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We all know that feeling of sluggishness that follows a late night. The resulting lack of coordination, concentration and motivation make it tough to get through the day but did you know you may be suffering from those same setbacks on a daily basis if you deprive your body of even 30 minutes of extra sleep it needs to function properly?

The optimal amount of sleep for the average adult is 7 to 8.5 hours of sleep per night. If you are habitually sleeping less than 7 hours per night you are sleep deprived. Unfortunately statistics show that most people sacrifice sleep in favor of a busy schedule or more pleasant activities. The average American sleeps 6.5 hours.

How will an extra 30 minutes of sleep make you more productive at work?

1. Increased focus and concentration. One of the most reported effects of sleep deprivation is loss of concentration. If you are more focused on the tasks at hand you will be able to complete them in less time.
2. Increased memory. You will be amazed at how much your memory improves with the amount of sleep you get. It will take you less time to learn new skills and you will retain what you learn.
3. Increased energy. Getting the proper amount of sleep your body requires every night means you do not feel sluggish during the day. You no longer will have those feelings of crashing in mid-afternoon where you are fighting to stay awake at your desk.
4. Increased metabolism. Statistics show that people who sleep less than 7 hours per night have a higher instance of weight gain. The only apparent reason is lack of sleep. Much more goes on within the body during sleep than you might think. Besides recharging your brain, and repairing your cells, your hormones do a balancing act. Those hormones are the ones that control your metabolism. Without that balance your body cannot properly supply you with energy and instead the nutrients get turned to fat.
5. Increased immune system and over-all health. As with your metabolic system, your immune system needs sleep to maintain your good health. When you skimp on sleep you are stressing your immune system and become more likely to get sick. This results in more sick days or working through flues and colds which we all know makes us less productive.

Going to bed 30 minutes earlier every night might just be that extra boost you need to get that promotion or get yourself noticed as a dedicated worker. You will not only become more productive, you will also feel like you are up to any challenge. Motivation and enthusiasm is not possible with sleep deprivation but it is listed as one of the major factors in getting ahead at work. You owe it to yourself to get more sleep!

Technorati Tags: effects of sleep deprivation, how sleep effects productivity, increasing productivity, sleep work productivity

I recently read this article by Melanie Banayat that I found very inspirational and thought you may also enjoy the read so I am sharing it with you here. As women, we often try to over-achieve and be everything to everyone. We rarely are satisfied with just being who we are and accepting our flaws, whether real or imagined, as our own personal “quirks”. I hope you are as inspired by this article as I was.

How to Be Yourself in Your Business and Personal Life

By Melanie Banayat

I think comedian Lily Tomlin accurately expressed how many of us have felt most of our lives when she said, “I always wanted to be somebody, but now I realize I should have been more specific.”

Of course, the most ideal person you should be is YOURSELF; however, the idea of being oneself is not as simple as it sounds. And as a result we become uncomfortable in our own skin and even stressed out when we are in social or public settings.

Let’s face it, most people spend their lives hiding from their own reflection trying fervently to be anyone but them selves, and surround themselves with people who support that facade. But we’re not fugitives here, folks!

A lot of our society is built on changing something about our selves. We change our physique, the way we dress, our hair color, our accent, our race and everything else under the sun. It’s really no surprise that there are entire books written on how to be ourselves.

Unfortunately, in various ways a lot of us came to the resolution early on that we ourselves are not good enough.

In terms of business this is the epitome of branding homicide. Factoid — YOU are all you’ve got. If you try to be anything else but YOU it starts to emit phoniness. But how do you uncover to the real you?

Well here are some steps to help you on you enjoy the journey of being you and at the same time it can help you create a brand for your business that you can live with and love.

Embrace All That You Are

Essentially this means accept yourself exactly as you are right now — Flaws and All! Give your self a break from your inner critic. Just for today — stop trying to change anything about yourself, including your bad habits. I’m not saying to continue on the path of self-destruction, but even for a moment be okay with exactly who you are right now. Within those flaws are strengths that can be used for something good in life when you are able to step back and look at them from a different perspective and find a new meaning and purpose for what was once considered a shortcoming.

Explore What You Secretly Dislike or Even Hate About Your Life

What are you currently doing in your life that you really secretly hate? You may not even realize you hate it, whatever “it” is. For example: do you wear professional business attire for work everyday because you think you have to dress that way to impress others, but you’d really feel much more comfortable in a nice pair of jeans and a fashionable shirt and comfy shoes. What other secret dislikes are you harboring?

Get Real

Being Real is like being a magnet; people are automatically drawn to it. Whether you like to come in terms with it or not, people see through you, and they know if you are real or not. Aren’t you attracted to real people? By being yourself you draw into your life the right people, factors, situations and release the positive energy that will make your very existence meaningful. After all, the whole essence of being YOU is to have the liberty of enjoying yourself; only a real person can enjoy himself/herself. It means getting down to the nitty-gritty of being honest with yourself and your God. Allow yourself to be spontaneous and laugh when you feel like it. That’s right, say what’s on your mind. And don’t pretend to be happy when you’re not. Don’t put on the chameleon act just to be who you think others want you to be if that’s not who you truly are. Being “Real” will make your life far more interesting and less complicated.

Be Cautious and Mindful Whom You Allow Into Your Circle of Influence

OK, so I happen to be a people person. I like meeting new people, engaging in intriguing, intelligent conversations, talking about new ideas, and celebrating our individual successes in life! But sometimes I haven’t always been very careful about who I chose to be in my circle of influence, which has created some rather messy problems. When you come in contact with people that test you and try to shake you up it’s better to say something that may be considered a little straight forward to see if that person is still is around the next day, rather than play it safe with someone who doesn’t respect you! I have weeded out many unsupportive and disrespectful people from my life by doing this exact thing.

Do What You Love

Throughout my life I have never seen more unhappy, unsuccessful, disenchanted, grumpier people than those who are unhappy with what they do for work. It could be that their career was once enjoyable, but has become unbearable for whatever reason. Now they feel stuck and unable to dream of something different for themselves. Mind you, I’ve been there upon occasion myself, so I’m very familiar with the feelings of holding my breath each day as I clock in and clock out of my miserable job that pays the bills, but doesn’t feed my spirit and soul. In my experience these are people that are out of alignment with their true hearts desire. They are the ones that frequent the pharmacy purchasing the latest drug for their most recent ailment or illness. Once again, been there – done that. Or they are the people who choose to blame their circumstances on things outside themselves. This is precisely why you must face your deepest fears and clear a pathway to discover what you truly love, and make doing what you love a reality in your life.

ENJOY YOURSELF. This is the ultimate. “Your life is a fabulous event, rise up to it!”

I’ve been an entrepreneur for over 28 years. Today I feel extremely grateful that I was able to follow my heart and my gut — and be my own boss. Through the years I have had my share of ups and downs in business, relationships and health, and now I enjoy sharing what I know to help other entrepreneurial women learn from my experiences so they can integrate their business and personal life in a realistic and healthy fashion.

Melanie Banayat, aka MiliGirl, is a Holistic Health & Nutrition Coach, Business & Lifestyle Designer, and Professional Artist. Visit her site for tips on how to upgrade your wellness style from “Frazzles to Free” – the only style tips that reduce healthcare expenses! http://www.MiligirlWellness.com

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Everyday your subconscious mind is dictating whether you will succeed or fail at whatever you hope to achieve. Your unconscious mind may sabotage you if you let it.

Your thoughts, beliefs, attitudes, words and actions play a very large role in your success. If any of those are not lined up with what you want to achieve then you’re subconscious won’t be able to bring you what you want.

For example: if you want to have a successful business but think or believe that it’s hard to accomplish that or that there is something that is in your way, then your business will always struggle. You may want it to get better and grow, you may feel that you have the right business idea, but any negative thoughts or beliefs associated with that business will limit it’s success.

So what you do?

Start changing the negative or limiting thoughts and beliefs.

Now at first you may not even be aware of these negative thoughts and beliefs.

So, to find out what’s really holding you back you should:

• Track your thoughts during the day
• Make note of any negative or limiting thought
• Change that thought to something positive

The last step can be tricky. When you try to change that limiting or negative thought your mind will likely put up a fight and say something like: “Who are you kidding” “You can’t do that” and so on.

That’s okay. The mind is just doing what it does best – trying to stick to old habits.

But those habits of thinking and believing don’t work for you. You have to change them. And, the more often you do this, the easier it gets.

Your subconscious will respond to your regular thoughts and beliefs.Focus these thoughts and beliefs on what you want and you’ll begin to great success.

If you find that you’re getting exactly what you don’t want, than you will probably find you’re thoughts, beliefs and goals are focused on what you don’t want.

For example: if you believe that it’s hard to make money, then you’ll always have a difficult time making money.

If you believe that it’s difficult to meet the right person, then you’ll always have a difficult time meeting the right person.

Those thoughts and beliefs are focused on what you don’t want.

Change them so that you find ways to make more money, or so that you meet the right person easily.

Positive thoughts and beliefs attract positive situations.

It’s really that simple.

Technorati Tags: mindset for success, power of positive thinking, thinking for success

Self confidence is as important a tool for success as your education is. When you are confident in yourself, you encourage others to have confidence in you too.

1.  When speaking with someone always make eye contact.

2.  Never lose control of your emotions in public.

3. Have an open mindset to change, but do not negotiate your principles.

4. Stand your ground and be confident with your ideas.

5. Don’t beat yourself up for making mistakes.  Learn from them and move on.  No one is perfect.

6. Always sit and stand with good posture.

7. Dress the part for any occasion you are confronted with.

8. Remind yourself daily that you are a “Successful Single”.  Only you can define your success.

9. Do not allow others to intimidate you and control your life.  They have no right to do so.

10. Believe in your abilities to reach your goals.  Others can tell when you doubt yourself.

11. Do not let anyone demean you in front of other people.  It is a flood gate for others to follow suit and treat you the same way.

Technorati Tags: building self confidence, tips for building self confidence

Lets face it, life gets busy! We have times when every moment of the day is packed full of things you need to do and you run out of hours in the day before you run out of tasks. I think we can all relate to this at some point.

You end your day laying in bed thinking about the things you didn’t get completed that day and all of the things you need to tackle tomorrow. This leads to a restless night of sleep and waking in the morning feeling like you have worked all night long in your sleep. You feel just as exhausted waking up as you did when you fell into bed the night before.

Your brain and body need “down time” to function properly. Think of yourself as a rechargeable battery. When you are fully charged, you work harder and faster. When your chage becomes depleted, you become slow and sluggish. Sleep is the one thing that you need to recharge your batteries every night, but if you are continuing to drain the battery instead of charging it when you sleep, you are soon going to be totally unproductive.

Here is a technique that I learned that I would like to share with you. It takes a little practice but you will notice a big improvement right from the get-go. Continue to use this technique every night and you will soon be sleeping like a baby and waking each day feeling fully refreshed and ready to take on the world.

Relaxation Therapy:

1. Get into bed and lay on your back and position a pillow comfortably under your neck and another one under your knees so they are slightly elevated.
2. Allow your arms to fall loosely by your sides in the most comfortable position for you.
3. Take a few deep breaths, holding them for a few seconds before fully exhaling. Allow your mind to drift and imagine youself floating on water.
4. Starting at your feet, inhale fully and clench your feet muscles tightly. Hold for a few seconds. Now exhale saying the word “relax” in your mind as you fully relax your feet muscles. Repeat this step making sure you clench your feet muscles as tightly as you can and relaxe as fully as you can with each breath.
5. Now move on to your leg muscles. Repeat the process of inhaling, clench, exhale relax.
6. Continue this process all the way to your face and to the top of your head.
7. If you are not already asleep at this point, just continue to inhale deeply and say the word “relax” on the exhale and consiously relax your muscles even more.

This is what I like to call resistance relaxation. Each time you tightly clench each muscle group, you are able to relax those muscles more. By the end of this exercise, you will be so relaxed that you literally feel like your body has melted into the mattress.

Now do not spoil it by allowing conscious thought to invade. Continue to imagine yourself floating on the water until you drift off to sleep.

I first learned this technique as pain management after an injury. The more you practice this the faster full relaxation becomes. Eventually all you have to do is imagine floating on the water and your body and mind will respond by relaxing. You can then use this imagery during the course of your day to take a 2-5 minute breather at the office to recharge your batteries and become more productive again.

So here’s to a good night’s sleep! Relax and enjoy.

Technorati Tags: natural pain management, reduce stress, relaxation techniques

Are you a chronic worrier?

If much of your time is spent worrying about possible outcomes of situations, you are draining your energy that could be better spent on productivity. There are times when you should worry. But not doing anything about what is worrying you is counter-productive.

One thing you must realize is that the majority of people who are chronic worriers have a feeling of being out of control in certain situations. Learning to take back the control whenever possible, or developing plans of action can make you feel more in control and eleviate your need to worry.

If you are a naturally fearful person, this may be a difficult habit to change. That does not mean it is not impossible.

Here are some tips for dealing with your concerns to get them out of the way so they do not take over your daily life.

1. Analyze what is causing your worries. Most of the things you fret about every day are problems. So take a look at the problem and come up with some concrete solutions. Set aside an hour per day to worry your way through the problem. Non-productive worrying is just that….non-productive.So write down the problem to put a name to it. Then write a list of actions you can take to eliminate it. If you cannot come up with any solutions, then it most likely is something out of your control and therefore not something you should focus your attention on. Instead, focus on a plan to counteract the problem.
2. Do not fall into the habit of worrying about “What if…” Deal with a situation when it happens instead of worrying about an event that may not happen. The What if’s in life can needlessly sap your energy. If you are a speculative worrier, then set a time aside to deal with the What if’s and create a plan of action to deal with your most concerning fears. Having a plan of action already in place will take the fear out of the What if’s.

Setting a specific time every day to worry will allow you to indulge in your habit but it will also give you the freedom of having time to spend not worrying. That worry free time will be far more creative and productive without that cloud of fear continually hanging over your head. You will feel a huge weight lifted off your shoulders and will regain control over your life.

Technorati Tags: Life Coaching, relieving stress, Self Improvement

Think that you’re a success? You may need to think again – or, more to the point, you may need to stop thinking altogether and start doing – that’s how to become a real success. Real success does not involve hard work, it does not involve compromising one’s work life balance and it does not involve wanting for anything. The problem is that people deem themselves to be successful based on the norms of society – and the word “norm” simply means that enough lunatics got together and agreed that this is the way things should be. Don’t forget, psychological research stretching back over seventy years proves that normal people’s minds control them, not the other way around – these are the lunatics that I’m referring to – and there’s a 96% chance that you’re one of them!

The fact is that, over the last fourteen years, the vast majority of the clients with whom I have worked were already successful before we ever met. But they were “normal successful”, judging themselves against such pathetic norms that they almost had closed their minds to the possibility that there is a level of abnormal success out there that anyone can attain – and it’s different from normal so-called success. Normal success is comparative and competitive – we judge our success against others’ achievements, material goods and lifestyles. We compare this year’s sales and profit to last year’s – when, if we just opened our minds a little, we would see the absurdity of planning next year on what we manage to achieve this year. Yes, business planning is a classic example of the manner in which we shut down our expectations and then reward ourselves for living down to them. After all, what sane person would use the normal levels of business this year as a benchmark against which to visualize next year’s. That’s why long-standing businesses are often overwhelmed by a new entry into the market, one who hasn’t succumbed to the “conventional wisdom” (by the way, there’s no such thing!) of the marketplace. That’s why, for example, the Swiss watch making industry has never recovered from the development of quartz timepieces – for, when offered this new technology in the nineteen seventies, the Swiss response was that they couldn’t take that on board – “a watch isn’t a watch unless it has all the moving pieces” – the rest is history.

When we consider ourselves successful through the normal lens of self-evaluation, we may be fooling ourselves – because we’re comparing ourselves to the crazies – you know, people who work crazy hours, ride roughshod over their fellow human beings, make lunatic decisions, screw up the world economy, clap themselves on the back, pay themselves obscene bonuses and, in the process, lose a little of their soul. But that’s enough about bankers!!! Allow me quote Niall Fitzgerald from an interview in Ireland’s leading newspaper, The Irish Times. Here’s a man who left Ireland in the 1970s and who went on to become Chairman and Chief Executive of Unilever and Chairman of Reuters. Fitzgerald is quoted as saying that the development of his business career, had he stayed in Ireland, would have been restricted unless “I was prepared to compromise my own principles”. That’s the kind of normal success I’m talking about.

But principles come in all shapes and sizes – for example, what comes first, working crazy hours to make more money, or family life? What’s more important, an organization’s bottom line or the people who make the money? The key question was well put two thousand years ago “What doth it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul?” What price “success”?

Let me propose a different perspective on success that suggests that real success simply happens when one is extra-ordinarily good at what one does for a “living”, that they get a great kick out of doing it and, because they’re so good, they get really well remunerated – that they have a wonderful time with the people who are most special to them in their lives – that they also spend lots of time and energy doing the things that really turn them on and that, in the whole process, they enable those whose lives they touch be the better for knowing them. This perspective on success encompasses financial freedom, work life balance, personal effectiveness and ambition and what’s come to be called “giving something back” (of course, in that regard, charity always begins at home). There are many of my clients who don’t subscribe to this perspective – they actually live it and it confirms to them that “you have to work hard to be a success” is a myth – hard work, like beauty, is in the mind of the beholder. For those who are truly successful what normal people see as hard work is a labour of love. The macho myth that you have to walk through people to be a success is also exploded – I’ve been privileged to work with senior management teams who deeply care for each other – to the extent that would put many normal family “caring” relationships to shame. These people grow each other and, in turn, grow themselves. These people don’t take themselves too seriously, have great fun doing what they’re doing and don’t give a damn about what normal people think of them – why should the bother? Why should you?

Which leads my nicely back full circle. Why conform to crazy norms? Why fall into the normal mould of “successful” living? Why jump aboard the normal express train to stress, infidelity and moral stupor? Why even care about what these so-called ordinary people think of you? Because, if you want to be extraordinarily successful, you’re going to have to start being extra – ordinary.

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Willie Horton, an Irish ex-accountant and ex-banker, has worked as a success coach to business leaders and sports people since 1996. He moved to the French Alps in 2002, from where his free weekly Self-Help video seminar is sent to thousands of people worldwide. His Online Personal Development Self Help Workshop is used all over the world, clients say it’s life-changing. Info: http://www.gurdy.net

Technorati Tags: achieving success, Self Improvement

As a single, we often get an abundance of advice, some welcomed and some not-so-much. People who do not understand your lifestyle may always be trying to re-invent who you are.

If you spend your time trying to please everyone else, frequently you will find you are left feeling less than satisfied with the outcome. Sometimes the only person we don’t listen to is ourselves.

The best advice I can give a single is to be true to yourself and to your vision. If you already have a life goal, stick to it. Do not let other people’s opinions sway you. Yes, we do need to make informed decisions; it is important that we do get advice from time to time, but remember, advice is just advice and the final decision on the course of action you will take is always your own to make.

Trust your own instincts. You know yourself better than anyone else. If it feels right, do it. If not, continue to search for the path that is right for you and you alone.

Technorati Tags: advice for singles, listening to your conscience, self evaluation, self help for singles, self improvement for singles

Suffering from burnout can have very serious consequences for your physical and psychological health as well as for your life in general and your relationships with other people. Formally the condition is defined as exhaustion felt physically, mentally and emotionally and caused by prolonged stress. There are a number of things that you can do to get back your normal state and life.

The most important step in order to recover from burnout is for you to take a break from your work and the lifestyle you lead in general. Often sufferers do not realize the gravity of the problem and prefer to go on so that they do not lose their position at work or damage their personal relationships. The reality is that more and more employers recognize this condition and are willing to understand and even help for the recover of their employees. Thus, do not be afraid to detach from your daily life. The rest and relaxation will give your body, mind and soul time to heal.

You can go to a therapy or try to do it on your own, but you definitely have to find the causes of the burnout and the factors that produce stress in your life in particular. This is an essential step towards healing – understanding the roots of the problem will help you to evaluate your life and eliminate them or at least reduce them. The next step is to decide on your new priorities and goals based on the evaluation of your life you have made. This does not sound easy and it is not, but it is essential if you want to recover from burnout effectively.

Along the entire healing process you will need to get as much support as you can possibly get. Do not be hesitant to share your problem with your loved ones – they will surely respond, show understanding and help you out.

Technorati Tags: recovering from burnout, reducing stress in the workplace, Self Improvement, workplace stress

If you’re an effective communicator, then things probably go pretty well for you – you are able to persuade and influence others, you can effectively make your needs known, and you inspire people to take action.

The good news is that by learning a few simple tips, you can dramatically improve your ability to communicate with others.

Download The Special Report – How Singles Can Communicate With Power And Influence