Inspirational Quotes from Inspirational People

Inspirational people are no different from you and me. They have come across obstacles in life, often greater than those we might encounter, and they have turned them into something positive. As we feel our way through troubles times – both personal and worldly – let’s have a look at the thoughts of some of the successful people from the past. By standing on their shoulders and using their experience, we may enrich our own life experience. Great things are not done by impulse but by a series of small things brought together. Vincent van Gogh Plant the seeds of … Continue reading →

Your Beliefs and How They Can Make You Unhappy (2)

Ever wondered why some people are happier than others? Most of us tend to put it down to the fact that these happy people have more money, better jobs, better behaved children, no children, close family, etc, etc. Sure, these factors do play a huge part in how happy a person has the potential to be. But they are not the controlling factor. It is what we believe about ourselves and the world we live it that largely determines how happy or otherwise our lives are. We have all heard the stories of the wealthy yet unhappy socialites, so it … Continue reading →

Your Beliefs and How They Can Make You Unhappy

Ever wondered just why you don’t seem to enjoy life as much as other people around you? Perhaps you think they have just got better lives than you and therefore suffer less stress and worries. While we each have differing degrees of stressors in our lives, it is not necessary to become a victim of every negative event that happens to you. One of the things that separates happy people from unhappy folk is their belief system about themselves and the world around them. Of course, there are times in our lives when so many difficult life events may converge … Continue reading →

New Year’s Mental Health Resolutions

Whether you suffer from a pre-existing mental health condition or just plain-old garden variety stress, why not try a different type of New Year’s resolution this year? The resolution to improve your mental health. There isn’t anyone who couldn’t benefit from taking steps to improve their mental health, just as we could all benefit from a fitness regime makeover from time to time. So what types of activities should we include on our Mental Health New Year’s Resolution? Number One would have to be a commitment to better sleep habits. Poor sleep underlines and exacerbates many health problems, both physical … Continue reading →

More Positive Thoughts for Your Day

At times, we all get bogged down in negativity or difficult situations. Here are some more positive statements to meditate upon and perhaps inspire you to a better, more productive and happy frame of mind. The thoughts you chose to think and believe right now are creating your future. These thoughts form your experiences tomorrow, next week, and next year. Louise L. Hay The things that matter most in this world are those that carry no price tag, for they can neither be bought nor sold at any price. Suze Orman When life presents more challenges than you can handle, … Continue reading →

How Ann dealt with Julie (or How to Stop Being a Doormat)

Remember Ann? She got dumped by Julie just days before Julie had agreed to accompany Ann to the doctors. Ann had given her six weeks notice of the impending appointment yet Julie phoned to cancel three days before the Big Day. And it was a big day for Ann, as she suffered from clinical anxiety plus she was about to do something that would cause anxiety in itself, that is, visit her therapist. As we read in Still Talking but Not Walking, Ann successfully made it to her session. But Ann has taken an even bigger step. She has told … Continue reading →

Have a Mentally Healthy New Year!

Another year has come, bringing new hope and endless possibilities. What will you achieve this year? New Year is the typical time of that solemn process of Making Resolutions. We decide to stop smoking, or lose weight, or do that course, or relate better to our teenage children. These are all great ideas, but we often don’t keep them. February often finds us lighting up again, munching into cookies, not enrolled in that course, and arguing pointlessly with our children. So why do resolutions so often fail? Many times it is because we are not really mentally ready for change. … Continue reading →

Liking What You See in the Mirror

We all need to work consistently on maintaining a positive image of ourselves. We need to train our brains just as much as our bodies. As with exercise, if we don’t use it, we lose it! Once we start to slide into regularly thinking negative thoughts, we quickly find ourselves on a very slippery slope which leads to low self-esteem. How to stop the rot? Read on. 1. Accept compliments Do not minimize or negate compliments. Don’t give excuses as to why you look good or did a great job on a project. Accept these compliments with a smile. If … Continue reading →

Cleaning up our act

Not too many of us made it through childhood and adolescence without being told on numerous occasions to clean up our room. Most of us hated it! But, in hindsight, when our mothers hounded us to “clean up our act” they were unknowingly giving us a gift. A gift that we can use to our advantage for the rest of our lives. So how can cleaning up our room in adolescence have an effect on our later lives? Read on… Although we most probably rebelled at being asked repeatedly to clean our rooms, there was more going on than just … Continue reading →

The Healing Comfort of Family Words

Some years ago I studied post graduate Solution Focused Therapy under Dr Robert McNeilly. He had just coauthored “Healing with Words” and since then I have been interested in the traditional family words that have far greater positive meaning than anyone else could possibly realize. Ours are “Stars and Moon” and “I love you 50”, – they each mean the same thing. Both are short for: “I love you 50 thousand million trillion AND all the way to the sun, the moon, around the stars and back again.” The history of these statements are modern, founded in the wonderful child’s … Continue reading →