How To Live A Simple And Fulfilling Life

Living simple is easier said than done. I am a busy body and love being in motion: learning, creating and doing. But as lovely as this can be, it can lead to feeling drained and non-productive. So I wanted to post 3 tips that I will be taking myself to live a more simple and fulfilled life.

Tip#1

Prioritize and execute: We can't do everything all at once. Pick the top 3 things you must do each day and let the rest go. 

Tip#2

Relax and Release: What good is accomplishing your to do list if you always feel stressed out. Make a date with yourself weekly to do whatever brings your heart joy. Be in the moment and do it alone.

Tip#3

Create a Vision Board: This is something that I have done in the past and just revisited recently. It is an awesome way to see all your life's goals and dreams in one place. Review it often for inspiration.

Living a simple and fulfilling life is easier than we think. In the spirit of that I will be posting blogs once per week instead of two. I hope you will sit and reflect on how you can simplify your life. We all need downtime to create a fulfilling lifestyle by doing work we love. What tips do you have on living a more simple and fulfilling life? Share with me in the comments below.

Be Do Have!

How To Stop Feeling Drained and Tired

In my last post about focusing on self-improvement I mentioned a little comment that stated " But what if you are drained, tired and just don’t have any motivation left". I stopped to take a hard look at that thought. What if you are just plain tired and don't have anything left? How can you get across the finish line when there is no more energy to push you forward?

Stop!

I have this problem quite regularly as I move toward accomplishing goals and I don't pretend to be a mental health professional. I just do certain things that work and maybe they will work for you.

Wake up early and Meditate-There is something to be said for being in a quiet room alone early in the morning and just taking in the stillness. I allow myself to just be without limitations.

Get Moving- I try to find some quick form of exercise like Zumba or even taking a quick walk outside or just do jumping jacks in the living room

Do Something Creative- We are all creative beings and the first portion of the day is a great time to release your inner artist and do something like writing or playing music to get energized.

These are not groundbreaking tips, but they work for me and keep me sane and on the path to success. What about you? What are some things that you do first thing in the morning to get yourself energized? Tell me in the comments below.

Be Do Have!

Focusing on Self Improvement

Making the decision to go after your dream career can be easier said than done. In the last blog post I listed some easy ways to get training on the go that was pretty cheap or even free. But what if you are drained, tired and just don’t have any motivation left. Then it is time to develop a self improvement plan. 

What Is a Self-Improvement Plan?

The FreeDictionary describes self-improvement as “The improvement of one's status, position, education, etc, by one's own efforts”. So the next piece is just creating action steps that will put you in the right frame of mind to reach success.

Here is one step you can take today to get started. Create a positive affirmation and say it aloud to yourself as you start your day. Need some inspiration? Check out these affirmations to get started. 

Are you ready to get started on the road to self-improvement? Tell me in the comments below.

Be Do Have!

Got Skills?

Like the famous "Got Milk" commercials of yesteryear it is equally important for your career planning bones to ensure you have the right skills and training. On the last blog post we talked about how to identify your dream job. Now we take a short look at the many training courses that are available for free or really affordable to get you ready for that dream job.

Technology Field

Check out sites like Treehouse or Microsoft Virtual Academy

Accounting Field

Check out the School Of Bookkeeping or DWM Beancounters

All Categories

Check out Lynda.com or Udemy.com

So as you can see technology has made it quite easy to learn on the go in an affordable way. All you need is to make up your mind that it is time to get the skills needed to make yourself stronger in your search for your dream job. So what classes look interesting to you? Let me know in the comments below and check out other resources here.

Be Do Have in 2015!

 

How To Figure Out Your Dream Job

What would life look like if you were excited to go to work everyday? What would it feel like to  to do what you love and get paid for it? Well, in my opinion, this is the definition of having your dream job. But how do you figure out what a dream job means to you? 

Know Thy Self

The first thing to do is take an assessment of your personality & interests. This will help you to better understand what type of careers would be an easy fit for your personality. Check out the assessment tool on Dan Miller's 48 days.net site.

The next thing to do is to a brain dump. Write down all the things you know how to do even if you are not currently doing them at work. This will help you to see what skills and talents you currently possess.

Next cross-out the items you hate doing and never want to do again. This will help you to focus on the skills and talents you really love doing and would do for free. 

These are just  a few tiny bite size steps to start you on the path to working in your dream job. To stay organized and capture all your thoughts in one place try using Evernote or a simple Google Doc document for easy retrieval. Next time we will look at what training courses are available for free to get you ready for that dream job. So what skills would you toss in the trash and never do again if you had the choice? Tell me in the comments below.

Be Do Have!

Make 2015 The Year Of Getting Stuff Done!

If you are like me then you have so many things you want to get accomplished and time seems to be not your friend. So what can we do? How can we bridge the gap between day dreaming about what type of career we would love to do and making it happen? We have to create an action plan so that we can implement the steps and then take action in small microsteps until we can see our dreams realized. Trust me, I am no expert at this and I know it is an act of trial and error and patience. But it can be done. So check in with me all month long as I map out a plan to grab our career goals and finally see in practical terms how it can be done. What do you think about action plans and goal setting? Tell me in the comments below.

Be Do Have!

Do You Want To Be An Apprentice?

The popularity of the hit t.v show The Apprentice has put the spotlight back on an age old tradition of gaining work experience: Being An Apprentice. 

So what exactly does it mean to be an apprentice and how is that different than being an intern? 

The Chronicle explains the difference as “Internships and apprenticeships both give you entry-level experience in a career; however, they work in different ways. Often described as programs that allow you to earn while you learn, apprenticeships pay you to learn a skill or trade in the work environment. You might say that internships give you the chance to learn before you earn, as their focus is on showing you what it would be like to work in a specific job or work environment before you choose a career”. 

So now that we all understand what an apprenticeship is you are probably wondering where do you find one. A good place to start is to check out MyNextMove.org which has a list of careers that have registered apprenticeships.

The idea of combining learning while you earn on the job has been around forever. The resurgence of interest in doing apprenticeship has definitely become a viable option to include in your career plan. So what do you think about the idea of doing an apprenticeship? Tell me in the comments below.

Be Do Have!

Do You Know A Dream Killer?

As little kids we used to have dreams of what we wanted to be when we grew up. Some of us had wild dreams and usually none of the ideas seem to go together. Like if someone asked you what you wanted to be when you grew up you probably said something like a firefighter and a drummer or a veterinarian and a baseball player. As kids we were allowed to think big, dream big and experiment with different activities. 

What Happened?

We grew up.

Some of us went on to accomplish our dreams. While others stopped right in their tracks. Someone may have said something to you that was negative or perhaps something happened during the course of your life that killed the dream you had when you were a kid. Perhaps it was a well meaning parent or maybe life just demanded a steady paycheck to pay the bills. Now you are stuck existing instead of sharing your gift with the world.

In Steve Harvey’s book Act Like A Success he asks the question “How often do we allow the impressions of others to affect our direction, our altitude, or our ability? Far too many times we have stunted our own growth, and we have impeded our leap because of the opinions of others”. Well, that is very true. If you follow in the footsteps of someone who is living a life that will not leave you fulfilled, then that is a version of a “dream killer”. If you fill yourself up with negative thoughts first thing in the morning & you consistently stamp out ANY version of light in your life then that is a “dream killer” too. If you have a gift but ignore it at every given turn for any reason, then YOU are your own dream killer. 

So what is the takeaway? Let your light shine, share your gift, be prosperous and pay it forward to help someone else to do the same. Do you know a dream killer? Share with me in the comments below.

Be Do Have!