Starting out and Achieving our goals always start with the First Step

Achieving goals by this one great step

Way No.1: 90% Planning and the Rest is execution

It said that a lot of people have really great ideas and plans, but lack of action is what stops them from moving ahead. It's not still the end of the year, so there is always a chance for a new beginning. We must use this as an opportunity to start on our plans. As an IT student, I had learned that success to most projects is 90% planning and the rest is execution. But many of us are just stuck in the first phase and seldom thinking of moving to the next.

(Read here, how I started out blogging, Click Here) Blogging was something that I always wanted to do and now doing it is, of course, a learning experience and a journey by itself. I think more than writing skills, it is being vulnerable that can stop us. A small step to open ourselves to others can take us a long way.

Way No.2: Failing is okay

What is keeping us back? I am sure there are many good reasons. But I think one of them could be the fear of failing and looking bad. Failing is okay, but not trying to work on your goals can be a source of major regret. I once heard this from a motivational speaker and this idea really caught my imagination. He said that imagine you are on your death bed and you start thinking of all the things you could have done to achieve those goals and dreams. 

Imagine all the possibilities of how things could have been. Imagine all those possibilities haunting you and crying to you for concretizing or work on them. Now think that you are going to die with all these regrets someday. (Chriseducator.com)

Is it all worth it or is it worth it to work on those goals or dreams you aspire. I think one must sit down and think about it.

Way no.3: Determined Action

Powerful Quote from Tony Robbins

I would like to leave you with this quote from Tony Robbins. He is a great motivational speaker and he has changed many peoples lives. This is what he has to say about being successful.

Tony Robbins: Take Action

Concluding thoughts:

First steps are difficult and so is the beginning of any new project. But with proper planning and deliberation, we can find our way ahead. Our focus should be on excellence and not just perfection. A right attitude can be a real game-changer.

I think this mantra sums it all up for us.

"Audacious Goals + Massive ( Determined ) Action"

Further Reading:

The Overthinker’s Guide for Taking Action: A Complete Guide
https://startupbros.com/overthinkers-guide-taking-action-complete-guide/

How to Take Action: 12 Habits that Turn Dreams into Reality
https://www.positivityblog.com/how-to-take-action/

Why Is It Important To Take Action?
https://www.seeken.org/important-take-action/

Simple things in Life and the miracles they bring

 Being Pensive

When I get pensive and thinking about the good and bad times it's the simplest things that amaze me. Let me share, for example watching our children grow so fast and see them share their views on things can be so insightful. Life moves ahead so fast.



Today, I shall try to include share some ideas on Life's simplest things. How to cherish small things and how to create your small miracles of Happiness? But before I start speaking about it, Here is my favorite quote on the simple things in life. I believe it captures the beauty of simple living.

It is the simplest things in life that hold the most wonder; the color of the sea, the sand between your toes, the laughter of a child.- Goldie Hawn

Searching for the Extraordinary

I think sometimes we think doing extraordinary things can make us happy. Now I see the great wonder in simple things. All this started with the idea of choosing to be happy. When we are at our lowest we only recollect the negative and we get into a pithy party. But just shifting your attention to simple things can bring so much joy. I believe when we choose to be happy, we try to seek joy. Focusing on simple things can be a source of great joy. It's like God's hidden miracles that bring us back to our childlike wonder. It makes us smile or cry (whatever).


I once missed drowning while on a vacation. Post that experience, I realized the beauty in just being safe. The joy to interact with people and dream about possibilities. Being dead in that pool would take a lot of things away. So let's consider some ideas that can move us in that direction, towards more simple living.

3 Points can be quite an enabler to simple living:

• Being Intentional: Intentional would mean being deliberate. So can one spend a day intentionally, Start by planning your day. Have a script for your whole day. Keep a planner or a set of tasks to plan your day. I use Google Keep or Tasks for this. It's a really great tool. Start rethinking the effectiveness of your attitudes and workstyles. Take time to pause and reflect on what tasks have you completed during the day. Reflect on how your actions have helped you grow physically, spiritually and financially. Have you been effective to your immediate friend circle or community? These could be some questions to help you focus your actions and tasks.

Reflect on how your actions have helped you grow physically, spiritually and financially. 

• Start with Average and move ahead with excellence: Focus and perspective can really shape a lot of projects, sometimes our drive towards achieving perfection and perfect situations can cripple us. They can take away our control. To change that, Start with average, meaning average results. If you have not been able to change that habit or go on that diet 100%, no problem. Just start out and constantly improve your rate of success. Do not give up on your goals and yourself. This can be a great way to move towards achieving our goals. 

Do not give up on your goals and yourself. 

• Learn to use the Pause button: Responding and not reacting can be useful, a great way to start being responsive could be to learn to take time to stop and think. Just using the pause button can help us rethink our approaches and attitude to difficult situations or even to learn new ideas and rejuvenate ourselves. It can be used to create those small moments to generate great ideas or even just to relax.

Responding and not reacting can be useful

Now there is another way to enjoy life's small miracles. It could be by being grateful.

Here is my list of things I am grateful for:

10 Things I grateful for ( Increase list to 10 things )

What's your Gratefulness list?

Concluding Thoughts

It can be so empowering to have the ability to create happiness and enjoy the wonders of the life we have been gifted. Sometimes life situations can be challenging but by hard work and using our tact and intentional living we can improve our lives and our experiences.

Please do comment, share and give your valuable feedback. Thank you. Ciao!

Further Reading

Friends and Friendship

Understanding the 'Why' behind Gratefulness
Five Easy Ways To Facilitate Gratitude Journal Styles

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What are the limitations of Positive thinking? Learn the Pros and Cons

Just be a bit more positive and things will change for you. You will achieve the stars and the moon in the sky. That's what it can be made to be by some people. Well, for some it is a better approach to approaching issues. I am talking about Positivity and Positive thinking. But one thing I learned from years of studying and learning, a lot of ideas have its limitations. In this article, I shall be exploring these negatives of Positivity,i.e. Positive Thinking. One of the best books I was asked to read was The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale. (I think for a lot of us thinking negative was like normal.) I must confess it has helped me. I was recommended by a friend's mother. The book has a lot of good ideas on how to be more positive.

But here are some ideas I believe could be limitations to Positive thinking.

List of Negatives of Positive Thinking

Ignoring the obvious

Magical Thinking

Self Deception

A wrong view of Reality

Some side effects you must consider...

Bad Thinking Habits:

It's my personal opinion that bad habit leads to bad consequences. Right thinking is an essential component of better living. So also over positivity, It should be tempered with critical thinking and some amount of realistic thinking too. All this is quite a mental exercise, but that's a good way to a better life.

Pointers to help on Practice Effective positivity:

Conclusion

Positive thinking is a great approach to enhancing ourselves and our lives. Like many good ideas, it can be misused and should not be. Healthy rationalism and critical thinking can help us make better decisions.

I hope you liked this article. Please comment and share it, thank you.

Further Reading:

https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/creativity-and-personal-mastery/201004/why-positive-thinking-is-bad-you

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/blogs/O-zone/the-negatives-of-positive-thinking/

https://greatist.com/happiness/positive-thinking-negative-benefits

https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/positive-thinking/art-20043950

https://greatist.com/happiness/positive-thinking-negative-benefits

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 Friends are like companions that journey with you till they reach their destinations. It would be unimaginable to live without them. I used to have little to few friends, A lot of great books and ideas helped me along the way.

Developing yourself is a life long process and I think friendships can really play a key role in it. The positive side of social networking is the power to connect quite easily, of course, there are many articles on the side effects of it. But we must not forget the benefits too.
It's great having friends.

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Some interesting ideas and quotes that help understand Gratitude

Practicing Gratitude can really make a difference in Personal growth and here are some encouraging words to help you

Check my posts on Gratitude and reasons behind practicing gratefulness. Click here and here.

Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough

     - Oprah Winfrey

Acknowledging the good that you already have in your life is the foundation for all abundance.

        -Eckhart Tolle

The Struggle ends when gratitude begins.

         -Neal Donald Walsh

The roots of all goodness lie in the soil of appreciation.

        - Dalai Lama

I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.

         - G. K. Chesterton

When a person doesn't have gratitude, something is missing in his or her humanity. A person can almost be defined by his or her attitude toward gratitude.

          -Elie Weisel

Remember the past with gratitude, live the present with Enthusiasm, look forward to the future with Confidence.

          -St. John Paul II

Gratitude is the single most important ingredient to living a successful & fulfilled life.

          -Jack Canfield

Do let me know in the comment section if you find these quotes interesting.

More Quotes on Gratitude:

https://www.success.com/15-thoughtful-quotes-about-gratitude/

https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/gratitude

https://www.inc.com/jeremy-goldman/17-inspiring-quotes-about-gratitude.html

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Master Guide to Resourcefulness: Learn Four Mantras to be Resourceful

What does it mean to be resourceful?

The Dictionary defines resourcefulness as the ability to find quick and clever ways to overcome difficulties. I am sure we all have experienced situations that make us feel the same, All our dreams, plans and work on whether on a pet project or something major, things turn out differently. We all have been there. I think this is the most common thing to our human experience, things turning out different than we expected. This is where being resourceful becomes the only resort and sometimes can be a gamechanger.

Issues or Problem...doing it the donkey's way

Issue or problems can come to us in different forms and can smack us, bring us down. I read this interesting story in an article in the Des Moines Register by Harvey Mackay. It's on the story of a donkey who is narrating to his grandson an incident when he was stuck in a ditch. The donkey mentions a moment when he had fallen into a ditch. After a long wait, a farmer notices the donkey. He later waits until the next morning to tell other villagers. Instead of saving the donkey, they decide to bury the donkey. They start throwing mud at the donkey. The donkey had a choice to panic and die or use what he had. So the donkey decided to use the mud thrown at him. He would climb up the pile of mud and at last, the donkey saved itself. Sometimes life can be like this, it can take such twists that land us in difficult situations. (Read the entire story at the link mentioned above) Imagine if that donkey had not been resourceful, he would have been dead. Sometimes making a difference requires us to use whatever we have, but also to persevere and see the opportunity in difficult circumstances.

Fighting a painful situation

This next story will tell you how. This is the experience of a close friend. He had been through a painful breakup, he had two choices whine about it or just move on. So he moved on, it was quite difficult for him. He concentrated his energy on his studies. It made a huge difference and got him into a good college with a scholarship. He had used his painful situation to help him change his life and help him achieve his goals. He had been resilient and resourceful too.

Resourcefulness can work wonders. But the question is how does one be resourceful. Is there any way or method to help us. I believe there are ideas that help us be resourceful. These ideas I can say have been tested and tried from my experience, I can say it works.

Here are some of them, Check it out:

Stick to your goals

I think the most important thing to be resourceful is not to forget your goals. But sticking to goals would mean also sticking to them when there doesn't seem any way forward. I think this would be really productive in finding healthy solutions. Although going off tangents can sometimes be good, it could lead to good ideas and also great discoveries. But sticking to your goals gives you a focus and helps you to deal with the 'why' behind what we want to achieve.

Think alternatives

Yes, thinking alternatives is important to be resourceful. This could mean start with understanding the position of our current situation and what are some solutions. One could start with brainstorming ideas and then jotting them down. The feasibility of each idea should be considered.

Lose the war, Win the battle

It's okay to fail at the beginning, cause ultimately lack of resources and bad ideas should not stop us from trying and pursuing our quest to achieve our goals ( but the feasibility should help you decide that. Small failures are fine and they give feedback ( It's like healthy to course correct). Ultimately, It's about the vision and goals that one has in minded.

Attitude Matters

 Being open-minded and confident I think is important to be resourceful. I think these two qualities are important. Being open-minded can help you be creative and Confidence can bring in the faith and hardworking required to achieve success. Lack of confidence brings in scrupulousness (that is good), but also self-doubt that can make people not give their best and ultimately force people to give up.

Bonus One

What to do when there are no alternatives

1) Delay
2) Don't choose when you are in difficult situations
3) Confidence doesn't mean being stupid: Learn when to quit

The first one can seem counter-intuitive (I know), but sometimes it's important to not make bad choices thinking they are good and then repenting about it. It is important to have some space to make choices. (That's my take, do let me know in the comment section if you disagree). Being confident is important and learning when to quit is even more important. But this is for another article.:)

Additional Ideas

I think an important key to being resourceful is to build a person's emotional and spiritual quotient. This helps a person to succeed and effective.

Some Interesting Ideas

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/8-pathways-why-resourcefulness-matters-marilyn-price-mitchell

https://in.pinterest.com/erin_wing/teaching-resourcefulness/

For Teams

https://www.resourcefulmanager.com/team-building/

NLP Exercise to be Resourceful

http://www.oakdust.com/Resourceful_states.htm

Summary

Further Read

Prepare yourself with these 7 Strategies to a Highly Effective Presentation

Speeches and Presentations

In India, we have just had a General Election and we have chosen the leader to guide us into the future. One very striking quality of Narendra Modiji, our Prime Minister-elect is that he is a very good orator and politician. He has a well-seasoned personality and captivating side to him, his presentation and thoughts are put forth quite clearly and succinctly.

I believe that a good presentation depends on various factors. They all combine to bring the message to the audience. Of course like anything else, practice and proper feedback will help you master it. That's the thing about skills regular practice and good feedback helps you succeed.

My Personal Experience and Boring Speeches

As an educator, I have been more into teaching young adults and presenting to people from the industry. It was quite an opportunity to deliver training at a School to students of Grade 4. I just used less lingo and adapted the topic to their needs. My delivery was quite similar to what I have been used to. I got good feedback and experience. Let me be clear, I am a good speaker but not the best. I strive every day to be better. Here are 7 highly effective strategies that I have noticed good Speakers use. One thing amazing about good Speeches they not only inform you but also have the ability to move you to action.

So Let me start with some of these powerful but simple ideas.

Use Pointers not paragraphs:

Choosing better over Best

Here is a quote from Nelson Mandela on Choices to guide us on the same...

Hopes vs Fears

Wish you all the best and May you make good choices with your hopes as a guide.

5 Reasons to Blog and why I started blogging

Communication is exciting and fun, although it can be challenging for a lot of people. I used to be quite shy as a person, but after a long effort, it helped me deal with this challenge in a more structured way. I faced a similar challenge while trying to start with a blog.

Why Chris Educator?

Purpose & Prose

Learning Curves

Starting your Blog...

Why Blogger

Wordpress is awesome and the Benefits of Blogger

Blog Identity: The difference it makes

The Basics

Naming your Blog

Why People Blog? Hobby, Money and much more

Perks of  Blogging

Categories & Types of Blogs

The Price to pay: Is it Expensive or Cheap

Pain areas of Blogging

Resources for your blog and related costs

Enhancing your Blog: How to spice it up

Marketing your Blog: Getting Heard

Purposeful Blogging: Intent, Intentions...

There is always something to learn in Life

There always some insight we can get from life, people and Circumstances.

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Gratitude Journal Styles *

In my previous article, I have covered a lot of ground on Gratitude. Please click here to check it and please do subscribe to my emails for future articles and announcements. Practicing gratitude has really helped me see things differently and it has helped get a more positive outlook.

To me, it seems like the most obvious thing, but sometime back it was not. A lot of times good ideas just tickle our imaginations and senses. It is very seldom implemented. Either because we feel that it is impractical or we don't have a plan to guide us. In this app driven world where everything is an app. It can be difficult to do things without a plan or framework. Today I shall be sharing a beautiful concept related to gratitude called a Gratitude journal.

So let us first understand the idea before actually making one. I believe that recording our feelings and reactions while finding a grateful attitude to filter out our emotions can be quite helpful. Primarily on not so good days, it would help us understand the reasons to find some cheer. It would also remind us that our selective thinking focuses our attention only on pitiful memories when we are down or on brighter moments when we are upbeat. Which I think it doesn't seem like any kind of objectivity. So in life, I think adding a dash of hopefulness to seeing situations can be very useful. It helps us understand our situations and also guides us to strategize ahead. This is where gratefulness plays a key role.

So, Here are 5 ways to a Gratitude Journal:

'The Weekly Gratitude' Journal:

A Weekly Gratitude Journal is a weekly record of the events, moments and things that make you feel grateful. Choose just a small list of say five things that make you feel grateful. I believe this could very simple and normal things. The idea is developing an attitude of gratitude and not filling up a book. So reflect intently and fill the list.

'End of the Day Gratitude' Journal:

This is a daily record of encountering gratitude. So choose a quiet and peaceful time of the day. Calm your mind and reflect on the events during the day. Now record it on paper or if you are using a software or an app key it in. Keep the sentences short. So when you get back to your journal, its a like a summary of all the grateful moments during your day.

'Anytime Gratitude' Journal:

This style of journaling would involve recording your gratitude moments on the go. You feel it, you know it, you write it. It's quite simple. So one just needs to use some tact and to stop and think. Then after reflecting at the situation, person or challenge, we need to record it in the journal. But in this style, there is no real time or place. It's on the go.

'Monthly Gratitude' Journal:

This style of journaling should be done once a month. But to keep it meaningful and factual. It should be more of a ritual. A day of the month should be chosen to record the reasons to be grateful. This could be done in a quiet place or after some prayer or meditation. This helps you focus and engage with the process of journaling our gratitude moments.

'Hybrid Gratitude' Journal:

In this style, we pick and choose some of the above styles to our convenience. We can combine anytime journaling with Monthly journaling ( or formats of your choice). So the first one becomes like a daily tracker and the second one to record the highlights for the month. Creatively bespoke it to your convenience and good health.

Ending Thoughts

In short, I would say there is no one particular style I would recommend. 'Anytime Gratitude' Journaling is an approach that helped me.

I prefer writing paragraphs then just lists. It helps me recap the emotion and situation. I don't use any particular template. But there are many useful templates to use. Check this article by PositivePsychologyProgram, It covers some interesting templates and apps that can be used for creating a Gratitude journal.

Your views

In the comments section, please do mention what approach has helped you. In a future article, I shall cover some templates and technologies like apps and platforms that have personally helped me. God bless! See you in the next article...

Other Articles

Turn Pain to Joy: 11 Tips for a Powerful Gratitude Journal
https://tinybuddha.com/blog/turn-pain-to-joy-11-tips-for-a-powerful-gratitude-journal/

How To Start A Gratitude Journal You’ll Actually Keep
https://www.shutterfly.com/ideas/how-to-start-a-gratitude-journal/

Image

*https://www.maxpixel.net/Journal-Blank-Notebook-Writing-Paper-Book-Diary-3193808

The Essence of Being Positive...What is Positive Thinking and What it's not.

Life is never like a straight line graph, everything going fine all the time. There are ups and downs, rises and falls, twists and turns. In a way, this adds fun and pain to the journey we call life. So it's a given that we are going to be negative or at least have phases when things don't go as expected.

Understanding Pessimism

So how does one become more positive? It's just not about seeing the glass half full. Become more positive is like an addition sum where add something to what we already know. It's not an escape. So, I am not saying that negativity is wrong. Here is a quote on Pessimism which shed some light on the matter,

"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars." by Oscar Wilde

In a way, we are all in a metaphorical gutter, muddled in our situations. It is that hopefulness that is the essence of being positive. So if we take pessimism as a kind of Reality seeing exercise, Being positive is just adding a tadka to it. Just a dash of hopefulness to spice it up. This adds flavor to this guttery dish called life- now suddenly things are different and better.

Benefits of Positive Thinking

Of course, There are Benefits of positive thinking and advantages of it as well. Let's list some of them. According to an article by Mayo Clinic, The health benefits of Positivity are tremendous.*1 These benefits touch various areas of one’s life, right from the common cold to improved cardiovascular health. It seems it can also increase one's life span. Personally, I initially thought of it as something that was obvious, but I was wrong. But it’s quite a long story- it has helped me tremendously in my workspace. As an Entrepreneur and Educator, Sowing times when we are waiting for projects and dreams to materialize, it can be quite stressful. A small amount of Faith and loads of positivity have helped move ahead quite successfully.

Attitudes can affect others

So then, Be positive and understand the effect. It’s just not going to affect you, but like negative thinking affect others. Ideas and thoughts are quite contagious. Imagine a negative salesperson, quite the disaster. It would be quite demotivating when business is bad. When there are no sales and fresh ideas or strategies are required, the negativity can block ideas. So the sales person would need to be hopeful, this would help him generate or at least consider ideas to solve his problem of poor sales. This too would have an effect, but now a much positive one.

Positive Thinking is not being delusional

Lastly, Positivity is not being delusional. Positivity can become delusional if we don't keep our expectations and hopes within a boundary of common expectations. According to Lyndelle Palmer Clarke, Dealing with change requires a balance both Negative and Positive ways of thinking.*2 This balance between negative thinking and positivity can be like that of changing hats.

So here is my take on Positive Thinking, I hope you find it useful. Please Share and comment if you like this article. For any feedback, please do email me. Here are some articles, I found useful.

For Further Reading,

Fours Keys to overcoming negative thinking for Good by Melli Obrien.

The Power of Positive Thinking by Remez Sasson

References:

*1, Mayo Clinic Staff. 2017. Positive thinking: Stop negative self-talk to reduce stress. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/positive-thinking/art-20043950.

*2, Lyndelle Palmer Clarke. 2018. When Positive Thinking Becomes Delusion. [ONLINE] Available at: https://dailygreatness.co/blogs/be-your-own-guru/49767237-when-positive-thinking-becomes-delusion.

Gratitude is the attitude of being Thankful...

In my college days, I invariably used to be quite religious. This would precisely mean going to church regularly and to the confessional very often. There is one possible thing from all this that I undoubtedly learned... the essential virtue, namely Gratitude. I have frequently tried merely employing this personal virtue more like a tactic to improve my life and improve my Spiritual Quotient.

As an Educator, it is tremendous to see so many former students in diverse sectors and positions doing well. I feel indebted for opportunities like this. I feel really grateful. This leads me to think about Gratefulness and How to achieve a more grateful attitude? Simply put by the dictionary, Gratefulness means being thankful. So Let's carefully look at some possible reasons to be thankful. I reasonably think it is significant to properly understand 'Why' before getting to the question 'How'.

My 3 Top reason to be Grateful:

It Feels good:

From my viewpoint, I have been consciously tried practicing Gratefulness. In my personal space, I would often think at length of all the pleasant moments and not so good instances, it has helped me grow abundantly as an Individual and also helped me practice Gratitude. It encouraged me to be more positive and vibrant.

It tracks your blessings:

I can't speak for others, but from my practical experience, People are not Positive at all possible times. There are possible times one gets into the negative zone. Practicing a bit of Gratefulness can be extremely nice. It shifts focus and encourages us to see the best in our circumstances or Life situations.

It builds your Spiritual Quotient:

Merely choosing to be Grateful can open up an alternative view towards life. It’s not easy, I must say earnestly. There are situations and circumstances where it may seem extremely unreasonable. But by solely adopting an alternative approach and choosing to be grateful can open another dimension in one’s life. It can encourage us to gain a considerably deeper meaning to life.

Hence, my top three practical reasons to be grateful. Let's say this whatever may be your worldview, whether you believe in a God or some higher power, we must accept this fact that we are here and conscious. This is enough a reason to appreciate Life and be thankful. Cheers!

Image Source: https://pixabay.com/en/thank-you-thanks-greeting-card-944086/
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Striking the Right Balance...

Around 5yrs ago I moved to the city I currently reside and work, Pune. It's an education hub and as an educator, it was a place I had to go to. This city thought me a lot. Being a Mumbaikar, we tend to not balance our Personal and Professional spaces. This city helped me gain that balance.

There are certain Misconceptions that people have regarding gain that balance. I have listed some of them. It relates to my experience on gain trying to strike that balance.

5 Misconceptions regarding Personal vs Professional Life:

1. Balance can be easily achieved.

Firstly, Each individual defines balance differently. So defining it properly is the first step, but not necessarily the last. Then, It may take planning and trials before succeeding. So defining 'Balance' is the first step before moving ahead.

2. Stress is always the reason for losing balance.

Stress is quite a killer, but it is not always the reason for disruption in balancing personal and professional life. Sometimes it may be an issue of evaluating priorities. Life is always changing and so updating ourselves and our priorities is a necessary part of it.

Come back to the basics, look at how you defined 'Balance' and what goals you set. Let them guide you to set new priorities. They are like a compass they will guide you and help you set your new priorities appropriately.

3. It's not all about your own happiness

So prioritizing other important areas of our lives is also important. This could be time for exercising, spending time with your partner or family. It could also mean taking time out to work on a hobby or a part-time career.

Here is a beautiful quote to summarise this point:

"Never get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life." - Dolly Parton

4. Boundaries create limitations

It is wrong to think of boundaries as creating limitations. Some limitations can be good and helpful. So understanding our personal limitations and boundaries can be useful too. Once I had tried night shifts on a new job and did n't work for me. It started affecting my health. So after consulting the doctor, I had to change my shift. This helped me understand myself and the need for setting boundaries.

5. Getting mentored won't help

Many of the struggles in life doesn't need to be alone. Getting a good mentor at work or a professional will really help. Friends and family can also help by their support and their ideas.

I believe some of these misconceptions can be a true deterrent. We all spend a good amount of time at work and of course at life too, so finding the right balance can really be a blessing. But with wrong ideas, it surely can't be achieved. Please share your ideas in the comment section below.

Credits:
https://pixabay.com/en/balancing-chair-fashion-man-model-1868051/

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Find the Best Life Coach in your area

So imagine a time when you needed some advice, a listening ear but someone who could help you towards a fruitful outcome.  A Life Coach is someone who could help you.  

A Life Coach is quite different from a Psychologist, I have written an article that could help you see the difference, Please Click Here.

Now there are various types of Life Coach and the quality of coaching could also change. So before choosing a good life coach, one needs to keep a few points in mind.

Here I have researched 5 Pointers that can help you choose an Excellent Life Coach:

1) Life coach is not the same as buying a product.

Life coaching is a service that helps people achieve their goals and improve their lives.

This is really important to understand before setting expectations. 

A good Life coach will focus on connecting with you. 

He will focus on relating to your situation. A qualified and experienced Life Coach should be effective.

2) Choose your Goals.

A person can help the Life Coach by understanding his goals properly. 

This will help you achieve your goals and make the process of Coaching more effective.

3) The coach should relate with you.

Does the Life coach understand your goals? 

Does he or she share your values? Does he have good listening skills? 

Does the coach ask helpful questions?

These are some of the questions that would be helpful to keep in mind. 

Thinking critically whilst being receptive can be difficult, but it is important.

4) Local vs Global Life coach

This is a personal choice. A local coach would be more acquainted with your culture and may have also helped people in your area. 

This would help you get a good feedback. On the other hand, a global Life Coach should also have its own benefits. But this is for another post.

5) What's your budget.

It is important to keep a budget. It is important to see this process more of an investment rather than an expense.

So here are some tips that should be kept in mind while choosing a good Life Coach. 

In the next article, I will talk about certifications and the importance of choosing a Qualified Life Coach.

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