In the modern day, many people face different kinds of overwhelming triggers. This leads to stress, which puts a lot of tension on people and causes them to overthink about past or future events. In a survey undertaken by Statista, 79% of respondents experienced stress at work – this is the most common type of stress.
If you have experienced this kind of stress, you may have noticed that the same thoughts repeat in your mind constantly, causing an endless loop of increased worry. This can be detrimental to your mental health.
Feeling stressed? Here are some tips to help you clear your mind!
Not only is this mindset not helpful in resolving the problem at hand, but it also interferes with healthy practices that help create internal peace, such as calming sleep.
When your mind doesn’t seem to be running as smoothly as possible, these 4 revitalizing methods could perhaps help resolve your dilemma or at least work towards a convenient solution.
1. Go for A Run Or Walk
You may already be familiar with the so-called ‘runner’s high’ – this is when your endorphins kick in and you feel like you’re floating through the air rather than thumping the street.
Before these endorphins take effect, your attention will be completely focused on the activity you’re engaged in. It will consume your attention and release other thoughts in your mind. By focusing on only one thing, you are creating a clean slate for your mind.
If running is too intense for you, then go for a walk! Walking is a great exercise for when you need to clear your mind and thoughts. Going out and feeling the fresh air will clear your senses and pave the way for any negative thoughts or worries to dissipate.
Getting a breath of fresh air can help you relieve stress!
2. Put Pen to Paper
When your mind is full of stressful thoughts, it’s not always easy to label them and determine the cause of discomfort. If you have ever written in a diary, you may already know that writing down your thoughts usually makes them easier to explore. Writing is a common remedy used to relieve stress and overthinking.
Sometimes, mindfulness is achieved through an experience or expressing an emotion. Expressing yourself on paper can make your experience more meaningful and help you get rid of worries and anxiety. Furthermore, journaling can also come in handy when you’re trying to recall a particular thing, as you can look back at your diary for past reference.
Simply set aside a certain amount of time for writing every day to cleanse your mind regularly.
3. Meditate from Time to Time
At first, meditation will make your thoughts run wild. The act of sitting still and doing nothing highlights thoughts that won’t stop. But, in a similar way to how writing allows you to reflect, meditation creates a space among your thoughts so that you can pay less attention to everything that goes through your mind.
By using meditative breathing techniques, you will help keep your conscious calm, which will slow down your thoughts. This can eliminate stress, allow you to think more clearly, see the bigger picture, and help reduce the likelihood of future stress.
4. Talk to A Friend
Talking to a friend about your struggles, difficulties, and potential solutions is a great way to reduce stress. Many times, we are so intertwined with work and commitments that we put unnecessary pressure on ourselves.
Simply talking about things can make situations more transparent and will reveal that things are not as bad as you initially thought. Processing your problems with an empathetic friend can be a healthy distraction and a highly effective coping method.
But even if you choose not to disclose your troubles, the simple act of getting together with a friend can be useful on clearing your mind.
Reaching out to your friends can give you a platform to release your stress.
In addition, if you know that you have someone who will always support you, you will be more confident in dealing with any situation.
Final Saying
Overall, mental health is very important to our quality of life. Integrating these activities into your everyday life will certainly work wonders for clearing your mind. So, when you’re faced with any challenges, you’ll know some little tricks to calm your mind and improve your focus.
At Ceed, we know the importance of managing stress. That’s why we have specialised life coaches who can help you clear your mind and alleviate your stress. Visit our website to find out more.
The twenty-first century is a period of constant hustle culture. It can be difficult to focus on living a life that makes you happy. People spend every day just trying to make a living, and it can be easy to forget what matters most to us.
Intentional living encourages you to slow down and re-evaluate life!
There is a rising subculture of individuals who refuse to adhere to this mindset. They utilise mindful practices in order to slow down and live a life that fulfils them. This phenomenon is called intentional living.
What is Intentional Living?
Contrary to popular belief, intentional living is not about giving everything up and abandoning the life you live in order to start from scratch. It’s choosing to live a more emotionally fulfilling and sustainable lifestyle that’s in line with your core values and beliefs.
Intentional living is all about the why.
In essence, it’s about being mindful of the choices you make and knowing why you made those choices. It is based on the concepts of perception and action. You first perceive and examine your actions and choices. Then, if you find you aren’t happy with them – you act and change them!
Living intentionally can be done on any scale. For example, it can be about a big life and perception shift through the act of changing your career. On the other hand, it can also be about incrementally changing little things in your life to make you happier. It all depends on the person and what they specifically want to achieve.
How Can Intentional Living be Beneficial to Me?
Living more intentionally can be beneficial for your health and wellbeing. It can do this through many means.
It can motivate you. Determining your goals is always the first step to achieving them. You create a deeper understanding of your goals by knowing what you want and why you want it. It allows you to know roughly what your life goals are and where you want to be. This means that you can plan and take steps to achieve your goals easier.
Intentional living helps you slow down and plan your goals!
It stops you from living on autopilot. Living on autopilot means that you make decisions mindlessly in the moment that can have negative effects later. In a recent study, 96% of the participants surveyed said they were living life on autopilot. So, living intentionally can stop you from missing opportunities for growth. It can lead to more fulfilment in different aspects of your life: personal, professional, or financial.
These big changes can seem a little overwhelming. Here are some everyday steps you can take:
Make daily happiness a priority. Consciously take time out of every day to do something you enjoy. This can help you slow down a little from the bustle of everyday life. It makes you feel like you’ve accomplished something, even if it’s something small!
Be mindful of the media you consume. Social media especially can lead to unhealthy comparisons, stress, and a sense of being overwhelmed. Consume media content at a pace you can realistically take and set boundaries. Protect your space online!
Stop buying things you don’t need. Question your purchases! Ask yourself whether you need the item, or whether it is worth it to spend money on. It reduces your capacity for unnecessary material items and helps you save money!
For more assistance and tips on how to live intentionally, contact one of our life coaches here at Ceed.
We all want to attract positive opportunity into our life. From new jobs to new relationships, the broadening of our horizons is rarely a bad thing.
Manifestation encourages you to dream big!
A popular way of introducing positive things into our lives is through manifestation. Based on New Age philosophy, manifestation has become incredibly popular on social media. But what is manifestation? And is it dangerous?
What is Manifestation?
Manifestation is a concept that builds upon the laws of attraction. It is the idea that like attracts like, or that energy that you put out into the world returns to you. This is centred around thinking positive thoughts and affirmations to provide you with the things that you want.
At its core, manifestation is about aligning yourself with what you want. Manifestation is often used for various things, such as:
A new job, a promotion, or a career change
More money or to become debt free
New friends, a stronger relationship or better family connections
For some people, manifestation is the basis for everything in their life. For others, it is simply a positive mindset to encourage them to live more intentionally. Much like anything in life, there are positives and negatives to the ideology of manifestation and the mindset behind it.
What are the Cons of Manifestation?
In its purest form, manifestation does not work. Positive thinking alone will not change your life or circumstances. You also have to physically put in the work alongside the thoughts or things will not happen.
Manifesting your targets can bring up some obstacles!
Positive thoughts can, therefore, be great in the short term. It makes people feel good and like they are making moves towards their dreams. However, manifestation alone does not work, having a negative impact in the long term.
The drive behind manifestation can easily become toxic. The ‘always positive’ mindset can be exhausting and stressful to some people. This can be detrimental to those with mental health issues, and even exacerbate existing conditions.
Life cannot always be controlled. Manifestation can become an obsession – that everything in your life is determined on you and your mindset. You can limit yourself from reaching your full potential by relying so heavily on it alone.
Saying you want something is half the battle. You must combine that with action in order to enact change.
Are there any Pros of Manifestation?
Like any affirmation, there are elements of manifestation that are good when applied to a balanced lifestyle. Using manifestation techniques can encourage people to work towards something personally fulfilling.
This can help keep people motivated. The visualisation of your goals can keep you on track. This visualisation can be helpful when you out actions behind the affirmations. A prime example of this would be the adage of ‘dressing for the job you want’.
The principles of manifestation and a positive mindset don’t work for everyone. It is important to tread lightly with any ideology you align with. Check in with yourself to make sure it works for you in a comfortable, uplifting way.
It is crucial to view manifestation in a realistic way. Life is all about balance. Don’t rely on it wholeheartedly, as this can lead to negative repercussions.
Remember that it is okay to have goals! But you have to put in the work to attain them. Without that work, a positive mindset is not enough to get you there.
Here at Ceed, we are committed to helping you achieve your goals through whatever practice that works for you. Feel free to reach out and contact us here.
Depending on your course’s workload, your mental health and your other commitments, the stress of university life can sometimes feel unmanageable. The step from school or college to university comes with a huge increase in pressure, and you may feel ill-equipped, especially if you haven’t struggled in this way before.
Being a university student comes with a lot of stress!
Stress can affect you negatively in a number of ways:
Physically, stress can increase your heart rate, cause hyperventilation, shaking, faintness or excessive sweating and give you headaches or sickness.
Behaviourally, stress can drive you to turn to harmful coping mechanisms, like excessive drink, drugs or bingeing/restricting food intake. Stress can also damage your ability to concentrate or socialise
Psychologically, stress can cause fear, panic, or a feeling that something bad will happen. These reactions can be extreme and difficult to cope with.
Whilst feelings of stress can feel overwhelming and isolating, you can be sure you aren’t alone. 45% of university students in the UK reported feeling stressed by their course. Feelings of stress are complex and varied, and often quite difficult to rid yourself of. However, knowing how to manage these feelings can be helpful in lessening their detrimental effects.
Here are 5 ways you might find useful in coping with stress, allowing you to live your best university life!
1. Breathing and De-escalation
Panic attacks are sudden and overwhelming feelings of fear or panic. They may come with a number of intense physical symptoms of stress. If your stress has caused a panic attack, you will need an immediate coping solution, not the other, longer-term solutions this article discusses.
To de-escalate (calm) your panic attack, try focusing on your breathing. It’s likely during a panic attack that you’re hyperventilating, so attempt to breathe deliberately slowly and deeply. Breathe in for a count of four and out for a count of four.
Focusing on a single object in your surroundings can also help. Trace the object with your eyes, or describe its appearance to yourself. Alternatively, if you’re finding your surroundings too visually stimulating, it can help to close your eyes (as long as it is safe to do so).
If it’s your surroundings’ noise that is too much, it may help to put on headphones and play a favourite calming song. Or, repeating a mantra, internally or externally, can be a good way to block out exacerbating noise. Simply saying something like “I’m going to be OK” over and over to yourself can have a reassuring and relaxing effect.
If you are having a panic attack, it’s important to remind yourself that it will pass. Focusing on your breathing can help ground you. Either focusing deliberately on an object in your surroundings, or attempting to block out over-stimulating surroundings can focus your attention away from the panic enough to allow calm.
2. Organisation / Planning
Create a weekly plan to keep yourself on top of your schedule!
When it comes to longer-term strategies, planning and organising your time is the best way to ensure you’re dealing only with manageable chunks of work at a time.
Creating a written schedule can help visualise your time and tasks with better clarity. Colour-coding might help this clarification further. Seeing your studies and assignments broken down into smaller tasks can lessen the feeling of your workload being insurmountable.
Allot realistic portions of time for each of your tasks, and allow yourself breaks. Working without regular breaks can cause burnout and actually be counterproductive to effective study! It’s a generally advised rule to take a 15 minute break for every 1 hour of focused work you do, with a longer break every 4 or so hours. Allowing yourself rest between work will allow your batteries to recharge and enable you to focus better when you resume work.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed at the thought of your assignments, scheduling your time and breaking work into small, manageable tasks can help. Taking breaks while studying is important to maintain concentration while working.
3. Exercise, Diet and Sleep
It’s well-touted advice that a balanced diet, regular exercise and a solid night’s sleep can positively impact your mental wellbeing. Being tired, lethargic and lacking nutrients isn’t conducive to productive work. However, this advice can sometimes feel steep; how do you fit in a full workout routine, home cooking and 8 hours sleep into a hectic student schedule?
Exercise, a balanced diet and good sleep needn’t be added stressors, and can be achieved in simpler terms. Rather than feeling pressure to join a gym, exercise can come in the form of regular walks or some morning yoga in your bedroom. Even a brisk 10 minute dash to the grocery shop can help clear your head during a tough study session.
If you can’t manage full home-cooked meals, try adding fruits and vegetables into your existing diet, or consider vitamin supplements. You could swap one fast-food meal a week for a quick, easy and cheap stir fry, and it doesn’t hurt to keep yourself well-hydrated with water. A balanced diet can reduce detrimental issues like mood swings and lightheadedness.
Sleep can be an issue in student accommodation; flatmates might be up when you need rest. But with an-ever expanding library of white noise on youtube and sleep-inducing podcasts, neighbour noise can be fought against. Allowing yourself enough sleep each night can greatly improve your mood and days’ energy, so if stresses do appear you can be better prepared to deal with it!
Getting whatever exercise, nutrients and sleep you can will allow your body and mind to be better prepared for both your work and your ability to handle stress.
4. Socialise / Reach Out
Socialisation can help you relax!
Social interaction can alleviate feelings of stress in numerous ways. Having fun at a social event like a party can distract from the stresses of university work, while attending a club or joining a society can increase positive feelings of belonging to your university and feeling at home.
Humans are social creatures, proven to benefit greatly from human interaction; in positive social situations our brain produces dopamine, the “feel good” neurotransmitter. Forging friendships can prove incredibly beneficial to our general health and wellness, and if we have a stronger foundation of health and wellness, we are more able to deal with stress.
In stressful situations, reaching out to your friends can help in alleviating that stress. Talking your problems through with a mate helps, not just because ‘a problem shared is a problem halved’, but in talking your issues through – putting them in words – you might be able to help yourself in working them out.
If you feel like you don’t have any friends to talk to in times of stress, you can still seek out help! All universities will have some form of counselling available to you. External services like togetherall and Samaritans exist to support in times of crisis, too.
Socialising can help relax and improve your quality of life whilst studying at university, so don’t skip an event you want to attend for more work! Friends can be there to support you through stress, and in times of crisis, contact your university counsellor.
5. Treat Yourself With Kindness
Most importantly, treat yourself with kindness!
Remembering all the things you’ve already achieved at university – living on your own, managing your own money and workload, finding new friends, attending lectures and completing assignments to the best of your abilities – are all impressive feats! Don’t be hard on yourself, especially since you’re juggling so much, likely for the first time in your life!
Reward yourself with an occasional small luxury purchase, a trip to a museum, a dance about your room to your favourite music – whatever makes you happy. You deserve understanding, forgiveness and kindness during your time at university, and those things should come from you as much as anybody.
Don’t be too harsh on yourself!
In Summary
Immediate de-escalation techniques like focused breathing can help during stress-induced panic attacks.
For longer-term strategies, planning and compartmentalising can help in managing large workloads. A balanced diet, regular exercise and a good sleep schedule can best prepare your body and mind for dealing with stress, and having a good social support system can help in feeling less alone in your stress.
Being kind to yourself, and practising good self-care, will help both prepare you for future stressors and heal after experiencing stress.
If you need help keeping on top of your university schedule, Ceed might be able to help! Get in touch with one of our experts today.
It is no secret that the way we consume news has changed. Over the last twenty years, digital media has developed rapidly. 3.96 billion people use social media worldwide in order to connect to the wider world.
Social media is a key way to keep up with the latest news.
However, alongside the change in media consumption, the way in which we process news has also changed. Doomscrolling is a new, widespread way people are reading news online, and it is not healthy.
What is Doomscrolling?
Doomscrolling is the act of spending extended screen time scrolling through negative and often dystopian news. Doomscrolling has become particularly popular during the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic. This is because it is often attributed to the compulsive need to try and get answers when we’re afraid.
We live with a world of instant information at our fingertips thanks to the internet. Everything we need is readily accessible at the click of a button.
This encourages people to do their own research on controversial and heavy topics, often leading them down a rabbit hole of negativity. It can often make the world seem a lot more dangerous than it is. This is due to not only the negative news topics, but often to the negative comments people leave on these topics.
While it may seem like innocent browsing at first, doomscrolling can actually have a very negative impact on your mental health. Increased consumption of negative news alone can have a negative effect on you.
It can be addictive, and difficult to look away from. This can impact your mental health negatively because you can physically see the lack of positive news. It generates the feeling that there is no good in the world, which can cause feelings of anxiety and fear.
We are naturally more attracted to negative news stories and headlines. This is due to a phenomenon called the negativity bias. Bad news gets more reactions at a quicker pace and sells better because people have a stronger psychological reaction to bad news.
There are a few methods you can use to try and stop yourself from doomscrolling. You can:
Check in with yourself first. Don’t immediately jump on your phone when you wake up. Instead, go through your morning routine first. Give yourself time to face the world before you scroll through social media and check in with the news.
Reduce your screen time. By actively and mindfully reducing the amount of time spent on your phone, you reduce the probability of coming into contact with overly negative news. Try setting a ‘screen-free’ time – for example, not using your phone after 8pm.
Replace the activity with something else. Instead of giving in to the urge to scroll, try and do something else. You might read a book, do some exercise, or write in a journal. Filling your time with activities you find meaningful and worthwhile is a better use of your time than making yourself feel bad.
Set times to go on social media. Hold yourself accountable. Give yourself fifteen minutes or so to scroll, and then stop when the time is up. This prevents you from spiralling into hours of screen time and negative news. The limited time also means you’re more likely to look at things that interest you, not just the ongoing news cycle.
Conclusion
Doomscrolling is a cycle that needs to be broken. People want to know more about bad news, so they seek it out.
It is okay and understandable to feel overwhelmed by the state of the world. However, despite what you see online, the world isn’t all bad. The good is there, it’s just often hidden by the algorithm of popular news topics.
It is important to actively check the way we interact with news and media online. Noticing our habits and behaviours is the best way to curb them, and not heap more stress onto ourselves. Remember – things are hard enough as it is without you doing this to yourselves!
It can be difficult to learn good habits alone. Here at Ceed, we are committed to helping you improve your mental health. Take a look at how we can help here.
Something that everyone can universally agree on is that we all need a decent night’s sleep. Despite this fact, many people don’t realise how critical sleep truly is to our health and wellbeing.
For example, stress is a main factor for people not being able to sleep. The hustle culture of the twenty first century constantly pressures people to be ‘always on’. This undeniably affects our ability to get quality rest and maintain a healthy sleep schedule.
Getting regular sleep can help improve your health!
While it can seem like a struggle, there are ways in which you can improve your sleep health in order to improve your wellbeing.
Why is sleep crucial to your wellbeing?
Sleep is essential to both personal health and daily function. Getting enough sleep is only part of the battle – getting quality sleep is just as important. Quality, deep, restful sleep is opportunity for the body to rest and reset. It is during this time that the body engages in recovery and readies you for the next day.
Lack of sleep or sleep deprivation can be incredibly detrimental to your health. It can:
Affect yourenergy levels during the day, making you more lethargic and tired.
Have a negative effect on your mood, making you anxious, depressed, or prone to stress.
Lower your concentration, making it difficult to focus, make decisions or judge situations accurately. This makes every day actions such as driving very dangerous.
Make you more likely to become ill, as lack of sleep can affect your immune system and your body’s ability to fight off illness.
It is also generally agreed that the younger you are, the more sleep you need. This is because children have more physical and mental growth and development to do than adults.
This guideline of time, however, is open to adaptation. Some people need more than is recommended, some less. This can be attributed to external factors, such as the job you have, how much exercise you do, or what your health is like. People who are more active need more rest, and people who are more sedentary may need less.
Getting the right amount of sleep is crucially important!
Surprisingly, there can be such a thing as too much sleep. Sleeping more than is necessary can have the same effects as sleeping too little. It is important to strike the right balance for yourself and understanding how much is too much for your lifestyle.
Tips on How to Improve Your Sleep
There are a few things you can do to improve the quality of your sleep. You can:
Consider your sleep environment – make sure your bedroom is quiet, dark, and cool. Make sure your mattress is comfortable and works for your body. Studies show that newer mattresses reduce back discomfort and in turn increased sleep quality.
Improve your sleep hygiene – wash and change your bedding at least once every two weeks. Ensure you vacuum your bedroom carpet regularly to reduce allergens.
Set a routine – by giving yourself a bedtime, you establish a habit. This makes it easier to fall and stay asleep because your body recognises that it is tired around the same times.
Do calming exercises before sleeping – activities such as reading are relaxing and can make you tired. If you are an anxious person, journaling could also help. This can help rid your mind of stress and prepare you for sleep.
Put your phone away before you begin your sleep routine – The blue light from our phone screens can negatively affect our sleep. It has been found that artificial light at the wrong time may disrupt circadian rhythms and sleep. Put your phone away one to two hours before you sleep in order to give your body a rest from it.
Conclusion
When it comes to sleep, knowing yourself is crucial. Don’t be afraid to listen to your body and its needs.
Sleep is the most easily neglected aspect of our health, so must be consciously improved on to become the most rested version of yourself.
Here at Ceed, we are committed to helping you improve your life. If you’re looking to improve your sleep schedule, feel free to contact us today.
Writing a great essay can be overwhelming. Handling a great deal of information and making sure you answer the question is a lot of pressure. Eventually having a finished essay can feel impossible, especially when you begin with nothing but your thoughts!
When beginning to consider writing an essay, the planning stage is the most critical. It is a landing point to work through essay subtopics and ideas. At its core, it is an organisational tool. It’s the singular central space where you note down your thoughts surrounding the essay question.
Creating an essay plan can help you keep on track with your deadlines!
Essay plans are often divided into sections. This is usually done by topic or paragraph, allowing the plan to create a linear pathway of thought. It shows the entire breadth and scope of your argument from beginning to end.
Not every student uses an essay plan. This is especially true of new university students, as essay plans tend not to be utilised in further education. This is due to the fact that University essays are often longer and more complex. They are written completely independently from tutor assistance, usually requiring support in the vein of academic references.
It is important to note that essay plans may look different to each student. There is no right or wrong way to prepare them – find what works best for you.
How can effective essay planning relieve university stress?
Essay planning can be surprisingly beneficial to lowering student stress. Here are some examples.
It gets the bulk of the thinking out of the way. Planning is an informal way of getting all of your ideas out of your head. This means that all of the information you need is right in front of you when it comes to writing the essay itself. It takes the pressure away from you as it gives you a personalised step by step path to follow.
It helps keep the argument on track. This means thatthere is less worry on what you’re arguing as it has already been laid out. Plans help to not lose sight of exactly what you want to say. They allow you to stress less about content and focus more on how you make that argument.
It segments and paces your workload. By keeping essay planning and writing as two separate activities, the work is broken down into manageable tasks. It helps the brain focus on one thing at a time and makes the project more mentally accessible and approachable.
It helps you begin. One of the biggest struggles when writing essays is beginning. It helps remove the mental block as your plans give you a starting point. Plans keep you organised and help you think chronologically about your argument. If you know what you are arguing, you know what you want your first point to be!
Make sure you know what the question or statement is asking you to do. Don’t be afraid to dissect the question. Use highlights, annotations, mind maps. Brainstorm around your topic, as there is no point in writing a plan without an idea of what you are answering!
Underline and bold the question at the top of the page, and always return to it whenever you begin a new point. This helps to keep it in your mind as you write. Always consider how the point you are making answers that question.
While You Plan
If your essay requires secondary criticism, create a bibliography. This will contain any academic journals, articles or books that may want to refer to throughout your essay.
As you’re still in the planning stage, don’t worry about using them all. Much like the plan itself, it is helpful to have everything in one unifying document.
You can later annotate this bibliography. Do this with quotes you may want to use and thoughts you may have surrounding them. It may also be helpful to note where you might want to include them in your argument.
The amount of detail that goes into the plan of your bibliography is up to you. Find out what feels right and works for you.
Once You’ve Finished Planning
Depending on your university, some lecturers will have no problem proofreading or double checking your essay plan. This can be helpful if they can’t check the final essay product before submission.
If you choose to do this, give it plenty of time before the deadline. Professors are just as busy as students, and it gives them time to get back to you without putting pressure on either party.
Don’t assume that all professors will do this, though. Simply send a professional, respectful email enquiring whether they can do so. Keep in mind that they may say no – but it can never hurt your chances to ask!
If that doesn’t work, you can always ask your peers to take a second look over the essay to proofread and check for grammar errors!
Conclusion
Essay plans can be as in depth or as brief as you want. Effective planning is about finding out what works for you and applying it to your preparation.
Regardless of which way you choose to plan, just by having a plan at all, you are one step closer to a successful essay submission.
Interested in support during your studies? Here at Ceed, we are committed to supporting your journey as a student. Click here to learn more.
Whether you have been dating your partner for six months or married for five years, relationships are based on commitment, mutual respect and diligence. To say that your connection should be special is an understatement, and it would be a shame not to enrich it as much as you can.
All relationships go through phases. There will be good times and bad times. When you realize that your relationship is in trouble, try not to let it get you down. Great relationships don’t just happen; they take time and energy to find the right balance.
Although every relationship is different, there are some things you can do to ensure that you’re maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
1. Set Targets Together
We tend to do better as individuals when we have goals to achieve, and this also applies to relationships. After children leave home and you spend multiple years together, your common goals may no longer seem clear.
If you want to achieve both of your individual targets, you need to work together as a team. Communicating your goals to one another can help both new relationships and ones much further down the line. By communicating, you open the door to collaboration – you don’t have to work at your goals independently of one another.
Whether it’s going for promotions or achieving a healthier lifestyle, the love and support of your partner can help you get one step closer to your target. That’s not just through practical actions, but through passive encouragement.
Knowing each others goals and targets also helps you to see where you and your partner’s plans may align and could even open the door to mutual success.
2. Show Your Appreciation
Being kind and compassionate to your partner should be a daily habit. Expressing loving thoughts can nourish the relationship by helping you and your partner remember what it is you treasure about each other.
Some people need to be told “I love you” several times every day. Others need to have at least 20 minutes of one-on-one time each day. Sometimes a hug is enough for others. Learn to understand your partner’s love language and be generous with praise and affection. Letting your partner know that you’re grateful for their presence can help reduce some of the emotional load on the relationship.
3. Know That Disappointment Can Happen in Any Relationship
When our expectations don’t match reality, disappointment occurs. There will always be differences in the expectations of two people. This means that disappointment can occur to some extent in all relationships.
We tend to focus on the negative side, and then we use this “evidence” to reinforce the belief that our relationships are full of disappointment. Rather, it’s better to accept the occurrence of disappointment.
Whether it is an aspect of your partner that you find difficult to understand or the two of you will never take a salsa class together, once you accept it, you will stop feeling bad about it.
You can’t control everything, and sometimes we hurt the people we love, but it’s important to know that this happens to everyone. Overcoming these difficulties can help you feel better.
Choose to focus on the part that meets your expectations and even brings you unexpected blessings.
4. Learn to forgive
When we disappoint and hurt each other emotionally, it’s often not because we want to. Clashes and arguments can happen in any relationship and it’s important to take time to reflect on how this affects your relationship. Your partner may do things, unintentionally, that strike a chord or hurt your feelings – try to understand why this happened. It’s important to know if it was accidental or deliberate – this can tell you a lot about a person.
If their intentions were good, and upsetting you was an accidental consequence of their actions, learning to forgive is extremely important. You can’t always stay hung up on every issue in your relationship. That being said, more serious issues require more considered thought. You shouldn’t stay in a relationship where you’re consistently upset or hurt by your partner.
Approach your issues with a measured head. In certain situations, forgiveness means promising to leave the wounds of the past behind to allow for new possibilities in the future.
5. Learn to Discuss and Let Go of the Past
Many times, disputes in relationships are simply due to poor communication. If we listen and share more clearly, it can be easily resolved. Also, when you talk about a problem, always try to find a solution. Bringing up old arguments without resolving them can create added complications, so you have to deal with these issues and put them to rest.
If you continue to think about the past, this could be a sign that you’re not happy or prepared for the emotional toll of the relationship. In these circumstances, you should step back and think about it. What’s the root cause of the issue? Is it rational or a consequence of emotional baggage?
Remember, finding a solution can sometimes mean realizing that you both look at the problem differently and that you should respect the opinions of each other.
By focusing on the reasons for this recurring feeling, you will find clarity within yourself and what you want from your relationship with your partner.
To Conclude
Strong relationships don’t just happen. To build a thriving relationship with your partner, you have to put time and effort into it.
Use these 5 tips above to start reinforcing your relationship immediately. After all, healthy relationships are an important part of living a good life.
If you’re looking to strengthen your relationship, Ceed is here to help you! Speak to one of our life coaches to find out more.
‘Living in the Moment’ – we’re all familiar with this saying in one way or another.
Whether you’ve heard it from your parents, your mentors, or even seen it on a t-shirt in a fast fashion store as an inspirational quote, surely, it must be used for a reason!
Yet, we can’t help but dwell on the past, or anticipate what lies ahead of us in the future, so much so, that we can’t truly focus on enjoying the present moment.
We unconsciously think about the future being far more important than where we are now.
We seek happiness in the future, but when that future moment comes, we can’t stop thinking of what else awaits us outside of the present moment – that exact moment we were initially anticipating.
“People live as if the present moment were an obstacle that they need to overcome in order to get to some better point [in the future], which never arrives”
Make the most of every moment now – you won’t regret it in the future!
Why Should You Strive to Live in the Present Moment?
Living in the present; the now; the moment, is the only place you are able to reach true happiness and inner peace.
In order to create a more fulfilled and meaningful life, you’ll need to learn how to take charge of your mind and focus on the present moment, which like any habit or routine, takes time and practice.
Insider has listed 15 ways in which living in the moment benefits your life such as, being able control your emotions better, increased productivity and developing successful habits.
With only positive outcomes of being more present in your everyday life, why wouldn’t you want to make it a priority?
Living in the moment can help you feel true happiness.
We’ve compiled 4 ways to help you to focus on the now, so that you can live a more fulfilled lifestyle:
How To Live in the Moment
Celebrate the Small Things
Usually, we only seem to use the word ‘celebrate’ for the big things in life: a birthday; a new family member; graduation; marriage and so on.
But what about celebrating the smaller things? Let us explain:
Have you ever had a really long and tiring day and decided to slip into a nice relaxing bubble bath? That’s exactly what we’re talking about – simplicity at its finest.
Whether it’s the first sip of your morning coffee, the flowers on your kitchen table, or buying your favourite scented candle, begin to celebrate the smaller joys in life, just as much as you do with the bigger ones.
Finding joy in the everyday ‘mundane’ will help you to live for the moments, not ponder your mind into the future hoping for a better and more exciting moment.
By appreciating the smaller things, you’re able to feel happier and more gratified in every minute of every day.
Don’t just focus on the finish line – think about the journey, too.
Practice Mindfulness Daily
Dedicate some of your time each day, specifically to practice mindfulness. It’s essential for you to practice being intentionally present often.
You may feel that you’re already too busy to set aside any more additional time throughout your day.
However, it depends on how much time you want/have to spare for mindfulness practice. It can be 3 minutes or 2 hours, it’s up to you – the most important thing is that you do it.
You can do this anywhere, at any time, throughout your day, although, we suggest to start your day as you mean to go on. Practicing mindfulness in the morning will be most beneficial to help you become more aware of the present moment through the course of your day ahead.
Here are some ways to practice mindfulness:
Meditation
Yoga
Journaling – writing your thoughts and feelings
Gratitude activities – writing lists of what you’re grateful for in the present moment (health, wellbeing, finance, family etc.)
When we say love your work, what we mean is, figure out how you spend the majority of your week or day.
Whether that’s your career, or your studies, you need to be content with your everyday work.
When looking at the work week statistics for the UK, we found that the average person works approximately 33.6 hours per week for full-time employment in 2020.
If you don’t enjoy your work, that’s 20% of your week physically spent doing something you dislike, let alone considering the time spent thinking about the job and travelling to your job.
If you’re the type of person who dreads Mondays and has to ‘soldier on’ through the work week just to get to the weekend for some enjoyment, then you need to realise you are wasting over 71% of your lifethinking about, commuting to or actually doing the work (if you work 5 out of 7 days a week).
Consider one of these two solutions:
Find a better way to spend your time (find another job(s), or change your study path)
Find something you do enjoy within your work/job (your colleagues, the opportunities etc.)
Loving your work is a key part of enjoying your life!
Screentime Detox
I think you probably knew this one was coming, didn’t you?
We’re all well aware that staying connecting to a device, such as a smart phone, or computer probably isn’t the best way to spend our whole lives, but why don’t be reduce it?
Unfortunately, the cause for our high screentime is likely to be addiction.
Addictions stops you from living life freely and essentially holds you hostage (figuratively). By finding ways to cut down or detox on your screentime, will help you to focus on the moment you’re in, rather than being engorged into what’s happening on your device.
Spend your time away from the screen and find enjoyment elsewhere – in the now.
It’s incredibly easy to be wrapped up and distracted with the thousands of thoughts we have each day.
It’s natural for your mind to wander into the past, or to the future, if you’re unaware of the importance of staying connected to the present moment.
If you stick to these 4 daily mindfulness tips, you’ll realise that the benefits of living in the moment are well within your reach. Over time you’ll be able to see your outlook on life shift into happiness, gratitude and contentment.
When you take the initiative to live in the moment, you’ll see that your outlook on life will transform greatly.
At Ceed, we know how important it is to live a better life. That’s why we have specialised life coaches to help tailor a plan specifically to you, in order to help you live in the moment in your own life. Visit our website to find out more.
When you’re in your comfort zone, you’re generally satisfied and comfortable with life as it is. The issue is, when we are satisfied, we are less likely to seek out new opportunities. Feeling comfortable makes us feel safe. But, if we really want to push ourselves, we sometimes have to give up the feeling of comfort.
We previously spoke about the growth zone in our article 3 Reasons to Step Outside of Your Comfort Zone and Into Your Growth Zone. Now that we have a better understanding of what a growth zone is, you may be wondering how you can move from your comfort zone to your growth zone. This article will show you exactly how.
Identify your Fears
The comfort zone is formed around what we perceive to be safe. There are benefits to the comfort zone such as feelings of security and control. Plenty of people do work well here. The problem is that many of the things which would make us happy involve a level of fear or anxiety.
Being able to understand your fears allows you to understand your choices better. It helps you to stop and question what you are doing and why. Having a strong understanding will motivate you to move into the fear zone.
Failure is a natural part of life. It’s not a reflection of who you are but rather a process we all have to face in life.
Everyone stumbles from time to time. You can find an alternative way to look at your failure. What are the lessons you can learn from this? What can you do to make sure it doesn’t happen next time? Asking yourself these questions will help you elevate into the learning zone.
Set Goals
Once you have a clear picture of what you want to achieve, it’s important to set clear goals for yourself. Goal setting enables you to build healthy habits. Having a clear plan and visualizing your goals makes them more attainable.
This is why thinking of each zone helps supports your growth. By breaking down every step of your journey into the growth zone, you can see which habits aren’t helpful and make appropriate adjustments. It doesn’t matter how big or small and you don’t have to announce it to anyone; what matters is that you are gradually overcoming your fears.
Setting goals is a great way to track your progress!
Stay Consistent
The final part is the most challenging – staying consistent. Now that you have set some goals, you can work on building a routine or schedule that supports them. Consistency is key!
Achieving any goal requires repeating certain steps over and over again until you are successful. If you are used to being in your comfort zone, you may struggle to hold yourself accountable. It may take you a while to unlearn some of the habits that have been holding you back.
You might try and fail the first time so try to remember that this is perfectly normal and you can keep trying until you get it right. If you need an incentive – why not give yourself a prize for when you complete it. You could also appoint a friend as an accountability partner to help keep you in check.
Breaking it Down
Let’s think of a common example to help break it down. You want to learn a new skill, for example, a foreign language. Below is an example of some thoughts you might have about the situation at each stage:
Comfort Zone – I am fine not learning something new and sticking to what I know.
Fear Zone – I’m afraid I won’t be good at this. It will take forever to learn and I don’t have the time. What if my friends make fun of me?
Learning Zone – I will create a weekly schedule to help me manage my time. How can I make this more achievable? What else can I give up to make more time for this? I understand that this won’t happen in a day.
Growth Zone – Learning a new and useful skill helps me improve my prospects. This is an exciting opportunity to meet new people. This will help me achieve my full potential and find a new purpose.
Try to understand what’s holding you back – overcoming that barrier will help you move forward!
Final Thoughts
You should now hopefully have the tools to work towards your growth zone. Your goals can become more achievable if you use these tips to break them down.
Identify what’s holding you back and use this to help you move forward. Accept that failure is a part of success. Set goals and create helpful habits that keep you consistent.
Contact Ceed to learn more about how you can leave your comfort zone and grow into the person you’re meant to be!
