I was riding the bus from New York to New Jersey to visit my parents, so I had plenty of time to just sit around and think about this. I pondered, churned out, wrote down, and then ultimately deleted several sets of words.

Eventually I came up with three words that really resonate with me. Responsibility, integrity, and civility. Not sure why these words came up. Whether it’s something that I felt I wasn’t 100% on, or just wanted more of, but whatever the reason, I think they’ll serve me well moving forward. So, what do they mean to me?

Responsibility: Owning up for all my actions and all that is within my power, jurisdiction, and scope.

Integrity: I say what I mean and I do what I say.

Civility: To consider how my words and actions, and those of the people in my influence, affect others. Being a gentleman, and making sure the people around me are as well.

There you have it. Nothing overly complicated. The only New Year’s resolution I made for 2011 is to not go to any night clubs. I find them stuffy, aggressive, and pretentious, so I’m going to avoid them. However, I’ll use my three guiding words to live life, and we’ll see how it serves me… as an experiment if nothing else.

What are your three words?

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After watching The Social Network, and just recently reading Ronn Torossian‘s take on “Is The Internet Written in Ink?” it got me thinking about what this means for future generations.

Unfortunately I don’t have answers, but a few interesting scenarios are bouncing around in my brain. Particularly, how will the perceived notion of permanent reputation damage be viewed by children in their experimental stages of life.

As kids it was our job to make stupid mistakes as a way of experimentation, learning, and growth. At times we were mean and teased, but then we learned to be caring. We were insecure and fought, until we became brave. We were complete jackasses, until we learned to be sophisticated enough to be civil.

That’s fine, that’s what kids do, that’s how we all learned. However, what if there was a strict realistic expectation that whatever dumb thing came out of your mouth in 5th grade, would be blogged by Johnny when he got home, and thus your permanent reputation would be ingrained in internet history.

Three of several scenarios that I see:

The Silent Devil

A child grows up in fear of making the wrong moves. This child does not learn the lessons that come with the mistakes. The one skill that they master is how to hide their thoughts and actions from their family and friends, for fear of being written up on the net. They grow through life silently nurturing their inner daemons, while putting out a front that’s not really themselves.

The Ruined Rep

The other child dismisses the notion of public relations and goes on as children always have. Has a lot of good days and bad days, plays hard, speaks what is on his mind, and doesn’t worry about being written into internet history. He says a lot of things he regrets, learns from his mistakes, becomes an excellent guy, but unfortunately is scarred by past experiences and can never get a job because everyone of his potential employers always googles his name with the word asshole beside it to see just how many people he pissed off.

The Super Generation

Perhaps it doesn’t really take stupid mistakes to know and do the right thing. Perhaps the watchful eye will induce some sort of Hawthorne effect, where children are happy doing the right thing under a watchful eye. They’re able to document their progress, make incremental improvements, and take themselves to a level that even the most fanatical journal keeper of our generation is not able to harness of themselves.

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So what will become of these future generations? The ones without the luxury to make mistakes in private? What’s your opinion? What other scenarios can you think of?

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“Never go to excess, but let moderation be your guide.”
~Marcus Tullius Cicero

The above quote, from our beloved Ancient Roman Lawyer, Writer, Scholar, Orator and Statesman, is great for certain situations. However, I’m a firm believer that even moderation should be taken in moderation, meaning that sometimes life calls for extremes.

When does life call for extremes?

When You’re CEO of a Firm (or own your business)

Awhile back I started interviewing highly successful people on my Podcast show, and I’ve been poking and prodding them about their very own success secrets. Although there are many similarities, everyone that I’ve interviewed has their own unique style.

The interview with Ronn Torossian, CEO of 5WPR (a leading NYC/LA based Public Relations firm), revealed a bit about his work mantra “work hard, work hard, work hard.” He gets up at 5:00am for an hour and a half of exercise, and then does approximately 12 hours of work between clients, public speaking, and managing his employees.

Needless to say, even in this economy, Ronn is coming up cash positive, and looking to acquire smaller firms to fuel the fire under his public relations tank. It is due to the fact that he takes his work home with him, both in the evenings and the weekends, that he is able to excel and prosper where others are doomed to fail.

When You’re an Intern

Let’s take an example from one of my favorite books, The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. One of the most powerful, and indisputably richest characters, is Mr. Gale Wynand. This point is about interns, not CEOs, so why use a man that has a media empire with companies all over the country? He wasn’t always a CEO, in fact, he started in poverty.

As a young guy, subjected to extreme poverty, foster homes, and gang violence, Gale Wynand began to study rich people, in rich neighborhoods. He quickly realized that they all read, took on reading himself, and set out to get a job.

He sat in front of the newspaper building for days, rejected time and time again for even the lowest level of employment. His persistence, and the fact that he sat on the steps for days, finally got him an errand to deliver a package. He did this with great care and precision, and repeated this with the next task, until he finally got into the company, and eventually took it over.

When You’re a Parent

I think this is something you really feel in your bones when you’re a parent, which I’m not, so the rest of us can only take in theory for now. I recently heard Leo Babauta interview Merlin Mann on The Power of Less site.

Merlin pointed out how his priorities shifted after acquiring his new baby girl. There are now two things in his life: 1) her, and then 2) everything else. Whatever she needs, from a poopy diaper change, to some love, comes as a priority before anything else.

There is no moderation in the love that a parent has for their child. There’s no saying, “let me hold back the love I feel for a bit, so I can conveniently get more important things done”, because there aren’t more important things to be done.

When You’re Chronically Sick

Joe, one of the readers of this site, has been diagnosed with a severe chronic illness. It’s gotten to the point where gathering energy to walk is no longer an option. With the lose of energy, and clarity, sitting in front of the computer to create one of his written masterpieces is no longer an option either.

All moderation of lifestyle is out the window, and the only option is extreme treatment. He’ll be flying out to Europe, to receive a new experimental treatment, that shows much promise. Remaining in bed, eating healthy, drinking plenty of fluids, and everything else that comes with extreme rest and recovery is not an act of moderation, it’s an act of survival.

Sometimes we have to throw moderation out the window in order to survive. Whether it be physically, emotionally, or dealing with our families and careers, moderation can’t always solve the extreme issues that require immediate attention.

When You’re Getting Over a Breakup

Ending a long-term intimate relationship is usually not an easy thing. I’ve been there before, and can attest that for a short time afterwards it’s hard to concentrate on everyday tasks, running the scenarios of what could have been through my mind.

There is no real moderation in dealing with situations like this, and no immediate cure either. What’s worked for me is being extremely occupied. I would do this by spending extra time at the gym, each and every day — without fail. There’s nothing quite like doing 60 minutes of elliptical, full force, to get happy chemicals flowing through your blood stream.

Another extreme solution is not being alone, by staying on the phone when on the road, and studying around other people at the library rather than home alone. Whatever it takes in order to deal with the aftermath and move on with your life.

When do you find yourself not practicing any moderation?

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Entrepreneur’s are a rare breed, often misunderstood and coined crazy for their spontaneous ideas, non-stop schedule and lack of rest. It takes a special person to go against the fold, and create their own job, career and life path. Some people try their whole life, and fail. But others, with some creativity and a little bit of luck, make it happen. I have that someone in my family to serve as a role model on how to be an entrepreneur, follow through and gain the success and life one dreams. That person is my uncle, Peter Glazman, founder of USPack Courier Service.

Now that I am at an age where I am deciding between taking the 9-5 job or carving out my own path, I have reflected on what it is that made my uncle the success he is today. If you are like me, debating between starting your own company or taking the unconventional route, here are some things I have learned from the man himself.

No Excuses

My uncle emigrated from the Ukraine in ‘79 determined to “make it.” He started as a driver, delivering packages here and there. But when he saw how the courier company he worked for was treating their clients, he thought he could build something better. And so he did. Despite the language barrier, my uncle approached one of the top banks in the country to open a same-day delivery account with his new business, relying solely on his honesty and personality. He managed to land that account over other big-name delivery companies and never looked back.

See Something, Do Something

A real entrepreneur is someone who believes in the spirit of capitalism, and competition. When we have an idea, as my uncle did to start a courier company with unprecedented customer service, we have an obligation as an entrepreneur to follow through. This country was built on companies going above and beyond the next in order for us today to have great service, and great product. The idea that something has already been done is false. There is always a way to do something bigger, better and smarter. Seizing the opportunity to go above and beyond the company and customer service of his original employer is what made my uncle the success he is today, giving him the edge over the other drivers who were once in his seat.

Never forget who you work for

We’ve seen it time and time again, the bigger the entrepreneur or the company, the less the client matters. No matter how much success was gained in my uncle’s company over the 25+ years it has been around, my uncle has never forgotten a single client, even if it was one person delivering one letter one time only. He responds to every email he receives, every phone call he gets, and never forgets to thank his clients with notes and small gifts. That personal touch is what separates USPack Courier Service from the “big” guys.

Give back

Even in the worst of times, especially in our current recession, my uncle is always on the lookout for opportunity to give back and help others in need. Today, USPack is delivering artifacts to the World Trade Center site, and always seeking opportunities to deliver for food drives and charities in need. My uncle does not make his company solely a source of income, but a resource in helping and making a difference where he can.

Always grow and seek new opportunity

Twenty-five years is a long time for many things (that’s my whole life), and maintaining and growing a small business is definitely one of them. But, he has managed to do it. With new technologies, needs, clientele, my uncle never stays stagnant in old ways of thinking, but is always looking outside of himself to what the market needs. Today, they company is ahead of the curve with new tracking technologies so that no important package gets lost. Plus, they are on the verge of growing a green fleet of vehicles for eco-conscious deliveries. An entrepreneur knows that the world is always changing and that they always need to stay one step ahead of the game, not behind.

Follow your spirit

Lastly, the biggest lesson of all I’ve learned from watching my uncle is to follow your spirit. My mom always told me these stories of how my uncle would go around as a kid in Ukraine and find ways to make money. Whether it’s recycling (yes, he was ahead of the times), paper routes, or selling his only pair of boots so he can make a few rubles, he never missed an opportunity to make money if he could. And then when he did, he would come back and buy something for the family.

I’ve heard a saying once that money doesn’t change you, but makes you more of who you already are. That is definitely true in my uncle’s case, as with more success, he has found more opportunity to give back and provide an amazing home for his family. He is an inspiration to me as I move forward in whatever it is I decide to pursue to not make excuses for myself, to follow through with my ideas, to give back and never forget those who have given me the opportunity to make my dreams happen and, of course, to follow my spirit.

I believe if one is a true entrepreneur, they will change the world by carving out their visions into reality, even if it’s just making a small mark on the world. My uncle has done so, and I encourage others who have the personality for it to go for it too.

If you’re interested in learning more about Monica’s uncle’s company, visit www.GoUSPack.com or follow the company on twitter @USPack. For more on Monica, visit www.SweetHeartJournalist.com

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

Whether you are a newly appointed boss or you have been in this position for a long time, it is important for you to aspire to be better at what you do. People think that being at the helm is a glamorous job. Well, there is no doubt about that. However, it can also be stressful and very difficult.

In fact, quite a number of people cannot handle the stress and the demands of being a boss. They end up losing good employees and a huge chunk of their customers mainly because of their inefficiencies and lack of management skills.

Here is a list of effective ways to help you become better in being a boss:

1. Improve your Skills

In order to be a great boss, you need to equip yourself with appropriate skills. If you do not have supervisory experience, you may want to attend management seminars and other training programs that will help you become an effective manager, supervisor or boss.

2. Study the Company’s Vision and Mission

You do not want to end up scratching your head when some new employee asks you about the company’s background, mission and vision. If you want to contribute to the achievement of that vision and mission, you have to know them first.

3. Educate Your People about Company Policies and Goals

You should also remember to know the goals and policies of your organization. Once you have learned these things, impart them to your subordinates so that they will be on the same page as you.

4. Lead by Example

You cannot expect people to follow and respect you if you do not lead by example. If you want your team to be active and hardworking, you need to show them that you are also doing your share in making your team or department achieve its objectives. It is embarrassing to reprimand someone for sleeping on the job if you are also seen by your subordinates doing the same thing.

5. Make Your Expectations Clear

In order to minimize confusions and misunderstanding, be clear with what you expect from your employees. If you have to meet each member of the team to send the message across, do not hesitate to do so.

6. Set High Standards

A lot of bosses are afraid to set high standards for their employees because they actually do not have confidence in their subordinates. Do not be like these bosses. From the beginning, impress upon your team that you will accept nothing but the best.

7. Set Goals That Are Achievable

It is all right to expect the best from your employees, but be sure to make realistic goals. For example, a 30% to 50% increase in sales may be reasonable. Unless you came from a 70% slump, asking for a 100% turnaround in a month may be unachievable.

8. Spend Some Time to Listen

Be sure to take some time to listen to your subordinates. They too can come up with great ideas and solutions. Do not shut other people out even if they may give weird suggestions. If you really think that the ideas and suggestions are far out and impossible, take some time to think about them. You can never tell if a proposal will not have any merit.

9. Don’t Keep Your Employees in the Dark

It is worth stressing that it is important for your subordinates to have idea on the state of the company and other things that you think they need to know to help them perform their job well.

10. Don’t Forget the ABCs of Supervision

Mentoring, checking up on your employees, asking your subordinates about their expectations are just some of the basics of supervision that you should never forget, even if you are already at the helm.

11. Regularly Check Performance and Expectations

Employees sometime slack off when they realize that the management does not check their performance or if their boss is not really good at making evaluations. To prevent this, make sure that you keep a regular performance and expectation evaluation.

12. Be Sure to Offer Positive Feedback

There will surely be instances when your subordinates or team members will commit mistakes or submit work that does not meet your expectation. Instead of scolding and reprimanding your subordinate in front of other people, do it inside your office or room. Also, make sure that you provide positive feedback instead of negative criticisms.

13. Stress the Importance of Meeting the Company Goals

You need to let your people know the importance of meeting or even surpassing company goals and objectives. Let them know how their work affects the overall productivity and revenue of the company. This will surely give them a sense of ownership in their work.

14. Learn To Strategically Use Positive Reinforcement

Try to avoid showering employees with praise to the point of being excessive.  For one thing, it can come as a shock should you have to impart criticism at some point if your workers have become “spoiled.” Make it so your positive reinforcement is heard, appreciated and is motivation for greater productivity.

15. Include Your Team When Making Plans

Brainstorming and regular team meetings are good because these allow everyone to be involved in planning and setting of company goals and programs.

16. Be Firm and Consistent

In order to make your subordinates know that you are serious, you should be firm and consistent with applying policies, especially when reprimanding negative behavior.

17. Encourage Your People to be the Best They Can Be

Motivate employees to do their best. Do not be afraid or feel threatened if someone in your group performs better than other members of the team.

18. Offer Ways for Skill Enhancements

To equip your subordinates with what they need to do their job well, give them ample skills training to make them good at what they do.

19. Give Your Employees Something to Look Forward To

Lunch outs, parties, out-of-town team building activities, and other non-office related activities can surely make a ho-hum work environment more exciting.

20. Learn to Trust Your People’s Abilities

Do not spoon feed your subordinates. Let them approach things and problems in their own way. Trust them to perform their jobs effectively and creatively.

21. Delegate Responsibilities

Again, you are not the only person who can do the job. Learn to delegate responsibilities to others. Delegation will also help you focus more on managerial stuff.

22. Provide Self Development Training Courses

Training programs that are not necessarily connected to the job, such as time management, stress management, and writing business letters effectively are essential in making your team members better skilled.

23. Manage Your Time and Resources Carefully

A good manager knows how to spend time and resources wisely.

24. Hire the Best

Don’t be afraid to hire people smarter than you. They are assets to your team and company.

25. Teach Team Members How to Manage Stress Well

Stress can affect the efficiency and performance of each employee. As a good boss, you need to help your subordinates manage stress well.

26. Be Involved

Do not stay in your ivory tower. Get involved with your team, even if you have to get your hands dirty.

27. Socialize with Your Team

Learn to socialize, talk, exchange news and ask about the personal lives of your team members. It would also be a good idea to know the birthdays of each of them so that you can greet them on their special days.

28. Be Sensitive to Other People’s Needs

Employees are not usually vocal and open about their needs. As a good leader, you should be able to anticipate what your team might need to do the job well.

29. Encourage Your Team to Be Creative

Open your mind and encourage other people to provide creative inputs and suggestions.

30. Apply Other People’s Inputs

Getting the suggestions of others is one thing, but applying them to the operations of the company or your team can really motivate your people.

31. Be Available

Don’t hide inside your office. Open your door and make yourself available to your team.

32. Learn From Others

You don’t know everything, so be willing to learn from other people too, even if they are your subordinates.

33. Learn From History

Don’t commit the same mistakes twice. Learn to make the most of your past mistakes.

34. Respect Other People’s Beliefs and Ideas

Do not judge other people based on their personalities. Be open-minded.

35. Don’t Breathe On Other People’s Necks

If there is one thing that employees hate, it is a boss who does not give his subordinates the free hand to perform their jobs. The members of your team are not robots, so don’t expect them to do things the way that you do.

36. Don’t Get Involved With Gossips

Believe it or not, men also love gossips. But if you are a boss, do not participate in gossiping. In fact, these things should be discouraged in the office altogether.

37. Learn New Skills

You also need to improve your skills. If you still do not know how to use the Internet, it is high time that you start learning.

38. Encourage Other People to Learn New Skills

Making training programs available is one thing. You should also encourage your subordinates to learn new skills.

39. Show Genuine Concern for Your Employees

Know how to sympathize and show concern for others.

40. Keep Positive Attitude

Positive attitude is infectious, so try to spread it to your team.

41. Maintain Good Working Environment

Based on surveys, employees value safe and good working conditions. In fact, many say that their top reason for staying with a company is the work environment.

42. Be Accountable

Do not blame others for your mistakes. Take responsibility for your actions and decisions.

43. Learn to Say No

You should not be a people pleaser to be a good boss. In fact, you need to learn how to say no too.

44. Promote Other People’s Ideas

Not all good ideas should come from you. It would really be a good thing to market and promote other people’s ideas as well.

45. Be Open to Change

Change is inevitable so you need to be open-minded when it comes to new technology and ways of doing things.

46. Ensure Good Working Relationships Within Your Team

Encourage your team members to respect each other and maintain a good working relationship with everyone. Resolve problems and bickering quickly and fairly.

47. Know When to Have Fun and When to be Serious

Strike a balance between being a fun loving boss and a serious one. Being serious all the time can dampen spirits, while always having fun and lax on policies can make your team slack and ineffective.

48. Don’t Be a Parasite

Do not do things that can taint your reputation. Be wary of accepting gifts from suppliers or favors from customers.

49. Be Ready To Help

A good boss knows when to offer a helping hand to his subordinates.

50. Value Time

If you want your employees to value your time, be sure to value theirs as well. Don’t keep them waiting for hours during meetings.

Author’s Bio:

Discover how you can achieve all that you want in life in The 77 Traits of Highly Successful People. Mark Foo has brought together 48 personal development bloggers and writers to co-author this success eBook that spells out all the success secrets. Claim your FREE copy of the eBook now at http://www.77SuccessTraits.com.

Photo is courtesy of Kumar Appaiah

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

Sometime in August of 2009 I got a crazy idea for a WordPress Plugin. It was born out of my frustration that great people stopped by to comment on the site, but sometimes I’d lose touch with them and wonder where they went.

Having no programming experience, I tracked down the best plugin developer in the western hemisphere and partnered up with Jeff Rose. Over the past months he has been great in taking my vision and turning it into a reality.

Seeing how 110% of my time has been focused on dental school, I knew that I needed a better means of promoting the plugin, which is why I recruited my good friend and number one internet marketer in the world, John Chow. Actually, it wasn’t much recruitment, once I showed him the finished site and a beta copy of the plugin, he fell in love and offered me his services.

Speaking of the website, I’m not really a designer, but I did have a vision, and once again I found a masterful team to take my vision and turn it into reality. The team at Pixelmobb are a very talented group of designers, developers, movie and commercial developers that do a lot of great website and advertisement work for big time musicians, restaurants, and even small businesses. We’ll be doing business again, that’s for sure!

Standout Comments Plugin

So what is this plugin that I speak of, and what does it do? Well, here’s the features breakdown right from the site.

As you can see, a core feature of the plugin is to allow wordpress users to create a hassle-free way for people to subscribe to both to their newsletter and feedburner RSS feed. However, that’s only part of it, because we’ve built in integration with twitter, an easy way to display advertisements, social bookmarking sharing options, and it’s all easy to control from the following admin panel:

As you can see, you have very convenient access to everything from one location.  So that’s just about all that I have for you right now. The going price is $67, which if you look at a plugin like this as an investment in your future, and a way to build up your lists to stay in touch with fans and potential customers, I know you’ll find it worth it.

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

One must live life to the fullest, rather than spend it drifting into obscurity. So, unless you savor every minute that you use up sitting in your office chair or counting the moments that go by while you settle down on your couch, you really need to go out there and find some action that will add more essence to help you live a full life. I was also

Fortunately, your life’s fulfillment depends solely on the choices that you make. Your power to select determines how exciting and rewarding your life will be. So don’t waste your ability to choose. To help you reach your true potentials and live a life that’s full, here are 9 essential things that must be on your to-do list.

1. Live Life with a Purpose

Just like a ship, you need direction in life. Without a fixed direction to follow, your life is lost. Finding your own unique bearings requires purpose. This is not the same as the typical goal-setting sessions that you do at work. When I say finding purpose in life, it means discovering the real reason for your existence.

Always keep in mind that your life did not happen by accident. In other words, the things in your life occurred because you allowed them. Thus, you might as well find your purpose and train all your actions and your choices to achieve your goals. Discovering your purpose will give you the motivation to achieve all things in life.

2. Live With Passion. Do What You Love

Your life purpose and passion are what make your life more meaningful and enjoyable. They are the spark and fuel of what drive you in life. While a purpose sets your direction in life, your passion will ignite and fuel your purpose.

If you allow your life to simply drift into the daily routines that you have now, then you are simply existing rather than living. You are not some turnkey robot that can be easily turned on or off by your boss, your family, or other people around you. So seek to take back your life. Live with passion so that you can turn your everyday experiences into extraordinary, life-changing events.

3. Work Hard, Play Hard

We often hear this saying in the corporate world. It simply means balancing intense long work hours with equally intense leisurely activities like parties, sports, or just spending time with your loved ones. If you want to live life to the fullest, you need to balance your life. If you only focus on your work life, you will surely feel burned out and your passion in life will be extinguished before you even know it. So, after closing that million-dollar deal, consider partying in the Bahamas or go bungee jumping.

4. Personal Growth

If you really want to master your life, you need to grow and aspire to become the person you have always dreamed of becoming. Personal growth will equip you not just with skills, but also the proper mindset to take full charge of your life.

You see, nobody is perfect. Sure enough, there are some aspects in your life that you have always considered to be your weaknesses. If you want to conquer those weaknesses, you need to develop those areas. By enhancing your competencies in life, you are a step closer to your dream of living a full life.

5. Find Your True Love

You may not believe it, but one of the most important goals in life is to find a loyal and worthy partner in life. Finding your true love gives you that other person whom you can share your dreams with. This person will save you from depression and help you keep your head up high.

Well, your true love may not always be another person. Some men consider wealth and other things as their true love. Whatever your reason is for choosing a thing or a person, always remember that your true love will be that one part of your life that will inspire you to achieve your dreams.

6. Develop Great Friendships

Very often, we stray away from our goals in life. The fact is we need some kind of support system to bring us back in line with our purpose in life. And that support can come largely from our friends. Developing great friendships gives you invaluable inputs which you can use in life. Friends can give you a different perspective on things and they can surely fill in any emptiness inside you. Come to think of it, how will you ever enjoy your beer or weekend barbecues without your friends?

7. Stay Healthy

All the things that you do to live your life to the fullest will be for naught if you do not take good care of your health, both mentally and physically. Your ability to reach for your goals relies heavily on your ability to wake up in the morning, thoroughly think about what needs to be done, and act on your objectives or goals. If you suffer from any disease or you are in pain, you become less creative and less productive, which can ultimately drag your life down.

8. Be Financially Free

To live life to the fullest, you need to be able to do what you want, when you want. In other words, it means to have the power to choose to head down to the beach with your mates to ride the waves rather than spend your day at the desk waiting for the minutes to drag by.

However, you can’t be 100 per cent free to live exactly the kind of lifestyle you want unless you have achieved financial freedom. While money is not everything, everything is money. Being financially free gives you the power to:

• work by choice and not by necessity
• stop being held hostage by a boss
• provide your family with more security and a better life
• help more people
• live anywhere you want

To learn more about achieving financial freedom, check out my article How To Achieve Financial Freedom.

9. Help People Who Are Less Fortunate

“To give is more fortunate than to receive.” – Chinese Proverb

Finally, if you want to live life to the fullest, you need to give other people a helping hand, especially the less fortunate ones. By helping others, you experience something that goes way beyond material things. In fact, psychologists have proven that one can get more out of helping others compared to getting help from others. Studies show that by extending a helping hand, you get a totally exhilarating feeling that you can’t encounter anywhere. Now, that’s a really priceless way to live a life that’s full.

I know I may have missed out a few other things here such as ‘Believe in God’ and ‘Have Kids’. This is intentional because I’m not a religious person and having kids is not one of my priorities in life. I don’t mind having kids, but it’s just not a must for me. So if you’re religious and you want kids, you may include them to make your life more fulfilled.

Author’s Bio:

Discover how you can achieve all that you want in life in The 77 Traits of Highly Successful People. Mark Foo has brought together 48 personal development bloggers and writers to co-author this success eBook that spells out all the success secrets. Claim your FREE copy of the eBook now at http://www.77SuccessTraits.com.

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

It can be tough when you feel that your life sucks. Not only will your daily grind become boring, but your overall existence will be just that – existence. Fortunately, there is much room for improvement even if you consider your life to be totally depressing. But before you set out to make your life better, here are 50 signs that your life is in the doldrums and you need a life makeover.

1. Life has Become One Big Routine

If you think that your life is defined by routines and you actually feel comfortable about it, then it’s a good bet that your life sucks.

2. You Are Horrified About Going to the Office Every Day

If you are dreadful about going to work every single day, you could be among countless men who think that their careers or lives suck.

3. You Can’t Bring Yourself to Focus at Work

Remember your first day on the job? Most likely, you were so inspired that you actually shined your shoes and pressed your coat and tie. But now, you just can’t seem to put any ounce of energy or creativity in your work. You are stuck.

4. You Have Never Been Promoted in Your Job

Your work or career is one big factor in determining if you are living an exhausted life. If you have worked for the same company for 25 years, jumping from one department to the next, without getting promoted, then your life sucks.

5. You Talk About Your Boss Even During Lunch Breaks

If you and your colleagues spend half of your working hours discussing how your boss is such a moron, it is very much likely that you hate your job. Working for a bad boss is like working in hell.

6. Your Paycheck Has the Same Figure for Over Five Years Now

If you have been working for years and your paycheck still has the same amount as when you started, then your company does not value your work.

7. Work Hours Become More Difficult to Predict

So, you signed up for 8-hour workdays. But now, you do not even have any idea how many hours you spend in the office. If your workday stretches beyond normal hours, you no longer have control of your time and it sucks.

8. You’re Not Given the Benefits Promised to You

When you signed your work contract, you were particularly interested in the medical and pension benefits that have been explicitly included in the agreement. But if the benefits that have been promised to you never materialized, you are not being given what is rightfully yours.

9. Everyone Seems to Pull a Fast One on You – Easily

In relation to the above, your work is not the only place where you can be bamboozled. The world is rife with swindlers and scammers. If you have been victimized by shady characters for ten times out of ten, then your life definitely sucks.

10. You Pay for Things That Are Supposed to be Free

If you have been paying for stuffs that are legally given away for free, then you have been fooled and you have not enjoyed life the way others do.

11. You Still Live in Your Parents’ Basement

OK, a friend of mine from the States contributed this one when I was asking around for ideas to create this post. I’m from Singapore, a little tropical country in South-East Asia, so I never understood this western ethos. Anyhow, I’ll just include it here since it is commonly regarded as sucky in the western culture.

12. The First Thing You Do in the Morning is Check Your Social Media Profiles

Your only means of socializing is through your Facebook or other social media profiles. Honestly, you’re not human anymore.

13. Your Idea of a Perfect Getaway is to Watch Videos

Well, now you are not only living off on your parents’ money. You also have lost touch on how it’s like to be human. I’m talking about the fact that your idea of having a perfect night out is to watch old movies or sitcom reruns instead of inviting a girl to a date.

14. Your Idea of Fun is to Use Drugs or Get Wasted

If you can’t be happy without these substances, your life is in the ropes.

15. Being Witty for You Means Passing Chain Letters and Jokes

You can’t even make up your own jokes or sayings. You have to pass on other people’s jokes and stuffs to feel intelligent. Well, you’re not.

16. You See Your Life Crumble Every Time Your Team Loses

Okay, your team lost. Drink a couple of beers, don’t sleep for the night, but please snap out of it. Your life does not depend on your team.

17. You Always Believe That Underdogs Win in the End

With a little cheering from the audience and a truly moving music, you believe that underdogs always win. Well, wake up to reality, man!

18. You Experience Hazing and Bullying Even in Your Flamingo Class

If bullies still pick on you even in your adult years, you have been living a lowly existence at the bottom of the food chain, so to speak.

19. You Are Never Invited to Parties

If no one seems to invite you to parties, then no one even notices you exist and it really sucks.

20. All Your Relationships Are Online

Sure, you can have 5,000 friends through popular social sites like Facebook. But if all your friends are nothing but avatars on your screen, then your life is stuck my friend.

21. You Join Bible Tours Just to Find Friends

There is nothing wrong with joining Bible Expos. But if you join these just to find friends, you have serious personal troubles.

22. Even if You Join Bible Conventions, You Still Can’t Grow Your List of Friends

Okay, you joined Bible conventions to find friends and you still fail to grow your list of friends. You are done for my friend.

23. You Look Forward to Talking With a Telemarketer

Speaking of relationships, everyone agrees that life is made more interesting by having real life friends. Awaiting calls from telemarketers just so you can talk to another human being indicates that you are throwing your life away without even knowing it.

24. You Look Forward to Reading Spam Mail in Your Inbox

Again, this means you do not even exist in other people’s lives.

25. All the Numbers in Your Phonebook Belong to Men/Women

We have covered a lot of ground on relationships. But I do believe that we need to build relationships with the opposite sex. If your phonebook only has the contact numbers of your male/female friends, you could be missing out on a lot of fun and excitement.

26. All the Numbers in Your Phonebook Begin with 1-900

This is yet another sign that your life is meaningless.

27. Your Romantic Relationships Always Fail

Okay guys, you made some progress and you actually won the hearts of a few girls. The problem is that all your previous relationships tend to fail before you even get to second base. If you always fail to make your partner happy, you will live your life alone.

28. You Spend Half of Your Time Apologizing

It is okay to be sorry for the wrongs that you have committed. But if you always utter apologies for half the time, then you always feel guilty. This makes you feel bad about yourself.

29. You Gossip and Slander Against Your Colleagues

You are incapable of being happy for others. You are definitely a loser.

30. You Live in Your Past Glories

You are stuck in the past. All you do is reminisce about the time you won a hotdog eating contest. Hey, grow up!

31. You Are Always Very Pessimistic

You can’t see the brighter side of things. It is a wonder you made it this far.

32. You Forgot What It’s Like to Laugh

Laughter has been proven to enhance one’s health for free. So, if you cannot even take advantage of laughter, you truly deserve to live a dull existence.

33. You No Longer Have Any Ambition

No matter how old you are, it is important to have dreams. What would life be without aspirations?

34. You Don’t Respect Yourself and Other People

If you can’t respect yourself, you also can’t respect others. This means you are devoid of positive attitude. You’re a loser.

35. You’re So Closed Minded

You do not even know that life is passing you by, that there are new things to discover out there. Living in your own little shell is pathetic.

36. You Are So Afraid of Change

If you can’t let yourself accept change and you have been living in the past all these years, your life is stuck in a quicksand.

37. When a Man Gets Praised for His Work, You have to Ask if He is Really Happy

This is a sign that you can’t even support people around you. You are selfish. You have to rain on everyone else’s parade. You are a loser.

38. You Quit Before the Challenge Even Starts

Need I say more?

39. You Are Afraid to Take Responsibilities

If you don’t have the mojo to take responsibilities, how can you grab life by its horns? Grow up.

40. You Blame Your Failures on Everyone but Yourself

If you blame other people for the things that go wrong in your life, then you are a coward and afraid of responsibilities.

41. You’re Never Willing to Compromise

You always want to have your way. This is a sign of immaturity. You are a loser whose life sucks.

42. You Cut Off Others to Feel Superior

You cut off others while they are speaking so you would look smart. Well, that’s pathetic.

43. You Think Money is the Ultimate Resource

Yes, I love money. But if you think that life sucks only if you do not have a penny to your name, then you’re wrong. There are other more important things like time and good health.

44. You Buy Your Way through Life

You always think money is the solution. This indicates your lack confidence in yourself.

45. You Do Not Take Pride in Working

You always want the easy way out. If you can’t work for your own good, your life sucks.

46. You See Someone Hurt and You Couldn’t Even Care Less

Again, this is an indication that you can’t feel anything positive in your life. It’s really going to drag you down.

47. Your Friends Can’t Even Depend on You

If the people you love cannot turn to you for help, that’s because they don’t trust you and they are not comfortable asking for your help. Your life sucks big time.

48. You Lack Integrity

If your thoughts and actions are incongruent, your personal values are not that strong. You can’t stand on your own and everything in your life has been copied from others.

49. You Can’t Keep Your Promises

You’re a loser and your life sucks if other people cannot even value your words.

50. You Create Your Own Reality

Finally, the ultimate measure of a life that sucks is the fact that you try to hide from the realities of life. If you conjure up and believe in your own little world and shun reality, you become a coward and your life sucks.

Author’s Bio:

Discover how you can achieve all that you want in life in The 77 Traits of Highly Successful People. Mark Foo has brought together 48 personal development bloggers and writers to co-author this success eBook that spells out all the success secrets. Claim your FREE copy of the eBook now at http://www.77SuccessTraits.com.

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

There are many ways to learn how to clear your mind. If you find that your mind is racing and you wish you had better control over it, you can try to find a solution that works for you personally. You can try relaxation techniques and other strategies to get rid of clutter in your mind.

Get To The Root

Many times you might find that you’re having trouble concentrating because your mind is too busy. This could be because of a number of factors. It’ll be tough to clear your mind without figuring out the true cause of your problems.

Identify the reasons why you’re having trouble clearing your mind. You could be over thinking a certain issue. Maybe you need to solve that issue before you move on in life. Maybe you need to declutter your life in other ways. Spend time identifying the ways that your life is cluttered. It’ll help you to set yourself up for a game plan.

Once you have your reasons, you can ask yourself why those reasons are standing in the way of you and a clutter free life. If you can’t seem to relax, you can turn to different relaxation techniques which will in turn help you to clear your mind.

Relaxation Techniques

Some say there’s no better way to learn how to clear your mind than to try relaxation techniques.

Try some or all of the following in order to relax and clear your mind:

1. Unwind. Many people report a racing mind in the evening when they’re trying to rest. Others will have a racing mind at other points during the day. This is likely because they’re not taking time to unwind. People can’t be expected to deal with the stresses of life and then immediately transition into relaxation. You must give yourself some personal time and time doing light activities every day.

2. Meditation. Meditation is a great way to get rid of clutter in your mind. Try making time for a meditative practice for 30 minutes in the morning or in the evening. It’s time where you can concentrate on your breath alone and none of your other problems can touch you. Your goal is to remain completely present and to not allow thoughts of the past and future to interfere with your thinking. When thoughts do arise, you should acknowledge them and then refocus your energy back to your breath.

3. Yoga. Yoga is a good choice for people who want to combine some physical fitness along with clearing the mind. During yoga you’ll assume certain postures that can increase your flexibility. You’ll also concentrate on your breath in a similar fashion as meditation.

Becoming Clutter Free

If your goal is to simply declutter your life, you can do that too. You can work on the clutter of your mind by concentrating on all of your problems one by one. You can also choose to become clutter free by concentrating on the physical clutter that invades your life.

Physical clutter would mean all of the things you’ve been saving, or the things that pile up on your desk at home or at work. Think about how you felt when you had a perfectly clean home. You likely were able to think with a clear mind without really knowing it. If you work at dealing with the problem of physical clutter you may just be solving your problem with “mind clutter”.

How To Keep A Clear Mind

Your last step is to work on keeping a clear mind. Once you’ve mastered how to clear your mind, you need to make sure that you don’t fall back into any bad patterns. Be sure to check in with yourself every now and then to make sure you haven’t picked up any bad habits.

Author’s Bio:

Ever wondered how great successful people achieved great success? You can find the answer in The 77 Traits of Highly Successful People. Mark Foo has brought together 48 personal development bloggers and writers to co-author the success eBook that spells out all of the success secrets of the very successful people. This eBook is available to you FREE and you can grab your free copy now at http://www.77SuccessTraits.com

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

In one of my favorite fantasy books, Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede, the main character Cimorene finds herself about to be married off to a Prince she can’t stand. Eventually she finds herself in a conversation with a talking frog who asks her what she is going to do about the situation.

Cimorene tells him about all the people she’s talked to and complained to. He replies with: “I didn’t ask you what you’d said about it. I asked what you’re going to do. Nine times out of ten, talking is a way of avoiding doing things.”

Guilty! I have such a vivid imagination, that if I start talking about my goals or dreams, I don’t actually need to complete them. In my mind, I reach the end of the journey, celebrate the success, collect the accolades and revel in the money I’ve raked in.

All without having to lift a finger.

I connect with the future on a highly emotional level and feel all the positive emotions associated with success. And I’m done. I don’t need to do actually go through the effort of getting there – that’s just too much work.

Visualizing Action, Not Outcome

A lot of self-development people say that you need to fully visualize your outcome if you want to reach it. Talking to others about it makes it real and makes you accountable. However in his excellent book 59 Seconds, Richard Wiseman looks at studies which prove that visualizing your future too well actually hinders the likelihood of you completing it.

Instead of visualizing the outcome, Wiseman reports, you’ll have more success with your goals if you visualize yourself taking action that leads you toward your goal.

Let’s look at an example. I’m currently working on the draft of a novel. To motivate myself say I try picturing the novel finished and on bookshelves in stores with my name at the top of the bestseller list.

Will that honestly motivate me? No, because there’s no imagery of the work it will take me to get there. In fact there’s a good chance the image will demotivate me and lead to working less instead of more.

Why? Because the gap between where I am (blank page) and where I want to be (bestselling novel) is too big. I can’t see how to get from here to there and so don’t even get started.

However, if I picture myself sitting with my laptop writing each day, celebrating the progress I make then I’m likely to follow through on the vision because it’s only a small step from here to there. I don’t need think about the end result, only the next step in the process.

Action Provides Its Own Rewards

Many people talk rather than act as a way to gain validation from others without actually making progress or changing their lives. These are the people who take endless personal development courses and read every personal development book and blog out there, talking to everyone and anyone about what they’re learning.

And it feels great. They know what their dreams are. They can talk until their jaw falls off about what they want to achieve someday and everyone around them pats them on the back and says “good for you!”

By talking so much, however, these people don’t act. They’re content with the preparation but never start the journey.

These people are addicted to validation and have found an easy way to get it. All their talk makes it seem to the outside world that they’re taking action, but in the end they have nothing to show for it.

When people take action to make internal changes there is often no immediate payoff, no pats on the back for the small steps we take. Lasting change takes a long time and is hard work. Talking is fast and easy.

If you’re like this at all, stop talking. Set yourself a goal – some small habit that you want to change – and take the first step towards achieving it. Give yourself a pat on the back for doing so then move onto the next step.

And this way you’ll learn that action provides its own rewards, its own validation because as you move towards your goal you will see your progress and feel validation coming from within.

At this point, once you are over the validation addiction, go find yourself a forum or group of some sort. Talk to the people in this forum or group about your actions and your progress as a sort of accountability tracking rather than for validation. When you use talking for accountability you lean on the support of others (and provide support to them in turn) to help you take action, and not to boost a failing ego.

Over on Someday Syndrome, I offer a free Accountability Clinic that mixes weekly email reminders with a forum for reporting in on goals, action and obstacles. For my writing goals, I also belong to Forward Motion Writers to keep myself accountable fiction-wise.

Remember, someday never becomes today no matter how much you talk about it. So, if you were Cimorene, what would your answer to the frog be? What action will you take to achieve your dreams?

Alex Fayle is a professional nagger – his most hated word is “someday” and has devoted his life to helping others get rid of it from their vocabularies. Through his site Someday Syndrome (http://www.somedaysyndrome.com), Alex works as a lifestyle designer to help people make big changes in their lives and stop the procrastination habit.

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

It was a beautiful summer evening, and the affiliate summit booze cruise was buzzing with people sharing million dollar ideas with old friends and new acquaintances. I was lucky enough to be standing next to Jim.

“It’s easy. Everyone in the world has something that they could teach to someone else. You just upload the content, put a price on it, and then go ahead and promote it.”

My jaw was dropped for 45 minutes straight as Jim told me about his latest creation; an online university where you can be either the Prfessor, or the Dean. It’s all about sharing what you know, so you can facilitate a new topic, or bring on experts that will contribute to the topic. Whichever way you go, there’s money to be made when you have genuinely valuable knowledge to share.

The simplicity is what makes Prfessor the best turnkey passive income generator on the internet. Whatever you’re passionate about, and could teach to someone, is the same exact thing that can make you money.

It works because you took a lot of time researching the things that you like, such as your hobbies, which makes you really knowledgeable – basically an expert on the topic.

“You don’t know everything, but everybody knows something.”

This means that you can save someone hours, days, even YEARS on their learning curve, because you can sell them your mentorship and teach them without them having to go through the same mistakes you did. It’s passive, because once you make the content, new people can learn from you and pay you, without you having to stand in front of a class – over and over again.

I really believe in Jim, and I believe in this product. I promise that if I wasn’t studying 80 hours a week in Dental School, I would be creating MANY courses to share my knowledge with people. However, since studying is my life at the moment, I’m counting on you to go out there and create something awesome.

So do me a favor do yourself a favor, and go over to Prfessor.com and let Jim Kukral tell you a bit more about it. In the mean time, I’m getting back to my studies!

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

Jennifer Crews contacted me a couple of weeks ago to come on her radio show for an interview. This interview is happening live this Saturday, on the third season of “Get Clear – Gain Clarity in Your Life.”

I’ll be joining Jennifer for 45 minutes, about clarity, decision making, and overcoming obstacles. It should be a great show, and I hope that you guys can tune-in to show some support, and even call in to ask questions.

There will be several ways to listen. One way is by logging in to www.krxa540.com on Saturday at 3:30pm EST. If you’re a local of Monterey/ Santa Cruz, California, then you can listen on AM540. Mark your Calenders now.

If you can’t make it live, we will be recording, and I’ll put the mp3 through iTunes. You can subscribe to my iTunes to get the instant update when I put it up (it might be awhile).

I really appreciate everyone hanging in here while I’m in dental school. It’s a lot of work, it’s not easy, but it is fun, exciting and challenging. The subscriber numbers are going up, the traffic is staying steady, and so during winter break I’ll write a bunch of articles and spread them out over the next semester. We’re going to have a lot of fun here on AlexShalman.com – so stay tuned!

P.S. If you are a personal development enthusiast, and whether or not you have your own blog, I would like to invite you to do a guest post. I’ll only accept it if it’s really good, the readers have come to expect some quality stuff here and I don’t want to let them down, but I’ll work with you to come up with ideas. Shoot me an e-mail.

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

Just as setting small and attainable goals are the building blocks for achieving success; living a lifestyle of making good health choices leads to greater and more sustainable happiness.

The cliché “You are what you eat” does resonate with pieces of truth and common sense. There have been several health and fitness studies over the years that suggest people who are overweight, smoke and drink excessively have a predisposition to experience more bouts of depression than people who live a more moderate lifestyle in these areas.

So, you have heard all of this before, right? The last thing you need right now is someone else lecturing you about what you are doing wrong and calling attention to the fact you may need to lose a few pounds.

Here’s the thing though, beginning right now, today, you can ignore the lectures and the comments you hear others mutter and whisper. Because today you are in control of your health, and your happiness, by empowering yourself with knowing, and believing, in the following statement: Achieving better health is a choice. Choose wisely.

Here’s a roadmap to help you make better choices:

• Relax.
  Stress and anxiety can cause havoc on your metabolism and mental health. Stress impedes your ability to think clearly. Learn to take a step back from stressful situations before they can damage your relationships, your happiness and your health.
• Think of the word “diet” as a noun, not a verb.
  Too often when people fail to sticking with a diet, it is because there are depriving themselves of some of the foods they enjoy most. Deprivation is a negative word – a word that doesn’t foster happiness. Instead of watching or counting calories, pay attention to the diet of foods you are eating. Make good choices as rule, but allow yourself to indulge from time to time.
• Walk more.
  Take the time to walk after dinner. Also, when you are out running errands, park as far away from the front of the store as possible. These extra steps really add up and you will see results immediately.
• Get regularly check-ups.
  Most illnesses or diseases can be avoided if caught in time. Yes, we are all busy. Yes, it’s a pain to see the doctor when you feeling good and really don’t see the point to do so. But prevention is the best prescription for a serious, or life threatening illness.
• Smile and act happy.
  Even when you don’t feel like smiling or feel particularly happy, sometimes you just have to fake it until you make it. You will be surprised how the smiles and happiness you receive back when actually improve your mood and happiness.

Enjoyed this article? Alex Blackwell, author of The BridgeMaker delivers twice weekly articles on faith, inspiration and stories of change. You are invited to become part of The BridgeMaker community today.

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

I often write about success and successful living, but I realize it’s difficult to become successful, if you’re too tired to accomplish anything.  So today I want to discuss “10 Simple Keys to Great Energy.”

There was a time when I didn’t have enough energy to make it through my day, I would burn-out around 7:00pm, and spend the rest of my day in a lethargic state.  However, after researching the subject of “energy” and putting my research into action, I now enjoy amazing energy daily.  I’m rarely tired, even when it’s bedtime.

This article will provide you with some “actionable steps” that will significantly increase your energy-levels; giving you the energy you need to succeed.

The 10 Simple Keys

Key #1: Reduce Your Sugar Intake – Sugar drains your energy!   Sugar is a depressant, the more sugar you eat, the more sleep you need.

In other words, you should avoid foods loaded with sugar; the “sugar” in these foods deplete your energy supply and send you spiraling into a “low” (after your “sugar-high” ends).

Additionally, eating sugary foods before you go to bed will cost you precious energy the next day, so don’t do it.

Key #2: Work-out Daily – I was telling someone that I’ve been working-out 7 days a week, their response was, “Doesn’t all that ‘working-out’ make you feel tired?”  I thought, “…Make me feel tired!?!”  Working-out gives me energy, it’s a stimulant.  Working-out helps clear your mind and relieve stress.  Running for as little as one mile a day will greatly increase your energy; I recommend exercising for at least 30 minutes every day (beginning with a good stretch).

Key #3: Avoid Negative News – I never watch the “news,” I could write an entire series on this one.  Not only do I not watch the news, I don’t understand why anyone would watch the news.  It just spills out death, disease, and garbage.  Garbage in, garbage out.

Negative news is depressing and makes you feel additionally “tired,” there’s no need for you to know about every rape and murder.

You may be thinking, if I don’t watch the news, I’ll miss something big.  Trust me, if something important happens, you’ll find out about it.  (I recommend you get your information from sources other than the news.)

Key #4: Wake-up early and Get Ready Every Morning – Lying in the bed until the middle of the afternoon may make you more lethargic then getting out of bed early.

Additionally, there’s no reason to mope around the house without first showering and brushing your teeth.  Every day you should get up timely, take a shower, brush your teeth, get dressed and then find a way to stimulate your mind.  This will make you feel energetic compared to oversleeping and walking around the house in your pajamas all day.

Key #5: Take your vitamins and drink lots of water – When I take a “Multi-vitamin” and a “B-Complex” I notice a significant boost in my energy levels.  Additionally, water is a great source of energy for your body, so be sure to drink plenty of it.

Key #6: Get 7 hours of sleep – Hopefully this one doesn’t shock anybody!  You’re not going to have great energy sleeping 3 hours a night.  Try to get at least 7 hours of sleep, your body will appreciate you if you do, and it will reward you with more energy.

Additionally, it’s helpful if you create the habit of waking up and going to bed at the same time everyday.  I sleep from 11pm to 6am daily.

Key #7: Eat Three Light Healthy Meals and Three Light Healthy Snacks – Very heavy meals especially during the middle of the day will make you feel tired.  Try eating 3 light meals and 3 light snacks.  It’s easier for your body to process smaller meals, and eating several light meals and snacks will keep your metabolism running more efficiently.

Note: including lots of raw foods (e.g. uncooked fruits and vegetables, etc.) in your diet is also a great way to increase your energy.

Key #8: Take Breaks – Don’t stare at a computer screen all day.  Take breaks often, get up and walk around, talk with others.  Staring at a computer will drain your energy (especially if you’re reading small font).

Take breaks as often as you can.  (Also, be sure to sit in your chair properly; feet on the floor while you’re working.)

[Remember, relaxing is a good thing.  You should also plan at least one fun activity daily (e.g. even if it’s simply watching your favorite television show with your spouse or significant other).]

Key #9: Sunlight – Get some sunlight, the vitamin D you’ll receive from the sun is a good energy supplement. (Just be sure to wear sunscreen.)

Constantly being in the dark can cause you to feel lethargic.

Key #10: Organize Your Life – If your house, garage, office, car or life is a mess then you will probably feel additionally “worn down.”  Organize your life for a feeling of greater energy.  Clutter breeds clutter.

They say, “If I can see your garage, then I’ve seen your mind.”  How does your garage look?  Is it organized?

Clean things up in your life, and you will feel more energetic.

In closing, these are the “energy” keys that have worked for me, but I don’t want to close out this list, please feel free to add your thoughts and ideas in the comments section below.

Mr. Self Development is an author who teaches a practical guide to success and wealth. Please visit him at Mr. Self Development.com. If you’ve enjoyed reading this article, then you may want to subscribe to his feed, follow him on Twitter, or read one of his most popular articles, “How I Manifested a Seven Bedroom Home at 24.”

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

We have to travel many paths in our lives in order to reach the state of our true self. There are also many caves to enter. Caves are those places deep inside us where we are a little bit nervous to enter, some we have to enter, some we stumble upon and some we avoid altogether.

This article will talk about some of the caves we fear to enter and why entering them can be useful for us.

What are the caves?

The caves are those places in our minds where it’s a little darker and we would rather not explore them. In the caves can hide our fears, our worries, our hopes, and our dreams we daren’t dream. They are not places that are locked away, they are open to explore however the paths to them are less trodden. Maybe it’s time we explored these caves.

The cave of hope

Some people never dare to have hope in their lives for a number of reasons. One of the reasons can be because they think they don’t deserve to be hopeful, their thought’s, actions, and life don’t dare to enter the cave of hope for fear of rejection and failure.

The cave of hope is for every single person in the world to enter, whether your hopes are for love, a new car, a new house or the hope of living without fear in your life, which is a basic human need. Whatever your hopes are it’s perfectly okay to enter the cave of hope and find out what the possibilities of life hold for you.

If you don’t enter the cave of hope your life will be stuck, forever in the same place. Without hope, there is no action, without action, we stagnate. dare to hope for yourself, for others and for the world.

The Cave of Worry

Contrary to the title of this post this cave is where a lot of people spend their time; the cave of worry.

The cave of worry is a strange little place, there are tunnels galore leading off the main cave, there are lots of paths leading to the cave and there are lots of inter-connecting caves leading to this cave however. The cave itself is infinite, there is no end, you could walk for miles in this cave of you mind and you will still not be near the end. It’s never ending because that is where worry starts and finishes, it’s starts nowhere and leads nowhere.

I have a client just now who is worrying about something which might happen in a few months time. He cannot sleep for worrying about it which makes him more anxious during the day. When it was pointed out that the possible outcome of his worry cannot be changed AT ALL by him worrying about it and we channeled the ‘worry energy’ he was expending into something more productive his worry seemed to lessen. ‘What if’s’ cannot help us at all in our lives and it wastes a lot of our mental energy when we think in ‘What if’ terms.

It’s not easy to stop being a worrier as for some of us that’s all we know. However, the worry energy can be channeled into other areas which will help ease our worries.

The cave of our dreams

This is a bit like the cave of hope however different in the way that hope is filled with definite possibilities whereas the cave of our dreams is filled with things we may never obtain like winning the lottery.

Is it worth visiting this cave within our mind? Without a doubt yes!

Dreams, even unobtainable dreams or ones we have no control over, is a form of escapism and it’s no different than going to the movies, or reading a book. It also lets us imagine a bigger future for ourselves. When we dream big, I mean really big, our expectations of ourselves is raised a little bit higher than it was had we not dreamt big.

As an example; Say you currently have a business and your profit per year is $15,000. When you start visiting the cave of your dreams and start to imagine your business with a profit of $1,000,000. You really put yourself in the picture, you don’t really believe it will happen however you can actually feel what it would be like to live the lifestyle of someone who owns a business with a profit of $1,000,000 per year. Now, when you come back to reality and see the figure of $15,000 you raise your expectation of what you can do with the business to double your current figure of $15,000 profit per year. Dreaming allows your mind to think of ways to start climbing to reach what you dream of and it will present ways to try and make this happen.

If this sounds like a lot of nonsense, then just take a look at some of the great business persons of the world; Richard Branson, Bill Gates, Eben Pagan, Kevin Rose, Anita Rodderick. All of these people started small but dreamt big. With each successive small success their dream became a reality.

It’s great to dream big and dream big often, it will raise your expectation of what you can actually achieve.

The cave of fear

This is the best cave to visit, even though most of us try and avoid it. The cave of fear holds all our fears about your life. It’s also the cave that has the potential to change our life the most.

Fear has the potential to control our lives if we let it and most fears are irrational. Like the fear of spiders. What’s the most harm most spiders can do? and I’m not talking tarantulas I’m talking about the common everyday spider. They cannot do anything but put on a few pairs of hiking boots, grab plenty of silk rope, grab a flask of tea, kiss goodbye to the partner and kids and go hill walking up your arm, yet some people are so afraid of them. Most of them cannot bite, so there is no danger whatsoever from them.

The only thing to do to start living a fuller life is by conquering every single one of your fears.

I was afraid of heights a few years ago so I conquered this by doing a bungee jump, a parachute jump, and abseiled down the Glasgow Hilton hotel. Did I get over my fear? yes I definitively did. You see fear is irrational in that we work ourselves up to a state of panic whenever we think about that which we say we fear. If you face your fears, you will grow, learn more about yourself, and develop quicker than by doing anything else related to personal development.

To face your fear there’s no better way of doing it than by doing it head on. If you fear heights, get to the top a building and look down, if you fear spiders go to your local zoo and ask them to let a spider walk over your hand, if you fear going outdoors get outside. There is no other way for it and it may sound flippant to say just do it but it’s the only way and your fear is nothing more than a psychological barrier YOU have put up in your mind.

I’d like to leave you with a quote.

The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek.
~Joseph Campbell

Steven is the author of Change Your Thoughts and works as an alcohol and drugs counselor. He has a BSc in Psychology and has a passion for studying belief formation, thought processes and values and principles. His blog focuses on personal development through changing your thoughts but covers the whole personal development field.

Check out Best Practices for Overcoming Obstacles by Alex Shalman at SDN.

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

Last week my classmate and future dental-superstar Damoon Yashar told me about his life philosophy. Go hard, or go home. He meant this in the context of focus and effort, and said that if he’s going to study, he’s going to give it 100%, if he’s going to go to a social event, he’s going to be 100% present there.

This philosophy really resonates with me. I’m a fan of books like the Power of Now, and Landmark Education has a strong focus on being present as well. It’s just a more interesting and constructive way to look at life, when all your energy, power, and attention is on what you’re doing.

Let’s look at ways that you can ‘Go Hard or Go Home’ in any area of your life.

10 Ways to Go Hard or Go Home

1. Go home. If you’re not going hard, maybe it’s because you don’t really love what you’re doing. If that’s the case, don’t waste your time and your precious life energy on doing something that bores you to tears– quit.

2. Isolate. Sometimes we want to go hard, but distractions keep popping up. In that case, isolate yourself. In my apartment I have no TV, and I generally keep e-mail and twitter off while I study, so that the only thing in my attention is my classwork.

3. Do Less. If your mind is constantly wandering to other things, maybe it’s because you’ve committed yourself to too many things. Do less, and spend more quality time doing those things with excellence.

4. Breathe. I have been actively doing breathing exercises to get my mind focused. I simply inhale all the way in 4 seconds, and then slowly exhale over 8 seconds. I repeat this for a couple of minutes, get Oxygen to my brain, and Go Hard!

5. Worst, First. You know that task on your to-do list that you’ve been thinking about, incessantly, but not doing? Finally sit down, and trudge through it, and then let your mind focus on more pleasant things.

6. Plan, Organize. Sit down in the evening, and take time to plan out your next day, and the order of events. I do this daily. This way you can get your priorities done, instead of wasting time wondering what’s next.

7. Go Hard, and Stop. When you’re loading up your to-do list for a certain day, you have to give yourself a realistically achievable amount. As a reward for working hard and diligently, don’t add anything else to that list– stop.

8. Muscle Fuel. You can only go as hard as your mind and body will allow. I’m giving you some tricks to psych your mind up, but you also need to remember to exercise — this is going to make all the difference in your energy levels.

9. Challenge Yourself. Look at your projects, and your life in general as fun challenges. Make it your goal to improve, every single day, in everything that you do. You’ll soon develop the constant-and-never-ending improvement habit.

10. Get accountable. Have some people in your life that keep you accountable. Literally ask them to call you daily, and ask you about specific items that you said you would do. They’ll remind you, and hopefully get you off your butt to get it done. Nothing wrong with some external motivation from time to time.

I would love to know some of the things you do to psych yourself up and get into the zone. How do you go hard, and when do you go home?

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

Do you think that exercise is just unpleasant hard work and lots of effort, just designed to make us tired and lose weight?

There are,in fact, many benefits of exercise that go beyond getting the physical body into a great shape. If you aren’t doing any form of exercise in your life, then I hope this post will change your mind and get you into gear

It is easy to get caught up in your studies, or your job, or be content with the fact that you are young and don’t need to exercise because you still have a good 20 years before you’re middle-aged and before you start getting problems with cholesterol. You start to get a little chubby, and when you have to run up 3 flights of stairs you find yourself gasping for air…familliar?

What I found after not doing any form of exercise for a few months is that my body feels unfit and unhealthy, stress from life creeps in, I start to get a little cranky, and I get bad moods far more often, and just have less energy in general.

The body is the temple of your soul.

Exercise has so many benefits besides the obvious of keeping your body fit and healthy.
Your body is your vessel through which you navigate life. It is a sophisticated machine, and for the longest and best quality life, you must keep that machine well-oiled and maintained. For the physical body, exercise strengthens muscles, strengthens bones, circulates the blood flow delivering oxygen to all the organs, strengthens the lungs and heart, flushes the toxins out your body through perspiration and conditions the body to be able to withstand some hard work.

After exercise, endorphins get released into your bloodstream. Endorphins are a “feel-good” hormone, and this is why after a heavy workout, you will often feel more energetic than before, and you will have a smile on your face and be in a good mood.

You may be asking yourself what exercise and a healthy body and mind have to do with personal development?

I think that it has a massive impact on your life and everything you do and accomplish. If you have a strong healthy body, and in turn a good mood and happy spirit, you will go through life a lot more positively, have more ideas, be more creative and in turn attract like minded people.

Another benefit of exercise is that you venture out. I work from home and spend a lot of time in front of the computer, so I see going to gym as a break to get out of the house. For those of you who are on a tight budget, you do not need to pay money to exercise. You can get incredible workouts for free, training at home. It’s easy to do pushups,pullups, situps, crunches, squats and more. You can buy a few free weights and a pullup bar for $100 or less and have all the equipment you need to get a full body workout.

Get a punching bag and hang it on a tree outside or from a strudy point in your ceiling. There’s nothing as tiring as going full out and punching that bag and hard as you can with all the energy you have. I bet you’re exhausted under 2 minutes

Personally I like being signed up to the gym and various classes like hiphop dancing and martial arts, because not only can you learn from an experienced instructor, you also get to meet and connect with like-minded people. The fact that I am paying money every month for these classes also acts as a good stimulant for me to actually go to them and exercise. If you’re training at home then you need a tad more discipline, because nothing happens if you ignore your exercise. If I ignore it while I’m paying for membership, it’s costing me $50 a month and would be a waste if I didn’t use it.

Did you think that the gym was the only way of getting exercise?

Here are 5 Fun ways of getting exercise that you will LOVE doing:

1-)Dancing.

I love dancing, moving my body to the beat of the music, whether it be hiphop, rock, reggae or even classical dancing. However, for the best exercise while dancing, I have to say hiphop classes or breakdancing classes are the way to go. It’s almost like gymnastics and you get to learn choreographies to your favourite songs.

2-) Martial Arts.

I wish I started when I was 5.
Muay Thai, Taekwando, Aikido, Karate, Wushu and many others. Martial arts don’t only strengthen and train your body, they also train your mind and spirit. The discipline and sense of freedom you get from martial arts is amazing! Besides exercise, you’ll also learn to defend yourself.

3-)Aerobics.

Initially I thought this was always a more girly thing until one day I just joined a class because I had nothing to do. It’s pretty fun! You’re in a group and you follow the instructor doing a series of fast-paced moves, steps, situps, jumps and more. This is for people of all ages, both men and women.

4-)Swimming.

Bet ya didn’t think of swimming as good exercise?!
Swimming is something we can all enjoy, provided the water is not too cold and shark-free. It’s a full body workout for arms,legs and abs, burns a lot of calories and gets the heart rate up nice and high. Take the plunge today!

5-) Mountain Biking.

This is crazy fun, especially if you go with a friend or two.
It’s better if there are mountains, but parks or flat forests will do too. Pack a small backpack with water, some fruit and a jersey and go on a 2 or 3 hour cycling expedition. Find a target that you have to go to and once you get there you stop and rest, enjoy the scenery , have some water and then get back on that bike and cycle back as fast as you can.

Did I convince you to get out there more and exercise?

I promise that once you start exercising more, you will start to feel much happier and you will have much more energy to go through life. Healthy body, healthy mind.

Enjoy ALL the benefits of exercise.

Diggy is author of Upgradereality.com, a blog about self improvement.

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This article explains the path to success using the simple concept of planting “corn” seeds. We know that if you “plant” corn, four things are going to happen:

Number 1: You’re going to get corn (not apples)
Number 2: You’re going to get the corn later than you planted it
Number 3: You’re going to get more corn than you planted
Number 4: You’re going to get the corn, in proportion to how much corn you planted

If I lost you…just keep on reading…

Number 1: You’re going to get corn

You shouldn’t be surprised by the results that you’re getting in your life; you’re the one who planted the seeds for those results; whether those results are good, bad, or down-right ugly.  To be upset with the results you’re getting would be like a farmer being upset that he got tomatoes when he planted tomatoes.  It would be like an artist being upset that his painting is a disaster, when he’s the one who painted it.

What am I saying, I’m saying that nothing can come from corn but corn; nothing can come from wheat but wheat; nothing from grapes, but grapes.

If you’re getting failure, it’s because you’re planting the seeds for failure, by having a mentality that permits failure.

If you plant success in your life, by reading articles like this one, and by following through with action, you will succeed.

Number 2: You’re going to get the corn later than you planted it

Many people don’t experience success because they’re unwilling to wait for the seeds of success to grow.  We’ve been programmed to think that all of our desires should be met instantaneously, without any prior preparation.

But the truth is, some things can be put in a microwave, like popcorn, or “Hot Pockets,” but the good meals have to be prepared.  They need to sit on the stove and cook slowly, so that all of the seasons can soak into the meal.  Contrary to popular opinion, public debate, and what you may have seen on late night infomercials, success takes time.

It will happen, but it will happen some time after you’ve planted the seeds for it (and it may happen later than you anticipated), but just as sure as you’re reading these words right now, your season will come.

Number 3: You’re going to get more corn than you planted

Be careful what you plant, every thought, and every decision is a seed into your future.

If you’re not planting the “right” seeds today, you have no tomorrow; just a longer today.

You should be careful what you plant because you will always receive more than what you planted.  This is good news if you’re planting good seeds, and bad news if you’re planting bad seeds.

Number 4: You’re going to get the corn in proportion to how much corn you planted

If you put in a little work, then you will receive a little harvest.  If you put in a lot of work, then you will receive a big harvest.

If you want to be successful, you must spend your days planting beneficial seeds that will give you a beneficial harvest.  Don’t waste your priceless moments on unproductive activities.

Decide that you want a great harvest; dedicate everyday to planting seeds that will make that desire a reality.  Stop wasting time; stop doing unproductive activities.  Focus your life on the few critical tasks that bring results, the important seeds, and spend a majority of your time planting those seeds.

If you do, your harvest will come, and the results will amaze you!  Thank you for reading.

About the author: this guest post was written by Mr. Self Development. Please support Mr. Self Development by subscribing to his blog at mrselfdevelopment.com; Mr. Self Development is a motivational author that offers a practical guide to success and wealth.

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Ever wonder what kind of conversations successful people have? No, it’s not gossip or negativity. A few weeks ago at Derek Sivers’ dinner party, he brought up his new philosophy on making decisions in his own life.

So if you’re not going to be thinking in terms of blah, grey, boring things that you could be doing in your life, then what’s left? Black and white, extreme opposites, what you don’t want and what you really really want – that being your HELL YEA!

In his HELL YEA article Derek gave a recent example of this principle when he was choosing his new employee. No one in the first round of interviews was really a HELL YEA, so instead of picking one because he had to pick one, he scrapped the whole thing and took a new approach to interviewing that brought in a HELL YEA employee.

In my own life, my HELL YEA has been dental school. After the first time that I didn’t get into dental school, I was discouraged, and at the same time I had an opportunity to go for a sales job with 6-figure potential. As I was weighing out the risk/reward and pros/cons, it hit me that dentistry is my HELL YEA, so I applied for my masters program and ultimately got into dental school.

Derek pointed out that the HELL YEA principle is congruent to Steve Pavlina‘s principle in Personal Development For Smart People. If whatever you’re aiming for isn’t a 9 or 10 on a scale of 1-10 then it might as well just be a 1. If it’s clearly a 1, we do something about it, but the real danger is in those 6s and 7s in where we feel comfortable enough to settle. Forget all that, if something isn’t a HELL YEA 9, or 10, then just-say-no.

You don’t have to use this only for big decisions in life such as careers choices, who you’re going to marry, or where you’re going to live. Try to use the HELL YEA principle for the small everyday decisions as well, such as what you’re going to eat, who you’re going to hang out with, and what ways you’re going to stimulate your personal growth!

This brings me to my final question. I would love to see nothing more then everyone in the world going for their HELL YEA. So… What’s your HELL YEA?

Elsewhere: How To Quit Your Job by Burning the Ships

NEW: Buy a “What’s Your HELL YEA!?” T-shirt (All profits will go to charity)

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With over 6000+ paid speaking gigs, Ted Fattoross is the most prolific speaker who I’ve had the opportunity to hang out with. Since I want to become a master storyteller, and touch, move, and inspire people – and ultimately persuade them into actions with my words – Ted was the perfect person for me to meet.

He gave me a little bit of advice about storytelling. It’s not about the storytelling or the story as much as it is about being comfortable in front of the audience. So how do you get super comfortable? By practicing putting yourself into uncomfortable situations everyday. He recommended 12 a day, and this is how My Twelve Crazy Things was born.

I’m not doing this for attention or giggles, but simply to desensitize discomfort for the sake of more comfort. The rules are that it must make me uncomfortable, it can’t harm other people, and it can’t be illegal (I would also love it if it didn’t decimate my personal brand!)

1. Give Out Flowers to Random Strangers. I will give out free flowers to both men and women on a street corner and start up conversations. I’ll have to explain to the guys that I’m not hitting on them. Maybe I can work out a deal with a flower shop to stand across the street and direct people there after I speak with them.
2. Pretend to be Homeless in NYC. I’m going to rip and dirty up some clothes, not shave for a week, and sit in a very busy area asking for money. I’ll do this for about 5 hours, count the money, donate it to a real homeless man (or use it to buy giveaway flowers for #1), and change back.
3. Sit down with Strangers at Starbucks. I’m either going to not say a word, or strike up a conversation as I sit down with people I don’t know.
4. Pretend to Work Retail. I’ll go into a random clothes store, find someone picking out clothes, and help them pick out outfits as if I work there.
5. Go to a Gay Club. Straight guy going to a gay club – uncomfortable. I’ll throw in not bringing my girlfriend or any other female companion for this one.
6. Give Me More Ideas in the Comments. Now that you know the rules, and you know the type of things I’m talking about, I’m calling upon you to help me think of more ideas. Leave a comment below with your idea to make me uncomfortable!

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

That’s the first thing that came to mind when I first heard of Amazon charging $0.99 cents to let people read free blogs on a kindle. A scam for the readers who could be reading the same blogs for free online, or on their mobile device and a scam for the bloggers, who only see 30% of the profit from content that they took 100% in creating.

That was my initial reaction, before I gave it some thought. I don’t actually own a kindle. I have taken too much pride in having a large library in my house… and how could I let it dwindle away in the coming years? Would I have to pay twice to enjoy the same book?

After discussing the situation with Muhammad Saleem, he asked me a very simple question. “Have you ever tried to read a blog on a mobile phone? I have, and I’d prefer not to go blind.” That’s a great point, reading a blog from my iphone is a bit of a pain, because the letters are too small to do any extensive reading.

Doing a little research on the kindle, I found myself bombarded by an onslaught of benefits that this little device boasts. The screen is way larger than a mobile phone, and they claim it reads like a book, making it much easier on the eyes. It’s great that by getting all your books as a Kindle edition, you get to save trees from being turned into paper, and the savings passes onto us because Kindle edition digital books are like half the price of printed books. If you’re not too particular about having the big library in your house, and not big on lending your books out to people anyway (which I don’t really like doing – because they don’t return them!), then you can carry your entire library with you wherever you go. Yes, it does back up, in case you lose your kindle.

I’m not quite ready to spend a lot of money on a kindle yet, not when I have a backlog of books that authors send me for free that I’ve yet to read. However, I definitely see myself making the leap in the future, there are just too many pros! If I did have a kindle right now, I would subscribe to this blog. It’s convenient, easy on the eyes, and a whopping 30% of the money goes to support your favorite blogger

• Amazon Kindle
• AlexShalman.com Kindle Subscription

P.S. If you have a moment, please give this blog an honest review over at Amazon (whether you’re subscribing or enjoying it for free on the web), I would very much appreciate it!

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

“The key to change… is to let go of fear.”
~Rosanne Cash

Many of us live a life full of fear and consequently omit only a small percentage of our true being.

The battle with fear can be a daunting one no doubt, yet with the right mind-set, any fear can be overcome.

Fear of Failure

Since when did failure become a bad thing?

If we lacked the ability to fail we would lack the ability to learn.

Think about when you were learning to walk. Now imagine if you were fearful of falling. If it weren’t for failure you’d still be crawling today.

Failure is an essential part of life. Yet many continue to be deathly afraid.

Those who embrace failure rather than become intimidated by it, generally live much more successful and happier lives.

In each failure that occurs there is a lesson to be learned.

I remember when I ran cross country my freshman and sophomore year of high school, I was constantly afraid of performing below expectations (which I didn’t think were high to begin with.)

I constantly battled internally, not only my self-worth but the fear of failure. Fearing failure caused me to lock up and perform way below expectations.

It took a while but I finally learned that it is perfectly OK to fail. In fact it’s better to fail then to do nothing at all. When I stopped fearing failure I was able to stay relaxed and run at my best cross-country times.

Are you afraid of failing? Give yourself permission to fail.

Fear of Being Alone

Many of us battle with the idea that we are alone. The truth is we are not. Look around you, you are constantly connected to this wonderful place called earth.

So often we isolate ourselves from the world and as a result feel lonely and depressed.

Remember, you are never alone, you are constantly connected. Only when you turn your back on this never ending energy of connectedness do you feel the illusion of loneliness.

Too often we forget that our relationships are a direct result of our mindset. If we think we are alone we will feel alone. If we think we are connected we will feel connected.

If you feel lonely it is because you are trying to hard. Stop trying and simply be.

Loneliness is one of the worst illusions known to man. The entire human race is internally connected.

When you tune into the never ending connection not only do you truly come alive but only then can you live to your fullest potential.

You are not alone.

Fear of Public Speaking

If you truly want to make the most of your talents and gifts, it is essential that you are able to speak and communicate effectively.

Contrary to popular belief, the ability to public speak isn’t something your born with, practice is all it takes.

Those who think they weren’t “made” for public speaking are only making excuses from themselves.

I truly believe that each one of us has a message that needs to be shared with the world and one of the most effective and powerful ways to do so is through public speaking.

Too often public speaking is blown way out of proportion. Thousands have passed out on stage due to nerves.

It is essential that you learn to overcome this fear as soon as possible. You aren’t alone in your nervousness. But with practice this soon goes away.

Too be perfectly honest, I’m still struggling with this fear yet I’m doing everything in my power to overcome it.

Are you afraid of public speaking? Two words: Keep speaking.

Fear of Criticism

All too often people are so afraid of being ridiculed that they don’t even try.

The truth is you can never please anybody so don’t even bother. There will always be people who try to put you down.

It is important that you use criticism to build you up instead of letting criticism make you weak.

Being a blogger I have had my share of criticism. Some of it has been valid while other times I found people who were just trying to tear me down.

If people take the time time to constructively criticize it means they care.

While it can be easy to get caught up in what your doing wrong, it is essential that you focus on what you’re doing right.

Use constructive criticism to help you grow and ignore the negative chatter.

There will always be those who try to put you down no matter what you say or do. Drop those people out of your life, you have no need for them. Instead surround yourself with people who genuinely care about you.

Never let criticism keep you from living your purpose. You know deep down what you need to do.

Fear of Success

Yes you read that right. Some people are actually afraid of success. Many people shy away from the fact that with power comes responsibility.

Some people just can’t handle the spot light. The truth is you earned your success. Never doubt what got you there in the first place (assuming it was in a honorable manner.)

Success is nothing to be afraid of.

Success is nature’s reward for working hard. Put in the effort and the success will come. Never feel guilty of your success. You are successful for a reason.

Instead of fearing success use it to continually better humanity

Are you afraid of success? If so you could be seriously hindering your ability to grow.

Fear of Being Hurt

Many people are unreasonably afraid of being hurt.

Sure being hurt isn’t the greatest of things, yet you can’t allow the fear of being hurt control your life.

The truth is, each and everyday there is a strong chance that you might be hurt. Whether be in a relationship or through a a solid smack to your ego.

Being hurt is a part of life.

When you become afraid of being hurt you hinder your ability to truly live.

Don’t make being hurt into something it’s not. You are going to be hurt in life no matter how safe a life you may live.

It is important that you continue to take risks and embrace the wonderful moments in your life.

Allowing the fear of being hurt to dictate your life is one of the greatest mistakes you can ever make.

No matter how bad you may have been hurt you can choose to be happy today.

Don’t let the fear of being hurt keep you from living. As the old saying goes. “Live. Laugh. Love.”

Fear of the Unknown

Life is an amazing journey filled with uncertainty, that’s what makes it so beautiful. The more we learn to embrace each and every moment the happier we become.

While we may not be able to predict the future, it is essential we do all we can to truly life today. Life is too short to be fearful of the unknown.

Embrace each and every moment and be the very best you can be.

Are any of these fears holding you back? Are you the best person you can be? Stop letting fear dictate your life. It’s time to live today.

Bud Hennekes is a 17 year old blogger and aspiring young entrepreneur. His hobbies vary depending the day, but more often than not he enjoys reading, authentic conversation, meditating, blogging, and growing. He is the owner of www.aboundlessworld.com

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

We will receive our fair share of criticism in our life. It is hard to stop criticism from coming because there are too many people with different views and opinions, which may result in disagreements.

There are a few reasons why people criticize and here are some of them.

1. Disagreeing with you.
2. Angry.
3. Upset with what you had said.
4. To prove they are right.
5. Just out to piss you off.

Whenever we receive criticism, it certainly affects our mood. Instead of feeling down, you should actually use the chance to try to get the most out of it.

Vincent’s Story

When I just started out blogging, everything was going fine and I love the positive comments that I had received from my readers. Reading the positive comments never fail to brighten up my day. But one day I received a comment from someone whom I do not know and he criticized about my articles.

He thought that it is not appropriate for someone of my age (I am 22 at that time) to be writing personal development articles. He thinks that someone who is at that age can’t possibly go through enough challenges in life to share with others.

I felt sad about it and self doubts started to appear in my mind. I did not know how to handle the criticism at that time and it affected me greatly. I thought of shooting an email back to him and trying my best not to be sound like a jerk but it is harder than it seems.

I held back from sending the email and sought out some advice from some of my friends that I had made through the blogosphere. Talking to them brought me back to my calm state of mind which I am then able to think more clearly. Following their advice, I decided to just ignore the guy, picked up valuable lessons from the criticism and just move on from there.

How To Deal With Criticism – Step By Step Guide

It can be hard to deal with criticism, especially from people that you don’t even know, but most of the time we can pick up something from the criticisms we received. Here are the steps that I used to deal with it.

1. Listen

Whenever others are criticizing us, don’t be defensive immediately, listen to what they have to say. Being defensive at the very moment means that we will not be able to evaluate whether the criticism is of any help to us. Being defensive may also cause us to make unwise decisions or choose the wrong words to reply as we are not in the right state of mind to think clearly at that moment.

2. Create Space

As I had mentioned it is hard to make wise decision at the very moment when people are criticizing you. Create space for yourself to think about it by walking away. The space created acts like a buffer which can give you more time to think clearly. People who try to make decisions without adequate amount of time and space can increase their chances of making unwise decisions that they may later regret.

3. Evaluate

You will need to evaluate the criticism and think whether there are any lessons that you can learn from it. Sometimes people criticize because they see your flaws which you had failed to see. This is a good thing as they help to point out something that you can improve on.

Try to see their criticism with an open mind and think whether what they had said was true. If what they had said was true, acknowledge your flaws and work on it. However if you think that the criticism is just out to bring you down without any truth in it, just ignore it and move on with your life.

4. Seek 2nd Opinion

A neutral party can see the whole picture much more clearer than you do. Seek someone else that you trust and ask them what do they think about the criticism. Determine whether the criticism is valid or it is just some ramblings by others who have nothing better to do.

5. Move on

After you acknowledged the criticism it is wise to just move on from there. Some people are stuck to their criticism for days or even weeks. They can keep thinking about the criticism until it start to affect all areas of their life. Do not commit this mistake as the time spent brooding over it will only make you feel miserable. Once you had already picked up lessons from the criticism, work on your flaws and just forget about it.

Parting Words

I found out that there were some truth to the criticism that I had received from the guy. It is true that I am young but I do not agree with him that I have nothing to share with others. I believe everyone have their own unique experiences that they can share and no one is alike in this sense. Criticism is just parts and parcels of life and everyone have their fair share of it. The important thing is to know how to deal with it instead of trying to avoid it.

Vincent writes on the subject of Personal Development at HealthMoneySuccess.com. His site’s main aim is to help people to be more productive, happy and achieve more in life.

If you’re interested, I’m currently accepting guest posts from talented writers.

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

Remember when you were in school, and you had a term paper assigned to you? Imagine being able to log into a website, search through dozens of expert articles, pick the one you want and write your name on it. Sounds great in theory, but, you would be cheating both your teacher, and yourself out of an education.

Imagine the same principle applied to physical products, such as cranberry juice. Do you think that the Walmart brand cranberry juice is actually made by Walmart? The answer is no. They went to a cranberry juice manufacturer, bought the rights to the juice, and had it shipped over with their own label on it.

This principle is known as Private Label Rights, and while it might not have been ethical for your assignments, it’s the standard way of operating in business. The experts create content, perhaps even better than you could yourself, and it’s yours without time commitment and at 1/40th of the price.

If you’re a coach, public speaker, author, or business owner who puts on workshops and seminars, then you probably know that creating fresh content every day is a very time consuming thing therefore expensive thing.

PLR.me provides you with Private Label Rights content that you can start using right away. The content is updated every month, meaning you get a full new set of unique content to display monthly.

Private Label Rights Video

This is a really fun little video that explains what PLR is. It uses a really funny example of how Walmart gets all those “Walmart brand” products without making a single one of them.

Click here to view the embedded video.

What Do You Get EACH Month?

(Delivered on the 1st of each month)

• 30 Articles (min. 500 words)
• 30 Personal Reflection Affirmations (great for blogs!)
• 20 Wallpapers (with inspirational quotes)
• 5 PDFs (worksheets, checklists, reports, etc.)
• Graphics (all the graphics you need to promote the materials)
• Monthly Mastermind Calls (we tackle your most burning questions)

Ronnie Nijmeh, the expert author and owner of the Quality PLR content at PLR.me gave me a free members pass for the purpose of this review. I was able to check out all the behind the scenes content that they provide, so I can honestly say that I am very impressed with the content quality that him and his team of authors have put together.

Sometimes “PLR” has a bad stigma attached to it. It’s not unusual for someone to think of a PLR site as a bundle of “crap content for Adsense sites.” After looking through a good number of the articles, I can honestly say that the content on PLR.me is high quality.

Ronnie’s content is used by public speakers, authors, and big businesses who use the content for their in-person workshops and seminars. After all, for them to have one of those PDF reports researched, written, edited, and designed, it’d cost them a fortune… but having it done for them and ready to print-on-demand is a great advantage.

The content is really good, and it’s ready to be posted right away in any of the following ways:

What Can You Do With All This Content?

1. Post on your website or blog
2. Email newsletters and auto-responders
3. Create eBooks
4. Create print-on-demand books
5. Loyalty-building giveaways
6. Record a podcast
7. Record a video and post it to YouTube
8. Put together a teleseminar
9. Sell it as a standalone product
10. Give it away as a bonus or as part of an upsell

Customer Service

Most PLR sites will just give you one bundle of articles, and never update it again. Ronnie and his team of writers at PLR.me have a fresh batch of expertly written content every single month. To back up the product, because Ronnie is positive that you will see an increase in traffic by using PLR.me, he is offering a 200% money back guarantee. I think that’s pretty generous, and doesn’t get much better.

Another thing that sets PLR.me apart, in the sea of PLR providers, is that you can give them a buzz on their toll-free number and ask them questions directly. Also, they boast that any e-mails you send their way will be answered within a day, if not a few hours.

Bonuses for Joining The PLR.me Family

In Closing

I think that Private Label Rights is a great idea for many individuals. If you would rather spend time on other parts of your business, such as networking with individuals, setting up business deals, and concentrating on how to bring more value to your clients then this is a great opportunity for you.

I think I’ll be using bits and pieces of the content for certain things in the future. I want to share as many personal experiences as I can in future articles, since I find that style helps my own personal growth and it has proven to be the most interesting to you guys. PLR could still come in handy for research, and for giving you guys bonus content.

For $20 in the first month, it’s definitely worth checking out. Check out more about PLR at PLR.me and don’t forget to stop by their blog.

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

The audience votes based on who has a better looking mug, and of course, based on who has given the best answers. This first Face Off is between Tim Brownson and myself, Alex Shalman.

The image below shows who clearly has the better looking mug, but click over to see who has the answers you like best – and don’t forget to vote (preferably for me lol).

You can also support my cause my telling some twitter friends, for example: “RT @AlexShalman: Quick favor plz. 1-click vote for me here. Competition! http://tinyurl.com/clcezp ” Thank you very much!

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!

I’m going to be giving all this information out for free in an eCourse. All you have to do is sign up, and the information is yours with no strings attached.

Watch the Video

Click here to view the embedded video.

Attention: Don’t forget to download my free ebook, How to Get a Girlfriend!!