You’re reading 12 Small Actions You Can Take to Boost Your Confidence Today, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’re enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
Small actions built up over time become large results.
Every one of us want to boost our confidence, but few of us know where to start. The key is to start small. So here are 15 small actions you can take to boost your confidence today.
1. List 3 things you’re grateful for: Most of our unhappiness sprouts from anger, fear, and disappointment. If we can shift our focus for a moment to the things we’re grateful for in our lives, these feelings start to fade away.
How to get started: Think of 3 things you’re grateful for in your life today and if you want to continue this practice, purchase a gratitude journal like the Five-minute journal.
“The antidote to fear is gratitude. The antidote to anger is gratitude. You can’t feel fear or anger while feeling gratitude at the same time.” -Tony Robbins
2. Public speaking: When Warren Buffett was asked what skillset is the most important one to focus on for graduates, he confidently said public speaking.
How to get started: Check out your local Toastmasters, where you’ll find a supportive group of people offering constructive feedback to help you learn faster.
3. Speak a foreign language: Learning a new language has shown to enhance your mental focus, advance your career, and even improve your native language.
How to get started: The key to learning how to speak a new language is the way we learned our first language: speaking with native speakers. Check out websites like Rype, which connects you with handpicked professional language teachers for up to unlimited 1-on-1 lessons.
4. Build your network: Your network is your net worth. Not to say that your network is the end all for boosting your confidence, but having people around you that will be there to support your goals is reassuring.
How to get started: Visit websites like Eventbrite and Meetup, and find local events in your industry.
5. Learn how to cook a new dish: Want to improve your friends or date this weekend? Try picking up your cooking skills.
How to get started: Go to Youtube or niche websites like Epicurious to get inspiration for new dishes you can cook.
6. Travel somewhere new: Discovering new cultures and visiting countries you’ve never been to may seem scary at first, but will do wonders for your confidence after traveling.
How to get started: Not everyone may have the freedom to travel when they want, due to time constraints, financial reasons, etc. But there are creative ways to travel cheaply by following travel hacks laid out by others.
7. Meditation: Regular meditation has proven to increase your happiness, reduce your anxiety, and improve your relationships. This new trend will only increase as the positive benefits of meditation from research will reach the mainstream.
How to get started: Leverage free applications like Headspace or Calm, which provides guided meditation on-demand.
8. Speed reading: Knowledge is power. One of the best ways to improve your knowledge is by reading. Unfortunately, we all have 24 hours in a day. By learning how to speed read, we can go through more articles, books, and papers to enhance our knowledge.
How to get started: You can either learn the techniques of speed reading, or you can use technological tools like Spritz.
9. Volunteer: One of the best ways to boost your confidence is by doing good for others, specifically for those that truly need it. Whether it’s serving food for the homeless, or teaching children how to read, it’ll be one of the best times you’ve spent this week.
How to get started: Wherever you live, you can find non-profit organizations that are constantly seeking volunteers to bring into staff. A simple google search can answer your question.
10. Say “No” more often: Saying “Yes” to external demands like coffee meetings or favors from friends can drain you after a certain limit. By saying “no” more often, you can carve more time out for yourself, and do more to improve yourself, like learning new things, etc.
How to get started: There’s really no easy way to do this or a tool that can help you. It just comes down to being bold, and saying “no” more often without trying to offend those that want your help or time.
11. Make your bed: It sounds simple, but there’s studies that show that making your bed can boost your happiness. According to Psychology Today, 71 percent of bed makers consider themselves happy; while 62 percent of non-bed-makers admit to being unhappy.
12. Pick 1 small goal for today, and achieve it: The biggest mistake most of us make is to try to tackle a large goal without breaking it down into tiny steps. If your goal is to learn a new language, pick a small goal like deciding how you’re going to learn or even what language you should learn.
You’ve read 12 Small Actions You Can Take to Boost Your Confidence Today, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’ve enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
You’re reading The 7 Best Blogs On Mindfulness, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’re enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
The idea of mindfulness has been slowly rising in our collective consciousness since the 1950’s. The term is a translation of sati, the Pali-term (a significant element of most Buddhist traditions). It is defined as ‘a mental state achieved by focusing one’s awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one’s feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations, used as a therapeutic technique.’ Often described as living in the moment, it is the practice of mindfulness that helps one achieve this. The idea is that if we examine our thoughts, if we do not judge them, we can concentrate on every experience in life and actively set our own intention for them. Studies have shown that stress and fear contribute to mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety. Through mindful interaction, mindful eating and mindful body language, we can change the way we experience our world for the better.
Most of the time people are concerned about what they have to do, where they have to go, and how much time they have to work with, because, let’s face it, bills need to be paid, relationships are not always conflict free and job security is a rare commodity these days. We are complacent with these worries becoming a norm, which is a disservice to our own personal growth. The truth is it is very unnatural to live in a constant state of anxiety or anticipation, but how does one reverse this? I have found a little (or a lot) of advice goes a long way.
Here is a list of the top 7 blogs on mindfulness that I discovered to be helpful!
Boho Berry: Kara’s blog helps one set goals and achieve them. Those goals will fall into a plan to live a fulfilled and inspired life. Her tips to make these goals happen are solid and enthusiastic! She urges us to ‘live life; not just live.’ Click here to check it out!
Tiny Buddha: Lori Deschenes’ blog is centered on motivation and inspiration. How to use knowledge you’ve acquired through experience to your work and relationships ever day. Click here to check it out!
By Her Mirror: Anna’s lifestyle blog attaches humor to the ideas of living simply and mindfully. She often gives tips from her travel experiences, everything from musings on random topics to food, as well as some vlog content. Click here to check it out!
The Blissful Mind: Catherine’s blog focuses on balance and simplicity being of utmost importance to a mindful life. The themes of productivity and self care carry through many of her articles. Click here to check it out!
Zen Habits: Leo Babauta’s blog has a large following so curiosity set in. I found his posts to be specific to task and well organized to help one with the steps needed to take action toward becoming more mindful of your relationships, goals and health. Click here to check it out!
Personal Excellence: Celestine Chua is a life coach whose mandate is to help one achieve their potential. Her blog is a good mix of ‘how to’ articles on navigating through life to health and even child rearing topics that always leave you asking yourself some meaningful questions. Click here to check it out!
Simple Mindfulness: Paige Burkes’ blog contains articles on health, financial life and relationships. She explores how mindfulness can make you happier in life and I found her site particularly insightful! Click here to check it out!
To begin the process of learning how to re-focus our attention to the present moment in a mindful way is easier said than done, of course, like most endeavors involving spiritual development. However it doesn’t have to be, if we remember that we often forgo the present for the future, and ironically, all we really have is the present. So we can pay our bills, we can resolve conflicts and we can let go of control itself, by dealing with these issues head on in a mindful way. If we change how we perceive the outcome, or we focus on one task without worry until we complete it, then maybe that proverbial light at the end of the tunnel becomes the thing that illuminates not only our path, but also our minds!
Do you read a great blog about mindfulness that’s not on the list? Leave a comment on FB!
Larissa Gomes is a proud breast cancer survivor and single mom to her spirited baby boy! Originally from Toronto turned Angeleno, she has worked in roles from writer, actor and producer for well over a decade. In that time, she’s developed concepts, film and television screenplays, short stories, along with freelance articles, blogging and editing work.
You’ve read The 7 Best Blogs On Mindfulness, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’ve enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
You’re reading How to Send Your Spirit from Zero to Sixty (Part I), originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’re enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
You deserve happiness, productivity, and mental health.
But you have to be ready for it.
You have to desire to work for yourself.
You have to desire a lifework that brings you joy and fulfillment every day.
You have to desire to own your life and your time and your spirit.
So now, learn from me. I know how long it took me to own my life.
Your Vehicle
Each one of us is a vehicle to transport us to our own happiness.
For decades, my car was stuck in neutral.
In fact, some of the time, I swear I was going backwards.
Finally, I discovered that the problem wasn’t my car.
The Problem: I didn’t know where I was going.
I needed a map.
In fact, I’d worked for companies that talked endlessly about where they wanted to go, and, the smartest people there would compare every activity, service, product against that vision of where the company wanted to go.
That destination comes from a mission statement.
Mission statements are those bright stars on the horizon to guide you in the right direction.
I needed to take my life work as seriously as I took working for others.
I realized that not only did I need a mission statement, I deserved one.
You do, too!
You need to always know where, in your case, true north is, to have a well-informed internal compass.
Companies pay consultants thousands of dollars for a destination.
Don’t you deserve the same? Of course, you do, and you don’t need to pay thousands of dollars for it.
In fact, you only have to ask one person to help you…yourself.
Here’s the Bad News:
Such a simple, yet seemingly life-altering task can seem overwhelming.
Here’s the Good News, and it Far Outweighs the Bad News:
There’s no quicker way in the world to feel good now and from now on.
If you’re tired of asking other people for food, so you learn how to fish, farm, hunt, or find some other way of feeding yourself.
Sure, you’re used to working for someone else, and maybe, if you’re really lucky, you love what you do.
But, you’re not reading this post if you have complete confidence in your vehicle and direction.
More Good News:
You don’t need an exact destination for lifework, just a region, a country, an area.
If you get too specific, your transformative search becomes more difficult and perhaps self-defeating.
So, let’s craft that mission statement:
What does a Mission Statement Need?
1-It must be about you as Human Being as much as a human doing, positioning you for constant growth.
2-It must be a prospect that brings you joy every day.
3-It must involve work that’s so immersive, you lose track of time.
4-It must, after a specific and reasonable amount of training, be something that you’re efficient at, (corresponding to the 80/20 rule, such that you can do 80% of your most important work in 20% of the time needed).
5-It must provide a balanced lifestyle with your most important values, and pervasive health in every respect, in your relationships, your physical well-being, and your emotional and spiritual situation.
6-It must give you plenty to work with and plenty of choices on how to SUPPORT your mission, but specific enough so that you know when you’ve gone off track.
In Part II, I’ll share my mission statement with you, but before that, let me show you as simply and clearly as I can what a mission statement does.
Your Mission Statement’s Purpose
It provides something that every second of every minute of every day, your actions can ALIGN with.
If your car isn’t aligned, it can cause an accident and puts a drag on driving.
If you are in doubt about how worthwhile an activity is in terms of your lifework, REVIEW YOUR MISSION STATEMENT, and get aligned.
If it’s part of your mission, keep at it.
If it’s not, let it go.
If you’re not sure, pause and consider. The worst thing you can do is activity, just for the sake of activity. Busyness and productivity are NOT the same thing. Activities are productive if they advance your lifework. Otherwise, they are just taking up space and time in your day, and, once you have a mission statement, you’ll realize just how precious the resource of time is to you. You won’t want to surrender it unless you are getting a return on your investment.
In Part II of this Post, I’m going to show you exactly HOW to construct a mission statement and provide mine as an example.
Go on to Part II tomorrow!
Lars Nielsen is a free-lance copywriter with a unique selling voice from the cadence and imagery developed through poetry, playwriting, fiction, radio, and comedy. Go to http://ift.tt/2aI2xgg and see how Ultimate Influence Copywriting can tell compelling stories for your business, your speeches, your ideas, and your life.
You’ve read How to Send Your Spirit from Zero to Sixty (Part I), originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’ve enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
Sig Nordal 