About 39 percent of world’s population was overweight in 2014. The percentage trend is steadily increasing.

It is bad.

When I was younger, I used to eat lots of food and still stay lean. I thought it might be my genetics or the metabolism was fast. I used to enjoy all the foods I loved and everyone was jealous of me.

Naturally, I grew in life. My height and weight too. At one point, my height stopped growing, my metabolism dropped due to less physical activities.

One thing remained with me – the eating habit. It was tough for me to stop that. I kept eating too much. People used to literally call me to eat if they had more food during festivals.

The belief was – Rohan could eat any amounts of food. My proud eating moment was going to come to an end. And my belly become big and I was fat.

We hate our belly becoming big. We start to wear loose clothes and blame it on genetics. It is easy to do that way. The last time you checked your weight – you probably promised to do something about it and yet you did nothing.

Let’s find out what we can do…

Laziness in Exercise

Studies suggest we tend to less prioritize our health over other things like office work, kids responsibilities and other chores.
We have equal times – you, me and Dwayne Johnson. We all work, have kids, have doctor’s appointments and many other stuffs.

You have to make a way for your health. Ignore it and then at old age, you will regret your decision. Start now, start small and you will benefit for lifetime.

The Reveal

Studies suggest intake of sugar’s over long term is linked to weight gain. And we love our Starbuck’s coffee, Mcdonald’s coffee and dunkin donuts.

Most of us eat them at the breakfast. We are doing ourselves more harm than good.

You may argue – it is guilty pleasure. We all need to enjoy good food.

You can – if you do exercise to control your body weight.

Most of us ignore doing daily exercise or do it at less frequency. The result being – we keep on taking sugar and its products, our weight keeps on increasing and we keep on complaining.

Diet Versus Exercise

We need to lose weight.

The best way to do this is by using the combination of diet and exercise. 80 percent of the results comes from dieting and 20 percent from exercise.

Exercise should be used with an intent to grow strong and develop muscle.

Dieting should be used to eat less fats, sugar and increase protein intake. This will help you in lowering your waist size and grow healthier over time.

Dieting Debunked

Dieting doesn’t mean eating less foods. It means eating foods with less calories and carbohydrates. You need to target foods like soya bean, egg white and water-melon.

Each one of us has a different daily schedule. You shouldn’t expect to lose weight by doing exact same things your friend did. Results vary, diet vary and exercise vary too.

When you move above the competition spirit, you go into self-discovery mode, you grow.

Exercise Debunked

We have high expectations, we love to try for the greater things.

This attitude is nice, it might land you success in different fields of life. This won’t work in fitness though.

Sorry to break your heart. The best tip in exercise is to start small and have the bare minimum expectations. For example, start by doing 5 pushups daily and your expectation should be to do it 5 consecutive days.

You move ahead from there and set little higher goals and exercise module. This keeps on repeating forever.

Only You

Yes, you want to lose that weight, gain weight or get bulky – you can do it.

The biggest barrier is starting. The second barrier is impatience. Start now, be patient and keep on working. Remember whether in weight gain or loss, your diet plays an important role.

Go to a dietician now and get your diet. Follow it religiously, you are bound to see results down the road. The only way you don’t get results – when you stop it in between.

Resolution doesn’t work. Motivation does – most of us need it daily though. Buy a fitness CD, share on facebook your fitness goals, stay committed and success will be yours.

Conclusion

Sugar intake has an impact. Control it from the beginning – or start now and reap rewards later.

Or maybe you can take control of your diet and be proud of your body. Next time your family goes to beach, you would roam topless with a smile on your face and satisfaction in your heart.

How else you can lose weight/gain weight? Tell me in comments.

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It’s not easy to like ourselves. Really it’s not. For some of us, it’s a lifelong self healing and self discovery journey through our past, well into our past, to heal our present to make sure our future is happy. Yes, it’s exhausting to say the least. Many of us still hang on to blame and failure from so many years ago. How on earth can we expect to like ourselves when we did some horrible things in the past?

Though the title says simple ways to learn to like yourself, this may be hard or easy depending on perspective and how badly you want to like yourself. It is hard for us to like anyone if we can’t even like ourselves. Here’s some simple ways to learn how to like yourself today.

1. Start with the person in the mirror.

When we look at ourselves in the mirror, many of us are quick to point out all our flaws first before we start appreciating our beauty. It’s time to reverse that. Find all the good and the beauty first, then see if you can even find flaws after that. Do this daily. Do this often.

2. Date night anyone?

Take yourself out. Where would you like to go? What’s your favourite park, restaurant, theatre, whatever?  Go out somewhere, just you, and let loose, be yourself, fall in love with yourself again and embrace life and the beauty of you.

3. Laugh at your mess ups.

We all have them and make up. It’s ok. It’s not the end of the world. Don’t beat yourself up too hard. Take the lesson that presented itself to you, see where you went wrong, shake it off and get back up again. You’re ok.

4. Congratulate everything you did right.

And I mean everything. for so me of us, just getting out of bed and getting dressed each day is hard to do. Pat yourself on the back f or doing that. That’s half the battle right there.

5. Let your hair down for once.

For one whole day, don’t worry about your hair or makeup or nails or what colour shoes or tie or anything you are going to wear. Just be yourself, do and wear whatever brings you joy and makes you laugh or giggle. Be free to be your self for just one day.

6. Write yourself a love letter.

Take one night, light some candles, put on some nice soft music and enjoy your company. Make some nice herbal tea or have a beverage. Get all cozy and romantic, with yourself and write yourself a nice love letter. Remind yourself of all the awesome things you are.

7. The past is done.

Time to say good bye to yesterday and hello to the new you. Who you were yesterday isn’t  the same person you are today. Remember that. You have grown, learned a lot and evolved into a much better person today then you were yesterday. Let yesterday go. It’s done now.

8. Love notes.

Leave them everywhere. Stick them on the bathroom mirror, on your nightstand, on the coffee maker and wherever else you will see them clearly. Write different fun and positive affirmations about yourself on each and every one of them and read them out loud.

9. Treat yourself to something nice.

A new journal, a bouquet of flowers, a new pair of shoes, anything, something. Do something nice for you. You deserve nice things and if you don’t have anyone special in your life to do them for you, do them for yourself. You are awesome.

10. Remind yourself of all the stuff you do really really well.

All the things that you might be known for in your family or with your coworkers. Maybe you have a great sense of humor or you make people feel good about themselves. Be proud of the awesomeness inside you.

In this competitive busy world, it’s so easy to want to compare ourselves to others and be jealous because we think everyone else is doing better than we are. Never mind them. It’s not about them, it’s about you. Life isn’t a competition and you are doing a brilliant job. Congratulate yourself.

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Don’t talk to strangers. Stay away from her/him. Don’t get too close to them. They could be mean or dangerous. Murderers or rapists even. We’ve heard this a million times growing up. We know, strangers are simply bad. Period. There was no room for giving anyone the benefit of the doubt back in the days. You just didn’t talk to strangers. The end.

Oh have times changed. We still enforce to our children not to talk to strangers, as we should be doing. The strangers today are even more dangerous than the strangers some 10 or even 25 years ago. As adults however, we know the dangers, we can almost sense them, and don’t feel the need to be so cautious in talking to strangers. As a matter of fact, it is strangers we find ourselves reaching out to more and more often as we get older. Here’s why you should be too.

1. You can be someone s smile for the day.

Some people we find ourselves talking to are actually alone and rarely have any conversation with anyone. They may be shy or introverts or people just stay away from them. You reaching out and talking to them may be the only conversation they have all day and it just might be darn good too!

2. Make a new friend.

Who doesn’t need or want one more friend? And this person could end up turning into your best friend in the world, or even your soul mate. You won’t know until you strike up a conversation.

3. Learn something new.

Maybe you have been planning a trip somewhere and you happen to run into a stranger in a coffee shop and start talking about your trip. Surprise! They spent two years there and have loads of information for you. How wonderful. They just saved you a ton of boring research and gave you cool tips and tricks you won’t find in books.

4. Save their life.

Did you know that quite a few suicides are actually prevented because a stranger reached out and talked someone off the ledge or talked them out of their sadness? Great stories of hope, love and heroism come from two strangers meeting. Be that hero for someone today.

5. Divine intervention.

Whether you believe it or not, sometimes when two strangers meet and talk, it clearly was supposed to happen. One has questions to something perplexing, the other has all the answers. Trust.

6. The missing link.

It could be you’ve been looking for a job and they need a helper or vice versa. They might need help studying and you are a tutor. It could be they’ve been looking for someone and you happen to know that person. Oh the possibilities are endless .

7. Cheer you up.

Often when we are cranky, sad or lonely, talking to strangers is a quick and easy way to get cheered up. They may have a funny story for us to make us laugh. On the other hand, they may have a very sad and tragic story for us that will simply remind us of how great our life is.

8. This could be it.

You may very well be standing in front of, and talking to, your life partner. You probably weren’t even looking, and neither were they but remember, it s when you least expect it and you aren’t looking is when it happens.

9. Wait, are you … ?

Do you have a long lost cousin, half brother, uncle or any other family member who you’ve been searching for? Or maybe a friend of yours does and this person fits the bill. That s how we find people. By talking to them and hearing their story.

10. Because love makes the world go round.

Reach out and talk to a homeless person today. They have the best stories and they are the ones who need company the most. They are lonely, mostly harmless, and just want to have company. Be that smile and hope for that person today.

Embrace people, spread love and be kind. That s how strangers become friends and the world becomes a more loving place.

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It’s strange isn’t it? You don’t know why everything goes wrong. Why you can’t live a happy life and build a successful business?

You saw people doing little and achieving great success and chances are you’re sick and tired of reading success stories. You’ve been dreaming about the day you’ll write your own.

But for you things aren’t working and you can’t determine what goes wrong. Perhaps the goddess of good luck has turned her back on you. You know things can’t keep going this way, one way or another something has to change. But how?

The following hacks will light fire under your ass and help you succeed.

1. Accept The Fact That Nobody Cares

Most time we wonder how could we prepare for life, questioning ourselves about what the outcome would be?

Will there be a place for rest? Will everything go as planned?

Famous Football Coach Bill Parcells was telling his story in an interview of how he experienced a similar dilemma. When he began his head coaching career, in his first season, Parcells’ team, the New York Giants, was hit by a wave of injuries. He worried incessantly about the impact of the injuries on his team’s success,  as it’s difficult enough to win with your best players, let alone with a bunch of substitutes. When his friend and mentor, Raiders owner, Al Davis called Parcells to check in, Parcells talked about his injuries issues.

Parcells: “Al, I am not sure how we can win without many of our best players, what should I do?”

Davis: “Bill, nobody cares, just coach your team.”

That might be the best advice ever. Because you see, nobody cares. When things are going wrong in your life or business, nobody cares; the media doesn’t care, even your mama doesn’t care. Nobody cares.

And they’re right not to care, because their sympathy for you won’t change the way things are.

Instead of using all mental energy to complain about your misery, it would be better to find that one seemingly impossible escape of your current mess. Spend zero time on what you could have done, and devote all your time on what you must do.

2. One Question You Should Ask Yourself

I’ve heard the same story hundreds of times. People are telling me they don’t understand why things are not going right the way they should. They don’t understand why everything they spend time and effort building is fading away.

Could there be anything they aren’t doing?

If you ever felt this way, you’re not alone. After all, it couldn’t go wrong for nothing, right? You might spend a lot of time viewing, evaluating, and improving all of things that you do. But, here’s the deal. The things you’re not doing are the things you should  focus on.

Note to self: it’s a good idea to ask “ What Am I Not Doing?”

3. Eliminate The Positivity Delusion

There are lots of people teaching that being positive is all you need. They tell you not to worry, things will be alright, it’s just a matter of time.

Now, I don’t mean that being positive is not a good idea or that you should spend the whole day feeling sad and full of regrets.

But the truth is: it’s dangerous to focus only on the positive and ignore the negative, to stay on high spirits and handle all the bad news alone. We know that the world isn’t as rosy as some of us are thinking it is, that reality has many nuances.

Solution: Stand up to the pressure, face your fears, tell it as it is, share it with your coach and mentors.

4. Get Your Head Right

First, you must fight the tendency to concentrate on the past. This attitude will hold you back without a doubt. It’s difficult to focus on the future when the past overwhelms you, but that’s what you must do.

You have that voice in your head that tells you not to be silly, this won’t work , you’ve done it before and there’s no way to do it better. Well, I want you to stop encouraging that voice. You can create your way to an amazing future.

5. Be Visible And Present

Because it doesn’t work right now, you don’t feel like hanging out, or talking to anyone, you probably feel like going to a bar and taking a fifth of tequila. Don’t do this! Be present, be visible!

To find this unwavering belief in yourself, you have to adopt the mindset of the most influential people I know. Say this to yourself: I’ll have it now or I’ll die trying to acquire it, no matter how long it takes.

That’s the secret to believe in yourself, to be present, and it’s the mindset of the most powerful people on earth. Once you adopt this mindset, and you believe in it, you’ll become nearly unstoppable.

Success breeds success. Once you start experiencing the little wins everyday, you’ll be hooked. You’ll want more.

Start small. Pick a change that’s easy to implement, you’ll be making progress everyday and one day you’ll be finally living your dreams.

Start today and make things right.

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You’ve heard it all your life. Sally you are so antisocial. You’ve heard it so many times you almost started believing it. When you tell someone something repeatedly, they eventually do believe it and it becomes their reality. But you know better. You know you are not antisocial and have some clear reasons that explain you aren’t.

Anti social is defined as such: not sociable; not wanting the company of others; unsociable, unfriendly, withdrawn, reclusive. Well you already know that clearly isn’t you. Here are some reasons that prove you are definitely not antisocial.

1. You like getting out and visiting people.

You absolutely do love people and like to go visit friends and family and others. Just not all the time and preferably on your terms. When you are in the mood. It just might be rare is all.

2. You prefer the term outgoing introvert.

First of all, it sounds way better and secondly it describes you to a tee. You do like people and you like to go out but you get tired quickly by people and the environment. Your energy is short lived, the excitement wears o ff soon and before you know it, you are ready to go back home. You had fun, really you did.

3. How exciting.

The idea of going to a gala delights you. Getting all dressed up and going out on the town for one night is thrilling and exciting. The problem is, once you get there, you get a bit shy if you don’t know anyone. It’s best when you go with others.

4. You have your favourites.

There are just some people you simply can’t be bothered to be around. It could be their energy isn’t a good match with yours or you simply don’t like them. It doesn’t make you antisocial, it makes you selective about the company yo u choose to hang with.

5. You don’t fit in.

Sometimes there are people and places that you plain and simply do not fit in or belong with. Trying to blend in is a struggle and you find yourself pretending to be someone you’re not. You have no interest in being a phoney so you just stay home. It’s better that way, really.

6. When the time is right.

It does take quite a bit out of you to go out or visit people so you like to do it when you feel totally recharged and full of enthusiasm with regards to the visit. If you even think about going when you are tired, you will not be social and it will be a total waste of time and energy.

7. Let’s not go there.

Environment plays a huge role in whether or not you will go and be social or not. If the gatherings often are held at a place that drains your energy, chances are, you want to go there much. Many of us are affected by the energy of a space. It’s not being antisocial it’s being environmentally sensitive.

8. Facebook is cool.

When you aren’t going to parties or events pretending to be someone you’re not, you don’t mind hanging with your online friends from around the world that actually get you, understand you and have fun with you. That’s being social too.

9. Neighbours are nice to talk to.

You don’t run and hide when you see them in driveway. You like to talk to them and find out how little Johnny is doing in school and if Sally made the cheerleading team. You really do like talking to the people in your neighbourhood. They’re nice.

10. Your company is just as good.

You really do like hanging out wit h yourself, by yourself. You enjoy your company. It actually brings you great peace and joy. It’s not so much you don’t like going out as it is you love being at home alone with a tea and a good book or movie.

Just because we don’t want to go out and party and socialize all the time doesn’t mean we are antisocial. Some of us really are just good with hanging out at home alone and that’s perfectly fine too. We like people, we just maybe like ourselves more.

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You’ve been waiting for that apology for forever. Why can’t they just admit they were wrong and say sorry? Why does it always have to be this hard? It has never been hard for you to swallow your pride when necessary, admit to your error and say sorry. You just wish more people would be like you. Chances are, you may never hear them say I’m sorry.

Apologizing comes easy for some and not at all for others. For those of us who are quick to apologize we simply don’t get the ones who don’t and end up quite frustrated, annoyed and perhaps even slightly angered by the fact that they won’t. just say I’m sorry for goodness sakes. Why is it and how can it be so hard? Here are 6 reasons why you may never hear it and why you should just get used to it.

1. They’re not at fault.

Plain and simple. In their mind, they have done no wrong so why on earth should they apologize? You think and are pretty sure that they are at fault but they beg to differ. Don’t try arguing with them. Arguing with a fool only proves there are two. There is nothing you will ever be able to do about this. Let it go. Don’t waste your anger or energy on them. It’s not worth it and 9 times out of 10 it’s probably petty frivolous issues.

2. Pride and ego rule their world.

Many of us don’t like to say sorry. It means we are wrong and we know it. How can that be though? We’re never wrong. We are usually always right. They will want to think on this. Probably for so long that they secretly hope you have forgotten all about it by the time they realize that they were, in fact, wrong, and an apology is necessary. They just don’t want to say sorry.

3. Avoid it at all costs.

And because they don’t want to say sorry, they won’t. You or anyone else isn’ t going to bully them into an apology. It’s not how they are wired. Apologizing isn’t anything they ever had to do growing up either, and they aren’t about to start now as an adult. They will simply avoid the whole issue and pretend it doesn’t even exist. Most likely, as children, their parents made excuses constantly for their behaviour and they got away with every thing. They still do.

4. The floodgates have been opened.

Once they say sorry for one thing, suddenly all kinds of things are thrown on the table and more apologies will be expected from them. They prefer to leave the lid to Pandora’s box sealed tightly. Remember they aren’t in the habit of saying sorry and don’t want to have to start having all those remember when times thrown in their faces. They remember when but they would rather soon forget it and wish you would too. Let it be.

5. Emotionally void.

Saying sorry is showing pure and raw emotion. It means the person who is apologizing know what they did is wrong and they are terribly saddened by their actions and upset at themselves for hurting you. That is too many emotions for them to bear and show to you. They prefer to keep all that stuff bottled up. Showing emotion doesn’t come easy and it certainly won’t come through a form of an apology. Don’t hold your breath.

6. Actions speak louder than words.

For those who prefer to show you that they are sorry rather than say it, they will bring you gifts or show you more love or whatever they have in their toolbox for fixing broken hearts. They get what they did was wrong but they prefer to show you how sorry they are rather than say it. Some find this is a grander gesture and also slightly more romantic. To them, words mean nothing. When they are done adoring yo u, you will have no doubt they were sorry.

Saying sorry is genuinely hard for many people. Some may never say it. Others say it all the time. I’m a firm believer of the last point on here. Actions really do speak louder than words but if you clearly know what you did was wrong and it was really bad, just say sorry. The other person really does deserve an apology.

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Life is a funny thing isn’t it. Some people think life is hard, others think life is full of joy and easy. How can there be such a vast difference between two groups? Why is it that some say life really is hard, and how could it be that others think life is beautiful and easy and breezy? I think it all really boils down to perspective. Too many forget that we only have one life. This is it. The show is on. Are you still in rehearsal mode or are you living?

Life can be pretty scary too. There are big decisions to make almost on a daily basis and we really would much rather prefer someone else make those decisions for us. Here’s some other truths about life you really should know before you go passing over the reigns to someone else.

1. Your problems, you fix them.

Stop looking at others to fix your problems or your messes. You made them, you know how they started, you fix them and clean them up. No one has the answers for you, no matter how many people you ask. And no one knows what is the best fix for you or what is right for you. Only you do. Don’t wait for that magical person to fix your problems. That person is you.

2. Life is not hard. Life is not easy.

It’s perspective and how we view it. We are all dealt different hands. Some shittier than others. Some of us can make it through trials and difficulties, others of us might not be able to. Your attitude towards anything that happens to you in your life will set the stage for how you get on through life. You can have the why me attitude or the try me attitude. Either way, life is not hard or easy. It’s just life. You can make it hard or easy with the way you deal with things.

3. Tomorrow is not guaranteed.

Ever. Period. You’ve heard it a million times but you really need to let it sink in. We are all guilty of saying I’ll get to that tomorrow or one day we’ll do that or go there. There is no such thing as one day. Remove it from your vocabulary. It doesn’t exist. If you aren’t making plans to get to that one thing now, you will never do it. Go live life today, not tomorrow or one day. Do the things you’ve always wanted to do while you still can. You may not be able to do it tomorrow or, heaven forbid, you may not be here. Let’s not wait any longer.

4. You are here for ridiculous joy.

That’s all. You really are. You are here to love life and love what you do and the people around you and draw to you only the thin gs that bring you happiness and joy and pleasure. That is why you are here. You are not here to struggle or be miserable. If that is what is happening, you are drawing it to you, according to the universal law of attraction. You want joy, speak and feel only joy. You want misery, keep talking about sorrow, yesterday and misery. Watch what you speak. You are speaking your life into existence.

5. Help others.

Don’t be selfish. We are here as loving and helping beings on and nobody gets out alive. We are all here for the same thing. To live, laugh and love. All of us. Holding grudges or not helping your fellow man isn’t helping anyone, ever. The world is full of healers and lovers and world changers. We can all make a contribution to this. The more we help and love, the happier life and this world will be. Lend a helping hand, life is nicer that way.

This is it. One shot at life. It’s up to you to make it happy and beautiful, loving and whole or miserable and sad and full of angst and frustration. It’s all up to you. Your life, your decisions and your choices. Don’t expect happiness from people, places or things. It’s inside of you. Everything you need is already inside of you. Seek it.

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Contrary to what the contemporaries in Silicon Valley may have you believe, geography is not dead. Place matters. It matters now more than ever before. The expansion of digital technology has made our environment more, not less, relevant. Every day, corporations are paying large amounts of money for workshops designed to help their employees “think more creatively”. It’s a noble investment but one that will prove futile if the environment in which they work is not receptive to new ideas. The fact is creativity is always a response to our environment. It unfolds at the intersection of person and place. The success of Silicon Valley can’t be dwindled down to a replicable formula. It’s a culture. And if we want to cultivate creative cultures, we must begin by examining the characteristics of highly creative environments. Below I list 10 surprising characteristics of highly creative environments.

1. Creative environments celebrate risk.

For many corporations, this seems entirely counterintuitive. Think about it. We only hire applicants for jobs once we’ve determined that they’re the perfect fit. We only assign tasks to those who have already demonstrated that they can successfully perform them. We have a tendency to treat risk as something to be avoided at all costs, or at least reduced to a minimum. But the truth is, risk and creativity are inseparable. Creativity always comes at a price. Some people and places are simply more willing to pay that price than others.

2. Creative environments tolerate uncertainty and leave space for the unexpected.

Picasso was once asked if he knew what a painting was going to look like when he started it. He answered, “No, of course not. If I knew, I wouldn’t bother doing it.” Studies have found that the most creative environments have an especially high tolerance for uncertainty. You can tell a lot about a place by its relationship with surprise. Does it carve out space for the unexpected? Does it celebrate life’s small serendipities? Are miracles allowed?

3. Creative environments embrace failure and leave plenty of room for mistakes.

The idea that highly creative people get it “right” the first time and don’t make any mistakes is perhaps the greatest myth of creativity. In reality, creative people make more mistakes than the rest of us. This makes sense when we consider that the more shots we take at a target, the more likely we’ll eventually hit the bull’s eye (and the more misses we’ll accumulate, as well). Creative environments leave plenty of room for mistakes and they know how to fail. They keep failing until something works. They fail in a thoughtful and efficient manner. And perhaps most importantly, they fail early. Indeed, failure can be a wonderful learning experience as long as it’s in the aid of some continuing process.

4. Creative environments are chaotic.

For many of us, the word “chaos” has a false negative connotation. But chaos is actually the stuff that makes creative breakthroughs. Creativity craves chaos. The truly creative environment collaborates with chaos as a necessary source of stimulation. In fact, this is true for all of us. Our bodies and minds crave not only stimuli but complex and varied stimuli. It’s this sort of disorder that shakes up the status quo and provides the necessary room for a creative breakthrough.

5. Creative environments are diverse and interdisciplinary.

Creative breakthroughs are always the result of what psychologists call “mental cross-fertilization”. Highly creative environments intentionally bring people of different backgrounds and different experiences together. Much of creativity is about connecting the dots. Making connections where there previously were none. We collect dots in the company of others, but we connect the dots ourselves. An interdisciplinary, diverse environment inherently produces more dots and also different kinds of dots.

6. Creative environments are active.

Think of how many times you’ve had an epiphany while riding in the car, or on an airplane. Something about motion triggers creative thoughts. Darwin’s theory of evolution came together while he was riding in the back of a carriage. Mark Twain was notorious for pacing his study. Mozart always traveled with scraps of paper tucked into his side pocket. Creativity requires kinetic energy.  As the saying goes, “I have never heard of anyone stumbling upon something while sitting down.”

7. Creative environments are comprised of weak ties.

The phenomenon of weak ties was first recognized by sociologist Mark Granovetter. What we think of as weak ties (acquaintances, coworkers, ect.) are actually incredibly powerful when it comes to creativity. Not only are we more likely to learn something new from a weak tie but a weak tie is also more likely to come from a different background than our own. Strong ties (family, close friends, ect.) can make us feel good and often provide a sense of belonging, but they also constrict our worldview. A group with strong ties is much more likely to engage in “Groupthink” than one with weak ties. Highly creative environments are comprised of weak ties. They allow people to insert themselves into networks easily and extract themselves with equal ease. It’s not people’s attachment to the place but their lack of attachment that cultivates the most creativity.

8. Creative environments have high levels of trust and intimacy.

Despite being comprised of weak ties, creative environments display high levels of trust and intimacy. Intimacy always includes a degree of trust. When people feel safe, they’re more likely to share their original ideas and opinions. When they feel trusted, they’re more likely to act upon these. And when they feel valued, they’re more likely to continue to contribute in new, innovative ways. Today, the cities and companies that excel creatively are those where trust and intimacy are high.

9. Creative environments offer attentive, discerning audiences.

Creativity and the recognition of creativity are inseparable. You can’t have one without the other. Likewise, creative breakthroughs can’t occur without an audience. The audiences of highly creative environments are not mere spectators. They’re attentive and discerning. They egg each other on, pushing one another to ever-greater heights. A good audience is, in many ways, a co-creator. They disapprove and the creator improves.

10. Creative environments strike a balance of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.

“The Intrinsic Theory of Motivation,” developed by Teresa Amabile, states that, “People will be most creative when they feel motivated primarily by interest, enjoyment, satisfaction, and the challenge of the work itself- not by external pressure.” Many corporations are inadvertently suppressing creativity by placing the most emphasis on rewards or evaluation. But a certain degree of extrinsic motivation can be helpful. One study found that experienced musicians improvised more creatively when enticed with cash prizes and publicity. The conclusion seems to be that competition motivates experienced creators but inhibits inexperienced ones. Thus, a balance of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation is ideal for highly creative environments.

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First impressions and body language speaks volumes. Sometimes we don’t even realize what we’ve done or said until it’s too late and we can’t take it back. When was the last time you said something ridiculously stupid and wished you could erase your words the second they slipped out? You’re not the only one this has happened to. We are all guilty of the proverbial flub.

So what are some of the ones we don’t even realize we are making?

1. The limp handshake.

This one tops the list because as we know, a firm hand shake and looking right into someone’s eyes while doing it is a clear sign of trust, sincerity and shows you are caring and genuine. All the traits we seek in others. Give a limp handshake and you’ve lost the other person immediately. Pay attention. Don’t let this one slip, ever.

2. Looking away when talking.

People like you to look at them when you are having a conversation with them. Not through them or around them or behind them. They want your undivided attention. Don’t give it to them and they will instantly feel you are not interested in talking to them anymore. It clearly shows lack of interest.

3. Folding your arms across your chest.

That’s the back off or back away body gesture that keeps everyone at a distance. If this is not your intention, then make sure you become aware of it immediately and unfold your arms. It also gives off a bit of a smug attitude. Another trait no one likes.

4. Fidgeting.

This is a nervous gesture that shows anxiety, lack of self confidence, shows you are uncomfortable, worried or stressed. It’s also extremely distracting. Try to be aware of this. Maybe try putting your hands in your pockets instead. If you are suffering from extreme stress or anxiety you should definitely look into controlling or eliminating that.

5. Serious eye gazing.

Staring right into someone’s eyes while they are talking is ok but to do it in almost a maniacal manner is totally not ok. It makes people feel uncomfortable and actually is a sign of aggression. Relax your gaze. Staring deep into someone’s eyes and not breaking your gaze is something that should maybe only done with a partner in an intimate moment?

6. Nodding.

Nodding in approval is a good sign but when you start to look like a dashboard bobble head, then there’s a problem. It’s annoying. The person you are talking to gets that you understand and agree with a simple nod or two. Continually nodding shows weakness. A need and desire, almost an urgency to be liked so you nod endlessly.

7. Chewing gum.

Do it on your way to the event or party. Once yo u get there, spit it out. There is nothing worse then trying to listen to someone talk while they are chewing gum or worse yet, trying to talk to someone while they are chewing and snapping gum. Get it out of your mouth before you get there.

8. Animated gestures.

We get it. The fish was that big. Or the house was that wide. If you are an exaggerated animated gesture maker, people will do anything to stay away from you. It’s annoying and obnoxious. You can make smaller gestures, if you need to animate your story, and still get your point across. Try it.

9. Leg or toe tapping.

While sitting at in a chair or at a desk. You know the kind where the whole table shakes. This is probably nothing more than a simple little nervous habit you have had for as long as you can remember but it’s extremely annoying. Stop doing it.

10. Checking your watch all the time.

Are you in a hurry? Are you late for something? Do you need to go somewhere else? If you answered to no to all of these, stop checking your watch. It’s rude. People will think you have better things to do than spend time talking to them. Don’t wear a watch if you can help it.

These are just a handful of things we all do and don’t realize the impact they make on other people. pay attention to your body language next time you are talking to someone and see if you are guilty of doing any of the gestures on the list and then try to control them.

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We all have a certain degree of stress in our lives at any given time. Some of us stress over rather simple mindless things such as what to cook for dinner while others stress over major life decisions like when to leave your full time job and become self employed. Yes, stress comes in all shapes, sizes and forms. But how do we know if you have too much stress in our life?

Stress is something that can definitely be managed. There are many tips, tools and tricks available to help you get through and over stress but at what point do we realize that we actually need help? What’s considered a normal amount of stress and when has stress taken over our lives (yet we think we have control over it and pretend to function normally).

1. Trouble falling asleep.

Though this may seem almost common sense, it’s not. Many people will blame this on something they ate, or they aren’t tired enough, or perhaps it was that coffee at 8 pm. It very well could be a combination of any of these things, or other things, but the truth of the matter is, if this is a nightly problem, your stress level is too high. Plain and simple.

2. Snapping for nothing.

Are you finding, lately, that you are starting to snap back at people all the time, and it’s usually for nothing really. Just the sound of their voice or their opinions is now grinding on your last nerve, where it never did before, and you are snapping at them. This behaviour is actually surprising you too. This is stress. It’s taking its toll and playing a huge role in your mood swings. Which leads us to number 3.

3. Mood swings are out of control.

You’re happy, sad, angry, crying, laughing, snapping and quiet, all in the matter of one day. Stress has finally got the better of you. Oftentimes when we think we have it all under control, it will show up in our emotions or our moods. You aren’t experiencing all of these mood swings just because the moon is full. If this is a daily and common occurrence, then the bigger picture says it’s your stress.

4. Trying to control everything.

As stress takes over and clouds our focus and our lives, we try to control the things around us. That could be people, things, even your pet cat. We have no control over the things going on in our life and we can start to feel all our situations and dilemmas spiralling out of control. As we lose control of ourselves, we desperately grasp other things to control, and that always ends up being the things around us, especially people.

5. Physically ill.

You are calling in to work sick more often. Headaches and stomach troubles occur more frequently. Chest pains, low energy and other forms of physical illness seem to happen more and more, come from nowhere and appear to be totally unexplainable. Stress will take its form physically as well. As we lose control of our thoughts and our behaviour towards certain things that are happening in our lives, we suddenly become ill. All the pent up negativity and stress inside of you will come out as some sort of sickness.

Stress is not a fun thing to have to deal with and shouldn’t be taken lightly. Many people who have too much stress can be victims of high blood pressure, strokes, heart attacks and much more. When you start to feel that stress is taking over your life and you have any of these warning signs or others, it’s time to have a serious look at your life and see where some action needs to take place. your life is a precious gift and should be treated as such. Take care of you and get that stress under control, or better yet, tossed right out the window.

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