Benefits of Optimism In Your Life

2016-12-19 ~ adminlife

Top 10 Tangible Benefits of Optimism

There are two general attitudes you can hold: Pessimism and optimism. Pessimists have poorer long-term results than optimists. Optimists are healthier, happier, and more successful. If you’ve been accused of being pessimistic, rethink your perspective. Optimism is a more enjoyable way to live.

Optimism has many advantages over pessimism:

You’ll excel. When learning a new skill, studies have shown that optimistic people tend to overestimate their current skill level. However, those that are optimistic ultimately learn a new skill at a higher level. Those that most accurately judge their abilities at the beginning fail to learn as well as those that are more optimistic.

Strengthen your health. Optimistic people have been shown to have healthier blood sugar and cholesterol levels. They’re also more likely to exercise and less likely to smoke. Optimists carry less body fat, too.
Lower stress. When you expect good things to happen, there are fewer reasons to experience stress. In fact, when things go wrong, optimistic people are more likely to view the mishap as an opportunity for something bigger and better to happen.
Uplift your mood. Your attitude affects all aspects of your life. Adopting an optimistic perspective might be the easiest way to lift your attitude.
Make more friends. Others appreciate your optimism. When you have positive expectations, you positively affect the mood of those around you. You’ll find yourself with more friends and have greater influence over others. The people you like the most are those that make you feel the best. Your optimism benefits others.
It’s the most effective option. Pessimism doesn’t have much to offer. It’s damaging to your health, mood, and results. Others avoid pessimists. Why would you choose to be anything other than optimistic? What other intelligent option do you have?
Optimists dare themselves to be great. Pessimists are too afraid to try new things or take the risks that are necessary for higher levels of success. Optimists are in a better position to pursue and achieve greatness.
Boost your immune system. Or maybe pessimism suppresses your immune system. Either way, you’ll get sick less frequently if you have a positive outlook on life. You might even spend less at the doctor’s office.
Live longer. You’re more likely to live to be 100 years old if you’re optimistic. Interviews with centenarians consistently demonstrate an optimistic attitude about the future. Optimism is one of the most enjoyable ways to extend longevity. An optimistic attitude might allow you to spend time with your great grandchildren.
Make smarter decisions under pressure. This can be helpful at work and in your personal life. When you deal with stress more effectively, you can make wiser decisions. When you expect a negative outcome, your decisions will be mostly defensive in nature.

Optimism has a lot to offer. You’re hurting your future, yourself, and those around you by being pessimistic. Optimism is free and it feels good. Your health, success, and mental health are all enhanced when you hold a positive viewpoint. Let go of your pessimism and view the world from an enthusiastic perspective. You’ll be glad you did!

Even the most optimistic among us can sometimes feel stressed. You can find out more about the causes, symptoms and relief methods of Stress in the book:

Stress

A collection of articles to help you understand and overcome the effects of stress on your life.

Just click on the button below to learn more.

To your success.

Michael W

To talk with Michael about Optimism, Stress or many other life issues, just use the contact form below.

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Enhance Your Mood And Success With These Habits

2016-11-22 ~ adminlife

Top 10 Habits That Enhance Your Mood and Your Success

Your daily rituals ultimately determine the quality of your life. Happy and successful people do different things each day than the average person. And they do those things consistently. This is great news! A few small changes can transform your life, but patience is required. Instead of focusing on big changes, consider making a few minor adjustments.

The odds of successfully making a change are much higher when that change is small.

Effective habits result in a more productive life:

Make yourself a priority. We’ve all been taught to worry about others. Self-sacrifice is viewed as altruistic and noble. But you’re important, too. Give your emotional and physical health the priority it deserves. You’ll then be in a better position to help yourself and others.
Set one or more goals each day. If you don’t have an objective for the day, you’re much less likely to make the most of it. It feels good to wake up with a purpose. You’ll also get a lot more accomplished. Give yourself the gift of feeling a sense of accomplishment at the end of each day.
Communicate effectively. Communicating well with others enhances relationships, both personal and professional. Poor communication creates misunderstanding and unhappiness. Ensure you understand others and they understand you.
Get enough sleep. Studies have consistently shown that getting at least seven hours of sleep is critical. The research shows that everyone performs better on mental and physical tasks after getting at least seven hours of sleep.
Meditate. A few minutes of meditation each day can provide significant results. It’s relaxing, provides a mental break, and clears the mind. Think of it as exercise for your mental muscles.
Spend quality time with those you love. Isn’t that what it’s all about anyway? Many of us spend all day toiling at work, only to come home and sit in front of the TV. Spending meaningful time with others will make you happier and provide the motivation necessary to reach higher levels of success.
Learn at least one new thing. Imagine how much you’d know in five years if you learned something new each day. Ideally, you’ll learn something that’s both interesting and useful to your future. You’ll be proud of your personal growth. You’ll also be more effective in the workplace.
Be grateful. When life is challenging, it’s easy to forget just how much you already have. Spend a few minutes each day and make a list of all the things that fill you with gratitude.

The list is longer than you think. It will enhance your mood and make it easy to move forward.

Use time effectively. Time is the one thing you can’t get back. Whether you’re a billionaire or the average Joe, everyone has 24 hours to navigate each day. The most successful people use that time more effectively. Whether working or having fun, try to make your hours as productive as possible.

Exercise each day. Exercise is great for your health, both physical and mental. It’s a great time to think and unwind. Try to squeeze in at least 30 minutes of physical activity each day. You’ll benefit in many ways.

It can be that easy to feel better and accomplish more. Enhance your daily rituals and you’ll enhance your life. Small changes can bring big results over time. Develop habits that guarantee a better mood and greater success.

To your success

Michael W

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Creative Visualization Described

2016-10-312016-10-30 ~ adminlife

What is “Creative Visualization”?

In the past decade or so, there has been much talk about something that is age-old, but now has a name. That name is “creative visualization”.

You’ve probably heard the term before in the news, or reading a magazine. Several celebrities – especially those into self-help – have touted creative visualization as the next great thing. But you don’t need to be a self-help guru to understand where the theory of creative visualization comes from.

To be clear, visualization isn’t really a technique at all. It’s a process one embarks on that is kind of like meditation in that there is the intent to focus on one thing, which lets the rest fall away. In meditation, the concentration (especially for those that are new to it) is usually on breathing. Creative visualization centers the mind on a specific reality or outcome. Maybe it is a desired experience you want to have, or a material object you want to attain. Maybe it is a sense of calm, or wellness you’re trying to achieve. These are all common visualization topics.

Visualization is also not a new process. Since time immortal, thinking people have utilized visualization to attain that which they desired, but had not yet received or what they wanted to create. Think, for a moment, about the artist. It doesn’t matter what media is used, the artist must first visualize the outcome – the final product – whether it is a painting, musical score, or dance choreography. In utilizing creative visualization, one is better able to control the outcome, because that outcome has been focused on to the exclusion of all else.

Creative visualization is a sensory process that involves all the senses together. For instance, if your goal was to learn to ride horses, you would imagine how it would feel to ride your horse at a lope confidently, how the wind would rush past you, and how it would feel to be one with the horse. You would imagine how the horse would smell, of hay and grain, and imagine how the trees and sky would look going past as you rode. You’d hear the thump of the horse’s hooves, and hear him breathing heavily. By imagining the entire experience, you’re better able to focus on what actual action needs to be taken for that experience to occur.

Creative visualization can also be used to change habits. If you are a nail biter, imagine how having long, beautiful nails would look and feel, and how proud you would finally be of your hands.

These are the types of creative visualization that can change lives!

To your success

Michael W

Are You Too Self-Critical – 12 Signs To Look For

2016-10-202016-10-18 ~ adminlife

12 Signs That You’re Being Too Self-Critical

It’s admirable to do your best and attempt to be the best person you can be. It only makes sense to examine your negative results in life and try to do better the next time. But it’s also easy to become too self-critical. A high level of self-criticism is detrimental to success and good mental health. Excessive self-criticism hurts your self-esteem and confidence.

Consider these signs that you might be too critical of yourself:

You’re paralyzed. One sign that you’re overly critical toward yourself is a lack of action. If you’ve been stuck in the same situation for an extended period of time, you’re too hard on yourself. Otherwise, you’d be out there taking care of business and making positive changes to your life.
You’re slow to forgive others. When you can’t forgive yourself, you’re unable to forgive others. When you can let go and forgive yourself, you can do the same for the other people in your life.
You’re never pleased with your accomplishments. It doesn’t matter to you that you shaved 10 minutes off your best 10K time or graduated from medical school. You’re bothered by the fact that you didn’t win the race or attend Harvard medical school.
You’re not assertive. You have to be comfortable with yourself to feel comfortable with asserting yourself. Assertiveness also brings the risk of rejection. Being too self-critical can increase the fear of rejection from others.
You consistently say bad things to yourself. There’s little harm in a small amount of negative self-talk. But a constant barrage of self-criticism is highly damaging. Imagine telling your child that they can’t do anything right and should give up trying. It sounds crazy when viewed from that perspective.
You’re a chronic underachiever. Underachieving is both a symptom and a cause of self-criticism. Consistent underachieving is a call to action!
Others feel comfortable being critical of you. The average person isn’t comfortable criticizing others. However, after they’ve heard you criticize yourself repeatedly, they’re likely to feel they can join in on the criticism.
You criticize yourself in general terms, rather than just for specific events. There’s a difference between telling yourself that you’re not a good tennis player and telling yourself that you’re not good at anything. General criticism is false and highly damaging.

A lack of success at a particular activity doesn’t make you flawed at everything. It’s illogical.

You keep your opinions to yourself. While you have every reason to avoid telling your neighbor she looks fat in her dress, you should feel comfortable sharing the title of your favorite book. If you don’t feel comfortable sharing your opinions freely, you’re too concerned about being judged by others or saying the wrong thing.
You spend too much time dwelling on your mistakes. Can you move on quickly after a short period of self-reflection or do you dwell on your mistakes for an extended period of time?
You find yourself unable to ask for help. It shouldn’t be difficult to ask for help. In fact, the more help the better! Are you afraid of being viewed as incapable? If so, you’re too critical of yourself.
You can’t give yourself a single compliment. Everyone is good at something. Or maybe you know you’re good at a few things but don’t think you deserve a compliment. Either way, you’re being too hard on yourself.

You’re sabotaging yourself by being overly self-critical. You limit both your success and your mood. Realize how much you harm yourself with self-criticism. Learn from your mistakes and apply the information with enthusiasm.

To your success

Michael W

The Words That Can Change Your Life

2016-10-192016-10-18 ~ adminlife

The Right Words Can Change Your Life

Words are very powerful things even though most people go through life without ever realizing or acknowledging that fact. Think about it, though. Words said in anger or carelessness can hurt someone and even affect that person permanently. On the flip side of that coin, certain compliments paid to someone can increase that person’s confidence in a way that will be carried a lifetime. Yes, words are very powerful, and that’s why you can use words to improve your opinion of yourself as well as your quality of life.

The words you’ll use to boost your self-confidence aren’t the words spoken to you by others. These are words that you will write and speak to yourself. They are called affirmations and can be some of the most effective means in raising the self-confidence of someone. Affirmations are easy to create and even simpler to put to use.

To begin with, target the areas of yourself and your life that you are not quite happy with or you feel needs some improving. For instance, if you are not pleased with something about your appearance, focus on something that you ARE happy with. Maybe you feel that you need to lose a bit of weight but you have a very pretty or handsome face. Focus on that beautiful smile. Then, every morning when you get up and before you go to bed every night, look at yourself in the mirror and say something along the lines of “I have a very beautiful smile and it is this smile that people will see when they look at me. My beautiful smile will draw the people I want into my life.” Of course, you’ll want to make it more personal, but you get the idea.

These affirmations are necessary in helping you to remember that there ARE some very attractive qualities about you and that those are the ones that you need to focus on bringing out to the forefront. When you are positive about something and can use that positivity, you’ll find that people will WANT to be around you because you produce such great energy. In other words, draw attention away from the fact that you may be packing a few extra pounds, for example, by showing off that great smile and your warm personality. People flock to that sort of thing.

Haven’t you ever noticed those great looking guys that are partnered with women that are less than a 5 on The Scale? Those women may not be physically beautiful but they have found a way to bring their inner beauty to the outside. You can do that as well. All you have to do is a little mind work. Write down affirmations that apply to what you are trying to accomplish. These can be recited as often as you wish or feel that you need them. The more positive energy that you put out the more that will come back to you. Soon, you’ll only be aware of that gorgeous smile and that extra weight will be a secondary concern that you can take care of when you have a chance. This can work the same way with whatever you want to change about yourself.

To your success

Michael W