New Year, New You, New Life and a New Way to figure out how to get it!

   Hello all! Well since the world did not end, looks like we are moving on into the New Year! I don't know about you but I feel deep down that this is going to be an incredible and life changing year. Not just for me but for YOU too. So here we are, sitting on the great precipice of this New Year with a list of goals, dreams and aspirations in mind.

 

Now, before you start getting stressed, hyperventilating and stress eating..BREATHE. There is a simple way to get all of what we want out of 2013 WITHOUT stressing ourselves out.

 

   What generally happens every New Year's Eve? We sit down, write down a grand list of ALL the things we want to accomplish in the New Year. This list consists of:

*Losing weight

*Making more money

*Getting your dream job

*Getting your dream partner

*Winning the lotto

*Being on a famous talk show

 

AND on and on it goes. But what is a crucial aspect missing out of this list or these huge resolution lists we make?

 

How the heck to do it all!

 

   We tend to plan out and map out our entire year in the hopes of getting very clear on what we want. When in fact all we are doing is really setting ourselves up for FAILURE. A simple example to really grasp what I am saying is this question.

 

Which is easier?

You have not been working out or running for almost a year. You now want to start working on your fitness and get back in to shape. Which is easier?

(A) Starting out running a 5K marathon

(B) Going for a jog around the neighborhood till you build the stamina to run the whole way

 

   Clearly, option B is easier because you are gradually making your way to the ultimate goal which is your health and fitness levels. If you start out running the marathon you will be sucking wind probably after the 1 mile mark and never want to run again. This will lead to being on the couch, burning your running shoes in the fireplace with a gallon of Bluebell on your lap because you QUIT and are OVERWHELMED.

 

   So now that we understand how we have let our own goals sometimes be our own demise, let's move on to how we can make a change. Let's imagine we are in the grocery store. We have our shopping cart in hand and we are making our way down the aisles. Are we shopping for the whole YEAR'S worth of groceries? No, that is impossible, only for this month's groceries.

 

   Take your first goal or resolution, going down the first aisle (to keep up with the analogy). Break it down and simplify it, grab just a few things off the shelves. Let's say it is to lose 50 pounds. That can be pretty overwhelming so let's condense that to lose at least 5 pounds every month. Now that it is broken down, let's road map how we are going to lose this 5 pounds every month. This can range from: joining a weight loss program, going for a jog three times a week and eating out at our favorite restaurant once a month only to have a "cheat night". Now this overwhelming goal has been broken down to something that is obtainable. Now instead of having this huge 50 pound resolution in our cart, we have a simplified version that fits nice and neat in our grocery cart. And if you do the math, by the end of the year you could lose 60+ pounds!

 

   This can be a very stressful time of the year. Sometimes people are going over all of their failures from the year or the YEARS before. The fact is, is that the is in the past and we need to live in the now. Don't beat yourself up over what happened last year, last month or even yesterday. We need to be projecting what we DO want in our life not what we DON'T want. We need to bring our best self forward for the New Year not our self from New Year's Eve's past.

 

   What also can happen is that we let OTHER people decide what WE need in the New Year. Let's go back to our grocery cart. You are strolling up and down the aisles of resolutions, slowly breaking it all down and grabbing just a few things of the shelves. Now  all of a sudden family, friends and random people are jamming stuff in YOUR cart. Now, would you be buying other people's items at the grocery store that you really didn't want? I DON'T THINK SO! You would be throwing out items right and left and having no mercy who got hit by someones groceries.

 

   So let's do that with our resolutions! You don't need to be taking others advice on the change YOU want in YOUR life. That will only make things more stressful, complicated and ultimately disappointing. We need to know that we are RIGHT where we need to be. We are on OUR divine path, things are being lined up for us and opportunities are headed our way. Let's not get impatient and want everything to happen right at this very moment, but to rest assured that the Universe, God or your higher power has already mapped it all out.

  

   Trust me, your higher power is not lining things up in your future, secretly snickering, "Let's see if she can TRY and overcome THIS huge obstacle I am putting in her way." Not at all. Your higher power is lining up all the roads to success, just WAITING for you travel on to them. But you have to make the choice to step on the paths and begin your journey.

   So in this New Year we need to stay focused, rejoice in our accomplishments no matter how small or large they are and ENJOY OUR LIVES! Life is meant to be celebrated not to be dreaded or to even be stressed over. If we can break down our resolutions to OBTAINABLE milestones, we are going to have the best year EVER.

 

Plan on my friends! Enjoy your celebration with family and friends! And most importantly make the choice to be happy today, tomorrow and all year-long.

 

Happy New Year!

~Ava

 

Quotes for the NEW YEAR:

"Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

"Your success and happiness lies in you. Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties."

-Helen Keller

   

5 ways to put your best YOU forward!

 

 

 

Hello everyone! I hope everyone has had a great week and enjoying the weekend. Christmas is right around the corner and I know how hectic the holiday's can be with buying presents, family coming in and everyday life! This time can be even MORE stressful if you don't have a job at all and you are trying to figure out how you will buy presents for all of your loved ones. So many people are unemployed and struggling to find work. I have 5 helpful hints to help you put your best YOU forward in your interview and get the job YOU want.

 

1. Presentation:

 

Ever heard the expression, 'Dress to impress'? Well...you need to! The way you need to dress is the way YOU would want YOUR future employee to dress if you owned a company. What's more impressive? Nice slacks, a button up shirt, tidy hair and smelling nice. OR stained paints, wrinkled shirt, messy hair and not smelling very fresh. I think the answer is pretty clear. We all know when we wear a new outfit or an outfit we love; we feel AWESOME! We have a little more bounce in our step, we feel good and most importantly you are confident. So when picking out an outfit for your interview think to yourself:

 

*Would I hire ME in this outfit?

*Does this make me feel good about myself and help me feel confident?

 

NOT

 

* I know I have worn these pants two days in a row, they smell ok; think I can wear them again?

 

2. Speech:

 

The way we look is important because as humans we are very visual beings. BUT how we speak is just as important because that is our main way of expressing ourselves. I have met so many wonderful people, with powerful messages but you can't understand them because they speak too fast or don't pronounce there words clearly. When you are in an interview you need to speak in a manner that presents yourself in the best light. Sit up straight, speak slow and clear and remember to breathe. More often than not we either get so nervous or excited that we forget to breathe. The result of this is a shaky voice, you will most likely get red and it will come off that you aren't very sure of what you are saying. And everything your saying in an interview is about YOU so you definitely want to be sure about what you are saying.

 

3. Selling abilities:

 

When I used to hire new employees my very first question would be "So, tell me a little bit about yourself?". I wasn't asking this so I could hear where they were born or what middle school they went to but more so to hear how they would sell themselves. It was rare that someone would take this opportunity to highlight positive attributes they had and skills that would be beneficial for the position they were applying for. More often than not people brought me their STRUGGLES not their success or their best. Now, there's nothing wrong with perhaps stating the situation you are in or maybe some obstacles you have overcome. But follow it up with success stories, skills you possess and what makes you a valuable asset to the company in which you are applying for. You could state how it's been hard to get a job or that you really need to find something stable but follow it up with that you are hardworking, smart and a go-getter. When you leave that interview, the boss needs to think to themselves, "How in the WORLD has this person been unemployed for so long and WHEN can they start for my company?". If you only deliver your struggle, they will most likely think that's why you have been unemployed because you just have too much going on and don't put your best face forward. No one gives jobs because they feel sorry for you; make them feel THEY will be sorry if they don't hire YOU!

 

4. Confidence

 

When you walk into that interview you need to EXUDE confidence. Confidence is contagious. If you walk in standing up straight, shoulders back, head held high; they will  have no choice but to see how confident you are. When you think your happening, everyone else around you will too. Even if you don't feel 100% confident, go ahead and pretend that you are. Look online or on TV at one of your idols or hero's.

 

How do they stand? Are they slumped over in a Dior gown? Are they not looking people in the eye when shaking hands? Are they conducting an interview and talking down all of their skills and accomplishments?

 

NO WAY!

 

So if you aren't feeling your confidence, fake it till you make it. Eventually your confidence will come to surface and you will be unstoppable.

 

5. YOU:

 

Most importantly, bring YOU to the interview. It's a given that you will physically be there but bring who you really are. So many people think that just because they are dressing nice and refining there speech, that they can't be themselves. WRONG. You are the only person that can be you, so show them your personality and your spark. Don't try and be someone else because if you get hired and you have been pretending to be someone else, you are going to adapt a multiple personality disorder. Simply, be you, because at the end of the day that's all you can be and the only person you should be in this life.

 

So whether you are going on an interview or just wanting to know how to carry on in everyday life, these tips will help. Want to know how I know this? Because I use these 5 tips every single day. I make sure I am confident, looking and feeling good, speaking and presenting myself well and being my authentic self. If you try these five simple tips, I promise you won't regret it.

 

Have a great week!

~Ava

 

Quote of the day:

"If you are not selling the real you to people you're only selling yourself short."

-Unknown