The skill of self confidence | Dr. Ivan Joseph | TEDxRyersonU

Another great TED talk

Unfold the 5 Secrets to Live a Happy Life

By Aman Tumukur Khanna

We all strive to lead a happy life. But being happy is not that easy. If you are concerned about money then happiness is definitely far beyond your reach. The actual fact is that "money can't buy happiness". Happiness is all around us in the things, in the people and yet we fail to grasp it.

A psychological research has found out that happiness can be achieved in very simple ways. These are-

Practice gratitude

Irrespective of the fact where they are and what they have been doing the happy people finds things to be grateful for. They remain less stressed and have low levels of depression. One can find gratitude even in the smallest of the things. This can be a book, delicious dinner, a challenging video game, and many more things. If you focus on the good things and feel gratitude for them then you will have less stress.

Smile more

If you are having a hard day cheer yourself by thinking of something or someone that always makes you happy. In this way you will be happy again. The sure analysis of this is still not done but some scientists believe that due to the release of dopamine the feel god factor comes in you. So, put that cute smile on your face wherever you go.

Embrace your mistakes

Mistakes are normal. But if you bring ego in between your mistakes and agreeing them then that is totally wrong. This will be an obstruction in your way of growth. Thus, learn to embrace your mistakes and start learning more. You will see that this quality will make you more likeable among the people.

Be optimistic

Happy people are more open to responding to negative events in a positive way than the unhappy lot. They have high confidence levels that help them to overcome negative thoughts and actions. This attitude also helps one to recover from illness, solve problems in difficulty, etc.

Forgive everything

Do not keep any hard feelings in your mind neither encourage one to do the same. The hard feelings do block happiness when we keep them. We do not feel truly happy then. If you forgive, it does not mean that the earlier things had been for good but it is that you are no longer in a mood to carry on with the ill feeling.

Along with all this practice self love. We are sure that this will keep you happy and help you to lead a happier life that you had always dreamt of.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9633144

How to Be Happy - Secrets to Happiness

Another powerful video from Brendon Burchard

How to Improve Self-Esteem

By Achal Mehrotra

Feeling high about you is something of higher self-esteem. If you really want to live a happy and peaceful life you have to remove any kind of negativities that you have in your life. More often we tend to lose self-esteem because we are compared to others who have superior qualities than us. In today's society, such situations are more common where students have a low self-esteem and are unable to take the pressure or fight back and they commit suicide. But, are suicides really the solution? I don't think that it really is. So, follow the tips that we have provided in this article and get rid of your low self-esteem and not your beautiful life.

Stop Self-Criticizing and Start Self-Appreciating

A good start for raising the self-esteem is that you need to learn how you can handle the voice of your inner critique. Out inner conscience has a greater effect in lowering our self-esteem. Instead, start appreciating yourself with the little things you do or the little things that make you happy. Practicing that for a month or so can lead to the improvement of your self-esteem in a much less time.

Do the Right Thing

Always do the right things. When you know that you are right and nobody can question you on that part then you would grow greater confidence about yourself. Look for the opportunities that come in your way. Feel satisfied with what you have. Keep a focus on what you do.

Replace the Perfectionism

Perfectionism is the worst of the habits. It will paralyze you from taking any further actions. If you try to imitate the life of someone who is perfect you will land up to unsatisfactory results. Thus, replace them. Go for only the things that are practically possible for you.

Handle Failures in A Positive Way

Where success is a part of life failures will also come. When you face failures, don't get disheartened. Try to accept them as a part of life. If you feel low, then talk to your friends or family members. They can help you sort out your problems.

Be Kind towards Others

When you treat someone gently, you will treat yourself kindly too. So be the support of others, listen to them when they really need you. Try to motivate others and help them in all possible ways.

If you practice these ways you will definitely grow a higher self-esteem for yourself. The more you welcome new things in your life the more you will feel satisfied and forget all your worries.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9678399

HOW TO BUILD SELF ESTEEM - THE SIX PILLARS OF SELF-ESTEEM BY NATHANIEL B...

Simple to follow, but do you agree?

Tony Robbins: How to deal with STRESS and DEPRESSION - #MentorMeTony

Let me know if this helped you, or you have any other suggestions

How To Use Stress To Your Betterment

By Andy Gibson

For some, stress is hard to live with. For others, it's hard to live without.

As soon as, a 36 year old working woman opens her eyes and sees that's she's over slept by half an hour, she has the sinking feeling that it's going to be one of those days when nothing seems to go right. Rushing to get ready for work, she dashes a glass of hot milk on the kitchen floor, and then hurries out only to find that the trains are delayed because of a power failure. After finally arriving at her office, late of course, she learns that her boss has moved up an important deadline that will keep her working late every night for the next week. Then, when she gets home, she finds that the washing machine has broken down.

Contrast that, with a retired executive, who wakes up at his usual time, has a leisurely breakfast with his wife and then heads off to the club for a game of golf with friends. He returns home in the afternoon, takes a nap, and then has an early dinner and watches a movie on the video.

Which person is under more stress? From the outside, the answer is obvious; the lady is the one under pressure. On the inside, however, the answer may be just the opposite. Retired executive may be ready to explode, while the working woman may be handling her situation calmly.

Most of the stress, we experience does not come from an outside source. Its something we create ourselves, say the experts. People's reactions to similar events vary widely, and what may see very stressful to one person may not bother another person very much at all. The difference lies in how people perceive the events, not in the events themselves.

Some people, it seem, perceive the most innocuous events and common places as parries or threats. Such people are chronically stressed or stress addicts. It's almost as if they have a physical carving to make themselves upset. They go fine for days at a time, then boom: they have got bad TV reception, or found a film of dust on the window still, and they're all twisted into knots. The bad spell could go on for days at a time. And it is so predictable. No matter how well thins are going, sooner or later, such persons go berserk. If nothing happened to trigger, the stress, they'd find something.

Such chronic stress can lead to a host of physical problems ranging from mood disorders, gastrointestinal distress and heart irregularities to peptic ulcers, cardiovascular disease and stroke.

That's not to say we should try to avoid stress altogether. At times stress can be a tremendous motivator, spurring us to complete our work or handle a difficult situation. Other stresses aren't beneficial, but are unavoidable: a death in the family, being fired from a job, debilitating illness. The secret is not to seek to avoid all stress, but instead to learn how to deal with it effectively.

The Nature of Stress

Thought stress may spring from our minds, in order to master it we first have to understand and what it does to our bodies and that means traveling back in time several million years. Back then, stress meant facing a charging tiger, not standing up to a tyrannical boss. For our caveman ancestors, the proper reaction was either fight or flight. Either alternates called for a burst of energy triggered by so called "stress hormones," substances that increase heart rate, blood pressure and muscle strength, and quicken our reaction time. All those changes are beneficial if you are facing a snarling tiger, but not so healthy when you are faced to work with a two legged version of one day after day.

The source of stress has changed over the years, but the physiological responses are still the same. When we are facing financial worries, for example, the stress may last for months or even years. After a while the body naturally starts to tire, and then we begin to experience abnormal physical responses like depression, tiredness, sexual dysfunction, bowel and urinary irregularities, aches and pains, and heart palpitations. And in certain people, stress may be the trigger for more serious illness such as ulcers, coronary heart disease, and stroke.

What is the reason behind people's differing reaction to Stress?

Some researches believe the answer lies in the body itself. "People react differently because of complex and subtle biochemical factor," say Dr. Ray Rosenman, co-author of Type A behavior and your Heart and Director of cardiovascular Research at the Stanford Research Institute. "There are definite anatomical and biological reasons for the wide spectrum of responses people have to anxiety and stress."

In this view, our differing responses to stress are largely beyond our control, set by the physiological and genetic factor that cannot be changed. According to Dr Rosenman, for example, women seem to be more prone to anxiety than men, a difference he attributes in part to differences in the hypothalamus.

Other experts believes that the answer lies in the mind, in long held behavior patterns and belief systems that influence the ways we perceive and deal with stress. How we view the world, says this school of thinking, is pretty much formed in early childhood. Then we go through life under the illusion that we are making our decision at a conscious level. When in reality we're being guided by long standing sub conscious beliefs.

To illustrate, take the example of a person, who as the non rational, subconscious belief that he needs the constant approval of al his relatives, friends and co-workers. Obviously he is not going to get it, which leaves him feeling abandoned and rejected. While a co worker may see a boss's bad mood simply as an irritant, this person may convince himself that it's a sigh he's going to be fired. The key to dealing with that stress is to recognize what his underlying belief is, and then modify it.

A Commonsense Approach

Most stress reduction programs rely on a few basic techniques that anyone can follow:

• Keep a stress dairy to record the things that are causing your stress, rating their importance on a scale of one to ten. Then list and rate your responses to that stress. A ten response to a two problem is foolish.
• Exercise can be one of the best stress busters of all.
• Modify your diet to cut out those substances that may be aggravating your stress. Eat well balanced means and reduce intake of caffeine, salt, alcohol and cigarettes.
• Learn relaxation and meditation techniques and practice them regularly. Growing numbers of books and tapes can teach you the basics, and even a few minutes of such techniques each day can calm and refresh you.
• Build a strong support network of family and friends to help you trough the tough times. Sometimes all it takes to relieve stress is a long conversation with a good friend.
• And perhaps most basic of all, don't sweat the small stuff. Realize that most of the stress we have in our lives probably won't seem that important in a year or even in a month. The secret to reducing stress is realizing that life is good in spite of the daily irritations.

Addictive Stress

Whatever it's underlying cause, some people may come to believe that being stressed is normal, and that can't function effectively without it. Stress for them becomes a kind of addiction, a fix needed to feel complete.

Take the example of an executive with a financial planning company who puts in long working hours in a very stress environment. At the coaxing of his wife, he finally agreed to take a three week vacation. Once there, however, he couldn't relax because of a whole new set of stresses he created for himself: worries about the safety of their hotel, irritations with the house keeping staff, and a frenetic schedule that took them t every tourist sport. "I thought that once he got away from the office, everything would be fine," says his fine. "But he actually seemed more stressed on vacation than he did before. It's as if the thought of totally relaxing scares him to death."

Such stress can simply be a self destructive habit, or a way of avoiding other, more serious problems: "I've got so much stress at work that I don't have the energy to deal with my mother's illness." By focusing on minor irritations, a person may try to overcome deeper worries or avoid them, leading to a continuous spiral of stress.

Some researches speculate that the key to understanding addictive stress lies in the same physical and emotional responses that underlie addictions like smoking or drinking. Dr Paul Rosch, president of the American institute of stress and a clinical professor of medicine and Psychiatry at New York Medical College, says that people can become hooked on the adrenaline secretions released during a stressful reaction. "When that happens, they have alterations in certain brain transmitters that provide a sense of fulfillment," he says. "If they can't get that adrenaline boost, they can't get that pleasurable feeling. It's a similar mechanism to the one involved in other addictions."

Such findings may explain the pleasure some people claim to feel when they are under stress. "The only time I feel truly alive is when I'm working under an impossibly tight deadline," confesses one woman. "Once the pressure is off, everything seems flat."

Beating Stress

Unless we isolate ourselves completely from the world, of course, we are going to have to live with stress. And the best way to do that, say doctors and psychologist, s not through artificial controls like tranquilizers, but through lifestyle and cognitive changes.

"The best advice for dealing with stress is simple: find out what makes you feel anxious and then take pains to avoid it," says Dr. Rosenman.

But there are many stresses that we simply have to learn to deal with: a long, congested commute to work, the chronic illness of spouse, money problems. These are things we may have little control over, and thus they are the most potentially damaging.

What we do have control over is how we react to such problems. As the example at the beginning of this article shows, it's not so much what the outside stresses are, as how we deal with them. Various techniques can help you change your behavior patterns in ways that can relieve the physical symptoms of stress.

More deep seated, cognitive changes may require outside counseling or more introspective approach. Certain fundamental attitudes play an important role in the stresses experienced my many older people, for the anxieties they feel are often not the obvious ones of a high pressure job or the struggle to raise a family. Instead they may be concerned with declining health, the loss of friends, and a feeling of not being productive after retirement.

As we age, we need to develop new coping skills to deal with the new source of stress in our lives. One of the most important issues is related to self worth. Often we commit the error of "ego rating' equating our worth with our productivity or with other people's evaluations of us. We may think that if we are not productive at the same level that we were before, then we have diminished worth. As our lives changes, we need to define ourselves in new ways.

The lesson is one that we should all learn: stress is a controllable and treatable affliction. With sufficient effort and understanding, it doesn't have to be a life sentence.

I firmly believe that the whole universe is inter-connected. Our body, mind and spirit are deeply rooted with each other. If body is sick, the mind cannot relax or feel good. And if mind is not relaxed, it will give birth to stress and that will lead to chronic health problems.

So, it is clear that in order to posses a sound body we must have a calm and peaceful mind. Without a sound mind we cannot expect our potential growth or development.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9697275

The 4 Elements of Fitness

By Tyrone Holmes

Most people want to be fit but that raises a question. What does it mean to be fit? The answer is fairly simple. To be fit, one must have physical capability in four areas: aerobic capacity, muscular strength and endurance, flexibility and body composition.

1. Aerobic Capacity. Aerobic capacity, which is also known as cardiorespiratory fitness, refers to the health and function of the heart, lungs and circulatory system. Simply stated, aerobic fitness is the ability of the cardiorespiratory system to deliver an adequate supply of oxygen to exercising muscles. As your aerobic capacity increases, your ability to participate in more intense and longer lasting exercise also increases (e.g., walking, running, swimming and bicycling). It can be argued that aerobic capacity is the most important of the four elements of fitness because of the health benefits it bestows. According to the American College of Sports Medicine, increased aerobic capacity leads to reduced blood pressure, decreased total cholesterol, increased HDL (good) cholesterol, decreased body fat, increased heart function and decreased risk of Type 2 diabetes.

2. Muscular Strength and Endurance. Muscular strength is the maximum amount of force a muscle or muscle group can generate during a single contraction. Muscular endurance is the number of repeated contractions a muscle or muscle group can perform without tiring. Both are important components of overall fitness because increasing your strength through various types of resistance training (e.g., weightlifting) leads to increased bone strength, decreased bone loss, decreased muscle loss, increased tendon and ligament strength, increased physical capacity, improved metabolic function (e.g., burn more calories at rest), and decreased risk of injury.

3. Flexibility. Flexibility is the range of motion within a joint. Increased flexibility provides a variety of benefits such as decreased risk of injury, increased flow of blood and nutrients to joint structures, increased neuromuscular coordination, decreased risk of low back pain, improved posture and reduced muscular tension.

4. Body Composition. Body composition refers to the relative percentage of body weight that consists of body fat and fat-free mass (everything other than fat such as muscles, organs, blood, bones and water). Generally speaking, the lower your body fat percentage the better because of the diseases linked to excess body fat such as heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, arthritis and sleep disorders. I am often asked, "Can you be fat and fit?" The answer is an overwhelming NO. A significant element of fitness is the possession of a healthy body fat percentage because increased fat leads to decreased athletic performance and increased risk of disease (although it is possible to be overweight and healthy since health is merely the absence of disease or illness). According to the American Council on Exercise, the average body-fat percentage for men is 18-24%. For fit men the percentage is 14-17%. The average percentage for women is 25-31%; however fit women will be in the range of 21-24%. Body-fat percentages above 25% for men and 32% for women are considered obese.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6435988

Amazing Health & Beauty Tips That Will Improve Your Life l 5-MINUTE CRAFTS

Try these to get some quick results

How to Achieve Health and Fitness

By Adrian Joele

Many people are in search for health and fitness, but what are really the essentials for health and fitness and how do you achieve good health and overall well being?

When you have a closer look at the concept, it all boils down to the following four components, which are crucial for healthy living.

They are:

*1 Good Nutrition

*2 Regular Exercise

*3 A Good Night Sleep

*4 High Quality Nutritional Supplementation

If we choose to make good nutrition - including supplementation - and an active lifestyle a daily habit, we could add 5 to 15 healthy years to our lives.

Healthy living means: keeping a balanced, healthy diet, avoiding smoking, excessive use of alcohol and toxic chemicals, taking regular exercise, a good night sleep and supplementing our diet with high quality nutritional supplements.

I will describe in more detail the above mentioned four components for healthy living.

First of all: Good Nutrition.

You probably heard it before: "You are what you eat." Although I like a more accurate definition.it is better to say: "You are what you can get out of your food."

Good nutrition is fundamental for good health.

The human body is a complex system that requires a full spectrum of nutrients for optimal health.

What do we mean by "good nutrition"?

Good nutrition means: eating the right food that contains all the right carbohydrates, protein, fat, fatty acids, vitamins, minerals and trace elements, based on your body type.

A second factor that determines good nutrition is our body's ability to absorb the nutrients from the food that we eat. The nutrients have to be in a form that the cells can accept them, and the cells have to be in optimum condition to be able to absorb the nutrients. This is called bio-availability.

These are the keys to successful nutrition and two often overlooked facts. That is one of the reasons most nutritional supplements miss the mark, they don't address the cellular condition of the body.

You may think that regular exercise, a positive mental attitude, while applying the golden rule: 'everything in moderation' the key is to good health. However, if you understand the damage caused by processed foods, it will motivate you to change your diet, if you are aiming for a high level of health and freedom of degenerative diseases.

Acid-alkaline balance. We should consume acid- and alkaline-forming foods in the right ratio's. This is not hard to realize, when we know that, generally speaking, fruits and vegetables are alkaline-forming and the rest is mostly acid-forming, with a few exceptions. You can read more about acid- and alkaline-forming foods in my article.

The Australian diet contains nearly one-and-a-half times more acid-forming food as it does alkaline-forming food. This ratio should be the other way around. The problem with eating too much acid-forming food is that it builds up toxic waste products, and is the cause of most of our health problems. A diet that contains insufficient fruit and vegetables is missing vital antioxidants, beta-carotene, vitamins and minerals. They are most important to prevent oxidation, caused by free radicals, which are the main cause of heart disease, stroke, cancer and other diseases.

We also need a sufficient amount of antioxidants, to counteract the formation of free radicals, caused by our stressful lifestyle, pollution in air and water and malnutrition. Oxidative stress has shown to be the root cause of over 70 chronic degenerative diseases.

Every day, the DNA in each cell in your body faces about 10, 000 attacks from cell-damaging forces known as free radicals, which are unstable oxygen molecules that have lost an electron. Free radicals are naturally produced as your body turns fuel to energy, but you also get them from pollution in air and water, stress, smoking and radiation from the sun.

These volatile molecules cruise around your body trying to stabilize themselves by stealing electrons from other molecules. When they succeed, they create still more free radicals, causing a sort of snowballing procession of damage.

Free radicals don't just occasionally pop up here and there. Up to 5% of the oxygen that each cell uses is converted into free radicals.

Free radical damage is thought to play a role in the accumulation of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and the lining of your artery walls. This can lead to a narrowing of the arteries called atherosclerosis, which contributes to heart disease. And when free radicals damage DNA inside the cells, the results can be cell mutations that lead to cancer.

It is not all about nutrition, neither is it all about exercise. A balanced lifestyle is the key. Exercise at least three times per week. Aerobics, jogging, swimming, cycling and also include weight lifting in your exercise routine, which is important for maintaining a healthy bone-structure.

The key is to do the right exercise. Aerobics are usually recommended in the weight loss industry, the more intense the better, which is all wrong!! The problem is that aerobics exercises that raise your heart rate above 120 beats per minute, which include running, rowing, swimming, cycling and many of those fancy aerobics classes in health clubs, all strip off muscle almost as much as they strip off fat.

And as you know, muscle loss reduces your ability to burn fat and sets you up to become even fatter. Remember, muscle is the engine in which body fat is burned. You should do everything you can to maintain it for the rest of your life.

Walking is good for many health reasons, it also burn some fat and will not burn muscle. But the best exercise for fat control is wide-variety high repetition resistance training, using weights or machines.

By exercising all the muscles of your body, you burn a lot of fat. Another advantage of resistance exercises is that it increase muscle and as a result provide more muscle cells to be able to burn fat. It's a real health bargain.

Another important factor is proper pace. Don't overdo it. You can't force things to happen at once. The secret to good health is consistency and steadiness. The right amount of food and regular exercise.

The simple technique of 'deep breathing' can make a powerful contribution to feeling good and being fit and well. Our bodies need an abundance of physical and mental energy to be able to function at their best.

The energy source is food, but food is useless without oxygen, which is the key to our power. The more oxygen we deliver to our cells, the more energy we will have.

Breathing is the way we obtain oxygen and the benefits of periodic deep- breathing are enormous. However, if our breathing is shallow, we cripple the functioning of our systems. When the oxygen supply to our lungs is not sufficient, it can contribute to illnesses, both physical and mental. Posture is important for proper breathing.

The third factor of health and fitness is a good night sleep. There is nothing more beneficial than a good nights sleep and there is a great physiological need for it if the individual likes to feel refreshed and alert during the following day. Sleep is also important for your memory and learning capacity and possibly for maintaining a good immune system. But there are still many unanswered questions regarding the function of sleep.

This is possibly best explained with the fact that people suffering from insomnia also suffer from reduced concentration, reduced memory and decreased ability to accomplish daily tasks. They are also at greater risk for work related accidents and road accidents, many sick days, increased use of healthcare services and a lower perceived quality of life.

Insomnia is usually perceived as related to not getting enough sleep, which means that the person either has trouble falling or staying asleep. However, poor quality of sleep, whereby the sufferer wakes up not feeling refreshed, even after sufficient hours spent sleep, is a common complaint, especially by elderly people.

Melatonin is a naturally occurring hormone in the brain, manufactured by the pineal gland and secreted at night. It is quickly degraded, but by being continuously secreted all through the night, it acts like a sleep regulator and 'signal of darkness' in humans. However the natural production of melatonin tends to decrease with age. specially in elderly suffering from insomnia, the production of melatonin is decreased compared to elderly with no sleep problems.

Research has proven that melatonin, when taken in small doses of 0.1 milligram, can decrease the effects of jetlag, like sleeping difficulties and tiredness.

The fourth component is: a high quality nutritional supplements. As I mentioned earlier, most supplements do not address the cellular condition of your body. Even worse, many are in a form that is unacceptable for the cells themselves and don't contain biological available substances that are useful for the cells in your body.

People who are suffering from a chronic degenerative disease are under greater oxidative stress than normal. In this case, optimizers are important to use in order to support any existing nutritional program.

It's been scientifically proven that there are substantial health benefits in taking nutritional supplements. The benefits of nutritional supplements are scientifically verified over the past two years. Hundreds of scientific studies have proved that nutritional supplements can significantly reduce the risk of degenerative diseases.

Apart from the future benefits, eating well and exercising regularly to achieve health and fitness, also enable us to enjoy life so much more right now!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9669171

Oprah Winfrey's Top 10 Rules For Success (@Oprah)

A great list from a very successful businesswoman

Tips for Starting a Healthy Lifestyle!

Why not get started today on a better you!

Tony Robbins: How to Understand Your Mind (Tony Robbins 2017)

Another great video from Tony - changing your life begins with knowing yourself.  Enjoy!

How to Find Your Ideal Sleep Schedule: Saving Yourself Two to Six Hours Every Day!

By Perry Hua

Sleep is a fundamental part of maintaining a healthy lifestyle but how long a person should sleep mainly depends on the person. There are those who require the suggested "8 hours a day" while others can function perfectly fine with less sleep. Different types of sleep schedules pertain to different individuals.

The focus of changing your sleep schedule is to maximize the amount of dream sleep you get each night, which is the type of sleep that is important to restoring your body's energy and keeping the brain sharp, also known as REM sleep. REM sleep is referenced as rapid eye movement sleep, where the brain functions in a state of almost being awake and is where dreams occur. REM sleep is the most critical part of sleep and is what helps you feel rested each night. By maximizing your REM sleep and minimizing the unnecessary amounts of sleep you will have more time each day while having enough energy to take care of business.

I have noticed that those more motivated and ambitious tend to require less sleep yet still have high bouts of energy throughout the day. Whether it is because goals are more important or that their minds get enough energy with less sleep is not the case but because more productive people require less sleep by nature. Those that are willing to accomplish more adjust their sleep schedules towards their own life, finding more efficient ways to get the most energy from sleep.

Do you think the amount of sleep you get is too much? Don't feed into the "8 hours a day" rule of thumb, there are many ways to sleep more efficiently to save you time while also making you feel rested.

Exploring Your Sleep Schedule

Everyone tells you that 8 hours of sleep is the ideal amount to get each night but this only applies to the average person. You aren't average though. On average a person should have 8 hours of rest every 24 hour period but largely the 8 hour a day rule is just a myth. There is no magic number to how much sleep you need, you'll have to find out your sleep schedule for yourself. Younger people might need more time sleeping to restore their body's energy but as you get older sleep patterns start to vary.

While most people sleep 8 hours to feel energized others might feel tired and groggy throughout the day from that amount. I am one of those people. If I get 8 hours of sleep a day I tend to feel sluggish and usually nap in the afternoon due to fatigue. I developed another sleep schedule over the years that was more relevant to my lifestyle. It gives me about three hours of extra time every day.

In my case I have experimented on how much sleep I need for quite a while. In my younger years 8 hours was ubiquitously followed but as I grew I started to realize it was influencing me in a negative way. An 8 hour sleep is a big chunk of your day, leaving you less time to stay awake. If you think 8 hours is the "healthiest option" it might just be more than you need. Basing my sleep schedule around 8 hours of sleep proved more tedious than it should have been so I experimented with different sleep cycles.

I discovered I needed less sleep than the average person when I had a zero period back in high school. Developing the routine of 6 hours sleep a night became mandatory in order to get to school on time but surprisingly I was able to keep awake most of the day. After high school I started trying different sleep cycles. I would experiment with X hours of base sleep and Y hours of napping time each day. Instead of an alarm to wake up to I would keep a timer on of how much sleep I was to get that day.

Through my own process I noticed that my body would respond to different amounts of sleep. 8 hours would be too much. 6-7 hours would still make me tired and I would fall asleep for another 2-4 hours after I woke. After much testing and analyzing I discovered that about 4-5 hours of base sleep and a maximum of thirty minutes of napping a day was my ideal sleep schedule. To describe the feeling it is like a caffeine rush for most of the day and even if I tried to go to sleep I wouldn't be able to because I would feel wide awake. A 30 minute nap in the afternoon would make me feel wide awake again so the optimal amount of sleep for me is roughly about 4-5 hours a day.

This happens to be my model sleep schedule however and is probably different for you. My sleep schedule is a form of biphasic sleep where I sleep twice a day. There are other cycles that are far more efficient that I am looking to try in the near future, these are referred to as polyphasic sleep. You might need more or less sleep than me and you might need your sleep spread throughout the day but that's okay. The best way to experiment with your sleep schedule is during a period where you aren't stressed or have time to try out new cycles. There are numerous sleep schedules you can implement but to slowly ease into them you need to first find your optimal sleeping time and from there can start different sleep cycles.

Maximizing REM Sleep

Sleep consists of 5 stages, 4 of which are spent preparing for REM sleep.

* Stage 1 is a relaxed state between being awake and sleeping
* Stage 2 is slightly deeper sleep
* Stage 3 is deep sleep where extremely slow brain waves called delta waves begin to appear
* Stage 4 is also deep sleep where the brain produces delta waves almost exclusively
* Stage 5 is REM (rapid eye movement) sleep which is when you dream

A full sleep cycle lasts about 90-110 minutes and a person goes through all the stages of sleep from one to four, then back down through stages three and two, before entering dream sleep. A basic 7-8 hours only consists of 1-2 hours of REM sleep though, which means the other 5-6 hours is spent in light to deep sleep, which isn't particularly important to the mind. That 5-6 hours is time spent in unconsciousness basically doing nothing except prepping the brain for entering REM sleep. The first four stages might help in restoring your body's health but it is the REM phase that makes you feel rested each day.

REM sleep can be manipulated though, providing more REM sleep and eliminating unnecessary non-REM sleep. Sleep cycles include monophasic, biphasic, and polyphasic sleep. As you probably guessed monophasic sleep consists of one period of sleep each 24 hours. Biphasic sleep is two separate sleep periods per day and polyphasic sleep is multiple periods each day.

Monophasic/Biphasic Sleep

Most people adopt monophasic sleep cycles consisting of one 7 to 8 hour period each 24-hour period. This can be inefficient however because most of the time spent sleeping doesn't consist of REM sleep. A third of the day is devoted to sleeping and most of it won't make you feel rested! Think of this as the least effective cycle, it provides little benefit for such a long period of sleep.

What I practice is biphasic sleep where I sleep twice a day, although it is gradually shifting to an Everyman cycle. Biphasic sleep isn't nearly as efficient as polyphasic sleep but it gives me more time throughout the day than monophasic sleep. I get around 4-5 hours of core sleep and about a thirty minute nap in the afternoon. A lot of college students develop this sleep schedule because they are often busy. If you want to take a step up from monophasic sleep try this sleep schedule.

Polyphasic Sleep

One of the ways to trick your brain into going straight into REM sleep is to go to sleep feeling exhausted. By going to sleep extremely tired the body compensates by going straight into REM sleep instead of going through the other 4 stages. But instead of going to sleep exhausted you can trick your mind into thinking you will only get a tiny amount of sleep, which will trigger your brain to go into REM sleep.

Polyphasic sleep consists of several periods of sleep throughout the day. It is a more efficient sleep cycle giving you more time throughout the day, from anywhere between three to six hours! That gives you anywhere from 19-22 hours of time staying awake every day. There are a variety of methods to choose from including:

The Everyman cycle consists of one longer amount of base sleep, around 1.5-4.5 hours and accompanied with several 20-30 minute naps throughout the day, depending on how much base sleep you get. An Everyman 2 cycle consists of a 4.5 hour sleep and would be accompanied with two 20-30 minute naps. An Everyman 3 cycle consists of a 3 hour sleep accompanied with three 20-30 minute naps. Lastly the Everyman 4 cycles consists of a 1.5 hour sleep accompanied with four 20-30 minute naps. The Everyman 3 cycle seems to work the best as testified by many people who have tried it.

The more naps you are to take the more REM sleep you will get thus allowing your core sleep to be shrunken to a minimum and ultimately allowing you more time awake. Note however that the less core sleep you get the more you have to follow your sleep schedule on cue. Naps play an important role because they are mainly REM sleep so even missing one can make you feel extremely weary. The longer the core sleep the more flexibility you will have in arranging nap times throughout the day.

The Uberman cycle consists of 20 to 30 minute naps every 4 hours. This results to about 6 naps throughout the day and no periods of base sleep. This cycle makes your body go directly into REM sleep to make up for the sleep you lost. It takes time to develop however for the brain to get used to going straight into REM sleep so the first couple of days might be the hardest.

The Dymaxion cycle is a tad bit more crazy than the Uberman cycle. It consists of 30 minute naps every 6 hours, resulting in about 2 hours of sleep a day! That's six extra hours per day! Think of the Dymaxion cycle as the holy grail of productive people.

These sleep schedules might seem unrealistic to you but the time you'll be able to save is worth it. Choose a method most suitable for you that revolves around your lifestyle. Polyphasic cycles require a flexible schedule in order to adapt to. It doesn't make sense to follow the Uberman cycle if you have a full time job to adhere to, it would be better to follow the biphasic cycle in order for you to do your job at your best.

It's important to give yourself time to adjust to these sleep schedules as well. They can take months to get used to which is why you must be patient and have the time to stick to them. Naps can't be missed the first few weeks or else it could have negative consequences.

What stands apart from these sleep schedules is most notably the adjustment process. Most of these sleep cycles can take about 30 days to develop, which is on average how long a habit takes to form. The Everyman cycle can take longer to get used to due to it being more similar to a "regular" sleep schedule while the Uberman and Dymaxion cycles are easier to adjust to since it is more of a habit to form than anything else. While the Everyman cycle does take longer to adjust to the latter is more extreme. When starting out you will be extremely sleep deprived which can make these cycles more difficult. Everyman takes more time to adapt to while Uberman and Dymaxion will make you lose the meaning of "sleep".

Of course, you don't have to change your sleep schedule if you are happy with your habits right now. These sleep cycles are mainly for those looking for more time throughout their day. People who have adopted these methods have reported that they feel more aware throughout the day and that the world moves slower than usual making the days seem longer. People have also found that they have more energy than before with sharper senses.

I'll admit not everyone can get used to these methods but if you really want to find more time to do the things you want then trying one of these sleep schedules can't possibly hurt. What you will need in order to pull through is:

* Undying perseverance when beginning
* A flexible schedule
* A stable and open mental state
* Belief in yourself

What would you do with an extra hour every day? Or two or three? How about six extra hours? The possibilities are endless with the amount of time you could gain and in this way different sleep schedules are a way in "beating sleep". Spending a third of your life in slumber isn't a particularly wise practice when most of a 7-8 hour period does little to make you feel rested. Think of applying different sleep schedules as a technique in increasing your longevity, what would be an average 24 hour day can feel like a 30 hour day!

Sleeping Tips

* Minimize the amount of caffeine you drink per day. It will disrupt your sleep schedule horribly.

* Avoid junk food, highly processed or foods high in fats and oils, and alcohol.

* Foods such as dairy, soy, whole grains, rice, seeds, nuts, beans, eggs, meats, cherries, and bananas can help regulate sleep schedules.

* Eat a light snack a few hours before going to sleep.

* Avoid large meals before going to sleep.

* Exercise on a regular basis.

* Keep a consistent schedule so your internal clock will know when to sleep.

* Try not to nap for more than 30 minutes.

* Sleep on comfortable pillows and mattresses.

* Keep your energy levels high throughout the day so that you will be ready for bed.

* Minimize disruptions such as light or noise.

* Manage stress so you can fall asleep easier.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Perry_Hua/1431187

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Jim Rohn - 10 Steps to Achieving Anything You Want (Jim Rohn Personal De...

Another good video from Jim Rohn!  Hope you enjoy it.

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Stress and How to Cope With It

By Awnish Todi  |   Submitted On March 02, 2016

Stress is a normal response to difficult situations. We often confuse it as some form of mental pressure caused due to our own inability to deal with things. But that's not what it is. Stress is not an action, it's a reaction. Stress is our reaction to various external factors.
Before we get to the whole coping part, first we need to understand a few things about stress that are essential.

1. Stress is not always bad
Stress is the body's way of reacting to a challenge. When faced with a tough situation, there are a whole lot of reactions that the body goes through. Increased pulse rate, adrenaline boost, faster response to stimuli and among those, stress is one.
But the same stress that 'stresses us out', also makes us quicker and more prone to handle situations better. Stress makes us do our best. So it isn't always a bad thing.

2. Stress varies from person to person
Some people are inherently calmer and more composed, compared to others. So, their reactions also are different. Stress levels change vastly across different people and are not to be compared at any stage.
If I can deal with a tough situation well that does not make another person's stress or panic a bad thing. It is after all only a reaction.

3. Stress is not always an illness
There are a variety of stress related disorders. But just because a person is prone to stress, does not make them a patient. Stress disorders, like all other disorders are something that cannot be confirmed unless clinically diagnosed.
Thus, stress in daily life is as normal as it can be.

4. Stress always has a trigger
May not be something happening at the moment. Sometimes the trigger of stress goes back in time, that we don't even recall the incident. That is because our mind is an expert at suppressing information that can be distressing. But no stress, ever comes without a trigger.
Stress that is positive or good for us in some way, is called Eustress and the one which makes us all panicky and unable to see straight is Distress.
Modern day MNCs encourage some amount of work stress to ensure that employees push ahead and don't get too comfortable. Although as the position becomes more and more powerful, eustress becomes distress. Let us now look at some stress related disorders.

1. General Stress
This is your old school, before an exam, important day type of stress. It is so normal and so vastly experienced that if you don't experience it, people think you're a bit weird (in a good way of course!).
General stress requires nothing more than a few deep breaths and a cool glass of water. It goes away as fast as it came.

2. Acute Stress
This is in a way, the big brother of general stress. It is not in any way damaging, but it makes you completely frazzled and leaves you exhausted.
This would be the stress people experience when work load is doubled, during year end or when you study for a history test and get the math paper in hand. The situation is overloaded and so the brain becomes irritated and you start sweating and panicking.
Acute stress can also be dealt with the old ways, but the best thing to do is to simply let it pass.

3. Episodic Acute Stress
This is one of the serious types. It's one thing to be stressed out, but something is off when a person gets worked out about almost everything. Even things that is not stressful. So be it their wedding day or their nothing day, there is something they will stress about.
For people with episodic stress, things get out of hand very quickly. Calm becomes chaos in the blink of an eye. They take on more than they can chew and at the moment of truth, they are about to explode.
Episodic stress patients are often studied for crisis management purposes just to get a grasp of how masses will respond to a situation.

4. Chronic Stress
While acute stress can be thrilling and exciting, chronic stress is not. This is the grinding stress that wears people away day after day, year after year. Chronic stress destroys bodies, minds and lives. It wreaks havoc through lives.
If you can imagine what the stress must be in a situation of war, then I assure, you can imagine what chronic stress is like. It requires medical help and proper treatment.
While Chronic Stress needs proper medical attention, the other forms of stress can be dealt with. One can even cultivate a habit to deal with it.
For people whose daily lives involve stress (stock brokers I see you!), these few tricks always come in handy.

Coping with stress

• Always, DEEP BREATHES. Don't argue, simply follow. Breathe deeply and breathe often.
• Water. Drink it slowly and prolong the drink. Don't gulp it all down and expect to be calm. The more time you take, the more time you get to process things.
• Use a stress ball. Those smiley faces aren't a joke. They release tension from your muscles and that helps you relax physically.
• Be patient. Nothing is going to happen sooner than it is meant to, simply because you're about to burst a nerve! Close your eyes and be patient.
• Be prepared, if you can. This is what you need to do before events that are inevitably going to happen (EXAMS). Be prepared well in advance. No stress.
• Count down from 100. With every number down, think like it's one point of stress leaving your body. By the time you hit 0, you'll be back to #1.
• Know you are human. Like seriously! There are limits to what you can and cannot achieve. So stop biting off more than you can chew. Accept only enough work and do it perfectly.
• Have some quiet time alone. Have some beverage (whatever you please) and let the negativity get out on its own.
To end, get this one right up there on your list of best quotes -
"Tough times don't last. Tough people do."

The Silver Lining
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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Awnish_Todi/2211006

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