“Live simply so that others may simply live.”
— Gandhi

When he said to “live simply” did he mean live a life of poverty, give up your worldly goods, etc.? I don’t believe so. But these days it seems to become harder and harder to get our minds around how to live simply. What I think it means is to live a life that doesn’t overwhelm you. If you find that your life is so complicated and busy that you don’t even know who you truly are anymore, it might be an indication that your life needs simplification.

Simplification might also mean learning to say “no” to some of the requests that are placed on you. We are taught to give and and help others, and that is all very good and true. But if you have nothing left of yourself or no time left to give to yourself, how can you keep giving to others?

Slow down, step back, examine your days and your routines. How much of it do you really feel is necessary to keep on the schedule? When you give yourself the gift of simplifying your life, you will actually be giving others the gift of a more complete (and mentally sane) you.

“There’s an infinite amount of work. The big question is what do I have to do today, this week, this month, this quarter?” — Christine Comaford-Lynch

We have all most likely done it more than once in our life. We decide to sacrifice lunch with a friend or figure it’s not that important to get that sleep you so desperately needed. Or what about the classic, “Sure I can do that” when you already have a full agenda… and that new task isn’t even in line with your personal goals.

What would you gain with those choices? There will always be more work tomorrow. This doesn’t mean you should slack off. It is all about real life balance though. And what “real life” balance means, is that things don’t have to be perfect. There may have to be a slight lean on your table when one leg tends to take more attention than the other three at times. It means that you shift and adjust.

But you need to remember that it is supposed to be about joy. It’s supposed to lead you to your happiness. And if somewhere along the road that you find yourself now traveling you realize that you are no longer heading in the right direction, you need to make some real life changes.

And remember, it’s ok to say “no thanks”. It’s ok to say “Hey, this isn’t what I want to be doing now”. “This is not taking me to my joy, my goal, my passion.” Breathe, and get back on track — YOUR track.

“You must BE the change you want to see in the world.”
— Mahatma Gandhi

What could you work on now that would make a difference to your life. Simply pick one thing that you could change or improve that would give you a new start, a new perspective, a new direction.

You may want to look at the things that concern you in the world. Or you could start with your day-to-day routines. Making a difference to your life could be as simple as picking up the clutter in your house. Gives you immediate results (a cleaner house). May help to reduce your levels of stress (mess is stress). And gives you a goal to maintain your new sense of well-being (keeping the clutter from accumulating, therefore less work for the future).

So that was my one thing to make a change quickly and effectively. Now your turn. What’s one thing can you do today to put on your list of successes and make you feel better? Remember, it’s a start. And sometimes that’s all you need to get the journey of change rolling the way you really want it to. Before you know it, there will be a long list of accomplishments to your name.

“Most people are so busy knocking themselves out trying to do everything they think they should do, they never get around to what they want to do.”
— Unknown

Do you feel happiest when you are busy, productive, or working on a project? What happens when you have quiet time? Some people use work to avoid dealing with unhappiness or challenges in their personal lives, such as an unhappy marriage.

In order for happiness to be authentic and last, it must come from more than work. Balance in joy comes when we are with our families, learning new things, helping others, and yes, even when we are in quiet solitude.

See if you are experiencing the busy-bee syndrome, avoiding all that life has to offer and resolve to bring balance in your life through joy in everything and everyone.

“We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee.” — Marian Wright-Edelman

Call it baby-steps, Kaizen theory, day by day. You name it. What it adds up to is change. It may not seem it at first… and it shouldn’t if you are taking it slowly and steadily. But it does make a more lasting impression on your lifestyle and mind. And it actively creates permanent, positive change in your life.

“Appreciation is a powerful tool to shift perspective. Finding something to appreciate during a difficult situation quickly moves the perspective to the big picture from the little picture.”
— Doc Childre and Bruce Cryer, From Chaos to Coherence

What do you have to appreciate in your life right now? During the challenging moments in our life, learning to shift perspective can be the true key to your present and future happiness and success.

In our daily bustle and routine, we may slip into a state of complaint or pity. And it is when we allow our focus to remain on the difficult situations that the pain and challenge seems to amplify.

Allow yourself to find something good in the picture and allow that to grow instead. As you get the benefit of both perspectives you will learn to be consistently thankful and approving, and your life will subsequently grow in value. (more…)

“The truly important things in life — love, beauty, and one’s own uniqueness — are constantly being overlooked.” — Pablo Casals

When we focus on what is important right now, we can become the best we can be even in the most challenging moments. Deciding that the activity or goal in the present moment is the most important thing we can be doing in our lives, we can begin to see things that were previously overlooked due to our distracted minds. Being in the now means that we are not experiencing an urge to be somewhere else, to do something else, or to think about something else.

To achieve this clear state of mind, you must know who you are. Trust that you will do what is right for you at the right time. Mark Twain once said, “I have worried about a great many things in my life. And a few of them actually happened.”

Experience the joy, the self-confidence, and the excellence that comes with living in the now. Let go of what you think should be happening, in order to enjoy and fully experience what is actually happening in your life.

“Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside of them was superior to circumstance.”
— Bruce Barton

There are different moments during the year or the month or even the week that seem particularly busy to me. Sometimes I would even use the term overwhelming. However, I am doing my best to not use that particular term, because I find myself feeling worse when I allow my mind to “feel overwhelmed”. Next thing you know I am using words like “burnt out”, “exhausted”, too tired” and the snowball effect has happened yet again.

My new tactic during the busier periods of my life is allowing myself to expand my energy to be able to handle all that comes my way. It all goes back to the Law of Attraction — if I panic when things seem to get busier or move faster than I can manage, I will only be attracting more things to get worked up over. On the other side of the coin, when I allow myself to believe I can handle it all, despite the apparent circumstances, I will succeed. Remember, focus on the desired outcome — avoid focusing on what you don’t want.

Imagine being happy and balanced and successful no matter what is going on in your life. Even when things don’t appear well on the outside, or when circumstances outside your control happen to you, feeling well and balanced on the inside will make all the difference in your life.

We are finally back home, and after allowing myself a “comatose” day, I am back in the office and back to writing (even if I still feel comatose!). After my week away, and after listening to some very inspirational speakers at the Rules for Renegades Summit in Irvine, California, I realized it is time for my self check-up.

What’s that, you ask? This year is nearly half over. You may not want to think about it but this is the perfect time to take stock of how far you’ve come and to consider what lays ahead. Yup. I am serious.

If you have made any personal or professional commitments, have you been keeping track of where you are now? How much closer to your goal(s) have you come?

Remember, this is not a time to panic or get down if things are not looking the way you sketched it out in your plan yet. It is a time to realize that you need to take bigger steps, keep your promises to yourself, and respect and love yourself enough to do what you really, really want to do — now!

And if you haven’t made any personal commitments and goals yet, there is no better day than today!

Just a little note to let you know that I will do my best to post the dailies even while I am away. But if I don’t get one in here and there, I will be back on track by June 11th… as long as the jet lag doesn’t catch up to me too much.

I’m actually going to be at an interesting conference in Irvine, California to learn from some of the better-known specialists in the Law of Attraction among other things: Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen!

I’ll report back and let you know what I learned and how it all went!