Thought For Today - April
 

Ready To Be Fooled?

To be fooled or not to be fooled, that is the question!

If you get fooled today, don't worry, it is April fool's day, after all. So, don't take things so seriously, be confident enough to laugh it off. Come on, you can take a joke and make a joke, appropriately timed, of course!

April 2

The One Skill

Think about when you are traveling or living abroad; you're thrown into a new culture, new environment, new everything. The one skill that enables you to make the most of where you are, is your ability to adapt.

Now apply the same skill of adaptability in your everyday life. Adapt and keep adapting. Not only will you better handle the unexpected, but you'll also make things less challenging and more enjoyable.

April 3

From Jungle to Safari

Life often feels like a jungle! Hazardous and arduous; threatening and unpredictable! Well, the next time life feels like a jungle, go on a safari! Anticipate. Look around carefully. Enjoy the unpredictable. Savour the mundane. Marvel. And feel exhilarated. Change how you see things and you’ll connect with life in a different way.

Sand in your Hands

When things weigh on your mind, try this visualization...

Visualize yourself holding sand in your hands. Think of the sand as all your stress, worries and problems. Now, as you let go of all that weighs on your mind, feel the soothing soft sand slip through your fingers.

Lighten your mind and simply sit for a few moments before you return to your day.

Don't Hurry, Be Happy

Are you always in a hurry? Always somewhere to be, something to do. If you’re always in a hurry, you're just conveying a sense of urgency and pressure. But, not everything is urgent, so take the pressure off and don't hurry.

Don’t hurry, be happy. Be happy and you'll make better choices about when to be quick and when to have a more relaxed pace.

Walk in Someone's Shoes

You’ve probably heard the saying about walking a mile in someone else’s shoes before judging them.

Next time someone's being difficult or you just can't understand them, leave your opinions and emotions aside for just a couple of minutes. Then figuratively walk in their shoes, that is, try to see things from their perspective to understand where they're coming from.

Now, even if we walk a mile in someone’s shoes, we still can't judge them because we can never really know the reasoning behind someone's actions or what it’s like to be that person. So, try to understand others better and this may improve your interactions and relationships.

Shake or Flip

As a lot in life depends on how you think, the next time you notice yourself thinking limiting, negative or out-of-date thoughts, try this, shake them off.

Shake off the thoughts that don't work for you. If that doesn't work, then try to flip your thoughts & make them work for you. Flip the ‘I should' to 'I want to', 'I must' to 'I choose to', the 'I can’t' to 'I can'. Flip your thoughts into motivating, positive & creative ones.

Time For Change

Sometimes we need to change ourselves, and sometimes we need to change the way we do things. And sometimes things change us.

A change can change everything! So, change what you need to change, but just be compassionate with yourself. Be realistic about what is possible. Be patient, because just like the seasons, change happens in its own time.

April 9

Still the Restless Mind

When the mind feels restless, think of it as a lake and the movement of thoughts and emotions as the wind that stirs up the surface of the lake.

Slowly calm all the movement and take your mind from restless to restful. Now, there’s no wind, and as the surface of the lake becomes completely still, let the mind rest, even if it’s just for a moment.

April 10

What's the Takeaway?

There’s always a takeaway from every situation, event, lecture, meeting, conversation…. from everything you read, see, hear, experience….

Not the food ‘take-away,’ but a point, an insight; something that resonates or something that’s relevant. And as there’s information overload, the challenge is to walk away with just one takeaway.

Like A Coconut

Just like a coconut is hard on the outside & soft on the inside, in the same way, be tough enough to withstand the hard times & soft enough to stay flexible, warm hearted & sweet natured.

Food for Thought

How do you spend your lunch break? However you choose to spend your lunch break, here’s something to consider: feed not just the body but also the mind, some nourishing words, music or…

Get some food for thought in your lunch break and you'll be rewarded with a more focused and productive afternoon.

Soul in your Role

All the different roles we play in our lives, partner, parent, child, friend, employee, colleague.... they all require different behaviors & they also bring out different aspects of ourselves. This often leads to a gap between who we are & the roles we play.

How about, putting your soul into your roles. Do this & you'll enhance your ability to integrate & align who you are, what you value & what you do. This will empower you to play your roles more effectively.

Turn Ideas Into Reality

How many of your good ideas turn into reality? Before you turn your ideas into reality, make a good idea great. How? 1) Take an idea, expand upon it and think about how to make it happen. 2) Share the idea with others and use their feedback and recommendations to improve the idea and make it even better.

To turn the idea into a reality: 1) Commit to the idea, believe in yourself and add passion and determination. 2) Make a start and do something with it, otherwise, the idea won't go anywhere!

What Do You Remember?

Most of us tend to remember the negative experiences and the hurtful memories more than the positive and the happy ones.

It’s important to acknowledge our memories, negative or positive. But just for today, if a memory pops up that's not healthy or vibrant, try not to give it any attention and just move on. Just for today, try and only remember the good things.

April 16

Tapestry of Relationships

Relationships are like a tapestry!

What threads do you weave into the tapestry of your relationships?
Respect, acceptance, trust….? Rethink the threads you use.
Get creative to create vibrant, strong relationships.

April 17

Enjoying This Moment?

Are you enjoying all that’s happening at this moment?

If not, then think: everything that happens, happens for my personal growth. Even if you can’t see it, feel it or believe it. Just hold this thought in your awareness and start recognizing the magic and the humor in all that that’s happening at this moment.

As a result, you’ll start to enjoy and make the most out of all that’s happening at this moment.

Small Things Build Up

When it comes to everyday people problems, it's important not to let small irritations or misunderstandings build up.

Rather than let small things build up into something bigger, it's usually better to make your feelings known and say what you need to say, at the time or as soon as possible. Just try and communicate positively.

Sit. Stand. Move.

Sit for too long? Well, it’s not good for our health. So, think of ways to sit less and stand more. Incorporate more movement into your day, not just for your health but also to bring out the best in yourself.

Here are a few suggestions: Stand or walk around when you’re on the phone. Stand for a bit, on your commute or whilst watching TV. Take the stairs or walk up or down the escalators, when you can. Arrange walking meetings instead of sitting ones.

Stop and Observe

What are you thinking about? Stop for a moment to observe your thoughts; try this a few times today. As you observe, steer away from judging your thoughts, otherwise you’ll be creating a cascade of more thoughts.

Observe your thoughts to become aware of what you are thinking, and to gain a better understanding of how your thinking affects how you are feeling and behaving, right now.

Trying to Control Everything

Don’t you just love being in control? As you know, trying to control everything just gets stressful and makes things a struggle. To stress less and struggle less, realise that you don’t need to control everything. The next time you feel the need to control, let go a little. Now, you’re free to focus on what you can control.

The Power of Compassion

Compassion soothes & empowers the minds & hearts of others, without draining its own strength. Because compassion will let go of what hurts the heart &, instead, hold on to what heals.

That's why compassion is able to empathize & see the inner need behind the expression. It's able to look behind anger & see sadness, & behind coldness, it can see fear.

How strong is your compassion? What is it able to do?

April 23

Overused Words

Often the words we use in our conversations are over used. Over used words make conversations, boring and bland.

Pick and play with words to make your conversations more vivid and colorful.

What words do you over use? What will you avoid and use instead?

April 24

Do You Trust Yourself?

Do you trust yourself? When you don't trust yourself, you'll always doubt your ability and look to others for validity.

Today, make an empowering decision to trust yourself.

Trust in your capability to do and be whatever you choose. Trust in your capacity to handle whatever happens.

Feel Sleepy During Meditation?

Do you find yourself nodding off during meditation? Getting sleepy or even falling asleep in meditation sometimes, is OK. If it happens too often, you may want to think about why & how to overcome it, because sleep & meditation are two separate activities.

Here are a few things to think about:
- Is your sleepiness a sign that you are tired? If so, get some rest.
- Meditating in a stuffy room? Open a window for some air.
- What’s your meditation posture? Sit comfortably, but not too comfortably.
- If you feel sleepy, stand for a few minutes until the sleepiness goes away.
- Meditate with eyes open to stay alert. Then there’s no temptation to nod off.

Like A Guest

Like an unexpected guest, when a challenge comes knocking on your door, welcome it. Remember, it’s not here to stay, sooner or later it will leave.

Like a guest who overstays their welcome, give the challenge your time but try not to let it overtake your life. Then you'll have the time to overcome the challenge.

Just like your guests, let the challenges in your life bring out the best in you.

Your Approach to Making Decisions

What's your approach to making decisions? Do you take a long term view or frame the decision in the context of your current reality? Do you gather lots of information, weigh up all the options and give it a lot of thought, or make the decision intuitively?

Do you have any rules or a formula for decision making? Think about how to not over-complicate the decision-making process and make it a little easier.

Antidote to Not Enough

How often do you feel you're not good enough, not smart enough, not successful enough...? How often do you feel you don’t have enough money, time, accessories, resources...? This feeling of not being enough, not having enough, diminishes our self-esteem and happiness.

The antidote to 'not enough' is 'enough'. You are enough. You have enough. So, believe it and really feel it.

Your Mood, Your Choice

Do you let someone or something dictate your mood? You do know, you don't have to. To be in a good mood or a bad mood, is your choice. So, if someone's a bit moody today or if something is just not right, remember to choose your mood.

April 30

What to leave in, what to leave out?

What you leave out, is just as important as what you leave in - whether it's a painting, a blog, a CV, a photograph, a book, a movie, a 'Thought for Today'.

Leave everything in and it gets in the way of creativity. Crop, edit, leave the right things out and you enhance what you’ve created and make it work better.

The art is in knowing what to leave in and what to leave out!