How & Why To Smile More

Posted by on May 18th, 2012 | No Comments

NOTE: This is a guest post.

It is fairly common to hear vague phrases about how we should all smile – how it is good for us to smile. However, these sorts of phrases and statements are rarely accompanied by any sort of specific reasoning or substance. However, if you actually look into the importance of smiling, you can see that there are actually numerous health and social benefits that can come about from smiling more. Here are some of those specific benefits.

Smiling can make you more attractive. This may seem either vague or obvious, depending on your personal standpoint, but it is also true. There’s a reason we smile in pictures – we look our best when we look happy, and we look happy when we smile. If you want to put your best face forward, socially or romantically, smile more! 

There is medical evidence that smiling can actually help your body’s immune system to function at a higher level. Everything in the body tends to work better when you are happier and less stressed, so a little more smiling can actually, in a somewhat indirect way, help you to stay healthier. Because smiling is a physical reaction to emotional happiness, you can actually trick yourself out of a bad mood by smiling. Normally, you get happy and then you smile; but, if you aren’t feeling your best and you can make yourself smile, you may actually find that the same process works in reverse, and you will find yourself in a better mood.

These are just a few of the many different benefits that can come about from smiling more. Unfortunately, however, just understanding these benefits doesn’t always help people to be more willing to smile. Sometimes people actually have reasons for not smiling, and the most prevalent among these reasons is that people are uncomfortable with the way they look when they smile, often because their teeth don’t look healthy. Fortunately, this is an easy problem to solve. Making your teeth whiter and healthier-looking is easier now than ever before. All you need to do is head to http://www.topdentists.com/ for some professional advice, or even try out some store products designed for teeth whitening.

Before you know it, you can have a brighter, whiter, and generally more attractive smile. Once you’ve achieved this, you can be fully focused on flashing your smile a bit more frequently, so that you can enjoy the various health benefits that result from this.

Photo Credit – Photograph.Lovetoknow

How to Become Thick-Skinned

Posted by on May 13th, 2012 | No Comments

It’s a term that isn’t heavily used but is properly worded for it’s particular being.

To be thick-skinned is more of “to not be something else.” Let me explain. Being thick-skinned in a logical sense would mean, not being thin-skinned. And that’s exactly what is it. To be thick-skinned is to not let your surroundings dictate who you are or what you do, metaphorically speaking of course. It’s a testament to being able to stay a constant when the entire world is trying to change you. Countless times a day, you get irritated, disappointed, emotional, and it starts affecting you as a person. You begin to take everything seriously, and nothing is quite taken just “lightly.” Well it’s imperative to realize that this sort of burn that your putting your body through isn’t necessarily a good thing, and perhaps could be to your detriment. So let me give you a couple of ways on how you can become thick-skinned.

Don’t get emotional – Simple as that. I’d imagine this is a bit easier for males than it is for females, but regardless, it applies to both sexes. Things begin to affect you once you become emotional. And emotional doesn’t just come in the form of tears, it comes in frustration, stress, and etc. Now this isn’t implying for you to bottle in all your emotions, it’s simply to remind you to not even get to the point where you have so many emotions that you need to bottle up. Take things lightly, don’t become overly dramatic, ease up on yourself and realize that your emotions are holding you back.

Criticism is for people to cover their weakness – Now this doesn’t apply to parents, coaches or mentors but when people criticize you, it’s usually for them to feel a little bit better about themselves by putting you down. Now that may seem cruel, but it is what it is. Realize it, and throw it aside. You don’t need to take every criticism to heart. If you feel it’s accurate, then by all means, try and improve upon it, but if it’s not then you don’t need to pity yourself because of the criticism. As with most things, take it lightly. The criticizer will then eventually see how little effect it’s had on you, and will stop criticizing all together.

Have a “Your Loss” Attitude – This is important. Your going to deal with numerous rejections in your life, whether it be in school, relationships, work etc. But each time that you do, don’t let that rejection dictate your life from that point forward. Keep the wheels moving, and do as the Jay-Z song says “On to the next one.” Obviously those person(s) didn’t feel you were adequate enough for them, and you know what, that’s it. Their loss. They’ll see how much of a nonchalant approach you took, even when they probably though that it was going to affect you drastically, and will probably actually respect you more for it.

Photo Credit – Liberadio

 

A Fighting Spirit Goes A Long Way

Posted by on April 24th, 2012 | No Comments

There are winners and losers in life, and then there are fighters.

I’d make a bet with the person that’s reading this right now, that they’ve encountered some sort of a difficult obstacle in their life. After all, life isn’t perfect, and if yours is, then Im sure you know someone’s whose isn’t, so you can perhaps spread this wisdom to them. But again to get back to the point. Obstacles are put in our way perhaps because then the path would be too easy. Therefore once we complete the difficult task/obstacle, we come out stronger. It’s similar to a lobster shedding it’s shell and growing a newer, stronger one. But for most, this isn’t easy to deal with. Life doesn’t just throw simple twists and turns their way, life challenges their spirit. This is when obstacles become hurdles, and trip almost anyone that tries to cross ‘em.

And this is where having  a fighting spirit comes into play. Now at first hand, it’s imperative to realize that this saying doesn’t promote violence, rather it’s used metaphorically to fight life, who is constantly trying to challenge us in a sense. it’s that big bad bully that we always hated in school. So remember, have a fighting spirit. It’s an attitude, and a way of life that says, when in doubt…fight. Plain and simple. Life tells you, your not good enough, fight it. Life tells you, you can’t do something, fight it. Make the life of life miserable (and yes, you read that correctly).

You’ve probably heard the saying “Life is about dealing with the cards that your dealt with.” Well, thats true in a sense, but don’t just be satisfied with your cards, fight for better cards, fight for more cards. The human body becomes nothing more than a casket without the human spirit, and if you train your spirit to be a fighting one, it’ll take on any challenge and get you through pretty much any obstacle. So now, when people ask you if you’re a winner or loser, just say “I’m a fighter.”

Photo Credit – Cartoon Motivators

 

Why Your Confidence is Your Biggest Asset/Liability in Life

Posted by on March 24th, 2012 | No Comments

There is a saying about this world. It is the following:

“The problem with the world is that the intelligent people are full of doubts while the stupid ones are full of confidence.”

At first glance, it seems inconceivable and  a bit implausible but give it more thought, and you’ll come around to realize the shocking truth in this statement. Most of our efforts in life are focused on harnessing our talents, skills and etc. Rarely do we pay attention to how we should develop our confidence, because most people would assume confidence comes along with superior talent, skill and practice. And part of that is very valid, but a part of it is also flawed in a sense. Assuming that you can just get confidence is doing a major disservice to yourself because it’s a commodity, not a given.

 

Imagine two individuals, one is talented, skilled, works hard and is superior in all the exterior qualities but lacks confidence in himself. The other individual lacks talent and skill but has superior mental abilities and an extreme amount of confidence in his abilities, or lack thereof. If I told you to pick the one that’ll succeed further in life, you’d probably be more inclined to pick the former, and for good reason. But give me the second individual every day of the week.

Let me explain my reasoning. The biggest inconsistency in life to me is someone’s confidence level, which can fluctuate up and down as frequent as the amount of times you breathe during a day. And so, to harness your confidence and keep it at a constant level will propel you above others in life. In fact, you can have all the talent and skill in the world but if you don’t have the confidence to go alone with it, then they’re a waste.

Don’t doubt yourself, Believe in your abilities even if you don’t think you have much to believe in. The confidence you have in yourself will ultimately determine the kind of success you will have, as it is the one factor in life that is given to everyone. Everyone has/can have confidence, It’s just a matter of how you utilize it, as it can be both your biggest asset or your biggest liability.

Photo Credit – CoachDawnWrites

Un-productivity May be Due to Our Programmed Love For Entertainment

Posted by on November 23rd, 2011 | No Comments

Lately, I’ve had trouble being productive. As I’m sure, I’m not the only one, but it got me to think. Why is it so hard to be productive? Rather, why do we enjoy being entertained so much? Sounds a bit odd the way I phrased it, but I hope you can buy what I’m trying to sell. It seems to me that we are “programmed” to enjoy being entertained. And just to clarify, by entertainment I mean movies, music, sports, video games, gossip, rumors, jokes etc. The entertainment industry is by far and away the most valued and paid industry in the entire world. From actors to musicians to athletes to radio hosts etc. They are not only handsomely paid, but pampered by those around them and are given the utmost admiration in the public eye. Those who aren’t are simply the exceptions whose actions have led to the public dismay of them. But that’s another topic for another day. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have a problem with most celebrities, but it got me thinking, why do these folks, who really don’t contribute in any way to society except to entertain get to live the most lavish lifestyles and enjoy a litany of wealth.

It could be due to our “programmed” love for entertainment. And by programmed, I mean there’s no way to alter it. It was built-in, in a way in which you had no choice. Case in point, the majority of us love to go to movies, watch television, listen to music, watch sports and play video-games. We don’t exactly know why because I would venture to guess that most of us would simply say because it’s “fun.” Well, why is it fun? why isn’t it fun to find the cure to a disease, why isn’t it fun to educate a child, why isn’t it fun to construct houses, roads, etc? Those are all jobs that we require as a society to keep us going. Physicians to cure us when we are ill, teachers to educate us when we are in school, and carpenters to build our houses so we have a roof over our heads. Those are all “skilled” jobs which require hard-work, dedication and commitment. Yet, we do not compensate them as handsomely as we do with our folks in the entertainment industry. Obviously, an economist would say that it’s because there is no draw for people to watch doctors operate, teachers teach, and carpenters build houses. No one wants to watch that. And why is it? It’s because we’ve been programmed to enjoy entertainment.

The balance of society is so uneven in terms of monetary distribution. There are many reasons as to why, but the one that I most believe is due to our “out of control” love for entertainment. Actors, musicians, athletes don’t get paid if there is no demand for them. But because we are programmed to enjoy being entertainment, they do get paid. And when we’re being entertained, we’re not being productive. Hence, the entertain”ers” are continuing to rack in their funds, while keep us from staying on task. This wouldn’t be the case if we weren’t adept to loving entertainment. But we do, and quite frankly, sometimes it’s a shame.

Photo Credit – LA Concert Calender

Why You Truly Are Who You Associate Yourself With

Posted by on November 14th, 2011 | 2 Comments

There is a common belief among society that we are who we chose to be. Now, while that statement is true in one sense, it’s also misleading in another sense. The option to be who you want to be is completely is true and up to you as well, however it should noted that it’s very well predicated on those around you. Case in point, if you change your ideas, beliefs, goals, the way you dress, talk, walk etc. All those are choices YOU have made, however it’s most likely the case that those choices were based off of the opinion of those close to you. Now, I would like you exclude family members from this topic, because everyone is impacted by their family members in one way or another. I’m referring to non-family members such as friends, co-workers, acquaintances etc.

Underestimating the impact that these folks have on you on a daily basis would be a huge disservice to yourself. Understand that to make an honest change to yourself in a some way will require you to overlook their perception. We are all so consumed in our daily lives with trying to impress the people around us, that we lose our originality, our uniqueness, the quality that makes us stand out. Every day is a constant struggle to change public perception about ourselves, instead of being the ones who others admire for our ability to be comfortable with ourselves.

So whether you decide to change yourself for one reason or another, know that it not only starts from yourself but changing the sort of individuals that you surround yourself with. They are the subliminal judge that predicate the way you act, behave and think. Now, I’m not saying that every crowd is a “bad”crowd, rather it’s just a different kind of crowd. Obviously, if a certain individual is a productive one who stays on top of things and is organized, but associates himself in a crowd who shy away from productivity and organization, and rather are simply always looking for a good time, then it’s a good bet that that individual will soon change his ways. Group conformity is one of psychology and sociology’s biggest and most accurate ideas. And whether you agree or not, you have at least once been affected by group conformity.

The point obviously is to realize that the people that surround are your biggest supporters and sometimes your biggest enemies because they can help you achieve your goals but they can also stop you from reaching you goals. So take the time to reassess your cloesest peers and see if they are holding you back or taking away from you being the true “you.” It’s all about how you select the people that your with. But just know this “you truly are who you associate yourself with.”

Photo Credit – ToisterSolutions

5 Useful Things You Can Learn From Sherlock Holmes

Posted by on November 10th, 2011 | No Comments

It’s time that I finally added to the “What Can You Learn” Series. And I’ve come to you with Sherlock Holmes, a character that to me is about as interesting as you can get. There is so much to this fictional character that quite frankly, it’s a lot to digest. Still, I did my best to present to you five things you can learn from the great Sherlock Holmes. 

 

1. Quick Wittiness – What do I mean by this? Simply, the ability to have a quick reaction to just about anything that’s thrown at you. Similar to how a catcher in baseball is always aware for when he needs to catch the next ball, Sherlock Holmes has the ability to catch anything that’s thrown at him and can throw it right back. His quick wittiness allows him to sound confident with his quick responses even if he may not be fully sure of what he said. Now, there is obviously a fine line between being confidently witty and giving snarky remarks. That’s not what Holmes is about. His wittiness is there to show you that he is paying attention, he’s got an answer for just about anything you throw at him even if he may not know it. The simple point we can talk about is the ability sound confident in what were saying and to not let people intimidate you in conversations.

2. Sense of your surroundings – This is what Sherlock Holmes thrives off of. Anywhere he is, whether it be in the middle of bustling city or a jail cell, Holmes will have a keen sense of his surroundings. He doesn’t just stand in a certain place, he studies it. He studies the structure, the little kinks in it, he sees if he has seen a similar surrounding before. This is the kind of activity that goes unnoticed each and every day. Even if travel to the same place every single day, there is always something new we can learn about it and find out through pay attention. This is especially helpful in giving directions. Paying attention on the road, utilizing not just street signs but landmarks, structures, billboards, signs etc. Anything you can do to remember that place. If you have a sense of your surroundings and are able to stay aware when entering new territories, chances are it’ll sharpen your mental and memory skills.

3. Pay Attention to Detail – This point goes hand in hand with the previous one. This is what makes Sherlock Holmes truly remarkable. He absolutely thrives off of this. The ability to pay attention to the most mega all the way to the most minute details. One glance just isn’t enough. Heck, two glances isn’t enough either. While the ability of Holmes to almost have a photographic memory of what he has seen might be a bit un-attainable, it still is effective even in lesser ability. Whenever your out and about, just always keep an eye out for what you see. Or perhaps even in your usual surroundings such as home, workplace, school etc. The point is to sharpen your reflexes. Too often, we let things just go right in front of us without even thinking twice about what we saw. Don’t underestimate this skill. To ability to remember and being aware and paying attention will help you in all facets of your life such as in exams and etc.

4. An Insanity For Your Art – This comes from Sherlock Holmes’ passion for what he does. He’s a detective. He absolutely adores what he does and flourishes off of it. He’s so passionate that at times you can see his insanity for it. Whenever you find him, that’s really all Holmes does. Even in his free time. Now, I’m not advocating that you go crazy over your job or work, but rather to simply find a passion in what your doing and just delve yourself into it. You should enjoy doing it so much that it’s not work to you, rather it’s passion. We’re all passionate about something. It’s just a matter of finding it.

5. Putting The Pieces Together – Life is like a big jigsaw puzzle to Sherlock Holmes. He’s looking at all the pieces and trying to put them together one by one. He realizes that you can’t just attempt to put all the pieces together at the same time, you have to tackle each piece one at a time. Similarly in life, we get so consumed with what’s going to happen with our futures, whether we going to achieve our goals or how overwhelmed some of us get when we see all the responsibilities we have. The important thing to remember here is that tasks will never end, until we die. That’s the sad truth. We will always have responsibilities and something will come up. So it’s imperative that you realize it’s best to take care of things one at a time rather than performing everything at once. Metaphorically speaking, you have to work on each piece on at a time. You solve the piece the best way a piece can be solved, and you do that for every single piece, and soon you will have completed the puzzle.

Photo Credit – Deadline.com

Why Periodic Failures are Life’s Gut Checks

Posted by on November 4th, 2011 | No Comments

Over the course of the past few months, I have been fortunate enough to have some very joyful moments with insignificant amounts of negativity. What I mean by that is, things were going so well for me in both my personal and professional life. So when the first occurrence of a negative situation happened to me, it immediately shocked me and at the very same moment, got me thinking. I began contemplating as to why we have failures. Was it really possible to avoid failures? I’m not saying to be able to avoid mistakes, just failures.

Obviously, we’ve all been through our fair share of these, but why exactly do they occur at the time that they occur? My conclusion would be that failures have a cycles. They work in a specific time period and function to keep us in line with our ego and even our own self, get out of hand. They remind us our of human quality of fallibility. There is no such thing as perfection. But more importantly, failures are a gut check to see if you can keep going after getting hit. It’s similar to when a running back in football is hit once by a defender, he could simply stop and fall on the ground, but instead his main premise is to take the hit and absorb it and move on. That is what they have been trained to do. I think the same could be utilized in our everyday lives.

Failures separate the fighters from the pessimists. They test you resolve and see if you are for real about whatever it is that you are trying to achieve. Failures are all about giving you the necessary confidence or destroy whatever confidence you initially. It all depends on how you handle the failure. Make no mistake about it, no body likes failures but they ARE necessary. We need them the same way an NBA player needs to play against NBA competition rather than the kids at the local park. We become stronger, we improve and prepare through failures for our life’s next challenges.

So the next time your hit with a gut check of a failure, take it like a boxer, and keep fighting.

Photo Credit – Science of fights

27 Simple Pleasures in Life

Posted by on October 10th, 2011 | No Comments
Today, I’m just going to post about some things in life that bring me joy and hopefully bring others joy as well. So it’s just a simple list of the “simple pleasures in life.” Sometimes, we need to get away from our stressful moments in life and just enjoy the simple things. So, enjoy!
  1. The Ocean
  2. A Cold glass of water on a warm day
  3. Laughter
  4. Hot showers
  5. Reading a book
  6. Silly Jokes
  7. Fresh Cut Grass
  8. The Sunset
  9. Rainbows
  10. Stars in the night sky
  11. Wind blowing through you face
  12. The warmth of your bed
  13. Puffy Clouds
  14. Covering yourself in a warm blanket on a cold night
  15. Giving good news
  16. Finishing a task
  17. Tickling someone
  18. Climbing trees
  19. Long Drives
  20. Singing your favorite songs
  21. Beaches
  22. Playing in the sand
  23. Fresh Baked Cookies
  24. Islands
  25. Hugs
  26. Flowers
  27. The sound of a basketball swishing through the net
Photo Credit – Onestopwebmasters

The Necessary Bipolarity of Life

Posted by on October 2nd, 2011 | No Comments

Have you ever noticed that as we go through daily stretches in our lives, it’s almost as if they’re divided up into sections. As the saying goes “There are highs and then there are the lows.” Seems as if the natural order of life would be at stake if we didn’t go through this inevitable roller coaster. We all experience those positive moments where everything just seems to go right and we couldn’t be happier. However, too often, they are replaced and or followed by moments of despair and sadness. That’s just the natural order of things, I’ve come to realize. 

Recently, I’ve had a first hand experience of this “bipolarity” (Atleast that’s what I like to call it), and I have to tell you that I didn’t pay enough attention to it’s significance. Meaning, I’ve heard the saying of going through the bad to get through the good, or bad times are followed by good times and vice versa. However, I never wondered WHY this phenomenon would occur. I wasn’t satisfied with the “that’s just the way it is” answer. And so, after giving it some major thought, I derived a meaning to makes the most logical sense, atleast to me.

We go through a low point right after a high point, or vice versa because it keeps us sane. Experiencing negative situations and encountering negative situations all the time would put the person at hand through depression. Imagine have to go through a never ending cycle of negativity. You would go crazy. Similarly, if we were to go through so called “good” times in our lives all the time, we would lose sight of realism. Think about it, if you only encountered good situations in your life, you would be blinded by the fact that nothing bad can ever happen to you. You would lose your motivation for everyday being because there wasn’t that necessary negative event that pushed you and motivated you to do better. People tend to be motivated by going through “reality checks” where they may have a bad grade, lost their job or perhaps been rejected. Those are all “potential positives to do better” hidden in negative situations.

So to put it all into perspective, we go through these stretches of bipolarity in life to keep us sane. They’re reminders that life isn’t always going to be good or bad. It’s going to be a mix of both, and we wouldn’t have it any other way. This mix allows humans to have growth, vision and retrospect.  Having good or bad all the time isn’t desired. It’s the contentment in the middle ground that is.

Photo Credit – Lifeafterswimming

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