You started the day ready to take on the world. From the moment you got out of bed, you’ve been thinking about all the things you’re going to get done today. You can’t wait to get started!
Then it all falls apart.
By the end of the day, you're grumpy and out of sorts. The day somehow derailed, and here you are, feeling like you didn't accomplish half the things you wanted to today. What happened?
Well, sometimes life really does get in the way. The car won’t start, or the dog gets out, and you spend half the morning chasing him around the neighborhood. Life gets in the way. More often than not, though, you likely did what most people do: you crashed and burned. Somewhere... you just ran out of energy.
So, how do you maintain your energy levels even on the toughest of days?
Check-in With Yourself
First of all, you need to be paying attention to your body a little bit more. If you can catch yourself right when your energy begins to waver, you might be able to stave off a massive crash later on. Frequently when we're lagging, it's because we need something small, like a drink of water, a little activity, or even a small snack. These are quick and easy fixes that only take a minute. Ignore them, though, and you're libel to lose hours out of your day before you know it.
Engage in a Routine (or Two)
We tend to burn out energy because we’re scrambling to sort out our day and find the things we need. If you have a morning routine, for example, you’ll have everything near at hand right when you need it. Getting out of the door will take half the energy, giving you reserves for where you need it most. Ask yourself what parts of your day you can streamline by creating a routine and make sure to follow through with those routines as often as possible.
Become More Intentional
Too often, our day becomes filled with little nonsense tasks which take up energy and time. Really, what is it you need to do? What actions will leave the biggest impact on the day? Put your energy where it counts most by being more intentional in what you're doing. Remember, you don't have to be the one to do everything. Delegate the non-essential items to keep yourself focused on what matters.
Eat a Balanced Diet
I know I said easy, and let's face it, proper nutrition isn't all easy when you have multiple priorities pulling you in many different directions. But, time and again, science has shown that a well balanced diet helps keep your energy level high. Eating a balanced diet that includes a variety of unrefined carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, with an emphasis on vegetables and fruits can have a dramatic impact on energy levels. While it's not always easy to do it yourself, it can be simple to bridge the gap between what you should eat and what you do eat with a product like Juice Plus.
Get to Bed!
While a bedtime routine is a great start, pay more attention to your sleep. Create a sleep environment that is free from noise and distraction. Make sure your room is at an optimal temperature, and yes, if need be, invest in a better mattress or new pillows. Omegas should be part of your bedtime routine, and here's why: omega 3s are linked to more consistent sleep cycles (Source: University of Oxford). If you're looking for a great vegan Omega, check these out. Getting a good night's sleep will keep you more energetic throughout the day.
Many situations in life are beyond our immediate control. Some things are unpredictable and unavoidable. However, your mindset is something that you can learn to control 100%.
With practice, your mindset can be whatever you choose it to be. This is a powerful skill to possess. You can overcome nearly any situation with an effective mindset and some patience.
A negative mindset practically guarantees a lot of challenges in life. A positive mindset doesn’t guarantee smooth sailing, but it’s a tremendous help!
Your mindset influences your happiness and success!
Try these techniques to develop a positive mindset that propels you toward the life you want:
- Look for a solution. Looking for a solution is an optimistic perspective. Focusing on the challenge only drags down your mindset and your mood. Those with a positive mindset expect to find a solution to their problems.
- Seeking a solution is much more effective than wallowing in a problem.
- Remember that your mindset is a choice you make. You get to choose your mindset. You might have a tendency to view the world in a certain way right now. However, you can make the choice to have a new mindset that better serves you. You can direct your focus as you choose.
- Be willing and able to laugh at all times. Life is short. There’s humor to be found in many negative situations. If all seems lost, a good laugh isn’t going to hurt, but it might help.
- Use your self-talk to your advantage. What you say to yourself matters. The images you view in your mind and the words you say to yourself influence your thoughts and mindset. Positive words and pictures lead to a positive mindset.
- Fill your mind with positive media. We are bombarded with media constantly. This includes the news, videos, books, and articles just to name a few. Negative input leads to negative output. Choose positive media to put into your brain.
- Think positive thoughts.
- Fill your mind with positive ideas, words, and images.
- Avoid negative media.
- Be grateful. Gratitude is a big part of an effective mindset. You have to be in a positive frame of mind to feel gratitude. Gratitude is a great way to start and to end the day.
- When you’re feeling frustrated, try listing things that make you feel grateful.
- Stay present. Keep your focus on making progress in this very moment. Avoid worrying about the future or dredging up the past.
- Volunteer. Volunteering provides perspective. Putting your attention on someone else is a nice break from your own challenges. Volunteering is also a good way to feel gratitude, too.
Your mindset is one of the things fully under your control. All that is required is to make a conscious effort to seize control of your thoughts and some practice. Mental habits can be challenging to break. We become addicted and habituated to certain thought processes. We’re reactive rather than responsive.
You can’t always control what happens to you, but you can control your reaction to the things that happen to you. By controlling your mindset, you gain far more control over your destiny. You’ll enjoy your life a lot more, too.
Nothing can hold you back quite like stress. Unfortunately, stressors are everywhere. Even a small amount can severely impact your ability to perform. Therefore, it’s important to learn how to deal with your stress effectively.
According to a research study from New York University entitled, “Cognitive Emotion Regulation Fails the Stress Test,” even a small amount of stress negatively impacts a person’s ability to keep their emotions in check. Stress, if unchallenged, can build up in the body and mind.
Stress can also impinge on your love life. One study from 1984 found that chronic stress can have an undesirable impact on sex drive in men. In pregnant women, high levels of stress can have a negative effect on child development. It can also cause issues with body weight. One of my biggest challenges is stress eating! When my stress level is high I turn toward comfort foods but this only damages my health even more, in the long-term.
Finally, stress takes a toll on your heart. When you’re stressed, the hormones circulating in your blood can cause your heart to beat faster than necessary, and make your blood vessels constrict. This increases blood pressure, and can exacerbate an existing heart condition.
It Won’t Happen - Probably
One of the biggest contributors to stress is worry. But, look at it this way: most of the things you worry about probably won’t happen.
Decide here and now to stop mulling over things that are out of your control.
Instead, put that energy into visualizing the outcome you’d like to see. Vividly visualizing the positive has repeatedly been shown to lower stress levels.
Besides, worrying doesn’t contribute to the problem-solving process in any way. When has worry ever actually helped you resolve a crisis? In a stressful situation, you may find yourself asking the question, “What if..?” While that question can get you thinking, the stress-soaked mind isn’t in the position to generate solutions.
Remember that at any given moment, you’re either working on a solution, or you’re spending time worrying. Meditation is a great way to clear your mind and de-stress. To get started, simply designate five minutes out of your day to focus on your breathing.
When your thoughts move away from your breathing - and they will - refocus on each breath. As you gain proficiency, you can increase your sessions from 5 minutes to 10, and then to 15.
Meditation has been shown to reduce stress levels and blood pressure. Although meditation is powerful, there’s an even better way to deal with stress.
Everyday Stressors Add Up
A single neglected weed can take over a garden in a few weeks. Similarly, life’s small stresses quickly add up. Free yourself of these low-grade stressors by taking stock of them, and then drawing up a plan to deal with them one by one.
As you remove the small stressors from your daily life, you’ll empower yourself to deal with life’s larger issues. You’ll have more energy and feel more optimistic. With optimism comes opportunity.
Proactively dealing with stress is like taking off blinders. Suddenly you’ll find new and exciting ways to express yourself. You’ll form deeper relationships with your family and friends. You’ll also feel more gratitude for everyday things. Gratitude has its own rewards.
Get started now by making a list of all the stressors in your life. Once you think you’ve got them all down, step away for a day, and then go back to the list to add any you forgot. Then, go through them one by and write a sentence or two on how you can deal with them. Take action on your ideas. This takes time, but step by step, you’ll feel your stress melting away.
There is a purpose for your life, whether you believe it or not. You may have to take several paths, but with a little digging, you can find where you're meant to be. And, it's NEVER too late to re-discover yourself or find a brand new purpose in life.
The first clue to figuring out, or rediscovering, your purpose in life is to consider what natural talents, gifts and abilities you're born with.
Are you artistic or musical?
Is it easy for you to talk to people?
Are you a natural communicator?
Do you love to socialize?
Do you love to decorate and rearrange your home?
Are you good at taking charge?
Are you creative and crafty?
Do you understand electronics and technical gadgets?
Do you understand computer technology?
Do people compliment you on your style?
Are you a good writer?
Do you have good organizational skills?
Once you figure out what talents naturally live within you, you can then understand what you're supposed to be doing with those gifts and talents. This is your purpose in life.
What Do You Love to Do?
Have you ever sat down and really reflected on what you love to do?
There are literally millions of possibilities, so start with the gifts and talents you were born with. From there figure out what you love to do that requires using those gifts and talents.
- If you're artistic or musical, teaching others how to draw, paint or play an instrument may be your calling in life.
- Being naturally social, you might consider being an organizer for social events.
- If you're always redecorating and rearranging your home, why not get paid to do it and start an interior decorating business?
- Being a natural born leader opens all kinds of doors that could lead you in many different directions. Does your church or other local community groups need someone to head up a department? You may find your purpose there.
- If you're good at making crafty things, helping at a preschool or elementary school may be fulfilling for you. Using your creative ability could open the door to a career in graphic arts as well.
- If you're technically minded, perhaps you might consider using your understanding of electronics to fix equipment or you might enjoy working in an electronics store.
- If you have a strong knowledge of computers, you're certain to find a career online or with a high tech company or you might even consider starting your own business.
- If you're naturally stylish and love to keep up with what's new in the fashion world, perhaps designing your own line of clothing or accessories is your purpose. Or maybe you'd enjoy helping others discover what style works best for them by working in a clothing store. Another option may be to offer your services as a fashion consultant to those who are unemployed, so they can learn how to dress professionally for job interviews.
- The love of writing may be something you don't even realize yet. With blogging becoming the most popular way to market a business, getting paid to write is a great way to make money from home. Many people have started a simple blog that has turned into a money making machine. Start by writing on topics you already have knowledge about and go from there. You might be surprised at how much money you can make with your love of writing.
- Using your organizational skills, you might be fond of going into homes and getting them ready for sale or helping elderly persons organize their homes. You could also offer your services online as an organizational consultant or teach those who aren't naturally organized.
Finding your purpose in life simply takes self-reflection as well as some trial and error. Free yourself from wandering through life without purpose. Use the next chapter of your life to find new gifts, new talents, and new joys! We're all here for a reason and, once your find your purpose and begin living it, you'll feel happy and fulfilled!
If you’re lucky, you’ve already discovered many of your passions and get to spend much of your time enjoying things that bring you excitement and joy. However, maybe you’ve not yet connected with activities, skills, and interests that ignite your passion.
It takes time, soul-searching, and some life experience to identify your true passions. These prompts are written to tap into your wants, needs, desires, and fantasies. Have fun with them and discover what you can add to your life that will fill it with delight.
1. What’s the one thing I’ve always wanted to do? Consider what would need to happen in order for you to carry through with this long-sought wish. Make a plan and get started.
2. If I could spend today doing whatever I desire, what would it be? Let your mind go. It could be something related to your work, your home, or simply a lark.
3. Where do I really want to live? What city and what type of residence? Perhaps you’re already fulfilling this passion and you do live in your true first choice. If not, ponder the possibilities of moving to a place you’ll love.
4. Where would I like to visit? Perhaps you’re harboring a secret yearning to visit Washington, D.C. or Westminster Abbey in London. The streets of Hong Kong may be calling your name or even the Grand Canyon. Can you make it happen?
5. What do I talk about doing but never do it? In a conversation, you might state something like, “For the last 10 years, I’ve really wanted to take a cruise to the Caribbean.”
6. What are the reasons I don’t go after my dreams? Explore within yourself why you haven’t pursued the life you want. Can you do something differently to help bring your dreams to life?
7. How will I finish the sentence, “More than anything, before I die, I want to ___________?” Say it out loud and fill in the blank. Then, figure out a way to accomplish your wish.
8. What are the things in my life that I would like to get rid of? If you’re discovering you don’t love everything about your life, maybe it’s time to do some “housecleaning.” Make a list of the ways you’d like your life to change.
9. Which people in my life inspire me and why? It’s important to know who inspires you so you can spend more time with them. What is it about them that lights you up so much? Decide to take every step to be inspired more often.
10. If I were to make just one radical change in my life right now to make life better, what would it be? Your answer to this question will really open up your possibilities. Moving to a bigger city might really spice up your life. Getting more education might be a goal—plus you’ll likely make more money. You’ll be happier if you chase your dreams. Make 1 change.
11. How do I feel when I put all my effort into accomplishing one of my goals? Notice these feelings. You’ll no doubt want to experience them more often.
12. How do I feel whenever I achieve a life goal? Awesome, probably.
13. What’s missing from my life? Answering this question requires considerable soul-searching.
14. Who are my biggest supporters? It’s wise to know the people that will stand behind you and help you pursue your passions, no matter what.
15. Who gets in the way of me achieving my goals? In order to find your true passions, you might be required to disengage from those who wish to counteract your efforts.
If you take the time to thoroughly ponder each of these questions, you’ll be pleased with what you discover. Your true passions are inside you, just waiting to be let loose to bring you excitement, joy, and fulfillment.
