Here’s a Morning Routine That Will Make You Unstoppable

Get up, brush your teeth, get dressed, eat breakfast, go to work. Day in, day out. How do you begin your day? We are creatures of habit and as such, we can easily get into some humdrum habits that aren’t exactly bad, but aren’t really allowing us to live at our full potential. If you’re looking for something to give you that slight edge, look no further than your morning routine. A morning routine should not be moving through the basics as quickly as possible to get on your way to your day. A morning routine is a mindful experience that puts you on the path to a great day.

What are some habits you can start to include in your morning routine? Here’s a few to consider:

1. Hydrate

Your body is dehydrated first thing in the morning and waking it up with a glass of water is one of the most important things you can do. For a bit more flavor, try warm or hot lemon water first thing in the morning – this can help to get your digestive system moving right away. Whether you choose a glass of cold water or a hot lemon water, you will find numerous benefits to hydrating your body right away. Some of the benefits touted on both of these include improving your metabolism, improving mental performance and helping to eliminate toxins.

“If you win the morning, you win the day.” – Tim Ferriss

2. Quiet, reflective time with journaling, gratitude or meditation

Some of the most successful people start their day with some form of quiet, reflective time including Oprah Winfrey, Mel Robbins and Tim Ferriss. Each of these routines can help to reduce stress, calm the mind and can help you to take control of your mental health. These habits help to start your day on a positive note and train your brain to look for the good throughout your day. Our minds are programmed to find what they seek, so if you train your brain to look for the good, that’s what it will find and allow you to move through your day more positively.  

3. Send love

This might sound a little out there, but stick with me. This method is taught by Bob Proctor, and it’s a powerful lesson in forgiveness. Once you’ve completed your journaling, gratitude and/or meditation, take a moment to close your eyes. Think of someone that you are having a challenging time with and send them love. Don’t think about what they’ve done or why you might be angry or upset with them. Simply send them love and positive energy. 

It’s not so much about them, though you may find that the positive energy you send their way seems to somehow break down some of the challenges you are finding with them. It’s about you and the energy that you are putting out into the world. When you hold onto anger or keep going over the challenges in your own mind with someone else, it stays with you. 

It’s like the quote from the Buddha that you’ve probably heard before: “Holding onto anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; You are the one that gets burnt.” Sending love is a powerful lesson in forgiveness and letting go.

4. Get your body moving

Starting your day with exercise can help to improve your mood and increase your energy. There are numerous benefits to exercise at any time of the day. Anything you can do to get your body moving first thing in the morning, even as simple as a walk around the block or ten minutes of sun salutations, will get your blood flowing to enhance alertness and prepare you for your day. In addition, if you allow yourself the time for a full workout, you open up time later in your day that may have been used for this to do whatever you please.  

“Wake up early everyday so that while others are still dreaming, you can make your dreams come true.” – Hal Elrod

5. Decide on the most important tasks for your day

Many of us write down our to-do lists, trying to rush through as much as possible. While doing as much as can be done in our day is valued, those with the habit of success know that doing the most important tasks first will move you much further along in the long run.  

Take time to write down up to six tasks that would be most important for you to do today. Then number them, starting with the most important task, the thing that if you only finished one task today would move the needle the most. When you start your day, begin with this task and forget about the others for the time being. Don’t move on to the next one until this is complete. 

It sounds so simple, but is a highly effective strategy for getting more done. Our minds tend to wander and want to think about the next task before we have finished the first. By deciding on what’s most important upfront, you’ll get done more quickly and have the most important thing you need to do completed so you can fully move on to the next (even if that means you don’t get to until tomorrow).

Starting your day in a positive energy can have an enormous impact on the rest of your day. Move away from the mundane and try this for a couple weeks. Watch as your life begins to transform.

from
https://addicted2success.com/life/heres-a-morning-routine-that-will-make-you-unstoppable/

5 Factors That Make Trust Possible Under Any Circumstance

Trust has a front door and a back door which is why many spend their whole life “trying” to trust other people yet, fail miserably. Trust comes up within work teams who are collaborating and building together. It appears in relationships that are blooming into longevity and meaning. It also shows up in the mirror, staring back at ourselves as we prepare for the day.

“Don’t trust them” are words we have heard recently as scandals, pandemics, and threats of economic downturn have disrupted our normal lives. There is a sense of distrust with media, celebrities, government, and even our own neighbor. This is front door trust. When the telltale wrap of front door trust comes knocking on our door, we answer it and then we decide if the thing, entity, or being on the other side is giving off vibes or information that we can trust.

What would happen if we knew of another door to focus on that very few know exists? What would happen if we used the back door to exit the house we’ve built around our own expectations and ideals? This prospect would require us to leave the house completely and trust ourselves.

This is where True Resolve Under Stress Thrives.

“Self-trust is the first secret of success.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

1. True

The truth about the world today is…We can fill in the blank with our perceptions. It is so easy to do by blocking people who have different opinions or say things we just don’t want to hear. We can handpick the songs we listen to and intentionally avoid all other genres; pushing out music that makes our ears hurt and our minds jumbled, hearing chords and lyrics that leave filled with anxiety. We can censor other distractions to prove ourselves right in order to preserve our ideas of what is good in the world.

2. Resolve

When we are resolved in who we are, we can be confident – in spite of the uncertainty that exists within the world. By focusing our resolve, we spend time on the things we know. The error many succumb to is when what we know – what we think we know is proven to be false. Only when we focus on our inner strengths, healing, gifts, and talents, are we fully ready for whatever comes next! 

3. Under

The notion that we can be UNDER something is only available to us in our mind because at one time we were OVER that something. Under is simply a concept that exists because it balances the opposite end of the context, over. To understand fully, one end of the spectrum, we must also be able – and willing – to understand the other. 

This is the concept of yin and yang. To secure Trust, we must understand that we control the context, and that we can shift our perception when we look at a situation from as many different viewpoints as possible. In this way, we gain a deeper understanding that resonates with who we are on the inside. 

4. Stress

This part of Trust is a big one because being stressed and having stress have become a badge of honor in some communities and cultures. It is what separates us as successful or unsuccessful and it comes with a proud button worn for all to read, “Busy and Unavailable”. Stress is a factor that magnifies when we decide it can come and overtake us. 

It usually starts as a thought which drives the hormones. We then feel something based on that thought which leads to the busyness behaviors. These behaviors produce more thoughts and then our bodies are flooded with more hormones and we exhibit more behaviors and the cycle goes on and on. 

To get out of the stress cycle, we must first control our thoughts, more so in times of uncertainty, to avoid perceiving the world around us as negative, and untrusting. The concept of controlling a thought does not mean that you have the power to never have the thought in the first place. The importance here is placed on practicing ways of intervening and challenging your thoughts, as well as developing new thoughts and thought patterns.

“A team is not a group of people who work together. A team is a group of people who trust each other.” – Simon Sinek

5. Thrives

The last part of Trust rests in the outcome we all desire on some level or another, which is the ability to thrive in our life situations. We want to prosper, to flourish, and to have success that leads to fulfilment. This is only possible when trust is in place within us, shaping how we see the world. Without this inner trust, while we may thrive and succeed, we are, at the same time, constantly looking over our shoulder waiting for it to all come crashing down or be taken from us. 

We do not have to live our lives without knowing true feeling and peace of trust. We can grasp it when we first look within and seek to understand the true essence of who we are and how  firmly we stand when we perceive ourselves under attack, or in a situation that we thought we would be over by now. We reaffirm trust when we take hold of our thoughts and thrive in our current situation, which leaves room for us to have success, happiness, and joy in each moment of our lives. 

No longer do we have to answer the front door when we hear the knock. We can walk out the back door, come around the side of the house, and see what is knocking from a brand new, unobstructed vantage point. That point exists within every single one of you.

from
https://addicted2success.com/life/5-factors-that-make-trust-possible-under-any-circumstance/

7 Inspiring Lessons Colonel Sanders Can Teach Us About Entrepreneurship

Colonel Sanders was rejected exactly 1009 times before he was able to sell his KFC recipe successfully. In addition to this, he failed at every job he even turned his hand to during his life. After a lifetime of facing failure after failure, he finally sold KFC at the ripe old age of 75.

In this blog, we’ll be covering seven of the inspiring lessons that the Colonel’s entrepreneurial journey can teach us, and whether you’re 25 or 75 years old, there’s something here for any budding entrepreneur.

Lesson #1: Failure Breeds Success

As I mentioned, the Colonel was rejected over a thousand times before he was successfully able to sell his Kentucky Fried Chicken recipe – that’s a lot of rejection. Not only that, but Sanders failed miserably at every other career he ever attempted. Between the ages of ten and forty, Sanders tried his hand at the following, among other things:

• Streetcar conducting
• Farming
• Law
• Sales
• Fire fighting

This just goes to show that no matter how much you experience failure, there’s still time, no matter how old you are, which brings us neatly onto our next lesson.

“I’ve only had two rules. Do all you can and do it the best you can. It’s the only way you ever get that feeling of accomplishing something.” – Colonel Sanders

Lesson #2: It’s Never Too Late

When Colonel Sanders was 75, he finally sold KFC for $2 million (roughly $15 million today). Can you imagine experiencing such a win, after a lifetime of losing? I’ve met people during my career who think they’re over the hill by the time they’re in their thirties! Yet the Colonel ploughed on in the face of adversity and ended up as the founder and face of a brand we’re still so familiar with over five decades later. 

Lesson #3: The Past is In the Past

In order to be successful as an entrepreneur, many people simply need to learn that the past is in the past, and it will only define your future chance of success if you allow it to. It doesn’t matter how many times you’ve failed, where you’ve come from or what negative things you’ve experienced or done in the past.

Your past doesn’t hold the keys to your future success. The Colonel failed at every career he ever attempted. He even spent much of his life in an unhappy marriage, ending in divorce and had to provide for three children by the time he was nineteen. For most, that’d be enough for them to settle down into an unfulfilling career, but the Colonel pressed on with faith in his own abilities and principles. 

Lesson #4: Giving Up is the Only Way to Fail

Failure is a natural side effect of life; the story of Kentucky Fried Chicken tells us that quitting is the only failure. If you have the same outlook and faith in what you’re trying to do, the possibility of significant success is never off the table. Even when you see the clock is ticking and the days and years are flashing by, there’s no time limit on being a success. Never stop searching for that light at the end of the tunnel.

Lesson #5: A Fresh Start is Sometimes All You Need

It’s clear to us now that cooking was a passion of the Colonel’s, but he didn’t discover his enthusiasm until much later in his life. It’s only through having the courage to fail and start over, again and again, that he was able to discover his real calling. 

When you try to succeed at multiple disciplines, it’s a sure-fire way to burn yourself out. The start is always the hard part, and for most, the idea of doing it over and over again, in their 50s, 60s and 70s would be absolutely exhausting. The energy and passion that the Colonel showed by doing this well into his seventies is an inspiring lesson to any entrepreneur. 

Lesson #6: Take a Leap of Faith

It’s no great shock to learn that following your heart’s desire is often the key to success, happiness and contentment. How is it then, that so many of us won’t chase after what we truly want from life? Sitting back and relaxing into your comfort zone means that many of us don’t realise how vital passion and desire really are. In the end, the pursuit of a passion will make anyone happy, contented and prosperous. 

“One has to remember that every failure can be a stepping stone to something better.” – Colonel Sanders

Lesson #7: Keep it Simple

It seems crazy to say it, but Kentucky Fried Chicken started by selling chicken on the side of the road. After selling his recipe, the business grew rapidly, and these days it’s commonplace to see KFC franchises in countries all over the world – 145 to be exact. The lesson here is never to be afraid of keeping things simple. So long as you’re willing to start, work hard and keep at it, things will grow. 

It’s often the case that would-be entrepreneurs will put off starting their venture, launching their website or whatever it might be because they simply don’t believe they are big enough to make a start. 

from
https://addicted2success.com/entrepreneur-profile/7-inspiring-lessons-colonel-sanders-can-teach-us-about-entrepreneurship/

Here’s Why We Fall Into Self Sabotage When Things Are Going So Well

If you’d like to learn how to not self sabotage so you can consistently improve your life, sign up for the free 90-Day Master Class hosted by the founder of Addicted2Success.com, Joel Brown.

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We all know the age-old story. Work hard, keep your head down, do the right thing, and success is all but guaranteed. We’ve probably been on that awesome train ride ourselves at one point in time. We’re getting great results on a project at work so we come home happy and satisfied. We bring that energy home with us and project it onto our family which in turn has them happy and excited for us. 

Our relationships are full of joy and passion and it seems like our good fortune will never end. Then most, if not all of us, get that one little thought in our head, “things are going too well” or “something bad is bound to happen.” That’s the planting of the seed that blooms into self-sabotage. But what is self-sabotage? How does it affect us? And what can we do to overcome self-sabotaging behaviors?

What is self-sabotage?

As you can probably work out from the phrase itself, self-sabotage is defined as ‘the sabotaging of one’s self.’ What this means is that we allow our behaviors to actively or passively derail our long-standing goals which in turn can affect our daily lives. Those behaviors most often include procrastination, comfort eating, and more recently, binge-watching television. They also often include much more destructive behaviors such as self-medicating with drugs and alcohol or forms of self-harm.

Now obviously some of these are extreme cases and not to be expected in most circumstances. I myself personally, struggle with procrastination. I’ll be in a state of flow for a long period of time and then something will distract me long enough that I lose my train of thought and I’ll put off getting back to my project by telling myself “I’ll do it tomorrow” or “Once I’m back in the zone I’ll knock it out.” I’ll then unconsciously look for every reason not to finish whatever I was working on. It’s a challenge I’ve had since grade school.

But what is the psychology behind it? Why do we fall into these behaviors and patterns that keep us from achieving our goals and living our best lives? And most important, how do we recognize and avoid these unhelpful behaviors?

“We need to ascend beyond our own petty Resistance, our own negative self-judgment and self-sabotage, our own “I’m not worthy” mind-set.” – Steven Pressfield

Why do we do it?

One of the key reasons behind self-sabotage is a lack of self-esteem. While this may stem from a variety of different causes, the end result is still the same: feelings of self-doubt, worthlessness, beliefs around not deserving, and fears of jealousy or inadequacy. 

When these emotions and beliefs begin taking root, we tend to increase our negative self-talk, which only fuels those emotions and beliefs and entrenches them even deeper into our subconscious. And because of the way our subconscious mind works, when we embed these “commands” into our minds, we begin to unconsciously find faster and easier ways to manifest them. 

What does self-sabotage look like in our everyday lives?

While some of the examples above are often blatantly obvious, self-sabotage manifests itself in subtle and often disruptive patterns of behavior that we don’t automatically recognize or see. Behaviors such as making impulsive negative decisions, the inability to make decisions one way or another and unjustly criticizing yourself are all signs of self-sabotage. On the flip side, self-sabotage can also take the form of perfectionism.

Have you ever not done something or put something off because you thought it was less than perfect or just needed a little more “this or that?” Have you ever put something off because “you’re just too tired or you had a long day?” What about that time you shed 50 lbs and then on a whim decided to treat yourself to a late-night drive to Taco Bell that ended up lasting about 3 days? 

All of the above are behaviors and patterns of self-sabotage that most of us do every single day. The worst part is that once we fall into these behaviors, they tend to become patterns that snowball into devastating habits.

“You leave old habits behind by starting out with the thought, ‘I release the need for this in my life’.” – Dr. Wayne Dyer

How do we recognize these behaviors and prevent them from becoming habits?

Step one is to take a deep introspective look at one’s self. In order to prevent these behaviors, we have to know the source of our actions and then actively challenge and confront them. This takes some time and self-reflection and will often lead to us reverting to a defensive mode in order to justify our self-sabotaging traits. However, it is necessary to understand why we behave this way and where those beliefs are rooted. 

One way we can begin preventing our self-sabotage is by becoming self-aware. We can revisit some of our past experiences where we have succeeded and thrived and ask ourselves questions such as “What challenges did I have to overcome?” and “What steps were involved in that process?” In recognizing and acknowledging these past experiences, we can then retool those same processes to overcome certain limiting beliefs that are leading to our self-sabotage.

Another method we can use is by changing the self-talk we allow into our language. In Neuro Linguistic Programming, we learn that our unconscious mind – like electricity – follows the path of least resistance to get to its desired outcome. By using words like “can’t” and “try” or phrases like “it’s too hard”, we are subliminally programming ourselves to seek out the fastest and easiest ways in which to not succeed. 

If we can eliminate words such as “not” and “hope/wish” from our vocabulary, we can focus on programming our minds to find the fastest and easiest ways to get exactly where we want to go. As an example, we can change the statement “I don’t know what to do” to “I don’t know what to do yet, but I’ll figure it out.” Our unconscious mind is a funny thing. By expanding that statement with the word ‘yet’ and then adding ‘but’ followed by an empowering statement, we are in essence deleting the former statement from being stored in our unconscious and embedding the latter empowering statement to take root instead.

And finally, another tool we can use to beat self-sabotage is to begin leaning into discomfort. Most of our self-sabotage reveals itself in the form of staying in our comfort zones. We don’t want to let go of that security blanket. It keeps us safe and cozy from achieving our full potential. 

When we can lean into our discomfort, we can begin identifying the challenges that come along with it. Only by identifying those challenges can we begin to start making a plan to overcome that fear or that trigger. Even if we can’t see all the steps in the process, just by taking the first step we build our confidence and self-esteem and can begin compounding that into a snowball of growth and progression.

Do you have any tips or suggestions for our readers on how to elevate your confidence in order to succeed in life? Share your thoughts below!

from
https://addicted2success.com/life/heres-why-we-fall-into-self-sabotage-when-things-are-going-so-well/

7 Simple Strategies to Increasing Mindfulness in as Little as 30 Seconds

If you’d like to learn how to become more mindful about your life so you can get to where you want to go, sign up for the free 90-Day Master Class hosted by the founder of Addicted2Success.com, Joel Brown.

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Whenever we are in a new environment, most of us know to be mindful of our surroundings. If it’s a country whose traffic patterns are different from ours, we should be very mindful as we cross the street. When we are at a new company, we should be mindful of the unsaid but established culture. When at a party of diverse people, we should be mindful of our words and how we express our opinions.

In a world where things happen a mile a minute along with where our society is continuously changing and becoming new, we must be vigilantly mindful. We must be aware of what is going on around us, and also with us— our outer and inner world.

Excellent and wise choices are rarely if ever, made accidentally in haste and anxiety. Although a trip to the mountains or the lake would be ideal, most of us do not have the luxury to go there— logistically or financially. 

Here are, therefore, seven simple strategies you can take today to become and to be more mindful in as little as thirty seconds:

1. Turn standard things into extraordinary things

In a religious context, a sacrament or ritual is an ordinary act performed in a particular way that makes it sacred. To be more mindful of the world and our world, we can learn to turn the ordinary and everyday stuff of life into sacraments. We can imbue purpose and meaning into the things and activities that we regularly do to remind us of the greater significance.

For example, do not just grab whatever semi-clean clothes you can find, put them on, and then go about your day. Do not treat those clothes as merely something you have to wear for appropriateness or social norms. Instead, prepare your outfit the night before or spend a few moments looking at each piece. Recognize it as your uniform of the great gift you have— your job. Make putting on your work clothes a sacred act of reminding yourself your work makes a difference in people’s lives, whether it be your clients or your family.

2. Create moments of pause

Although we are busy, most of us still have time. It’s not so much a matter of having time as it is making time.

Despite popular belief, it doesn’t take as much time as one thinks to slow down and become mindful. Although lots of time is beneficial, this is not an all or nothing situation. If you do not have hours of free time every day to do things slowly and meditate for hours, it doesn’t mean it’s impossible to be mindful.

Simple practices such as setting an alarm every few hours to take a couple of minutes, even 30 seconds, to forcibly stop what you are doing and breathe can dramatically help and slow you down.

“The key is in not spending time, but in investing it.” – Stephen R. Covey

3. Develop gratitude

Gratitude is, by far, one of the most proven pathways toward happiness. You can keep a gratitude journal and record small or big things you are thankful for each day or leverage moments in your day.

It is customary in many cultures to take a moment before eating to say a prayer or make an acknowledgment of gratitude. Why not stop for a moment before you eat, just for even 30 seconds, to acknowledge how fortunate you are to eat a nourishing and delicious meal when the majority of the world cannot and certainly in the past, has not? Take a moment to appreciate not just the meal, but all the things you have in life, such as your family, friends, and your life.

4. Do things by hand

Years ago, when machines and robots were coming into the world, everyone thought that eventually, no one would have to work, or at least, work very little. Since the invention of technology, however, work has seemed to increase.

Although there are many benefits from washing machines to dishwashers, something is lost. For some, the act of doing dishes is therapeutic. It not only cleans dirty dishes but somehow cleanses some people’s souls.

You might not have time every day, but why not consider doing some things by hand? Maybe get a manual coffee grinder and grind your coffee each morning. Or, replace your instant oatmeal with oatmeal that requires you to stir the pot.

5. Journal

The word journal can be a scary word for many. It might bring visions of notebooks, writing pages and pages of prose every night before bed.

Although journaling certainly can be writing every thought and feeling onto paper, it doesn’t have to. It could be as simple as writing down one moment in the day you felt most alive or most happy, and then writing down one moment in the day you felt least alive and least satisfied.

You don’t need to use a bounded notebook, however. Feel free to use whatever is most effortless for you. It could be the whiteboard calendar on your fridge or a google doc.

6. Think about other people

When life gets busy, it’s easy to get entrenched in our little world and bubble. Seeing a person regularly, even talking to them, does not ensure that you are solely focused on them. Because you might not have the time to engage in a full-length, in-depth conversation with a person, you can simply stop, pause, and think of them.

Think of how grateful you are for them. Think of a fond memory. Think of something you hope and want for them. Think about how great they are and how you wish to be more like them in some ways.

If helpful, you might want to set up a calendar of people’s names to think of each day. Or you might have a master list you review every day or two, selecting a few and thinking about this consciously and lovingly.

7. Eliminate distractions

Research suggests that merely having a phone in your pocket or on the table makes the person less attentive to the people they are with. The feeling or seeing of a phone automatically generates within the person the stress of email or the possibility of something more interesting to focus on.

As much as you can, try to eliminate technology in the morning, before bed, and with people. Consider putting it on autopilot, or do not disturb. Or simply put it physically away so you can’t feel it or see it.

“The most dangerous distractions are the ones you love, but that don’t love you back.” – Warren Buffet

8. Mindful at all times

Unlike a party or a new company, where the context is generally fixed, our outer and inner world are not. The situation, the setting is always changing.

If life is a journey, we are continuously going down sidewalks and crossing streets. Although it may seem like a lot of effort or may cost a lot, mindfulness comes with a very high reward— you’ll much more likely get to where you’re going and much less likely to get hit by a car.

How do you remain mindful in your life? Share your thoughts with us below!

from
https://addicted2success.com/life/7-simple-strategies-to-increasing-mindfulness-in-as-little-as-30-seconds/

Why Wellbeing is the Single Most Important Skill for Your Personal and Professional Success

If you’d like to learn how to develop the four pillars of well-being so you can excel in all areas of your life, sign up for the free 90-Day Master Class hosted by the founder of Addicted2Success.com, Joel Brown.

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From the very beginning of my professional entrepreneurial journey, I’ve always had a strong passion for understanding how I could be at my best. As a young self employed professional with limited resources, I soon came to the realization that being mentally and emotionally fit was essential in order to move forward in my life with purpose. This insatiable desire to understand what makes people tick and thrive led me to a long and fortunate journey of studying, speaking, and working with some of the leading experts in the field of behavioural psychology, coaching, and neuroscience.

At the start of my “personal growth” journey, I often thought that being intensely productive and self-motivated was what I needed to succeed both personally and professionally. However, over time and thanks to my studies, I discovered that for someone to flourish in the long run, something different was needed. The key was wellbeing!

Naively, I initially felt that wellbeing was something important just for the elderly but when I took the time to dig deeper at what it actually meant, I realised that it was ultimately the answer I was looking for. Think about it, if we don’t feel well, how can we possibly do well for ourselves and others?

And so, I turned to neuroscience to get a better understanding of what wellbeing is and how we can experience more of it in our daily lives.

To my surprise, the first thing I discovered was that wellbeing is actually a skill we can develop, which was incredibly encouraging. There is no doubt that as human beings we are quite complex: our environment, background and personal traits inevitably impact the way we experience our lives. However, knowing that we can all deliberately practice wellbeing is nothing short of empowering.

There are 4 pillars that make up wellbeing:

1. Self Awareness
2. Outlook
3. Resilience
4. Generosity

Let’s take a closer look at all four pillars and find simple ways to practice them:

1. Self Awareness

Self awareness refers to the knowledge we have of ourselves: of our inner motives, states, emotions, and feelings. Being or better developing self awareness is incredibly powerful as it can help us better deal with stress and uncertainty but also provide us with insights on what is truly important for our personal and professional success. See self awareness as the basis for operating with greater clarity and focus in our life.

What’s a simple way to develop our daily self awareness? The act of self observation – This means taking the time throughout the day to check-in with ourselves, to observe what emotions are present, what thoughts are in our mind, and noticing our physical states when responding or more often reacting to life events. This simple (yet not easy) act can bring invaluable insight in the way we manage and experience our life, allowing us to slowly shift from reacting to interacting with life.

“Self awareness is one of the rarest of human commodities. I don’t mean self consciousness where you’re limiting and evaluating yourself. I mean being aware of your own patterns.” – Tony Robbins

2. Outlook

Intricately connected to self-awareness, outlook refers to the way we look at ourselves and the world around us. It’s basically the story we tell ourselves and this can make a massive difference. Let me give you an example.

Imagine I have just lost my job…

Scenario 1: The world sucks and my life is over. I wasted 2 years in that job, there are no opportunities out there for me now and I don’t have what it takes to find my dream job. I’m exhausted!

Scenario 2: It’s unfortunate but I have learnt from it and now it’s a great opportunity to move forward to something better. I am excited to see what the future holds and I am going to start researching which industries are hiring at the moment where I could expand myself and add true value.

Which perspective do you think is more useful? It’s the same event, just seen from a different perspective. When we have a great outlook on life, we are more positive, energised, and ultimately, we develop a growth mindset, which means looking at every event no matter if positive or negative as an opportunity for growth.

What’s a simple way to practice it? Take a recent event that did not go your way and ask yourself, what did this event teach me? How did it make me better? Be inspired by the great Nelson Mandela who said “ I don’t lose, I either win or learn.” Life works in mysterious ways but you can be sure that everything has its purpose and a silver lining!

3. Resilience

As I am sure you can agree, without a great outlook, having resilience becomes a challenging matter. Being able to keep going, to persevere, and to build that inner strength that stops you from giving up is what makes for great resilience. Of course, pushing for something that we feel is not worth it might not be necessarily a good example of resilience but here is where self awareness is so important! 

In times of difficulty or uncertainty like the ones we are currently experiencing, resilience is key. The more we teach ourselves to become resilient the more our brain becomes resilient. Want to become more resilient? Science shows us that meditating, practicing self compassion and facing our fears are all powerful ways to build resilience.

“Do not judge me by my success, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.” – Nelson Mandela

4. Generosity

Who would have thought that being more generous could be one of the 4 pillars for our optimum wellbeing? When I discovered this, a big part of me felt humbled: “I can increase my own levels of wellbeing while helping others? What a beautiful thing! It’s mother nature’s poetic ways of keeping the world going round.” 

Science tells us that there is a part of our brain that is hardwired for contribution. In fact, whenever we give, our brain releases what is called the “happiness trifecta,” a rush of serotonin, oxytocin and dopamine that increases our energy levels and mood. It even drops our stress levels!

From this perspective, life is enormously generous with us as it offers endless possibilities for us to be generous, whether that is with a friend, family, colleague, or stranger. Simply open your heart to others and let your best you shine: generosity is contagious.

There is no one recipe to success or happiness but with a bit of effort and focus on the right direction we can take small steps in our daily lives that compounded over time can bring expediential results.

Which one of the above pillars do you think is most important to living your life? Share your thoughts with us below!

from
https://addicted2success.com/success-advice/why-wellbeing-is-the-single-most-important-skill-for-your-personal-and-professional-success/

8 Questions to Ask and Answer Before Saying Yes to a Good Idea

If you’d like to learn how to stop saying ‘yes’ to every little thing so you can take control of your life, sign up for the free 90-Day Master Class hosted by the founder of Addicted2Success.com, Joel Brown.

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It sounds counterintuitive to kill off good ideas, but chase too many of these darned things and you will find your business moving nowhere quickly. In the article “If You’re the Boss, Start Killing More Good Ideas,” it credits Steve Jobs with the following theme at a management conference at Yahoo: “Jobs advised them that killing bad ideas isn’t that hard. He insisted that what is really hard—and a hallmark of great companies, is killing good ideas. For any single good idea to succeed, it needs a lot of resources, time and attention.”

You should repeat that last phrase daily.

When consulting with a major retailer a few years ago, one of the most visible signs of the culture was a frenetic energy around moving ideas off of the whiteboard and into formal projects.

It was widely understood that the best way to catch the eyes of senior management was to either lead and gain approval for a project, or to find a way to attach yourself to the big ideas and expansive project teams of the firm’s fast-trackers.

Ideas were everywhere. Projects multiplied like rabbits. It was chaos.

The result of this idea-fueled project culture run amok was a classic case of too many projects chasing too few resources. There were dozens of great ideas being pursued by project teams, yet few finished and even fewer made a difference to the firm’s results. 

At the height of the firm’s success in the market, the internal engine charged with refreshing, renewing, and sustaining success creaked and groaned and eventually failed, opening the doors for some much more focused and disruptive competition.

The word “no” is one of the most powerful management tools in your toolkit. It is also one that is under-utilized. 

“Don’t say maybe if you want to say no.” – Paulo Coelho

Here are 8 questions for you and your team to ask and answer before saying “Yes” to yet another interesting idea:

1. Does the idea support our core strategy? 

If not, kill it. If your strategy is not clear and it is not providing a mechanism for filtering ideas, solve this problem first. In the absence of a clear strategy, all ideas seem viable.

2. Is there a customer experiencing significant and visible pain that this idea resolves?

If you are focusing on benefits only, beware. Be careful attempting to justify a new initiative because of all of the perceived benefits it delivers. At the end of the day, burden relief typically outsells benefits. 

3. Is the idea a “me-too” initiative in direct response to a competitor?

If yes, work harder to find a way to differentiate your offering or firm from your competitor. Playing “follow the competitor” is typically a formula that guarantees you will lose.

“You have to change the set, stay ahead of the curve.” – Carson Daly

4. Are your current customers screaming for this feature?

Remember Henry Ford‘s famous advice: “If we had asked our customers what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.” Customers are notoriously poor at articulating their true needs. Before blindly working to meet their needs for a particular feature, spend time observing your customers and strive to understand the underlying issues or challenges leading to the request. Chances are, there’s a genuine need lurking somewhere under the surface request.

5. Will a customer have to change his/her operating processes to adopt this idea?

While this alone is not an idea killer, beware of banking on ideas that require clients to quickly change behaviors. That almost never happens.

6. How will we evaluate whether this idea is successful or unsuccessful?

Or, for longer range initiatives, how will we measure progress and know that the idea is on track to contribute? Establishing the criteria for success or failure helps identify whether something may just be an interesting experiment versus an initiative that quickly contributes to revenue and profits.

7. What is our time horizon for this idea?

Well-managed firms treat ideas and projects like a portfolio of stocks. Some are intended to deliver results immediately and others require patience and nurturing. Beware of overloading the short-term portion of your portfolio and underfunding the longer-range initiatives.

8. How will our team members respond to this initiative being added to their “To Do” lists?

Audible groans from the people responsible for the work is an indicator of potential overload. Be careful!

The Bottom-Line for Now

In our fast-changing world, we are bombarded with the need to be agile and adaptable. The risk in all of this adaptability and agility is that we rationalize taking on too many ideas at any one time, starving all of them for the much needed care and feeding. You most definitely want a culture that generates a lot of ideas. You also want to create a culture that optimizes the odds of your best ideas becoming successful in the market. Learning to say “No” is a critical part of success. 

How do you determine whether you say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to someone when you only have a certain amount of hours in the day? Share your advice with everyone below!

from
https://addicted2success.com/success-advice/8-questions-to-ask-and-answer-before-saying-yes-to-a-good-idea/

How to Stay Happy in the Hustle

Did you know that 45% of people in the U.S. have reported to have a side gig on top of their full-time job? That’s about 70 million people. When you look at millennials alone, that number jumps to 50%. According to data, about 57 million people own a side business that isn’t their main source of income. 

The hustle culture is not only alive and well, it’s quickly growing. Many people are finding that having a diverse revenue stream is smart — especially in times when it’s unclear where the economy is heading. 

You’ve probably noticed the inspirational #hustle hashtags on Instagram and Twitter, and read the countless career books that praise the art of the hustle. And while your career (and bank account) may be thriving, you also need to ask yourself: Are you happy with what you’re doing? Is your hustle giving you purpose and allowing you to propel yourself forward both professionally and personally? 

Here are some ways you can make sure to keep yourself happy in the hustle.

1. Know when to say “no”

As a hustler, your gut instinct may lead you to want to say “yes” to everything — every assignment, client, project, you name it. The hustler in us will always try to tackle every possible task we humanly can, because we want to succeed and outperform expectations.

But by saying “yes” to every proposal and request, you will eventually run out of bandwidth. This inevitably not only risks overwhelming yourself, but not being able to give projects and tasks your fullest attention. This could cause further problems with the relationships, connections, or networks that you’ve already worked so hard to establish. 

Analyze what projects are worth it. This could be a money factor, a timing factor, or a general fit factor. Is the client easy or hard to work with? Ask yourself how much you can take on, and don’t beat yourself up if you have to turn down work. That’s the nature of business, and truth be told, when you have the option to say “no” to something, it actually means you’re doing something right. 

“It’s only by saying no that you can concentrate on the things that are really important.” – Steve Jobs

2. Learn how to delegate 

Hard work is admirable, but you don’t always need to be the one doing it. If you have your own consulting business, could you be delegating certain time-consuming, smaller tasks to subcontractors? If your end goal is to prioritize high-level ideation and project management, it could be wise to start hiring freelancers to do the more menial tasks.

Learning to delegate tasks is an essential part of becoming an efficient hustler. There are always people out there looking for part-time, contract-based work. Can you pinpoint what tasks have a high impact versus tasks that don’t? Do you know how to effectively prioritize? 

Although you may feel that you need to have your hands on every phase of the project, recognizing the skills and abilities of others, and how they can bring value, lifts some of the stress and burden off you. It’s also key to understanding your own workflow in order to not only be successful, but to stay happy and avoid burnout.

The more you take on to accomplish your professional goals, the more you’ll realize that you can’t possibly do everything. In fact, even when you think the business or project can only be handled by you, at some point, you need to step away and let others handle the low-hanging fruit. Plus, by having other people in your corner, you don’t have to say “no,” nearly as often.

3. Be open to challenges and learning new subjects

It can be intimidating at first to dive into a subject you’re not completely familiar with, whether it’s content marketing, newsletter campaigns, business development, or another field. But variety can be key to shaking up your routine and keeping your attention and skills engaged and nimble. The same old day-in and day-out tasks can get boring and mundane, which can impact your overall sense of happiness and satisfaction with your work. 

Maybe the task or challenge at hand will require you to learn how to develop a new skill or use a tool that you’re unfamiliar with. Instead of looking at this through the lens of, “This new thing won’t benefit me right now,” consider what long-term gains it may offer. After all, the more you learn and expose yourself to new facets of business, tech, and entrepreneurship, the more tools you have in your arsenal, and the more you can offer future clients. 

Challenges can be intimidating, but they’re ultimately a good thing. Keep an open mind, adopt positive thinking, and go for it. Yes, you need to know when to say “no,” but hustlers also know when it’s the time to say, “Hell, yeah.” Your resume and growing skillset will thank you for it.

4. Lean on your network for support

It’s incredibly important to have established a group of professionals whom you can go to for advice. I have many folks in my network who I often consult with when it comes to questions about staffing, business models, and vision. When you have a trustworthy group of people whom you can get advice from, it makes you feel less alone and more supported.

Support from your colleagues is also key to staying happy and feeling confident in what you’re doing. Plus, it’s never a bad thing to rely on someone else’s knowledge and expertise and see if they have any insights. Collaboration is a powerful tool, and without it, you may miss opportunities you couldn’t see by relying on your own insight or perspective alone.

“The richest people in the world look for and build networks, everyone else looks for work.” – Robert Kiyosaki

5. Take time to rest

The hustle is real, but so is your mental health. Know your limits, and allow yourself to unplug and give your brain and your body a break. This might mean going for a jog, watching a game on TV, being outdoors — whatever helps you unwind. Taking breaks helps avoid burnout, mental fatigue, and can actually help you refocus when you switch the gears back on to “go” mode. 

You’ll find that you’re actually even more productive after you’ve allowed yourself to relax. Making time to step away from the hustle allows you to evaluate how much value it brings to your life. Then, you can make the changes you need, directing your time and efforts to those things that keep your professional life, and your happiness, moving forward. 

from
https://addicted2success.com/life/how-to-stay-happy-in-the-hustle/

Is The Glass Half Empty? How Affirmations Change Your Brain

You know the old saying, is the glass half full or half empty? It is used to drive home the point that when life feels like it’s going sour, sometimes it can actually just be your perception that is sabotaging your happiness. 

However, the trick is that it’s not always as easy to see the state of your perception in the simple way that it is presented as with the half filled glass. We have personal bias and attach our own personal connotations language. 

How The Brain Will Prove Itself Right

The human mind wants to be right and when we get into a downward spiral of negative thinking, the brain keeps on doing it’s thing and finding reasons why it is right to think that way. Our brain also has a group of nerves on our brainstem called the Reticular Activating System. 

This part of our brain runs quite a few things, but what I am going to focus on here is the fact it personalizes our perception of life. For example, it filters the information you don’t want into background noise and highlights the information you deem important. 

You can try this out now by scanning the room you are in and looking for the color green. Do it now. Did you notice more green than you noticed before you specifically looked for that color? Now here’s the fun part, scan the room for the color red now. 

You may have noticed how your eyes dart around the color red as if it’s highlighted by a computer program in your mind. Well, it is and this would be known as the Reticular Activating System. So how does this tie into positive thinking shifting our view on life?

That would be due to the fact that our brain is neuroplastic, meaning it will restructure itself and is completely influenced by the way you use it every day. So when you find yourself in a rut of consistent negative thoughts, the brain will begin to strengthen the neurons that fire together. This means your brain will begin to get comfortable and naturally follow the perspectives laid out by these negative neural pathways. 

“It’s the repetition of affirmations that leads to belief. And once that belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen.” – Muhammad Ali

What this then does to your Reticular Activating System will bring it to naturally focus on and highlight the negative perspective within your daily life. Just like the colors in the room, the negative perspectives will present themselves more prevalently compared to the weaker neural pathways of positive thoughts. This makes the glass half full perspective “background noise” and the glass half full the path most traveled. 

However, the downside to the neuroplastic nature of the brain is also its upside. When you practice positive affirmations no matter how foreign they may feel, your brain begins to wire the neural pathways of positive thinking and compassion towards oneself. The more you practice positive affirmations the more comfortable you will feel with it and the more that optimism will naturally begin to present itself in your perception. 

Bring Your Affirmations Straight Into Your Subconscious

This is a practice I personally follow which focuses on listening to or repeating positive affirmations when your subconscious mind is driving. When you are performing mindless or repetitive tasks, this is where the subconscious mind takes over such as when you are falling asleep. 

Using affirmations at this time can bring them to sink into your subconscious even while your conscious mind is focused on something else. Then you can get creative with how you listen to the affirmations. You can take a recording of yourself speaking them and listen to it while you are cleaning, falling asleep, or even working out. You can repeat them to yourself or sing them out loud while you are performing a repetitive task. Then there is also the option of listening to someone else repeat the affirmations such as a video found on youtube.

You can even bring the affirmations into your meditation practice and use them like a mantra to focus on the mind in. To produce the deepest effect with affirmations, allow yourself to be filled with the appreciation, pride, or bliss that comes if you choose to lean into believing them no matter how foreign it feels. 

“Affirmations are not bound up in rules. An affirmation can be long or short, poetic or plain. If you love a phrase and find that it helps you, that is a valid affirmation.” – Eric Maisel

Self Love Dialogue 

For those of you who like writing, grab your pen and paper because this practice involves your writing skills. Take time to write yourself a love letter and start a compassionate self dialogue. This less formal way of affirming my perception of myself has felt to both stimulate more emotions due to its more casual nature as well as very quickly shift the way I continue to talk to myself. 

What I have found to be the most fulfilling is to write about the places I feel a lack of self love or weakness in my life. I affirm my present self as the version of myself I want to embody and even write out my thankfulness for how these skills have affected my life. 

You can practice a love letter complimenting yourself, acknowledge an aspect of yours that you appreciate, or write yourself a letter of forgiveness if that feels like something you’ve been holding back from giving yourself. If you’re not sure where to start, try paying attention to where you specifically feel uncomfortability, because that can present a place where you can create a powerful shift. 

Remember no matter how foreign it feels to start this practice, you are creating new neural pathways and should give yourself credit for initiating the way you want to see life. By using the power of your brain you can choose to see the glass half full. 

from
https://addicted2success.com/life/is-the-glass-half-empty-how-affirmations-change-your-brain/

3 Lessons I Learned From the Pandemic to Overcome Letdowns and Achieve Success

Have you had your heart broken because your vision didn’t come out the way you imagined? Have you had your heart broken because of a massive failure? Think about it, you have worked so hard for so long and invested so much time, money, and energy just to come to complete failure. 

The feeling of being worthless, a failure, betrayed, and depressed all hitting you in one emotion sucks. It felt like I was going to be there forever when I experienced it. Being an entrepreneur sure has it’s ups and downs, but if you can’t learn from your failures, you will continue to have the same heartbreak experience. That’s what I did, I kept going and going, ignoring the stop signs and letting myself run into a huge hole. 

Wanting to rise to the next level only to fall infinite levels deep. Even though we are in a pandemic, there is a huge benefit from it for someone who experienced failure. What I will share with you are 3 pandemic lessons I have learned to help overcome the heartbreaks and achieve success.

1. Patch Up & Do Your Research

You may have friends that are very knowledgable in different areas of business and life. You might be the type of person that takes advice without doing your own research and swinging for the fences. NEWS FLASH! Always do your research and know your numbers no matter what anyone says. If it’s family giving you advice, DO YOUR RESEARCH ANYWAY! If it’s close friends giving you advice, DO YOUR RESEARCH ANYWAY! If it’s your mentor giving you advice, DO YOUR RESEARCH ANYWAY! 

Just going based off of he said she said, will bring you so many surprises. Good and bad. For anyone that is extroverted and impatient, spending time with due diligence is a lot better than doing little work and hoping for the best. Success requires you to take time and do your due diligence. This is something that dawned on me because when I began quarantine, I realized how much I had to learn. 

2. Take Care Of Your Mental Health 

Are you working out? Are you spending time learning every day about yourself? I can’t stress enough that you should be taking care of your mental health. Working out 3-5 days a week not only helps your body become great, but it helps your mind become greater. Meditating clears your mind and gives you the answers you seek. When you can take better care of yourself, people will perceive you differently. Just imagine how far you can go when you take care of yourself daily inside and out. 

This was a wakeup call because when I looked at myself in the mirror, I realized that I have become completely lost and I had little to no motivation to better myself mentally and physically. But, thanks to the lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic, I’ve learned that to achieve success, you must take care of your mental health. No matter how you feel or what time it is, you take care of your mental health.

3. Start Building Genuine Relationships

Great things happen when you can take better care of yourself. Greater things happen when you can start building genuine relationships with others. Usually in this world of entrepreneurship, there are not that many people that want to build genuine relationships. It’s typically people handing out business cards and just selling their business. 

I’ve learned that to get what you want, you must help others get what they want and you do that with genuine relationship building. Here’s a mind hack that can help guide you to know what you want because when you know what you want, you know who you want to connect with. 

Write a list of things you enjoy doing. Write a list of all the goals you want to accomplish (even the little ones). Write down all of the things you have accomplished in life. When you can connect the list of things you enjoy and the list of goals you want to accomplish, there’s clarity. When you look at the things you accomplished in life, there’s motivation to get things done. The first time I did this, massive success started happening bit by bit and it was all because I decided to start building genuine relationships.

In conclusion, this pandemic may suck for you, but there is beauty behind it, and one of the greatest things about it is learning from your failures. Wherever you are in your life, just know that failure is only temporary and what you do with it can really bring out the best in you. If you are still heartbroken because your business went down to the ground, then the great thing is you can get back up and become smarter about your business. You can become more successful than you already are. You can become one of the greatest come up stories of all time.

from
https://addicted2success.com/success-advice/3-lessons-i-learned-from-the-pandemic-to-overcome-letdowns-and-achieve-success/

Why A Pandemic May Be the Best Thing That Ever Happened to You

If you’d like to learn how to spend your time productively during the coronavirus pandemic so you can improve your life, sign up for the free 90-Day Master Class hosted by the founder of Addicted2Success.com, Joel Brown.

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How many times in a generation does the entire world stop? This is a time where things we thought would never happen have been happening almost on a weekly basis. It may seem like chaos but from this chaos, we have an incredible opportunity. We’re wanting things to go back to normal, but we need to really ask ourselves “what things in our life are worth going back to”?

This can be a breaking point – is it going to be a breakdown or a breakthrough? Are you still going to work or are you stuck at home? Either way, there are fewer distractions than you would have under normal circumstances. This is the time to decide what we really want in life. 

With the whole world up in the air, if we’re not choosing our path, we could easily be swept up in the chaos. In a blink, 20 years can pass you by and you’re no closer to where you want to be in your life. 

 “If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much.” – Jim Rohn

It may be easy to let the fear or panic dampen your resolve, and sometimes you do need to take a break for your own mental and emotional health. (And I actually do recommend a lot of breaks!) But this time is best spent deciding your path that you want to take in your life. It’s a wake-up call that we all just get one shot like this. Use this to get out of your comfort zone and move toward where you want to be.

Guess what came after the Black Plague – the Renaissance! Turmoil gives birth to Booms! Right now is a time of great expansion. This chaos is going to give birth to new prosperity as it changes our world and you can be ahead of the curve. How do you know you’ve arrived at a destination when you haven’t defined where that destination is? 

Most people don’t have their hands on the steering wheel of life, then find themselves shocked when they land in a ditch. This doesn’t have to be the case for your life but you need to make a decision. Where do you want to go? What you decide today can change the whole direction of your life. 

We’re going to have a simple exercise you can do right here where you can decide clearly where you want to go. Don’t make the list based on practicality. Your subconscious mind will come up with ideas on how to get you there. The “how-to’s” on moving toward your goal will be inspired and come naturally. You can reevaluate and choose what to bring with you moving forward as things open back up. 

What qualities do you want in your job/career, relationship, quality of life? Are you craving a deeper connection in your life? Do you see yourself headed toward happiness in your current trajectory? What direction would bring you the most happiness possible? 

Ask yourself those questions and write down your answers. Write down your ideal circumstance for the following: 

• Job/Career:
• Relationships/Love Life:
• Body/Physical Health:
• Social Life:
• Quality of Life:

“In every day, there are 1,440 minutes. That means we have 1,440 daily opportunities to make a positive impact.” – Les Brown

This exercise may be basic and possibly seem like it’s not going to have any effect at all, but when you all of a sudden know where you want to go and you don’t move in that direction, it stings more. It prods you subconsciously and over the years can have a dramatic effect on where you end up in life. To fully utilize this list, reading this daily will keep you on track. The better you feel while you read it, the more energy you’ll have moving toward your dream. 

The intention of this article is to truly design where you want to go in life and to make continuous daily strides in that direction. You deserve the life you really want. Now is the time to decide what that is and lay claim to it. Do it now! 

What’s a new skill or hobby that you’ve picked up over the past few months? Share it with us below!

from
https://addicted2success.com/life/why-a-pandemic-may-be-the-best-thing-that-ever-happened-to-you/

5 Ways To Stop Feeling Sorry For Yourself And Make A Change

If you’d like to learn how to stop feeling sorry for yourself so you can change your life for the better, sign up for the free 90-Day Master Class hosted by the founder of Addicted2Success.com, Joel Brown.

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It is easier to quickly fall into despair nowadays. The constant cycle of bad news splattered all over the internet and the grueling struggle to adapt to the seemingly impersonal new normal makes one even more susceptible to thoughts and whispers of anguish. However, as despairing as our world’s current situation may seem, there is still a glimmer of silver lining on the horizon. We will get through this.

With that in mind, remember that sometimes it’s easy to get stuck in a negative thought pattern. The most important thing to know is that everyone is feeling pain, some people more than others – but the feeling of pain is real for everyone.

By stimulating our minds with thoughts of empowerment and betterment of ourselves, we can work towards not feeling sorry for ourselves and move on with life. 

Below are some ways that you can kickstart your life again – and you can begin today:

1. Try reading self-improvement books

Reading is not everyone’s cup of tea. Some prefer to watch videos and others prefer to listen to audiobooks. However, studies revealed that reading does wonders to our brains such as keeping it running and active, improve better connectivity, and auto fix concentration. Imagine what more a self-improvement book can do to you!

There are thousands of self-improvement books out there. Some work and some don’t, but it all depends on the quality of writing, the lesson the author wishes to impart, and how open your mind is as the reader.

Some of the self-improvement books that have broken the internet recently are David Goggin’s New York Times Bestselling book, Can’t Hurt Me. Coming from a traumatic past, Goggins set out and built himself a “Can’t Hurt Me” bulletproof mentality which allowed him to barrel through life’s challenges. Because of this mentality, he came out stronger, both in the mental and physical aspects, on the other side. It is a good read for those who are looking for motivational books that can help them reach their potential in life.

Another great book on self-improvement is Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin. Though this book is primarily about leadership from the military perspective, it tackles issues by looking at the importance of having a strong will coupled with a powerful mindset. This is a recommended book for those who are out to win in life. It also teaches one to practice discipline daily.

“If we encounter a man of rare intellect, we should ask him what books he reads.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

2. Check out self-help podcasts

If you’re more the audio type of person, listening to podcasts might suit you better. Have you ever had those moments when you’re listening to good, uplifting music, but the feeling it evoked is getting a little too repetitive? If yes, then maybe it’s time to alternate your playlist to a podcast every now and then. There are tons of self-help podcasts out there tackling various topics such as depression, anxiety, grief, happiness and even making major life decisions.

If you’re a newbie to the world of podcasts, there are several famous self-help podcasts you can check out such as The Hardcore Self-Help Podcast with Duff the Psych by the psychologist Dr. Robert Duff, Happier by the renowned writer Gretchen Rubin, and Hurry Slowly by the writer and editor Jocelyn Glei.

The Hardcore Self-Help Podcast tackles various issues such as coping with mental health and other living disorders without complicated medical jargon. Happier by Gretchen Rubin focuses on maintaining healthier and happier relationships with one’s self and with others. Hurry Slowly by Jocelyn Glei talks about the art of slowing down in order to find calm and peace in everyday life.

3. Give exercising a shot

Everyone has their own reasons why they don’t exercise, from not finding enough time to not having the proper equipment. However, as studies, coaches, trainers, and fitness buffs have reiterated repeatedly, exercising is not only good for your physical health, it is also the best antidote for your mental health. 

When you exercise, your body releases a certain chemical called endorphins which reduces the perception of pain in your brain. It also triggers the positive feelings in your body which help relieve feelings of depression.

You don’t need to have your own gym at home to start exercising. There are millions of simple five-minute exercises you can follow on your own even without using any equipment. When you finally get the hang of it, increase your level of difficulty up a notch by doing more vigorous and longer exercise routines! You’ll be amazed by the results it can do to your health and mood!

4. Discover a new hobby or rekindle an old pastime

Was there ever a time when you were doing something and everything else seems to just fade away because you were so immersed in it? If there was, rekindle those old flames and get back to those hobbies you loved doing. An important factor in how to stop feeling sorry for yourself is to immerse yourself completely in doing what you love the most. 

Binge-watch your favorite shows. Complete that jigsaw puzzle you’ve always wanted to work on. Dive into the current plant cultivating rave. Whatever it is, pinpoint that one hobby, project, or pastime that uplifts your spirits and get into it!

“Everyone should have a deep-seated interest or hobby to enrich his mind, add zest to living, and perhaps, depending upon what it is, result in a service to his country.” – Dale Carnegie

5. Try talking more positively to yourself

Have you ever heard of the phrase: “Be careful how you are talking to yourself because you are listening” by Lisa Hayes? Nothing is truer than this.

One of the main sources of depression is that irritating voice in our head that kills the mood and drowns out anything that makes us happy. By beating yourself up for every mistake you’ve done or for every bad thing that happened, you are demeaning a portion of yourself. And the more you do it, the more susceptible you are to fall into its trap.

Here’s what you can do instead: every time you look at the mirror, try tuning out that inner voice and talk out aloud. Tell yourself all the positive things you wish to hear. Compliment yourself on how you look and the things you look forward to the most in your day. Once you get the hang of talking positively to yourself, you won’t even need a mirror to do it. Soon, that killjoy inner voice will be replaced by your very own personal motivational coach: yourself.

We know very well that everyone has their own dark and bad days. Everyone undergoes pain and falling into the cycle seems like the easy way out, especially if the circumstances of everyday life never seem to change. You can allow yourself to feel those dark moments to remind yourself that you’re only human with flaws, but never ever allow yourself to succumb to them by following our five simple ways to stop feeling sorry for yourself.

Always thank yourself for holding on to that thin silver lining called hope, for choosing to forgive, and for loving yourself every single day. As Joseph Kennedy once said, “When the going gets tough, the tough gets going.”

What’s the biggest change you’ve made to your life recently? Share your stories with us below!

from
https://addicted2success.com/success-advice/5-ways-to-stop-feeling-sorry-for-yourself-and-make-a-change/

The One Choice That Can Change Your Life Forever

“One thing to achieve this along with five steps to overcome that and supposedly success will arrive at our front door.” We read headlines like that all the time, yet most of those claims are bogus. How many times have you tried to change a habit within 21 days only to hit the wall on day 2? Perhaps you make it all the way to day 21 and then day 22 arrives without that transformation in hand. What then?

What if I told you that there is one thing you could do that would set you apart from the pack? There are many skills needed to achieve success, but only one goes unnoticed time and time again. 

Decades ago, I was an events coordinator for a large faith based organization. I watched people come weekend after weekend to conferences and retreats. Some of them would have “life changing” experiences. Within weeks, they would be back. Something happened to that amazing moment. Somehow “it” didn’t stick. What was missing?

I do genuinely believe that individuals have experiences at events. I also know for a fact that an experience doesn’t translate into a changed life without this one element. 

As a yoga therapist, I spend one hour with clients weekly and as we get to the 45 minute mark, I round the corner. What does that mean? I step into what identifies the key to a transformational change. It starts with a variety of questions. “Reflect back, what stands out to you as important?” That question is obviously a call to begin to reflect. More than that, it is a moment to begin to integrate the experience. 

”You cannot have a meaningful life without having self-reflection.” – Oprah Winfrey

Here are the next questions I ask:

• What was revealed to you? 
• What about the experience that you had was life changing? 
• How did it change you in the moment? 
• What action can you take to bring that life altering experience into your evening, tonight? 
• How can you bring it into your day, tomorrow? 
• How can you make room for it throughout this week? 
• What action are you going to take to ensure that it wasn’t a fleeting one time fluke?

Reflection and integration are the keys to incorporating experiences and making real and lasting change. Teaching my clients this one tool of integration is the game changer. Taking each of us closer from the experiences we have to the life we want to be living. 

You don’t have to wait for a life altering experience to begin. Every night, set aside 5 minutes, grab a pen and notebook and reflect back on your day. 

What were the highlights? When did you react versus respond? Why? What buttons were pushed? When did you do your best work? What made you happy? What was frustrating? Then, integrate the reflections. What stands out to you as important? What will help support you to do more of your best work? What will empower you to respond well versus react poorly?

”By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” – Confucius

Take the time, reflect back upon your days and experiences, integrate the highlights and form action steps towards creating the change you want to see in your life. 

Do you self-reflect on your life by journaling? If so, what are the key benefits you’ve experienced from journaling? Share them with us below!

from
https://addicted2success.com/life/the-one-choice-that-can-change-your-life-forever/

How to Deal With Difficult People

Whether it’s a toxic workplace, a tough relationship, or the increasingly divided political spectrum, it seems like it can be impossible to see progress in difficult relationships. We can’t control the circumstances around us, but we can indirectly influence them by the way we treat the most challenging people in our lives. 

It’s important to not write off the strenuous people around you. You might be able to justify it; like how someone may be rude to you or not appreciate what you do; maybe they always say negative things. But we’ll never be able to get away from it. We will always face these challenges. The trick is to not run away from difficult people but to learn how to interact with them and influence those relationships for the better.

When we learn to deal with difficult people, we live better lives. At work, we’re more likely to be productive and innovative with our co-workers and bosses. In our relationships, we see progress, set positive boundaries, and find a fulfilling purpose in our interactions. 

If we focus on the following core principles, we can improve our relationships with difficult personalities.

1. Listen, Then Wait

It’s easy to identify the things that frustrate us about someone. It’s much harder to understand who they are and why they act as they do. The latter approach gives a future and hope for progress when dealing with people.

The best is to learn as much as possible about the person by asking them questions. When you identify a subject or interest they are passionate about, continue to feed the conversation and encourage them to say more. When we practice this social habit, we connect with the people we talk to. We show respect and signify that they matter. 

When we listen, we listen patiently. As the other party approaches the end of the conversation, if they feel like you connected with them, they’ll more than likely invite your input. Since you gave them undivided attention, you are now credible in their eyes and what you say carries more weight. This is when you can add value to the conversation and begin to influence the person.

“The most basic of all human needs is the need to understand and be understood. The best way to understand people is to listen to them.” – Ralph Nichols

2. Reinforce Your Relationship

Listening opens the door for us. Once the person trusts us, we can begin to establish and redefine the relationship. When you speak positive and encouraging things into their life, they will begin to receive it.

Tell that person how much you admire or enjoy them. Be specific through your communication. You can talk about talent, a recent accomplishment, or something that has gone unnoticed. The most impactful thing you can do is compliment something about their character. 

We often think bad about ourselves. When we speak life into someone that’s irrelevant to their output, but to who they are as a person, they will appreciate it and remember it forever. 

An effective way to reinforce your relationship is when you happen to be in the other person’s environment or arena. Some of the best interviews are done when the guest makes sure to praise the host by referencing their book or a piece of work they did in the past throughout the context of the interview. They often get invited back and the host has a positive impression (even if they completely disagree on the subject). When we honor difficult people in places that they value the most, we show appreciation and respect.

3. Understand the Person

The primary reason we may see someone as “difficult” is that we lack context. A friend of mine had a hard time seeing progress in his relationship with his grandfather. His grandpa was rude, showed little affection, and always made things more difficult. He finally started listening to his story. 

His grandfather’s mother died in childbirth the day he was born. One of his younger siblings died partially of his fault by not keeping an eye on him. He lived through the Great Depression and was a refugee. It wasn’t until my friend understood what his grandfather went through, that he could look beyond small offenses and appreciated his relationship. While there is no excuse to let someone treat you badly, you can at least guide that person and influence them once you know their story.

Ask yourself about that person, “What drives them? What motivates them? Why are they the way that they are?” Once we can answer those questions, we can begin to repair and understand the relationship. We know how to communicate with them.

“To be interesting, be interested.” – Dale Carnegie

4. Make Progress

Not every relationship can be repaired or reach optimal health, but we can do our best to make it functional and respectful. When we switch our goal from avoiding someone to making progress, we are more likely to see positive results. 

This does not mean we should take on toxic or harmful relationships, but it does mean we should consider making progress with the people that are in our lives and tough to be around with.

When we follow these steps, we soon find common ground. We’ve learned from them and have developed an authentic relationship. This progress gives us room to establish healthy growth, respectful boundaries, and a better experience. 

How do you deal with difficult people? Share your tactics and experiences with us below!

from
https://addicted2success.com/life/how-to-deal-with-difficult-people/