The world has told you that the more you do the more productive you will be. Sadly, you then are more than willing to trade your valuable time and energy for the possibility of increased happiness and gratification from your life.

You fill your calendar and To-Do list with far more than you are capable of completing. You take great pride by staying in a perpetual motion and work hard to push through your life each and every day. Then, after you have worked yourself to complete exhaustion, feeling totally empty and unrewarded you ask yourself one of these questions: Why am I so unhappy? Why don’t I like what I am doing with my life? When will it get better?

Fortunately, you can change! It is possible to slow down. You can keep your focus. You are capable of prioritizing your life. All it takes is your decision to make better choices. You can start by saying “no” to all those things that just don’t matter. It is possible for you to be a participant in your own life, which will strengthen your overall productivity. Make a schedule for your life. Give yourself permission to take time off. But, most importantly, schedule yourself that necessary breathing room needed to enjoy every day, not just some days.

Start making a difference in your own life this week and enjoy the magic you create for yourself. Remember the steps below for success.

• Start by doing less – choose to identify the things in life that matter most to you. Then, do that!
• Participate in your own life – Be single-minded and focus on one thing at a time.
• Remember to create breathing room – schedule that free time on your calendar.

Remember, life can ALWAYS BE BETTER!

It is far too easy to fall into the belief that being busy somehow creates productivity. When you look at it from the outside, keeping yourself busy often gives the false impression of advancement, intention, determination and emphasis. The facts are that being busy has no inherent value.

If you are not busy taking action toward the life you desire for yourself, more than likely you are spending this time distracting yourself. I know that is what I have done in the past. I even catch myself doing it now from time to time. We keep ourselves so busy that we don't even have the time to see that we are avoiding the situation all together.

However, when you are serious about taking the steps to move your life in the right direction you WILL make time to reflect, learn and apply. The first step is to take an honest look at whether your actions, time and energy are in alignment with the vision you have for your life. Then, you will need to “look under the hood” to see what's really driving you.

Four keys to success in this area are:

• Make time daily to  do a personal check-in for 5 minutes.

• Were your actions in line with your vision?

• Were your actions the best use of your time?

• Finally, take your own advice and keep doing more of what works and do less of what does not work!

Remember, life can ALWAYS BE BETTER!

originally posted October 7, 2013

Life's encounters are not usually welcomed with an open door. Yet, the truth is that every problem we face presents an opportunity for us to grow through. Certainly, it is easy to overlook the gift within when problems first arrive. That is why it is so important to think about and look for the understanding that is associated with these hardships.

Sometimes we need a little space in order to learn from life's little challenges. It is much easier to work a little change, and transform discomfort into wisdom, once we are on the other side of the problem. Best of all, is that the more you practice looking for the reward within the challenge, the faster you will see it the next time around.

There is an old saying, Eric Butter worth once said, "Don’t go through life, grow through life." It is important to learn to look for the value within each experience to gain the understanding. Then you can use insights to make better choices as you move toward the goal.

• Look at the challenges you've faced in your life and make a list of all of the gifts you received by experiencing them them.
• Then remind yourself of these gifts the next time a hardship brings you down.

Remember, life can ALWAYS BE BETTER!

originally posted October 14, 2013

There are an endless number of ways we hold ourselves back from even slightly reaching our potential. We create all kinds of self-imposed limitations as to what is possible for us through our thoughts, intentions and beliefs.

It has been well documented that our belief system affects how we act and perform. Our beliefs even help in molding our life. When we believe something is possible, many times we will find a way to make it happen. When we choose not to believe it is possible we rarely even make the effort. It is pretty easy to feel that truth.

Now, imagine what life would be like if, instead of creating restrictions we created possibilities. We know that the mind cannot come up with a vision or goal that we are not capable of accomplishing. We just have to be willing to think big, or at least bigger, and take inspired action. Go ahead, give it a try.

• Take the time to identify your core beliefs and look at how they form your perceptions about life-relationships, finances, health, career, etc.
• Determine what beliefs are true and support you in living a fulfilled life. Then look for those that are actually based in fear and limit your potential.
• Then, explore what more you could complete if you were willing to let the beliefs that hold you back go. So, what is holding you back?

Remember, life can ALWAYS BE BETTER!

originally posted October 28, 2013

“The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of
the strong.”
― Mahatma Gandhi

When you choose to carry a grudge it heavily weighs you down. Many times one small simple thought of how you were hurt in the past triggers a new physiological response that drags your energy level into a downward spiral. This can be very hard to overcome, or is it?

There is a way for you to free yourself from this unnecessary downward turn and continue to move forward for success. That solution is forgiveness.

Many times it can be difficult to turn over the proverbial new leaf so that it can be pruned and grow back new and refreshed. The first step it to let go of the incident that is causing you pain. It is in the past and cannot be changed. The anger, frustration, resentment, sadness and discontent that is weighing you down will be released when you make the conscious choice to forgive. Is it easy? Many times not. But I can tell you from my own life that when I choose to forgive I feel much, much better. Start today and see how freeing it is to release those negative thought patterns and just let go.

Here are five steps to freedom from pain:

• Start by recognizing the past pains that are holding you back.
• Then, write down each are where you benefit and suffer from hanging on to the negative thoughts that are causing you pain.
• Follow this by making the choice to let it go.
• Finally, write a positive commitment to replace those negative thought patterns with an action of forgiveness. Also, write the benefits you will receive when you forgive.
• Repeat as necessary for any people or events that are holding you back!

Remember, life can ALWAYS BE BETTER!

Scientific studies have shown that our thoughts, feelings and beliefs lead the way in we choose to see the world. These thoughts, feelings and beliefs play a huge role in the development of both our perceptions as well as our misperceptions. Personalization is a perfect example of this.

When you take the time to pay close attention to how you process the data coming in to you, you will see how fast your thoughts in nearly every experience you have lead straight back to you. You begin to worry about what other people think of you. You work diligently to plan your actions in order to keep the peace. This even gets taken to the point where place an emphasis on doing what you think will make others like you, or love you, more.

This is something we all do. You, me, everyone does it. However, when we choose to take things to personally it can be a very slippery slope.

This might be a where we can take a look at Dr. Daniel Amen’s 18/40/60 Rule. His rule offers us a clear, thoughtful insight into how we view ourselves and others. It states:

"When you’re 18, you worry about what everybody is thinking of you; when you’re 40, you don’t give a darn what anybody thinks of you; when you’re 60, you realize nobody’s been thinking about you at all."

Let’s face it, there is only so much emotional stress you are capable of handling before you begin your temper begins to flair. The fact is that when your energy level is low it becomes even easier for you to give way to fear and negativity. I know that is the case for me.

When you make the choice to have positive daily routines in your life that strengthen your energy, you will find that your mood will be enhanced and stress levels lowered. All of this, of course, will help to refill your emotional reserves and have your ready for a great day. I believe it is very important to make a daily routine for yourself that will help you to provide more positive energy into every day.

Choose to experience how much smoother life becomes when you invest in yourself and make the choice to feel good. So, stop putting off your daily happiness and create your new routine today. One thing is for sure. When you take action in your own life, instead of sitting on the sidelines, you will feel stronger, more secure and ready to tackle another day. Hey, it’s football season!

• Start with daily exercise. Studies have shown that just 20 minutes of exercise can lift your spirits for up to 12 hours, and who wouldn’t want that? 
• Show gratitude for what you have. Showing gratitude helps to create positive emotions and thoughts that will strengthen your overall attitude, increase your motivation, and make you more resilient in your day to day dealings. 
• I put this one in just for me. Feel free to use it. When I need a lift I simply turn up the volume on my favorite radio station and sing out loud (thankfully I am in my car and nobody else can hear me). They say that music tames the savage beast. I believe that goes for the beast that lives within us as well. Listening to inspirational and upbeat music can quickly change your mood. It can also help to change your overall outlook on life at that moment. So TURN UP THE VOLUME and live!

Remember, life can ALWAYS BE BETTER!