Don't Worry and Be Happy in 3 Steps

We live in a world that is so fast paced and stressful that we now have to shell out loads of cash just to de-stress.  We take vacations, spa days, yoga classes, etc just to relax. We make efforts to "get away" from our lives but it's a temporary reprieve. Why not reduce stress permanently?

This is not a 3 step guide to becoming the happiest person in the world with no stress what-so-ever. I'm talking about taking small steps to ensure that we make a long lasting reduction in high stress levels. Small reductions in stress levels that will improve the overall quality of our life. 

Step 1: Talk to yourself.

I don't mean talk to yourself out loud at all times and have emotional or heated debates in public. If it works for you go right ahead (don't be surprised if you get some suspicious or scared glances).

I mean talk to yourself throughout the day. Studies show that talking to yourself can actually make you smarter, more efficient and motivated. Do you speak more than one language? Did you know that talking to yourself in your native language also helps you better analyze situations, assess pros and cons and lead to better decisions?

I usually laugh at myself for feeling so strongly about things that seem insignificant when I say them out loud. When you have to put feelings in to words, it forces you to break them down from uncontrollable feelings to description which somehow doesn't sound so bad anymore. Talk yourself out of negativity. Give yourself a pep talk. Whatever it takes to help you get it all out. Repressing feelings only amplifies them and they end up coming out anyway but usually at the worst possible times.

Step 2: Reflect about others.

No better way to forget your own troubles than to realize the troubles of others. Are you worried about your children? Money problems? Relationship? Go online and Google news about less fortunate children who don't have food, shelter and no parents. How about reading about those parents who cannot feed their children? You might want to splurge on those spa days if you have a teenager or two (joking!) Remind yourself that whatever you are facing, there are those out there that are facing something similar or worse. It's a way to count your blessings. I feel a little guilty for even worrying at this point.

Step 3: Do something positive.

Doing something positive in your life gives you hope. It reminds you of the power you hold within you to do good despite everything that you face. I know this will not make sense to a lot of people when they first read it but I urge you to try this. The next time you are so stressed out that you cannot even think straight...go do a random act of kindness for someone. Give a homeless person some change, bake cookies for your neighbor, call that one person in your family that you don't really talk to just to see how they're doing, make a donation, say a prayer for someone, make amends with someone you dislike etc. It will give you control over yourself. 

So start talking to yourself, count your blessings and make the world a better place.

"First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do." -  Epictetus

Brain Boost: Easy Ways to Train Your Mind

You ever meet someone who was beautiful, attractive and confident and then they open their mouth to talk...All that glitters ain't gold! Great conversations, passionate debates, thoughtful insights are just some signs of a beautiful brain.

Here are some things you can do to improve your cognitive skills and overall "brain power"! 

Reading Exercises:

1. Read more than one book at a time and different types (fiction, non fiction). This helps your brain improve it's multitasking capacity.

2. Read something for ten minutes and then grab a piece of paper and detail what you read. Compare notes. What did you miss? Keep doing this and watch your memory retention grow. 

3. If you want to go the extra mile ask yourself questions about the material you just read.Questions such as; What concepts have been discussed? What are the applications in the real world? What if you changed one significant event in a characters life? How do you they will do things differently? Has the book changed your preception and how?

Questions like these will require higher order thinking skills. You will be able to analyze pieces of information and bring them together to solve problems, make accurate assumptions and better decisions. Why do you think we had to do book reports in grade school or essay analysis in high school or critical thinking projects in college?

Writing Exercises

1. Try writing a creative short story. Build a character profile with a background story, personality traits, dialogue patterns and physical attributes. This will improve your attention to detail and creativity.

2. Write out a sales pitch for yourself. Think of yourself as a product. What are your features, benefits and what objections would people have when hiring you? Then write out the rebuttals or goals to improve those objectionable traits

This exercise is cool because you get a self analysis and a self improvement plan. You will never have a problem answering questions about your strengths and weaknesses in an interview!

Physical Exercises:

Work out! It helps clear your brain, produces adrenaline which promotes heightened clarity and chemical balance. 

Coffee:

Drinking coffee in moderation helps jump start your brain on those slow mornings.

Diet:

Eat brain food! Almonds, walnuts, complex carbs like whole grains and wild salmon can have some incredible impact on the brain.

Play:

Games like Sudoku, Tetris and Chess have known to improve your strategic thinking, spatial analysis and logic.

Draw:

You can doodle stick figures all you want but try sketching a real life objects. Try to replicate the same shades, angles and perspective. You will improve your spatial analysis, hand-eye coordination and creative thinking skills. Plus it can be extremely relaxing for some.

Quick Tip:

You will retain up to 95% of information you read, hear, or see IF you teach it to someone else. 

Unhealthy to Healthy Hair: 4 Easy Rules

It doesn't matter what kind of hair you have or texture or age or colour. We all wash, style and cut our hair... Well we should anyway. Lol.

So I'm going to share with you rules to live by for when you wash, when you style and when you cut your hair. Of course we need to nourish hair too so there is a recipe for revitalizing hair included for you. They're easy to follow - trust me I'm so lazy, I'd never stick to it if it wasn't easy.

1. The Cold Shower 

Always rinse hair with cool or cold water after washing. Condition with your hair flipped over to avoid buid up in your scalp and to avoid cold water running down your back. Practice makes perfect. There have been a few screams in my bathroom while perfecting this trick. The cold water seals in the moisture.

2.The Comb, Brush and Heat 

COMB (no brushes) hair with a large tooth comb when wet - preferably while there is conditioner in it during a shower to detangle.

BRUSH only dry hair. Brushing pulls on the hair so wet hair will snap and break but dry hair will be more resistant.

HEAT - Using blow dryers, flat irons, curling irons, hot rollers, crimpers etc. is bad for hair - no matter what protective serum you use - there is always some damage that adds up over time so limit it if you can!

Tip: curly or wavy hair should not be brushed unless your going to flat iron it.

3. The Sharp Cut 

Always make sure that the hair stylist is using the sharpest scissors.

If you want to maintain length, trim your hair every 4 months

If you want to grow your hair, trim 1/4 inch once every six months.

Easy right?l

Okay now how do we bring life back to hair?

4. The Protein Pack

Mashup an avacado,

add half a cup yogurt, 

and two tbsp almond/coconut/olive oil 

Optional: one egg

Mix it all up and apply all over your hair. Tie it up and let it sit for atleast an hour. Wash and style.

Here's the beauty of it... If you follow these rules and your diet is balanced - you only have to do the hair mask once every two weeks or once a month depending on the condition of your hair.

If your hair is healthy at the roots but gets damaged as it grows longer it's likely the way you manage it. 

Happy hair care people and let me know how things work out. Remember to check out our page for more great homemade, easy to do, doesn't cost an arm and a leg tips at : www.facebook.com/Beautyfacile 

Check out this homemade hair growth formula!

http://youtu.be/rdC3ewXtbzA