Even You Need to be Mothered

Is it possible to Mother yourself when Mom's not available or nearby? I say yes. I think the best thing your mother can do for you is to teach you how to mother and nurture yourself. But let's face it - it's a skill, a talent and a gift. Doing this kind of self care requires commitment like that of a mother. But as an adult it is the #1 thing you need to become adept at.

This Mother's Day while showering or being showered by attention think of how you can become more self reliant in the self nurturing arena.

Secrets to Get YOU Started on Your Nurturing Journey:

Secret #1 -Reflect: Do you have time to reflect and think things through or are you always harried, frazzled and stressed? Well if you spend most of your days in this anxiety prone state you will not be on the road to long term health.

Learning to slow down and say no to all the distractions which take you away from your true self - your true core - will re-generate and honor your beautiful nature and soul.

Sounds like foreign territory? You must learn to nurture yourself by creating time without pressure (one of my new mottos) and taking the time to give to yourself - even just a little.

Secret #2 - Journal: I love to write I find it a source of grounding, clarity and a place where my imagination can run free. I get to work things out on paper. It's a safe and uncrowded place for me to explore and be as honest as I possibly can with myself. I know you may not find this easy to do and may in fact run from the mere mention of sitting down to write out your deep and most private thoughts. You scream out "I have no time, someone might read it, and I'm not much of a writer." Start with small steps. Remember this is a place to get to know yourself better. To get you started you may want to pick up the classic "The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron.

Secret #3 Allow Others to do for YOU: Alert, alert! You can not do it all by yourself! I mean you can but at what price? Do you want to constantly feel rundown while feeling virtuous about accomplishing a feat you had set out to do single handedly? Wouldn't you like to have a team helping you out all the way to the finish line? Did you know collaboration comes very naturally to women and is so much more rewarding. Women actually crave it. Better satisfy this craving that your sweet tooth. Your "team or helpers" will also feel special contributing. They will feel a part of something and have a real sense of belonging. Let them! Let go of any martyr or a saint tendencies. Come to terms with the fact that you are a mere mortal with needs and an ability to ask for help (always!).

Secret #4 Make yourself Important: But don't take yourself too seriously. Don't dismiss any thoughts or ideas you have. Value them all - they are a part of you. The worst thing you can do is attack, criticize or demean yourself in any way. You want to be supportive of yourself at all times just like a nurturing mother would be.

Secret #5 Take a Bath: Nothing like a warm, sudsy, comforting, candle-lit bath at the end of a day that says "I love me"! No I don't mean in a narcissistic way but in a loving, mothering, and accepting way.

The warmth of this simple yet soothing activity will go a long way. You will feel calmer, more relaxed and you will sleep better, too. Your calming brain chemicals, specifically Serotonin and Gaba, will be activated ensuring a deep and restful sleep.

Monika Klein, BS, CN. is an award winning clinical nutritionist and weight loss expert. Monika is the "Compassionate and Practical Nutrition and Lifestyle Coach." Her company, Coaching For Health, offers life transforming weight loss and wellness programs, classes and products throughout the world. To learn more about Monika's services and programs, visit coachingforhealth.com. Providing useful self development, self empowerment and self esteem tips and reviews online.

How to Stop Feelings of Unworthiness From Sabotaging Your Dreams

I seek strength, not to be greater than another, but to fight my greatest enemy, the doubts within myself. ~P.D. Cast

Of all the elements that form the comfort zone, unworthiness is without question the most insidious.

Unworthiness is that shadowy deep-seated belief that creeps into our minds and tells us we are undeserving and not good enough, inadequate and fundamentally flawed. Unworthiness serves as a shield to insulate us from risk, chance and the unknown.

Some of us may already be aware of certain limiting and negative beliefs we have about ourselves. These we can learn to heal and change. The real problem goes deeper... it's the unconscious self-doubt and unworthy feelings we accept about ourselves.

The unworthiness mantra is "Don't try it, don't even think about it."

Without realizing it, we allow unworthiness to sabotage us in a hundred different ways, using endless justifications to keep from reaching for our dreams. For the sake of shielding ourselves from even the remote possibility of having to face our own fundamental inadequacy... we will do whatever it takes to just not think about it.

We repeatedly second guess our choices; falling into endless mental reruns picking apart what we could or should have done differently; over time finding it harder and harder to make definitive decisions that will enable us to move forward.
We avoid testing (or exposing) ourselves by allowing days, weeks and years to go by as we focus on the daily minutia of life and tell ourselves we'll get to the big important stuff as soon as we're 'caught up' or when the 'time is right.'
We use our responsibilities, especially to others, as shields to prevent ourselves from trying something new.

While there's a lot to be said for gratitude, there is a BIG difference between appreciating all the good things and people in your life and choosing to settle for less because you don't believe you deserve or are capable of more.

A few months ago I received a heartbreaking note from a reader who wanted to share with me why she had just unsubscribed from IGG. She went on to explain that while she enjoyed the articles and found them inspiring they also depressed her because she found herself focusing on all that she could never have or be in her life. "A lot of people have it worse than me, so I just need to stop dreaming and be grateful for what I have now."

How to Resolve Feelings of Unworthiness

Be willing to challenge beliefs about yourself: Begin by exploring the 'why' behind negative self talk. Make a positive statement about yourself such as I am a loving person or I deserve to achieve my dream of (fill in the blank). Then focus on any negative or contradictory thoughts that pop into your mind about your declaration. A personal journal is a great tool for this exercise. The more specific you can be with your statement, the greater the likelihood you'll be able to uncover those sneaky unworthy feelings.

One step at a time: Once you begin to identify unworthy thoughts or triggers you can start gently stretching the limits of your comfort zone. Be willing to try different strategies and don't be discouraged if you have to keep at it for awhile. These feelings of unworthiness have likely been with you for decades, so be kind to yourself, celebrate small victories, and be patiently persistent.

Let go of the past: For some reason, at some point in your life you came to the conclusion that you were lacking. Maybe you were bullied as a kid, or maybe you made a mistake... maybe it was a real whopper of a mistake and now you're stuck mentally rerunning the experience and what you could or should have done differently. It's time to let it go. The longer this has been going on the tougher it will be to clear it from your mind, but meaningful change always begins with a decision and in this case it's up to you to choose not to give those thoughts the energy they require to remain an active part of your life.

Risk change: The thing about unworthiness is over time it becomes a comfortable companion and it is awfully tempting to stay with what's known rather than risk the discomfort of change, rejection or even failure. Focus on your dreams and find a purpose that is important enough to motivate you to muster the strength and courage to step into the unknown and be free of what's holding you back.

Be willing to ask for help: Sometimes feelings of unworthiness stem from a major life change or a traumatic event. As valuable as self-directed personal growth exercises can be, it's important to understand that asking for help is not a weakness. Even the most courageous and successful people from time to time need a helping hand to move forward.

Sometimes the space between where you are and where you want to be can feel like a massive distance, but the truth is even the most self-confident among us will experience doubt from time to time. We may not be able to completely avoid it, but we can become more resilient by developing a strategy that enables us to effectively conquer feelings of self-doubt and unworthiness. Providing useful self development, self empowerment and self esteem tips and reviews online.

How To Develop Psychic Abilities Effectively On Your Own

Psychic abilities are practical and useful. Clairvoyance allows you to see what your eyes cannot normally see. Clairaudience lets you hear; telepathy lets you communicate and other psychic abilities let you perform other amazing tasks. Each of us is a psychic; it is just that not all of us know how to use our capabilities. If you wish to improve your life using these talents, then you have to know how to develop psychic abilities that lie dormant in you.

Learning

First and foremost, you need to learn more about psychic abilities. There are many books and guides you can read. The more knowledge you have about psychic abilities, the better your chances are on improving them.

Meditating

Meditating allows you to improve psychic abilities; moreover, it can also help you find peace and happiness. Various meditation methods can also be performed so you will become conscious of your mental states. You will also know how to distinguish psychic intuition from your everyday normal thoughts.

Praying

Prayer is necessary for asking guidance or divine intervention for your goal to develop your psychic skills. Pray with the language of your heart and pray earnestly. Repeating the same prayers each night is not what you should do, but prayers that will express what your mind and heart really contains.

Affirming

Use affirmations everyday so that your mind can be programmed to bring out the best outcomes. Affirmations are positive statements or suggestions that your subconscious mind can accept as true. Affirm to yourself that you have great powers to develop and that you are advancing well day after day.

Performing Rituals

Rituals are basically actions that you perform, which will have a corresponding effect on your inner plane. Rituals do not have to be as grave as what you see is done by wizards and witches. They could be just little things like praying while the hands are clasped together or candle lighting. No matter what ritual you perform, keep in mind that its core is to help you improve in your skills development.

Using Talisman

A talisman is an object held sacred for possessing some psychic charges. Any jewelry or stone can be used as talisman. Crystals and other semi-precious stones like amethyst and jade can also be used. To use your chosen talisman, you need to clean it first using saltwater so that any impurity may be removed. After the cleansing, transfer your desire into the object. Wear this talisman everyday in close contact with your skin.

Being With Other Psychics

When you are in the company of other people whose psychic abilities are developed, the more you will be inspired to be like them. Plus, they can also give you some helpful guidelines on how you can also improve your own skills. Their vibrations will help you get in tune with yours. You can attend seminars and workshops offered by other professional psychics. You can also search for online communities of people who share the same passion and interests about psychic abilities.

Believing

Another crucial component in developing your psychic powers is belief in yourself. If you are doubtful that you have powers, it would be impossible for you to prompt those powers to manifest. Even before you begin calling out for your abilities, you are already closing the doors where your powers will convene with you due to your certainty.

Developing Psychic Powers Course will help you develop various psychic abilities successfully. Psychic Desire is another recommended system for developing your sixth sense. Providing useful self development, self empowerment and self esteem tips and reviews online.

No Children, No Hope

Right now this statement may resonate with some of you, and may seem completely foreign to others, but here it is: believe it or not, in this humble "writer's" opinion, we're all born geniuses. Genius-hood is native to us as humans; we just manage to "forget" this genius as we become socially conditioned.

Those humans popularly regarded as "Geniuses" have done nothing more than simply held onto their childish perspectives; their whole world being brightly coloured by their inquisitive minds and their ability to see opportunity where stumbling block presents itself.

Some of the greatest minds on Earth offer some support of this statement.

Call to mind that classic image of Einstein poking his tongue out at the camera. Have you ever looked in his eyes, or have you only focussed solely on the tongue? Look deeply into his eyes, the spark of child-likeness shines out like an eight-week-old puppy first discovering dirty socks.

Another fine example was Mozart. Now, if you can get past the hideous laugh bestowed, rightly or wrongly, upon this prodigy in the movie "Amadeus" by the dude who played Cool's dad in Parenthood, there were truths ridden throughout this film - didn't it strike anyone that Mozart was perhaps a little, well, childish?

Child-likeness is akin to genius - with minds and hearts young enough to not be dictated to by structure. The very structure that generally leads people to becoming grumpy, stiff old codgers who keep complaining about, "The youth of today".

You are really as old as you feel. It's that simple.

The beauty about this is that it's not just confined to people; it's indicative of an entire concept - the concept of youth; that of being too fresh to be crushed by the weight of structure. This extends to younger companies making ideal partners in communications for example... especially ones in Alexandria who will be re-locating to Redfern early next year. And ones called Heard, coincidentally enough.

You see, we've all been around the advertising block a few times, and we all have stories about how long-established structure and stale culture ensures that creativity remains well and truly strangled, and things are never really going to change, because no one ever had the balls to TRULY shake things up.

Well, we're in the formative stage, where we're frequently calling upon our vast collective experience of all aspects of our jobs, learning from the things we felt didn't work, and incorporating the things that did. We're creating a new company, a new way of working with each new day, and the results are astounding. (*Insert scene of looking wistfully into the clouds, eyes with soft focus, with wind gently blowing hair and a single-note piano composition evoking thoughts of hope and joy).

Providing useful self development, self empowerment and self esteem tips and reviews online.

Success Or Failure: Do You Feel Like a Failure?

Do you feel like a failure?

Have you ever felt like you were not good enough no matter what you tried to do or how many times you tried to do it? Have you ever felt like no matter how much better you get at doing something, there's always someone else who's there to tell you that you could have done it better?

Please understand I am a firm believer in continually striving to do better. However, it is never a pleasant experience for me when someone else points out my faults regardless of how well-meaning their intentions can be.

Even as a child it was clear to me what failure looked like, and those who failed shamefully had to tolerate the heckling and laughter of others at their expense. This crude treatment was less than encouraging.

When I lost custody of my children, I kept to myself as much as possible. I didn't want to be reminded repeatedly of what a failure as a mother I'd become. The event caused me to think of myself as a failure, a feeling I bore from the judgment of others. It changed my life.

Strangely enough, I knew the critics were basing their opinion of me as a mother on the outcome of the custody battle rather than how I performed as a mother. I don't know what it is about us humans, but we seem to have to look for validation of ourselves from another human. Though, in reality that's just our perception.

When considering a supposed failure, have you ever wondered...

Did I make a positive difference in this scenario? Do I know what that difference is?

Did I somehow contribute to this failure?

What exactly IS the failure? What would success look like in this particular situation?

Is failure the beginning of success? Would I even recognize success without failure and if so, then do I need to have experienced failure in order to have success?

Am I really a failure, or am I a success because of my failure?

So, what is success? What does it mean to you? What does that word look like to you in your world? Can you become a failure without knowing what it is to be successful?

This is what I have come to learn:

First of all, failure is not a person! Failure is recognized as an unsuccessful act, non-performance, insufficiency, deterioration, or condition of something expected. Inadequately "doing" something does not automatically turn you into "becoming" something. After all, who were you moments BEFORE you made the attempt to do the thing that failed?

When going through the feelings of failure, why do you automatically seem to question who we are?

What is the truth? Do we really know? Or do we truly know yet allow others to talk us out of what we know?

You might wonder where I am going with this train of thought. I am leading up to all the negative self-talk, monkey-mind, voices in our head, chatter, or whatever we choose to call it that tells us something different than what we feel.

It makes me wonder if I didn't really know truth all along and didn't question it until people gave me a reason to do so. Have you ever done something you really wanted to do and then felt badly about it only because someone else told you that you were bad for doing it?

It's got to do with that word failure.

So, maybe failure is a necessary thing after all. And maybe if we recognize it as just another part of life we could talk about it in a more positive connotation, and keep it in a perspective of a behavioral trait rather than a label we should stick on ourselves or someone else.

My hope is for you to look at failure as a way to reach your full potential so that you can be all you were meant to be and reject any notion of using the word to identify a person, particularly YOU!

Mary's 20 years of experience in dealing with trauma dedicated her to become one of the leading experts in transforming pain to pleasure in women's lives. Mary is a loving mom and after the loss of custody of her own children, has created a company that stands as the voice for mothers who have lost custody of their children. Grab a copy of her free eBook, "8 Critical Steps to Transforming Your Life after Losing Custody!" at my website, marydirksen.com. Providing useful self development, self empowerment and self esteem tips and reviews online.

Are You Prepared to Survive a Disaster?

Around the world the past decade we have seen so many natural disasters that have affected so many people. I started to ask myself would I be prepared if something happened to us, would we be prepared to survive in the event of a tornado, flood, or event an earthquake? If we had to leave, where would I go and what would I take with me to survive for at least 72 hours? Are you prepared to take care of your family in the event of a disaster? Let's look at what we would need to do to answer some of these questions to help you to survive until you are ready to return to your home.

I think a check list would be a great place to start, get some items together to prepare a bug out bag with emergency supplies consisting of water, food, and some sort of shelter. This could consist of sleeping bags, tents and a first aid kit. Water is the most important thing to have on hand, make sure you have some water in storage one way or another. Bottled or in jugs, you may want to buy some sort of filtration system in case you need to filter water to drink. A person needs at least two quarts of water per day to sustain proper hydration. Figure a gallon of water per person for all needs of hydration, cooking and hygiene. Having the skills of obtaining and sanitizing water can be the difference life and death for you and your family since you can go without for more than three days.

Food should also be a concern, if there is any kind of disruption in your area you can expect things to run out at the store in a matter of hours. If you wait too long then you lose and so does your family, food storage and rotation would be a good practice to start as soon as possible. I would keep at the very least a month's supply of food somewhere in the house for an emergency. You should calculate how much food by how many members there are in your family that you would have to feed. Shelter is another important item if you have to leave your home. Do you have some place else to go, if the disaster is really bad and affecting a lot of people in your area would you have to put up a tent? This is something would have to consider because you never know what could happen and you had nowhere to stay.

Power would be another consideration, what if you lost power during a tornado, snow storm? You could be sitting on the couch watching TV and the power goes out, would you know where to find a flashlight in a moment's notice without stumbling over something in the process? Do you have a generator in case the power is out for days? Food would go bad, no heat or air-conditioning, no water from the facet if the power plant is down. Be prepared to have these items on hand for you and your family, don't get left in the dark.

Know your region and what possible disaster threats could happen to you and your family; even pack something in your car to be ready, you could be caught in a snow storm and would be ready to survive until help arrives. These are a few things you need to consider to sustain you and your family to be safe in the event of a disaster. Be prepared so you won't be one of the many who will not be ready for disaster. Visit this website survive2dazeworld.com for more information on how to prepare your family for survival.

Charlotte has been researching websites and other articles to get her family prepared for any disaster that could occur in her area. She feels inclined to ask others if they too are prepared and give them ideas and resources to be prepared for any disaster. Providing useful self development, self empowerment and self esteem tips and reviews online.

Making a Personal Development Plan

Many people want to try to improve themselves in a variety of ways, but they often don't know where to start. Perhaps you have a laundry list of traits that you'd like to change about yourself, and it's simply overwhelming before you even start? Truthfully, if you made only a few changes, you could see a drastic improvement; it's really not necessary to change everything about yourself. Instead, you need to create a plan which prioritizes and organizes your personal goals. By prioritizing your goals, you end up with a manageable plan of just a few items and will avoid the burnout that comes with trying to do everything at once.

The first thing you need to do is to write down your "need to change" laundry list. Putting these items down in black and white helps you when selecting which items to prioritize, as you will be sure you haven't forgotten anything important. Once you have your list, you should sort the individual goals into groups, putting similar goals together. For example, you might have a "physical appearance" group which includes getting a more flattering haircut, becoming more physically fit, and changing your diet. You might also have an "emotional responses" group which includes being overly aggressive in social situations and reacting badly to constructive criticism. Continue this process until you have sorted all of your goals. Try to avoid having categories with only one item in them, as the entire point of the exercise is to reduce the number of discrete tasks in front of you, not to simply rename the goals.

Once you have sorted all of your goals into larger categories, you next need to rank those categories. Start with the category which you feel needs the most work. This is not necessarily the one with the most items in it; instead, it should be the category which most affects your day to day life. Continuing with the example above, it is likely that the emotional response category affects your life more than the physical appearances category does, since an inability to accept criticism could affect your professional or academic life as well as your personal life. The emotional reactions category would then be given the highest priority and placed at the top of the list.

Now that you have determined which categories of goals are the most important, you need to develop a plan for executing them. Don't create a plan for all of the categories just yet. You want to take this process one step at a time. Instead, break down the ultimate goal of the category into smaller and more manageable tasks. This does not mean that you break your category back into the separate goals. Instead, it means looking at the overall picture of the category and trying to improve on that. Again using the example above, we wouldn't break down the emotional responses category to aggressive behavior and a response to criticism again. Instead, you would break this goal into action steps that change your emotional response to situations. Both aggressive behavior and a poor response to criticism stem from having an inordinate amount of anger at an otherwise benign situation, so you would want to focus on techniques to control and reduce your anger. You should not make a plan for the next category on your list until you are satisfied with the progress on your first item.

By prioritizing your personal development goals, you take an overwhelming task and make it manageable. You cannot do everything at once. Changing one trait at a time means you'll see real progress, and be a better person in no time. If you are looking for development in your career, you should also look into business internship. Providing useful self development, self empowerment and self esteem tips and reviews online.

Focus and Home Insurance

Time sometimes just flies by without us taking the time to evaluate what we are doing and why we are doing it. I try to improve myself every day. I miss some days. I even miss some months. With so many distractions around us, it's difficult to focus on what's most important.

I believe that businesses can provide excellent examples to how to live our lives successfully. In fact, a home insurance provider that I know of can provide some key insights on how to be successful in life.

There are hundreds of insurance companies out there and not all of them are ideal companies. I know of one company that doesn't do too many things, but what they do, they do extremely well. In fact, they employ a technique I like to call focus better than most. Most companies try to serve everyone for everything. This home insurance company does not. In fact, they have very strict guidelines for who they take and inspect homes regularly to make sure they continue to fall within their guidelines. There are drawbacks from being so stringent, of coarse (i.e. less of an original market, repercussions of cancelled policies, etc..). But they have the best prices for those they do take, while maintaining excellent service levels.

Now they are obviously not a perfect company, but they are extremely successful. And I believe the key ingredient to their success is focus. They know what types of homes they want and they do not deviate from the plan.

Do you know what you want? Have you written it down? Most people will say that they do know what they want, but unless you have written it down you don't really know. Some have written it down, but still never seem to get what they want. Why is that?

Focus. If we have a definite, chief aim and we religiously focus on that aim, we can accomplish it. When we decide to accomplish something, inevitably distractions and obstacles appear almost instantly. Even other opportunities arise that seem just as good can distract us. But those who accomplish greatness, do not loose focus on what they really want to achieve.

The aforementioned company is a great home insurance company. There are many that have never heard of them, but does that make them any less of a company? They wanted to be the best in their niche and, in my opinion, they accomplished that. We can do the same in our lives. We decide what makes us successful and if we focus all energies we can achieve greatness.

Start focusing on achieving your goals. Start living a purposeful life. And stop paying too much for home insurance. Get a quote today at wpinsure.com. Providing useful self development, self empowerment and self esteem tips and reviews online.

Did You Quit

I've just created a new saying "If it Doesn't Fit You Must Have Quit!" And it's so true - we all do it - we quit on ourselves. It can be devastating, depressing and cause a related lack of confidence about ever being able to work on your goal again.

So why do we Quit and what can we do about it?

Here are your 6 Reasons and their Solutions:

#1 Not fully committed to ourselves. Whether it's your program or whatever you say you want if you are not on board and totally "All-In" you will sit on the fence and not move forward.

The Solution: Committing to yourself starts with believing you are worth it. If you don't have that belief you need to hire it. Get support from a professional who will provide you with all the belief you need until you have it on your own.

#2 Distractions. Other things take priority which is often a huge issue for women. You know the re-model, the kids, housecleaning, caring for everyone else (and not yourself).

The Solution: Just say no to distractions. Start your day with pen in hand and write down your 5 priorities - nothing else matters until you get these done. Be laser focused. It's the same with bigger goals, too. If you want to lose weight and be healthy then the next time the cheesecake floats past you at your family dinner let it pass you by. On a good program you should feel nourished and balanced enough to forego any of these environmental triggers. Make yourself and your goals a priority. Unless you have small children everyone else can take care of themselves - really, they can.

#3 Lose Faith. You are full of self doubt. You wonder "Will this really work? Is it working? Will it ever work? Second guessing by not trusting yourself or who you're working with is very self sabotaging.

The Solution: A funny thing about health and wellness is it doesn't come from out of the blue. Sure when you're young it doesn't require much effort to stay healthy and lean. But as you get older more effort is required. So if you take the necessary steps to lose weight and/or stay healthy by eating well, having 3 meals a day, eating fresh fruits and vegetables, exercising - you will get the results - there is no doubt.

#4 Wanting a Quick Fix. Sometimes the problem with healthy weight loss is it takes longer than you'd like in order to see results. There may be deep complex issues going on whether biochemical or behavioral.

The Solution: There is no such thing as a Quick Fix. Even though I call one of my Weight Loss Programs Quick Fix it isn't really it's very healthy but it's a catchy name - don't you think? Losing 10 lbs over 2 days is only temporary and the more you engage in this kind of fad the more damage you will do to your body. Your body's resilient but you can not continually abuse it without consequences. Your body most likely will stop losing weight and functioning well. Do the right thing the right way - slow, gradual and supportive change is the only way to go.

#5 Bright Shiny Object Syndrome. Also called the Grass is Greener Syndrome. or "I want what she's having" the classic line from When Harry Met Sally. You start something and quit when you see something else then you try that for a short period and quit - setting up this vicious cycle.

The Solution: Decide to honor your decision and stick with it. There will always be something out there that appears better, quicker and easier. It's more tantalizing. You need to stick with your health regimen. Starting and stopping will never give you what you need and want and it's hard on both your mind and body. It will only deplete and depress you. So decide, do it, get the help you need and see your life change

#6 Listening to Everyone Else. You think you're committed but then 5 friends or family members have a better idea and offer their opinion. You end up being confused and without consulting an expert you quit.

The Solution: Stop listening to everyone and anyone. Everyone has an opinion "you should do the Belly Fat or Cookie Diet" says Aunt Shirley. Stop the confusion it will only paralyze you and you'll never get started. You may not want to tell anyone what you're doing initially. Get used to the new program you're on, work with someone who'll help you stay the course. Then let others come to you and ask YOU what YOU'RE doing and what advice YOU can offer THEM. You have now become the expert of YOU - congratulations!

(c) Monika Klein

Monika Klein, BS, CN. is an award winning clinical nutritionist and weight loss expert. Monika is the "Compassionate and Practical Nutrition and Lifestyle Coach." Her company, Coaching For Health, offers life transforming weight loss and wellness programs, classes and products throughout the world. To learn more about Monika's services and programs, visit http://www.coachingforhealth.com.

Providing useful self development, self empowerment and self esteem tips and reviews online.

Be Positive! Live Longer!

Each new day brings its own problems, situations, and worries that could alter our peaceful lives but not everybody has the ability to bear it. Some of us will see it as a heavy burden to carry and others will see it as an opportunity to obtain something positive out of it. The difference between these two types of persons is called positive thinking or positive attitude against an unpleasant situation!

If you feel that you are one of those persons who lack of positive thinking, the good news is that you can achieve it and master it. It's not an easy task, but it is possible. Drop by drop.

Even though positive thinking is associated with self-control, in this article we'll focus our attention on how to create a positive thinking and the benefits it brings about.

Positive Thinking

Our mind has been compared to a big stage where good or bad characters (thoughts) could come to be the main characters in each play. Even though, as a stage director, you prefer the good and positive characters in the scene, sometimes you'll notice that unexpectedly bad personages will also appear capturing your attention and getting over the good ones if an immediate action is not taken. So, what could you do?

- Always remember that everything "IS" in your mind and you can control it no matter how difficult you think this is. After all, you are the stage director, aren't you? This is not about climbing a wall o jumping over a river. This is about controlling your thoughts; the foundation of your feelings and the engine of your acts.

- Identify and write down on a paper a list of the areas of your life that you typically think in a negative way and start analyzing in which way you could approach them in a positive way. Organize that list by putting in first place the easy ones. Don't try to change all of them in one shot or one day. This is a new habit for you. You need to adapt your mind to this new concept or way of thinking. Once you have conquered the first one on the list, you will probably be more confident about yourself to overcome the second one, and so on.

- Check your thoughts periodically. Evaluate them. If you feel that you are improving them, this is excellent! Keep going and don't stop! But, if you feel they are still in square one, don't give-up, don't lower your arms, just try harder. You can do it!

- Change the way of approaching different situations.

Instead of saying "It's too complicated," you could say "I'll deal with it from a different point of view."

Instead of saying "No one bothers communicating with me," you could say "I'll see if I can open the channels of communications."

As we mentioned before, this is new habit for you, so practice, practice, practice until your brain get used to it.

- Smile! Show your teeth! You surely have a beautiful smile.

- Be open to humor. Remember that a happy face is always contagious. You are helping not only yourself but also those who are around you. You never know who could be in your same situation.

- Eat healthy. Engage in physical activities. Go to bed early and get up early. These simple rules we'll give you all the energy you need to go throughout the day with a positive mind.

- Get involved with positive people even though it means changing your social life. Don't take the risk of having to start all over again.

Life could be compared to a boat. Sooner or later, you'll find people around you who had fallen in the water just complaining about their life, family, work, etc. Everything looks negative and bad to them and although the line is extended so they can be saved, in their mind they are so busy still complaining that they are blinded to see the opportunity to get back to the boat. You have taken the decision to stay out of the water, so keep swimming because the boat is right there.

- Never get empty or lazy mind moments. If you do so, it could become your enemy and fuel for "bad characters". Always keep yourself and your mind busy. Dedicate time to yourself, read good books, watch inspiring movies, talk more frequently to your love ones, and help those in need.

Benefits of Positive Thinking

Although, researchers still continues to study the benefits of positive thinking, we would like to share at least 6 of them:

- Lower levels of stress

- Lower rate of depression

- Reduced chance of heart attack

- Better and more stable physical and mental states

- Increased life span

- A big happy face!

Conclusion:

As we said before, each new day brings its own problems, situations, and worries. Don't pretend that life always will be pink. You'll have grey moments and it is OK. Actually, grey moments are necessary; otherwise, how can you progress in life? How can you know that something is sweet when you don't know how bitter tastes? How can you know that something is beautiful when you don't know what ugly is? You always need a contrast in life, an opposition.

Start creating positive thinking habits. That's your main goal if you want to succeed in life.

Never forget that you are unique in this world and that makes you an especial and important person in this life. No matter how hard your way through life could be, you'll always have the potential to raise yourself above all your problems; you'll never receive more weight than the weight you can bear.

Start today making the changes you consider necessary and it will bring you happiness and peace in your life. Providing useful self development, self empowerment and self esteem tips and reviews online.

Self Improvement And Success

Everything that happens to us happens in purpose. And sometimes, one thing leads to another. Instead of locking yourself up in your cage of fears and crying over past heartaches, embarrassment and failures, treat them as your teachers and they will become your tools in both self improvement and success.

I remember watching Patch Adams - its my favorite movie, actually. Its one great film that will help you improve yourself. Hunter “patch” Adams is a medical student who failed to make it through the board exams. After months of suffering in melancholy, depression and suicidal attempts - he decided to seek for medical attention and voluntarily admitted himself in a psychiatric ward.  His months of stay in the hospital led him to meeting different kinds of people. Sick people in that matter. He met a catatonic, a mentally retarded, a schizophrenic and so on.

Patch found ways of treating his own ailment and finally realized he has to get back on track. He woke up one morning realizing that after all the failure and pains he has gone through, he still want to become the a doctor. He carries with himself a positive attitude that brought him self improvement and success. He didn’t only improved himself, but also the life of the people around him and the quality of life. Did he succeed? Needless to say, he became the best damn doctor his country has ever known.

So, when does self improvement become synonymous with success? Where do we start? Take these tips, friends…

*Stop thinking and feeling as if you’re a failure, because you’re not. How can others accept you if YOU can’t accept YOU?

*When you see hunks and models on TV, think more on self improvement, not self pitying. Self acceptance is not just about having nice slender legs, or great abs. Concentrate on inner beauty.

*When people feel so down and low about themselves, help them move up. Don’t go down with them. They’ll pull you down further and both of you will end up feeling inferior.

*The world is a large room for lessons, not mistakes. Don’t feel stupid and doomed forever just because you failed on a science quiz. There’s always a next time. Make rooms for self improvement.

*Take things one at a time. You don’t  expect black sheep’s to be goody-two-shoes in just a snap of a finger. Self improvement is a one day at a time process.

*Self improvement results to inner stability, personality development and dig this … SUCCESS. It comes from self confidence, self appreciation and self esteem.

* Set meaningful and achievable goals. Self improvement doesn’t turn you to be the exact replica of Cameron Diaz or Ralph Fiennes. It hopes and aims to result to an improved and better YOU.

*Little things mean BIG to other people. Sometimes, we don’t realize that the little things that we do like a pat on the back, saying “hi” or “hello”, greeting someone “good day” or telling Mr. Smith something like “hey, I love your tie!” are simple things that mean so much to other people. When we’re being appreciative about beautiful things around us and other people, we also become beautiful to them.

*When you’re willing to accept change and go through the process of self improvement, it doesn’t mean that everyone else is. The world is a place where people of different values and attitude hang out. Sometimes, even if you think you and your best friend always like to do the same thing together at the same time, she would most likely decline an invitation for self improvement.

We should always remember that there’s no such thing as ‘over night success’. Its always a wonderful feeling to hold on to the things that you already have now, realizing that those are just one of the things you once wished for. A very nice quote says that “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.”  We are all here to learn our lessons. Our parents, school teachers, friends, colleagues, officemates, neighbors… they are our teachers. When we open our doors for self improvement, we increase our chances to head to the road of success.