Tag: success

Smart Goals: The Best Goal Setting Practices for Success

Posted on by Orenda Rivers

Today, being successful often comes down to setting and reaching goals. Whether you’re an extrovert or an introvert, a planner or a list maker, the ability to set smart goals is crucial to your well-being. Whether you’re looking to improve your life in general or simply looking for ways to better focus on specific things, smart goals are the answer. Not only do they help you reach your short-term goals but they also help you think long term as well.

What Are Smart Goals?

A smart goal is one that has a specific, measurable outcome. This means you’ll know exactly what you need to do to reach your goal, and how much time you’re willing to invest over a certain period of time. To create a smart goal, identify your goal and break it into steps or milestones. Write down the main points that compose the steps or milestones and review them often as they may change over time. The most important part of creating a smart goal is tracking your progress towards achieving it. When you track your progress, you will be able to see the progress in real-time and adjust accordingly when needed.

To set the perfect goal, start by setting it up in a way that’s specific, measurable, attractive, realistic and time-bound. For example, if your goal is to run a marathon in 2 years, make sure you pick an attainable date and don’t break it down into smaller milestones. You can also see how these different elements come together with our favorite SMART Goal setting examples below:

  • Specific: The specific way to reach my goal
  • Measurable: How I will measure success
  • Attractive: How will this benefit me?
  • Realistic: Is this challenging enough?
  • Time Bound: How long will I work on achieving this goal?

Why Is Setting Smart Goals Important?

Setting smart goals and achieving them is important because it helps you take the first step in building a better life. Imagine, for example, if you are struggling with your school or work performance. If you had set a goal of improving your grades by 10 percent, for example, this would help you focus on what was most important to you. And, as you reached that goal, it would give you confidence in yourself to continue carrying out the task towards other personal goals. Setting smart goals also helps you think long term. Being able to clearly define short-term and long-term goals can help guide your decisions as they relate to what’s important to your life overall. For example: If a friend has asked you to go see her play her first Shakespearean production next week but all of your days are booked up with work commitments, setting smart goals may help show why seeing the play isn’t possible for now but could be in the future when time allows. Additionally, setting smart goals helps guide and motivate your decision making process – which is absolutely crucial when it comes to finding success. Knowing what’s most important will keep you focused on those things instead of being overwhelmed by everything else going on around you – which can lead to procrastination and eventually failure at reaching any of your goals. Now that we’ve shown why setting smart goals is so important, let’s talk about how we can actually do this successfully (and effectively).

Develop a Personal Mission Statement

The first step to setting a goal is to establish a personal mission statement. This is the guiding principle behind your entire life, and it should be based on what you want out of life. If you don’t have a personal mission statement, ask yourself what’s most important to you; this will help guide your goal setting process. Here are some examples of personal missions statements:

• I am determined to live each day to the best of my ability.

• I am a successful investor in the making.

• Every day I create success opportunities for myself by taking smart risks and being creative in everything I do.

Define Your Why

First, it starts with defining your why. Your why is the driving force behind what you’re doing, and it can help you stay motivated. Some examples of your why are “I want to work towards a career in public relations,” or “I want to be able to afford my dream house one day.” Once you have an idea of what your why is, try breaking down that goal into specific steps. In other words, if you want to be a public relations professional, define what exactly that means for your career and how that looks on paper. Next, think about the different types of people who might be interested in pursuing a career in public relations. You might target college students who are looking for something new after graduation or people who are more interested in the social side of the industry rather than publicity-driven events.

Take a Sabbatical Day Challenge

One of the most creative and insightful ways to challenge yourself is by taking a Sabbatical Day Challenge. This type of challenge allows you to take a break from your everyday life and focus on something different for one day. It can be as ambitious as attempting to start a new business or as simple as trying something completely different in your fields of expertise. Imagine if you could make new friends, get a tan in the sun, attend a networking event, or learn a language in just one day. Not only would this give you an opportunity to test out skills that may have been dormant in your life–it would also help you feel more fulfilled and less stressed while giving you time away from your favorite tasks and responsibilities. The key is picking one goal or many goals that will unleash your creativity without being too difficult or stressful to accomplish. You can even do two days if you’re feeling ambitious!

Organize a Free Dinner for Goal Setters

A goal setting example that may be good for you is organizing a free dinner for your closest friends and family. This idea can be useful to anyone looking to get their social circle involved with goal setting and accomplishing their goals too. This could be an amazing way to celebrate the beginning of a new year, as well as start the year off on the right foot. The best tip we have for this example is to make sure you communicate your idea in advance and decide who will provide what so you don’t end up with somebody taking care of all the cooking, cleaning, and other tasks. You also want to organize a time that is mutually convenient for everybody in case they don’t want to stay long or take care of other tasks afterward; it’s important that everyone feels included in this process!

Ask Yourself Uncomfortable Questions

Have you ever noticed that when you have a goal, it can sometimes be easy to get distracted by other things? Like, maybe you start thinking about how much money you could make if money were not an issue. Or how great it would be to live in another country. That’s because, as humans, we often allow our goals to take over our lives. And while these distractions may seem harmless and do help us accomplish the goals we want to achieve, they can actually take away from our overall happiness. So instead of taking on other tasks, try asking yourself some uncomfortable questions that may help you find your motivation again. Maybe ask yourself what is the most important thing for me in life? Or what am I really scared of? These questions will help you prioritize your goals and give them more weight than distractions that are easy to ignore.

Identify Someone Who Can Mentor You

If you don’t know where to start or what you should be focusing on, it can help to identify someone who is better at the activity than you. Look for a mentor who has expertise in the area you want to learn, and then get them involved in your goal setting process. They can share their wisdom with you, offer advice and guidance as you progress, and point out areas of improvement so that you can continue to grow. With this strategy, it doesn’t matter if it’s someone who is already successful in the field or just an expert in general because even an outsider will have valuable insight into the task at hand.

What Are Your Long-term Personal Goals?

In order to make progress, you first have to define exactly what you want to accomplish. That’s why it’s so important to set a long-term goal or personal mission statement. You may want to make this statement something that is very specific and not too general like “I want my life to be more fulfilled” or “I want my family and friends to love me the way I deserve.” A personal goal helps you stay on track by providing direction and motivation. It also gives your life meaning and purpose. These goals can provide an actionable framework for how you should spend your time each day, where you should focus your energy, and what actions will lead you closer to accomplishing them.

What Are Your Professional Goals?

What are your professional goals? These can be anything from reaching a certain level of income to improving your leadership skills. Your goals should challenge you and push you to grow in multiple facets of your life. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to goal setting, so find the one that is most beneficial for you and go from there.

What Are Your Short-term Goals?

If your short-term goals are to make friends, learn a new skill, or just get out more often, then you may need to try goal setting in a different way. Creating a personal board of goals with specific dates can help you stay focused on what’s important and avoid the temptation of getting stuck in the “what if” phase of goal setting.

Keep a Goal Journal

A goal journal is a unique way to develop goals. It helps you to brainstorm and visualize your dreams. When you use a goal journal, you can include anything from an image of yourself living in your dream home or career to a list of things that could get in the way of achieving that goal. You can use a goal journal for every aspect of your life including personal, professional, academic, and creative goals. For instance, you could create a family goal journal where you write down the date when your children will graduate college or make it to their wedding day.

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10 Manifestation Techniques for Success That Work

Posted on by James Miller

Here are our 10 picks for the manifestation techniques that are sure to help you succeed in life.

“You are what you think. So just think big, believe big, act big, work big, give big, forgive big, laugh big, love big and live big.”

This is one of the many notable quotes of Andrew Carnegie, the Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist who emigrated to Pittsburgh with his parents in 1848 at the age of 12, started working as a telegrapher and later became one of the richest Americans in history. By the time he was 24, he had investments in railroads, railroad sleeping cars, bridges and oil derricks. Aside from becoming a leading philanthropist in the U.S., Great Britain and the British Empire, he is best remembered as having led the expansion of America’s steel industry in the late 19th century.

Who wouldn’t want to be as successful as Andrew Carnegie, right? But where do we even start?

Well, as Andrew himself so cleverly put it, it all starts in the mind.

The mind is an amazingly powerful tool that can be harnessed to achieve what we desire. That involves manifestation, the process of using the right thought processes to make our dreams come true.

There are many ways to achieve this, referred to as manifestation techniques. Some are more effective than others. To help make sure you get the most out of life, here are our 10 picks for the most effective manifestation techniques for success.

Start Clearing Your Mind of Negativity

Many people don’t go after what they want because they’re discouraged by their negative thoughts.

Take fear. Sure, it can be scary to pursue our goals. It might be hard, we might fail and most don’t even know how to go about it.

But why cast yourself down right from the start?

Hope for the best instead of stressing over everything that could go wrong.

If you start out in a positive frame of mind, it will be easier to keep trying to achieve your goals even if it gets hard. The more you try, the better your chances at success.

Determine What You Really Want

If asked what they want in life, most people answer with vague concepts. The most common ones include happiness, love and lots of money. While these are all great things to have in life, they’re not exactly clear. For example, when we say we want lots of money, what do we even mean? Do we want $100 million? A billion? How much would be enough?

Instead of thinking about your success in such broad terms, be more specific. Say you do want to be rich. Instead of just being wealthy, why not start a business that becomes so successful you’ll be able to retire in the next few years?

The more concrete details your goal has, the easier it will be for you to come up with the steps needed to achieve it.

Dig Deep Into Your “Why”

Okay, we admit, figuring out the one thing we really want to have or do is easier said than done. It’s like trying to predict how our lives will turn out in the end. It’s not easy, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible.

If you have a hard time coming up with your life’s goal, explore why you want to succeed. Understanding why you want to have or do a certain thing will make it clear what that one thing you really want to have or do is.

For example, if you want to fall in love, what you might really want is to meet someone with whom you could spend the rest of your life and who feels the same way about you so you can be safe, secure and happy when you’re old.

Remember, be as detailed about your goal as possible so you know exactly how to achieve it. You’ll only be able to do so by exploring your “why.”

Trust the Process

As we already said, pursuing your life’s goal won’t be easy. You’ll have to work hard, you might have to make sacrifices and you might have to get out of your comfort zone. But, as Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th U.S. president, said, “Nothing worth having comes easy.”

If you do have a tough time trying to succeed in life, know that it’s just part of the process. Just keep it at. Surrender to the process. Believe in it. Believe in yourself that you’ll make it. When all’s said and done, your life would have been changed for the better. 

Visualize Your Success

Remember that saying “fake it till you make it”? It’s not just for developing self-confidence. It can also be applied to the pursuit of success.

Picture this: You’re the CEO of a Fortune 500 company. You have thousands of employees. You make billions of dollars every year. You own multiple mansions across the country. You have a loving spouse and kids.

If you already see yourself as having already succeeded in life in your mind, you’ll be much more confident you’ll succeed in the real world. You can gain this confidence by visualizing your success as often as you can. The more clear your success is in your mind, the more confident you’ll be.

Physically Prepare for Your Success

As important as it is to see yourself as successful in actually becoming so, you still need to do things to make it happen. In other words, you need to take action. That involves making the necessary adjustments in your life to make sure your “wish” gets granted.

If you want to be in a relationship, that means making the needed space for it in your life.

If you want to land your dream job, that means gaining the skills you need to get it.

Project More Positive Energy

It can be hard to stay positive if you run into obstacles in pursuit of success. Keep negative thoughts from creeping back into your mind during hard times by becoming more positive.

The easiest way you can become more positive is by being nicer to the people around you. Smiling more, asking them about their day and giving them compliments are just some of the ways you can try that take little to no effort.

The more positive energy you exude, the more positive energy you attract. The more positive energy you draw to yourself, the more positivity there will be in your life.

Become More Grateful

It’s easy to assume we haven’t achieved much in life when we compare ourselves to others. But if we look closely, we’ll realize we have so much more than what we thought we had.

If you have a roof over your head, you eat three meals every day and you have electricity, clean clothes, clean water and a clean bed to rest on, you’re better off than millions of people around the world.

Be grateful for everything you have and every step you take towards achieving your goal—no matter how small—and your life will be brimming with positivity, attracting success to you even more.

Start Living in the Moment More

Every time you start looking back on all the mistakes you’ve made in the past or thinking about everything that could go wrong in your life in the future, yank yourself back to the present. There’s nothing we can do about what we’ve done in the past and there’s no knowing for sure what will happen to us in the future, but we can make the best of the present.

Use the Manifestation Tools That Best Suit You

Given how hard pursuing success could be, it’s a good thing there are tools we can use to give ourselves a fighting chance.

For instance, if you’re a visual person, you can use a vision board to visualize your life’s goal more easily.

No matter what you choose, just make sure it suits you so you won’t have any issues with it. The easier it is to use, the more help it will be in achieving your goal.

References

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      Why Making New Year’s Resolutions Don’t Work and What to Do Instead

      Posted on by James Miller

      Whenever it’s a New Year, many of us try to come up with New Year’s resolution ideas. We ask ourselves, “What should be my New Year’s resolution?” We try to figure out what would be a good New Year’s resolution or maybe even the best New Year’s resolution for us, hoping it will make next year turn out great.

      What do most people usually choose as their New Year’s resolutions? They decide to lose weight, make strides in their career, pay off their debt, get organized or be more healthy. Any of these are great promises to make to ourselves. Achieving them greatly improves our quality of life. Yet, somehow, many are unable to do so.

      A study conducted for two years found that nearly a quarter of people quit after just one week, and only 19% are able to keep going.

      Does that mean we can’t ever hope to better ourselves?

      Of course not!

      We can improve, but not through the usual way we make New Year’s resolutions.

      To discover how to stick to your New Year’s resolutions, we explain what a New Year’s resolution is, why we make New Year’s resolutions, why we fail to keep them and what we can do to actually make a change in our lives below.

      What’s a New Year’s resolution?

      A New Year’s resolution is a holiday tradition where we make a promise to ourselves around December or early January that can have a positive effect on our lives.

      It’s usually a choice to either start doing something good or stop doing something bad.

      An example of something good for us that could be our New Year’s resolution would be to exercise more. The more we work out, the healthier we’ll be.

      Something bad we ought to promise ourselves to stop doing as our New Year’s resolution could be smoking. Once we quit, we’ll no longer suffer the side effects, making us feel a whole lot better.

      Why do we make New Year’s resolutions?

      For most of us, New Year’s Eve is more than just a holiday. We see it as a fresh start. When we throw out our old calendars or planners and replace them with new ones, we see the next 365 days laid before us, full of possibility, giving us a chance to make a change.

      This sense of having a clean slate, coupled with the high from last year’s celebrations, encourages us to improve ourselves or make improvements in our lives.

      A year might not seem like enough time for some to make good on such promises, but the positive vibes usually all around us this time of year boost our chances of seeing them through and reaping the rewards.

      Why do we fail to keep our New Year’s resolutions?

      There are various reasons many aren’t able to keep their New Year’s resolutions. Those include how healthy they are, their environment, their financial status and the company they keep. But the most common ones usually come from within.

      5 Common Reasons New Year’s Resolutions Don’t Work Out

       

      Not Having a Plan

      It was Benjamin Franklin himself, one of the Founding Fathers of the US, who said, “By failing to plan, you are preparing to fail.”

      How can you keep your New Year’s resolutions if you don’t know how?

      Instead of just winging it, you need to find out the steps you need to take.

      Being Overconfident

      There’s nothing wrong with believing in yourself. You need to in order to achieve something. It will give you that push you’ll need to keep going when the going gets rough.

      Being confident becomes a problem when you become too confident.

      Doing something new is never easy, no matter how easy it seems. You’ll run into obstacles you would’ve never expected. If things turn out harder than you thought, you might lose your drive to stick to your plan and fail to make your New Year’s resolutions a reality.

      Accept that you have weaknesses that could cause you to struggle. The more realistic your expectations are, the more emotionally prepared you’ll be when challenges arise.

      No Accountability

      Striving to become better is great and all, but having no means to monitor your progress is a recipe for disaster.

      That’s why fitness apps work. Showing you that you’re making progress keeps you motivated. If it shows you’re slipping, that very same motivation will compel you to get right back on track.

      Monitor your progress towards making good on your New Year’s resolutions or ask someone to help you to keep your eyes on the prize.

      Unwilling to Make Sacrifices

      No great thing was ever achieved without giving something up.

      Want to get fit? You need to start exercising or exercise more, eat healthy or healthier and consider going to the gym.

      These aren’t things most people are willing to do, so you need to commit in order to do them.

      It’s the same for any New Year’s resolution. Find out whether you need to get rid of certain things in your life in order to achieve yours. If there are any, ready yourself to make the needed sacrifices and let go.

      Not Really Ready to Change

      It’s easy to make promises if you aren’t serious about keeping them. They’re just empty words with no meaning. But how are you supposed to enjoy the benefits?

      So you can keep your New Year’s resolutions and make your life better, you need to be ready to change your life accordingly. It won’t be easy, but know it will be worth it.

      What to Do Instead of Just Making New Year’s Resolutions

      To experience meaningful change in your life next year, you need to set goals. Unlike New Year’s resolutions, goals consist of concrete steps you need to take in order to achieve them. Knowing exactly what you need to do gives you the best possible chance at success.

      Steps to Set a Goal

      1. Decide on what you want to do.
      2. Commit to it.
      3. Plan on how to achieve it.
      4. Take action.
      5. Monitor your progress.
      6. Keep at it even if it gets hard.
      7. Celebrate when you succeed.

      Conclusion

      Even though they’ve been done for as long as anyone can remember, making New Year’s resolutions doesn’t always work for everyone. But we can still work towards something better for ourselves when the holidays come around. As long as we go about it the right way, there’s no telling what we can achieve.

      References

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      10 Proven Morning Routine Benefits

      Posted on by James Miller

      Waking up in the morning isn’t always easy.

      There are many reasons it can feel like you’re trying to get out of a swimming pool full of molasses.

      Whether you just had to binge that entire new season of your favorite show, rank up in your favorite game to get that cool new skin, or talk for one more hour with the one you love before they call it a night or leave for work while their miles away on a working vacation, you know you have to get up to go to work or get to class once the sun comes up.

      Is there something you can possibly do to make it any less excruciating?

      Why, yes, there is! You can create and follow your very own morning routine. Not only can this healthy habit take much of the pain away from having to wake up whenever doing so gets harder than usual, it also helps set you up for a successful day each and every time.

      To learn more about this life-changing habit, here’s our definition of what it is followed by no less than 10 morning routine benefits to prove just how good it actually is.

      Morning Routine Definition

      A morning routine is a set of habits that a person does every day when they wake up to make sure their day starts off on the right foot. They vary from one person to another, depending on their interests. But no matter what they choose to make a habit, the benefits are pretty much the same.

      Morning Routine Benefits

       

      Lets You Prepare Yourself for the Rest of Your Day

      Having time in the morning to focus before you get on with the rest of your day puts you in a positive frame of mind, letting you easily stay focused and motivated throughout the day to do the things you need to do.

      This is similar to centering, a widely practiced technique in the martial art of aikido, where deep breathing is used to remain calm, relaxed and grounded in stressful situations.

      Energy Levels Boost

      Any routine provides those who follow it structure and guidance in their daily life. It lets them act with purpose instead of just going about aimlessly. Doing so helps them stay active, focused and sharp.

      That’s why athletes are so good at the sport they chose to excel at compared to the rest of us. By engaging in a pregame routine that involves hours and hours of training, they elevate their game by being able to get into the zone easily.

      Increased Productivity

      Knowing exactly what you need to do every time you wake up increases the likelihood you’ll accomplish everything on your plate. Having that sense of certainty with what to expect throughout the day keeps you from getting overwhelmed. Such efficiency leaves no room for the possibility of a task getting left unfinished. If you start your day this way, your entire day will surely be productive.

      Feel More in Control

      Remember the saying: control your day, don’t let it control you? It means managing your schedule in such a way that the sheer number of things you need to attend to doesn’t unravel into a chaotic mess. This doesn’t just apply to work. You can also put it to use as one of your morning habits. Organizing your mornings lets you calmly and comfortably ease into the rest of your tasks for the day, letting you handle them with hardly any issues.

      Less Stress

      It’s so stressful whenever you need to rush because your work or chores somehow piled up and you have to move fast to finish them all on time. That usually happens when you just let things get thrown at you instead of planning how to deal with them. Establishing a routine lets you put everything in a neat, little order. The less stressed you are, the less likely you’ll suffer from its adverse effects, which include anxiety, high blood pressure, heart disease and even depression.

      Not Forget About Things Easily Anymore

      Since it’s done every day, a routine is hard to forget. Even if you don’t consciously think about it. If you do it long enough, it will probably become part of your muscle memory, in that you’ll accomplish tasks without being focused on them at all. A great example of this is being able to get dressed for work even if you hardly had any sleep.

      If you manage that with taking out the trash, feeding your pet or any chore you need to do in the morning, it’s highly unlikely you’ll forget the other important things you need to do later in the day, preventing it from getting ruined.

      More Confidence

      Creating a morning routine isn’t just all about accomplishing tasks. It also involves self-care. Whether it’s having time to fix yourself a nice breakfast, do your hair or talk to your kids before sending them off to school, making a self-care habit or habits part of your morning routine will surely lift your spirits right at the start of your day.

      The better you feel, the more confident you’ll be.

      Stronger Relationships

      Speaking of being able to talk to your kids over breakfast before they head on off to school, you can do one better and carve time out from your schedule every morning so your entire family can just sit down and spend time together before going about with the rest of the day. Being able to bond like this every day will bring you closer together, strengthening your relationships as a family.

      Become Even More Flexible

      But no matter how carefully you plan out your morning routine, there’s always the possibility that something could come up and disrupt it. All you have to do to get back on track is to continue following it. Keep doing this every time something unexpected happens and you’ll get better at anticipating problems. The better you get at this, the more flexible you’ll be.

      Easier to Develop More Healthy Habits

      The more often you do something, whether it’s good or bad, the easier it is to keep doing it. That’s why bad habits are so hard to break and why good ones get easier and easier to keep, no matter how hard they are. You can think of succeeding at creating and following your very own morning routine as a stepping stone to having more healthy habits. If you manage to keep at it, there’s no telling how great your life could become.

      References

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      gpointstudio on Freepik

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      10 Sure-Fire Tips to Have a Healthy Morning Routine

      Posted on by James Miller

      Morning is a very important part of the day. Some might say it’s more important than the afternoon and the evening. It’s when most of us usually wake up and prepare to go to work or class or plan how we’re going to go about with the rest of our day.

      That’s why we get so stressed when our mornings get messed up.

      Each of us have had at least one bad morning. The alarm didn’t wake us up, effectively throwing our entire schedule out the window. We forgot we needed to do the laundry yesterday, so we don’t have any clean clothes to wear. We miraculously make it out the door looking halfway decent, only to find out we also forgot to pack ourselves lunch. And the list goes on.

      Good thing there’s an effective way to avoid keeping ending up in the same situation. You can create and follow your very own healthy morning routine. As a set of healthy habits that can help start your day right, practicing it practically guarantees you won’t have stressful mornings ever again.

      Ready to take control of your mornings? Here are 10 tips that make sure you’ll gain a healthy morning routine.

      Prepare the Night Before

      Unlike what some might think, great mornings don’t start when you wake up. They start the night before.

      Pick out what you’re going to wear and lay them out so you don’t have to spend so much time choosing the next day. Place everything else you need, like your bag and dry cleaning to be dropped off, by the door where you can easily grab them on your way out. Then set the table for breakfast.

      Having done all this, your morning will surely go without a hitch.

      Always Have a Healthy Breakfast

      With so many things you need to do later in the day, you might skip breakfast and grab some coffee at Starbucks just so you have more time to tackle everything on your plate. But it would be so much better if you sat down and had a healthy breakfast instead.

      It’s called breakfast because you’re breaking your “fast,” or the length of time you didn’t eat while you were sleeping. If you skip it, your body will be forced to conserve energy. Your metabolism will slow down, leaving you with less energy throughout the day.

      You don’t have to whip up a huge meal just to have a healthy breakfast, like the ones you see on TV shows. A bowl of oatmeal sprinkled with some cinnamon, nuts and slices of fruit paired with a cup of tea will do just fine.

      Make a List

      If you’re worried you might forget any of the things you need to do the next day, just write them down. Listing them lets you just take a look if you need to check, keeping you from forgetting anything important. Make the list the night before and leave it where you won’t miss it in the morning, like on the kitchen table or beside the coffeemaker.

      Knowing exactly what you need to do first thing in the morning lets you hit the ground running as soon as you get up.

      Wake Up Earlier

      You won’t be able to enjoy a peaceful morning if you have to rush. Give yourself time to relax by getting up earlier than usual. You don’t have to wake up before sunrise. Just try setting your alarm 10 minutes earlier. That gives you just enough time to comfortably carry on with your morning routine without having to worry whether you can make it to work or class on time.

      Slow Down

      Having said it would be better if you started waking up earlier than you usually do, all that time you now have to just chill will be wasted if you still rushed yourself. For example, how fast do you brush your teeth? If you don’t even think about it, pay close attention instead. Carefully brush each tooth. Enjoy the minty freshness in your mouth. Look at yourself intently in the mirror. Doing so lets you be present, making sure you relax.

      Give Meditation a Try

      It’s not just to eat a healthy breakfast and mindfully brush your teeth that you can allot time for in the morning to have a healthy morning routine. You can also start practicing meditation. An age-old technique that helps calm the mind and improve overall well-being, you can practice it a few minutes after waking up to clear your mind and enjoy a sense of serenity.

      Exercise

      If you like being active more, you could make exercise part of your morning routine instead. Aside from weight regulation and improved strength and immunity, it boosts your brain’s health by encouraging it to release “feel good” chemicals. The better you feel in the morning, the better your mood will be throughout the day.

      Do a Proper Warm-Up

      Many injuries sustained during exercise were caused by not warming up properly first, so remember to do so beforehand. Aside from stretching, take a warm shower or bath to really get yourself ready. If you have time, you can also go for a jog or brisk walk. It will boost your endurance, but know that it won’t help build muscle.

      Make Your Morning Playlist

      You’d be surprised how good listening to music is to well-being. It has a lot of health benefits, including mood elevation, stress reduction and increased workout endurance. Listen to your favorite songs while working out or eating breakfast and scrolling your feeds to brighten up your morning even more.

      Make Being Grateful a Habit

      They say real happiness lies in finding joy in the little things. They can be anything, like getting texted first thing in the morning by your best friend, sipping a freshly brewed cup of coffee, or digging into a stack of warm pancakes dripping with maple syrup. Taking a moment each morning to think about the things you have that you’re grateful for lets you view your life through a positive lens, ensuring you’ll be in a great mood for the rest of the day.

      References

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      10 Habits that Can Make Up the Best Morning Routine for Weight Loss

      Posted on by James Miller

      There’s always some diet claiming to be the best way anyone can lose weight. Just hop on social media and you’re bound to see at least one celebrity, influencer or guru endorsing a new drink, super food or way of eating that will miraculously let you shed pounds easily in no time. We’re not saying none of them works, but there is one way that’s guaranteed to help you get fit without costing a lot of money or drastically changing your lifestyle:

      Create and follow your very own morning routine that promotes weight loss.

      Not only is it easy, it can even be fun. Just choose the habits that best suit you so that your mornings become just a bit brighter while you watch yourself slim down.

      Since we know everyone’s different, here are 10 healthy morning routine habits that have been proven to be effective in losing weight. Follow them all or pick the ones you like to make the best morning routine for weight loss for you.

      Get Some Sun

      As soon as you wake up, open your curtains or blinds and let the sun in or step outside to soak up some rays. It turns out that sun exposure helps with weight loss.

      A study revealed that sunlight helps burn fat. That’s why many people tend to gain weight during the holidays, which fall around winter, when there isn’t much sunlight.

      Another study also found that the vitamin D we get from sunlight not only helps with weight loss, but even prevents weight gain.

      To enjoy these benefits, expose yourself to sunlight for 10–15 minutes each morning.

      Have a High-Protein Breakfast

      You need to always have breakfast. Considered the most important meal of the day, it keeps you feeling full until lunch, preventing you from becoming sluggish until then. But if you also want to lose weight, you need to make it high in protein.

      Whether it’s eggs, cheese, nuts or Greek yogurt, a high-protein breakfast keeps us feeling full longer. The less cravings we have, the less food we eat. The less we eat, the more weight we lose.

      Drink Water

      Although it doesn’t have any calories, water can make us feel full. If you drink a glass or two before breakfast, you won’t want to eat a lot, helping you lose weight.

      Aside from curbing your appetite, drinking water can also stimulate your metabolism, or the chemical processes in your body that turn the food you eat into energy. The higher or faster it is, the more calories you burn.

      Exercise

      It goes without saying that practically anyone can lose weight if they exercise. But did you know that it will be more effective in helping you keep your weight down if you do it in the morning?

      Exercise helps keep our blood sugar levels steady. If they get too low, we’ll get really hungry. We might eat too much if we’re too hungry, making us gain weight.

      The best time in the morning to exercise is before breakfast. Not only will you get more from your workout if you do it on an empty stomach, http://localhost/thrivefull-wp/you’ll burn more calories when you sit down to eat.

      Weigh Yourself

      Weighing yourself every morning is a great motivator to keep with your morning routine.

      If you see you’re losing weight on the scale, you’ll keep going even when it gets hard.

      If you aren’t seeing the results you want, it will drive you to try harder or change things up with the habits that might actually work.

      You’ll stay focused either way, making sure you achieve what you set out to do.

      Practice Mindfulness

      When you practice mindfulness, you focus on what you’re doing. It’s surprisingly effective in helping keep a proper weight.

      Try it out when you eat breakfast. Turn away from your computer. Put your phone down. Chew each bite slowly. Appreciate all the tastes and smells you experience.

      You’ll notice you’ll get full faster. That’s because your meal was more satisfying. The more satisfied you feel, the less you need to eat.

      Pack Your Lunch

      It’s hard to always eat healthy when you’re at work or in class. It’s easier to just have fast food, especially if you’re on a deadline.

      Avoid this by making your own lunch. Doing so lets you choose only healthy food to eat.

      Since they’re not as processed as most of the “food” we get at fast-food joints and convenience stores, home-cooked meals won’t have any excess fat, salt and sugar. The less of these unhealthy ingredients we consume, the less we’re at risk of gaining weight.

      Keep a Food Diary

      Many of us used to keep a diary when we were kids. We’d write in it about memorable things that happened to us or our thoughts on certain things we aren’t exactly comfortable sharing with others.

      Now that we’re older, we can start another diary. Not to document our day-to-day, but to keep track of what we eat.

      Doing so is great at keeping yourself accountable. If you slip up and eat something you shouldn’t, you’ll see it in your diary, showing you need to eat healthy again the next day.

      Change the Way You Commute

      Driving might be the easiest way to go somewhere, but it’s not great for your waistline. You’ll just end up sitting most of the day, drastically reducing your physical activity.

      When it’s nice out, walk or bike instead. It’s effectively another workout session, lowering your risk of gaining weight even more.

      Get Enough Sleep

      There are those who are proud whenever they have to stay up all night. It’s like a badge of honor for them, proof that they’re hard workers. But it’s never really worth it.

      Lack of sleep is awful for overall health. Its negative effects include increased risk of depression, hypertension, stroke, diabetes and obesity.

      To make sure you always get enough shut-eye, schedule when you go to bed and stick to it.

      References

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      The Billionaire Morning Routine: What 10 Well-Known Billionaires Do Every Morning That Make Them Successful

      Posted on by James Miller

      What sets billionaires apart from the rest?

      Is it just their immense wealth?

      Sure, having such extravagant amounts of cash at their disposal lets them do, have, own and enjoy things most people can only dream of. But it’s not something they always had.

      Most billionaires weren’t born rich. It’s something they gained over time through hard work and perseverance (and maybe just a bit of luck).

      But we all have the capacity to work hard and persevere. So, what is it that makes them special?

      If we were to guess, it’s the things they do at the start of their day that greatly affect everything else on their busy schedules.

      In other words, it’s their morning routines that we believe are the secret to their success.

      Curious what a billionaire morning routine looks like? Here are the morning routines of 10 of the most famous billionaires, so you can create your very own that can set you up for success.

      Elon Musk

      Elon Musk is currently the richest man in the world. He has an estimated net worth of over $170 billion. A business magnate, he is the CEO of SpaceX, a company that designs, manufactures and launches advanced rockets and spacecrafts; Tesla, a manufacturer of electric cars; and Twitter.

      Elon is said to work up to 120 hours a week. How does someone who works so much start his day? He wakes up at 7 AM and gets right to business. He spends half an hour reading and responding to important emails while drinking coffee. He says he’s too busy to eat breakfast.

      Jeff Bezos

      Jeff Bezos is the founder, executive chairman, and former president and CEO of Amazon, the multinational e-commerce company that’s considered the world’s largest online retailer.

      As head of Amazon, you’d think Jeff would be so busy he’d hardly have any time to sleep. But, surprisingly enough, he always tries his best to sleep a full 8 hours every night. He reportedly wakes up naturally without an alarm. He likes to hold what he calls “high IQ” meetings in the morning, ideally at 10 AM before lunch.

      Mark Zuckerberg

      Mark Zuckerberg is known as the co-founder of Facebook and Meta, the social media giant’s parent company of which he is the chairman, CEO and controlling shareholder.

      Like most kids hooked on social media, the first thing Mark does when he wakes up is check his phone. He logs into Facebook, Messenger and WhatsApp in bed.

      He says he doesn’t like wasting time on “small decisions,” so he basically wears the same outfit—a grey T-shirt, jeans and sneakers—every day.

      Bill Gates

      Bill Gates is the co-founder of Microsoft, where he was the chairman, CEO, president, chief software architect and the largest individual shareholder. He’s mostly a philanthropist now.

      Bill starts his day by doing cardio exercises. He would spend an hour on the treadmill while watching educational DVDs.

      Jack Dorsey

      Jack Dorsey is known as the co-founder of Twitter. He is now focused on managing his payments company Block, formerly known as Square.

      Jack wakes up at 5 AM. He meditates for half an hour, then completes a 7-minute workout 3 times. Once he’s done, he has his morning coffee and checks into work.

      Oprah Winfrey

      Oprah Winfrey is a talk show host, television producer, actress, author and philanthropist. She is best known for her talk show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, which was broadcast across the country and ran from 1986 to 2011. She was the richest African-American of the 20th century, was once the world’s only black billionaire and was ranked as the most influential woman in the world.

      Oprah wakes up at 7 AM, brushes her teeth, and takes her 5 dogs for a walk. While waiting for her espresso to brew, she reads a card from her 365 Gathered Truths box, then reads her daily Bowl of Saki. Afterwards, she meditates and does an hour-long workout.

      Sara Blakely

      Sara Blakely is a businesswoman, philanthropist and founder of Spanx, a female intimate apparel company. In 2012, she was included in TIME magazine’s “Time 100,” its annual list of the world’s 100 most influential people. In 2014, she was listed as the 93rd most powerful woman in the world by Forbes.

      Unlike most people, Sara doesn’t drink coffee in the morning. She says she’s never had a cup. Instead, she drinks a smoothie made of frozen wild berries, dark cherries, dates, cinnamon, fresh mint, lemon, spinach, cilantro, kale, water, ice, chia seeds and walnuts. She also tries to get a yoga session in at 6:30 AM before taking her kids to school.

      Anastasia Soare

      Anastasia Soare is a Romanian-American businesswoman. Known as the “Eyebrow Queen,” she is the founder and CEO of Anastasia Beverly Hills (ABH), a cosmetics company best known for their eyebrow products. She has been listed by Forbes as one of the wealthiest self-made women in the US.

      Like Mark Zuckerberg, Anastasia checks her phone when she wakes up at 7 AM. Instagram is the first app she checks every morning. She always has 2 cups of black coffee and eats a light breakfast while replying to her emails. Her personal trainer comes to her house most days,who helps her exercise for an hour.

      Warren Buffett

      Warren Buffett is one of the most successful investors in the world. Dubbed the “Oracle of Omaha,” he is the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, a multinational conglomerate holding company headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska. The businesses they partially own include Kraft Heinz, Coca-Cola, American Express, Bank of America and Apple.

      Warren usually sleeps a full 8 hours a night. He wakes up at 6:45 AM and starts his day by reading newspapers like The Wall Street Journal and USA Today.

      Richard Branson

      Richard Branson is a British entrepreneur and business magnate. He co-founded the Virgin Group, a multinational venture capital conglomerate that currently controls over 400 companies in various fields.

      Richard exercises every morning without fail. He likes tennis, swimming, paddleboarding and kite surfing.

      The Healthy Habits That Make Up These Billionaire Morning Routines

      • Waking up early
      • Doing an activity that contributes to physical health, be it working out, meditation or yoga
      • Improving mental well-being by reading or listening to educational or informative material
      • Eating a healthy breakfast
      • Tackling the most important tasks right away

      References

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      Easy Guide to Time Blocking for Beginners

      Posted on by James Miller

      Learn the time blocking method along with time blocking benefits and time blocking best practices here.

      Does time blocking work?

      Many people ask this very question as we try to figure out whether or not the said time management technique is the real deal.

      After all, with the world as it is now—filled with all kinds of distractions that can lure or tear us away from what we should focus on—can we really learn to set aside time to not only do deep work, but finally manage our increasingly busy schedules and calendars?

      Yes, we can. Actually, more than a few of us have already pulled it off.

      Take Richard Branson. An entrepreneur, business magnate, and billionaire, he wakes up at 5 AM to work out. According to him, it boosts his productivity significantly.

      We doubt you have the same amenities as Richard that he uses to find the kind of focus time he works with in your workday. But that doesn’t mean your time management skills won’t greatly improve if you learn time blocking. And once you fully get a handle on it, your quality of life will surely improve as well.

      To help you get started, here is the time blocking method itself defined, three of the best time blocking benefits, and seven of the most effective time blocking best practices.

      Time Blocking Definition

      Time blocking is the time management technique where you methodically plan out your day by dividing it into smaller blocks of time. During each one, you work on a single task or a group of similar tasks. You do away with any and all distractions as you focus. Doing so ensures you not only get the job done within the block of time you’ve set aside for it, but how well it turns out.

      Time blocking isn’t just simply making a to-do list. It’s part of it, and an important part at that, but you can’t just list out the things you need to do and call it a day. You also need to figure out when best to work on each task in your schedule and how they all fit in your calendar. Having such a clearly defined schedule prevents others from infringing on your time and giving you more work than you can handle. The more confident you are that you can complete all the tasks on your plate, the higher the quality of your work.

      Time Blocking Benefits

      The advantages of time blocking aren’t just all about becoming better at work. As you’ll see from three of its benefits listed below, they extend even to the most important parts of our lives.

      Master Your Schedule

      No longer will you have to constantly switch between tasks just to make sure you meet the deadlines. Focusing on each one for a specific amount of time lets you spend 100% of your energy on getting them done, keeping you from wasting time on unrelated things. The better you get at it, the easier it will be for you to gauge how long you need to work on each task. By then, you’ll probably never mess up your schedule ever again.

      Become More Efficient

      Most people end up procrastinating rather than working when they’re overwhelmed by the sheer amount of work they have. Aside from being given too many tasks, that arises from not knowing how they’ll be able to fit them all into their tight schedules. Time blocking lets you find time to finish them, keeping you from ever becoming unproductive.

      Have More Time for What Matters Most

      Since time blocking essentially teaches you how to effectively manage your time, you’ll end up having time to enjoy yourself simply by always getting your work done on time. No more spending countless nights stuck in the office just to meet deadlines. You can now look at your calendar, not to simply schedule work, but to see when you can take time off to be with your loved ones.

      Time Blocking Best Practices

      Effective time blocking isn’t all about figuring how to neatly break down your work into the limited time you spend at the office. As it’s a method, there are ways to go about it that leads to the desired outcome—with some being better than others. Below are seven of the most effective.

      Make a List

      Start with your high-priority tasks, then work your way down. Make sure you specify each block of time (ex: “meetings” and “emails”) to avoid any confusion. Include personal time blocks (ex: “family time”). They serve as bookends to your work, keeping it from encroaching on your time for yourself and loved ones.

      Become Good at Task Batching

      Task batching refers to working on groups of similar tasks one at a time. It lets you get work done faster, making you more efficient.

      Experiment with Day Theming

      An advanced form of task blocking, day theming is where you not only do task batching, but spend an entire day working on tasks with a similar theme. For example, if you’re an executive, you can spend your Mondays focused just on tasks related to sales and marketing. Doing so lets you focus on a larger area of work, letting you handle it more effectively.

      Try Timeboxing

      Timeboxing simply means blocking out a specific time on your calendar to work on a future task. Say you work in the accounts payable department. You can do timeboxing by boxing out time in the mornings of certain weekdays to focus on completing payment runs for the vendors of the company you work for. This gives your work days more structure.

      Figure Out When You’re At Your Best

      Some people are early risers while others start their day at night. The same goes at the office. Some are most productive in the morning, while others only get going in the afternoon. It’s dictated by our biorhythms. Find out what yours is so you can schedule your tasks when you’re most productive during the day.

      Have a Contingency Plan for Emergencies

      No matter how well you schedule the time you spend at work, it will all fall apart if you don’t have a plan for when urgent tasks suddenly crop up. Create time blocks to have time to address them so your whole schedule doesn’t get thrown out of whack.

      Use the Tools Available to You

      You don’t have to do time blocking all by yourself. There are plenty of tools out there that can make it easier. You can use a planner or calendar made specifically for time blocking, like the one well-known computer science professor and author Cal Newport made, which provides a grid that lets users block out every minute of their day.

      Ready to Finally Take Control of Your Schedule and Calendar?

       

      Our calendars filling up with work each and every year shows how we need to better manage our busy schedules. Good thing there’s time blocking to serve as a time management solution to our overwhelming work lives. The more control we have, the better our lives will be.

      References

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      Deep Work Explained: Uncovering the Secret to Achieving Peak Productivity

      Posted on by James Miller

      Discover the concept of deep work, who the deep work author is, the benefits of deep work, and how to do deep work here.

      It goes without saying that most people are distracted. It feels like we’re constantly wading across a river of seemingly endless ads, notifications, emails, videos, GIFs, memes, and articles just to be able to do what we need to do. But do you know just how much the noise of our lives has impacted us?

      If you spend a lot of time on social media, know that it’s hurting your ability to focus. Our attention spans have been diminished due to the sheer amount of information overload social media allows. According to scientific research, it has shrunk to 8.25 seconds from 12 back in 2000. No wonder it’s getting harder and harder to concentrate during meetings, especially the ones that should’ve been emails.

      That doesn’t erase the fact that being able to focus remains as important as ever. It’s so valuable that it’s now considered a superpower that can practically guarantee success in the workplace for those who can manage it.

      You can accomplish the same feat through deep work, an increasingly rare skill that lets you achieve extraordinary results. Read on to learn all about it and start reaping the rewards.

      Deep Work Meaning

      While deep work itself might sound a little vague, the concept of deep work is pretty easy to understand. It’s basically a state of peak concentration. It can be achieved by avoiding or getting rid of anything and everything that can distract you from the task at hand. A fairly common example of this is when writers would retreat to some remote place, like a cabin in a forest, to work free from distractions.

      Once you’ve achieved peak concentration, your brain will be able to work at its maximum potential. Not only will you be able to learn complicated things easily, but also create quality work in practically no time at all.

      Who Is the Deep Work Author?

      The term deep work was coined by Cal Newport, an Associate Professor of Computer Science at Georgetown University. He wrote a book about it, titled Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World, which was published in 2016. Such was the need to learn how to have such an ability that it became a bestseller. It was a Wall Street Journal Bestseller, an Amazon Best Business Book selection for January the same year it was published, and 800-CEO-READ’s Best Business Book of the Week. Some of the notable publications that have given it praise aside from The Wall Street Journal include The New York Times Book Review, The Economist, and The Guardian.

      Cal went on to write more books, several of which have also become bestsellers that have been translated into more than 40 languages. Apart from being a New York Times bestselling author, Cal is also a contributing writer for The New Yorker and the host of Deep Questions, a podcast where he answers the questions of his listeners and shares case studies with them.

      Benefits of Deep Work

       

      Eliminate Distractions Easily

      Avoiding distractions is easier said than done. For example, adults in the US check their phones more than 300 times a day. Doing so prevents us from getting anything done efficiently. Instead of focusing all our energy on getting work done, we waste time regaining momentum each time we switch between tasks. Learning how to do deep work greatly improves our ability to tune out distractions, enhancing the quality of our work while decreasing the time it takes to get it done.

      Strengthen Your Brain

      Every time we concentrate deeply, our brains cement learning pathways and strengthen the connections between neurons so they can fire faster. So whenever we focus on a specific skill, we’re literally rewiring our brains to be able to perform that skill as effectively as possible. That’s why deep work is one of the best ways to learn a new skill quickly.

      Feel Great

      When athletes perform at their best, they call it getting in the zone. It’s a positive mental state where they feel they’re on autopilot, http://localhost/thrivefull-wp/but are still able to accomplish their goal. Deep work is pretty much the same thing.

      How to Do Deep Work

      You can only succeed at deep work if you do it according to a plan that fits your personal schedule and work preferences. In his book, Cal Newport outlines four “philosophies” or approaches you can follow to be able to schedule your deep work for the best results:

      1. Rhythmic Philosophy, where you schedule time for deep work then establish it as a “rhythm” or habit. You can, for instance, schedule yours between 8 and 10 a.m. every weekday.
      2. Journalistic Philosophy, or the approach that lets you fit deep work whenever you can in your schedule.
      3. Monastic Philosophy, in which you drastically reduce or completely get rid of “shallow work,” or work you can do even if you’re distracted, from your life. Say you’re an author. You can avoid doing any speaking engagements so you can focus on writing. The more time and energy you dedicate to your passion, the more productive you’ll be.
      4. Bimodal Philosophy, which involves setting aside long stretches of time (like a day or two) for deep work then dedicating the rest for everything else.

      Ready to Do Deep Work?

       

      We can’t stop distractions from finding their way into our lives, but we can learn how to deep work to easily avoid them and do our best work. Once you make it part of your life, not only will you be more productive. You’ll also be able to realize your full potential.

      References

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