Tuesday, 8 August 2017

5 INSPIRING TIPS FOR LIVING AN EXTRAORDINARY LIFE


I’ve read my fair share of self-help books and regardless of the topic usually find some nugget of wisdom to reflect upon. But the most inspiring of late may very well be Jessica Herrin’s recently released “Find Your Extraordinary: Dream Bigger, Live Happier, and Achieve Success on Your Own Terms.” While I won’t give away all her messages, here are a few points that may resonate with anyone aspiring to live a stellar life.

1. Authenticity leads to true success.


While many believe success involves lots of money and possessions, Herrin says that’s not it, at all. Rather, truly victorious individuals live their lives in alignment with their values. To identify yours, she suggests asking questions such as:
– What makes you happy?
– Who are the people you love so much their joy is your own? (These are the only few you should be trying to impress.)
– What do you want your impact on the world to be?
– What goals really mean something to you?
– Are you meaningfully connected to what you’re doing?
“Happiness doesn’t come from success,” she writes. “It is success, because if you’re happy, then you’ve succeeded–in the most extraordinary way.”

2. Success has many different starts.


Herrin, now founder and CEO of the Stella & Dot family of brands through which over 50,000 business owners have collectively earned more than $300 million since 2007, attended community college after high school instead of a typical four-year university. A straight-A student who waited tables to pay for classes, her intention was to transfer to Stanford. It was a goal her guidance counselor promptly tried to squash, telling her no one ever transferred from a junior college to the prestigious university. Herrin proved her wrong and graduated from Stanford a few years later.

3. Take a look at your younger self to see your potential.


She suggests this exercise: Find a photo of yourself as a child around the age of 5. Chances are, you’ll see things like joy, curiosity and excitement in your young face. Likely you will not see the doubt and negative self-talk many adults allow to roll around in their minds. “It was amazing how many mean things I had said to this girl between then and now,” she writes. “Yet in looking at this photograph, all the flaws I think of myself as having suddenly disappeared. When I looked at the essence of this little kid, I saw no evidence of those ‘less than’ qualities I used to believe were my core traits… I saw a little person who could do anything.”

4. Impress yourself first and then only a few important people in the center of your life.


Beyond yourself, it should only be a small circle of people whose opinions matter to you–perhaps your partner or spouse and children. People spend so much time worrying what others think, but seeking outward validation from people who ultimately don’t care that much is a waste of time and energy.

5. Talk to your wise future self.


Herrin asks readers to visualize themselves floating on a river boat watching the milestones of their lives pass by on the shoreline. Imagine this is you, and after seeing the years pass before your eyes you finally disembark at a lovely home where you are greeted by your future self–an older and wiser you. This is your opportunity to ask this person what different choices you would make if you could go back. Or, in the grand scheme of things, what matters most? What was your greatest achievement?
“When something small or short-term is weighing me down, I ask my future self if she cares about this at all,” she writes. “Turns out, she actually cares about a pretty narrow set of things! Family, love, friendship, and impact. If she’s not overly worried about a short term-term situation, why should I be?”

TIPS FOR GOOD POSTURE ON THE GO


Mention the word “slouching,” and most people think immediately of the the kind of posture that comes with sitting in a chair all day. But posture – good or bad – is always happening, whether you’re sitting, standing, lying down or moving around. Here are 5 quick tips for maintaining good posture while on the go.



Tip #1. Standing in Line at the Grocery Store or Bank (or Anywhere Else)


Posture is not a static event, as most people think. It’s actually constructed of many reflexive micro-movements of your trunk (when sitting) and whole body (when standing.) These micro-movements sort of bounce off of one another. What this means is static posture is an average of all the tiny changes in direction that are constantly happening.
You can use this bit of information to your advantage, especially when you’re waiting in line with little else to do.
Consider consciously leaning forward at your ankles (a whole body lean) and then bringing yourself as far back as you can without losing your balance. This helps develops body awareness which – a key first step towards good posture. You’ll also meet your kinesphere – simply a fancy name for an imaginary bubble around you that encompasses your entire reach space. (Once you have to take a step in any direction, this is no longer the same “kinesphere;” it’s a new one.) Awareness of this personal space bubble can further develop body awareness, as well as help prevent injury and develop graceful movements.
When standing still, check your knees for locking. It’s best for these joints if you maintain a little bend in them. Locking wears out the joint faster and also can throw the rest of your body alignment off, which may lead to strain or injury.

Tip #2. Driving


When you take the driver’s seat, exactly where do you position it for healthiest posture? If it’s too far back, it may encourage you to slouch – either in your low back, or in your whole back (as you lean forward to see and reach the wheel,) or both. Either position, but especially the low back slouching can be harmful to your discs.
So what do you do? If possible, slide the seat forward until you’re upright on your two sitting bones, which are located on the underside of your pelvis. You might even use seat position as an opportunity to “force” yourself in to experiencing supported posture for longer than you normally would.
This is good training: Sitting right on top of those two bones provides the foundation for excellent body posture.

Tip #3.Carrying Luggage, Purses and Bags


When you have a lot of stuff to carry – whether it’s your luggage, your school books, or your groceries, two main principles of posture can help you avoid strain.
First, keep loads close to your body. Basic biomechanics dictates that loads held closer to the body are easier to lift and manage than loads held away from the body.
The other principle is to remember that for the most part, you are a symmetrical being. So rather than slinging a heavy bag over one shoulder and carrying the groceries in that arm, too, why not distribute the load more evenly – between both arms?
And while we’re talking about it, shoulder bags – especially if you tend to tote a lot of stuff around – is not very symmetry-friendly. If you always have a lot of things to carry, perhaps a backpack would be a better choice.

Tip #4. Exercise


If you walk or run for exercise, you may have a favorite route. (I know I do.) The problem is, if you traverse this same route every day, your body alignment suffers. This is because the challenge you put to your weight bearing joints (i.e., in the feet, ankles knees, hips and even the spine to some extent) is also the same every day. This limits the conditioning you give your muscles and sets up imbalance, where some of the muscles that surround and control the joints are extra-strong while others sort of shut down.
And there there’s the loss of agility and coordination that can result from the lack of training in all possible movements of the joints when you don’t vary your routine. All of these – agility, coordination and muscle conditioning play important roles in injury prevention, pain management, good posture and so much more.
So make tweaks to your regular walking or running routine every day. Try new streets, new paths, purposely take a hill or two – either up or down, and try different sides of the street. If safety is a factor, you could certainly walk a zig-zagged path on your familiar road – and vary the size of it: Make some of them big wide and others narrow. Using variety in your walking routine will help you extract more benefits from times spend exercising.

Tip #5. At Home


Even when you rest, posture is going on, and it needs a balanced form of support. When sitting at the dinner table, or on the couch, a great way to provide support to your whole body is to start with your pelvis. Just as we discussed above in the section on driving, a balanced position of the pelvis provides the foundation for good alignment for the rest of you – both above (hips, spine, shoulders, neck, head) and below (legs, knees, ankles, feet.) That said, changing positions regularly will help you avoid fatiguing your posture muscles.
When sleeping, use pillows to support your spine as needed. Key guidelines for this include keeping your head in line with your spine (i.e., give enough cushion to keep your head from tilting down, but not so much that it’s propped up higher than your spine.
And finally, avoid sleeping on your stomach, especially if you have facet joint pain or spinal arthritis. It’s generally not comfortable, and if you have either of these conditions, it could make your pain worse.

GOOD POSTURE AT YOUR WORKPLACE – THE BENEFITS


We all remember being told by our mothers to sit up straight. It is human nature that it is difficult to understand the objective of a certain statement. The truth is our mothers always said this for a reason. Poor posture can lead to a lot of health issues. Nowadays suffering from back and neck problems is a common issue and the cause is the poor posture. Carry on reading to learn more!
We all remember being told by our mothers to sit up straight. It is human nature that it is difficult to understand the objective of a certain statement. The truth is our mothers always said this for a reason. Poor posture can lead to a lot of health issues. Nowadays suffering from back and neck problems is a common issue and the cause is the poor posture.
A good posture is equally important whether you work or stay back home. However, the significance of a good posture increases when you work in an office. The reason is that apart from health issues, it reflects on your personality as well.

The Causes That Lead To a Bad Posture


When you have to fix a problem then, first of all, it is important to identify the cause of the problem. You might have noticed that often people have a bad posture. There are times when people develop a bad posture due to an injury or accident. Improper shoes may also be the culprit behind a bad posture, so the solution is to get hold of proper shoes right away. Some people have weak muscles, and some just have a bad posture because of poor self-esteem.
However, there are times when things are beyond you. For example, if your workplace is not designed to suit your needs then even in that case it can affect your posture. If you need to know why maintaining a good posture is so important then the below-mentioned points will answer
you.

Reasons to Maintain a Good Posture at Your Workplace


The following are some key reasons to maintain a good posture at your workplace.
1. Fight Back pain: You may never have given any importance to this fact, but slouching tends to put a strain on the muscles of the spine. If you feel back pain when you are at the office, then this could be probably because of a bad posture. When you are healthy, then you can give a better output at your office. This is why you need to give immense significance to your posture. Try to sit in an upright position on your chair at the office. If you need some extra support, then you can get hold of a BackBoard and place it behind your back when sitting on the chair.
2. Compliment your appearance: Your posture contributes to your appearance. When you sit in an upright position, then you tend to look taller and slimmer. This counts a lot at your workplace. If you have a job where you directly deal with customers and their complaints then having a good posture is imperative. When you sit in an upright position and address the concerns of the customers, it gives the perception that you are focused and attentive.
3. Sets a positive impression: The management makes it a point to monitor the employees. When you sit in a slouched position, it shows your lack of interest in your responsibilities. On the contrary, when you sit upright it generates those positives vibes that you know your job. This eventually carves a positive impression on the management.
4. Scientific Benefits: Your body takes about thirty percent less oxygen in comparison to when you sit upright.
5. Beat stress: When you have a good posture at the workplace you will notice that it will help to fight stress. The reason is that good posture shows high self-esteem, so it helps to fight those negative mood swings. Obviously, when you can fight stress, you will able to be more productive and will be able to give a better output.
6. Improved memory: When you will sit in an upright position, so this means you are focused. Thus you will have another benefit coming your way. You will experience improved memory. When you are good at remembering things and experiences, then it is counted as a positive trait in your workplace and will ensure your success.
7. Lose weight: When you sit on your chair all day at the office then you are concerned about another thing, and that is gaining weight. Well, you can beat this issue by adopting a good posture. When you sit upright then it takes the tension off the entire body and improves overall blood flow. This means you can lose weight by adopting a good posture.

Perfect Tips to Getting a Good Posture


The following are some tips that can help you get a good posture at your workplace.
– Motivation: You need to have a key motivation to maintain a good posture. For example, do you want people to have a positive impression about you or do you want a good posture to beat back problems? Thus first set your motivation.
– Reminder: You need to keep to a reminder to check your posture. Now what happens with most people is that they start with full zeal and zest, but after 5 minutes they completely forget about maintaining a good posture. You can stick a note on your computer so that you can keep a check on your posture from time to time till it becomes a habit.
– Get back into shape: If you had a bad posture for a long time, then it will not be easy to get a good posture fast. The reason is that your joints get hard with the passage of time. However, you should not give up. The solution is that you should have a regular back, shoulder, and head massage every day when you get home from work. When you get the massage done on a regular basis, then it will loosen the joints, and it will become easier for you to adopt a good posture at your workplace.
– Ground your feet: Another way to get a good posture is that you should ground both your feet when you are standing or sit in your office. You should never rest your weight on any particular foot. When you sit in your office, make sure that you do not cross your legs. This will help to keep the upper part of the body in a straight position.
– Follow the Analogy: Now here is an analogy that can also help to keep your posture straight. You need to assume that a string is holding the entire body. You need to focus on the fact that your head and spine are aligned with the assumed string, and you can relax the other parts of your body. The mistake most people do is that they tense all the body parts while trying to maintain a good posture, so you have to make sure that you avoid this mistake.
– Practice Yoga: Well when you want to attain the long-term benefits of a good posture at home or your workplace then the best solution is exercise. You can indulge in yoga. You will feel that when you are into practising yoga, then your posture will also improve automatically. However, you need to be persistent in practising yoga if you want to get the long-term results.
Make sure that you understand the importance of a good posture and make it a habit of sticking to the presented tips. Believe it or not, but the right posture will truly help you reflect a positive picture at your workplace. You will be able to carve a positive perception in the mind of your boss as well so bring the change and adopt a good posture. If you have already developed health issues due to a bad posture, then there are many products available in the market that can help relieve the pain. Opt for them so that adopting a good posture will not be a problem for you.