A Purposeful Life in A-Z!

Tips, Tools & Strategies for Living a Life on Purpose!

I've just had an article published this month (see my website for the full article) on 'Well Being for Teachers', which is the heart of a lot of my work. However, I thought that so much of it is applicable to everyone, so I've summarised it very briefly below in an A-Z format. Exploring ways that we can take better care of ourselves has become one of my favourite topics to talk and write about. Below are 26 ways we can learn to take care of ourselves and live a life on purpose!

A - Attitude It turns out that having an optimistic attitude is one of the most important things you can develop for personal happiness. Optimistic people look for the good in situations. B- Breathe Our bodies work best when we breathe diaphragmatically (otherwise known as stomach breathing) most of the time. Consciously breathe this way and your body will thank you for it. C- Create a Sanctuary Create a soul nourishing space for yourself at home that you can go to, to relax and quieten your mind. D- Delegate (or outsource) Highly effective people know how to leverage time. Give away tasks that others can do for you! E- Email Is both a blessing and a curse! Plan carefully when you choose to open, read and respond to your emails. At work, they have the potential to shift you from your 'to do' list in an instant! F- File Find a place for all the paper that comes into your home (or work). Leaving it lying around creates clutter. G- Gratitude No surprises with this one! It is impossible to feel negative when you are focusing on what you are grateful for. H- Healthy Body Make moving your body a priority. The release of endorphins will make you feel alive! Exercise is an instant mood booster. I- Internet With access to the world wide web there is no reason not to be fully educated on issues relevant to your needs. Educate yourself using modern day resources! J- Just Say No! Saying 'yes' to things that do not align with what you really want to do is not good self care. Learn to say 'no'. K- KISS - Keep It Simple Sweetie Avoid over complicating your life. What could you eliminate? What would happen if you stopped fighting for it? L- Listen Effective listening builds rapport and warmth naturally. Try listening and observing instead of talking too much. (This is my big personal goal at work!) M- Mindfulness Mindfulness is not about eliminating the negative, it is about noticing what is in the present moment. Be aware and pay attention! This is the only moment that counts! N- Nature The natural elixir available to us everyday. Nature has that special way of grounding us in the present moment. It's also a visual reminder of the universal power around us. O- Owl (A wise owl!) Find yourself a Wise Owl - someone you respect and admire. Listen and learn from them. P- Positive Psychology Cultivate your strengths! Do your homework to find out what your strengths are. There are many online websites with questionnaires that do this for free! Q- What Qualities am I Developing? Ask yourself this during a challenging time. Mine for the gold! Sometimes you have to dig deep! R- Reflect Take the time to think about what happened and what you may have done differently. This is where the growth happens! S- Self Compassion We all have a tendency to beat ourselves up with self doubt and criticism. Self compassion is all about loving ourselves no matter what. T-Time Management What are you choosing to spend your time on? Time Management really is priority management. We all have the same amount of time - how do you spend yours? U- Utilise A little like delegating - utilise the skills of people around you. V- Vision In Life Coaching, having a crystal clear vision is the corner stone of your success. A clear vision enables you to plan and take effective action. W- Wins! Count your Wins! Hone in on and acknowledge all the positives that happen in your life. Celebrate them and maximise the good feeling from them. X- Exit Know when to exit at the end of the day. Your 'to do' list will always have something on it. Life is not about getting it all done. Long hours do not make someone productive (quite the opposite!). Y- Your Day will go as well as your Plan Beginning your day with a plan will set you up for focused action. Z- Zest Are you eager and enthusiastic about your life? Ask yourself what changes you could make to connect with what matters most to you!