(Tips, Advice and Quizzes to increase the positivity in your life)
1. Dance..... Put on your radio or CD player and start dancing. Dance around your house and be expressive. Wave your arms and spin around and feel the positive energy take over.
2. Look at funny pictures..... Go on-line and do a search on funny pics, or visit You-Tube for funny videos, then sit back and start laughing.
3. Do something nice...... During your day, do whatever you can to brighten someone else's day. Let someone go in front of you at the store, or open a door for someone, or say hello to everyone you come into contact with. Making someone else feel good will also make you feel good.
4. Volunteer..... Call a senior center in your area and ask if you could come and read to any of their residents, or ask your church if their is a soup kitchen that might need your help. Again, helping others always makes you feel good.
5. Take a nature walk.... Walking is good for you and the fresh air is invigorating.
6. Do something crazy.... Go roller skating or jump on a city bus and take a ride, or climb a tree, or go to the park and swing on the swings. Do something that you don't normally do. When you live outside of "your box", you feel good.
7. Go see the puppies.... Go to the pet store and look at all of the animals. Watch the fish in the aquariums(very relaxing), look at the kittens as they play or sleep, and ask an associate if you can hold a puppy. Puppies are very good at making people smile.
8. Call someone.... Talking to someone you haven't talked with in a while will leave you feeling fulfilled.
9. Color.... Get a coloring book and crayons, and start coloring. This simple act is very relaxing.
10. Clean.... No, really. Cleaning is a very productive way to eliminate a sour mood. The more you clean, the more accomplished you feel and when you are done and take a look around, you become aware of the positivity you feel.
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Breathing for Relaxation
How simple breath work can lead you to a deep state of relaxation.
By Claudia Cummins
Beginning students often ask for instructions on the "right" way to breathe. Alas, there's no single answer to that question, since the optimal breathing pattern at any given moment depends on the type of practice. Restorative yoga focuses solely on relaxation, though, and emphasizes breathing that creates calm and serene states of being. When you settle into restorative poses, try the following techniques for cultivating breathing patterns that are hallmarks of relaxation and well-being.
MOVE THE BELLY WITH THE BREATH. When we are at ease, the diaphragm is the primary engine of the breath. As we inhale, this domelike muscle descends toward the abdomen, displacing the abdominal muscles and gently swelling the belly. As we exhale, the diaphragm releases back toward the heart, enabling the belly to release toward the spine.
KEEP THE UPPER BODY QUIET. During high-stress times, it's common to heave the upper chest and grip the muscles in the shoulders and throat. When we're at rest, the muscles of the upper chest remain soft and relaxed as we breathe, and the real work occurs in the lower rib cage. To promote this type of breathing pattern, consciously relax the jaw, throat, neck, and shoulders, and envision the breath sweeping into the deepest parts of the lungs as you breathe in and out.
BREATHE EASY. Although some breaths may be deeper or faster than others, when we're relaxed, the alternating rhythm of the inhalations and exhalations feels like a lullaby—smooth, soft, and uninterrupted by jerks and jags. Consciously relaxing into this wavelike, oceanic quality of the breath deepens our sense of peace and ease.
LENGTHEN THE EXHALATIONS. When we feel stressed, our exhalations tend to grow short and choppy. When we're relaxed, though, the exhalations extend so completely that they are often longer than the inhalations. Some teachers even instruct that if we're deeply relaxed, each exhalation will be twice as long as the inhalation. To facilitate this, try gently extending each exhalation by one or two seconds.
PAUSE AFTER EACH EXHALATION. In our most relaxed state, the end of each exhalation is punctuated by a short pause. Lingering in this sweet spot can be deeply satisfying and can evoke feelings of profound quiet and stillness.
LET THE WHOLE BODY BREATHE. When we are at ease, the whole body participates in the breathing process. Imagine a sleeping baby: When he breathes in and out, the belly swells and releases, the hips rock to and fro, the shoulders bob, and the spine gently undulates. This offers a mini-massage for the muscles and organs of the whole body, and turns each breath into a soothing melody that further calms and quiets every cell within.
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Is your glass half full or half empty?
Posted on March 28, 2011 by Qin Tang
I like to be around people who are positive and encouraging, who emanates positive energy and have a can-do attitude, who see glass half full rather than half empty.
Who likes to be around people who complain, criticize and put others down all the time? Probably no one. But we all know people around us who are complainers and whiners.
While we all have negative feelings and complain at one time or another, some people are down right negative and chronic complainers. No matter what you do and say, those who see the glass half empty can always find something wrong and complain.
It doesn’t feel good to be around them. They suck energy out of us and make us feel down and drained.
While I am not a chronic complainer and negative person, I know at times and in certain situations, I do complain and think negatively.
Let the following words of wisdom serve as a reminder to myself and everyone reading to think positive and be positive.
“You are what you think; you are your thoughts.” - Earl Nightingale
“People are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” – Abraham Lincoln
“We become what we think about all day long.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson.
“There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” – William Shakespeare
“As you think, so shall you be.” — Bible
Pay attention to what you think and say. Be around people who are positive and optimistic. If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all, or at least say it in a positive way.
Remember, a glass half empty cannot become full by complaining. Positive change cannot be brought about by negative thinking.
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Answer these questions, to see what your level of positivity is.
1. You plan a party and invite 50 people. 23 people show up. Do you:
a) spend the whole evening wondering where everyone is?
b) spend the evening talking about those who didn't show up?
c) spend the evening enjoying the company of your guests
2. You had plans to go to the amusement park, but it's raining and cold. Do you:
a) get frustrated and decide to do nothing at all?
b) talk about how your plan were ruined to anyone who will listen?
c) scrap the amusement park and head to the movies?
3. You just lost your job, do you:
a) trash talk the whole company and vow to get even?
b) decide to collect unemployment as long as you can?
c) start looking for another job that day?
4. You woke up with the flu. Do you:
a) Tell everyone you know, because you like the attention?
b) Call the doctor right away?
c) Tell yourself it is the flu and deal with it?
5. You were just scammed on-line for $500.00. Do you:
a) Cry and feel like such a fool for letting that happen?
b) Don't ell anyone because you are so ashamed and embarrassed?
c) Get busy contacting everyone you can think of to catch the scammers?
A = 0
B = 2
C = 4
0-5: glass is empty
6-10: glass is 1/2 empty
11-15: glass is 1/2 full
16-20: glass is full
