Usually, I ignore my emotions, because life can be lonesome without a date. I finally bottomed out, last night I ate a whole bag of Oreos. On a weekend that comes from being alone, no less. I pretend to be ashamed about it. Does that tell you anything? Actually, that’s the moment when I seriously looked into meeting new singles in my new hometown.

Easy solution. I’ll meet new singles at a professional dating service, Denver Great Expectations. Probably isn’t a bad idea. The reason I mention my dating woes: When I was a little tipsy at Julie’s soccer finals in Dallas yesterday, Mom asked me if I’ve met my one and only. I just can’t believe that came up. Anyway, I looked up at them and yelled, “I’m eating here, and no.”

Even Gramps mindlessly kept jabbing me about true relationships. I said to the whole group: “Seriously, I’ll never find a gorgeous single woman hanging out with you.”

Guess what? They smiled politely. Quite promptly, I went to the gym so I could clear my head. I still have no idea what to do! I would have learned more by asking my son. Doug, who recently moved to Italy suggested that I browse the singles profiles at Great Expectations. I said, “You know, that’s a good idea.” I have some good friends. I will never regret joining this dating service full of fun and desirable Dallas singles.

At the time, dating services were a novel thing from my perspective. I’d never done anything like this before, and then I started getting butterflies in my stomach. A mere emotional anxiety didn’t pull the plug on a great time. The evening was a limo pub crawl from heaven. The truth is I’ll never forget all the attractive, single women.

It wasn’t long before I was regularly mingling at these splendid Denver Singles Events and parties at Great Expectations, I ran into a handful of marvelous guys and gals that obviously feel as excited as I am which made for a magnificent singles event. Don’t know why I ever let my family get on my back about being single. Surprisingly enough, doing things the Great Expectations way is my pleasure and like a dream come true.

Ted

Believe in People

by Neal Walters

1) Take advantage of the free lessons at our new SpanishLearningCentre.com site. See the resource box at the bottom for full details. We provide free and fun audio lessons.

2) Don’t waste the driving time you spend in the car. Instead of listening to the radio (unless you are listening to Spanish radio), try listening to programmed course materials. Many people commute more than 5 or 10 hours per week. Even at 30 minutes a day, you will be astounded what you can learn in the car.

3) Carry flashcards with you. Make your own flashcards on 3×5 notecards using words from the course from which you are currently studying. Be sure and carry them with you; next time you are standing in line or waiting for whatever, pull out the flashcards, and do a quick review.

4) It really helps to have a good book (with a Spanish/English dictionary in the back). Not everyone learns best with audios; many students need to see and read the words for them to sink into their brains. Books will fill in gaps, such as grammar, and provide a quick reference when you need to lookup a word or phrase.

5) Don’t forget about software on your computer. You can easily listen to the same words and phrases over-and-over again without tiring out your computer. With multimedia systems, you typically get immediate feedback on your progress and mistakes.

6) Join a Spanish club or class. Maybe your local high-schools or colleges have continuing or “fun” educations classes like languages. The classes are often $25 or less, and you have the benefit of learning with others, and getting feedback from a teacher.

7) Travel to a Spanish-speaking country. It will immerse you in the language and culture, plus you may enjoy the site-seeing and museums. You will see and read signs everyday, and overhear people speaking Spanish.

Free beginner tutorials available now at Beginner Spanish website.

Nowadays, mothers can earn good money through Online Jobs. The main problem that home staying Mothers face when it comes to doing a job is that they dont want to leave their children alone. To do a job, you have to go to an office or some workplace, but what if you have a little cute baby at home. Ofcourse you can’t leave your baby at home nor can you bring your baby at work place.

But that does’nt mean that home staying mothers cant do any job or they can make good money. Thanks to Internet, there are millions of online jobs available for these moms. Now you can earn while sitting at your home infront of the PC. What you need is a good PC and internet connection for this purpose. There are several kinds of Online Jobs available on internet but to me the best option is working at freelancing sites. I think freelancing sites offer the best deal when it comes to home working.

But what kind of qualification and knowledge is required to do such Jobs. Don’t you worry as the answer is very simple. You need NO particular qualification to do Online Jobs. You just need to know the basics of operating a computer and how to search through the internet and that is all you need to know. You can do data entry, Copywriting jobs at freelancing sites. Data entry is the easiest job. You just need to copy little things from one source to another or something like that.

If you are a stay at home mother or a housewife, chances are that you stay at house and do all the work instead of going out into the corporate or working organization to earn some money. While this can be true for a few housewives and stay at home moms, you dont have to suffer from unemployment just because you are bound at home. There are some Work from Home jobs for housewives and for moms to choose from.

Some typing jobs are related advertising and you are required to type advertising copies for different companies. There are also typing jobs which are exactly article writing jobs. These online jobs for housewives and mothers may need you to write documents that they need for their purposes. This kind of a job needs you to have a good knowledge of researching skills and above average writing skills. This kind of a job is said to pay good.

We know that there are a great number of jobs that can be found online for stay at home mothers and housewives, finding suitable Work from Home jobs for mothers and housewives may need a little research and writing skills. Bt Beware as there are a number of scams when it comes to these online jobs and knowing how to differentiate the real jobs from the scams will help those mothers and housewives get a true means of income.

As an entrepreneur, you’ve decided it’s time to hire some help so you can lead your business into the future and project growth. You’re excited about the decision and can’t wait to start your search. A sense of fear begins to set in as you try to decide what type of help you need and, more importantly, where you’ll find the right person who will share your vision.

Most all of my clients have faced this same fear when they began their search for assistance. As we began our relationship, there was some initial hesitation and it took a few weeks before that trust factor was established.

Here are three steps to help prepare you for receiving assistance with your business and give you a sense of empowerment about your decision:

1. Emotionally, you have to completely let go. I produce a newsletter for most of my clients. Two of them worry each month — not about my ability to produce their newsletter, but the fear of rejection when it goes public. It never seems to fail that something goes wrong during production, which further fuels their fears. We are our own worst critics, but we need to learn to give ourselves some slack. In order for you to be successful in your business, you need to believe in yourself.

2. You should have some idea of why you want to hire an assistant and what you’d like to delegate to him or her. Don’t just say, “I need help” and then immediately hire someone. You’ll need to do some homework first to maximize the value of your relationship.

3. Put processes in place now to avoid overworking later. In one of my recent articles, I proposed the idea of what would happen if someone wanted to buy your business today. Could you clearly define your day-to-day operations? If your answer is no, then how can you expect your assistant to understand what to do? You need to document the tasks you perform. Putting steps in place now will make delegating tasks that much easier in the future. If you need help mapping out your steps, be sure to visit the “Tools” section below.

It takes some time to build a relationship with someone new, but following these steps should make your relationship stronger and provide you with much needed relief for your business.

Copyright © 2005, Angee Robertson

What would happen to your business if you were not there to take care of it? If you do not have any systems in place, no one else will know how your business operates. Visit http://www.diymicropreneur.com to learn how Angee can help you address this issue and better prepare and organize your business.

In Part 1 of this article, we talked about reaching our goals as
largely a matter of following through on desire, vision and
action. The difficulty for most of us lies in continuing to
believe that our efforts will ever bear fruit when these fruits
have not yet begun to materialize.

Jonathan Swift said it best. “Vision is the art of seeing things
invisible.”

In order to continue to work toward that which we cannot yet see,
our motives must be very personal and very compelling, indeed.
So, let’s have a closer look at the first of the necessary
components, desire.

Desire, even a fervent one, can easily become clouded by
obstacles if we choose to focus on the obstacles instead of on
our goals. Obstacles are what we see when we take our eyes off
the goal.

I believe it helps if we accept from the outset that obstacles
and setbacks will arise. It should come as no surprise or source
of irritation when this occurs. This is simply part of the
natural ebb and flow of business.

If you stop and think about it, it’s ridiculous to expect that it
will be clear sailing the entire way. And yet, people do become
unduly irritated and discouraged when things don’t go according
to plan.

Hitting a few bumps and potholes in the road only signifies that
we are in fact traveling the road, and not necessarily that we’re
going down the wrong one. Viewed in this light, you could say
that dealing with a few snags here and there is a good thing. It
certainly beats sitting around doing nothing to further our
progress, right?

Now granted, in order to endure a ride that isn’t always
comfortable, you had better have a really good reason for doing
so. So here comes your self-appointed cheerleader to urge you
on.

GRAB THAT GOAL, HONEY!

That’s right. Reach out and grab it! Take those vague, unformed
thoughts that flutter around in your head and solidify them by
setting them down in black and white. Grapple with them. Tie
them down to the paper. Wrap some words around them. You
might need to change and rearrange some words. Why, you might
even need to think about what it is that you really, really want.

There is plenty of evidence to show that the daily ritual of
writing down one’s goals is of stupendous importance.
Motivational speakers have delivered volumes of goal-setting
information. Entire books have been devoted to this topic.
Writing down your desires is a recurrent theme in just about
every single success book ever published.

And consider this. Harvard studies indicate that of the 3% of
people who enjoy extreme success, the one common link among
them was this practice of writing down their goals, a practice NOT
shared with the other 97% of the “also ran.”

So why is it that we resist doing this one little thing that has
been proven to have such life-altering consequences? Is it
because it is such a small sacrifice that we figure it can be
ignored? Do people find such a small chore demeaning? Are we
just plain old lazy?

I’ve decided that IT DOESN’T MATTER what excuse we’ve been
using up until now! No more!

I know from experience that a few minutes each morning reviewing
and writing down my major goals is time well spent, and it’s not
a difficult task. Actually, I was having great fun with it.

I found myself experiencing subtle but powerful changes as I
committed my ideas to paper day after day over a period of
months. In fact, I was feeling so grounded and motivated that I
foolishly quit doing the things that were keeping me that way!

So no more excuses for me. I have resumed my goal-writing and I
intend to just DO IT! Why don’t you join me? No more arguments.
No ifs, ands or buts. Just do it.

So now that we are making our goals more tangible, just who do we
share these goals with? My personal experience has taught me to
be very guarded and private about my innermost desires.

If you know that you are dealing with someone who shares your
commitment, you can freely share your ideas and gain an important
ally. HOWEVER, unless you are absolutely certain that you will
be supported 100%, I would recommend that you not share your
goals with anyone else. No, not even your family. In many
instances, ESPECIALLY not your family.

It is a pity, but oftentimes the people who are supposed to be
our staunchest supporters act shamefully like cruel opponents.
“You can’t do that.” “What makes you think you’re so special?
You can’t compete with those guys.” “Oh, man, they say you
coming!”

Such cruel remarks. And they hit particularly hard because they
come from the very people who are supposed to elevate us, to buoy
us up when the going gets rough. Some of these people might
claim that they do this out of love, to keep us from getting
hurt. This may be true, but personally, I don’t think it matters
what their motives are. The damage is still just as severe.
These people will steal our dreams if we let them.

It’s particularly sad when we are the ones saying these hateful
things to ourselves. Not aloud perhaps, but in our dismal
thoughts and sighs. Don’t steal your own dreams, my friend.

We need to keep a high polish on our heartfelt desires. If, and
only if, we really make those goals shine like beacons in the
sky, then we will find the energy keep priming the pump. Day in
and day out, we’ve got to suit up and show up! (Actually, you
can stay in your pajamas, but you do have to show up.)

As the great motivational speaker, Zig Ziglar, used to say, “A
big shot is just a little shot that kept on shooting.” Stay
tuned for Part 3.

Rosella Aranda, marketer and author, helps entrepreneurs
change their thinking and escape limitations permanently.
http://www.SabotageThyselfNoMore.com/ Free mini-course.
http://www.FinancialFreedomWorld.com/ Top Marketing Tools
http://www.FromThoughtsToRiches.com/ How to Be Rich

Fear is the minds great mortal sin.

And isn’t it just at times when you have to risk something, that you Fear? Think about it! You’ve had a great idea but you don’t tell a soul because you’re afraid. They won’t think it’s great. You’ve had long time aspirations to change careers but you cower at the mere thought of getting out of your Comfort Zone and out from under the safety net you’ve created for yourself (your job, your security, your routine). You’ve always wanted to start a business but the thought of putting together a business plan, getting financing and the unknown quantity of the income you’ll receive scares the hell out of you!How many opportunities have you allowed to slip by because you were frozen by Fear? Do you know more about the things you Fear than the things you desire? Is the Fear of failure your biggest Fear of all?

Recognizing Fear!

Not a single person has ever accomplished anything of significance without first feeling scared to death!You recognize your own tell tale signs of Fear. Might be a knot in your gut. Or a high state of anxiety. A flood of negative thoughts rush in and all the reasons NOT to do something hover over you like an ominous black cloud! The truth is, behind that cloud lay bright beautiful sunlight ready to nourish and grow your idea. Fear is a loaded gun squarely aimed to slay you and all your potential. You need to be on-guard every waking moment to deflect the invisible bullet.

“Fear is the oldest and strongest emotion of mankind.”

H. P. LovecraftFear is the cancer of the human spirit.

Deny Hariyanto is a member of Elite Team Indonesia. Elite Team was found by Anne Ahira.She is offering 30 Days of FREE Training for people who are serious about wanting to build a better financial future for themselves. If you are interested in getting Anne’s FREE Training simply visit http://www.freedomforfinance.com

Listen, Learn & Live - The 3 Ls to Unconventional Success

As you read this, I’d like for you to think of three people that would greatly benefit from this article.

Listen - Who are you listening to? The person that you need to listen to is you. Inside you is your heart’s desire, and I want you to commit today to truly figure out your “Why”. Your Why is the reason that you get out of bed each day, the reason that you continue to build your business despite the obstacles and ultimately your Why is your Dream. Listen to your heart’s desire and it will tell you your Why in life! As I say, you must have FAITH (Find Answers In The Heart). It takes faith to become successful in life and fulfill your Why.

Learn - Are you on a constant and consistent track to increase your knowledge? We’ve all heard that knowledge when properly applied is power, but it’s your decision to build upon your knowledge and create that unstoppable power. We all were made to learn reading, math and language in school and we didn’t just throw our hands up in the air as children and say, “I give up”. So, let me ask you a question. Why are you throwing your hands up at your dreams? That’s right, if you are not learning something new everyday that will assist you in achieving your Why then you are ultimately giving up. I challenge you today to commit to learning and maximize your potential.

Live - This is the last step that will help you achieve “unconventional” success. You see, conventional success means that by the age of sixty-five, 95% of people are dead or dead broke, 4% are barely making it and 1% are wealthy. To me, this is insane! Everyone has a Champion inside them and everyone was born a miracle, but it’s up to that person as an individual to forge forward in life and live as a successful person. This is “unconventional” success, when you make a decision to live like a Champion and achieve massive wealth in all areas of your life despite what the conventional statistics say. You must LIVE your Dream and your Why!

I ask you, “Who are those three people that you were thinking of as you read this article?” If you thought of more than three, that’s fine because they all need to know the importance of Listening, Learning and Living. Forward this article to those people that you thought of and make a difference in the life of someone that you care about today. Now, I challenge you to Listen to your heart’s desire, Learn something new everyday and Live your Dream! You can and will achieve you Why in life!!!

Find Your Why & Fly,
John Di Lemme
www.FindYourWhy.com

John Di Lemme, a Former Clinically Diagnosed Stutterer, now the
World’s Leading Motivational Expert *shocks millions globally*
by exposing the truth they’ve been searching for in order to
achieve monumental life success through his Award Winning Live
Seminars, Power-Packed Training Programs, Live Tele-Classes,
Motivational Club and Weekly E-zine. Take action now and join
tho.usands of others that have used John’s proven methods to
live their life to the Maximum! Visit www.FindYourWhy.com
and discover how you can finally create monumental success
in your life today and achieve all your goals, dreams and desires.

Worry is a silent killer. It is like a slow poison. It is a chronic illness. In fact, it is an illness which is many fold dreadful than the physical illnesses. Worry not only affects our body but our mind too.

If you think seriously, you would find that it is really no use worrying about anything. It is really foolish to worry about past or future. Nobody can change the past. Whatever has happened has happened. Why worry? How can something that has yet not come to pass affect us? How are we so certain that the future is so bleak? Things may turn out well. Why worry then? Worrying just tires us and diminishes our capacity of clear thinking and planning. It promotes negative thinking. Instead of worrying we should use positive affirmations and resolutions.

If worry could solve the problem, everybody would worry as much as possible. Problem solving requires clear thinking and planning. But worry makes us incapable of clear thinking and planning. Many things, if they are going to happen, will happen regardless of our worry. If it is going to rain, it will.

We worry for small things. The worst-case scenario may not even be bad enough to worry. You have made your boss angry. You worry that he may fire you. What of it? That is not the end of the world. You are still alive. Perhaps you would get a better job. You dread to go to the office next day. You think of sending in your resignation letter. Worrying you reach office. The boss calls you. He apologizes. It was his mistake!

Not only we should not worry about little things, but we should also not worry about seemingly big things. The things that seem today very big and important will seem trifle tomorrow. In your student life you must have worried for days about the wrong answer you gave, even though you knew the right answer, to an objective type of question carrying just half mark. How much you worried about a dress on a special occasion, meeting a boy or girl whom you fancied, or the change of residence of a friend’s family? Do these matter a bit today? Why worry about spilled milk, or a broken glass, or a missed bus?

Of course, no body worries for the sake of worrying. Worry just comes into mind and then never leaves. But many people never worry. It seems that worrying is a sort of bad habit. As all bad habits the habit of worrying is also difficult to get rid of. So, in the first instance, never make worrying a habit. Secondly, try to divert your mind. Think of positive things. Get busy with some physical activity. Keep yourself away from people who are habitually worrying type and who always see the negative side of a thing.

Instead of useless worrying, one should take positive action

BE HAPPY!

The author, and his wife, work in the field of Happiness, Success, and Health, including Yoga and Naturopathy. They have visited various countries of the world and hence in their writings there is a good synergy of East and West.

Newton said, “I don’t know what I may seem to the world; but, as to myself, I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the sea shore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.”

For exploring the great ocean of happiness lying undiscovered before you, consult complete Guide to Be Happy!

Be Happy! Why Worry? © P. S. Gusain; visit The Life Beautiful.

This article can be reproduced freely in part or full provided due credit is given.

Happiness. The pursuit of so many. In fact, we are known in America as those who live for “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.’

But so many seem without happiness. Why is this? Is happiness truly elusive
or do we simply not know how to take hold of it? It is my contention that
happiness is yours for the taking. That is, anyone can be happy if the
choose to be… and if they know how to get it.

So what does it take to bring us to a state of happiness? Here are a few
thoughts to get you on your way:

Do not try to control circumstances.

One of the biggest “happiness busters”
I see is in the frustration people experience (and wallow in) because
circumstances have gone awry. This is because their mind-set, whether they
know it or not, is that they should be somehow able to control
circumstances. But let’s get this straight: You can’t! So the first thing
you can do to give yourself happiness is to stop trying to control, or
taking responsibility for circumstances that are outside of your control!
Understand that you can only control yourself.

There is only one thing you
can control in this world and that is yourself. You can’t control the
weather, other drivers, your kids or spouse, or anything for that matter
outside of your own beliefs, thoughts, attitudes and actions. Focus all of
your attention on developing yourself and doing what is right - controlling
yourself while letting what will happen, happen - and you will find
happiness opening up within you.

Decide what it is that you want out of life and then stick to it
relentlessly.

This is two parts: First, know what you want. Get real clear
with yourself. Take a private retreat to be alone if you have to, but come
to grips with what you want your life to look like.

Secondly, devote
yourself to that passion and do not be sidetracked. It is interesting to me
how many options we have - good options - that if we pursue them they will
actually crush our happiness because they will take us away from what will
really make us happy.

Live for a legacy. We cannot be self-absorbed and live only for ourselves.
Yes, we only control ourselves, but we can live for the betterment of
others. Live your life in such a way that others are touched and you will
find yourself feeling happiness in ways that you could never imagine. For
example, I get some of the most touching emails from people I have never met
(and probably never will) who tell me how I have helped them. There is
little else that brings me such happiness!

Settle your finances. Whatever your financial goals are, get them! Having
poor finances is one of the major causes of unhappiness. Now, some people
are completely content on $30,000 a year. Others need $200,000 a year. That
is okay. We all have different desires, needs, and goals. But the key is to
know what you want your financial life to look like and then do what it
takes to get there. Among the major things to do is to eliminate as much
debt as possible, if not all!

Surround yourself with good friends. Good friend are such a blessing! I have
some of the most intelligent, capable, successful, and caring friends a
person could have. I have three or four people in my life that I completely
trust and admire. When friendships are clicking, there is almost nothing
that provides more happiness. Take time to develop your friendships. Spend
time with them, do fun things with them etc. Even as life gets more and more
busy, make time with your friends a priority.

Develop your primary love relationship. I spoke at a groom’s dinner recently
and one of the points I made was that marriage will show you both heaven and
hell! Marriage, when it is going well will send you out the door each
morning on cloud nine. When it isn’t going well, it affects every area of
your life negatively. Do whatever you can - work hard - at developing your
primary love relationship. The rewards of happiness you reap will be
tremendous!

Happiness is yours for the taking - and hope you will take the time to
develop your life in such a way as to be able to experience all of the
happiness you can handle!

About The Author:

Chris Widener is a popular speaker and writer as well as the President of
Made for Success, a company helping individuals and organizations turn
their potential into performance, succeed in every area of their lives and
achieve their dreams.

To see Chris “live” at the upcoming Jim Rohn Weekend Event as he speaks on
the subject of Secrets of Influence go to
http://Chris-Widener.InspiresYOU.com/ or call 800-929-0434.

The way you feel about yourself impacts how and why you do everything in life. If you feel good about who you are, then what you do will be an outside reflection of your innermost thoughts and feelings. Contrary to popular belief, self-esteem is not something anyone or any accomplishment can give you. Just because people like you or you receive an award, does not mean that you will love and take care of yourself. Positive self-esteem comes from within and does not change because the scenery or circumstances change. To have esteem for something or someone is to regard highly or favorably. High self-esteem is relatively stable even when the forecast looks foreboding.

Your self-esteem is like a star at night that shines brightest when it is the darkest. It is your inner light that burns brightly and freely no matter what is happening around you. A zen saying reminds us: “What was your original face before you were born?” Self-esteem is perfectly intact when we are born, in fact, it is inherent to us; however, it often diminishes over the course of our childhood. We lose a little of it whenever we fail, make mistakes, misbehave, feel guilty, refuse to forgive, neglect ourselves, and/or do things we are ashamed of. As an adult, we sometimes feel as if our “self” is in pieces— that we are somehow not whole and complete.

This is not true. We are whole and complete even with our missing pieces and broken parts. We just need to decide to gather up ourselves up and become whole again. I am willing to bet that when you look back over your life, the first thing that comes to mind are the regrets, the sad times in your past. Do you see the pieces of yourself lying along the path of your life? The ones where you didn’t feel good enough, or where you were criticized or blamed by someone else? But have you ever stopped to look at the memories of when you won the prize, felt really great, on top of the world—-those moments that prove what a wonderfully amazing human being you are? Try it right now, write down 10 things you are most proud of.

It is your birthright to love and honor yourself. The good news is that you can reclaim that which is yours.

What follows are 10 Ways to Reclaim Your Self-Esteem:

1. Define life success

One of the most empowering things you can do for yourself is to define your criteria for life success. This requires reflecting on what the key elements are and the experiences you wish to have.

2. Choose to be happy

Happiness is a state of mind. The Dalai Lama says that the very purpose of life is to seek happiness. He believes that if you train the mind to be happy, you will be. Likewise, you can train yourself for higher self-esteem.

3. Set challenging goals

How much you like yourself is often reflected in the level of goals you will set for yourself. Generally, people who like themselves and feel valuable, set higher and more challenging life goals.

4. Honor your core values

When you live by a clear set of values, it is easier to align your life with what is most important to you. When you honor your core values, (those things you would fight for), you honor your true self.

5. Enhance your energy

People with high self-esteem seem to have a reservoire of energy, and seldom get sick or let life’s set backs keep them down. Their energy and enthusiasm for life encourages them to take care of their body, mind, and spirit.

6. Maintain a positive attitude

Attitude determines your altitude. The more positive your thinking, the more positive your feelings, the more positive the outcome. There is nothing more powerful and creative than your thoughts, so you may as well make them positive and uplifting.

7. Be passionate

Passion takes hold of you and feels like “fire in the belly.” It is a source of power that enables you to get fired about life and make a difference. The more passion and zest you feel, the more alive and brightly lit you are.

8. Live by vision and work with purpose

When you know your life vision and purpose, life has more meaning and direction. Vision and purpose provide a sense that you matter, that you have a part to play, and that you truly belong here.

9. Reward success

Set yourself up for success by breaking big goals into daily action steps and take time to acknowledge and celebrate the small successes. This will feed your need for recognition and provides the extra push to keep you moving forward.

10. Make smart life decisions

When you care about yourself, you make smarter decisions. You take care to choose the right mate, occupation, and lifestyle that support you.

Self-esteem is an inner state that can be nurtured and cultivated. The National Association for Self-Esteem (NASE) defines self-esteem as the experience of being capable of meeting life’s challenges and being worthy of happiness. That definition underlines two key things: going after goals and choosing happiness. Another definition is the level that you respect and value yourself as a loveable, worthwhile human being.

Your self-esteem contributes to your vitality, energy level, persistence, and personal magnetism. It is not to be confused with “self-image,” which is the comparison of those around you. Self-image is about what is on the outside and causes you to judge yourself and others. It changes whenever the wind blows. This fosters competition and fragmentation.

Self-esteem is about what is on the inside, a belief in yourself and your abilities. Positive esteem focuses on acceptance of self and others. It remains constant despite the storm. This fosters cooperation and wholeness.

It is common to have high self-esteem in one area of life, like career, but not in others. The highest form of self-esteem is when you can accept all of yourself—- strengths, weaknesses, best/worst parts, and overall, still feel good about who you are and what you do. Someone with a strong sense of worth will believe in herself, take more risks, say and do nice things for self and others, can let things go, not take everything so personal, forget the bad and focus on the good in life.

How do you feel about yourself right now?

10: perfectly happy with my whole self

to 5: moderately happy with my whole self

to 1: not at all happy with my whole self

If you are less than a 10, commit to using one of these tips today and feel your esteem rise, create a stronger sense of self, and reclaim your inner power. You deserve to feel great!

About The Author

Michelle L. Casto is a Whole Life Coach, Speaker, and Author of the Get Smart! LearningBook Series. Her coaching practice is Brightlight Coaching, she helps people come up with bright ideas for their life and empowers them to freely shine their bright light to the world. Visit virtually: www.brightlightcoach.com or www.getsmartseries.com. Call for a Complimentary Coaching session (361) 816-0685.

coach@brightlightcoach.com