This article is really important!
From marcandangel.com

In the end, we only regret the chances we didn’t take, relationships we were afraid to have, and the decisions we waited too long to make.

The things you didn’t do when you had the chance.  That priceless relationship you neglected.  Those important words you left unspoken…

Every one of us has experienced feelings of regret.  But it’s not too late to set things straight.  We’re still here breathing.  Right now we have an opportunity to change our future.  Right now we can choose to erase regret from our later years.

Here are nine things no one wants to regret when they’re older, and some thoughts on avoiding these regrets:

1.  Not spending enough time smiling with the people you love.

You’ve heard the saying, ‘The best things in life are free.’  Well spending quality time with family and friends, enjoying the antics of a pet, seeing your child smile, experiencing intimate and heart-felt moments with your significant other – these times are precious and free.

Don’t get so caught up in the rat race, working 50+ hours a week, to the point where you are too stressed and exhausted to enjoy your closest relationships.  By simplifying your lifestyle and making conscious choices along the way, it is possible to live on less money, and thus work fewer hours and enjoy more of what matters most.

As we get older, fun is often underrated.  With all of our responsibilities, fun seems like an indulgence.  It shouldn’t be.  It should be a requirement.  When your work life is busy, and all your energy is focused in that arena, it’s all too easy to find yourself off balance.  While drive and focus is important, if you intend to maintain happiness and peace in your life you still need to balance in the soccer games, the family dinners, the intimate dates with your significant other, etc.

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(Source: believeinrecovery)

Myself. My sobriety. My mom. My pops. My little bro. My cats. My boyfriend. Cesar. My music. Going to concerts. Going the the movies. Going to the park. Cooking. Art. Sewing. Collecting records. Getting a new pair of shoes. My bed. The sunshine. I am just so grateful for being alive, that even the littlest things make me smile these days. 

x 30 day recovery challenge

People spend a lifetime searching for happiness, looking for peace. they chase idle dreams, addictions, religions, even other people, hoping to fill the emptiness that plagues them. the irony is the only place they ever needed to search was within.

Article from marcandangel.com

You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.
- Mae West

You know you’re on the right track when you can repeat each of the following headlines to yourself, honestly. (And if you can’t, this list gives you something positive to work on.)

1.  I am following my heart and intuition.

Don’t be pushed by your problems.  Be led by your dreams.  Live the life you want to live.  Be the person you want to remember years from now.  Make decisions and act on them.  Make mistakes, fall and try again.  Even if you fall a thousand times, at least you won’t have to wonder what could have been.  At least you will know in your heart that you gave your dreams your best shot.

Each of us has a fire in our hearts burning for something.  It’s our responsibility in life to find it and keep it lit.  This is your life, and it’s a short one.  Don’t let others extinguish your flame.  Try what you want to try.  Go where you want to go.  Follow your own intuition.  Dream with your eyes open until you know exactly what it looks like.  Then do at least one thing every day to make it a reality.

And as you strive to achieve your goals, you can count on there being some fairly substantial disappointments along the way.  Don’t get discouraged, the road to your dreams may not be an easy one.  Think of these disappointments as challenges – tests of persistence and courage.  At the end of the road, more often than not, we regret what we didn’t do far more than what we did.

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(Source: believeinrecovery)

My rock bottom was 2008-2011. I can think of specific points in that time that were the low but really those 3 years put together were the lowest. Lying and stealing is a huge part of my rock bottom. Also, shooting drugs in my arm. Staying with an abusive boyfriend, putting myself in deadly situations, jeeze everything in those 3 years was awful. How did I overcome it? I decided to change my life, plain and simple. I realized how weak I was and asked for help. It wasn’t easy and messed up a lot in the beginning. After a few road bumps, I finally got serious about recovery and wanting to be happy. The rest is history!

x 30 day recovery challenge

Article from tinybuddha.com

“Criticism is something you can easily avoid by saying nothing, doing nothing, being nothing” ~Aristotle

The need for approval kills freedom.

Trust me, I know, because I spent my entire life seeking approval until I realized it was a waste of time and didn’t work anyway. The desire to get people to like me motivated the majority of my choices and actions in early life.

Queen of social chameleons, I mastered the art of telling people what they wanted to hear and being someone they would find impressive—all the while worrying incessantly about what others thought of me, fearing criticism, and holding myself back as a result.

When I first started building my coaching business, this craving for acceptance caused me to hide from opportunities where the potential for reward was high, but the possibility for criticism was equally large.

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foreverg5:

We’re going to get it wrong a bunch of times before we get it right. I think it’s inevitable because that’s the only way we’ll learn the difference. It’s kind of like how people say that you don’t know “bad” until you’ve seen “good”. I guess that every time we get it wrong, it is discouraging. But I think a way to stay focus is to look for signs that you are on the path to getting it right. One of the biggest signs of all is when you start recognizing when something is wrong more quickly than you did the last time.

Yes, a broken heart seriously hurts. I don’t know if you read my story or not but a boyfriend I was with for 5 years got deported. A breakup is almost like a grieving process. Try not to feel pity for yourself, you can get through this! Since you do work with him, I’ll write out a few tips might be helpful for you. 

1. As hard as it might be, be polite and kind towards your ex. Be the better person. Even if they are mean, rude, or ignorant towards you, remember that you are mature and professional and act accordingly.
2. Don’t avoid him. It won’t help you to get over the breaking up and it could make things worse. You can’t avoid a person forever. Just be friendly.
3. Do not, by any means, discuss your relationship with everyone at work or say any bad things about your ex behind their back. They are bound to find out sooner or later, and it doesn’t make you look like a very nice person. Also consider, out of respect for yourself and your ex, that you probably don’t want everyone to know your business. It was private and should stay between you.
4. Consider and learn to accept the fact that you, or your ex, might date a fellow employee someday. It’s hard so to watch your ex flirt with other employees or sometimes customers, but accept that they have moved on and do the same.
5. Time is the healer of all wounds. It’s true, though you have to see him everyday, it doesn’t mean you won’t get over him. You can do it, just love yourself more and know that it didn’t work because he is not the right person for you.

As I said, you can get through this! A broken heart doesn’t last forever, even if it seems like it. Don’t rush into another relationship, but do go out and have fun. You said you have great friends, spend time with them. If it’s too much to handle seeing him all the time, consider getting a new job. Do what you think is best for YOU. Also, it might help writing a list of things you don’t like about him but keep it to yourself. You are not going to be unhappy forever, I promise. Start focusing more on you and your happiness instead of the past. I know you can do this, now only you have to truly believe it. 

Ooh I thought you might have lived with her. That’s a great idea with the worksheets! Or any type of reading material to help her understand a little more. You are very lucky that you two are so close even with the distance. My grandma used to make me so mad with the comments she made about me. Now that she has passed, I really wish I was a little more mature and could have established a relationship like you guys have. I know NOW that my grandma only said those things out of ‘tough-love’ and she would be so proud of who I am today. Cherish her and don’t hold resentments towards her words. She grew up in a very different time and is probably helping the only way she knows how, with some tough-love. When you ask your therapist for some worksheets, also ask them about how to explain depression a little better to her. I am so glad you are doing better!! As long as you are proud and happy about your progress, that’s all that really matters. 

Article from marcandangel.com

When you quit doing the wrong things, you make more room for the things that make you happy.  So starting today…

1.  Quit procrastinating on your goals.

Some people dream of success while others wake up and work hard at it.  Action and change are often resisted when they’re needed most.  Get a hold of yourself and have discipline.  Putting something off instantly makes it harder and scarier.  What we don’t start today won’t be finished by tomorrow.  And there’s nothing more stressful than the perpetual lingering of an unfinished task.

The secret to getting ahead is simply getting started.  Starting, all by itself, is usually sufficient to build enough momentum to keep the ball rolling.  So forget about the finish line and just concentrate on taking your first step.  Say to yourself, “I choose to start this task with a small, imperfect step.”  All those small steps will add up and you’ll actually get to see changes fairly quickly.

2.  Quit blaming others and making excuses.

Stop blaming others for what you have or don’t have, or for what you feel or don’t feel.  When you blame others for what you’re going through, you deny responsibility and perpetuate the problem.  Stop giving your power away andstart taking responsibility for your life.  Blaming is just another sorry excuse, and making excuses is the first step towards failure; you and only you are responsible for your life choices and decisions.

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(Source: believeinrecovery)