A Better You Blog

I was baffled. My clothes were fitting tighter, my feet were swelling up, I was not pregnant, I ate the same amount of food, and I lived an active lifestyle. I could not figure out why I seemed to be gaining weight, so I rationalized it away. “My clothes are shrinking, my weight is just re-distributing, or I am just retaining water.” I felt blah. After a few months of denying it, when I could no longer zip up my pants all the way, I finally faced it. I stood on the scale and saw 15 new pounds. In my frustration, I told my husband. “I do not know what is wrong with this food plan. I guess I will just buy bigger clothes.” I then laughed at my logic immediately, realizing I was blaming a reliable healthy eating plan for my weight. He knew I was low on energy from the extra pounds, and also had an answer. “Give yourself a break. You just stopped nursing a baby, maybe that is the reason.” I could not believe I forgot about that factor. When I nursed, I had to eat more for the baby. Now, I needed to go back to an amount of food for just me. I think rather than forgetting about this, I was just avoiding the truth. It was more convenient for me to ignore any possible responsibility on my part to prevent having to change what I was doing. Change. Uncomfortable, yet freeing. I grumbled a bit, consoled myself, and then made the change.

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You can succeed where other fail. You can start a new habit or break an old one. You can change your life today. Do you want to stop an addiction to drugs or alcohol, lose weight on a diet, quit smoking, give up coffee, stop yelling at your kids, change a spending habit, be more productive in business, or be more assertive? What habit do you want to include or kick out of your life? Most people begin a new habit and fail to include all of these ten steps. If any of these are left out, your success is sabotaged before you begin. If you include these ten components, you are guaranteed success. Change your conditioned reactions to life and create new ones by following these ten steps.

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The Christmas season brings more attention to giving and receiving. You may pay more attention during the holidays, but do you let it get to you all year long? Do you notice the good around you? Do you graciously receive from others, accept compliments with confidence, and appreciate random acts of kindness? Are you sensitive to the pain of others, inspired to change from the pain of life, and determined to act when it gets to you? Life has many pleasures and sorrows. It is easy to become calloused from hurt and disappointment. It is hard to do the opposite: to soften the rough places, to risk the pain and let others in, to live a full life rather than a shallow existence. Do you numb yourself to the world, or do you let it get to you? Do you receive the good given to you? Do you turn the bad around for good whenever possible? Let it get to you, the good and the bad. Let it inspire you to act, and to be a better you.

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Life has its seasons that are not dictated by a calendar. During the holidays, or a special celebration such as a wedding, you may wonder why you do not share the same happiness or enthusiasm as those around you. The pressure to perform as if you feel differently can cause discomfort, and comparing yourself against expectations can create the blues. You can give in to your sad feelings and allow them to dictate your reactions, or you can fight the despair and beat the blues.

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Sick days are a part of life. You can allow yourself to be overwhelmed with frustration, berate yourself for everything you will not get done, and tense up every muscle as the minutes pass by. You can also use the day to refresh yourself, to relax your tired body, and to change your life. Your response to illness determines whether you will end the day drained and stressed, or invigorated and content. Here are ten ways to make a sick day successful and productive. How will your next sick day change your life?

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True gratefulness comes from a conscious decision to recognize your blessings, coupled with the emotional feelings that accompany a thankful heart. An ungrateful person can utter the words “thank you” in protest. A thankful person can hold their gratitude as a guarded secret, yearning to be shared. Grateful people not only count and take joy in their blessings, but they influence others with words and deeds by deliberately displaying their pleasure and appreciation to those who should receive it. Life is full of opportunities for giving thanks. Do you seek them out? Are you remembering to show appreciation to those closest to you? If you complain, you will find yourself with plenty of others to join in. If you live a positive, grateful, successful life, you will attract other positive, grateful, and successful people. Do not stifle your future by neglecting your attitude. Begin by developing your grateful spirit today.

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I have received and responded to numerous emails with questions about me personally, and I am delighted to answer a few here in this post. I want to thank Ed Mills of Evolving Times, who called me a wonderful writer of personal growth, and has asked me to continue this nourishing meme by answering these 5 questions. I appreciate his supportive comments and his contribution to articles on the Law of Attraction. His website hosts the Law of Attraction Carnival, so check it out. Here are the questions and my responses:

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A Better You Blog is starting a Personal Development Newsletter to help readers create a better you. Topics include managing stress, success in business and life, and making the most of every moment.  It will provide information not available elsewhere, and will include tips, tricks, and advice on living happy, healthy, successful, and free. If you have benefited from the articles on this website, you will enjoy the newsletter content. It is easy to sign up! Just enter your email address at the newsletter invitation at the end of any page on this website.

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Freedom is amazing. My emotions no longer dictate my behavior, and my circumstances no longer control my response. I choose each day to live free, and my life is an amazing adventure for it. I used to be trapped by an eating disorder, confined to self-degrading thoughts whenever I felt hungry. I never understood that food is fuel, and nothing more. Instead, food was an escape, a refuge, and a reward. Diets enslaved me, and the desire for control consumed me. I looked successful on the outside, but I was dying on the inside. That changed over fourteen years ago, and my journey to wholeness has changed my entire perspective on life. I love life, I seize every opportunity, and I choose to live each day as required to be proud of who I am. I truly love how God has made me.

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Are you happy? Do you love your life? Are you excited about every day’s possibilities? Sometimes in hurrying to a destination people neglect to enjoy the journey. The endless quest for true happiness often frustrates, and misplaced focus brings futile attempts to find the joy that is missing from life. You are not trapped by your circumstances, and your happiness does not rest with others: you can decide whether you will live happy and free, and you can do it today. You are an amazing person with something incredible to offer to this life, created with four main areas crying out to be satisfied. Balance these four core parts integral to your being, take a determined stance to succeed, and you can achieve true happiness. Make small steps and see great change, and do it now.

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