have to face occasional setbacks and failures, we have the right to choose how to react to them. Even when we have to deal with difficult people, we have the right not to let them get to us and respond with kindness.

Is it always easy? Of course not! But it is DO-ABLE.

If fact, here are some rules of happiness that have been proven to lift your spirits and boost your happiness almost instantly.

5 Realistic Rules of Happiness to feel GREAT:

G – Give

It almost seems counter-intuitive; to imagine that giving (rather than receiving) can be one of the first and most important rules of happiness. In our culture, happiness is often associated with grand, luxurious and very expensive “things” like private jets, 10-bedroom villas and shiny Ferraris and Maseratis.

And while many multi-millionaires ask themselves why they are not any happier than they were 10 years ago, you and I know the truth.

Happiness doesn’t come in loads of ‘stuff’. It actually comes in very small and very random acts of kindness. Because when you give freely, when you help another person without expecting anything in return, this is when your heart sings and a warm fuzzy feeling spreads through your body.

R – Relate to people

No man is an island and we all need other people to exchange our ideas, share our feeling and feel their support when times get tough. Psychologists only now confirm what many of us knew all along – friendship and satisfying personal relationships have a much bigger effect on our happiness than our income does.

So if you want to make the best investment of all – invest in building and maintaining strong, happy relationships with people that you like.

E – Exercise

I’ve mentioned many times before the benefits of exercise and spending time outdoors. An increased sense of happiness and well-being is one of them. Not only does regular exercise trigger the release of dopamine known as a “feel-good” hormone, it also keeps us fitter, healthier and more energized.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that it is much easier to stay happy when you are healthy and full of energy, versus out of shape, tired and slightly lightheaded from sitting for hours in front of a computer.

If you want to feel happier, take this Rule of Happiness close to heart and start exercising. Or better yet, grab a friend and go biking, jogging or play tennis together.

A – Appreciate

A feeling of appreciation is closely linked to optimism. At the end it is all about your ability to see the positive – something you can be grateful for – in every situation.

Many studies show that people who appreciate themselves, others and the world they live in experience a higher level of positive emotions and life satisfaction than those, who don’t experience a sense of gratitude.

If you want a more metaphysical explanation, think of the Law of Attraction and the power of thoughts. The more you concentrate on the positive, the more positive energy you attract into your life, the more reasons you have to be grateful. It really is THAT simple.

T – Try New Things

Maybe you are the type of person who gets goose bumps at a thought of letting routine take over your life. But most people, myself included, actually like their routines for the sense of stability and order that they bring into our day-to-day life.

After all, if we did not like routines, it would not be so hard for us to step out of our comfort zone or change our old habits. But the truth is that trying new things, meeting new people, learning new skills and embracing new experiences is what makes our life richer, happier and more exciting!

What are your thoughts?

Do you have any Rules of Happiness that have helped you to make your life more satisfying, gratifying and fulfilling?

You may know Soichiro Honda as the founder of the Honda Company and a successful businessman. However, few people are aware that Soichiro Honda was the man who changed the usual view on the traditions of running a business and approaching success.
His life story is not only inspiring, but legendary.

Childhood and a “Creative” Solution that Would Cost Him Dearly

Soichiro Honda, was born on November 17, 1906 in Japan, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka in a very traditional working class family. His mother- Mika, worked as a weaver and his father, Gihei, was a blacksmith, who ran a bicycle repair business.

As a boy Soichiro preferred helping his father in the bike shop rather than doing his homework. This was reflected in his poor grades. When Soichiro received his yearly grade report he was supposed to hand it to his parents for a ‘signature’ – a stamp with a family seal.

Not wanting to disappoint his parent, Soichiro cut out the family hieroglyphs on an old tire and “signed” a grade report for himself and for some of his fellow classmates, cutting similar stamps for them. What Soichiro did not take into consideration is that the stamp was a mirror-image, so the fraud was quickly discovered.

When Soichiro Honda’s father found out about it, he made his son stay in a corner on his knees for a whole day. The punishment was not for the forgery, but for the fact that Soichiro did not notice the relation between the seal pattern and stamp itself.

A Modest Beginning of a Promising Career Path

In 1922, at the age of 16 Soichiro left home and headed to Tokyo to look for work. He quickly found an apprenticeship an Art Shokai auto repair shop and stayed there for six years. During the day he worked as a car mechanic and in the evenings worked on his dream – he was designing racing cars.

When Honda had saved enough money to start his own auto repair business, he returned to Hamamatsu.
In 1928 he organized the Tohai Seiki Company to manufacture piston rings, the biggest part of which was sold to Toyota – a major Japanese car manufacturer.

The business was going well, but Honda did not want to stop there. In the mid-1940’s Honda finally designed and manufactured a small engine that could be attached to a bicycle to create a motorbike.

The First Big Setback and The Birth of Honda Motorcycles

The Second World War put a stop to this dream. In 1945 Honda’s factory suffered serious damage due to bombing. Everyone else would have seen it as a failure, but not Soichiro.

The businessman sold the remains of his business to ‘Toyota’ for 450,000 thousand yen. What did he do next? He bought an alcohol tank for 10,000 yens and spent a year planning his new venture and treating friends with homemade whiskey.

In 1946 Honda opened his company called ‘Honda Technology Research Institute’ and started producing mopeds and motorcycles. Within a little over a decade Honda was the leading motorcycle manufacturer in the world.

Unorthodox Management Methods that Shocked Japanese Businessmen

Honda’s approach to managing his business was very ‘unusual’ for most Japanese businessmen to say the least.

He promoted executives on the basis of performance rather than age, did not believe in hierarchy and tried not to hire professionals with higher education, because he believed that “dogmatic thinking” would be an obstacle in the search for new ways of development.

Honda also shocked the press declaring that he did not intend to transfer his business to heirs (two sons and two daughters), which he later proved by choosing a leader from his employees.

A Pursue of a Long-Cherished Dream

Having reached the top in the motorcycle industry, Honda decided that now he could proceed with the implementation of a cherished dream – to create automobiles.

Unexpectedly, he encountered strong resistance from Japanese officials. They tried to convince the businessman that the country did not need another car manufacturer, that he was destined to fail. Honda persisted and in 1970 he became the winner in the highly competitive automotive industry.

At beginning of the 80s, Honda Motor Co., Inc. was the third largest producer of cars in Japan. And by the end of the decade it was the third company in the world.
Honda had worked for 65 years in the company and personally tested every new car.

The legendary businessman died on August 5, 1991. By the end of his life he had come up with over 470 inventions and 150 patents, received an honorary doctorate at Michigan Technical University and the highest honor of his country – Japan’s Blue Ribbon – and had a company with an annual revenue of more than $ 30 billion dollars.

Soichiro Honda’s Quotes:

“Many people dream of success. I believe that success can be achieved only through repeated failure and self-analysis.”

“Success is only 1% of your work, and the rest – bold overcoming of obstacles. If you are not afraid of them, success will come to you itself.”

“Looking back on my work, I feel that I was doing nothing more than mistakes, blunders and serious omissions. But I am proud of the achievements. Although I did one mistake after another, my mistakes and failures never occurred for the same reasons.”

“The value of life can be measured by how many times your soul has been deeply stirred.”

“We only have one future, and it will be made of our dreams, if we have the courage to challenge convention.”

“Enjoying your work is essential. If your work becomes an expression of your own ideas, you will surely enjoy it.”

Have you already set New Year’s Resolutions for 2013? If ‘yes’ this post will help you noticeably improve your chances of success, make you invincible to failure, put you in control of your goals and allow you to overcome self-doubts and past setback?

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keep New Year’s resolutions

7 Little-Known Tips to Keep Your New Year’s Resolutions in 2013:

1. Start thinking about your New Year’s Resolutions beforehand.

This is how I see it – if you resolve to do something for the next two or three months, it is worth taking a minute to brainstorm and choose the right resolution. And when I say, “think in advance” I mean giving yourself at least a week or two, to meditate on your resolutions, not just sticking with the first thing that comes to your mind at 11:45 p.m. on December 31st.

2. Do not repeat yourself.

What do you do when you can’t find a solution to a challenging problem or feel stuck? You probably switch to a different activity and get back to the problem later.

Similar, if you have set the same resolution for the past few years and have repeatedly failed to stick to it, let it be! There is too much negative history attached to it. Instead, pick a different resolution that is easier and more fun to accomplish and stick with it. First, it will give you a necessary confidence boost. And, second, it will help you to refocus on other goals and break the resolution-failure pattern.

3. Think big.

Resolutions are usually associated with small vows that we give to ourselves, but this does not mean that you have to think small. Maybe this year you feel that you need a big breakthrough, a big adventure – like travelling to India, getting a new job, moving to a different state or starting a family.
Give yourself permission to think BIG, and plan from there.

4. Think small.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that only a radical transformation can make a difference in your life. The highest mountains are conquered one step at a time. A few years ago I decided to drink a fruit smoothie for breakfast and forgo cinnamon rolls. It seemed a tiny insignificant change, yet it has had a huge impact on my productivity, eating habits and even my appearance.

I found that I no longer craved unhealthy snacks throughout the day, that my energy levels got much more stable and even my hair and nails started to look better, because I now eat healthier. Similar, it often takes just a small resolution to create ripples of change and personal growth. Think of what these resolutions may be for you?

5. Consider making only pleasant resolutions.

“Filling up on carrots instead of eating sweets” is a good resolution ONLY if you absolutely adore carrots. In all other cases it’s one of those goals that makes you want to roll your eyes before even starting to pursue it.

Doing something on a daily basis is already challenging enough for 97% of the population. Why make it even harder on yourself by choosing resolutions that are not fun and not rewarding?

6. Keep your resolution every day.

Weird enough, it is often easier to do something every single day than every few days. I believe that it has a lot to do with how our mind creates habits. Repeating the same action for 21 days, sometimes 30 days, makes it easier for us to keep doing the same activity. Although, if we skip a day or two when working on our goals it will take much longer for a positive habit to form.

There is one powerful and very simple mental technique that I borrowed from… that helps me to stick to my New Year’s Resolutions. You can learn more about it here.

7. Don’t give up easily.

Most New Year’s Resolutions, like losing weight, getting organized or spending less money are ongoing. Which means that they depend on tens of small decisions that we take on a daily basis. If you did not exactly do your best in sticking to your resolution today, it does not mean that you should give up on it all together.

A new day is a new beginning. Learn from your setbacks and try again tomorrow. Because as Ross Perot has put it “Most people give up just when they’re about to achieve success.”

Bonus Tips on how to Keep your New Year’s Resolutions in 2013: Don’t start on January 1st.

This is the worst possible day to start. Your body is probably tired after a New Year’s party and you are probably not in the right mind frame to start. Take your resolutions seriously and make sure that you are mentally prepared to tackling them.

Give yourself a few days after the winter holidays to build up the excitement and think in advance about the possible roadblocks that you might encounter on your way and how will you deal with them. Jogging in the morning to stay in shape can seem a noble resolution until… you wake up to a gray rainy morning. Then what? Think about things like this and failure-proof your New Year’s Resolutions.

Anything else? What are some strategies you’ve discovered that you know will help you keep your New Year’s Resolutions in 2013?

Many of us are looking forward to the Winter Holidays and for the possibility to slow down, relax and spend time with our family. But there is someone, who has to attempt the impossible.

In just one night he will have to travel almost 25,000 miles around the world, scrambling across rooftops and scaling chimneys to ensure that every single person will have presents waiting for them in the morning. He will have to organize files and files of data, matching addresses with names and compiling “naughty and nice” lists. He will have to supervise gift production for almost 7 billion people and make sure that everything is packed in time.

I am talking about Santa Claus and he, like no other, can use some goal setting advice to make his life easier, merrier and less stressful.

Goal Setting Advice for Santa

1. Start early.

Dear Santa, don’t wait until December 23rd to get everything done! Merriment and joy evaporates in minutes with stress and anxiety. So instead of waiting until you absolutely have to start getting ready for Christmas, dedicate 45 minutes preparing for the next Holiday season first thing in January. Aside from giving you a great deal of insight into what will need to be done, it will put a quick stop to procrastination and will give you a head start.

2. Delegate and outsource.

Besides delegating such obvious tasks as toy production and feeding the reindeer to the elves, it helps to remember that you have thousands of adults that would love to take on the role of “Santa’s helpers” and contribute to the greater cause. Activating your support group can go a long way towards making your goals come true.

3. When procrastinating, try visualization.

Visualization is a great tool to beat procrastination and get yourself moving. Just imagine the following picture “It is December 24th. The big Cuckoo clock in the living room is indicating 10 p.m. Nothing is ready. Elves are lying in a coma from stress and exhaustion. Rudolf is packing the presents. The reindeer are anxiously roaming around the workshop.” Now picture the expression on the face of Mrs. Santa and you will surely find tons on intrinsic motivation to leap into action.

4. Align your goals with the core values.

The idea that you can get something great with very little effort is always alluring. But usually if something sounds too good to be true, it is too good to be true. If you want to stay happy, it is important to choose your goals wisely and stay away from “easy money”, “quick fixes” and “magic bullets”. For example, why spend your time on Coca Cola commercials, when soft drinks are unhealthy, responsible for weight gain and do not taste nearly as good as Mrs. Claus’ home-made lemonade.

5. Have a plan.

Any worthwhile goal, and making Christmas happen is a worthwhile goal, requires a clear action plan and a high level of organization. If you don’t know what your priorities for the day are, you will probably waste your time on meaningless activities such as browsing the internet or polishing the sleigh.

Make sure that you set SMART holiday goals by making them specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely. Nothing is more motivating than a clear, challenging goal that has a concrete deadline.

Note: Santa Claus is not the only one, who can benefit from this goal setting advice. You can too. While your goals may not be as ambitious as making and delivering 7 billion presents in one night, it does not mean that they are less important or less worthy. Your goals matter, so make them come true!

Happy Holiday Season and Prosperous New Year!

By the way, what Goal Setting Advice would YOU give to Santa?