Your Happiness Factor

There are two ways of looking at most things in life. When you face a new challenge, you can think; "Oh no, I'm not going to be able to this. It is something I've never done before. It means I have to learn new skills. And I'm probably going to fail." Or you can think; "Yes, this is a challenge. But I will get the chance to learn more skills. And I'm going to give it my all and do my best to make it a success. You will find lots of advice around about the power of positive thinking and expecting success. There is a lot of research that shows how having a positive approach to life improves health and happiness. Try looking at the Greater Good Science Centre   website for more information.  But, with so many people jumping on a positive thinking bandwagon, it easy sometimes to lose sight of what it is really about. At its simplest and most powerful, it is about seeing half a glass of water as half full and not half empty. How you view

The Keys Here is another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Steph's videos on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkoz1yev_apPjE8XcVrjyjA/videos Don't worry about what other people think of you.  They don't know what's going on in your life, just like you don't know what's going on in theirs. People are generally self-indulgent. If they're not buried into something on their phone, don't have headphones on or in, I can almost guarantee that they are worrying about themselves.  We are selfish creatures. It's in our nature to worry about ourselves, first and foremost. Will I get to work on time? Is this outfit ok? Who knows what they are worried about? The people you admire on a bus or wherever mess up as much as you do or have, they're just experienced enoug

Your happiness counts Another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Steph's videos on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkoz1yev_apPjE8XcVrjyjA/videos You don't think it does, or that your happiness makes a difference to everyone around you?  When you are happy, radiance shines from within you. You are much better company when you are happy. Think about it, if you're down in the dumps about something people are less likely to want to hang out with you.  So be happy, if not for yourself than others.  You're never going to get this moment back, so go on crack on a smile. Worrying is not good for you, and I know there are thousands of things to worry about, but if we let it go and relax things just might fall into place and be how they're supposed to be. Worrying will not warrant thi

Change is  necessary! Here is another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Steph's videos on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkoz1yev_apPjE8XcVrjyjA/videos Sometimes I don’t believe the effect I have on people. How far my words can reach. Whether I get an icy negative reception or a warm positive one.  Luckily for me, it is usually the latter. And that is because I go into a situation with an open mind, because I am not panicking over what my boss may be thinking and/or feeling.  This may seem naive or very easy for me to say, but the way I look at it: every day is a new day, and though people can’t change overnight, they can start. Though you mightn’t like it: everything is constantly changing; from our thoughts racing to the plate tectonics that make up the earth. You mightn’t be able to see it w

Underestimation: we all do it Here is another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Steph's videos on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkoz1yev_apPjE8XcVrjyjA/videos "Normal" people underestimate their impact on the world and the people around them.  Generally "we" think that what we do on a daily/regular basis is boring/nothing new. Please give yourself some credit.  Congratulate yourself for the fact that you woke up today, the fact that you are carrying on this fight.  Congratulate yourself because you deserve to, especially if you don't have anyone around who can or will show you how much they appreciate it. Other people do appreciate what you are doing, though they mightn't say it or appear grateful.  And what you are doing may not change the world tomorrow or the next

Never Regular, Spectacular! Here is another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Steph's videos on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkoz1yev_apPjE8XcVrjyjA/videos You're not like everyone else.  This world is full of people saying you have to fit into a category or something but please don't be sucked into being someone you're not to please others. You can't please everyone. You're not meant to.  Someone in the world will find a fault in your perfection. That's the way it is. Our perfection is so different to other people's. And that's Ok. That's the way it's meant to be. What's special to us is different to others. That's how it's meant to be. Otherwise everyone would be fighting for the same thing. And it's good we're not. You just want to be

You are too hard on yourself! Here is another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Steph's videos on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkoz1yev_apPjE8XcVrjyjA/videos Believe it or not, some days you might sink low and believe everyone else is better than you. And that's okay.  Everyone has a different story to tell and just because you don't have what you want right now doesn't mean it won't come to the light and/or you can't or won't get it. It's not too late! Make the choice today to be what you want to. Other people might try to put you off doing a particular thing; you've just got to stand up for yourself and be proud. It might not be what they would do in your situation, but everybody is different. People will try to dampen your dreams but don't let them. Jus

Situations can arise at any time.  Here is another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Steph's videos on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkoz1yev_apPjE8XcVrjyjA/videos You can never be sure when something will strike. You can be dealing with a big problematic event when little ones can occur and you think it’s just to rub it in. I know it can feel burden-heavy. But that’s Ok. Feeling weighed down is not good for you, so try to take everything one step at a time. But I know it’s a real pain when everything comes at the same time. That’s how life seems to work; I see it as a positive thing.  When you’re in the midst of things; challenges and the like, problems that would have otherwise held you up are accomplished without much thought. You don't even recognise how much you accomplish. The things t

Don't let the smallest thing ruin your day Here is another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Steph's videos on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkoz1yev_apPjE8XcVrjyjA/videos If one bad happens in a day try not to let it affect the day’s productiveness.  We've all had days when a bad thing happens first thing and the whole day is ruined because of it. But if you just refocus on the positive after the downfall – whatever it may be – you can turn a downward turn into an upward one.  Everyone fails at something in their life – a mis-venture or makes a million mistakes – there’s no plain sailing in life, even if it looks to be on the surface. You can never really tell what’s on someone else’s mind unless they tell you. Nor what’s bubbling beneath the surface of a smile. So try to be kind. One

Life is unpredictable. Here is another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Steph's videos on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkoz1yev_apPjE8XcVrjyjA/videos Life is unpredictable.  Good times won’t last so you need to capture them so you can focus on them at bad times.  Just as good times don’t last, bad times don’t last either. I know it feels never-ending when you are going through a rough patch but believing that things will get better will push good things and times to the forefront. To do this, you need to become more aware of the negative thoughts you let in and stop letting them in. This may seem odd, but in being positive you need to outweigh the negative thoughts in your mind, so first you must be able to recognise the negative thoughts that trouble you every day.  In the light of the ne

Caring is not needing to please x Here is another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Steph's videos on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkoz1yev_apPjE8XcVrjyjA/videos We care too much about what others think of us because we have little confidence in what we do and who we are.  You might disagree with me, wearing a mask of confidence, often people pretend they are confident in what they do hoping that confidence will transfer to who they are. That's the wrong order. You have to be Ok and confident in who you are before you can be confident in what you do. Otherwise you're faking. People won't like admitting it. But you, you are strong enough to admit that confidence can't grow this way.  Confidence grows out of you accepting yourself, all your faults and working them to your benefit. So

Here is another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Steph's videos on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkoz1yev_apPjE8XcVrjyjA/videos We are all at different stages of our lives - every minute (second) of every day. Just because you haven't had what someone else had by this stage in their life doesn't make it wrong and most importantly, it doesn't make you weak. I'm quite relieved that I didn't have to go through everything that Harry Potter did by the time I was eighteen. I know you're saying ' He's a literary character ' but you know what I mean. Wishing your life away until you have what someone else has got is not good for you. It's not good for your health. We all get handed different opportunities and some we seize and some we don't. This can be for many

There are positive outcomes Here is another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Steph's videos on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkoz1yev_apPjE8XcVrjyjA/videos Very few people have confidence in happiness. They believe that you have to work for it, that it can't just come out of nowhere. But that's the beautiful thing about life. You just need to be able to let things go and enjoy the little things in life. I think our generation has gotten very reliant on the impression we give others that we fail to notice the beauty around us. Look up from your phone, because you'll never know what chances are passing you by while you're trying to impress your friends. Why do we even need to impress our friends? They're friends of ours for a reason, we don't have to impress them every minute of

Dealing with Disappointment  Wise words in the video from  Elena No Braina  who discusses how disappointments are a necessary part of life that teach you to keep pushing and follow your ambition. Stay in the game! Above all, know that you are not alone. Disappointment happens all the time in life and learning to deal with it is a key life skill. But if you find yourself getting in stuck on the downward slope, find someone to talk to – either a trusted friend or a coach like me. Now onwards and upwards – it is good to keep occupied rather than ruminating on what has happened. The world is still full of possibilities. Don’t miss them by taking yourself out of the game – commit to bouncing right back. Don’t forget I offer a free half hour coaching session by phone or Skype. Wendy Mason    is a Career Coach and Life Coach helping you to solve difficult problems at work and at home wendymason@wisewolfcoaching.com  http://wisewolfcoaching.com

Today, we have another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Stephanie's  first video on  YouTube   Doesn’t it just feel like all your problems are weighing you down?  Well the good news is this is just temporary. Although it feels like it will go on forever, I assure you it won’t.  In months, years, a decade you’ll be looking back and asking yourself why did you think that was so hard? Why did you let that stop you? And it’ll either be because things have toppled on top of that, and you have learnt to deal with it or all the issues of those days have disappeared.  And you’ll be glad you’ve been through it. Either because it’s taught you how to deal with problems for the future when they appear, or you’ll be so thankful that that was then and this is now. You will be better equipped to fight off a similar issue,

Grow into a stronger person Today, we have another inspirational post from contributor, Stephanie Carfrae. She is a Creative Writing Graduate; you can find her own blog  at   www.stephcarfrae.blogspot.co.uk   and I think you will be inspired by Stephanie's  first video on  YouTube   When I come across roadblocks/setbacks/obstacles I know I have 3 options:  Give up  Give in Give it everything I’ve got.  It would be easy to give up, but if I didn’t struggle on where would all my stories come from? Because what hurts so bad today could be made better tomorrow. You never know what could happen.  So don’t do something silly that you might regret later and/or would hurt your loved ones. I admit in those hormonal teenage years I used to think about packing it all in, but I could never do it. And do you know why that was? It was because I couldn’t bear to see someone I cared about lonely. I still know this person and I don’t care for them in the same way as I did, but I’l