Self Improvement Archives * Page 3 of 8 * Qryptonyght

Sunday October 17th, 2021Sunday October 17th, 2021

Its 69 days until Christmas

I woke up this morning and carefully took stock of my current situation. The following 2 things struck me:

The year 2021 is coming to a close and I haven’t accomplished all my goals.
Its 69 days until Christmas and I don’t have a holiday plan!

I found myself going into panic mode and took a few deliberate calming breaths. Yes I had three major things on my To Do list at the beginning of the year and I have only managed to accomplish one of those things. That was no reason to give myself a stroke! At this point it would take a lot more resources than I have at my disposal (and a miracle) to check the other two boxes. That being said, I had accomplished one goal and I feel pretty good about myself! I will redouble my efforts to accomplish at least one more goal before the end of the year.

Important lessons learned in 2021

One of the important lessons I think we learned this year is the importance of practicing self-care. Some of us who were previously of the opinion that the practice of self-care was for the mentally unstable, are touting its benefits to anyone who would listen. If you are in the habit of practicing self-care you would know that you should always focus on the positives in life. You would also know that you should be kind to yourself and avoid being too critical of your own shortcomings. Don’t focus on what you don’t have or what you haven’t accomplished, focus instead on what you have managed to accomplish and celebrate small wins.

Tuesday September 14th, 2021Wednesday September 15th, 2021

Are you prepared?

I am more of a mental checklist kind of person. On the rare occasion when I do write a shopping list, I invariably forget that I had written it or where I had stored it in my phone. Wellness coach Alison T Smith believes that list obsession has something to do with the busyness of modern-day life. “Making lists has become more and more popular in recent years, especially for working parents, who are trying to pack more into their days,” she says. “People tend to have to wear many different hats throughout the day while holding down a full-time job.”

Are you the type of person who writes lists? If you are, then what is on your most important checklist? That list of things you want to accomplish in your lifetime. Does it contain exciting things to do? Places to visit, people to meet, and great feats to accomplish? Maybe it has some or all of the above! Are you prepared? Does your checklist have everything essential for a meaningful and happy life?

The bucket list

A bucket list is defined as a number of experiences or achievements that a person hopes to have or accomplish during their lifetime. We all have a list of things we want to accomplish in our lifetime. The types of experiences or achievements that inhabit your bucket list are what helps to make your life more fulfilling, and meaningful.

I recently attended a wellness presentation during our Wellness Week of activities at work. The presenter Holly Christopher is a counselor at the university campus where I work. During Holly’s presentation, the one thing that stood out for me is how important it is to practice gratitude. Research shows that people who practice gratitude are more optimistic and feel better about their lives! My question is, should ‘practice gratitude’ appear on your bucket list?

Sunday August 15th, 2021Friday September 10th, 2021

Where I needed to be

As we all know, unplanned travel associated with family emergencies is stressful to say the least. Throw in the current pandemic and the severe travel restrictions to some parts of the world, add the almost impossible travel requirements, and the word ‘stressful’ takes on an entirely different meaning! Of course, I am one of those people who doggedly focus on the upside of every situation. Yep! Sometimes people are very annoyed by my outlook but to each his own! I am just happy that even in this current pandemic, I was able to get to where I needed to be.

Late last month I received news that my mom was hospitalized and I immediately started looking for flights. I was about to throw all caution to the wind and take the first available flight to Guyana! As we all know, Guyana is a Covid-19 hotspot since it shares borders with Brazil. Brazil has a high percentage of Covid-19 infections as well as highly infectious variants of the virus. I had canceled plans to travel to Guyana and Brazil earlier in the year because of these very reasons! Yet, here I was frantically looking for flights to New York with an onward connection to Georgetown Guyana. I had to be at my mom’s bedside regardless of the pandemic.

Booking.com