By Georgina El Morshdy When you cut to the core, you want to feel good about yourself and your life. How you make that a reality is a journey of self-discovery that’s unique to us all. We all have different dreams, desires, and goals that serve to take us in the direction of our best self.  Your Core Values are a tool that can bring more alignment, purpose, and fulfillment to your life.  Define your three Core Values, and you’ll create a compass within that will help you make decisions, set the right goals, and infuse your life with more of the things you love.  Your Core Values are a sure-fire way to create your best life - but only if you live them!  [Define your Core Values with the Core Values Deck] Here’s how... Tip #1: Review your calendar Your calendar is a powerful, unforgiving reflection of what you value most in your life. Remember, the way you allocate your time disproportionally influences the experiences and opportunities you have in your life. A Core Value isn’t a real Core Value unless it’s an intrinsic part of your being.  In other words, if your calendar fails to feature a value you say you care about, that value is an aspiration - not a part of your identity.  For example, if you say you value FAMILY, but your calendar says otherwise, it’s essential to take a cold hard look at how you prioritize your commitments and the way you live your life. In a similar vein, if you say you value CREATIVITY but leave zero space to play and explore ideas, you’re valuing something else more highly.  It can feel uncomfortable acknowledging when you’re prioritizing something else - for example, work over family or achievement over creativity. However, once you know the truth, you have the power to do something to change it.  Tip #2: Schedule activities that align with your core values  One way to live your Core Values is to make quality, focused time for those values.  This process starts by deciding what each value means for you [for example, how I see adventure could be different from how you view this value]. Here’s a worksheet to help you capture this critical thinking.  Next, get creative and explore ideas for activities you could schedule to experience different values into your life:  ADVENTURE: Mystery tours. Be a tourist in your home town. Travelling.  CREATIVITY: Write. Paint. Craft. Journal. Dance. Cook. Bake.  GRACE: Gratitude. Prayer. Meditation.  SELF-RELIANCE: Complete projects. Alone time. Learn a skill that you rely on others for currently.  BRAVERY: Trying something new. Expanding your comfort zone. Even better, consider your values when setting your next round of goals.  In the words of Gary Keller and Jay Papasan, “The prescription for extraordinary results is knowing what matters to you and taking daily doses of actions in alignment with it.” If you have the intention to shift the proportion of your life that’s Core Values rich - you’ll soon feel happier, more aligned, and ultimately more fulfilled.   Tip #3: Eliminate tasks, to-dos, expectations, and responsibilities that don’t align with your core values.  Living a value-led life isn’t about adding new things alone; it’s also about eliminating things you don’t care about or value highly.  Think about it. Why waste time and energy doing things that aren’t important to you?! Instead:  Delegate.  Invest in help.  Build your team.  Allocate household chores differently.  Stop doing the things you only do because you think you should!  There are plenty of ways to free up space in your life. I promise this tip could be one of the most liberating steps you ever take!    Tip #4: Reflect on your values before making decisions. Roy E. Disney said, “When your values are clear to you, making decisions becomes easier.”  It’s easy to get trapped in the realm of shoulds and musts - or this is the way it’s always been!  If we’re not mindful, we can end up making decisions that don’t serve our best self. Worse than that… we risk making decisions that take us further away from where we want to go.  Your Core Values provide a sounding board that can help you decide which is the right choice for you.  As you consider your options, tap into which one feels most aligned to the values you prize.  [And if you end up choosing a different option, it’s worth reflecting on which value is most important in your life!]  With your values to guide you, it’s easier to make choices that feel good.  Tip #5: Journal  Your Core Values form a piece of your identity. Discovering and choosing your values is an act of self-awareness. Find your values, and you’ll deepen the relationship you have with yourself.  The more you know yourself, the more you’re able to step into your best self.  This inner work can take time - especially if you’ve never given yourself space or permission to ask yourself what you want.  But it’s also beautiful work - because it takes you back to you and puts your life back in your control.  Your journal is one of the best places to explore who you are. It’s a place where you can meet yourself.  What’s more, because your journal can hold anything you throw at it, you’re able to make deep, profound discoveries that could transform your life.  Here are some Core Values based questions to journal about:  1. What do you really care about and WHY?[TIP: Don’t stop at your first why answer. Instead, dive deeper and get to the core. The deeper answers might surprise you.] 2. Why aren’t you living the values you say you prize?What are the blocks and barriers? [When you know what’s in your way, it’s easier to find a new way forward.] 3. If time and money were no object [and you had a magic wand that could make anything a reality], how would you live your life?Your answer to this question will give you a different perspective on what you value most.  As you can see, there are plenty of ways to weave your Core Values into your life.  What are your favorite ways to live with more purpose? Let us know on social tagging @bestselfco.

By Georgina El Morshdy It’s exciting to think about hitting a big goal or getting to a date in your calendar that you’re excited about. Our ability to dream and imagine is one of the most powerful tools we have as a human. We’re able to visualize possible futures and fantasize about how life could feel if only we could make these desires a reality.   It’s a balancing act. If you live too much in the future, you miss out on the here and now - and that’s a problem. In the words of spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle, “The only thing that is ultimately real about your journey is the step that you are taking at this moment. That’s all there ever is.” This idea is supported by many other teachers too.  Zig Ziglar stresses the importance of the journey too. He said, “What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.” And Wayne Dyer said, “Your relationship with the now is your relationship with life.”  It leaves us with a question. How can you make the most of the present moment to experience more success, fulfillment, and happiness in life?  Here are THREE powerful techniques to try.  1. Practice mindfulness Mindfulness is about increasing your awareness of the present moment by noticing your thoughts, feelings, and body sensations and being ‘ok’ with what is.  When we’re mindful of the present, we’re aware of what’s occurring in the moment. In turn, we increase our personal power. When you can engage with the now and sink into the experience without judgement or distraction, you can unlock more peace, calm, and clarity.  But it’s not always easy!  The average human has around 70,000 thoughts per day. Our brains can be extraordinarily chatty and noisy; it can take time and practice to quieten the mind so you can feel the peace within.  But the benefits are proven… If you cut the amount of time you spend worrying about the past and the present, you can put all your energy into what’s truly happening NOW.  In turn, you can make better decisions as well as unlock more creativity. You can benefit from as little as 10 minutes of mindfulness practise a day. To help you cultivate this powerful habit, we created a 31-day mindfulness challenge. Thousands of people have taken this challenge so far. Now you can join them.  2. Check in with your Core values Making impactful decisions is an essential skill for your best self to master.  Every moment is an opportunity to make a new choice - the question is, in what direction will you head?  Checking in with your Core Values is a powerful practice that can help you make decisions aligned with the things you care about most. The more life you live in alignment with your Core Values, the happier you’ll feel - because more of your time will feel purposeful.  Let me show you how this works… Let’s say it’s the weekend and you haven’t yet made plans. You know you want to do something, but you’re not sure what. Your Core Values can give you an insight into what choice will make you happiest. For example, if you have a Core Value of ‘ADVENTURE’, you might enjoy taking a spontaneous road trip. If you have a Core Value of ‘GROWTH,’ you’ll probably get a lot of satisfaction attending an event or reading a book that opens a new level of thinking. The more you know yourself and what makes you tick, the more you can navigate life in a way that feels best.  You can discover your Core Values with the help of the Core Values Deck.  3. Reflect in your journal  Reflection is a powerful tool that can ground you in the present moment. When you get real with what is, you feel inspired to take responsibility for your life and control it. Sometimes, we can overlook things we know we need to resolve. It’s easier to push them off for another time rather than biting the bullet and jumping in.  Your journal is a safe space that can hold you - whatever you need to express and reveal.  The act of writing things out can be cathartic and releasing. With your truth revealed, there’s no more hiding or denying. Instead, you empower yourself into a position where you can decide in the moment powerfully.  Journaling also helps you connect to that deeper part inside that has all the answers. When you’re able to access your inner wisdom, you’ll likely uncover insights, ideas, and decisions that will help you take your next steps with more clarity and ease.  Check out this podcast to discover six reflective practices that you can explore in your journal NOW.   Alice Morse Earle said, “Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift. That is why it is called the present.”  How will YOU make the best use of this present moment? I hope the ideas in this article have given you some ideas to explore.

“Organizing is what you do before you do something, so that when you do it, it is not all mixed up.” - A. A. Milne It’s not uncommon for to-dos and commitments to feel overwhelming. When your life is moving faster than you can keep up, a sense of unease can weave its way through your body - and that doesn’t feel good!  In turn, stress starts to bubble up as you begin to worry about when you’ll get everything done - and who you should aim to please first.  But here’s some good news… We often think lack of time is the core problem. It’s not! It’s not the amount of time you have that matters. It’s what you’re able to accomplish in the time that you do have.  This is where organization counts.  If you’re always reacting, you’ll find yourself on the back foot - and that’s frustrating because you’ll feel like you’re always playing catch up.  But take back control of your life by organizing what you can, and you’ll free up bandwidth, time, and energy. In turn, you’ll feel more spaciousness, freedom, and peace of mind.  Best of all, organization doesn’t need to feel rigid and routine. Find the tactics that work for you, and you might actually create the space you’ve been craving.  Here are FIVE tips to try.  Get it out of your head!  You’ll be surprised how much bandwidth and energy you eat up through overthinking.  When a laundry list of things you have to do [and people you have to please] is constantly swirling around your head, the intensity starts to rise. In turn, it’s harder to think straight or focus which means your productivity plummets even further.  One of the best things you can do for yourself is to get everything out of your head and onto paper.  • Make a to-do list. • Jot down things you have to remember and do in your journal or notebook.  • Capture dates on your calendar • List out your errands With words on paper, your brain no longer needs to hold all that information - because it can trust you won’t forget. Best of all, you get the pleasure of a dopamine hit every time you check something off! [Don’t underestimate the power of this.] With the help of pen and paper, you get to reclaim headspace, focus, and energy and redirect all those resources onto tasks and activities that really do move the needle.  Not only will your brain [and your life] feel more organized, but you’ll find the overwhelm will dissolve a little too.  Leverage your schedule Your schedule provides an invaluable insight into your life. Chances are the things on your schedule get done. With that in mind, are you using your calendar/planner to its full potential?  Whether you use a Self Journal, a Self Planner, or a calendar, these tools are incredible for organizing your time and your life.  Instead of leaving things to chance, make space for them - not just meetings, but date night, playtime with your kids, phone calls to the people you want to feel close with. Schedule in time to make your meals, go to the gym, or do the exercise class. Make time for your to-dos AND make time for the fun activities, which light you up.  The more diligent you are with the way you allocate your time, the more organized you’ll feel [and the less stress will show up.] Prioritize your tasks There are so many things you could do.  But not every task is created equally. Some tasks act like levers to trigger a big impact. Other tasks are more inconsequential and while it might feel good to check them off, they don’t make a big difference to your life.  When organizing your tasks and your schedule, take a moment to assess your priorities too.  Focus on the rocks.  Then prioritize your workload using a tool such as the Weekly Action Pad or the Eisenhower Matrix.  The Eisenhower Matrix is a powerful time management framework that can help you categorize tasks and make your workload more manageable. You can grab the PDF download here. Organize your goals As humans, we have an inherent desire to continually get better. It’s one of the reasons we always have a desire for more. It’s not that we’re not satisfied. Instead, it’s your growth needs calling! You don’t arrive at your final destination when you break through that glass ceiling! Instead, a whole new plain of possibility opens up for you.  This is why who you become as a result of going after your goals is just as important as the goal itself.  The journey along the way shapes who you are - because goals force you to get out of your comfort zone, face your fears, and step into a bigger and bigger version of your best self.  This is the real power of goal setting… When you set goals, you create a context of what’s important and where you want to go. Through the process of developing a goal, you decide what’s important - and what’s less so. In this way, goals become a compass that helps you figure out which tasks to do - and which to drop.  So don’t leave your goals to chance.  Instead, figure out the action steps you need to see through to move the needle in the right direction. Set yourself a deadline too because it will create the urgency to move.  And remember, it’s not the giant leaps alone that make the difference.  The momentum you create through your daily habits is equally powerful because consistent actions ignite the compound effect - which leads to exponential growth. For more tips about organizing and setting goals, watch this training video. Organize your thoughts and ideas Are you the type of person who has a million and one ideas?  Our ability to think, innovate, create, and problem solve is one of the joys of being human. Ideas really can change your world. It’s as Jim Rohn said, “Sometimes all you need to open the door is just one more good idea.” The problem is a lot of our good ideas and insights get lost in the flurry of life. Ideas and insights are often fleeting… there one second and gone the next as a new thought loop kicks in. This is where notebooks become insanely valuable.  You can use them to capture your ideas as they show up - and then write through the chain of thought to see where an idea has the potential to lead.  Discover 20 ways to use notebooks to boost your productivity, creativity, and performance. Journaling is a process and practice that’s equally valuable. Daily journaling can help you organize your thoughts, strengthen your mindset, and help you understand the way your life is unfolding. As Socrates said, “An unexamined life is not worth living.”  For more journaling tips to boost your effectiveness, check out this podcast.  It’s great to be spontaneous and go with the flow. There’s freedom in feeling you can do what you want, when you want.  The challenge is to balance that desire while being productive and effective.  Fortunately, organization will help you get your ducks in a row - so you’re able to do more in less time… giving you the spaciousness inside which your best self can flourish.  You’ve got this!

Can you believe it?!  The year is almost at a close - and what a year it has been! December is traditionally the month for reflective mode and thinking about our next-step plans.  So how can you end the year on a high and empower yourself to move into the new year with clarity, focus, and motivation?  This article contains a 6-step formula that will help you reflect on this year and then plan the next in a way that your best self can thrive.  Let’s dive in!  Step 1. Reflect Before you start thinking about your next-step goals, take some quality time to reflect on the year that’s about to close. Reflection is a powerful way to prep for effective planning because it allows you to see your year through the lens of hindsight.  Hindsight is 20/20 vision. When you look back knowing what you know now, it’s so much easier to see why certain things didn’t work out as expected! Hindsight allows you to extract the lessons, and learnings life gives you through experience. In turn, your next steps become more powerful and confident.  What’s your last year's reflection?  Here are some questions to think over.  1. What were the highlights of your year and why? 2. What didn’t go as planned, and what did you learn from these experiences? 3. What brought you joy? 4. What created frustration and discomfort? 5. What would you like to leave in the past year - and what would you like to take forward into the new year?  Step 2. Own who you’ve become?  We live in an age of instant gratification fuelled by dopamine hits! We want everything NOW - including our biggest goals! But that’s not how life works. Life isn’t about getting to a particular destination as fast as we possibly can. Instead, it’s about the constant evolution and learning to smell the roses along the way. In the words of Zig Ziglar, “What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.” Even if you had to let go of big goals and dreams, making them no longer possible, humans are adaptable. We have a beautiful ability to pivot and shift our focus and figure things out with what we’ve got. So while the past year may not have been the year you imagined, it gave you something.  So take some time to figure it out.  Grab your journal and reflect on the person you’ve become BECAUSE of your experiences.  Look back to the beginning of the year and get clear on the gap you did close.  Step 3. What now? Given who you are and what you’ve achieved, what do you want to do next?  If you could wave a magic wand, what would you love to create in the year ahead to build a life that nurtures and expresses your best self? Remember, it’s not about the big goals you achieve, but the happiness you create for yourself as a result of the things you choose to commit to.  It’s always a good idea to start with a brainstorm of possibilities. You can use the life categories in the BestSelf Benchmark to help organize your thoughts:  1. Health2. Finances3. Work / Career4. Relationships5. Personal growth6. Mindfulness Ask yourself, what would you like to achieve in each of these areas? Don’t censor your thoughts at this stage; just write everything done.   It’s also fun to write out your bucket list. You’re more likely to achieve the desires you write down because they’re no longer just a concept in your mind. Step 4. Prioritize It’s often a mistake to try and tackle everything at once. You’ll just get overwhelmed, which will steal your motivation leaving you feeling frustrated and disappointed that you didn’t move the needle further.  If you can’t do everything, you have to take some time to figure out which goals are the biggest priority for you NOW. Focus is key. Each day, we have a finite amount of time and energy. It’s essential to use these resources optimally, to make the biggest impact.  Or we risk getting stuck and feeling stagnated.  The 80/20 rule is a useful framework for prioritization because this mindset will help you to identify the goals with the highest leverage.  You’ll also need to figure out the order in which you’ll tackle your goals. When you look down your list, you’ll see that some of your desires lie further back along the line of dominos.  What dominos do you need to topple first to knock down the later goals?  Step 5. Think in 90-day chunks One of the most powerful things you can do for your goals is to set yourself 90-day targets. Ninety days is the goal-setting sweet spot because it’s long enough to achieve something significant, but short enough to keep the deadline close enough to fend off procrastination.  One of the reasons we struggle to achieve one-year or five-year goals is because the deadline is so far in the future. Humans have a tendency to push off things for later! If you have a year to hit your target, it’s easy to convince yourself that you’ll do it tomorrow.  Then before you know it, tomorrow becomes never - and the needle didn’t move!  In comparison, give yourself three months and there’s urgency.  It’s how 90-day goals can help you achieve more in a quarter than other people achieve in a year.If you’re ready to set [and achieve] some 90 days goals, the Self Journal is the perfect accountability tool to help you. Inside, you’ll find goal-setting templates, weekly planning and reflection tools, as well as a powerful daily layout designed to help you win the day and leverage your time and energy. Step 6. Take action!  The difference between a dream and reality is the action you take. Nothing changes until you put committed feet forward.  But don’t worry!  You don’t have to take massive uncomfortable leaps to move the needle on your life. Compounded baby steps combine to create an incredible impact.  The secret is to start.  Then commit.  The secret is to keep moving forward - no matter what - knowing that you do have what it takes to navigate life’s challenges and figure out the inevitable roadblocks that will show up along the way.  And remember, you don’t have to do this alone. Instead, find the people who will get in your corner and cheer for you. Accountability is a powerful motivator that will inspire you to go further and faster than you could ever go by yourself.  Most importantly, know that you’ve got this.  Look at everything you’ve accomplished to get to this exact point in time.  Just imagine where you could go next.

Life is full of twists and turns and ups and downs. But it’s reassuring to know that we have the power to switch on our own joy.  Even on the busiest of days, there’s always an opportunity to make space to feel good.  The secret is to make time to indulge yourself.  Give yourself permission to focus on self-care, put yourself first, and make time for what makes you happy. This involves cultivating the mindset that empowers you to drop the ‘shoulds’ and the ‘musts’ and push off any guilt so you can make a little more time for the things that light you up.  The upside is so worth it.  If you’re able to switch on happiness, not only do you feel elevated emotions, but you’ll also empower yourself to ride the wave of productivity, creativity, and optimism that follows.  So how can you make happiness a regular occurrence?  The secret is two-fold.  1. Discover what brings you joy. 2. Embody the habits that make you happy Let’s explore this two-part puzzle in more detail.   What brings you joy? It sounds obvious, but if you want to feel happier, first spend some time figuring out what brings you joy.  Here’s the secret… You don’t have to reinvent your entire life, and you don’t need a big budget either. Instead, put together a list of go-to activities and moments that make you feel good in your skin and switch on all the feel-good vibes. For example, your plan might include:  • Reading• Meditation• Yoga• Self-education• Practicing gratitude• Walking barefoot on the beach• Wild swimming• Having a massage, a facial, or a mani-pedi• Driving out somewhere• A long, leisurely cup of coffee• A lie-in• A Netflix binge • Mini-break or an overnight stay• Watching a great movie• A hug• Cooking a delicious meal from scratch• Writing• Dancing• Playing a game• Crafting• An in-depth conversation with someone you care about - Deeper Talk can help• Listening to a great podcast [quick plug! We recommend Writing Your Best Self!!]   The secret is to discover what brings you joy. Make your happiness a habit  With your list complete, it’s time to figure out how you’ll weave more of the things you love into your life. It’s tempting to say that you don’t have time - and you’d be right. We all live hectic, busy lives after all. But here’s the thing; your happiness doesn’t depend on your amount of spare time. Instead, it’s all about the way you allocate your hours.  In other words, with the right planning strategies, you can mastermind your day [and therefore your life] to evoke more everyday joy. Here’s how…  Choose your non-negotiables.  A non-negotiable is something that you do regardless.  It’s an activity that’s such an ingrained part of your identity that you figure out a way to make it happen - even if the odds are stacked against you.  When it comes to your happiness, pick a selection of activities that you’ll make your non-negotiables.  Consider picking activities for different timescales. For example: • Daily habits: You might switch on happiness with a great book, practicing gratitude, and taking a walk in nature.  • Weekly habits: You might designate Sunday mornings as your lie in time - fuelled by an incredible cup of coffee • Monthly habits: Treat yourself to a monthly massage or an overnight stay somewhere so you can explore a new place Use your schedule What gets scheduled gets done.  If you leave your happiness habits to chance, the likelihood is they won’t happen. Instead, something else will swallow up your time, and you’ll be left feeling frustrated with lower happiness levels than you needed to settle for.  Your Self Journal is the perfect place to ensure you make time for the things that bring you joy.  Schedule your happiness habits with the same rigor and commitment as you would a client presentation, work deadline, or other appointments. Block out time in your day to make space for the things that make you feel good and allow other commitments to fit around your non-negotiables.  Let go of the belief that you don’t have enough time because chances are you will!  After all, how much time do you waste through procrastination when you’re feeling demotivated or bored?  When you infuse more of what you love into your day, don’t be surprised if your creativity and productivity soar. When your cup is full, it’s a lot easier to pack more into your life without depleting your energy. Drop the guilt A lot of us were raised on the belief that hard work leads to success. It’s one of the reasons we can feel guilty for taking time out and making space for the things that bring us joy.  Here’s the thing… If you allow guilt to tinge your happiness habits, they won’t feel as good.  What’s more, if you’re feeling your best, then it’s going to be a lot easier for you to perform at the top of your game. If you have a hard time making time for you, it’s time to change the story.  Make time for happiness, and pretty soon, it could become your secret effectiveness weapon!  Reflect on your success Reflection is a proven way to learn from your efforts so you can tweak and improve going forward. Your Self Journal has a weekly review page where you can reflect on your week as well as take some decisions about how you’ll make the next week as good - or even better.  Use this space to understand the difference your happiness habits are making to your mental and emotional well-being.  • Do you include the right habits - or do you need to swap in something else? • Are you making time for the things you love? • What difference is your happiness time making to you and your life?  When you see a progression, it’s a lot easier to inspire yourself to keep on moving forward.  Keep yourself accountable Finally, ask yourself how you’re going to make your happiness habits stick.  One way is to use a habit tracker. Simply check off each day to create a winning streak. Before long, your streak will create a chain that will be more painful to break than you get the habit done.  You can discover more accountability suggestions when you listen to how to stay accountable to yourself and your goals. “Happiness is a direction, not a place.” — Sydney J. Harris Happiness is something we create - it’s not something that we obtain.  It’s also a feeling that fuels the good life - which is why we all crave it.  So don’t leave your happiness to chance. Instead, make your happiness a habit with the help of this simple five-step plan. I wonder how your life will evolve as a result.

When you think about achieving success, you might think it’s all about the bold actions you need to take. But that’s not entirely true.  While action is an essential piece of the success puzzle, there are other factors at play that have the potential to make or break your goals.  One of those is your ability to be grateful for where you are while you’re walking the path to where you want to go next.  Keep reading, and I’ll explain why gratitude can skyrocket your success - and make you feel happier too.  What is gratitude?  “Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions.” – Zig Ziglar In simple terms, gratitude is the practice of being consciously thankful for the things in your life.  It’s the emotion you feel when you acknowledge and appreciate the people you love, the things you have, and the person you are.  What’s more, it’s an emotion that you can evoke anytime you choose - because you get to decide what you will and won’t feel gratitude towards. How does gratitude create success and happiness?  “When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.” —Willie Nelson 1. Gratitude makes you feel better Take a moment right now to acknowledge something in your life that you’re grateful for.  You could choose to focus on your health, your family, or your security. What’s equally valid is focusing on the little things - such as the feel of a hot cup of tea on a cold day, the sun glinting through the clouds, or the book you’re reading that’s igniting something inside of you.  As you allow yourself to feel grateful, notice how you feel - then allow yourself to intensify and elevate those good feelings until they wash all over you.  This simple experiment is proof that gratitude can transform the way you feel - almost instantly. Through the practice of gratitude, you can switch on feelings of happiness, contentment, peace, satisfaction, and abundance at will.   You are in control. Because there’s ALWAYS something to be grateful for [regardless of what’s happening in your life], gratitude is a tool you can lean on to elevate your emotions anytime you want to feel differently.  In this way, gratitude can change your experience of life.  Your experience of life is related to your perspective. You get to choose whether you see the upside or the downside in the situations and circumstances that come your way.  In other words, happiness is always within your grasp because through gratitude; you get to feel more of the emotions that make you feel good.  The reason gratitude works is because this practice releases the neurotransmitters dopamine and serotonin - two vital feel-good chemicals.  In turn, gratitude can help you better navigate stress and anxiety. 2. Gratitude improves your relationships We all lead busy lives, and in the hustle and bustle of everyday living, it is easy to take the people you love the most for granted.  We don’t mean too; it’s just that other things grab our attention and create distractions and points of focus.  Gratitude in our relationships creates space inside which you can pause and reflect on the things you love and appreciate about others.  Again, the small things matter as much as the big things.  For example, when was the last time you sent an “I appreciate you” text to your partner, your children, a friend or a family member?  What would happen if you told your partner how grateful you are for them taking care of the tasks you hate?  Gratitude brings us closer to the people we love because through gratitude, we demonstrate our love. In this way, gratitude ignites a spiral of increasing connection.  Appreciation makes people feel more seen, heard, and valued. It builds trust and respect. In turn, they feel more inspired to show up fully in the relationship. This strengthens your connection, which deepens your love.  Consistent appreciation is one way to make your relationship stronger the longer you are together.   Healthy relationships create a robust foundation for you to explore and discover the next version of your best self. When you feel seen, loved, and supported by the people closest to you, it’s easier to step up and take risks. It’s easier to dream bigger, and in turn, your success and happiness builds. 3. Gratitude inspires confident action You can’t achieve your goals unless you take action, and some of your biggest goals will require you to take a risk and do things you’ve never done before.  You have to encourage yourself to put courage over comfort and put yourself out there - even if you’re feeling nauseous and your heart’s pumping like a drum!  Gratitude is a powerful foundation to take action upon.  That’s because gratitude elevates feelings of optimism and abundance, making it easier for you to do the things that feel scary. Imagine how powerfully you’d show up for life if you were ALWAYS able to find something to be grateful for. When you’re grateful, you’re able to imagine ‘what if I CAN do this’  instead of instantly undermining yourself and your capabilities.  Gratitude also helps you bounce back from disappointment, failure, and mistakes quicker. If you’re able to look for the silver lining and focus your energy on that, you feel empowered to navigate and rise from setbacks more powerfully and purposefully.  It’s true! Gratitude does make you braver.  Which, by default, means gratitude also makes you more successful! Tips for practicing gratitude “Enjoy the little things. For one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.” – Robert Brault When you consciously acknowledge the good in your life, you can’t help but feel good. Gratitude is a practice that purposefully creates those feelings. Best of all, you can create them anytime you like.  All you have to do is notice something, pause, and be grateful.  Ready to integrate more gratitude into your life?  You can, with the help of these three simple tips.  Reflect on what you're grateful for - the Gratitude Journal or Self Journal will help. Weave this practice into your daily routine and make gratitude a habit. Download the 101 Small Things To Be Grateful For PDF and use it to inspire and shake up your gratitude practice.

Life is full of abundance. Don’t believe me; look at nature! It’s plentiful!  There’s something powerful about being able to see your life through the lens of a glass half full, rather than half empty. Optimism and positivity can inspire you to see more good around you than there is ‘bad’.  Sure, this approach takes discipline.  Negativity can be addictive as well as draining. It’s easy to find yourself pulled into a downward spiral when you focus on what you don’t have - rather than what you do.  So if you’re ready to transform your default mindset so that you can see ALL the hidden gifts in your life, this article is for you.  Keep reading and discover FIVE different practices that will remind you how blessed you actually are. Practice reflection Reflection is the practice of looking back so that you can learn through the eyes of hindsight.  Hindsight is powerful because it gives you 20/20 vision. When you know how things worked out, it’s easy to see what you could have done differently [or better] to create a different outcome. With hindsight, it’s easy to understand the actions you took to create the positive results you enjoyed. These learnings are gifts - gifts that enhance your skills, your confidence, your plans, and your knowledge etc.  Reflection allows you to extract the gifts that could otherwise sink under the radar and disappear in the flurry of life.  What’s more, your gifts from reflection are gifts that keep on giving because they stop you from repeating avoidable mistakes, which can help you achieve your goals faster and easier.  So decide to reflect regularly. It’s a powerful way to find the hidden gifts in your day. Be open to seeing your gifts Some gifts are obvious; for example, the coffee bought by your friend or the bouquet your partner brought home from work.  Other gifts show up in disguise. In fact, they don’t even feel like gifts when you first receive them! For example, some gifts come in the form of significant challenges that rattle you.  But it was thanks to those challenges that you made a decision or took an action that turned your life down a better path entirely.  The secret is to look for ALL the gifts that come into your life. Yes! Even the ones that aren’t wrapped up in a bow.  Choose to believe that life is always sending you the good stuff because energy flows in the direction of your attention. Practice gratitude Gratitude is one of the simplest, but most powerful ways to turn every day into a gift.  It’s easy to practice gratitude. All you need to do is write down the things you’re grateful for along with reasons why. The secret for enjoying insane happiness through appreciation is to LOWER the bar [now that’s something we don’t often say!]  Here’s why… It’s easy to feel grateful for the big stuff - like a perfect launch, a big bonus, or a dream vacation. However, these big things don’t happen every day.  If you only celebrate the big things, you’ll tune out the everyday miracles and magic that’s present in EVERY moment of your life.  Such as an incredible sunset, the perfect field of flowers, a warm cup of coffee on a cold day, a book that lights you up, a conversation with a friend, a hug from a loved one… my list could go on.  When you take a moment to acknowledge and appreciate these small things, life suddenly feels a lot more full.  What’s more, because the things that you appreciate, appreciate, the more you focus on the good stuff, the more good things you’ll attract into your life.  For gratitude ideas that lower the bar, download this free 101 gratitudes PDF. Define your Win The Day score The Win The Day score is another way to find and notice your gifts. You’ll find this feature on the Self Journal’s daily pages.  To rate your day, you have to revisit your experiences and assess how ‘good’ they were. It’s a simple practice that’s a lot deeper than first meets the eye.  To choose a rating, you have to reflect. You have to think about who you’ve been, what you did, and what you enjoyed. You have to think about how you felt and decide where on the spectrum between 1-10 your day sits.  While we all have ‘bad’ days [and you’re definitely allowed to have them], a low rating is an invitation to think about how you can approach tomorrow differently. As a bonus, a daily rating allows you to see a pattern over time - creating a visual reminder of how in love with your life you are. Consciously create gifts Finally, your ability to see gifts in your day is all a matter of perspective.  What one person perceives as a gift could be someone else’s nightmare!  The secret is that you get to CHOOSE your experience because you are the one in the driver’s seat of your life. For example, you get to decide how:  • You spend your time - and whether that time will create gifts in the form of memories and achievement. • High or low your gift bar sits.• Alert you’ll be to the gifts that show up.   It’s up to you :-)  Your best self is always unfolding. Each day, you have the opportunity to move the needle on your life in a beautiful way.  These five simple, but powerful practices are here to help you celebrate the micro-moments as you walk the path to your bigger goals.  Use them to inspire yourself, cultivate a positive mindset, and feel unstoppable.  You’ve got this.  

“The greatest gift is not being afraid to question.” – Ruby Dee It’s an understatement to say that the past years are filled with the unexpected and unpredictable.  But there’s also untapped potential in the current climate. Sure, we’re living in a different time with a new set of challenges. For example, we’re exploring and adapting to new ways of connecting and living.  But in the process, we have the chance to design and visualize a future that would not have been possible 12 months ago.  It’s with this positive perspective that I offer you some planning questions in this article.  There’s a lot of power to be found in figuring out a way to make the most of challenging situations. With that in mind, explore these questions through a lens of positivity and optimism - even if resistance shows up.  In the process, you could find yourself making plans and dreaming about goals that excite you in a totally new way.  But before I reveal the questions for planning your future, let’s explore why this approach is so powerful. The power of questions.  “A wise man’s question contains half the answer.” – Solomon Ibn Gabiro Questions are powerful self-development tools that are easy to access.  Questions work due to a neural process called instinctive elaboration. In short, your brain is hard-wired to answer questions! Here’s how you’ll benefit from asking better questions:  • Engage your mind. Challenge your brain to create, innovate, and problem-solve. • Direct your focus and attention. When you ask a question of yourself, you guide your mind down a specific pathway. • Pattern interrupt. Ask a different question, and you’ll invite a new thread of thought, which can inspire you to think differently and unlock fresh ideas. • Curiosity. Leading to new points of view. • 95% of your brain’s activity is subconscious. Questions can help you unlock knowledge you didn’t know you had.• Innate wisdom. Questions help you discover more about who you are leading to heightened self-discovery, self-awareness, and ultimately self-trust and self-love.  The Six Questions  Now you understand the power of questions; it’s time to grab your journal, reflect over these deep-dive prompts, and unlock insights that will help you finish the year strong. What actually matters to you?  The previous year has shown us that a lot of things we prioritized weren’t as important as we thought.   Use this question to pull away all the fluff and get to the core of what’s most important to you. This question will help you reset and rethink; creating the space to plan a future based on what’s truest for you.  What are your new goals?  Given where you are now, what do you want to achieve, and why?  You may have to rethink your direction because the world has changed. A lot of people have been ‘cheated’ out of their pre-COVID goals. That said, it’s empowering to put a line in the sand, embrace the current climate, and create something beautiful regardless.  What could you do next?  Start by writing a list of possibilities. In the process, you’ll uncover the new opportunities that exist for you. And when you’re ready to commit to a goal and dive into some in-depth planning, the Self Journal has your back.  Where are you slipping at the moment? After the year we’ve had, you’d be forgiven for letting things slip! But there comes a time when you need to dust yourself off and get back into focus mode.  Be honest! Where have your standards slipped? Where has your energy or effort dropped? Where has your commitment waned?  If you’re meeting resistance as you think about this question, get clear on what slipping has cost you. It will give you that extra bit of incentive to get back on track.  What can you do to get back in control of your life?  One of the scariest things about the past years is the falling apart of so many things we took for granted. Change on this scale is scary - and it can leave you feeling out of control.  Here’s the truth… You may not be able to control external circumstances and events, BUT you can always control the way you react to them. Your mindset - i.e. your beliefs, thoughts, and behaviors are always in your control.  With that in mind, what actions can you take to feel as though you’re back in the driver’s seat of your life?  What routines and habits will you adopt?  Change rarely happens overnight, and this can get frustrating. We’re impatient! As a result, we undervalue the power of daily baby steps.  This is the power of your habits and routines.  If you can distill your goals into small daily actions, you can put the compound effect into your life.  What could you start TODAY to move the needle in the direction you want to go? How can you find peace and happiness in your life?  Stress, anxiety, burnout, worry etc. All these challenging emotions can throw us off balance and leave us feeling unsettled.  Even when chaos surrounds you, there’s always something you can do to reclaim a sense of peace. There’s always something you can smile about to feel happier.  What are these for you? Time to step up  There’s still time to turn it around and enter the new year with a feeling of progress and a sense of optimism.  With the help of these planning questions, you’re in a position to move forward powerfully.  Whatever you decide to create next, know you’ve got this.

September is Self-Improvement Month, which sets a great reminder that taking care of yourself is a vital part of feeling your best and living a life that you’re proud of. Self-improvement can happen in the form of self-care, and can be implemented in many forms, including physical, mental and emotional practices. Each derives a different area of improvement that is associated with your body’s performance and mental health and can bring you to a stronger and healthier state of mind. Self-care involves participating in an activity that boosts your overall well-being. These can be things that you enjoy doing on a daily basis, like reading, drawing or going for a walk. Everyone’s self-care regimen is different based on lifestyle and personal preferences, but just as long as you’re incorporating the things that make you feel like your best into a schedule, you’re leading yourself to a happier and more well-rounded version of yourself. Although Self-Improvement Month is within a specific timespan, this does not mean that you need to reach every single self-care goal you’ve set for yourself within one month, or go back to an old or unhealthy way of life after the month is over. Instead, it gives you an opportunity to kickstart self-improvement goals that can be reached over a longer period of time. Yes, it’s possible to have a “glow up” within 30 days, but realistically it could take years for an individual to properly prioritize personal care and recognize their self-worth depending on their life experiences. To learn more about what you can do to spark a self-care transformation, here are some tips to follow: Start a Writing Journal Journaling your daily thoughts can help you reflect on both the positive and negative situations you’re enduring in your life. This is especially beneficial if it’s challenging for you to communicate to others about what you’re going through. Writing improves your mood, calms the body and helps you identify the frequency of certain thoughts that are heavy on your mind. Journaling is an extremely beneficial self-care technique. It helps to clear your mind of self-doubt and gives you time to reflect on certain life experiences while taking a deeper dive into your emotions. What you write about can be anything you want it to be. As long it helps you improve your mental, emotional and spiritual wellness, you can count this self-care regimen as a success. According to Penzu, it’s important to set a time for how long you want to write. Ideally, this should be between 5-20 minutes, and done consistently throughout the week in a quiet, non-distracting space where you can relax and focus. If it helps, put your smartphone or laptop in another room to avoid hopping on social media or answering phone calls and text messages. If you need a background noise to be able to write to the best of your ability, there are plenty of zen playlists on Apple Music or Spotify that you can utilize. Depending on your music preferences, you can also customize a playlist for journaling so you’re listening to some of your favorite tunes when you write. Begin a New Hobby Hobbies are a great way to get yourself involved in the community, and an even more fantastic way to meet new people. It might be helpful to look online for organizations and teams that are in need of assistance. This could be within recreational sports groups, volunteering services and classes that are hosted by people who are passionate about providing to society. You can join Facebook groups based on your interests and chat up individuals who have been involved to get a glimpse into their experience. Knowing that you are involved in the things that you enjoy participating in or giving back to creates a spread of positivity change, resulting in a more powerful self-reflection and appreciation for your own personal growth. During the time of COVID-19, it may be difficult to find a hobby that is open to the public depending on where you’re from, but at-home hobbies can be just as fun and simple. If you're a crafty person, start a small-business to spread your creativeness to others. If you enjoy fitness, find online yoga or exercise classes to improve your physical health. Do you like spending time outside? Find local hikes to visit when you want to be in nature, or build and maintain your own garden to have fresh foods available nearby when you want to cook a nutritious meal. This might take a few trials to find exactly what you enjoy, but once you do, you’ll find that you’re happier and involved with people with common interests. Dive Into Your Finances Financial health can be a trigger to emotional and mental stress, as without a saving and spending system in place for your personal finances, it can make you feel overwhelmed that you won’t have enough in your checking account to provide for yourself. Due to the challenges that could be associated with underlying money management issues, like late bill payments or overspending, it’s important to incorporate personal finances into your self-care routine. Ultimately, we want to have full control over our finances, and to be able to comfortably create short- and long-term financial goals. But when you’re not organized, your mental health could take a toll and result in depression, anxiety or even anger.Developing financial habits isn’t a simple walk in the park at first. It takes time to learn how to organize your bills, create a spending plan and to properly invest your money. Whether this stress is coming from your source of income or poor financial wellness, there are many resources that can help you self-improve and adjust to a better financially friendly lifestyle. With smartphones completely taking over today’s world with apps, information and digital tools, financial-technology is boosting in popularity and giving people a savvy way of managing their finances. Along with expense tracking apps and personal budget software’s, there are app-based banking solutions without a credit check that can help you manage your money regardless of how challenging your financial situation is and how far along you are with developing a self-care routine. By utilizing your mobile device for organization, you can simply access thousands of resources meant to reduce money-related stress and anxiety from anywhere, and in seconds.  Participate in Random Acts of Kindness To cultivate kindness is to create a positive environment for yourself and those around you. When individuals view you as someone who spreads good vibes and remains calm through difficult situations, they are more likely to emulate your behavior—creating even more generosity among a wider population. There are many ways you can participate in random acts of kindness, even something as simple as complimenting another person goes a very long way. Other options include sending a card to a friend showing your appreciation for them, making a donation to a cause that you’re passionate about and even treating someone to a coffee or lunch once in a while. Spreading kindness doesn’t have to be anything extravagant, but rather a simple conversation or plan to show your family, friends and others that you care. Read or Listen to Podcasts Self-help and motivational books consist of tips and tricks that can help you improve certain areas of your life. Depending on your topic preferences, you can find books for almost every subject—from relationship advice, to nutrition and exercise, to career growth. Reading about the parts of your life that you want to improve on can give you additional insight into more ideas that can help you achieve your goals, and even reading books on the same subject by different authors can give you numerous perspectives too.  Podcasts are another great outlet for self-improvement advice. These can be found on music subscription websites like Spotify or Apple Music, or on blogs and other media outlets that provide personal wellness content. Podcasts can be listened to while you’re working, driving in the car, hiking or even when you’re hanging out around the house. If you’re struggling to find one that you like, ask other people about what they’ve listened to, or read reviews online about what others have to say about certain podcasters and how they frame their conversations. Some individuals talk about personal topics and life experiences, while others share general information and life tips. Don’t be afraid to listen to a preview before following a podcaster to ensure you know that it will be something you enjoy. Sustain a Daily Routine  Beginning your day with something productive, health-oriented or an activity that brings you joy is imperative to maintain. Mornings are a crucial part of your daily routine because what you do with the first few hours of your day can depict how the rest of your afternoon and evening play out in terms of your productivity and mood. Start with something simple like waking up and going to bed at a consistent time to keep yourself on a better sleeping schedule. Eating healthy meals is another vital part of feeling your best on a daily basis. Avoid skipping one to keep your energy levels high and to avoid head and stomach aches from a lack of nutrition.  In terms of organizing your daily schedule, use a planner to map out the hours of your day and check off each completed task to visualize your success.  Using colored pens, sticky notes and labels can bring more creativity and organization to your planner, and can make it easier for you to categorize the different components of your routine, such as exercise, meals and work related tasks. If you’d rather use a digital method to craft and keep track of your plans, look into calendar apps or other internet services that provide online planners that are compatible with all phone providers. In some cases, these apps can be used on a laptop, phone and tablet, which extends your ability to use them across all of your devices. Self-Improvement Month is the perfect time to envision, create and share a new and improved version of yourself. This process doesn’t have to happen overnight, and can take some time. The more you focus on yourself, for yourself, the better you’ll feel about the person you are becoming.