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What does stress have to do with confidence?

This month I have been pulling back the curtain on Confidence and examining how to build it, get more, and make it irrelevant. Today, in the final “confidence” installment (for now), I’m going deeper and having a look at the connection between stress and confidence and what we can do to make our bodies more receptive to feeling confident.

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Stress.

It’s a hot topic in our always-connected world. But what if not getting a handle on your stress levels is also making it nearly impossible for you to feel confident?

And is there a way to prime our bodies to be more receptive to our confidence-boosting efforts?

These are the questions that inspired this week’s video. I also offer a little look at the stress hormone cortisol and offer a few ways to lower stress in your life. (Plus Wonder Woman and Science Nerd costumes).

Watch the video below and share your thoughts in the comments.

Links:

And be sure leave me a comment below and tell me how you’re going to reduce stress in your life.

P.S. If you have a question you’d like me to answer in an upcoming video, submit it here.

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3 Practical Tips to Live Happier This Year

Have you seen Shawn Achor’s Ted Talk? If not, you can find it here: The happy secret to better work.

The thing that stood out to me most was this statement: 90% of your happiness has to do with how you perceive your world. That is to say, 90% of your happiness depends entirely on how you choose to see your life and the resultant feelings from that perspective.

That is both exciting and daunting. Exciting because you can control 90% of your happiness by tweaking your own insides. Daunting because tweaking your own insides isn’t always so easy.

So today I thought I’d give you a few practical tips to help you adjust that 90%.

3 Practical Tips to Live Happier

  1. Start a gratitude journal.
    By writing down a couple of things everyday that you are grateful for, you can increase your happiness in a few short weeks. There is a lot of research backing me up from Martin Seligman in his book Flourish to articles like this one from Psychology Today to Brené Brown’s work – here is a short video of her talking about the link between joy and gratitude.
    Need a little help getting started? Start small. Write down 3 things that you are grateful for, even if they are simply: I woke up today, I have food to eat, I’m breathing. And don’t overanalyze what you write, just be honest and open. If you prefer digital, try the Gratitude Journal App for iPhone ($0.99).

  2. Meditate.
    Even just a few minutes a day, spend time quieting your mind. Research continues to show that meditation is good for us – it makes us happier and smarter.
    Need a little help getting started? You could simply set a timer for 5 minutes and sit quietly, focusing on your breath. Or try a guided meditation. The Calm app for iPhone (free) has several. I’ve used the 7 steps of calm and the guided 10 minute meditation. (You can upgrade to get more, but the free stuff is good enough to get you started).

  3. Exercise. Again research shows that being active is linked to happiness. Not to mention the added benefits of fitting into your favorite jeans and having more energy which can only add to your happy feeling.
    Need a little help getting started? Start small and make it as easy as possible. That is, remove as many obstacles as you can: schedule it on your calendar, have everything you need ready to go, so when the time comes you can just go. Also: make it fun. Find an activity you enjoy and do that.
    For a little digital motivation, try a Fitbit or UP to track your activity. I have a Fitbit and find it helps me keep a minimum activity level (it’s like a game trying to get enough steps everyday).

None of these are magic bullets (so it won’t change anything, poof, overnight). They require a (small) commitment from you (so you have to do the work, though none of these require much work). But if you do even one of these regularly this year, you will feel a difference.

What makes you feel happier?

Disclaimer: a few of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means if you purchase something through that link I will get a small amount of money. Like maybe enough to buy a cup of coffee and not a fancy one.

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not cool robert frost

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It’s spring break next week and I’m in my pre-trip anxiety storm (There’s so much to do. I’ll never get it all done. Maybe I should stay home… you know, stuff like that).

And I thought, “I could use a pep talk.”

You’ve seen Kid President, right? I’m guessing most of you are among the over 18 million viewers of the Kid President’s Pep Talk video. But in case you’re not, (and even if you are), here it is…

Have an awesome weekend!

P.S. Have you watched any of Soul Pancake‘s other videos? I highly recommend the Talk with your 10 year old self. Super sweet.

P.P.S. Check out #tinymomentsofjoy on Twitter! And join the movement: Joy to the world. Literally.

& don’t forget to dance!

Photo Credit via Pinterest

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strike a pose

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Today I thought I’d share another one of my favorite Ted Talks. In it, Amy Cuddy talks about how our body language can change how we feel about ourselves.

Last summer, I completed a 10-month leadership training program which literally rocked my world in so many ways. But one of the things they had us do early on was to have us find our “power movement” (not what they called it, but for our purposes here it makes more sense calling it that).

And we used our power movements to recover from fear, anxiety, doubt, etc.

So when I first saw Amy Cuddy’s talk, I was like: “No way! There’s science behind this stuff!” (and for me that’s always an awesome discovery because I love it when the spirit-stuff and science stuff come together with the same message).

Anyway, here’s the awesome news: you can have a power pose too. For free. Without the 10-month program. Just watch this…

Amy Cuddy: Your body language shapes who you are

Now, go strike a pose.

Have a great weekend!

Photo Credit: The WB