Sure Shot Ways to Release Stress

The 21^st century’s fast paced erratic lifestyle, work pressures, tight deadlines, cutthroat competition, unrealistic expectations, and work-life imbalance has made the environment – both at workplace and at home – highly stressful for most of us. Stress affects every person, irrespective of age, gender, job profile, and economic well being; affecting our health, relationships and performance.

In such a scenario, it is important to know and use some simple tools to cleanse our system from time to time. Here are some time-tested stress-busters that will not only help in releasing the accumulated stress but also prevent it from building in the first place:-

Cry it out- Whenever we feel overwhelmed by stress, tears naturally well up in our eyes. But more often than not, we try to control them. From now onwards, allow your tears to flow freely, without feeling like a jerk or a coward. Tears are a wonderful stress-releasing mechanism factored in our physiology. Use it.

Talk it out- Speaking about our problems lessens their pressure upon us. But most of us shut ourselves up tight and wallow in our own sorrows. From now onwards, talk about everything that lies bottled up inside you. Besides talking to your friends and family, you can join some online support group.

Take out some ‘me’ time- It is very important to take out some time for your own personal upkeep. Be kind to yourself, and once in a while pamper yourself, without feeling guilty. Find sufficient time to relax.

Learn to say No- We usually find it hard to say ‘No’ to others’ requests and feel guilty when we can’t please everyone. But remember that saying ‘No’ and ‘Yes’ at the right time and to the right person goes a long way in managing stress which comes from over-demand and inadequate self maintenance.

Ask for help - Whenever you feel overwhelmed with work, don’t be reluctant to ask for help. Remember, Jesus Christ’s words, “Ask and it is given.” In any case, don’t burden yourself with more than you can chew. Do not combine too many projects, and delegate jobs, if necessary.

Think happy thoughts- Once in a while, close your eyes and think of something from your past that you are proud of or happy about. Let that memory play back in your mind with all its details, sounds, smells, emotions, feelings etc. Live that experience once again.  This is a great stress-busting tool.

Deep Breathe- Our breath connects our inner world to our outer world; hence, we can use this ever-present phenomenon to release all the accumulated stress in our body and mind. Learn to deliberately deepen your breath.  Every once in a while, especially when you are feeling tense, breathe in slowly through your nose and breathe out slowly through your mouth.  Do this for five minutes and notice the difference in your energy. You will definitely feel less tense and more relaxed.

If you use these simple tools regularly, you can say goodbye to stress and enjoy your life more fully! 

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Success or Excellence

In my practice as a Life Coach I often advice people to focus more on personal excellence and less on success. This is an unusual advice, which is often misunderstood, in a world that loves to focus upon success.

 

What is the difference between success and excellence? The major difference is that while success is often measured in comparison to others, excellence is about being the best that we can be. It is about maximizing our gifts, talents and abilities to perform at our highest potential, at any given time. It is about realizing that our greatest competitor is not someone else, but we ourselves.

To achieve personal excellence, and be the best that we can be, we have to remember a few golden rules:-

·         Do not worry about who your competitors are. That is irrelevant.

·         Do not focus upon winning. Instead, focus upon mastering the fundamentals of your job. Focus upon daily improvement in your performance, however little that improvement may be. If you are working in a team, focus on teamwork.

·         Do not spend your life looking around to see how your competitors are doing; instead, march straight towards the vision of greatness you have for yourself and your team.

·         Do not look at others as ‘the’ standard, to measure your progress against; instead, embark upon a quest for excellence and focus 100% of your energies to become your best…and let success find you. Ironically, when you do not measure yourself against others, you become the measuring stick for others. Apple’s iPod, iPhone, and iPad are examples of products that didn’t focus on competition.

·         Work to the best of your ability and be happy with the outcome, whatever it may be, for that day.

No matter what we do in our life, doing it to the best of our ability brings in the greatest rewards. Making a commitment to personal excellence ensures a life full of success, passion, and fulfillment. Excellence is important because the results we experience are always in direct proportion to the quality of our actions. If we put in half-hearted actions, we achieve minimal results, but if we give our absolute best to what we do, we achieve miracles.

Concept of excellence must be applied to all areas of our life: health, wealth, career, and relationships. Sometimes we do just a ‘good enough’ job and call it our best effort; we don’t fool anyone but our self by doing that. We can get good results from putting in a ‘good enough’ effort, but we get excellent results by doing excellent work.

When we start putting in our best efforts into everything that we do, it becomes a habit, which brings added benefits of joy of learning, enthusiasm of stretching our limits, and satisfaction of a job well done.

Excellence is our birthright as we are a shining example of excellence created by nature; and when our goal is excellence, success is often its outcome and byproduct.

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Say Nice Things About Yourself

For some reason our society discourages, even scoffs at, people saying nice things about themselves. This tendency is labeled as ‘blowing your own trumpet’, ‘being too full of yourself’, and worst of all ‘having narcissistic tendencies’. If you have the habit of speaking about your strengths, you are considered pompous, obnoxious, and over-bearing. But whether you like it or not, this is one trait which definitely pays off big time when you go for a job interview, because it makes you look confident and capable. The only problem is that since most of us are usually out of practice, we hesitate and fumble when we have to list our positive traits. 

So, how can you learn to promote yourself, not just in job interviews but in life itself? Here are a few tips:-

·         Learn to say nice things about yourself and feel okay about it.
·         Say nice things about others as well. Complimenting others invites compliments our way too!
·         Smile more often, that will make you feel good about yourself.
·         Develop a genuine interest in your own strengths and strengthen them.
·         Use your charm to inspire and persuade others of your goodness.
·         Ask your parents, grandparents, relatives and friends to tell you positive stories from your childhood.
·     Take time to listen to others’ suggestions about how you can improve yourself. Measure your personal growth on set parameters (set by you).
·   Be empathetic to yourself and don’t beat yourself for your failings, which are nothing but learning opportunities.
·         Be sensitive to your need for love and appreciation. Give it to yourself.
·         Learn to appreciate every small success of yours.
·         At the end of the day, give yourself a loving hug and gently massage your limbs.
·      Set attainable goals for yourself and share your thoughts with people who care about you. In any case, do care about your own self.
·      Do not compete with others but have a vision for yourself. Know where you are heading. Give yourself a sense of direction. Work hard to translate your vision in your life.
·         Take the lead to be ahead of your own game of bettering yourself. Remain positive about your life.
·    Know that you can rely upon yourself each and every time. Give yourself enough reasons to believe in yourself.
·         Take complete responsibility for your personal growth, especially when the tide is working against you.
·         Stick to self-growth principles. Develop your personal value-system. Carry out your duties with diligence.
·         Remain open to change, movement, innovation and new ideas.
·         Boost your own morale by doing things that make you joyful. 

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Role Models

Two kinds of people leave their mark on this world (create inspirational life-story).....:)

The ones who start as underdogs but with the dint of their focus, passion, inspired actions and complete commitment to their growth, reach dizzy heights of success..........

The other ones are those who start with everything going just right for them, reach dizzy heights and then give it all up to follow their heart/ passion.......

Are you one of these? Are you writing an inspirational story? Are you your own role model? 

If not, why not? What stops you?

If yes, you are a blessing to mankind...♥

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Money Power

Are you making the amount of money you would like to make? Have you decided how much money you would like to create? If you are not making the amount of money you would like to make it is only because you haven’t directed your subconscious mind to bring you exactly how much you want. You haven’t given it the right instructions.

Yes, until we tell ourselves that we want to create abundance, we stay mired in a consciousness of struggle, poverty, pain and lack. As long as we remain focused on how much we don’t have, as long as we think about how little we have, as long as we believe that it is difficult to make money, we cannot create the life of our dreams.

Our limiting beliefs are the blocks on our path that hold us back; that prevent us from making more money and having more abundance. These beliefs keep telling our subconscious that we don’t want to make more money or we don’t know how to make more money; or what exactly to do to become abundant. They create confusion inside us and don’t let us make right choices.

Our negative self-talk makes everything just worse. Whatever we try doesn’t work because it can’t work as long as we stay in a lack-mentality.

If you wish to end this struggle and create more wealth, you will need to remove your belief- blocks. You will need to give new instructions to your subconscious mind. You will need to make right choices. Here is how you can go about it:

• ·         Decide how much money you want to make. Be very specific; give clear instructions to your subconscious mind. Think about having as much money as you need or want.

·         Get rid of all the negative thoughts you have about money and moneyed people. Do not worry about money. Don’t speak about lack of money, financial hardships or troubles. Do not listen to pessimistic talks. Do not pay attention to stories of corruption or scams. Do not talk about people making money in dishonest ways. Do not criticize and condemn those who have more money than you. Put all such thoughts out of your mind.
   
·         Start living as though you are already wealthy; doing things you would do when you have a certain level of abundance. It doesn’t mean that you spend money beyond your means; it simply means that you spend it in a way that makes you happy.

·         Be grateful for all the money that you have. Know that it is just a source of energy. Spend it without any fear or attachment.  Let it go easily and freely, with love and respect. Bless it and ask it to bless everyone who touches it.

·         Speak to your notes and coins. Tell them to go out, expand, and return back to you to get you more services.

·         Spend money on doing fun things. Enjoy spending it. 

·         Choose to buy the best quality products for yourself. You may have fewer things but they should be of a good quality.

·         Don’t make a buying decision based on not having enough money. Don’t always look for bargains. Don’t haggle over price of goods.

·         Focus only on the positive growth. Pay attention to abundance, peace and prosperity wherever you see it. When you see a successful or wealthy person, silently bless him and wish him well. Bless fancy cars, big homes, smart restaurants, swanky showrooms etc. Rejoice in others’ prosperity.

·         Increase your abundance quotient by letting go of judgment, criticism, blame and envy. It is not easy, but it can be done. Shift from a complaining and grumbling mode to a satisfied and thankful mode.

·         Whatever you wish for yourself, wish the same for others. If you want abundance, pray for abundance for others.

·         Accept the present moment completely, without any judgment.

·         Accept gifts, compliments or whatever graciously.  

·         While giving anything to anyone, give with the thought of increase. Do every action with an intention of giving more to all.

·         Do not look at someone and feel that he is lesser than you and you have to make him okay. Do not pity the poor; bless them riches. Remember, pity, sympathy and sorrow are as contagious as hope, expectation, and inspiration; spread the latter.

Affirm abundance

You can choose any affirmation which resonates with you and repeat it several times a day.

·         My cash in-flow far exceeds my expenses.

·         I am creating opportunities to generate money.

·         I am willing to make a quantum leap.

·         I always have more than enough money for all my needs.

·          I choose to circulate wealth.

·         I am willing to embrace abundance.

·         What I want for myself, I want for everyone else.

·         I can afford all that I need.

·          Money constantly circulates in my life. I use it wisely, judiciously, and constructively. I spend it in joy and it comes back to me multiplied through multiple channels.

·         I have the right to be abundant, happy and successful. 

·         I am grateful for the richness of my life.

·         Money allows me the freedom to do all the things that I want to do.

Tune into natural abundance

Whenever you see natural abundance, affirm it to stay in its flow. For example, if you are walking in bright sun, affirm, “Natural abundance is shining upon me.” If it is raining, say, “Natural abundance is pouring upon me.” If it is windy, say, “Natural abundance is blowing upon me.” Always acknowledge abundance, to stay in abundance consciousness.

Demand abundance

Look into your eyes in a mirror and say aloud, “I demand abundance, right now.”

Money cycle

Whenever you receive or give any money, hold it in your hands for a minute and pour the vibration of love into it, by projecting loving thoughts. This infusion of love will shift its energy signature. Now the money will go back into circulation radiating love with each financial transaction.

Every time you spend money, say, “There is more where this comes from.”

This article is an excerpt from Chitra Jha’s book, ‘Achieve Your Highest Potential: Be the Best You Can Be’ published by Penguin India.

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Transformation

In order to experience transformation in our life, we have to take three important steps; viz., Awareness, Acceptance, and Action.

Awareness

We all know that our thoughts create our reality and yet, we can’t let go of the thoughts which create the problems in our life. The primary reason for this inability is a lack of awareness of our ‘subtle’ distorted thinking patterns. Here I have enumerated various such patterns; as you read through them, identify your personal patterns, remembering that you may carry more than one pattern.

  I pay undue attention to the negative details of my life. I magnify all the negative aspects of a given situation while filtering out its positive aspects. I pull negative things out of the context, isolate them from all my good experiences, and make them more awful than they actually are.
·         I look at things as good or bad; black or white; and perceive everything at its extreme, without leaving any room for the middle ground. This polarized thinking makes me judgmental; especially about myself. For example, if I am not perfect I must be a failure.

·        I over-generalize and come to a general conclusion based upon a single incident or a single piece of evidence. If something bad happens once, I ‘expect’ it to happen again and again. I often use words like ‘always’ and ‘never’ to make a point. I cannot take any risks in life and am afraid of failure.

·         I can read other people’s minds. I know what others are feeling and why they act the way they do. I remain certain of what others are feeling towards me.

·         I expect disaster. I notice or hear about a problem and start thinking, “What if that happens to me? What if such a tragedy strikes in my life? Etc.” There are no limits to my fertile, catastrophic imagination. I do not trust enough and feel incapable of changing.

·         I have a tendency to relate everything around me to myself. I think that everything people say or do in my presence is some kind of a reaction to me. I keep comparing myself with others, trying to determine who is smarter, better looking etc. I do not believe in my own worth. I keep testing my value as a person by measuring myself against others. If I fare better, I feel a temporary high. If I fare poorly, I feel horrible. I interpret each experience, each conversation and each look to determine my value and worth.

·         I feel that I am controlled by external factors; a helpless victim of fate. I remain stuck and feel unable to change my life, let alone make a difference in the world.

·         I feel responsible for the pain and happiness of everyone around me. This leaves me exhausted as I attempt to fulfill everyone’s needs. I feel guilty when I can’t shoulder my responsibilities to the utmost.

·         I feel resentful because life is not fair. I tend to get locked into my own point of view, and often wonder how wonderful things would be if only people were fair to me or truly valued me. I end up causing a lot of pain to myself and my resentment keeps growing.

·         I make other people responsible for my choices and decisions. I also blame them for my problems. I do not take self-responsibility to assert my needs, say no, or do what I wish to do.

·          I blame myself for every problem and feel guilty about other’s pain.

·         I have a list of rules about how I and other people should behave. If others break these rules I get angry and if I violate the rules, I feel guilty. I am always either judging or finding faults in everything, including myself. I often use words like ‘should’, ‘ought’, or ‘must’ etc.

·         I think that what I believe is true. If I feel stupid, I must be stupid. If I feel guilty, I must have done something wrong. I let my emotions interact and correlate with my thinking process.

·         I expect other people to change to suit my needs. I know that I can do it if I pressure or cajole them enough.  My happiness depends upon changing other people.

·       I focus upon one or two qualities in myself or others and create stereotyped uni-dimensional labeling. I usually label everything and everyone to know where I stand and where others stand.

·         I always want to be proven right. I continually try to prove that my opinions and actions are right. I can’t think of being wrong and can go to any lengths to prove my rightness. I always defend my own opinion and do not pay enough attention to other’s opinions. Being right is more important to me than cultivating relationships.
·         I think that God is keeping a score of all my sacrifices and self-denial and one day it will pay off.  I feel bitter when the expected awards don’t come.

Acceptance

Once we become ‘aware’ of our thought patterns, we must ‘accept’ them. Unless we accept ourselves exactly as we are, we cannot take the necessary steps to change ourselves. The acceptance process is very easy. All you have to say is, “I accept myself exactly as I am.” Repeat this affirmation as often as you can.

Action

And then comes the ‘action’ time. It is surprising how a simple affirmation repeated loudly and often can change our entire life. This magic affirmation is, “I choose to think positive and creative thoughts. I choose to speak positive and creative words. I choose to perform positive and creative actions.”

 Take these three steps in good faith and get ready for transformation……………forever and ever….:))

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Let go of your Fears

Suppose today was the last day of your life, what wisdom would you like to share with the world? If it were me, I would ask everyone to let go of their fears!!

For far too long in my life, I lived with fears; primarily the fear of rejection, the fear of being judged, and the fear of the unknown. These fears held me back and didn’t let me blossom. As I got tired of being limited by my fears, other people’s opinions and my negative self-talk, I determined that enough was enough and decided to look the fears in the eye.

As I did so I realized that some fear is natural in our life. It is there to protect us and ensure our survival; the problems come when the fear become irrational and we start fearing our destiny. I decided to let go of this irrational fear.

As I let go of my irrational fear, things started changing. They didn’t change overnight but a definite shift happened. Earlier I used to let fear inhibit me and cramp my style, but now I don’t let it do so.

I have learnt that we limit ourselves by our fears. We forget that no one is ever born ‘average’. We are all brilliant beings, who are filled to the brim with potential. Our potential is infinite and we are here on planet earth for a specific purpose. FEAR means False Evidence Appearing Real. We can unmask it by confronting it.

Today, I would urge you to let go of all your unfounded fears. Don’t let them paralyze you and refrain you from moving forward. Remember, you have nothing to fear but fear itself. Have courage to walk through it in the direction of your dreams. Face your challenges calmly and confidently. Pray for strength and courage of conviction to come out of your struggles with flying colors.

Here are some time tested tools to confront your fears and release them:-

·         Whenever you feel fearful take a deep breath and know that everything is in right order. All is well.

·         When you are falling into fear, say aloud, “God loves me. I don’t know what to do but the infinite power that has made this universe and lives within me does. I will receive help and guidance at the right time in the right manner.”

·         When you encounter any fear tell yourself, “I don’t have to move with it. I can transform it with my love.”

·         Whenever you feel fearful about a situation, thank it for teaching you a lesson and say, “Thank you for teaching me. Thank you for showing me where I am stuck, but I no longer support your being.”

·         Affirm loudly, “I choose to let go of all my fears. I have managed other challenges in my life; I am sure of managing this one too.”

As you walk through your fears, you will find the strength to face all your challenges. The more you face your fears, bring them to the surface, and analyze them rationally, the more you will weaken them and dramatically reduce your reluctance to achieve your goals.

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The Smile Revolution

By now, courtesy Rhonda Byrne of ‘The Secret’ fame, everyone interested in self-development has heard of the Law of Attraction; and many have even applied it in their lives. As long as people keep ‘attracting’ good tidings, they swear by this law, but the moment things go wrong, they declare, ‘The law of attraction is not infallible. It doesn’t work all the time.’

But the truth is that just like the law of gravity, the law of attraction works each and every time. However, just like everything on Planet Earth, it follows the principle of ‘duality’; so, there is a law of ‘positive’ attraction and a law of ‘negative’ attraction.  A ‘+’ attraction is visible when something is being ‘added’ to our life; and a ‘-‘attraction is visible when something is being ‘subtracted’ from our life. This addition and subtraction can be in the form of people, money, success, opportunities, or just everyday energy levels.

The Negative Attraction

Take a good look around your life and notice if there is anything that you want to be there. If you do see something or a lot of things that you don’t like; such as debts, unpaid bills, illnesses, stress, strained relationships, lack of passion and creativity etc, you are experiencing ‘negative attraction’.

The fact remains that nobody ‘wants’ this attraction in their lives, but they can’t escape it either. The good news is that there is a definite ‘cure’ for negative attraction and that cure lies in your own hands; or should I say in your own mind!

The Law of Attraction teaches us that we ‘attract’ whatever we ‘think about’. So, it is logical to surmise that those of us who experience a negative attraction are spending a lot of time thinking negative thoughts. The ‘cure’ of negative attraction lies in ‘stopping’ these negative thoughts but that is easier said than done.

How can you stop thinking about your problems and get out of the negative attraction trap? Here is a very simple tool to use………….and that tool is ‘smile’. Yes, it is as simple as that to get out of your negativity and attract good health, success, wealth and wonderful relationships in your life.

Smile Revolution

·         Write down ten things which make you smile. Read this list everyday and especially whenever you feel grouchy.

·         Smile at every one you meet today, even at the cost of them thinking that you have lost your beans. Just smile and see instant magic. Remember, your enjoyment is contagious.

·         Pledge now that if you see someone without a smile, you will give one of yours. It won’t cost you anything, but may mean a lot to the other person. 

·         Find new reasons to smile everyday; when you start smiling, you will soon find something to smile about.

·         Smile more often.

Benefits of Smile Revolution

·         When you smile at everyone you meet, you will have a wonderful day. The people you smile at will also have a great day. They will smile at more people and the domino effect will continue. Soon it will become a smiling world, a pleasant world to live in. There will be no frayed nerves and no rising tempers, just because you chose to smile for a day. And if you make this choice everyday this world will truly become a paradise on earth.

·         As you become a part of the smile revolution, you will be enriched. The memory of your smile will last a lifetime. It will improve your confidence, add to your personality and make you look beautiful. You will become a gift to mankind.

·         If not more, you will make at least one person very happy, and that person is you. Your smile will nourish you physically and emotionally.

·         And the best of all, your energy will shift from –ve to +ve and you will move into the ‘positive attraction cycle’, taking full benefit of the Law of Attraction.

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Realizing Our Full Potential

Each one of us subconsciously knows that there is something more in us, but we can’t really put our finger on it. We wish to be smarter, happier, richer, thinner, wittier, more successful, more lovable and more popular than we presently are, but we don’t know how to go about it. We want a better job, bigger bank balance, bigger car, newer gadgets, and a better life, but we seem to have reached a plateau. We want to explore all our options, but we feel stuck.  We want to understand the real purpose of our life, but this knowledge eludes us. We have an underlying desire to achieve more than we already have, but something stops us from moving forward. We feel unable to progress any further. We don’t know our true capability and this lack of knowledge makes us feel inadequate, lost, under-confident and un-successful.

But a time comes when we want to take charge of our life. We become willing to try new tools to bring out the best in us. We get ready to invest our time and energy for self- enhancement. And that’s when the universe takes us to the right place, right people, and right resource material. Has it ever happened to you?

The fact remains that each human being has infinite potential but most have not yet tapped into it. If you doubt your own potential, you should look at the potential of a tiny acorn. Each tiny acorn has the potential of birthing an infinite forest. But does each tiny acorn get to express that potential? No, it doesn’t. Most of the acorns dry out for lack of fertile soil and water. Some grow up as weak seedlings for want of adequate sunshine. Some get uprooted by strong winds, some get eaten by animals, while some are cut down by humans for timber before reaching their full height. Some lucky ones grow up to be mighty oaks, but only a handful get to produce great forests. Same is true of us humans as well.

Acorns have an inherent disadvantage as they can’t find and re-allocate the right growth conditions for themselves; they depend solely upon nature’s mercy for their growth.  Human beings face the same handicap in their early years but luckily not forever.

Once you become an adult you can’t really blame your environment any more. As a responsible adult the first responsibility you must shoulder is that of your own growth. You can achieve your full potential, and be abundantly successful only when you learn to re-create your own ‘environment’.

Our environment is composed of three major areas:  our physical environment, our mental - emotional environment and our spiritual environment.

The physical environment consists of our body, our house, our street, our locality, our work-place, our city, our country and our world. The mental and emotional environment consists of our past conditioning, our current thoughts, our emotions, our feelings, our education levels, our reading habits, our cultural influence, our family dynamics, our friends, our working environment and our office dynamics. And our spiritual environment consists of our understanding of the universal laws and our willingness to apply these laws in our life.

We can’t realize our full potential unless we take care of all these areas holistically as we can’t really separate one from the other. A collective insight into these areas reveals a lot about ‘who we are’ and ‘who we are becoming’ by realistically assessing our current life situation and empowering us to alter our destiny by making empowered choices.

A human being is designed to grow and evolve infinitely; that is why success is a journey and not a destination. At any given time we have the potential to achieve more than we currently have. We deviate from this ‘eternal growth flow’ only because we resist it. We think we have reached a plateau and stop striving for more, leading a life of mediocrity in frustration, cursing our fate and the people around us. We forget that we alone are responsible for all that there is or isn’t in our life; and we have the power to change our life circumstances, if we decide to do so.

To achieve our highest potential at every stage of our life, we need to be convinced about our infinite potential. We need to believe that our life is a precious gift which must be unwrapped with love to discover its inherent beauty.

Each human being has been programmed for excellence. Excellence in all endeavors is our birth right. If we do not achieve excellence in every sphere of our life, we are short-changing our self. We are not only denying our full glory to our own self, but also doing injustice to humanity at large.

So, what can we do about it? The first step is to declare our intent to the Universe. How do we do that? It is very simple. Just look into your eyes in the mirror and say aloud for your ears to hear, “I am ready to take complete responsibility of my life. I am willing to invest my time and energy into achieving my full potential by understanding, imbibing, and practicing some simple, infallible Universal Laws of Success.”

Once you have done that, notice the feelings in your heart. Do you feel more confident or apprehensive? In both cases, you are on the right path. You have taken the first and most important step towards your growth. Now the Universe will take many steps towards you!

You may receive a book, a guide or some intuitive insight that will take you further on this journey of self-discovery. As you start using these guidelines, you may experience some immediate results, while some results will be revealed as the time unfolds.

As you charter your personal growth path, you will develop confidence in your abilities, uniqueness, creativity, do-ability, achievability and infinite potential.

As you begin to understand all aspects of human design; body, mind, emotions and Spirit, you will be propelled to take inspired actions towards your continuous and sustained progress. You will feel good about yourself and take on life with a renewed vigor.

Are you ready to step on this fast-track to growth……..and success?? If yes, here is another small exercise for you.

Close your eyes. Take three deep breaths to center yourself and repeat the mantra, “I choose to accept and love myself deeply and completely.” Do it as often as you can, especially if you feel under-confident and inferior. You can choose your own comfort level: eyes open, or eyes closed; looking into the mirror or anywhere else in the space; aloud, as a whisper, or in your mind; this mantra works always and in all ways. You don’t need to take out special time for doing it. You can repeat this sentence while doing your morning chores, commuting to work, sitting idly, or lying down in bed. Any time is the right time for it.

However, repeating this mantra soon after getting up in the morning or right before going to bed amplifies its effectiveness, as those are the times when our conscious and sub-conscious minds are in deep communion with each other.

So, here is to your growth…..Three Cheers!!!

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Attitude and Aptitude

By definition, your attitude represents your likes, dislikes, positive or negative views, judgments or degree of preference for something. Most attitudes are developed through personal experience or observation.

Your aptitude on the other hand is an innate or inbuilt component of your individual competency, which means that you will be competent doing the job that you have an aptitude for.

Keeping these two definitions in mind, you must evaluate your attitudes and aptitudes before embarking upon a career. In other words, you must know yourself well before taking all important decisions of your life.

A simple self-assessment can help you determine your attitudes and aptitudes. Just ask yourself, "What are my talents, skills and abilities? What kind of attitude do I have towards certain professions and life in general? What do I enjoy studying? What do I enjoy doing? If time and money were of no consequence, what would I love doing? What is it that my heart desires the most?" Write down the answers and dwell upon them. Make your career choice based upon your inherent strengths and passions.

Remember that life is a series of choices. At any given moment you are faced with two or more than two choices. You choose one of them, usually the one dictated by your external world, and move ahead. Your choice reflects what you believe is possible for you. Yet there are times when you wonder, 'what if I had chosen the other option?' If you are choosing a wardrobe or a diet plan, it is easy to retrace your steps, but if you are choosing a course of study, career or marriage, retracing the steps becomes slightly more difficult. Life doesn't roll back for you to experience the other path, so your choices must originate in your aptitudes and attitudes.

Since each one of us is unique our aptitudes are also unique. They are placed inside us for some reason and that reason is evolution and growth. When we don't have an aptitude for something, it is an indication that the task is not suited for us, similarly when we like to do something; it is proof enough that we are well equipped to do that job efficiently. When an aptitude is given to us, the mechanism for its fulfillment is also provided. All we need to do is apply our attitude in an optimum, positive and efficient manner.

Our aptitudes and desires are signs from the universe urging us to move in a particular direction. If we were to analyze every passionate desire that we have we would realize that its purpose is always to enhance us. Pursuing a career without correct attitude and required aptitude doesn't take us very far because it does not involve the heart and doesn't ignite our passion. 

When we are involved in something we have an aptitude for, we automatically give our all to it. We devote all our energies to the task we love; and lend more power to the result of our actions by thoroughly enjoying our self.

For example most mothers have an aptitude for cooking and they cook with love, especially when they are cooking for their children. No wonder most of us remember our mother's cooking. Similarly, when we do something we have an aptitude for, and do it with love and attention it shows in the result.

The best way to get aligned with a positive attitude and personal aptitude is by doing something that brings you pleasure, something that is fun, something that you may call your hobby or interest, something that relieves you from the pressure to perform, something you can indulge in purely for self-fulfillment and feel good factor.

When you pursue a career which is in alignment with your attitudes and aptitudes, you become more productive; doing your best and bringing out the best in others as well. On the other hand, when you do things you are not really passionate about; you procrastinate, get distracted, resist, and struggle. Your internal guidance system starts saying, "Not needed. Not now."

When you start listening to your heart rather than following the dictates of the external world, your life will become much easier, and definitely much more fun. So don't let anyone stop you from following your heart. Don't let your passions remain buried under self-doubt.

Let your aptitudes and attitudes determine your true calling. If you are not too sure about your calling, try doing different things until you are certain. Trying out different things is not a waste of time as no time is ever wasted, no experience is ever in vain, and no life is ever useless. Each step you take will logically lead you to the next step, as long as you keep lifting the other foot to stay in momentum.

As you confidently take one step after the next, floodgates of universal support will open up for you. Your aptitudes and attitudes will put you in alignment with your life's purpose. However long it may take, however many failures it may encompass, eventually you will get there. So, get going and conquer the world…………………..

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Chitra Jha

Writer
Holistic Healer

Spiritual Mentor

Parenting Educator
Self-Transformation Coach
http://mylife-mysuccess.blogspot.com
http://chitrabuddha.sulekha.com

www.lifeuniversityglobal.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Are you Open-minded?

In this day and age of information overdose, whether we agree or disagree with something; we must at least remain open-minded about it. An open-minded person neither rejects an idea outright, nor pays undue attention to its source as he knows that great ideas can come from just about anywhere. He always gives it a patient hearing.

 

Sometimes in our closed ways we tend to reject an idea if it comes from a person we don't like, or we think is not competent enough. But it is worth considering the fact that ideas have nothing to do with personalities. It is an entity by itself.

 

Sometimes we automatically reject a new idea as a reactionary response. Ideas that do not fit in with our pre-conceived notions are usually rejected outright.

 

Another reason for not accepting new ideas is the fear of making mistakes. This fear makes us stick with the tried and the tested. And no matter what, we refuse to take any chances in life. Unless we stop worrying about making mistakes, we cannot really become open-minded.

 

To be completely open-minded we need to look at each idea from different angles. We need to realize that ideas which worked perfectly well until yesterday may not work today or tomorrow. Constant monitoring of various events in our lives makes us sensitive to new ideas, and keeps us away from doing only those things that have worked earlier.

 

Open-minded people treat life as a celebration of learning and growth; healing and transformation. This energy of celebration helps them welcome the new with open arms.

On the other hand those who feel unhappy and stuck find it difficult to try anything new.

 

If you look at the present economic scenario and ask people if there is anyone who is thriving right now, even in this recessionary period, the answer will invariably be, 'Yes, there are always some people who do well, irrespective of the economic environment. Similarly, there are always some people who do badly even in boom times.'

 

What differentiates these two sets of people? What is the secret of successful people?

 

Besides many other things, being open-minded definitely figures as one of the ingredients of success. Successful people are always open to new ideas and this openness makes them more creative. Those who rise above their narrow prejudices, always end up doing the right thing.

 

If you are clear about your passion and serious about achieving success; you have no choice but to become 'open-minded'. Welcome to the club!!!

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Chitra Jha

Writer
Holistic Healer

Spiritual Mentor

Parenting Educator
Self-Transformation Coach
http://mylife-mysuccess.blogspot.com
http://chitrabuddha.sulekha.com

www.lifeuniversityglobal.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

‎

Read more!