Personal Freedom Begins in Your Mind

You might be surprised to learn that the biggest obstacle to your personal freedom is right between your ears. A negative mindset is the biggest block to freedom. 

 

There are so many parts of your life you cannot control, from the need to earn a living to finding true love. But you can control your mindset, your thoughts, and how you act in the world. So how can you overcome your psychological blocks and open your mind to achieve greater freedom?

 

1.    Change the record

 

Everyone has a constant inner monologue; what psychologists call self-talk. And most of the time, yours is probably set to negative. Any messages you get in childhood about being bad, hopeless or selfish or stupid all get absorbed in your malleable child’s brain and resurface in adulthood as your Inner Critic. 

 

The good news is that you can reprogram your Inner Critic and turn it into an Inner Coach. 

 

Make a list of all the negative things your Inner Critic says. Be alert for phrases that start ‘you always or ‘you never.’ Watch out for ‘shoulds’ too. Then take each negative message and turn into a positive one. 

 

Change your self-talk broken record to a new track full of encouragement and positivity. 

 

2.    Change your expectations

 

Studies have shown that the most significant contributors to success or failure are your expectations. Happy people expect things to go well and mistakes or problems do not crush them, they see them only as temporary setbacks. Conversely, if the expectation is to fail any issue will confirm the expectations, and you won’t try again. 

 

Expecting things to work out is not wishful thinking; it is choosing to be positive no matter what the circumstances. 

 

3.    Change your focus

 

Modern society trains us to be dissatisfied with what we have now and constantly strive for bigger, better and shiner. You can choose to step outside of this and be grateful for what you have right now. 

 

Developing a habit of gratitude frees you from this pressure and affects the structure of your brain. Studies show that the more you feel grateful, the more resilient you become in the face of life’s ups and downs. You feel happier with what you have and more open to receiving. Even better, you rewire the neural pathways in your brain so that your mindset defaults to positivity. You start to see the good things before you notice the bad. Over time, you perceive life as positive, and your expectations change. You free yourself from the burden of negativity!

 

Tips for Reclaiming your Personal Freedom Today

Have you ever woken up and wondered how you ended up with this life of yours? Do you feel stuck in the rut of the same routine day after day, week after week, year in, year out? Maybe you feel trapped by obligations, by debt, by other people’s expectations. 

 

If you want to get off the hamster wheel, you can! Here are five tips for reclaiming your personal freedom today. 

 

1.    Stop beating yourself up

 

Feeling dissatisfied is hard-wired into us as humans. If humans as a species were content with the status quo, we would have died out long ago. It’s in our genes to keep adapting and overcoming challenges. So, don’t blame yourself if that dissatisfaction comes out in a modern human being as wanting to go out and spend! On the other hand, thinking and strategizing also kept us going on the evolutionary path, so you can outsmart those spending impulses or give into them – your choice.  

 

2.    Stop comparing your life with others

 

It used to be called keeping up with the Joneses. Now it’s looking at other people’s seemingly perfect lives on social media. Everyone shows the best possible version of themselves to the world. No one takes selfies of their failures, their bad hair days, their overdrawn bank account. 

 

Free yourself from comparison by stepping out of the competition and focus on living your life your way.

 

3.    Appreciate what you have

 

Discontent feeds on wanting something different. Take a look around you and count five things you’re grateful for in your life right now. Then five more. Once you start, you’ll find dozens of things in your life that are wonderful and life-affirming.

 

To be happy with what you have in the present sets you up to receive even more in the future.

 

4.    Be a more conscious spender

 

It’s easy to fritter your money away on things that don’t make you happy or help you meet your goals. Before you buy anything, take a moment to consider why you want it. Do you need it? How will it improve your life? Is it worth the money? Are you spending to meet an emotional need?

 

Test your purchasing against these questions before you hand over your cash. 

 

5.    Live your best life

 

Do you find yourself envying other people, or wishing things were different? Take action! If you want to live a more authentic life, go ahead and do it. 

 

Work out what you want, make a plan and give it your best shot. 

 

7 Ways to Turn Worry into Excitement about Getting Things Done

Everybody worries sometimes. Right now, you’ve probably even got a few worries on your mind. You might be thinking about a relationship or a situation at work, causing you trouble. Maybe you’re worried about your health or whether or not you’re going to have enough money to pay the bills at the end of the month. Whatever the case, worry happens whether we intend for it to or not. This becomes a problem, though, when worry starts to take over your life. 

 

So, what is the goal? Is stopping worrying enough to put you on an even keel, or are you hoping for something…more? What if, instead of worrying, you could become excited, then use this excitement to get more done?

 

Let’s look at seven ways to achieve this:

 

Be Here Now

 

Worry has a way of trapping you anywhere but here. Either you’re worried about something which happened long ago, or you’re caught up in fretting about something still to come.  Neither is going to get you anywhere. To stop worrying, you need to focus on the present. What interests you right now?

 

Realize This Gets You Nowhere Fast

 

Worrying stops you cold. In fact, most procrastination is caused by worrying. With this in mind, why are you wasting your time and energy on worrying? Sometimes just recognizing what a waste worry is, will be enough to derail it altogether. Especially when you have better places to be.

 

Throw Yourself into Something Interesting

 

Worry needs your attention to survive. Get busy doing something engaging to your mind, and you’ll find you forget all about worrying.

 

Rewrite the Script

 

If you’re seeing everything blow up around you, maybe you should try focusing on the perceived disaster. Ask yourself how you could do things to handle the situation were it to happen. Once you have it, practice the scenario in your mind. Picture yourself handling matters.

 

Practice

 

Worried about something you need to do later? Having a dress rehearsal in your head will make things go smoother and keep worry at bay entirely.

 

Ask

 

Challenge your worry. Dig in and get to the roots until you understand your worry intimately. Ask yourself where the negativity came from. Peel back the layers until you get down into the heart of the matter.

 

Try a New Path

 

In the end, worry can become very attached to the familiar. Challenge yourself. Find a different way to do things. Explore where this path takes you.

 

The main point in all of these is to enjoy the journey. This is where you find the excitement and enthusiasm, which leads to getting things done. The rest is all momentum and a whole lot of brand-new accomplishments just waiting to happen.

 

6 Life-Changing Habits to Harness the Power of Momentum

Habits. We all have them. Some are good. Probably a few are harmful. We forget to floss every day, but we’re great at brushing our teeth in the first place. We’re drinking plenty of water, but not getting to the gym. We’re learning to say ‘no’ at work, but we’re really falling down flat when it comes to networking. Why are habits so quick to push you into affirmative action and then equally fast (if not faster) at derailing you completely?

 

When you’re trying to accomplish something new, what we need is momentum. Momentum is the fuel in the engine driving change. Momentum is what keeps you going when you’d rather quit and go home. 

 

So now combine habits and momentum. Imagine a series of habits, good ones, designed to help you reach your ultimate goals. Put the momentum behind those habits. Now, what do you see?

 

Pretty exciting stuff, huh? Let’s put it into practice with this series of Life-Changing Habits designed solely to harness the power of momentum:

 

Do Things Now

 

When you continuously jump in and get the next task done instead of putting it off, you keep the momentum going without allowing for a drop in speed. On the other hand, procrastination will cause everything to grind to a halt.

 

Break Down Tasks

 

To avoid overwhelm and allow momentum to build, break down big tasks into smaller ones, spread out over time. The second momentum flags look at what you’re trying to do, as it might be time to break things down again. 

 

Give Time Value

 

The biggest mistake people make is to say yes to everything. While this practice might help someone else’s momentum, it absolutely kills yours. Start putting a value on your time. Say ‘no’ to projects that don’t support your momentum. 

 

Delegate

 

Some things aren’t even worth doing. Momentum is quickly lost when you’re stuck in the day-to-day. Why not keep working on what you need to realize your goals? To do this, give simple tasks to others to do. Do this often.

 

Do the Work

 

Shortcuts never fail to slow you down. Rather than fall for an unexpected detour, simply do the work every single day. That’s it. You’re not going to make progress any other way.

 

Don’t Get Comfortable

 

Complacency is the end of momentum. The moment things get comfortable, stuff stops happening. Constantly look for new challenges. 

 

Above all, take action! Make doing stuff your first and foremost habit. Nothing in your life is going to change if you’re standing still. Momentum starts with you!

 

3 Strategies Sure to Help You Overcome Procrastination and Gain Momentum

Everyone has put off something important. It’s normal. It’s human. And it’s everywhere. We put off our boss, we put off our family, we even put off the things we ought to be doing to take care of ourselves. Procrastination has been called the thief of time, but it’s much more damaging than that. Procrastinating kills forward momentum, keeping you from accomplishing the things you set out to do.

 

If you, like many others, are prone to procrastination, read on to find out three surefire strategies designed to help you overcome procrastination. Soon you’ll be gaining momentum again right where you need it most: on the path to your dreams.

 

Eat the Elephant

 

The story goes how a decree went out over the kingdom. The challenge was simple, great wealth and prestige to the person who could eat an elephant. Many looked at the challenge and scoffed at it. “Impossible,” they said. One small voice spoke up, a child. “It’s simple. You do it one bite at a time.” The same holds true in your life. Big tasks? No problem. Break them up into smaller and smaller tasks. Once you have those, get to work. Eat that elephant, one bite at a time. Believe it or not, you’re going to find out it gets a lot easier as you go along. Bon Appetit! 

 

Master the To-Do List

 

Got a long list of things to do? It’s easy to stall out when everything looks difficult and even impossible. The trick here is to get in motion with some real success to start you right. Pick the three easiest things on your list. Then sit down and push through, accomplishing them one at a time. Be sure to cross them off the list when you finish. Accomplishment feels so good and creates a momentum all its own.

 

Timing is Everything

 

Bigger tasks getting you down? If you can’t break them up, try grabbing a timer. Set it for no more than 15-20 minutes and see what you can get done. Break, stretch, then get back to it. Make a game out of it if you want, seeing how much more you can get done the next time around. You’ll be surprised at how quickly things get moving again. 

 

The thing to remember is what you’re trying to do is push yourself into motion. Once you begin to build momentum, it will take on a life of its own and you’ll find it easier and easier to keep going. That’s the beauty of it. So whichever tactic you pick, realize you might need to grit your teeth and dig in initially. In the end? You’ll be glad you did.

 

5 Ideas of What to Include in a Gratitude Journal

There are many reasons to keep a Gratitude Journal. Whether you're on a healing journey or want to add thankfulness to your day to live a freer, more contented life, writing down your thoughts is a powerful tool. This is why Gratitude Journals are so popular.

 

If you've ever wanted to get started writing a Gratitude Journal but are stuck for ideas of what to write about, try these ideas out. You'll have plenty to write about in no time!

 

Enjoy the Details

 

It's easy to write about how much you're thankful for your home or best friend. The problem? You'll quickly run out of material or be stuck repeating yourself if you list the same people daily. Instead of talking about the people or things in your life you're grateful for, dig down into the details about what exactly you love about them. For example, maybe you love how your best friend sat up with you all night when you needed someone to talk to. 

 

Get Into the Moment

 

Take a minute to center yourself. By using mindfulness or meditation to pause and empty your mind of thoughts, you start paying attention to where you are right now emotionally, physically, or even spiritually. Once you're relaxed, let your mind drift where it will. Look for things to be thankful for. For example, you might hear the sound of wind chimes outside or smell dinner in the over, which are both things to be grateful for. Write about these things.

 

Ask Why

 

If you already have a grateful thought, try digging down a little to find out what about this makes you feel so much gratitude. Ask why you feel this way, and keep asking why until you find the root. For example, you might be writing about how you're grateful for chocolate chip cookies and discover you love them because your grandmother always made them for you. Express your gratitude for these ‘buried treasures.’

 

Change Directions

 

If you've been writing about the same things every day, look for ways to discover gratitude in other areas of your life. Maybe you've been focusing on family for a while. If so, try turning toward work, past experiences, or nature for new inspiration.

 

Do Something Else

 

If the thoughts aren’t coming, give yourself a break. This isn’t a race. Walk away and do something else for a bit, such as emptying the dishwasher. Let your mind drift through this activity. What about this job can you be grateful for (clean dishes? The time you shared with your family cleaning up the kitchen together after dinner last night? The meal you’re going to eat next on these dishes?) Come back and write about these things.

 

It's sometimes surprising to see just how much there is to be grateful for, isn't it? The best part? The more you journal your gratitude, the more your own attitude will shift to one of compassion and kindness. Truly, a grateful heart is a happy one! 

 

Reasons Why You Should Keep a Gratitude Journal

Spending just fifteen minutes a day writing in your gratitude journal can do amazing things in your life! Scientific studies have proven that showing gratitude on a consistent basis makes people happier and healthier. One of the best ways to get into the habit of cultivating gratitude is by keeping a journal. Here’s a short list of how a gratitude journal can change your life for the better:

 

Achievement 

 

A gratitude journal will help you note those simple things you achieve. You'll also be aware of both big and little things in life that you have to be thankful for by recording in your journal.

 

Happiness 

 

A gratitude journal keeps you happy because it keeps you focused on the good things that exist in your daily life.  Once you start a gratitude journal, you are “on the lookout” for good things—both big and small. Imagine what your life would be like if you focused on the positive instead of negative! 

 

Good health 

 

Dis-ease is negative energy that has been stored up from your negative beliefs and memories. You can quickly counteract dis-ease by concentrating on the good in your life over the bad.

 

Earn more respect 

 

Keeping a gratitude journal gives you the chance to understand the values of life. It makes you approach things in a more organized way thereby improving your level of respect and confidence among friends and colleagues. 

 

Relationships 

 

Keeping a gratitude journal improves your relationships with people around you because you look for things about others to appreciate. It’s easy to find fault, but once you start showing appreciation for the people in your life, your relationships will grow.

 

Enhance sleeping 

 

People who keep gratitude journals tend to sleep better because they often reflect on their day before bed, which gives them a sense of calmness.

 

Less stress

 

Whether you’re living in a stressful situation or just thinking back to one, your body doesn’t know the difference. It will still fire off all of those stress hormones and create the same physical, mental and emotional tension, whether or not the event is currently happening. By focusing on the positive, you avoid the stress reaction.

 

Resiliency

 

You can think of gratitude as being a mental and emotional muscle that you can build with daily exercise. If stuff goes wrong in life and your gratitude muscle is weak, you’ll struggle to find a silver lining in those storm clouds. But if you already have an excellent daily gratitude habit, then your gratitude muscle will be resilient and well-trained, meaning life’s challenges don’t knock you off course as much.

 

How To Get The Most out of Gratitude Journaling

If you have recently started gratitude journaling, you may be wondering if you are getting the full benefits from your daily ritual. And this is something which you must decide for yourself, but there are several things you can do to get the most out of your journaling. Below are some simple ways to receive the maximum benefits from your journaling practice. 

 

Try Different Formats

 

When most people think of journaling, they think of writing letters to themselves or simply writing sentences about their feelings. But this isn’t the only format you can journal in, and the truth is, it may not be the most effective for you. Consider changing up your journaling format, or better yet, employing more than one format in your journaling. This will make sure you are getting the most out of your journaling time. Other formats when it comes to gratitude journaling can be lists, diagrams, or tables. 

 

Write Yourself Compliments

 

In gratitude journaling, people tend to write about all the things or people they are grateful for in their lives. And there is nothing wrong with this, just make sure you don’t forget to be thankful for the most important person, yourself! It’s best practice to write a few things you like about yourself each day as you journal. This way, you can reflect on how your day went and watch your transformation as you become a better version of yourself.  

 

Don’t Forget The Lessons

 

No one’s life is perfect, and when gratitude journaling, you may find that sometimes you have days where you make significant mistakes that you are embarrassed by. And this is okay, and even something you should be thankful for! Instead of approaching your mistakes as setbacks instead, include them in your gratitude journaling as lessons and approach them with an open mind and be grateful for the lesson you have had the opportunity to learn. This will help keep you from making the same mistakes again. 

 

Wherever you may be in your gratitude journaling journey, you are most certainly benefiting from the practice. But if you want to make sure you are getting the most from it, try playing around with the format a bit, don’t forget to compliment yourself, and don’t be afraid to approach your mistakes. After all, your gratitude journal is a safe space for you to express everything you are grateful for without any outside judgment.  

5 Benefits of Daily Optimism

There is increasing evidence that being optimistic about life has measurable benefits, not just for your mental health, but your physical well-being too. Scientific studies have shown that as you become more optimistic, your life will improve in all sorts of ways. You’re even likely to have a longer life, just from being more hopeful and positive. 

Among the many benefits of being optimistic are:

 

1.    Optimists are healthier

 

Optimists not only rate their own health and wellbeing as better, but studies have also shown that optimists have better mental and physical health than pessimists. In a study of the effects of positive psychological well-being, optimism was found to be the biggest predictor of improved heart health. Optimists also have lower blood pressure and cholesterol and a lower risk of developing heart disease.

 

2.    Optimists live longer

 

A study by the University of Pittsburgh found that of the 100,000 women studied over eight years, optimists were less likely to die from any cause than women with a more pessimistic outlook.  That was confirmed by a later Harvard study that showed the women who had a positive outlook had a much lower risk (nearly 30% less) of dying from serious illnesses. 

 

3.    Optimists are happier

 

It might seem obvious that an optimist would be happier than a pessimist. But it has been shown that optimists are not just sunnier in their dispositions, but they are measurably happier in their relationships, jobs, and life in general. They deal better with stress, are more resilient in bad times, and produce less cortisol, the stress hormone that leads to inflammation and a lowered immune system.

 

4.    Optimists have smoother career paths

 

Researchers from Duke University found that the optimistic MBA graduates they studied were more likely to find a job, earn a higher starting salary, and have more frequent promotions than the pessimists in the group. Optimists also deal better with negative feedback, seeing it as an opportunity to improve and increase their chance of promotion in the future. 

 

5.    Optimists roll with the punches

 

Life’s adversities do not crush an optimist; they remain hopeful about the future. Optimism helps you deal with whatever limiting beliefs you have developed and shows you a way out. Being positive about life’s possibilities means you focus on what you can do. It boosts your confidence and makes you more likely to look for constructive solutions. It stops you feeling stuck or at the mercy of other people. If you’re optimistic, you know you can do it!

 

6 Ways to Cultivate Optimism Each Day

You might be surprised to hear that optimism is not an innate quality. Optimism and pessimism are ways of looking at yourself and the world through a positive or negative filter. Once you think of them as reflections of your mindset, it becomes much easier to believe you can change. Like any new behavior, you need to practice every day for it to become a habit. Try these six suggestions to cultivate your optimism every day. 

 

1.    Keep a journal

 

Journaling or keeping a diary allows you to process events and to get a different perspective on them. It encourages self-reflection and captures insights into your thinking and behavior. You can write down what happened during your day and document, not just the bald facts but how you did it, what you did to make it happen and what you did right. And, importantly, how it felt while you were doing it. Don’t just record the good things (a promotion, a presentation or meeting that went well), remember to write down the thing that didn’t go so well and reflect on what happened, how you dealt with it, and what you might do differently next time. 

 

2.    Laugh

 

Consciously notice the funny side of things and write them down. If the technology didn’t work, and you had to give the presentation without the slide deck, or the power went out, or there was a fire drill in the middle of your crucial meeting. What can seem like a disaster at the time can also be looked back on as a comedy of errors.

 

3.    Write to your future 

 

Write a letter or a journal entry that sets out the future you want. What job are you doing? Are you running your own business? What have you learned? What has changed? Imagining how your future life looks and feels can be a powerful motivator.

 

4.    Keep a kindness list

 

Have a page in your journal where you note down kind gestures. Write down when you are kind to someone, or when someone is kind to you. Even little things count, like opening a door for someone or letting them go first in the line for coffee. You’ll be surprised at how quickly they mount up, and your ever-lengthening list will give you a different perspective on things.

 

5.    Say thank you

 

Write a letter or email, phone or visit someone (a person outside your family) who has been genuinely kind to you. Tell them how much you appreciate what they did or said and how it has affected your life. 

 

6.    Choose positivity

 

Make the positive choice to develop and maintain an optimistic outlook. Do this every morning when you wake up. Decide that today is going to be a great day. Everyone will have some level of suffering in their life. Choosing to be optimistic will make it easier to bounce back from the bad times and to enjoy and be certain of the good times.