The Role of Spirituality in Optimizing Life

If you want to live your life to the fullest, there are five aspects of life that you need to balance: work, health, learning, social, and spiritual. Out of the five, here I’d like to take a closer look at the role of spirituality in optimizing life.

Spirituality plays an important role in our lives. In fact, I believe that it’s the most important aspect of the five. It’s the foundation upon which all the other aspects are built.

There are at least four reasons why spirituality is important:

1. It Gives You Meaning

You can only live a full life if you find meaning in what you do. Spirituality helps you find that meaning. Why? Because spirituality helps you see the big picture. It helps you see things beyond yourself.

Instead of just living for yourself, now you live for something bigger. You find your place in the world and do things with a sense of purpose.

2. It Gives You Hope

Like it or not, there are times when we have to go through difficult times. Spirituality gives you hope in such a time. That’s because spirituality builds your faith. You know that you are not alone. You believe that Someone is in control. This belief gives you the strength to keep going.

3. It Gives You Inner Peace

Spirituality gives you peace in your heart. Even in challenging situations, you can find comfort and calmness. Now you can face your challenges with a clear mind.

4. It Balances Your Life

Spirituality teaches that many things in this world are temporary. Money and fame, for instance, wouldn’t last. Instead, there are things that are more valuable in the long term such as your family and relationships. This perspective will help you live a balanced life.

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As you can see, spirituality is important: it helps you live a meaningful life, it gives you hope, it gives you inner peace, and it helps you live a balanced life. For these reasons, I believe that building your spirituality should become a priority.

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June 9th

And O there are days in this life, worth life and worth death.

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25 Ways to Win Over Your Depression Thoughts for Good

You’re reading 25 Ways to Win Over Your Depression Thoughts for Good, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’re enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.

25 ways to win over your depression thoughts for good

Sometimes the simplest things become the hardest things when dealing with depression.

Dressing up and going out for a simple coffee with friends becomes an obligation and being alone and in bed is the most comforting place to be.

Depression sucks and is a very mean devil that needs to be dealt with by you and only you!

Because if you don’t, it will drag you down into this seemingly endless black tunnel where hope is nowhere to be found and seeing the light at the end of the tunnel is non-existing, sounds familiar?

Keep reading.

Some people confuse depression with being unhappy. Yep! That was me.

However, depression is a clinical condition while unhappiness is simply a result of an unhappy relationship or a unfulfilling job. With depression, the activities you once found enjoyable lose their luster and the pursuit of happiness will never end.

One thing that I have always told my friends who went through depression is to be aware and not confuse it with being unhappy. It can become a very dangerous game for some if the confusion continues. If you feel that you shy away from what you love or what usually gives you energy then it’s time to examine deeper as to why you are feeling that way.

Remember this – everything in life is fixable if you have the will to turn things around, and depression is one of them.

To be honest it took me about a couple of years to win over the battle by forcing myself to dive into activities that are energetic and surrounding myself with the great supportive people who are understanding and sensitive to my needs.

If you are willing to follow the steps that I took to gradually banish depressing thoughts one day at a time. It will be a challenge but loving yourself means to find ways to pursuit an endless happiness in your life and those around you.

Below is a cheat sheet that shows 25 activities that will help you crush your depression thoughts once and for all.

However, whatever you do, do not give up half-way because learning how to keep going will help you overcome any obstacles that life will throw at you.

25 ways to win over your depression thoughts for good

You’ve read 25 Ways to Win Over Your Depression Thoughts for Good, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’ve enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.

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“The world is full of magical things patiently waiting for our…

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Brakhage: When Light Meets Life

To describe the thinking behind his films, Stan Brakhage often quoted a saying attributed to the ninth-century Irish theologian John Scotus Erigena: “All things that are, are light.” This is not a sensibility that would seem to lend itself to making home movies, and there is a disquieting tension in many of the films Brakhage made about his family during his first marriage.

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“A man who does good, but does not enjoy doing good, is not a…

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Spectacular Penthouse Located in Vienna, Austria Designed by FADD Architects

This penthouse has the extraordinary privilege of being located in one of the most beautiful neighborhoods in Vienna, the capital of Austria. Its renovation was undertaken by architectural firm FADD Architects in 2015. Thanks to their work, they managed to convert the large space into three apartments of 190, 170, and 90 meters squared, as well as two comfortable and furnished terraces with a pool for the residents. In its..

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Oceans are vital to wildlife and our planet. Containing 99…

Oceans are vital to wildlife and our planet. Containing 99 percent of the living space on earth, oceans are vast habitats for an impressive array of life. To celebrate World Ocean Day, we’re sharing this remarkable picture of bioluminescent plankton near Haystack Rock at Oregon Coast National Wildlife Refuge. From moments like this to surfing, sailing, fishing and diving, oceans are essential to our lives, economy and natural understanding. Photo courtesy of Jeff Berkes.

Choosing The Perfect Handmade Diamond Ring For Your Engagement

Knowing how to choose an engagement ring is tricky and buying it is quite a challenging task. You would not like to go wrong on any count since it has a lot of emotional significance. It is a symbol of your deep love, dedication and bond with your life-partner-to-be.

Before stepping out to buy the best engagement ring ever, you must have a crystal clear idea of exactly what you are looking for. As a guide, here’s how to choose an engagement ring.

Determine Your Budget

You need to consider several important factors when buying an engagement ring. One of these factors is your financial capability. As much as possible, do not go overboard.

Apart from that, you should also choose the ring style that will perfectly complement your partner’s personality and lifestyle.

Start by Browsing the Web

You could browse the Internet and go through the latest collections online to draw some inspiration. This way, you could visualize the ring style and diamond shape that’s just right for you before getting your diamond ring customized.

By going through an extensive collection online, you’ll be able to find out if you are attracted to square or round shaped diamonds. You can check out multiple stone settings, contemporary designs or vintage ones. You could choose from a stunning collection of handmade rings that are designed to perfection.

Look for Real-Life Inspiration

You could solicit advice from your friends and family. You could draw inspirations from utter strangers, too. Many of them would be happy to let you try out their rings. This could be a great way to start your engagement ring shopping.

Check Out the 4 Cs for the Best Diamond

If you want to know how to choose an engagement ring, you must learn how to check the clarity, cut, color and carat of the diamond.

The cut of a diamond determines its brilliance. A diamond with a better cut would dazzle more. If your diamond seems to be more colorless, it would imply higher quality grade. Color grade depends on the actual lack of color.

Almost all diamonds are known to have some imperfections. Diamonds that have negligible or no imperfections are given the highest clarity grades. Carat, on the other hand, refers to the real measure of a diamond’s exact weight. It is, however, not the only factor that determines the brilliance and value of a diamond.

Keep these 4Cs in mind while choosing the diamond for your engagement ring. Examining the certification is important, too, so buy a certified diamond.

Choose the Right Shape

The shape refers to the form of a diamond from the top view. Rather than the cut, it identifies the genuine geometry, edges and features of the stone. You could get a diamond that has a round, emerald, princess, square, pear, oval or heart shape.

Choose the Best Metal

There are endless metal options. You could choose from the usual yellow gold or the popular rose gold. You could also get your ring made with a platinum, silver or palladium metal.

Choose a metal as per your own personal preference. If most of your ornaments are made from yellow gold, you could stick with the same material. If you are more used to silver accessories, you could opt for platinum.

Choose a metal that looks great on your specific skin tone. With regards to the band, you have an assortment of metals to pick from. One prominent decision is platinum as it’s strong and particularly immaculate. It makes a great decision for ladies and grooms with delicate skin.

There’s gold, too. It typically comes in an assortment hues, including white, yellow and even green. Past platinum and gold, you may likewise consider palladium, which has a grayer shade than platinum. You can also consider a reused metal band, which may incorporate a blend of platinum and gold.

Conclusion

Apart from your personal preferences and unique specifications, you also need to make sure about the ring’s size. It needs to fit your finger snugly and comfortably. Choose a perfect fit so that you could flaunt your engagement ring all your life.

The post Choosing The Perfect Handmade Diamond Ring For Your Engagement appeared first on Dumb Little Man.

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Beautiful Villa Located in Hanko, Finland Designed by Mer Arkkitehdit

This beautiful villa is located in Hanko, a bilingual port town and municipality on the southern coast of Finland. It was designed by architectural firm Mer Arkkitehdit in 2016 and has a total area of 210 meters squared. The villa appears to emerge from the rocks with a unique style, not only in the exterior of the building but also inside, where we can observe the spectacular landscape that surrounds..

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