Personal Development For You

Gratitude Changes Everything

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Badidis) — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 16:36:00 +0000

The frame of mind you are in, at this moment, will govern your immediate future. It will determine whether the next hour, the rest of today, perhaps the next few days, are worthwhile and uplifting, or whether they are a time of stress, rage, aggression and elevated blood pressure.

We are all aware of this principle – we have heard it said many times. Despite this, many people spend a considerable slice of their lives in a downward spiral – frustrated, in a bad mood, depressed, pessimistic, beyond caring.

There is a simple method of changing this, of vastly improving the quality of each day. I call it the Five Minutes of Gratitude principle. It works like this. First thing each morning, before shaving, dressing, waking the kids, fixing breakfast, feeding the cat, struggling with lipstick and eyeliner – the first thing you do is to set aside five minutes. Spend them in a quiet part of the house, without the lights switched on, sitting in a comfortable chair. Not lying in bed, fighting the ‘should I get up already battle’. Stand up, touch the floor, use your gift of walking and go to where ever the designated place is.

Now the important part. Focus your mind, for those 300 seconds, on a particular feature of your life which is a cause for gratitude. Only that one feature. It is not easy. The mind tends to flip from thought to thought, from topic to topic, like a butterfly and it requires mental discipline and concentration to stop it from doing so. Sit, and dwell on this one topic, immersing yourself in this attitude of gratitude.

There is not a single person alive and still in control of their mental faculties, who cannot find numerous causes for gratitude in their lives, if they think hard enough. It might be something seemingly mundane, starting with the basic physical stuff. The fact that you have legs, arms, eyes, ears, vital organs, all of which are healthy and functioning. Do you have any idea how many people have to live with seriously impaired bodies, that do not have the gift of health given to you? It might be the fact that you had three adequate meals yesterday – over 50% of this planets population don’t have that daily privilege. It might be the fact that you have a job to go, a wife or husband to lean on, a car, a flowerbed out by the front door.
Anything, and everything, can serve as a topic of focus, during your five minutes of gratitude. The list includes health and well-being, possessions, employment, friends and family, the spiritual and philosophical world, nature, experiences through which you lived the previous day, the previous week or however far back. There is no limit.

Here is the core secret behind spending the first 5 minutes of your day this way. Those 5 minutes will govern the next hour, making it more likely that you approach everything which crops up in that hour, in a gratitude frame of mind. That, in turn will govern the hour thereafter, and the next one, and so on through the day. Its also an incremental thing – the more frequently things happen that are good, right and joyful, the more cause for gratitude you will have. And when adversity strikes, and things go pear-shaped – and this will happen, regularly – you will be able to face these set-backs in a far more positive and courageous frame of mind because gratitude is a might weapon for fighting off the problems of the day.
Try it out. Try it for the next week. The results will surprise you.

You can also visit Wonderful Life for more related articles!

The power of saying NO

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Badidis) — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 05:43:00 +0000

In today’s society, we all seem to be over-scheduled and running ourselves ragged. We are continually running at an unrelenting, non-stop pace, hoping things will slow down soon. Rather than slowing down, it seems as though there are more and more demands on our time. Many of these requests for our time can be eliminated by simply saying “no”. But how many of us actually make it a regular practice to say “no” and mean it? The truth is that there is great power in saying “no”.

Each of us has been blessed with the same 24 hours each day. This is a non-negotiable fact of life. What we do with them determines our level of balance (or lack of balance, as the case may be) and fulfillment in our lives. You can’t wish for more hours (you can try, but it won’t come true). You can’t buy more hours. You can’t borrow more hours either. You just have to work with the 24 hours that you’ve got. Besides, even if you were granted a couple of extra hours a day, wouldn’t you schedule something else and end up in the same predicament of not enough hours in the day? Without allowing ourselves time to recharge our batteries, life can become very unbalanced. But, by using the power of “no”, we can regain control of our schedules and live more fulfilling lives.

Begin by saying “no” to any new requests. This will allow you to maintain your current scheduling. Obviously, this one is easier said than done, particularly when the “no” is accompanied by feelings of guilt. There’s just no room in a well-balanced life for the guilt that comes from saying “no”. You would be surprised to know that most people don’t get mad when you say no to something. They aren’t disappointed in you and they don’t hold it against you. They move on and ask someone else. You may be surprised to find out that you weren’t the first person they asked. Just because someone asks you to help, does not mean you are obligated or required to say “yes”. We only have a limited amount of time in life and we shouldn’t fill it with things we don’t enjoy. You can very politely say “no” and give a reason if you are so inclined. Perhaps say you are working on other projects or are expecting something else to come up or just don’t have the time/will/desire to take on anything else right now. If you don’t feel like giving a reason, remember that “No” is a complete sentence.

Chances are, they are looking for someone to do a good job. If your heart isn’t in it or you feel pressured or guilty, are you giving it your best? Do them a favor as well as yourself, say no and let them find someone else.
Now that your schedule is not getting busier, take a look at your current volunteer activities. Evaluate them and see what you really enjoy. If you don’t get satisfaction from that activity, fulfill what you have already committed to and find something else that you do love. Life is just too short. Besides, there may be someone that really wants that position and has been waiting for it to come open. You would be doing everyone a favor.

Saying “no” should also be practiced in your professional life. This is a little more difficult in some respects, but perhaps even more important. Many people have the tendency to take on additional work to make themselves look like the model employee. But once you are overwhelmed with work, are you doing your best work on those assignments or are you barely getting it all done? Do you think you are more likely to receive recognition for the volume of work that you took on or will you be reprimanded for missing deadlines or not doing your best work? The added stress of having too much work will end up affecting other parts of your life and making you feel like you are out of balance. Some people say they thrive on the stress of having deadlines but more often than not, the quality of the work has suffered.

You are the one that holds the power to say “no” and mean it. This power can help you create a more balanced and fulfilling life with time to do the activities you enjoy. With this one simple word, you can regain control of your schedule and your life. Remember that saying “no” to one thing allows you the freedom to say “yes” to something you love.

You can also visit Wonderful Life for more related articles!

How to find motivation at work

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Badidis) — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 05:15:00 +0000

If you are those people that get up sometimes from the wrong side of the bed then you have felt how that can affect your performance at work. You can even affect people around you. If you feel unsatisfied with your work or with what you have to do can affect you badly as well. There are several different approaches to finding motivation at work that can be followed to keep a positive mindset at your workplace.
These are some:

Tone and Gesture:

Having a positive vocal tone, and a calm pace when speaking, is something very important in your work environment. Without it, any person around you can feel affected negatively in some way or another. People may think that you are a kind of arrogant person when you really are not.

On-the-job expectations:

Sometimes, bosses organize and delegate work to their employees but they do not set what tey are expecting from them. This can cause confusion and a and misunderstanding among employees. So, bosses should clearly state what they expect from you. If yours does not do it, you can talk to him or her about it.

Continue to learn and improve skills:

If you improve your skills an abilities consistently you are showing that you are motivated. Companies that send their employees to seminars, workshops or conferences see how their employees feel more motivated to work for them. Most of the times their productivity increases, as well.

Make Time For Others:

Take so me time to work with a fellow employee in a project that way interest both of you. this shows that you care about team work and about the performance of your company.

Work motivation starts from you. Have a positive attitude towards your job and your work environment. You will become a highly valuable employee and gain a lot of respect from your boss and workmates.

You can also visit Wonderful Life for more related articles!

How to be a success!

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Badidis) — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 05:13:00 +0000

Learn how to master your area of endeavor the right way. Start out by finding the people and books that will make you exceptional. Seek out the best sources of information that you can afford.
Analyze each part of the skill you wish to master, then put it all together to create a fluid form. Develop first a theoretical understanding, then a practical one. When you practice your knowledge, your work will flow and appear effortless.

Practice relentlessly. Spend long hours practicing. Keep a regular schedule for your activity. If you have long gaps between practice, you will lose some momentum in mastering your skill. The cumulative effect of practice will make you exceptional.

Self-discipline will come from imagination. When you can create a burning desire by imagining your ultimate success, self-discipline will happen spontaneously. If you do not have a burning desire, you may want to rethink your goals. Unless you feel passionate about your goals, the smallest obstacle will throw you off course.

Believe in yourself. Recall all the previous successes you have had in your life. Use these memories to build an enduring self-confidence. When you believe that you can do something, you will find a way to make your belief come true.

If you methodically prepare for your own particular game you will find yourself on the way to mastery. You can win in any of the games of life. Just decide on it, and follow up with study and practice.
You can move beyond your stuck states by contemplating all the possible consequences of your own particular situation.

What is it that you want to work in your life?

What inner obstacles prevent you from achieving the successful outcome you desire?
Once you have confronted your own fears, then you will be ready to take stock of your current situation and try out new strategies.

There are three stages of problem-solving

First, get clear on your vague fears and imaginings. Bring them out in the open. Confront them. See what is really going on. Unless you can ask the right question, which comes from getting the right perspective on the issue, you will not be able to start looking for the right answer.

Second, once you have some inner clarity, freed from emotional congestion, look at your problems objectively, empirically. Ask yourself what needs to happen here to make things work out? Ask an objective, matter-of-fact, question. Avoid subjective, questions.

And third, apply all available resources to solve your problem. Make a list of all your resources. This includes people you can query or books, articles, or multimedia you can learn from.
Above all, find your way back to faith in your situation. When you believe in yourself, when you can rekindle the flame of hope in your heart, when you can reanimate your brain and your nervous system then the creative solution to your problem will arise. Once you clear the vague, illusive, obstructive emotional blocks, your mind will function clearly and well.

Once you confront a problem head on, you are halfway there to resolving it. Turning your back on problems, avoiding them, and procrastinating only makes them more substantial and terrifying. Once you face your fears, you can begin to solve your problem. Once you have brought your fears to light, courage returns, and with courage comes hope, and with hope, creativity, boldness, and magic.

Problems appear frustratingly difficult to solve because they come with a lot of emotional charge. But once you remove the charge, you will see that you need to take only three simple steps to solve them.

You can also visit Wonderful Life for more related articles!