Personal Development Strategies to Put Meaning Into Your Existence

Avoid The Trap Of Thinking You Have Something To Lose

The title of this post was inspired by Steve Jobs. When I’m looking for inspiration, I like to check out difference sources and found this video on Youtube that really made me think.

It’s always interesting to read the biography of people like Steve Jobs, who overcame so much and has made such a difference in people’s lives.

I remember oh-so-long-ago working on obtaining my Geography/GIS degree in university which required hours and hours in front of a Mac (this was the Mac Classic). That was my first real introduction to computers. It’s hard to believe how much 0f my life energy I’ve spent in front of a computer.

It interesting to find out that perhaps we owe the aesthetics of the Mac’s typography to Steve taking a calligraphy class during his college days.

Here’s an excerpt of his Commencement Speech at Stanford which I think is pretty thought-provoking:

When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: “If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.” It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?” And whenever the answer has been “No” for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.

Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything – all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure – these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.

Don’t settle. Keep looking.

No one wants to die. At yet, no one escapes it.

Death is life’s change agent.

Right now, the change is you. Your time is limited so don’t live it living someone else’s life.

Enjoy the video (if you can’t see the embedded video, use this link):

1. My Top 5 Secret Success Factors
2. The Only Words You’ll Need To Overcome Your Fears
3. 10 Things You Can Do Right Now To Improve Your Life
4. Do You Need To Let Go and Forgive?
5. Are You Being Your True Authentic Self?

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to my feed to have all the future articles delivered to your feed reader. Thanks!

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Just For Today Challenge – 31 Days To A Better You eBook Launch

by Karen · 44 comments

in Books, Just For Today Challenge, Writing

It’s finally here! I’m finally ready to send out into the world my first ebook, Just For Today Challenge – 31 Days To A Better You.

Many of my oldest and most loyal readers will recognize the title of this book as it formed the basis of a series of posts that I did back in January. For 31 days, I wrote an post about what you can do Just For Today to make a change in your life.

I had such wonderful feedback from so many people telling me how they absolutely loved the Challenge and what a difference it made in their lives.

The Challenge was in contrast to New Year’s Resolutions (we all know those never work) and I wanted to give people the confidence that they could make a change in their lives one day at a time.

Everyone can stick with a change for one day.

If you are feeling overwhelmed and know that you need to make some changes in your life, but you don’t know where to start, this ebook is written for you.

There are 31 actionable (but relatively easy) tasks that you can do each day to start making changes in your life. When you see yourself checking off each day’s Challenge, you will be building momentum in your life to make more changes.

I’ve updated, expanded and provided 9 templates to help you complete the Challenges.

By completing the 31 Days of Challenges, your confidence will soar. You will have been exposed to things that you might not have ever thought of doing before and you will be filled with confidence that YOU can make a change in your life.

These Challenges will be minor tweaks that you will be able to build upon for the entire 31 days, day by day. The idea is not to overwhelm you, but give you something that you can accomplish Just For Today.

How long will you wait until you start taking action to make a change to A Better You?

The ebook is 100 pages long and it’s only $27. You can buy the ebook through Paypal by clicking here to buy now for an instant download.

Even if you only adopt one change and make it lasting in your life - if that change makes you feel better about yourself, then it’s worth it.

The best time to start making last changes was yesterday, the next best time is now.

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Five Reasons Why I Blog

by Karen · 42 comments

in Inspiration, Meaning, Personal Development, Writing

Blog

There are so many different reasons why I blog, but I wanted to highlight the Top Five Reasons Why I Blog:

1. To create something meaningful

It would be so easy to just come home from work and just sit in front of the TV each evening. It takes A LOT of work, sacrifice and dedication to start and continue with a blog. But, I receive a sense of personal satisfaction knowing that I’m creating something meaningful with my time and energy. There is a lot of other things that I could be doing with my time and energy, but I choose to blog because it is more meaningful to me to write and share my experiences and knowledge with others. I look back at how far the site has come and it’s been an amazing growth experience. Knowing that I’ve also touched people’s lives and have helped them has given what I do with my time more meaning.

2. To meet people from all over the world

Bloggers are an amazing bunch of people. Of course, everyone has their own personal reasons for blogging, but overall the sense of community is fantastic. I’ve met some absolutely wonderful and amazing people online from all over the world and have been exposed to things that I wouldn’t normally be exposed to. Some of the emails that I’ve received from readers have blown me away with their insights and the life experiences that they are willing to share with me. Being able to connect with others and learn from them is a major reason why I continue blogging.

3. To share what I’ve learned in my own life with others

I’m not here to solve everyone’s problems, but to share those things that have worked in my life or the experiences that I’m struggling with in the hope of inspiring and motivating others. If something that I’ve written has helped someone else not to struggle like I have in my life, then it’s all been worth it. Of course, there are things in my life that won’t translate to someone else’s circumstances, but there are other experiences that are universal. I love sharing my knowledge and experiences with other people who can use that information to change their own lives for the better.

4. To increase my skills and learn new things

I’m a firm believer in continuous education, whether that’s formal or informal. I love to learn and try new things. Since I had blogged for about a year back in 2005-2006, I thought I know a lot about blogging, but things have really changed technology-wise since back then. Not only is my writing skills increasing, but I’m also learning so much more – programming, design, SEO, marketing, communicating, analytical thinking, etc. I’m learning so much on my own and from others – the community spirit is amazing because of course there’s too much to know for one person. It’s amazing what new skills you pick up without even realizing it. My writing skills have increased tremendously from blogging and I’ve noticed the difference from when I first started to today. Of course, I’m always learning so I’m always improving, too.

5. To inspire and be inspired

Before blogging, I was somewhat satisfied with my life. I thought that I knew what I wanted out of life and what I was willing to do in order to get it. Blogging and writing about personal development (something that I’ve been interested in for over 15 years) has inspired me to demand more from myself and not to be satisfied with the status quo. I am so inspired by reading other people’s blogs and what they are doing with their lives. Things that I thought were out of reach for me, now seem absolutely possible. We never know what life has in store for us, but until we strive to reach for something, we won’t know the possibilities out there. I just hope that my writing has inspired people as much as I’ve been inspired. It’s the circle of inspiration.

What about the reasons that I don’t blog for?

Here are 3 Things I Don’t Blog For

1. Money

I don’t blog for money. Sure, it’s wonderful when someone buys my product or an affiliate product and I earn a few dollars, but I’m not fooling myself into thinking that blogging will replace my current salary. With the amount of time and energy devoted to this site, I would be better off working a minimum wage job somewhere. Blogging is hard work and it is definitely not easy money.

2. Fame or Celebrity

I could care less about being famous of being a celebrity blogger. That’s not to say that it’s not nice when people think of you and link to you, but I don’t aspire to be famous for blogging.

3. Status

You can tell who are the bloggers who are really wrapped up in their ’status’ as an A-lister or wannabe A-lister. I blog for personal satisfaction and not to gain status. Having 50,000 followers on Twitter, or 5000 ‘Friends’ on Facebook, or 25,000 connections on LinkedIn doesn’t really matter to me. I value quality over quantity, every time.

Your turn. What do you blog for? What do you not blog for?

1. Top 5 Reasons To Leave Your Job
2. My Top 5 Secret Success Factors
3. Invest In Your Most Important Asset – Yourself
4. 10 Things You Can Do Right Now To Improve Your Life
5. Are You Being Your True Authentic Self?

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to my feed to have all the future articles delivered to your feed reader. Thanks!

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