The way to stop being frustrated by politics? Get involved! (And before you stop reading because you have no spare time, please know that there are small ways to get involved that don’t take a lot of time!)

Think about a sports game. It can be frustrating watching a game when your team is losing. But when you are in the game, you can be affecting the outcome and at least know you did your best even if you don’t win. It is the same with politics! So, get on the field of play and use your energy, resources, and your right to contribute to our government. It won’t just make you feel better, it will make your community and country a better place!

Whether you are on the right, the left, in the center, or out in left field, you CAN make a difference in the world. “Somebody” is already making a difference. Why not join in?

If you don’t like the way things are going, stop shouting at the TV and do something! Here’s how:

How to Get Involved with Politics and Make a Difference

Small Time Commitment

• Put up a lawn sign for the candidate or issue you support.
• Contribute funds to a campaign.
• Send a letter to your congressman, senator, governor, president that states how you feel. Find your representatives at Project Vote.
• Spread the word to your network of friends and family and encourage them to do something even if it is small. (You could pass along the link to this article along with ideas of how to make a difference.)
• Hold up signs on voting day.
• Vote!

Medium Time Commitment

• Spend a couple hours working at a phone bank in support of your candidate.
• Collect signatures on a letter for your elected officials on a subject you care about.
• Call or schedule a meeting with your representative.
• Volunteer in your community doing things to help others or help with issues that matter to you.
• Distribute flyers that educate others citizens on the facts of your issue or candidate or even opposing candidate (such as voting records).
• Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper stating your position on the issues and candidates. Be solution focused.
• Start a blog and write about your thoughts and opinions. Build an audience slowly over time and then use your influence to encourage others to take action.

Larger Time Commitment

• Create a TV show for free using local access TV resources.
• Organize a group of voters around a particular issue or candidate. Invite your representative or candidate to a meeting.
• Attend a legislative hearing.
• Organize or contribute your time to a political campaign.
• Organize or contribute your time to a volunteer group that helps your community in some way.
• Organize a demonstration, march, or rally.

Democracy is Only as Strong as its Participants

My personal feeling is that we citizens need to do a whole lot more participating and volunteering, and do a whole lot less complaining. Complaining has its place. When we are dissatisfied, we need to talk about it. But then we need to make some plans, and then take some action on getting things done, just like we do in our own personal life.

How will all this help YOUR life? At the very least, hopefully it will help you be less frustrated with government. When you get involved you will understand that change takes time, patience, and perseverance. At its best hopefully you will be improving your community and nation which will benefit you in the long run. And lastly, hopefully your actions will inspire others to do the same, creating a snowball effect of improvements for our world!

Helpful Resources

How To’s

Being a Successful Citizen Lobbyist.

Tips for citizen lobbying.

Do’s and Don’ts of Citizen Lobbying.

Holding Elected Officials Accountable to Our Issues.

Building a Volunteer Program.

Citizen Lobbying Kit. This is a very complete list of things you can do and how to do them well. This is from a conservative group, but the ideas here can be used by anyone with any political affiliation.

Lobbying 101. From the Humane Society, but again the ideas here can be used by anyone advocating for any issue.

Articles

Citizens Impact as Grassroots Lobbyists. Interesting article on how important ordinary citizen lobbying is!

Volunteering

Organizing for America. Find ways you can voluteer in your community to make it better.

Communicating Your Opinions

Tell President Obama what you want to see in 2010!

Find all your government representatives. Just type in your zip code.

Organizations that help citizens organize to make their voices heard:

• Public Citizen
• MoveOn.org
• Organizing for America

Take Action Today!

Will all your frustrations go away by participating? No, but some of them will when you see your efforts making a difference.

Do it with your kids. It will teach them many great lessons about service, perseverance, and about how our government works.

Do it with your friends and family. Make it a social activity. It’s better than shopping!

Be a part of the solution!

“Be the change you want to see in the world!”- Gandhi

Please Share!

Please share what you have done or plan to do and how it made you feel!

All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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How to Stop Being Frustrated by Politics

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Too much stuff is not only bad, it’s worse than you think. And it’s not just about the environment. It’s about people too and the quality of their lives.

Check out this preview video of “The Story of Stuff.” If you are interested, you can view the full version which is just below the first video.

And before you become depressed or start feeling hopeless, know that there are things YOU can do to actually make a difference. Identifying a problem is the first step in a brighter future. Check out the top 10 things you can do to make a difference here.

Preview of “Story of Stuff”

Full version of “Story of Stuff” (only 20 minutes)

What You Can Do to Change the “Story of Stuff”

There are many ways to get involved. The Story of Stuff website (www.StoryofStuff.com) has a page called “Another Way” that will give you the top ten things you can do to make a difference such as:

1. Waste Less
2. Buy Less
3. Tell a Friend, a School, or a Community about this information.

So, check it out, bring it into your consciousness each day, and  bit by bit we can shape a more positive future!

Please Share!

What is your relationship with stuff? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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The Story of Stuff

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photo credit: felipesp

You don’t have to save the world single handed. It’s not an all or nothing proposition for each individual. It’s simply about doing the best you can in any given day. What I’m doing today is spreading the word for Blog Action Day 2009: Climate Change.

As Monika Baurlein states today in MotherJones.com, “Fix the Climate or the Kid Gets It.” (Clever title!) We need to convince “Americans that something we care about is actually at risk here. And of course something is is. Climate change poses the greatest danger not to polar bears, not to glaciers or beaches, but to our kids.”

So what’s a busy person to do? Here are some ideas that are easy:

10 Simple Ways to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint and Save the Earth for Your Children

1. Turn Down the Heat/Turn Up/Off the A/C.
2. Use Less Paper Products. Use cloth napkins, regular plates & cups, etc instead of paper ones.
3. Only Use What You Need. Don’t leave the faucet running. Use less water on small laundry loads. Use less paper, plastics. Turn off lights, TV’s, Computers that aren’t being used.
4. Use Green Cleaning Products. Especially baking soda and vinegar!
5. Eat Vegetarian/Vegan When You Can. Vegan (non-animal) foods put less of a strain on the environment.
6. Unplug. Unplug electrical devices that aren’t being used. (“Green” power strips can make this a little easier.)
7. Keep Tired Fully Inflated. Better gas mileage is also more money in your pocket.
8. Turn Water Heater Down. Try 1 or 2 degrees. A little bit that you won’t notice, but if everyone does it, it can add up to a lot.
9. Use Your Own Water Bottle. That’s at least 365 less plastic bottles in a landfill!
10. Recycle. Keep it simple. Set up your process once and then you’ll be on auto-pilot.

For more ideas check out these additional posts:

The Coolest Green Habits to Adopt Today

Things You Can Do Today to Save the Environment

Please Share!

Got any other easy ideas for helping the planet? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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Too Busy for Climate Change?

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photo credit: Ana_Cotta

I love the song, “Maybe God is Trying to Tell You Somethin’,'” from the Color Purple soundtrack.  It is a very passionate and moving gospel song. Every once in a while, something happens in my life where I can hear a message from God. It’s not always earth shattering, but even when it is a simple message it is still a delightful intermission from my usual mundane thought patterns. Hopefully this story will spark your interest to  adjust the dial on your “tuner” in order to hear the messages you may be receiving right now.

I got a cold recently. The worst part was that it made me so tired. So tired, in fact, that I had to take a nap nearly each day. I never take naps so this means my body was really tired. After 5 days I thought it was gone and so I resumed my normal routine.

The following day the cold came back the next day. Arg. That was frustrating. This cycle of feeling better and then relapsing kept happening. Finally after the 3rd time it came back, I sensed there was a message and also some “assistance” from God. The message was “slow down” and the “assistance” was that I was finally able to sleep normally again after about a month of quasi-insomnia.

My insomnia was caused by worrying too much about, well, everything. Work, family, health, etc.  I would wake up at 2am and worry for 3 hours while wishing I could go back to sleep. The problem was that a habit had formed and I was getting better and better at worrying, a skill which serves no one well. The kicker was that I really didn’t have anything to be worried about. I was worried about possible problems. Not very productive!

By having this cold and a bonus case of poison ivy too, God effectively removed my ability to worry in the middle of the night. I was too tired at night and too itchy when awake to think of anything else. The worry habit was interrupted which is all I needed to kick the habit!

The situation of repeatedly healing and relapsing is similar to training a dog to do something  You must repeat the training over and over again. For a while the dog doesn’t get it. But as the training continues, at last, the dog finally understands the message and then they learn the lesson. Once the lesson is learned it is important to be reminded of the lesson and to practice it.

Each time I felt better, I was like my dogs. I wanted to go back to my normal routine, doing too much and not taking care of myself, but everytime I did God gave me a “correction” to convey his message of “slow down and stop worrying.”

Now you could say “All you had was a cold, there’s no ‘message from God’ there.” Maybe you’re right. But, here’s the thing, I find that when I finally “tune in” and listen to these little messages, which for me are usually “slow down,” and “stop worrying,” my life definitely improves.

I think it is God. I still have many questions and doubts about God, but for me I can’t dismiss the idea of God simply because my senses are not keen enough to perceive God in the way I think he should be perceived. Or maybe we are perceiving God all the time in the form of witnessing the amazing abundance of life on earth, but, like dogs in training, we are missing the obvious. We don’t see how life IS a manifestation of God.

In slowing down I had the opportunity to read a neat book that helped open my imagination up to the possibilities of what God and heaven really are. I recommend checking out “Life After Death” by Deepak Chopra. In the recent past when explaining heaven and God to my son with the explanation that they are “up there” in the sky, I found myself having difficulty imagining where that really is and what that’s really like. In “Life After Death” Chopra paints a picture that is more expansive, vivid, and believable than I have been able to conceive on my own.

So what about you? Have you experienced something recently that may have held a message for you? Please share your story with us. Perhaps telling your story will help someone. Or maybe telling your story will be like a key unlocking a message that you can  finally receive. Either way, thank you for reading and for sharing! May you hear the messages the universe is sending you, and may it bring you peace and joy!

Post from: Life Learning Today

Maybe God is Trying to Tell You Something

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This is the question I ask myself after watching President Obama’s inauguration speech today. “What will I do?” Here is the segment of his speech that I think was most important and most representative of his election:

“What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.
This is the price and the promise of citizenship.”

I believe that people support Barack Obama so passionately because they believe in his sincerity and ability to “do the right thing” for our country and world in so many areas. At the same time, I think that most of his supporters realize that in order to accomplish the promises we elected him for, he will need help from each of us in an amount greater than we’ve given in the past. There are many in this country and this world who volunteer and give of themselves to help others. Their work is truly noble and makes a huge positive difference.

And there are many, myself included, who could afford to do a lot more. If each of us gave of ourselves just a little bit more, that would amount to a landslide of power to make this world a much better place.

So what will I do? What will you do?

We can volunteer our time, ours skills and knowledge, contribute money, and donate our resources. My goal is contribute in each of these ways over the coming year. To keep myself accountable to this goal, I plan to add comments as I complete my contributions.

Here is President Obama’s website that helps you to find ways to help serve: http://www.usaservice.org/content/home/

There are many other service organizations that could also use your time, skills, money, or resources. Here are a few that come to mind.

Red Cross

Big Brother Big Sister

Salvation Army

You could also check in your local community for ways to help by doing a Google search on “charity” or “volunteer” plus your zipcode. If you feel a strong call to help you could look into becoming a foster parent.

Please Share

If you have some good ideas of ways to make a difference, please share them in the comments below.

Post from: Life Learning Today

What Will You Do?

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photo by mikebaird

(Happiness Video Below!)

Generally I like to smile and be happy, but sometimes I’ll catch a glimpse of myself passing a mirror and think, “Whoa, why so serious?” (or angry, frustrated, etc.) And when I observe myself, I can see that I’m holding onto that mode. If I ask myself why, I don’t have a good answer.

Well, I think I found the answer with this video, or rather the antidote. Debating with myself about why I’m stuck in one emotion is not the thing to do. The thing to do is:

Just Choose to Be Happy!

It really is as simple as that. A great way to do it is to break out of your mode with a complete shift. So instead of inching your way into the water, just dive in.

How? Do something silly, watch something funny, or dance. Here’s a great video to inspire you!

Please Share!

How do you flip the switch to happiness? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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Go Ahead, Be Happy!

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I’ve been watching my 2 year old niece over the last few days while my sister is recovering from giving birth. My niece and my 4 year old son play very nicely together, but at the end of the day I still get a little tired. And on Friday I discovered a great break you can take that involves the kids. So even if you don’t have kids, bookmark this for the next time you have babysitting duty!

The Young Kiddie Yoga Massage Break

Here’s what you do:

1. Stretching. Invite the kids over to join you in some simple stretches on the floor. Show them different stretches and say “Can you do this too?” And then give lots of praise. Do this for 5 minutes or as long as they’ll play along. Try toe touches, child pose, downward dog, upward dog, cat/dog tilts, torso twisting, and arm movements.

2. Play. Next let the kids lead the way with fun stuff like crawling under you, rolling, light wrestling, and lots of laughing. 5-10 minutes.

3. Kiddie Crawling Massage. You lie down on your stomach and invite the kids to walk or crawl all over you. You can rest your eyes while they do this. They will most likely love this opportunity to do something so silly as walk on a grownup. And here’s the best part, you get a little eye rest and a free massage! Feel free to incorporate lots of laughing, sound effects, and even music too.

4. Disclaimer: I’ve only tried this will small kids under 5 years old. Not sure if it would work with older kids, but you can try. Let the kiddies know the ground rules like no pushing, jumping, or walking on your head! Be sure that there is nothing they can hurt themselves on if they fall while walking on your back. Crawling is probably the safest way to do it.

Enjoy!

Please Share!

What’s your favorite break to take with the kids? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, perhaps you’ll be kind enough to vote for this with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

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A Fun Break Involving Small Children

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photo by DavidDennis

So many of us, myself included, get caught up in life. We move from one thing to another, doing all the things we think we “should” do or have to do. And we never stop to think that there might be another, more pleasurable way, to skin that cat in front of us.

What made me think of this is a belly dancing class I signed up for. It’s completely fun and silly and you know what? It tightens your abs! Who knew you didn’t have to do boring sit-ups in order to get your tummy in shape. That little revelation got me thinking of all the other areas of our life where we just keep doing things the same old way even if it is drudgery because we think life has to be hard. But here’s the news flash: Life Doesn’t Have to Be Miserable! You can increase your enjoyment by making some simple changes.

So here is a listing of some areas that might feel like obligatory hardships followed by some alternatives to consider to make your life more enjoyable.

I hope that these ideas prompt you to take a little more enjoyment from life starting today! I’m going to try too! I think I’ll be belly dancing, playing more guitar, and playing with my son some more! How about you?

Please Share!

How do you choose to make life more enjoyable? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, perhaps you’ll be kind enough to vote for this with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

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Life Doesn’t Have to Be Miserable!

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photo by Heather Garland

Want to show that special someone how much you love him or her? If so, then check out my latest article over at Dumb Little Man that lists 50 fun ideas.

As a side note, I wrote this article on a complete whim and it ended up becoming very popular on Digg. There were lots of comments! Some comments were very funny, some people loved the ideas, and some people took it way too seriously and became amazingly disturbed by the article, which I also thought was funny. The ideas in the article are for fun. Take what you like and leave the rest.

Check it out for yourself and be sure to let me know your comments below!

50 Very Simple Ways to Be Romantic

Please Share!

What are your favorite and maybe unique ways to show your love? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

You can Support Life Learning Today by visiting one of my sponsors, making a donation, or making a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

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50 Very Simple Ways to Be Romantic

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Many of us have the fleeting dream of living a simple life. That fantasy floats through our mind and just as it arrives, it floats out.

Stop putting off that dream. The idea is to start small and begin living the life of your dreams little by little. Read how in my article at Dumb Little Man:

The Simple Life Can Be Yours

Please Share!

Do you live the simple life? How? Looking forward to hearing from you!

You can Support Life Learning Today by visiting one of my sponsors, making a donation, or making a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

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The Simple Life Can Be Yours

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Waiting is the bane of modern living. Whether waiting in line, at the doctor’s office, for a baby to be delivered, for Christmas, for a phone call, for 5pm on Friday, or whatever, waiting drives us mad. But does it have to be that way? Well it depends on your perspective, circumstances, and how you choose to react. The truth is you have the power to transform waiting into a gift.

For many of us in modern society, when faced with waiting, the reaction is automatic and self-destructive. We get tense, irritated, angry, frustated, etc. Can you relate? We start complaining in our head and to others around us. We start thinking that time is being wasted. We focus on the things we could or should be doing instead causing a flood of resentment. The end result is higher blood pressure, headaches, muscle tension, and buildup of toxic chemicals inside our body. And did it change our wait? Nope. Did the waiting cause these problems? No, the negative side effects stem from how we chose to react. The good news is once you become aware, you can stop this destructive pattern.

How to Make Waiting Work for You

1. Change Your Perspective. Make a choice to see waiting as an opportunity, a gift of time, that you can use for some positive result for you or others. Instead of focusing on things you could/should be doing instead, consider how this time can be a gift for you. Consider how you are being relieved of duty for the moment

2. Deep Breathing. When that automatic reaction starts to happen, the first thing to do is to take several deep breaths. This is really good for you because it will release the tension that has been building up in you while you weren’t paying attention. The difference between this and “huffing and puffing” is your intention. With deep breathing your intention is to release tension. With huffing and puffing it is like blowing up a stress balloon inside yourself, holding in and increasing your aggravation. Deep breathing is done with a sense of letting it all out.

3. Work with the Wait Time, Don’t Fight It. Ask yourself “What can I do right now that would make this time good for me or for others?” Here are some examples of what you can do during waiting time.

• Relax

• Think

• Plan (in your head or on paper)

• Meditate

• Daydream

• Create (ideas, art, knitting, etc)

• Read (book, magazine, online with cellphone)

• Draw or Doodle

• Call a friend

Obviously circumstances will dictate which of these things are feasible. Look for ways to modify them to your circumstances, though, instead of ruling them out completely.Â

4. If You Are Uncomfortable or in Pain While Waiting. Seek to alleviate the discomfort if possible. If that’s not feasible, then try distracting yourself with something. If that doesn’t work then seek to find peace amidst the discomfort. Use deep breathing. Don’t actively fret about your pain or discomfort. Attempt, instead, to observe it as if you were an outsider. In other words become immersed in it and assume a zen like state of being in the moment. Everything is temporary. Remind yourself that it won’t last forever. Depending on your level of discomfort this can be quite challenging, and at the same time quite rewarding. You will discover strength you didn’t know you had. In the end, your waiting time may still be uncomfortable, but you won’t be making it worse with building frustration.

Read more about changing your perspective towards events in your life beyond waiting in this article by my blogging friend Edward Mills at Evolving Times. Learn how to stop labeling things as “bad” and find the good in everything. The article is really eye opening and will make a difference in your life starting today. I’m sure once you visit his blog, you’ll probably want to subscribe!

Please Share!

What are your best tips for when you have to wait? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, perhaps you’ll be kind enough to vote for this with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

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Next Time You Have to Wait, Remember This

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A Little Story About Dreams and Fear

The other day I was driving down the road thinking of one of my dreams. I started to ask God to help make it come true, and then I stopped myself. I thought, “I have everything I need already. I don’t want to ask for more.” And then it occurred to me, “Why are you thinking that way?!”

Revelation

I had myself convinced that I didn’t want to ask for more because I felt I needed to be grateful for what I have and that that should be enough. But when I pushed myself and dug down a little deeper, it became clear that the real reason I wasn’t asking was so that I wouldn’t be disappointed if I didn’t get what I wanted. Aha! Massive revelation!

Desire Creates Action

So then the smarter part of me said, “Whoa, hold on here.” I was realizing that I should ask for what I want. By asking God, the Universe, or just yourself for what you want, you put the wheels in motion for your dream to come true. When you allow yourself to swim in pleasurable thoughts of reaching your dream, you grow your desire for your dream. When you do that then you start taking actions to make things happen.

A Daydream

So I asked for my dream to come true. I delighted in the visualization of it coming true. It spurred me to take some actions that I normally wouldn’t have thought to do. And then lo and behold a step towards that dream came to fruition. The dream is not completed yet, but I’m a little bit closer and I believe it is because I allowed myself to dream big.

A Promise

Will dreaming big always make your wishes come true? No, maybe not exactly, but I can pretty much guarantee you that you’ll get a lot closer than if you squash thoughts of your dreams every time they surface. I’m also not saying you need to believe in God. Just believe in yourself. Ask. Dream. Take action. And receive.

What About You?

What dream have you been squashing lately? For today, allow yourself to enjoy a fantasy movie of your dream in your head. See where it takes you.

Please Share!

Got a story to share? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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Don’t Be Afraid to Dream Big

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Don’t just go for the same old, same old on Thanksgiving, vegging on the couch watching football and parades all day. Instead create some treasured memories with these easy and fun things to do with your family on this special day.

Check out these great ideas over at Dumb Little Man:

20 Fun Things You Can Do with Family on Thanksgiving

Please Share!

What’s your favorite Thanksgiving tradition? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you want to Support Life Learning Today, you can visit one of my sponsors, make a donation, or make a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

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20 Fun Things You Can Do with Family on Thanksgiving

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Do you keep going back to the same well for creative inspiration? Could you use a new muse to spark your creativity anew?

If so, then please check out this guest article at Dumb Little Man today:

50 Creativity Muses to Court for Fresh Ideas

Please Share!

What’s your favorite muse for creative inspiration? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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50 Creativity Muses to Court for Fresh Ideas

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In college I took a course on Zen Buddhism. I really loved it because it taught me to think of things from a different perspective.

One of the lessons that struck a chord in me was a meditation on “Such.� In a nutshell, the meditation calls upon you think of things as just “such,� simply for what they are and not relative to anything else. This is difficult to do because everything we experience is given meaning or definition by its function or by its relative proximity to other things.

For instance, if I show you a picture of a chair and ask you what it is you’ll probably say “a chair.� But if I place a knife, fork, plate, and some food on it then it becomes a table. And if I stand on it to change a lightbulb, it becomes a step ladder.

Another way that we experience the relative perception of things is as “good� or “bad.� Things are perceived as good when seen in contrast to bad things and vice versa. Here’s an example. Let’s say you are running late for the airport and you miss your plane. That’s bad right? Good = getting on the plane and not losing time and money. What if you later find out that the plane you were supposed to be on crashed? Now how do you feel about missing the plane? That’s good right?

The lesson I wish to leave you with today is to not fear or run from “the bad,� the uncomfortable, the frightening, the dirty, the smelly, from hunger, sadness, pain and so on. By experiencing these things this is how we come to know the good, the comfortable, the beautiful, the delicious, peace, luxury, love, happiness, and more.

For today, try to see “the bad� as just “such.� And know that by encountering “the bad� in life, you will come to know and, more importantly, appreciate “the good� in life. Also, ask yourself how you can reframe your “bad� experiences so that you perceive them, instead, as good. Ask yourself, what did I learn from this? What should I learn from this? Where is the good in this? Sometimes when bad things happen in our life, it is a gift that shines a light on what is really important and good in our life. Really feel and experience the good in your life today.

Life is challenging. Life is beautiful. Life is such.

Peace to you.

Please Share!

What are your thoughts? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, perhaps you’ll be kind enough to vote for this with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

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A Lesson in Zen: Such

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Slow and Steady

(Video Below!)
Many of the things we work on in our lives require steady work or improvements daily. And this kind of progress can yield great results. Slow and steady wins the race, right? Well, yes and no.

It’s also important every now and then to take a step that amounts to a quantum leap. All areas of your life can benefit from this type of progress.

Quantum Leap

What is a quantum leap? I define this as a crossing a chasm in one giant leap instead of many little steps. It’s taking a shortcut that isn’t obvious or is perhaps a bit scary because you’ve never treaded that path before.

How do you know when you need a quantum leap? It’s when you start to feel stifled and restless. That’s when you’re ready to breakout with your Next Big Thing!

What Does a Quantum Leap Look Like?

Here are some examples:

Business:

• Instead of trying to increase client acquisition by spending more hours on your current marketing process, create a revamped marketing process that is more bold and powerful in terms of gaining new clients.
• Instead of continuing to grow your core business day in and out, add a new line to your offering that compliments your core business.
• Instead of growing a mature product line, create a new product that will eventually cannibalize your mature line, but the growth of which will take your company to the next level.

Relationships:

• Instead of the standard daily kiss on the cheek and “How was your day,” re-examine your relationship and determine how you could make it richer, closer, warmer, and more supportive. (Hint: what kinds of things did you do at the beginning of your relationship?)
• Instead of continuing to hate someone every day (hurting yourself in the process), come up with a plan that enables you to stop hating that person even if it means “embracing” that person in some fashion.

Health:

• Instead of the half-baked efforts to diet and exercise, pick a really healthy plan that also includes daily stress reduction via meditation. Then commit to it and put a fail-proof plan into place to really stick to it.

How to Take a Quantum Leap in Your Life

1. Choose. What is the one area of your life that you want to take to the next level? Maybe you want a full life makeover. If so, narrow it down by asking yourself, “What is the one area of my life that is in most need of a change ? What is that one area that will provide an energy jump start the energy needed for a full life makeover?”

2. Analyze. Ask yourself: “If I had no fear, what is the one thing that could take me to the next level? What’s holding me back from success in this area? What is it I’m afraid to do?” Brainstorm a lot of ideas. Write them down. Don’t censor yourself and don’t worry about the details. Now, which idea scares you the most? Which idea presents the greatest challenge? That’s probably the one to pick. Don’t let fear hold you back. Remember, if you set your mind to it, You Can Do It!

3. Plan. Devise an action plan to make that quantum leap successfully. How? Write out the end goal first and work backwards. What do you need to do to reach the end goal? What are the steps you need to take? Write them all down. You can use yellow stickies and put them into order after you have all your ideas written out. Lastly, after the action steps are in order then start scheduling them into your weekly routine and into your calendar.

4. Act. Take the first action step soon, like today or tomorrow morning. Establish a goal buddy for regular progress updates, support, and encouragement. Doing this weekly will help you to fail-proof your plan.

Columbian Kids Who Take a Leap Every Morning to Go to School

Please Share!

Are You Ready to Take a Quantum Leap in Your Life? Tell us about it! All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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Quantum Leap: What’s Your Next Big Thing?

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If You Only Look for It

Who in this world is without complaints? Not many. It is human nature to complain. Why? I don’t know. But what I do know is that many of us have far more things to be grateful for than we have to complain about. The key is that we need to raise our awareness in order to realize our many gifts. How do we do this?

I suggest a day of active gratitude. What will you get from this exercise? Oh, just a little thing called happiness.

Day of Active Gratitude

Starting today, right now, begin to notice, moment to moment, each element in your life that brings goodness to your world. Even things that sometimes drive you crazy like bosses, jobs, spouses, VCR’s that don’t work, even these things, bring goodness into your life. Ask the right questions and you’ll get the right answers.

Everything and everyone you encounter today ask yourself:

• What is the goodness that comes from this thing or this person?
• How would my life be more difficult without this thing or person?

• Now feel the gratitude.

Some Examples of Things to Be Grateful For

your bed

your pillow

sheets

towels

toilet – imagine life without this

toilet paper

soap

clean running water

ovens & stoves -conventional, microwave. instant and exact temperature. no soot, no waiting. how lucky to have this!

grocery store – just imagine how amazing the concept is, that you can go one place to get so many kinds of things!

your car

public transportation

clean air – we need to keep it this way!

your boss

your friends

your family

laughter

clothes – in the old days and still in much of the world people own just one or two outfits

free time -not everyone in the world has this. do you appreciate yours?

plates & silverware

tables & chairs

ubundant paper to write and draw on

radio

mp3 players

deck of cards – forget video games. how many games can you play with cards?

ballpoint pen

free public libraries

nature – trees, flowers, mountains, the ocean

art

your job

opportunity – where there’s a will there’s a way.

your computer

cell phones – many poo poo these, but come on, don’t they make life so convenient?

telephones – try explaining to a child that there weren’t always phones. Imagine what that was like.

love – who do you love? who loves you? open your eyes to see it and appreciate it.

food – when was the last time you thought about what it would be like to live on bread, rice, and only the occasional egg or piece of meat?

Now what was it you were feeling bad about this morning? What is it that you need that you don’t already have? As my grandmother in Ireland used to say kindly to her 9 children when they complained (and they were poor), “Aren’t ye alright?” In other words, “Come on now. Don’t you have everything you need?” Don’t you?

Please Share!

What would you like to add to the list? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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Life Is Good

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Facing Fear

I had a very interesting experience a couple weeks ago where I came face to face with strong fear. I learned a lot from the experience and I came away a stronger person. The lessons I learned are powerful. I share them with you here in the hope that you find value in them.

My Recent Encounter with Fear

I learned how to windsurf at the end of the summer while my brother was visiting. He bought some used equipment and he, my sister, and I all sort of taught ourselves how to do it. It was a bumpy learning experience for us, but we got the hang of it and my brother became quite proficient rather quickly.

On this day, I decided to go windsurfing with my brother because it was he last day before he was leaving, even though I wasn’t completely keen on it. It was cold and very windy, windier than I’d been in before on the windsurfer.

I got on the board and set a small goal of sailing across the river to the other shore and then returning to where I started. I quickly got to the channel as the wind was so strong but it was hard holding onto the sail. When I got to the middle of the river, I suddenly became very frightened. It was dark from the clouds, cold, and the wind was howling. There was no one else around and I had lost sight of my brother. He was back on the shore, soon to be following in a kayak, but since I couldn’t see him yet, I felt a panic. I decided to turn around and sail back.

Now because the wind was so strong, I couldn’t turn to come about and sail back in the opposite direction. This was also due to my fear and resulting lack of confidence in the moment. So I gave in to fear and gave up. I laid down on the board and tried to paddle back. This was a ridiculous strategy given the strength of the wind and the current in the middle of the river. So then I started calling out my brother name. I wasn’t completely panicked, but my confidence was shot.

My brother came paddling up in the kayak and talked to me supportively, being very positive and calm. I told him that as silly as it may sound, I just became overcome with fear and I gave in to it. He said, “Don’t worry. It’s windy today, but you can do it.” That gave me the confidence boost I needed. At that point I started to listen to reason which told me there was nothing to really worry about.

I stood up on the board and summoned up the strength I needed which which I could now access since my confidence was back. I managed to get the sail onto the side I needed. This was more from mental strength than the physical strength required. And then I sailed back into the home-base shore.

It is completely amazing how much your success at windsurfing is affected by your confidence level. If you don’t trust yourself, believe in yourself, and mentally commit 100% to succeeding, then no matter your strength level, you will fail. It is a magnificent teacher for learning to summon and cultivate your confidence.

And in this short experience I learned just how quickly one can forfeit their confidence to fear. If you want to learn how to build confidence, I highly recommend trying windsurfing. It’s just you and the wind. You either believe in yourself and succeed, or you allow fear to dunk you over and over again.

So the ending to this story is that I made it back without a scratch, but truly as a changed person. This story may seem incredibly overwrought. The incident was not long and drawn out, I was never in any real danger, but the key point is that my fear was as big as if I was hanging from a cliff. I feel quite ridiculous recounting the story, but the lessons are so valuable I wanted to share them with you.

The Lessons That Fear Taught Me

1. Committment. When you endeavor to do something that is difficult and will challenge you, Be Fully Committed or don’t do it at all. When confronted with fear inducing elements, if your commitment is halfhearted, then your resolve will instantly melt and you will fail. Get your game face on and charge ahead!

2. Believe in Yourself. Summon up your confidence. Fake it until it is real if you have to. Keep talking yourself through your challenge and fear won’t be able to sink its teeth into you. Tell yourself you can do it and that you’ll get there! Think “Braveheart!” (Watch this movie for a lesson in bravery and courage.) Think “The Little Engine Who Could.” (Remember this book? Little by little you too can get up an over that mountain!)

3. Analyze. Think out what your worst case scenario is. Often we are afraid of something that is not likely or that is vague. In my case I was afraid of…what?…I’m not sure…dying? If I thought it through at the time, my most likely worst case scenario was that I would float unharmed down the river probably landing on a beach eventually. But it was not even remotely likely that I would perish! Force your analytical mind to dominate over your irrational fearful mind. This will allow you to get back in the game and move forward.

4. Take Action. Stop worrying and take some action to help your situation. Don’t give up. Giving up ensures failure. Effort will get you there eventually. Do what you can to control your outcome, and don’t worry about things over which you have no control.

5. Be Prepared. Know yourself and how you react to things. Prepare for potential fear ahead of time so that fear will not be able to grab a hold of you. Sometimes fear can have such power over us because of the element of surprise. Because you’re not expecting fear to show up, it takes you prisoner in a sneak attack.

This happened to me when I gave birth. I wasn’t one bit afraid during my whole pregnancy. I thought I could handle it. I never considered the possibility of fear. I only imagined pain. Well when the first mammoth contraction hit, my knees actually gave out and I lost my lunch a few moments later. Bam! Fear completely enveloped me for the rest of my labor. That anxiety made my labor more difficult. Had I envisioned a plan for handling fear I might have fared better. I eventually made it through with the massive support of family, nurses, and my outstanding midwife, all of whom were with me in the delivery room. This brings me to my next lesson.

6. Lean on Others! If you can get help ahead of time, do so! If not, ask as soon as you find yourself sinking into fear. Ask supportive people to help you. You know who those supportive people are. Ask them, even if you are not very close. People love to be needed and to help. You have nothing to lose. And tell people exactly what your fears are. Your supporters will then be able to help you come up with solutions. And by stating your fear out loud, you will deflate it’s power.

7. Put Worry on Hold. If fear manifests in the form of chronic worry, take these actions: Write it down. This will stop it from playing over and over again in your mind. Write out your worst case scenarios. Next write out solutions or things you can do. And then get busy working on the things you can control. Postpone the worry indefinitely. Let it go. Turn it over to God, the Universe, or simply to fate. Say a quiet prayer, wish, or intention and then get busy living life.

8. Compassion. Have compassion for yourself. Don’t be ashamed or embarrassed. Learn from your fear. Grow stronger for having lived through it. Fear is natural and we all have the resources inside of us to work through it. So be kind to yourself.

With others, also be completely compassionate, especially with children or the elderly, but really with anyone who is in fear. Just because you can’t understand or remember what that was like, know that their fear is real. By being compassionate and unconditionally supportive, that caring will transform into a power that helps them navigate the dark tunnels of fear and brings them finally out into the light again. Even if you can’t immediately see evidence of this, know that it is working. Smile. Be unendingly positive and strong. Your support has power beyond your wildest dreams. In my case the support I received during labor is what enabled me to deliver my baby. Without that support, I surely would have failed.

9. Time. Give yourself and others time to work through fear. It doesn’t always happen in an instant. Sometimes it takes some internal processing. Sometimes if danger is involved, there is no time to spare. In those cases you must will yourself to make it through. Afterwards you’ll need some time to process it all. Tell your story and take ownership of your strength in doing so.

10. Keep Your Cool. No matter what the circumstance, but most especially if there is danger, remain calm. It could save your life. Seriously. If danger is involved, there is no room for panic. Be tough on yourself and reign in your emotions. You can break down later after you’ve survived. For now, remember the story of Apollo 13. This is one of the most amazing stories. Watch the movie for a lesson in remaining calm during a crisis. It is the true story of 3 astronauts whose spaceship became partially disabled, and through calm constant work including mathematical calculations, were able to jimmy-rigg a solution that miraculously got them back to earth.

Please Share!

What things are you afraid of that hold you back? How could you face it and overcome it? Do you have a story to tell? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, perhaps you’ll be kind enough to vote for this with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

If you want to Support Life Learning Today, you can visit one of my sponsors, make a donation, or make a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

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Learn from Fear and You Will Transform Your Life

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Part 1 of this series introduced you to the parts of your brain, how your brain computes, and also how your brain improves. Finally, 3 types of brain workouts you can use to improve your brain were presented. Today Part 2 brings you 3 more brain workouts for you to enjoy as you stretch your brain “muscles.”

Brain Workout #1 – Memory

Create your to-do list for today or tomorrow on a piece of paper or index card. Only write down 6 items on it. Only write down items that you will actually do (tasks, appointments, leisure events.) In other words don’t write down more than is actually possible. Next to each task write down the approximate time you expect to do each item. Read it over and memorize it. Put the paper in your pocket. Go about your day and complete your task list. Each time you complete something write down on a new piece of paper the time and task as you remember writing down on the original list. At the end of the day, compare the two lists to see how you did. You may even want to turn this into a daily habit for working your memory by increasing the complexity by one item each day!

Brain Workout #2 – Drawing + Goals

Think of a goal. It can be a big goal such as starting your own business or it can be a small goal like going to the grocery store this afternoon. Draw the major steps you will take to reach that goal. Use as few words as possible in the picture. If it is for an important goal such as starting a business or losing weight, you can hang the picture somewhere that you will see it every day! Here is a picture of my goal for the weekend: traveling to a friend’s wedding and our safe return.

Brain Workout #3 – Day Dreaming

Set aside at least 30 minutes. Find a comfortable, safe, and quiet place to sit. Close your eyes and imagine a goal that you want to achieve. Picture all the steps that you need to take to reach that goal. Imagine accomplishing all of those steps in a steady and successful progression over time. Imagine reaching your goal. How will that feel? What will it look like? Sound, feel, and taste? Use the full 30 minutes. Now when you “awake” from this day dream instead of merely remembering it like a dream, be the person who has reached that goal today. Do this every once in a while to build confidence, grow enthusiasm, and create energy for implementing your action plan steps day by day.

Please Share!

What are your favorite brain exercises? Tell us how these exercises went for you! All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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If you want to Support Life Learning Today, you can visit one of my sponsors, make a donation, or make a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

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Building a Smarter, Stronger Brain – Part 2

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The health of our environment is top of mind for most everyone these days. It’s easy to feel a little hopeless about it at first. Well, you can erase that notion! There ARE things you can do and you CAN make a difference! This article will show you how, from easy stuff to actions that will take more of a commitment. Many of these ideas can save you money too! Some have an upfront cost, but if you look at the savings in energy costs over time, the net can be savings for you and a cleaner world for all.

You may feel like your contribution is small, but it’s not. How you live your life will influence other people. Your contribution added to everyone else’s “green” contributions will cumulatively make a large difference. So if you are concerned about the environment, but unsure how you can make a difference, then take a look at these actions you can start doing and begin today! Do what you can today, plan to do more in the future, and spread the word to get everyone involved!

Measuring Impact

About 25% of carbon emissions come from personal activities (cars, electricity in our homes, food we buy, etc.). The other 75% comes from commerce, industry, agriculture, oil mining, trucking, military, and more. The average American produces approximately 22 tons (44,000 pounds) of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions per year. The worldwide average is 6 tons (12,000 pounds) per person per year. Work on reducing your own carbon footprint, those emissions that stem from your actions, and then encourage others to do the same. Like anything, start small and build on successes.

What You Can Do

In the House

1. Turn Off the Lights. And anything else you’re not using such as your computer, printer, etc.
2. Print Less. Reuse the other side of paper you no longer need.
3. Lights. Use compact flourescent bulbs. The more bulbs you replace the greater your electricity savings will be.
4. Unplug. Any device that is plugged in and is turned off, is still drawing power. Unplug chargers and anything else you can while you’re not using it. When electrical devices are done charging, remove them and unplug them.
5. Water Heater. Turn down the setting by 2 degrees for a significant savings
6. Home Temperature: Turn Thermostat down 2 degrees in winter and up 2 degrees in summer. According to StopGlobalWarming.org, this will save 22,000 pounds of CO2 per year and $98 per year in utility bills. Change the filters for A/C and heaters regularly. Wear a sweater in the winter and use fans in the summer instead of A/C when you can.
7. Washing Machines: only do laundry or run the dishwasher when it’s full. This saves water, electricity and washing soap. Hang your clothes to dry instead of using a dryer.
8. Defrost Fridge. Defrost your fridge/freezer regularly.
9. Old appliances. Replace a fridge older than 15 years with an energy efficient one. The same for boilers.
10. Weatherproofing. Have your home inspected by the local energy company to see what you can do to make it more energy efficient such as insulation of your home, insulating your water heater, caulk & weatherstrip doors and windows, install double paned windows and more.
11. Recycle your Gray Water. This is wastewater that is generated from domestic processes such as washing dishes, laundry and bathing. It can be used for watering your grass and plants and more.
12. Boiling Water: only boil as much water as you need.
13. Showers. Take shorter showers and install low-flow shower heads with built in shut-off valve. Turn down the water when washing your hair.
14. Install a Water Filter. Use this instead of buying bottled water and you’ll save money and tons of CO2 that it takes to ship that water.
15. Water Heater. Switch to a tankless water heater which heats the water as you need it instead of storing it.

Shopping

1. One Trip. Try to buy the week’s groceries in one trip.
2. Use reusable cloth bags for your groceries.
3. Buy locally grown (in season) organic produce or try growing some of your own!
4. Buy products made close to home.
5. Reduce Meat Consumption. This is because of the CO2 that is produced from shipping it.
6. Recycled Goods. Use recycled paper and other recycled products.
7. Recycle. Recycle all paper, plastic and glass.
8. Reduce Garbage. Buy products with minimal packaging.

Cars and Travel

1. Tires. Check monthly to keep them fully inflated.
2. Air Filter. Check your car’s air filter monthly and change it as needed.
3. Commuting and Traveling. When you can, carpooling, public transportation and walking/cycling are all better choices than driving alone.
4. Buy a Hybrid Car or Fuel Efficient Car.
5. Exercise. Run, walk, bike, etc. instead of driving to the gym.
6. Travel. Use land or sea travel (trains, buses, ferries) when you can instead of air travel.
7. Work from Home. Find out if you can work from home one or more days per week.
8. Vacations via Bicycle. If possible considering renting bikes instead of a car for your next vacation. Consider vacations closer to home.
9. Hotels. Do all the same things you would do at home. Turn A/C down, turn TV off, etc when you leave the room. Ask to have linens and towels washed every other day or less.

Other

1. Buy Energy Certificates. This is a donation to help grow the renewable energy market with things like wind and solar energy. In some places you can get tax credits for these. Check with your local and state government.
2. Plant a Tree.
3. Mowing the Law. Use a push mower.
4. Other Activities. Think about your hobbies and whether they contribute to CO2 emissions. If they do, consider cutting back or replacing them with less polluting activities. Examples are: Go-Carts, saunas, health clubs, restaurants & bars, off-roading, motor boating, etc.
5. Install renewable energy generators such as solar panels or wind turbines. These are expensive options, but you will have electricity savings to offset it and in some locations you can get tax credits.

Political

Make your voice be heard on this issue. Vote for candidates who promise to take action on making laws that will encourage individuals and institutions to make green choices. Write to your local politicians and let them know how you feel. Go to StopGlobalWarming.org to find easy ideas on how to make your voice heard. There is also a wealth of information there. Do check it out!

Will It Make a Difference?

Yes. Some of these things you may think “Just because I buy lesser packaged goods doesn’t make the highly packaged ones disappear. So what’s the difference?” The difference is that over time if many people make these choices, then demand for the more environmentally harmful ones will go down and less will be produced. And YOUR CHOICES will have contributed to that!

You don’t have to do all these things to make a difference, but the more you can do the better. And be sure to tell your friends!

Photo Credit

The beautiful photo in this article is courtesy of photographer extraordinaire Tom Dempsey of Photoseek.com. His amazing photography is available for sale at his Nature & Adventure Travel Photography website. Please take a look at his stunning work. You won’t believe your eyes! Thank you Tom!

Please Share!

What are you committed to doing to help the environment? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, perhaps you’ll be kind enough to vote for this with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

If you want to Support Life Learning Today, you can visit one of my sponsors, make a donation, or make a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

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Things You Can Do Today to Help Save the Environment

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If you’ve been feeling bad about yourself lately, you can turn that around pretty quickly. The key? Be improving. Be improving in some area of your life. When you are improving on something you are moving forward, you are getting better, and you will feel better.

Perhaps you’re experiencing a life crisis, early life, mid-life, or early life crisis. Or maybe you’re simply in a rut. Maybe you’ve noticed how aging is affecting your body. You can break past this! All you have to do is get busy improving on something you enjoy, and you will begin to feel better and better each day.

Just know that it is never too late to start, and today is the perfect day to start!

Things You Could Improve On

• Physical: walking, jogging, biking, tennis, soccer, sailing, windsurfing (if I can do it, you can!), kayaking, skiing, golfing, etc.
• Hobbies: fishing, whittling, model making, pool, quilting, crochet, knitting, arts, gardening, working on a vintage car.
• Parenting: take a class, take an online course, read a book, find a parenting blog.
• Skills: painting, sculpting, public speaking, writing, teaching,
• Learning: take a class on something that interests you such as a foreign language, history, creative writing, art, etc.
• Relationships: find a great book, such as in Follow Your Heart by Andrew Matthews, and apply it a little bit each day. Focus on yourself and what you can do to make a relationship more positive.

How to Be Improving

1. Pick an area that interests you.
2. Plan a start. (example: Plan to walk 20 minutes each day at 7am. Plan to go to bed by 10pm. Lay out shoes and workout clothes night before.)
3. Start slow.
4. Do it everyday.
5. Challenge yourself a little bit more every day. (example: Want to start jogging, but you can only jog for one minute. Do a combination of jog/walk. Each day try to jog a few minutes more within your 20-30 minute session.)
6. Track your progress on a simple calendar.
7. Find a success buddy who will support you and encourage you. Everyone knows someone really positive and enthusiastic. Call that person and ask them to cheer you on via email or via phone calls every once in a while.
8. Plan a special treat for after 30 days of continual improvement.
9. Celebrate, smile and enjoy how it feels to be improving!
10. Start Today!

Please Share!

What will you improve on this month? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, perhaps you’ll be kind enough to vote for this with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

If you want to Support Life Learning Today, you can visit one of my sponsors, make a donation, or make a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

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Want to Know a Feel Good Secret?

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In A Rush?

Do you ever feel like your life is a constant rush from one activity to the next? Want to get rid of that stressed out feeling? Well, you can! You just have to make a commitment to slowing down.

Will this mean less success? No. But you’ll probably begin to redefine what success really is. We need to stop being busy long enough to realize what success means to us. For me it has meant posting fewer times per week on my blog so that I can enjoy some family time. I was really burning the candle on both ends, so this summer I have been writing about 3-5 blog posts per week as opposed the 7 per week I was writing last spring.

Just like our homes, our calendars can become cluttered too. We schedule every minute of our time leaving no time for transitions or relaxation. Slowing Down doesn’t mean stopping. It doesn’t mean lazy. It means a pace that is healthy for our body and soul, as well as for our need to achieve.

How to Slow Down

1. Adopt a “Slow Down Mindset.” Decide that you will not be rushed by life and that you will take steps to consciously go slower.

2. Daily Planinng. Leave open ample time between activities and appointments. Schedule in “slow time” for thinking, reading, walking, conversation, playing, etc.

3. Arrive Early. When you’re late, stress hormones course through your body and for many people it’s effect can be felt well after your late arrival as you internally berate yourself, fume about living in a rushed world, and/or worry about what others think of your tardiness. So do yourself a HUGE favor and plan to arrive early from now on. Here’s how:

• Leave 20-30 minutes earlier than you think you need to leave.
• Have everything you will need ready 1 hour before you need to leave.
• Bring reading or writing materials with you.
• When you arrive early, use that early time to relax, close your eyes, rest, think, write, draw, or even make a phone call if the place is appropriate.
• Bask the relaxing feeling of being early!

4. Don’t Be in a Rush. In general, try not to always be rushing. Pay attention and be aware of your pace. If you are already late, here’s how to handle it:

• Call ahead if needed and give a realistic ETA.
• Take a deep breath.
• Accept that you’re late and that you can’t change it.
• Don’t get mad at traffic or other people. It’s not their fault, and it will only drain your energy.
• Go Slow.
• When you arrive, apologize and then move forward.

5. Eat Slow. We eat like we live: fast. And look what it does to us. Many of us are overweight. One great way to combat this is to slow down your eating. Here’s how:

• Before you begin to eat, close your eyes and say to yourself: “I will eat slowly and enjoy this food.”
• Take a nice deep slow breath to slow down your pace.
• Leave work and worries behind while you eat.
• Eat slowly.
• Really taste your food.
• Enjoy.

6. Audit Your Schedule. How are you spending your time? What does your average day, week, month look like for you? Write down a rough outline of it. Now, what can you cut out? Appointments, mindless TV time, what else? Keep the things that line up with your values, that you really enjoy. We can’t do it all, so why not just do those things that you really love? Less is more. Be at peace with this, knowing that you’re spending your time thoughtfully instead of frantically.

7. Caffeine? Does caffeine serve you well? For some, it does. For me, it doesn’t, and it took me a while to accept that. So now, I only have caffeine as a special treat occasionally. How does it affect you? Does it increase your tendency to rush? Does it make you agitated? If so, you might want to consider cutting back or eliminating it. Try cutting back for a day and see how it feels. I just drink decaf now if I want coffee or tea, both of which I love.

8. Here & Now. Learning from the past is important, and so is planning for the future. The problem is we don’t spend much conscious time in the present. The present is the place where we find the true joy of life. Children and pets live in the present moment. They notice little things, they wonder about their world, and they delight in whatever they are currently experiencing. If they get hurt, they move on pretty quickly whether it is a wounded knee or a wounded pride. Let’s take a lesson from them and aspire to discover this magic daily.

Resource
SlowDownNow Blog – I was recently inspired by this blog which has many great stories that will inspire you to slow down.

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Slow Down for Peace of Mind AND Success

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I have a guest post over at DumbLittleMan.com this week that is great if you are having a bad day or had a bad day yesterday.

This article will give you all the tips you need to bounce back from a bad day.

Please check it out today and if you like it, please Digg or Stumble it if you can! Thank you!

DumbLittleMan.com: 9 Ways to Have a Better Day than Yesterday

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What do you do to cheer up after a bad day? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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9 Ways to Have a Better Day than Yesterday

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We All Need Creativity Time

We all need creativity time. Everyone needs time to think about their personal life vision and time to create the daily and weekly plans that will bring that vision into being. People in business need to: think of creative solutions to client problems, strategize creative ways to build business, and dream up the next generation of products and services. Parents need to create routines for the home and their children. And creative people need time for writing, painting, coding, designing and so on.

The Problem

Life is so full, that creativity time gets squeezed out. And our propensity for procrastination doesn’t help. We contribute to squeezing out our creativity time by fettering it away on lower priority tasks first. Why? Because in many ways they are easier to do. Creativity takes a lot of energy and mental gymnastics. So what’s the solution? It’s right there in front of you. And it’s been there all along. Here’s where to find the time and places to make it happen.

Where to Grab Creativity Time

1. Mindless Tasks.

All the things that you need to do on a daily and weekly basis that don’t require thinking are potential opportunities for creativity time. Here are some examples:

• Exercise time
• Laundry – folding, hanging up, etc.
• Driving
• Commuting
• Putting kids to sleep – (if you lay down with your kids while they go to sleep)
• Waiting in Line

Now it’s not ideal creativity time because you won’t always be able to record your thoughts and ideas right away. That’s ok. This will force you to keep it simple. Use that fact to focus on just one idea during any of these opportunities. All creativity requires a certain amount of brainstorming before you can start writing down your ideas or making sketches or laying out plans. In fact, sometimes the act of writing down ideas can halt a certain amount of creativity. So use these small times to brainstorm a bit. After the brainstorming is done, as soon as you are able, write down your ideas or use Jott to send a voice message to yourself which will be converted into text and emailed to you.

2. Air Travel

This is a great place to hunker down to pure creativity time.

1. If there is a TV , leave it off!
2. Leave your computer turned off, too.
3. Put on a set of headphones to give other passengers notice that you’re busy. (Noise canceling head phones are one of the best things you can buy for yourself if you travel frequently at all. Even if you don’t they are great whenever you need to drown out noise.)
4. Start by closing your eyes and brainstorming first.
5. Get out a pad of paper and a pen or pencil.
6. Create!
7. If you need to, make a pact with yourself to “treat” yourself to leisure items (music, reading, TV) once you’ve completed a preset amount of creative work.

3. Closed Spaces
This one is a little different than the first two in that you need to create the time for this one. It also may strike you as a little strange, but therein lies it’s power. The idea is to confine yourself to a small space where you won’t be interrupted by any distractions. Some ideas are:

• Sitting in your Car - Anywhere you can park your car is fine. In your garage, on the street, or in a parking lot. Does your spouse ever ask you to go shopping, but you don’t enjoy it? Well how about coming along for the ride and once at the store, you remain in the car for some distraction free creativity time! This is one of my favorites. My mom loves to shop. I don’t, or at least I can’t afford it. She goes shopping and I wait in the car and do some writing. Being in a different place helps me to think more creatively.
• A large closet with a light or (smallest room in your house) - obviously, make sure you can’t get locked in and that there is enough air to breathe. Small spaces are good because there is not enough room to have distractions.
• The bathroom - sitting on the “throne” with the lid closed, sitting in the tub with or without water in it.
• A dresssing room – I haven’t tried this one, but I bet it could work. If you have a friend who needs to go clothes shopping, but you don’t need anything, you could wait for him/her in the dressing room and do some creative work until they come in. If you feel strange going into one of the the dressing rooms you could just wait on the bench or the floor by the dressing room attendant. This one isn’t for everyone, but it could work for some.
• Nook in library or bookstore – ah, peace and quiet. I don’t know about you, but I get very inspired creatively when I’m in either of these places. Find a small quiet corner away from distractions and let the creativity flow.
• Tent. Do your kids have a tent? If not, consider setting one up. All you need is a blanket and some kind of furniture to place it over. Go inside. Where are you? Pretend you are somewhere other than your living room or back yard. Let this fictitious location inspire you to find new ways of thinking about your project.
• What are your ideas?

Please Share!

What are your most unusual and useful hacks for finding creativity time? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, perhaps you’ll be kind enough to vote for this with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

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Get the Creative Time You Need: 3 Simple Tips

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Do you find it difficult to get ready and out of the house in the morning? Are you frequently late to appointments? Do you have difficulty making choices?Are you in awe of people who manage to get things done seemingly without much effort or anxiety? Do you keep lots of things out in the open so you won’t forget them? Have you been frustrated because you can’t seem to fix these problems? Well there’s good news. It’s not entirely your fault, and there are things you can do to improve!

The root problem is the failure to transition from one activity to another. This article will offer practical solutions to help you to manage your time better. If this doesn’t describe you, then chances are you know someone who could use this help.

Which Type of Person Are You?

There are two types of people in this world, monochrones and polychrones. Determining which one you are will explain a lot about yourself.

• Monochrones see time in absolutes, are usually on time, and prefer to work on one project at a time.
• Polychrones, on the other hand, see time as fluid, are committed to people not to time appointments, change plans often, and are usually working on more than one project at a time.

People who are polychrones have difficulty managing time not because they are lazy or inconsiderate, but because they are wired differently. It’s not good or bad. It just is. The key is for Polychrones to leverage their strengths and to learn skills that will help them overcome the challenges.

Leveraging Strengths

The strengths of Polychrones are their ability to work on more than one project at a time and their strong long term relationships. How can you leverage these? Seek out roles at work and elsewhere in your life that require these abilities. Try to stay clear of roles where you may get bored with only one or limited projects or lack of variety. You may want to find roles in which building long term relationships is important and avoid roles where you don’t have the opportunity to work with people over long periods of time, as this might be a source of frustration for you.

Solutions to Challenges

The main challenge for Polychrones in modern life is the ability to transition from one activity to the next. Polychrones are a perfect demonstration of Newton’s First Law of Motion: a body in motion will remain in motion unless acted upon by an outside force. If you’re a Polychrone, you’ve experienced this. You immersed in your work when the phone rings. This interruption causes you to “wake up” from your work and, looking at your watch, you panic as you realize you’re going to be late for a meeting. Argh! Is there any way to keep this from happening all the time? Yes and it’s all about learning how to stop, how to disengage. Here’s how:

1. Become Aware of Your Nature. By reading this article, you’ve probably had a light bulb turn on and you’re nodding your head saying, “Oh my, I had no idea!” Ok. Now you know why these things happen.

2. Decide You Want to Change How You Manage Time. If how you manage time doesn’t cause major problems in your life and you’re not motivated to change, then you may not need to. However if you want to stop: being late, letting people down, feeling anxiety when switching gears, and going into panic mode because you’re late again, then make a commitment mentally and read on.

3. Accept Transition Discomfort. For Polychrones there is mental discomfort when switching from one activity to the next and it can be as strong as a child reaching for his mother as she leaves him with a babysitter. Accept that this discomfort will be short lived if you allow yourself to become engaged in the next activity. Also the following steps will help minimize the transition discomfort as well.

4. Accept That Time Moves Faster Than You Realize. Yes, this is something you need to do. For people with many interests and for whom stopping is difficult, this is an important step. Accept that you can’t do everything you want in one day. You need to choose the things that are most important and then…go to Step #5.

5. Plan Your Day with Ultra Realistic Timeframes. Instead of simply jumping into your day, have a pen and paper near your bed. Plan out exactly what you will do today and next to each write down the realistic time it will take. This will help keep you from becoming distracted. Set leaving times 15-30 minutes ahead of when you think you need to leave. Carry your list around with you in the morning before you leave the house. Check things off as you go, and keep moving. Keep distractions at bay. Don’t watch TV or listen to the radio. Wait until you are commuting. You can listen to the radio or if on a train, read the paper then.

6. Nip Distractions in the Bud! As you are moving through your day and something grabs hold of your interest, ask yourself:

• Do I have time for this now?
• Is this important to me?

If it is important and you can’t fit it into 2 minutes, then WRITE IT DOWN and schedule it for later. Carry a capture notebook with you at all times. A PocketMod is a great tool for this because it is so small. Then each morning or evening when you plan your next day, you can schedule in those distractions for when you have time. And you may find that some of those things will not be important anymore. That’s OK.

7. Plan Your Transitions. Stopping is the problem. The solution is setting a plan in writing and in your mind where you can visualize how you will stop one activity before moving onto the next. This may sound very “kindegarten” to you, but it works!

Here’s an example: Here’s your a portion of your day:

• 10am until 12 noon – Work on Project X.
• 12 noon – Lunch Date .

Time estimates:

• 15 minutes to walk from your office to where your lunch appointment is.
• 15 minutes to pack your briefcase, check your notes and use the bathroom before leaving.
• 10 minutes to wind down your work on Project X for noting where you left off and what your next actions will be when you work on this again.
• Total Time Needed before your lunch appointment: 40 minutes.

That means you can only work on Project X until 11:20am.
Set a reminder that you will hear and respond to! Suggestions:

• Actual alarm clock.
• Electronic calendar reminders
• Here is a link to a free online countdown stopwatch.
• Or setup a free phone call reminder with TelePixie.
• Or if you are really bad, enlist help from others to “interrupt” you to help you stop.

Plan how you will stop for all major transitions of your day. Watch how much of a difference this will make!

8. Trick Yourself with Pre-Planned Interruptions. These are interruptions you can’t ignore. It might be having a friend come by your office or home. It might be a phone call with your friend. It could be you put your child or spouse in charge of the alarm clock. When it goes off have your child or spouse tell you it’s quitting time. Make sure you listen to them and thank them so that they will help you in the future. Set the interruption time for 5 minutes before you need to start the next activity. Let your interrupter know ahead of time that you will be taking 5 minutes or less to close up shop after they tag you. To be best prepared for this, when you start the activity, think about the steps you’ll need to take to stop. Even write them down if that helps. Over time, try to make it a goal to close up shop before they get there!

9. Discover the Benefits of Being Early. For many people who are chronically late, in addition to having trouble transitioning, there is the dislike of being early. If you share this feeling, then here is a simple solution. Always carry with you something you can do when you arrive early. This could be a notebook, a book, magazine, knitting, your web-enabled phone or whatever you can do in small amounts of time. Or carry nothing extra, and make a habit of taking a mini meditation nap while waiting.

10. Celebrate Success. You can chart your success or just start noting mentally each time you are early or on time for an appointment. Smile for each successful transition you complete. Reward yourself with fun time where you can daydream, waste time at will and browse all the interesting things of life. Just remember to plan how you’ll stop!

Resources:

For more information on this see Martha Beck’s article called Transition Anxiety in O, The Oprah Magazine.

Test to see if you are Monochrone or Polychrone over at O Magazine.

Getting Things Done by David Allen is a great system for anyone including Polychrones.

Getting Things Done Daily Guide in PocketMod format.

Please Share!

Please share a recent decision an how you made it! All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, please SHARE THIS below with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

If you want to Support Life Learning Today, you can visit one of my sponsors, make a donation, or make a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

Technorati Tags: Getting Things Done, GTD, Motivation, Personal Development, Productivity

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Failure to Transition

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