Taking Action & Driving Change

7 Practices for More Positivity

When times are tough, or things go wrong, or new challenges come into our lives, it's easy to slip into a negative mindset and focus too much on the struggle. Here are some practices I've learned that help direct thought and action toward pursuing the positive rather than avoiding the negative. These small changes can make the challenges of life feel less overwhelming, and help sustain confidence and hope. 1. Use positive vocabulary We've all heard the advice: Find something to be grateful for each day. Training yourself to regularly notice the good makes a big difference in the way…

Push Through Discomfort

Life is not supposed to be pleasant, comfortable, sunny all the time. Without challenge and discomfort we have no path to growth and improvement. Without continued growth and improvement, we are not living. We are on the bench. Sitting this one out. Where did so many of us get the idea that the tiniest discomfort must be fixed or avoided at all costs? Why is it so tempting to keep sitting on the couch watching other people live, instead of walking outside and trying it ourselves? One possibility: Inappropriately interpreting normal discomforts as threats to survival. Feelings of physical discomfort…

3 Reasons to Stop Avoiding Mistakes

Do you find yourself paralyzed or avoiding things because you’re not confident you’ll do it right? Are you waiting until the time feels right, or until you are ready to take on a certain task or participate in an activity? Do you berate yourself when you make simple mistakes, or flood with shame when others see you do something wrong or see you stuck without the right answer? If negative feelings like this are familiar to you, consider these three reasons why developing a healthier attitude toward mistakes can transform your life. 1. Mistakes are normal and necessary for learning…

Daily Action Builds Confidence

Visible change in our physical environment, achieved through our own hands, has profound benefit. The deep down knowledge that we can have a positive effect, that we have done something for ourselves, to see to our own survival or to make our existence more pleasant is empowering. We are physical beings, an integral part of the natural world. If we are not manifesting physically, each day, some expression of our unique being, we are not truly living. Healthy effort is appropriate and productive. An authentic attitude of ‘What can I do to affect and improve my situation and surroundings? and…

Is Your Understanding of Yourself and Your Reality Accurate?

Did you know that much of what we think of as our inherent personality—beliefs, attitudes, reactions—is not permanent? The human mind is so powerful, it can create its own reality. Tell itself a story and make itself believe. We do this to alleviate discomfort. To make sense of things we don’t understand. We do it to survive. And for the most part we are not conscious of the self-deceptions that began early in life. In adulthood, some of the things we still allow to control and define us are no longer appropriate. Some were never true. They were the invention…

Don’t Wait to Be Invited into Your Own Life

Do you have a sense that there’s something you’re here for, things you want to do, opinions you want to express, but you haven’t yet encountered the situation that made that feel right? Are you waiting for someone to give you permission, to tell you it’s okay? This resistance does not develop in a vacuum. It’s not a result of some fundamental defect. There may be people in your life who have made you feel like it’s not okay. Probably without even meaning to. At some point in your life, you may not have gotten something you needed. And the…