Build Your Own Doors!

 

All throughout my life I was always told to be mindful of open doors. My parents and teachers told me to keep my eyes and ears alert because opportunities are everywhere. As a result, I did my best in school to make sure that when those opportunities presented themselves, I might be "the chosen one." However, through my experience I have realized how unproductive that way of thinking is. 

We should always strive to be our best, but because everyone is so different, my best is not the same as your best, which creates advantages in certain situations. But me being better than someone at something doesn't necessarily mean that I am more deserving than them, or vice-versa. 

If given the chance I feel that we can ALL be great at doing what we love. Not only that, but we can actually make our dreams a reality without having to rely on anyone but ourselves!

You will be surprised how successful you can be by asking yourself 3 simple questions:

STEP 1: What do you want? - The problem that most people face is confusion and indecisiveness. We don't have what we want because we have no idea what we want! When you are wading through life with no general direction, you are at least 3 times as likely to be disappointed in old age. The first major decision you must make is how you want your life to turn out, or what kind of things you want to achieve. 

STEP 2: How can you get it? - Once you know what you want to do, the next task would be creating a plan of action. This is usually where people give up. It is common to think that you are too poor, or not smart enough, or not skilled enough to do what you wish you could. I am here to tell you that there is always a way around a road block, and there is always an advantage to every situation. Over the summer when I had free time because I was not in school, I saw that as an opportunity to write a book. When I had the miscarriage, I saw my experience as an opportunity to share my story with other women passing through a similar experience in hopes of offering them support. When it comes to making a plan of action, the key word is PERSPECTIVE. If you have a positive open minded perspective, it becomes easier to find a path to your destiny, no matter your circumstances. 

STEP 3: What does life look like now that you have it? - After you know what you want, and how you are going to get there, the next component is visualizing it. I recommend spending 15 minutes to an hour each day imagining what your life will be like once you are living up to your true potential. If you dream of traveling the world, but you lack the finances, find a way to travel on your budget (absolutely possible with so many resources available to us) and then visualize yourself on an airplane, or in front of the Eiffel Tower. Its like daydreaming on steroids! The mind is a powerful thing, not to be underestimated, that can make our life as amazing as we imagine it to be, with a little elbow grease of course. 

The sky is the limit! 

The only one who determines if you fail or succeed is YOU!

6 Hacks For Affordable Living

One of my New Year's Resolutions last year was to SAVE money! However, it can be challenging when you also want to have fun and enjoy the life we are working so hard to maintain. It can be difficult to find areas in life where we can cut back, but believe me they do exist! 

This year I plan to save even more with these simple life-hacks that can be turned into vacation inducing habits!

1. DIY anything you can! - If Pinterest has taught me something it is that you can pretty much do anything yourself. Whether it is having you own vegetable garden, or making your own baby food, or even setting up a line to dry clothes in the summer and spring! These things may sound time consuming, but they are shockingly easy and relaxing. There is something serene about doing things the old fashioned way, so break out the elbow grease and get your hands dirty! 

 

2. Unplug it! - In our home, we have made a habit of unplugging the things that we aren't using. Examples? The stove, the coffee maker, the microwave, the TV, not charging the computer while we use it unless it is dying, etc. Not to mention NEVER leaving any lights on in rooms that we are not in, especially in the morning and afternoon. By doing this, we have managed to reduce our electricity bill by 20 to 30 dollars a month! It may not sound like much, but in a year that adds up to at least $240. 

3. Ditch the smartphone! - These days, everyone has a smartphone. When I was growing up, I remember that smartphones, such as Blackberries, were reserved for professionals to help them with their careers. If you are not using your smartphone for school or work, or if you already have a tablet AND a laptop AND a digital camera AND an Ipod, maybe you should rethink that $400 investment. If you can access Facebook via, laptop, is it really necessary to have it in your pocket on the go? For the past year I have been using a very affordable, and virtually indestructible, prepaid phone from AT&T. The phone itself cost me $20 and the monthly unlimited plan (which includes internet) costs $45 - $50 a month. If all you are interested in is unlimited texting, they have an even cheaper plan that is $25 - $30 a month. Plus, I never have to get my screen repaired. 

4. Drink more water! - Stop buying juice and soda all together. It is loaded with sugar and salt, which is not good for you, let alone your children. (If you are concerned that they won't get the nutrients they need, buy multivitamins, and fresh fruits and veggies!) Instead, buy a filter or purifier to clean the tap water from the sink. If you simply can't live without juice, buy powered juice which is just as tasty and lasts much, much longer. OR buy a juicer and make your very own juices at home (revisit hack #1)!

5. Cook at home! - Eating out can be fun and exciting on occasion but if you are trying to save money, maybe you should turn your weekly visit to you favorite fast food joint into a monthly visit. You can make so many of those meals at home and what's better is that you can usually make it taste better! All you need to do to be an extraordinary chef is follow directions well, have patience, and pay attention to detail! Trust me it really is as simple as it sounds!

6. Carpool isn't just for school! - Good news, we can carpool almost anywhere. This is especially true for those of you who don't have children. Not only can you catch a ride to work with coworkers, you can also go shopping with friends, which makes it all the more fun! Take a buddy with you grocery shopping; one week you use your car, the next you can use theirs! Not only does carpooling save on the monthly gas bill (and regular car maintenance) it is good for the environment. Talk about two birds with one stone!

3 Tips to Keep the Winter Weight OFF

Yeah, it's that time of year again. We are putting away the bathing suits and busting out the sweat pants and leggings! We are finally stepping away from the scale and hiding that extra chub under giant comfy sweaters. 

But wouldn't it be nice if we didn't have to get back in to shape come summer 2015? Imagine a world when you look good in a bathing suit ALL YEAR! 

With these simple tips, you can enjoy this holiday season and still avoid falling out of love with your beautiful body! 

1. Toasty Workout! - In some places, I'd imagine that it is getting in to the "Too Cold" temperatures. Too cold to go out for a jog, too cold to take the kids to the park, too cold to enjoy the outside world, just TOO COLD! When the threat of frost bite seems too high, you don't have to risk it. Here is a secret you might not have known; there are hundreds of free full length workout videos on YouTube! And the best part is that there is an excellent variety to fit different needs. Whether you like Zumba, Krav Maga, Belly Dancing, or Weight lifting, I guarantee there is something for everyone. Find a quiet, private place (like your room) and get physical! 

2. Portion Makes Perfect - You might have heard of the healthy alternative to all of the yummy holiday snacks that are floating around this year, and if you are anything like me, that is simply NOT an option. Everything tastes better with an extra scoop of butter, am I right? So, instead of eating cinnamon spice celery sticks, eat whatever you want, just be mindful of how much of it you are eating. If you must try everything this year at Thanksgiving, again like me, try 2 bites of everything and then go back for you favorite. And since you're trying one of everything, you might want to hold off on that second piece of pie. Food for thought. (get it?)

3. Get a dog! - I love animals, but dogs are my all time favorite. No animal will make you feel as loved and welcomed and needed as a dog. Yes, they need you to love them back, and care for them, and most of all, they need you to walk them. A dog will force you to brave those "too cold temps." and by taking them out to do their business, you will receive some much needed sunlight and a breath of fresh air! (Don't only get a dog for this reason though, get one because they are AWESOME!)
But seriously, go outside every once in a while to change your body out of that comfortable sitting position you find yourself in throughout most of the day. Sometimes it is easy to forget that we have legs too!

How Students REALLY Feel About Group Presentations

 

For the love of GOD, if you are a professor and you are reading this, please please please please please STOP giving your students group projects. PLEASE!

Okay, maybe that is a little unreasonable. But it seems like for the past 4 years I have been forced to work with irresponsible and selfish people who either leave everything for the last minute, or who skip out on their part of the project only to leave me to finish all of the work. The funny thing, is that most professors do not care, and insist on making it a group grade anyway. 

First of all, if you are professor know this, WE PREFER TESTS!!!!! 

I understand that you get tired of lecturing the class. Sometimes you want to just sit back and watch a nice presentation, but it is NOT our job to teach our fellow classmates. Nor do they care about what one another has to say. They only care about their grade and how they are going to do when they stand up to present. If they are paying attention, 9 times out of 10 its due to common courtesy.

Now, because teachers and professors are probably NEVER going to stop with this, no matter how much we INSIST that we hate it, if you are in a group to do a presentation or project,  BE CONSIDERATE! 

Do not procrastinate of the your portion of the work. Why? Because, something could go wrong, you won't have time to fix it, and someone will have to fix it for you because they don't want you to drag their grade down. Do what you have to do, as soon as possible. We all are busy, we all have priorities and things that we need to get done. That being said, respect the time of your group members. It is not fair to thrust your responsibilities on someone who has responsibilities of their own.

When you leave your group hanging, they get stressed, overwhelmed, frustrated and angry. Which is completely understandable. We ALL know how hard it is because we are ALL going through it. Let's work TOGETHER, instead of for ourselves. 

People are counting on you.  

DO NOT LET THEM DOWN! 

Welcome to the Grind

We don't need any more reasons to hit the snooze button in the morning.

 If this video doesn't convince you of the power that lies within you, I don't know what will!

WELCOME TO THE GRIND!