You’re reading How to Overcome the Feeling of Hopelessness, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’re enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.

Hope is a powerful thing; without it, we are lost.

Have you ever felt yourself wanting to give up? Maybe you’re feeling like you can’t get ahead or improve your relationships. Maybe you’ve been trying to lose weight for years and are ready to throw in the towel.

This is the perfect time to remind yourself that your fight isn’t over.

Here’s the thing about hope: It’s always available. Regardless of where you’ve been or where you want to go, it’s possible to regain a feeling of hope.

Here are some things to keep in mind when you’re trying to shake the feeling of hopelessness.

1. You haven’t tried everything.

This is a hard pill to swallow for some who have spent a lot of time and energy on their goals. You may have tried a lot, but you haven’t tried everything. Admitting this is the first step to shedding hopelessness. Where there are options, there is hope.

Try spending some quiet time thinking about your problem. Think of it from an outsider’s perspective to try to come up with creative solutions. If your problem is weight loss, maybe you try a drastically different diet plan that you ever have before. Do some research to support your new plan. Find studies or success stories that prove that it works for some people, and you’ll be more likely to believe it can work for you.

2. Plant a seed of doubt.

You may have landed in this hopeless place because of doubt. Maybe someone else doubted your abilities or maybe you doubt your own. Doubt can be nearly as powerful as hope, so you can use one to cancel out the other.

Plant the seed of doubt about whether you’re truly in a hopeless situation. Is there really nothing you can do?

The more you doubt your hopelessness, the easier it will be to find a way out.

3. Focus on what you have.

If you’re feeling hopeless about one area of your life, focus on another.

Hope breeds more hope in the way that despair breeds more despair. Focus on things that make you feel hopeful about the future, and you may be able to squeeze out those feelings of hopelessness before they seep into other areas of your life.

4. Take a leap.

If you can’t find hope no matter how hard you try, just jump in anyway.

Do something different, whether you believe it will help or not. Ask friends for suggestions or do something that has worked for someone else. It’s better if you believe, but doing something is still more productive than doing nothing. Whatever you try may work or it may not. Just keep trying until you find something that works.

5. Shift your focus.

Sometimes, we trick ourselves into thinking things are more important than they are. For example, when a relationship ends, you may have trouble learning to live without the other person. This isn’t because you can’t live without them. It’s because you’ve focused so hard on the difficulties of living without them that you cannot see anything else.

Try convincing yourself that the thing you’re feeling hopeless about, whether it’s a relationship or a job, doesn’t matter anymore.  It’s trivial in the grand scheme of things. Feeling hopeless about this job or relationship would be like giving up on eating for the rest of your life because you dropped a plate of food.

This may not work for every problem, but you’ll be surprised at how many problems a shift in focus can solve.

6. Live in the moment.

The practice of meditation tasks people with focusing on the present and letting go of the past and future. You don’t have to meditate, although you certainly can, but you should focus on your life right now.

Look at your surroundings and allow yourself to experience all that is happening in the moment. Where are your problems?

Unless you’re dealing with a health issue, your problems are likely in your head. This doesn’t mean they are imagined. It simply means that your thoughts are controlling your feelings.

This is a problem we all have, and it takes practice to correct.

Try consciously thinking about the present moment and all that is happening here. Do this whenever you begin feeling hopeless.

7. Ask for help.

When we get lost in our thoughts, it’s difficult to see any other way. Ask someone else what they would do in your situation.

People generally feel good about helping others, so whoever you ask is likely to give you a thoughtful answer. Think of it as a second opinion on the issue that’s making you feel down.

With fresh, new ideas on how to address your issue, you should begin to feel a glimmer of hope. The ideas may or may not work, but the important thing to remember is that there’s always another way.

If this way doesn’t work, ask someone else. Find another way.

We all feel hopeless from time to time, so it’s nothing to be ashamed about. However, if you’re feeling like hopelessness is overcoming your life, it’s time to get help. Talk to a counselor about how to overcome severe feelings of despair and hopelessness.

Trevor is a recovering addict & alcoholic whose been clean and sober for over 5 years. He currently works as a content writer for Coastal Detox. Since his recovery began he has enjoyed using his talent for words to help spread treatment resources and addiction awareness. In his free time, you can find him working with recovering addicts or outside enjoying about any type of fitness activity imaginable.

Photo credit: hiva sharifi

You’ve read How to Overcome the Feeling of Hopelessness, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’ve enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.

http://ift.tt/2hEOufL

You’re reading How to Overcome the Feeling of Hopelessness, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’re enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.

Hope is a powerful thing; without it, we are lost.

Have you ever felt yourself wanting to give up? Maybe you’re feeling like you can’t get ahead or improve your relationships. Maybe you’ve been trying to lose weight for years and are ready to throw in the towel.

This is the perfect time to remind yourself that your fight isn’t over.

Here’s the thing about hope: It’s always available. Regardless of where you’ve been or where you want to go, it’s possible to regain a feeling of hope.

Here are some things to keep in mind when you’re trying to shake the feeling of hopelessness.

1. You haven’t tried everything.

This is a hard pill to swallow for some who have spent a lot of time and energy on their goals. You may have tried a lot, but you haven’t tried everything. Admitting this is the first step to shedding hopelessness. Where there are options, there is hope.

Try spending some quiet time thinking about your problem. Think of it from an outsider’s perspective to try to come up with creative solutions. If your problem is weight loss, maybe you try a drastically different diet plan that you ever have before. Do some research to support your new plan. Find studies or success stories that prove that it works for some people, and you’ll be more likely to believe it can work for you.

2. Plant a seed of doubt.

You may have landed in this hopeless place because of doubt. Maybe someone else doubted your abilities or maybe you doubt your own. Doubt can be nearly as powerful as hope, so you can use one to cancel out the other.

Plant the seed of doubt about whether you’re truly in a hopeless situation. Is there really nothing you can do?

The more you doubt your hopelessness, the easier it will be to find a way out.

3. Focus on what you have.

If you’re feeling hopeless about one area of your life, focus on another.

Hope breeds more hope in the way that despair breeds more despair. Focus on things that make you feel hopeful about the future, and you may be able to squeeze out those feelings of hopelessness before they seep into other areas of your life.

4. Take a leap.

If you can’t find hope no matter how hard you try, just jump in anyway.

Do something different, whether you believe it will help or not. Ask friends for suggestions or do something that has worked for someone else. It’s better if you believe, but doing something is still more productive than doing nothing. Whatever you try may work or it may not. Just keep trying until you find something that works.

5. Shift your focus.

Sometimes, we trick ourselves into thinking things are more important than they are. For example, when a relationship ends, you may have trouble learning to live without the other person. This isn’t because you can’t live without them. It’s because you’ve focused so hard on the difficulties of living without them that you cannot see anything else.

Try convincing yourself that the thing you’re feeling hopeless about, whether it’s a relationship or a job, doesn’t matter anymore.  It’s trivial in the grand scheme of things. Feeling hopeless about this job or relationship would be like giving up on eating for the rest of your life because you dropped a plate of food.

This may not work for every problem, but you’ll be surprised at how many problems a shift in focus can solve.

6. Live in the moment.

The practice of meditation tasks people with focusing on the present and letting go of the past and future. You don’t have to meditate, although you certainly can, but you should focus on your life right now.

Look at your surroundings and allow yourself to experience all that is happening in the moment. Where are your problems?

Unless you’re dealing with a health issue, your problems are likely in your head. This doesn’t mean they are imagined. It simply means that your thoughts are controlling your feelings.

This is a problem we all have, and it takes practice to correct.

Try consciously thinking about the present moment and all that is happening here. Do this whenever you begin feeling hopeless.

7. Ask for help.

When we get lost in our thoughts, it’s difficult to see any other way. Ask someone else what they would do in your situation.

People generally feel good about helping others, so whoever you ask is likely to give you a thoughtful answer. Think of it as a second opinion on the issue that’s making you feel down.

With fresh, new ideas on how to address your issue, you should begin to feel a glimmer of hope. The ideas may or may not work, but the important thing to remember is that there’s always another way.

If this way doesn’t work, ask someone else. Find another way.

We all feel hopeless from time to time, so it’s nothing to be ashamed about. However, if you’re feeling like hopelessness is overcoming your life, it’s time to get help. Talk to a counselor about how to overcome severe feelings of despair and hopelessness.

Trevor is a recovering addict & alcoholic whose been clean and sober for over 5 years. He currently works as a content writer for Coastal Detox. Since his recovery began he has enjoyed using his talent for words to help spread treatment resources and addiction awareness. In his free time, you can find him working with recovering addicts or outside enjoying about any type of fitness activity imaginable.

Photo credit: hiva sharifi

You’ve read How to Overcome the Feeling of Hopelessness, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’ve enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.

http://ift.tt/2hEOufL

You’re reading 5 Ways to Declutter Your Life and Beat Overwhelm, 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.

We all know the feeling of overwhelm; that wrung-out exhaustion with no idea where or how to start fixing the stresses behind it.

Making the decision to declutter your lifestyle is a great place to start.

Should we find ourselves buried in work and a demanding social schedule to match, we might feel that we have little time to deal with our own basic needs, such as eight-hours of sleep, healthy meals and time with our loved ones.

With this neglect, clutter begins to accumulate.

Clutter comes in many shapes and forms, such as the physical clutter which we can see and touch, and then tell ourselves we will deal with it later.

It can also be experienced on an emotional level; stress from growing daily pressures, or feelings of overwhelm and discomfort with your lifestyle and duties within it.

To be able to tackle these challenges in our lives, we should consider the following steps, to implement positive change and say goodbye to negative clutter, once and for all:

1. Get Organized

Love it or hate it, developing your organizational skills will help you get a grip on many aspects of your life.

Whether it’s time-awareness that catches you off guard, or self-management that often leads to loss of motivation, finding areas to improve how you organize your life can mean being a step ahead of the rest.

Start by writing things down: to-do lists, have-done lists, daily schedules, a monthly agenda.

Write down anything you can think of, that will aid you in getting to grips with your goals and prepare you for what’s ahead.

When it comes to the declutter of your environment, find ways to implement an organized routine, at home. A good place to start is by designating areas to return items to; dishes in the cupboard, unopened letters in a tray, shoes in the hallway, and so on.

Returning items to their pre-decided space will cut down a lot of procrastination in the long run.

2. Small Changes Stick

Starting with one small change is all that you need.

Don’t put any extra pressure on yourself.
Ask: What tiny change can I implement, today, that could benefit my daily routine?

Whether it’s committing to clearing your mind of clutter through meditation, for ten minutes each day; or implementing the habit of making the bed as soon as you get up in the morning, just one change, to begin with, can make all the difference.

Remember to keep it small and make it as easy as you can, as you get started. Then repeat daily to make it a habit.

3. Take it Slow

Great change doesn’t happen overnight, just as clutter accumulates over time.

Our natural urge to see results instantly can lead towards impatience and frustration, such as moments of binge-cleaning the house when the mess gets too much to bear.

Binges, in any form, never lead to consistency; when making life changes, be prepared to see the bigger picture and break your new routines down into manageable chunks.

If you feel overwhelmed because you’re always dashing about, trying to get everything done at once, look for ways to slow things down.

Delegate tasks, wherever possible, and leave enough time in the evenings to read, relax, switch off your phone and be present.

4. Choose Company Wisely

Clutter doesn’t just come in the form of stuff, it can also be social.

Look at the people in your life who lift you up and encourage you in the right ways.

Should you find yourself exhausted by a certain person’s company, then it could be time to move on. Toxic relationships do nothing but drag you down and dull your shine.

Make space in your life for those who truly want to know you and who leave you feeling happier, healthier and supported. You deserve friendships that fulfil you, without any hidden agenda.

5. Failure is a Step Forward

The word failure feels so final.

So, see it this way: each time we find ourselves succumbing to bad habits, we are presented with an opportunity to learn more about ourselves.

If you forget to do a specific task you’ve planned to help declutter your schedule, such as forgetting to make your lunch to take to work, before you go to bed, which leaves you racing to get out the door on time the next morning, look closely at what caused you to “fail”.

Do you avoid tasks when you’re tired? Is there something on your mind?

Once you identify the cause, look at ways to work around it in future. Failure becomes an opportunity, so don’t give up!

Remember that this is your journey, so accepting and understanding your own needs is essential to reclaiming control of your life.

We can learn so much about ourselves if we practice kindness and patience within our daily routines.

You can find more about how to declutter your home life in my latest book, The Habit Architect: At Home available on Amazon or by signing up to my mailing list at http://ift.tt/2sFlTIa

You’ve read 5 Ways to Declutter Your Life and Beat Overwhelm, 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.

http://ift.tt/2vEwJCo

You’re reading 5 Ways to Declutter Your Life and Beat Overwhelm, 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.

We all know the feeling of overwhelm; that wrung-out exhaustion with no idea where or how to start fixing the stresses behind it.

Making the decision to declutter your lifestyle is a great place to start.

Should we find ourselves buried in work and a demanding social schedule to match, we might feel that we have little time to deal with our own basic needs, such as eight-hours of sleep, healthy meals and time with our loved ones.

With this neglect, clutter begins to accumulate.

Clutter comes in many shapes and forms, such as the physical clutter which we can see and touch, and then tell ourselves we will deal with it later.

It can also be experienced on an emotional level; stress from growing daily pressures, or feelings of overwhelm and discomfort with your lifestyle and duties within it.

To be able to tackle these challenges in our lives, we should consider the following steps, to implement positive change and say goodbye to negative clutter, once and for all:

1. Get Organized

Love it or hate it, developing your organizational skills will help you get a grip on many aspects of your life.

Whether it’s time-awareness that catches you off guard, or self-management that often leads to loss of motivation, finding areas to improve how you organize your life can mean being a step ahead of the rest.

Start by writing things down: to-do lists, have-done lists, daily schedules, a monthly agenda.

Write down anything you can think of, that will aid you in getting to grips with your goals and prepare you for what’s ahead.

When it comes to the declutter of your environment, find ways to implement an organized routine, at home. A good place to start is by designating areas to return items to; dishes in the cupboard, unopened letters in a tray, shoes in the hallway, and so on.

Returning items to their pre-decided space will cut down a lot of procrastination in the long run.

2. Small Changes Stick

Starting with one small change is all that you need.

Don’t put any extra pressure on yourself.
Ask: What tiny change can I implement, today, that could benefit my daily routine?

Whether it’s committing to clearing your mind of clutter through meditation, for ten minutes each day; or implementing the habit of making the bed as soon as you get up in the morning, just one change, to begin with, can make all the difference.

Remember to keep it small and make it as easy as you can, as you get started. Then repeat daily to make it a habit.

3. Take it Slow

Great change doesn’t happen overnight, just as clutter accumulates over time.

Our natural urge to see results instantly can lead towards impatience and frustration, such as moments of binge-cleaning the house when the mess gets too much to bear.

Binges, in any form, never lead to consistency; when making life changes, be prepared to see the bigger picture and break your new routines down into manageable chunks.

If you feel overwhelmed because you’re always dashing about, trying to get everything done at once, look for ways to slow things down.

Delegate tasks, wherever possible, and leave enough time in the evenings to read, relax, switch off your phone and be present.

4. Choose Company Wisely

Clutter doesn’t just come in the form of stuff, it can also be social.

Look at the people in your life who lift you up and encourage you in the right ways.

Should you find yourself exhausted by a certain person’s company, then it could be time to move on. Toxic relationships do nothing but drag you down and dull your shine.

Make space in your life for those who truly want to know you and who leave you feeling happier, healthier and supported. You deserve friendships that fulfil you, without any hidden agenda.

5. Failure is a Step Forward

The word failure feels so final.

So, see it this way: each time we find ourselves succumbing to bad habits, we are presented with an opportunity to learn more about ourselves.

If you forget to do a specific task you’ve planned to help declutter your schedule, such as forgetting to make your lunch to take to work, before you go to bed, which leaves you racing to get out the door on time the next morning, look closely at what caused you to “fail”.

Do you avoid tasks when you’re tired? Is there something on your mind?

Once you identify the cause, look at ways to work around it in future. Failure becomes an opportunity, so don’t give up!

Remember that this is your journey, so accepting and understanding your own needs is essential to reclaiming control of your life.

We can learn so much about ourselves if we practice kindness and patience within our daily routines.

You can find more about how to declutter your home life in my latest book, The Habit Architect: At Home available on Amazon or by signing up to my mailing list at http://ift.tt/2sFlTIa

You’ve read 5 Ways to Declutter Your Life and Beat Overwhelm, 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.

http://ift.tt/2vEwJCo

You’re reading Erin’s Things: August 5, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’re enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.

Back again with a list of cool things to check out this week. Let me know in the comments what is inspiring you!

1. MOD POOLS

http://ift.tt/2ucDkR8

It’s green, it’s  modern and it’s portable. Repurposed shipping containers are being turned into pools! Best of all, with a built in heating system so you can take a dip year round.

2. A BEAUTIFUL MESS

http://ift.tt/2vBMfiB

This awesome lifestyle company by two sisters (Elsie Larson and Emma Chapman) focuses n home décor projects. They also teach online classes and have created photo apps. I particularly love the ‘easy abstract art’ page I stumbled upon. I will be trying my hand at a little art painting.

3. CLICK AND GROW SMART GARDEN 9

http://ift.tt/2mCnxu4

Anyone can have (or at least look like) a green thumb these days. Access to 35 types of vegetables and flowers, biodegradable and all-natural is a reality now with Click and Grow Smart Garden. Making room for this compact automated plant grower shouldn’t be difficult. You can out it on your countertop or even stash it on top of the fridge!  You just put in your pods that contain Smart Soil, fill the tank with water and plug it in and watch it grow.

4. Jess Lively’s Blog

Jess Lively’s blog includes an interview with Brene Brown, focusing on how to set boundaries in your relationships in a compassionate way and discussing some of the themes in her book ‘Rising Strong’. How this serves our empowerment is that emotionality can be a driving force and we make up these stories surrounding it which are not necessarily true. We must learn how to have tough conversations, check in and be brave. We deny our feelings based on ‘emotional high centering’ (meaning you can’t go forward and you can’t go back), it is a form of offloading feelings because we are better at hiding or causing pain until it takes a toll on our lives, rather than facing it or being honest about what we are really feeling.

http://ift.tt/1oGJJ3X

5. Justfloat.com

   If I need to de-stress or have some (much needed) me time, there is very little that is more relaxing than a warm soak in a bath…until now. Taking it up a notch in the Zen department, letting stress and worry literally float away with you as you bathe in epsom salt filled, sensory deprivation, oversized tub. No light, no sound, just listening to your breath as you float for an hour. And we all float on…

You’ve read Erin’s Things: August 5, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’ve enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.

http://ift.tt/2wvTFB4

You’re reading Erin’s Things: August 5, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’re enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.

Back again with a list of cool things to check out this week. Let me know in the comments what is inspiring you!

1. MOD POOLS

http://ift.tt/2ucDkR8

It’s green, it’s  modern and it’s portable. Repurposed shipping containers are being turned into pools! Best of all, with a built in heating system so you can take a dip year round.

2. A BEAUTIFUL MESS

http://ift.tt/2vBMfiB

This awesome lifestyle company by two sisters (Elsie Larson and Emma Chapman) focuses n home décor projects. They also teach online classes and have created photo apps. I particularly love the ‘easy abstract art’ page I stumbled upon. I will be trying my hand at a little art painting.

3. CLICK AND GROW SMART GARDEN 9

http://ift.tt/2mCnxu4

Anyone can have (or at least look like) a green thumb these days. Access to 35 types of vegetables and flowers, biodegradable and all-natural is a reality now with Click and Grow Smart Garden. Making room for this compact automated plant grower shouldn’t be difficult. You can out it on your countertop or even stash it on top of the fridge!  You just put in your pods that contain Smart Soil, fill the tank with water and plug it in and watch it grow.

4. Jess Lively’s Blog

Jess Lively’s blog includes an interview with Brene Brown, focusing on how to set boundaries in your relationships in a compassionate way and discussing some of the themes in her book ‘Rising Strong’. How this serves our empowerment is that emotionality can be a driving force and we make up these stories surrounding it which are not necessarily true. We must learn how to have tough conversations, check in and be brave. We deny our feelings based on ‘emotional high centering’ (meaning you can’t go forward and you can’t go back), it is a form of offloading feelings because we are better at hiding or causing pain until it takes a toll on our lives, rather than facing it or being honest about what we are really feeling.

http://ift.tt/1oGJJ3X

5. Justfloat.com

   If I need to de-stress or have some (much needed) me time, there is very little that is more relaxing than a warm soak in a bath…until now. Taking it up a notch in the Zen department, letting stress and worry literally float away with you as you bathe in epsom salt filled, sensory deprivation, oversized tub. No light, no sound, just listening to your breath as you float for an hour. And we all float on…

You’ve read Erin’s Things: August 5, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’ve enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.

http://ift.tt/2wvTFB4