“I feel like I’m an emotional sponge.” My friend just finished telling me about how her daily lunch break at work has turned into her being forced to listen to hour-long rants from one of her co-workers who is going through a bitter divorce. Yup. I can relate. To being an emotional sponge, that is. If I talk to someone close and listen to their problems, struggles, or issues, it’s almost a guarantee that I will have trouble falling asleep that day. Or that at least, my energy levels will suddenly drop. Certain people or places just have that effect on me. Over the last couple of years, after going through quite a few changes during the journey of my personal growth, I’ve discovered that I very easily soak up other people’s emotions. Then I let them take over and I worry, I stress, and then I worry some more. It was around that time that I realized that sometimes, you have no choice but to protect your energy in order to stay sane. HOW TO PROTECT YOUR ENERGY FIND YOUR HAPPY SPACE A little secret to my sanity? I turn my phone off, all.the.time. I just have to. There […]

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50 Things That Make Me Happy + What Are Yours? It’s no secret that the last two, nearly three years of my life have been tough. I went through difficult, trying times. There were many “firsts” that I experienced during that time- most of which I wish I hadn’t. Being in a “rut” is definitely not as I’d describe it. More like “having the rug pulled from under your feet time and time AND TIME again.” Funny enough, those life-changing (or life-ruining, as I thought about them at the time) moments have a tendency to happen at a point just as everything is falling into place. Then boom. Here’s a giant shit sandwich, I hope you enjoy. Love, the Universe. I kind of gave up on many things during that time. Some of them because I had no choice, others I just had no strength or motivation to go after. All I kept thinking about, was how much I wanted things to go back to “normal” and how badly I wanted to feel (and act) like myself again. The problem is that when you do go through tough times and change, you’re not really the same person you once were. […]

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20 Things to Start Doing for Yourself How often do you revisit the goals and dreams you’ve put on hold for “another time?” You spend a lot of time giving. Giving yourself to others, to your work and everything else in between. Life gets busy and you often put yourself and your needs last. They don’t seem important, urgent or significant, do they? Take a moment to think about it and ask yourself, if any of these apply to you: You often commit to doing things you really don’t feel like doing. You’ve become an emotional sponge, soaking up someone’s constant emotional dumping. Even though you know that it has a negative effect on your mood and your own energy, you just don’t know how to set boundaries.  You have a tendency to beat yourself up over a stupid mistake you’ve made, for hours on end.  Your fear of being judged stops you from doing and trying things you’ve always wanted to try, do and see. You’ve heard the world tell you that it’s “too late” for you to make a change, to try new things, to stir things up, to start again. Well, here’s a little reminder: it’s never […]

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How to Stop Negative Self-Talk Would you tell one of your friends that they’re “stupid?” “Not good enough?” That it’s “too late” for them to go after their goals? That you “don’t like” their body, nose, skin, fill-in-the-blank? That you “hate” them? (and not in the “omg-I-hate-you-why-would-you-do-this” kind of way, when they do something silly) Well, if you’re a good friend (and I do hope that you are :) ) you wouldn’t say those things to another person, let alone someone you love. But you don’t always have a problem with being unkind or mean to yourself, do you? We say all those things to ourselves without hesitation. The way you talk to yourself can help you stay motivated, driven and inspired. Sometimes, it can be a source of solutions to your problems. It can, however, also be a source of a lot of excessive negativity- that’s when it becomes harmful. I spent years struggling with this and it wasn’t just me telling myself that “I’m so stupid” when I did something… well, stupid. It was a constant, ongoing battle. I would tell myself things that made me doubt myself, things that made me feel bad about myself, things I […]

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Productive, happy days… It’s all in the power of your morning routine habits. The morning sunshine that filters into my bedroom through the blinds is one of the things that instantly put me in a good mood. Coincidentally, leaving my blinds slightly opened and allowing that light to enter the room as the Sun rises, is one of the ways I trick myself into getting out of bed early. Another “trick” I use is to always have a pair of cozy socks under my pillow. Most days during the week though, my day starts way before the Sun rises. Then, of course, there are also those days when the Sun doesn’t shine as bright, days that are gloomy and cloudy. The good news is that you can easily make those gloomy and dark mornings better and brighter. Even your morning commute doesn’t have to feel like a waste of time. It’s all about creating a morning routine that fits your lifestyle, needs and one that… will help make your days happy and productive, regardless of the weather outside your bedroom window. MORNING ROUTINE HABITS FOR A HAPPY + PRODUCTIVE DAY ALWAYS MAKE YOUR BED Making my bed in the morning […]

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