Archives for June 2012

30 Practical Ways to Improve Yourself

06.18.2012 by Angel Chernoff // 46 Comments

30 Practical Ways to Improve Yourself

Today is our blog’s sixth birthday. Over the past six years we have touched on hundreds of tips, tricks and lessons that have the potential to improve your life. So to celebrate this milestone, we’re going to take a stroll down memory lane and review some of the best tips from our previous articles. Together, we believe the 30 tips below are the cornerstone of practical self improvement advice. Each tip links back to its original corresponding article, so you can read more at your leisure. Enjoy…

Maintain a positive attitude. – Positive thinking is at the forefront of every great success story. The mind must believe it can do something before it is capable of actually doing it. So be aware of your mental self-talk. We all talk silently to ourselves in our heads, but we aren’t always conscious of what we’re saying or how it’s affecting us. Start listening to your thoughts. If you hear negative thoughts, stop for a second and replace them with positive thoughts. As the Dalai Lama once said, “The way to overcome negative thoughts and destructive emotions is to develop opposing, positive emotions that are stronger and more powerful.” For some practical positive thinking guidance, I recommend reading The Power of Positive Thinking.
Be kind to yourself. – If you had a friend who spoke to you in the same way that you sometimes speak to yourself, how long would you allow that person to be your friend? The way you treat yourself sets the standard for others. You must love who you are or no one else will.
Embrace problems as a natural part of growing. – Part of living and growing up is experiencing unexpected troubles in life. People lose [Read more…]

10 Feel Good Thoughts for a Bad Day

06.15.2012 by Marc Chernoff // 49 Comments

10 Feel Good Thoughts for a Bad Day

Sometimes I catch myself staring at the people around me – studying their mannerisms and expressions. I wonder, “What is their story? What are they searching for? What makes their heart beat with happiness, with sorrow, with fear, with longing?” And then I ask myself, “What words might I post on this blog to inspire them, and to remind them that, even on the toughest of days, our hearts all beat for these same things?”

Today I figured I’d share some of these words with you…

We are all in this together. – Nobody has it easy, we all have issues. When you look at a person, any person, remember that everyone has a story. Everyone has gone through something that has changed them, and forced them to grow. Every passing face on the street represents a story every bit as compelling and complicated as yours. You will never know exactly what they are going through, and they will never know exactly what you are going through. We are all fighting our own unique war. But we are fighting through it simultaneously, together. Read The Road Less Traveled.
You aren’t supposed to be perfect. – Live life. Experience everything. Take care of yourself and those closest to you. Have fun – be a little crazy and weird. Go out and make mistakes – you’re going to anyway. Enjoy yourself, and exploit the countless opportunities to learn something along the way. Figure out what works and what doesn’t. Don’t try to be perfect; just be an excellent example of being human and being YOU.
There are reasons to smile all around you. – A teenage girl blushed when I caught her playfully tickling her boyfriend as he looked for a book [Read more…]

15 Relationship Truths for Tough Times

06.13.2012 by Marc Chernoff // 58 Comments

15 Tough Relationship Truths

These 15 relationship truths may be a bit difficult to accept at times, but in the end, they will help you weed out the wrong relationships, make room for the right ones, and nurture the people who are most important to you.

Some relationships will be blessings, others will serve as lessons. – Either way, never regret knowing someone. Everyone you encounter teaches you something important. Some people will test you, some will use you, and some will teach you; but most importantly some will bring out the best in you.
When times get tough, some people will leave you. – When you are up in life, your friends get to know who you are. When you are down in life, you get to know who your true friends are. There will be lots of people around when times are easy, but take note of who remains in your life when times get tough, especially the people who sacrifice the resources they have in their life to help you improve yours when you need it most. These people are your real friends.
Life is full of fake people. – Sometimes the person you’d take a bullet for ends up being the one behind the gun. It’s so easy to believe someone [Read more…]

12 Ways to Center Your Life Around Love and Happiness

06.11.2012 by Marc Chernoff // 31 Comments

Center Your Life Around Love and Happiness

It is only possible to live happily ever after on a daily basis.

Today is a new day – a new beginning. You have been given this day to use as you please. You can waste it or you can use it for something worthwhile. Either way, what you do today is important because you are exchanging a day of your life for it.

When tomorrow comes, today will be gone forever. In its place will be something that you have left behind. Please, let it be something worthwhile. Let it be something that spreads love and happiness.

Here’s how:

Be kinder than necessary. – You will never fully understand some things until these things actually happen to you. So be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of unique battle. And remember, you will come across some people in life who always seem to create conflicts. When you meet them, smile and walk away. The battle they are fighting isn’t with you, it’s within them.
Put sincere effort into your relationships. – Don’t confuse the people who are always lingering around with the ones who are truly there. Good relationships don’t just happen, and they aren’t built solely on a foundation of convenience. They take time, patience, effort, and two people who want to be together and are willing to meet in the middle. Read The 5 Love Languages.
Remind your loved ones that you love them every chance you get. – It doesn’t always matter where you go, what you do, or how much [Read more…]

60 Quotes that Will Change the Way You Think

06.08.2012 by Marc Chernoff // 136 Comments

60 Quotes that Will Change the Way You Think

In your quiet moments, what do you think about? How far you’ve come, or how far you have to go? Your strengths, or your weaknesses? The best that might happen, or the worst that might come to be? In your quiet moments, pay attention to your thoughts. Because maybe, just maybe, the only thing that needs to shift in order for you to experience more happiness, more love, and more vitality, is your way of thinking.

Here are 60 thought-provoking quotes and life lessons gathered from our book and our blog archive that will help you adjust your way of thinking.

You cannot change what you refuse to confront.
Sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.
Don’t think of cost. Think of value.
Sometimes you need to distance yourself to see things clearly.
Too many people buy things they don’t need with money they don’t have to impress people they don’t know. Read Rich Dad, Poor Dad.
No matter how many mistakes you make or how slow you progress, you are still way ahead of everyone who isn’t trying.
If a person wants to be a part of your life, they will make an obvious effort to do so. Think twice before reserving a space in your heart for people [Read more…]