Five Myths about Life and How You Should Be Living It

joy.jpgEvery day, we’re bombarded by television commercials, celebrity spokespeople, and advertisements telling us the “right” way to live.

We are told to strive for unattainable lifestyles and to model ourselves after unrealistic, airbrushed models.

Sometimes you need to step back from this virtual reality and ponder what life is really about. Will that Mercedes or those anti-anxiety medications really make you happier, or are they only temporary solutions to deeper issues? Examine these five myths about how you should be living your life and start living the way you want to live.

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6 Unexpected Tips for a Better Night’s Sleep

dogsleeping.jpgHave you tried counting sheep, drinking warm milk, and listening to whale songs until you can know the difference between the sound of an orca and a beluga and you still can’t fall asleep?

Maybe it’s not your biological clock that’s keeping the Sandman away. It could be that elements of your life that are in disarray. Check out these six tips for sleeping better if you’re one of the millions of Americans that tosses and turns at bedtime each night.

Know Where You’re Going

The future is always uncertain, but setting goals makes the unknown a bit more tangible. When you have goals to progressively work toward achieving, you then have a map directing you to where you want to be. Although unexpected challenges and bumps in the road are certain to arise, you will sleep better at night knowing that you have a plan.

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Let’s All Buckle Down and Live Right

by David Bohl, Personal Coach and Lifestyle Designer

The 21st-century world can be a dangerous place. The wide reach of the Internet and other technological developments makes people more interconnected than ever before. Though this interconnectedness can oftentimes be a positive thing, it opens the doors for identity thieves, child predators, and scam artists to take advantage of unsuspecting victims.

Furthermore, when news headlines are filled with stories of morally bankrupt business leaders and dishonest politicians, it makes the path to righteousness seem like an uphill battle. However, you can start the climb and hopefully have an effect on others by buckling down and beginning to live right.

Know Your Ten Commandments

The Ten Commandments brought down by Moses from Mount Sinai are often referenced when people cite their personal rules for living. Whether or not you use the Bible as your ethical measuring tape, it is important to have your own code of ethics to live by.

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Are You Too Comfortable in Your Job?

sleeping.jpgComplacency in the Workplace and How to Fight It

by David Bohl

When you visit the same place at the same time for forty hours a week, complacency can slowly creep in. Complacency in the workplace is difficult to handle because, while you may feel comfortable and secure in your position, someone else could be waiting in the wings to dethrone you.

Even if you know there is no competition for your job, complacency can eventually lead to lack of motivation and maybe even laziness. Read on to determine if you may be too comfortable in your job and find out ways to get your groove back.

Have you ever heard the saying, “dress for the job you want, not the job you have”? Appearance plays a bigger role than you may think in the way you are perceived. Many businesses have shifted towards a more relaxed dress code, and “casual Friday” has turned into “casual Monday through Friday.”

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How to Weather Life’s Storms and Rise Above the Rain

storm.jpgby David Bohl

You know that when life gives you lemons, you should make lemonade. But sometimes, when the going gets rough, there’s no money for sugar and the lemonade ends up tasting sour.

A bad analogy, perhaps, but the point is that making it through the hard times in life is not always as easy as the clichés make it sound. Trials and tribulations are inevitable, so it’s not the lack of trouble in your life but rather how you weather the storms that really counts.

First, when you sense a storm is brewing, take a tip from the sailors of the world and batten down the hatches! Sometimes storms seemingly come out of nowhere, but almost always, there are signs that danger is on the horizon. The sky gets dark, the wind picks up, and there is that unidentifiable ominous feeling in the air. Furthermore, there are people in your life who may even tell you a storm is on its way.

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Happy? Or Just Going Through the Motions?

nothappy.jpgHappiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence.

~ Aristotle

I was shocked to read a recent study that reported less than 30% of people interviewed said they were deeply happy, and that 25% of Americans and 27% of Europeans claimed they are depressed. As a naturally happy person, I was amazed at how many unhappy people there are. Generally when I work with my coaching clients, they are not unhappy about everything in their life; they usually just have one area they are working on or one challenge to overcome.


So why are so many people unhappy? And why are so many people just going through the motions, appearing to be happy, pretending to be happy, when they’re really not?

The first step in determining if you’re happy or how happy you are is to define happiness. To some, it means doing what they want, having what they want, and being who they want, that is, fulfilling their dreams and desires. To others, it’s a state of mind that is not dependent on the outside world, but more on an inner contentment. And to still others, it’s about being responsible for their choices and accepting responsibility for whatever shows up in their lives, even if it didn’t seem like a conscious choice.
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The Ultimate List of 2008’s Most-Read Numbered Lists

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Here are the 12 Most-Read Numbered Posts in 2008 at Slow Down FAST:

12.    5 Tips for Becoming a Better Listener
11.    5 Qualities of Successful Relationships
10.    6 Ways for Effecting Change in Your Life
9.      6 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Busting Out of the Rat Race
8.      5 Signs It’s Time to Slow Down Fast
7.      6 Ways to Be a Friend Without Involving Money, Gifts or Obligation
6.      5 Ways to Reconnect to Your Inner Child
5.      10 Great Productivity Web Sites
4.      5 Signs You’re a Pleaser and What to Do About It
3.      5 Simple Tricks To Make You Smarter
2.      8 Essential Ingredients to Master Your Time
1.      The Causes and Cures of Procrastination

Thank you all for your support throughout the year, and best wishes in all your future endeavors.

Top 12 Posts of 2008

I know it isn’t year-end yet, but experience and observation have shown that not many people want to begin the heavy lifting of reflection and self-assessment near the Holidays.

So, after 700+ posts in 2008, I’m publishing the 12 Most Read Posts at Slow Down FAST so we can all get a jump on the new year.

Thank you all for your support throughout the year.

Here they are:

  1. The Causes and Cures of Procrastination
  2. Mindhacks: 5 Ways to Increase Creativity, Productivity and Intelligence
  3. How to Overcome the #1 Fear: Public Speaking
  4. 8 Essential Ingredients to Master Your Time
  5. Do Not Wage Psychological Warfare
  6. Stuck in a Rut? Fire Up Your Creativity with These 7 Steps
  7. What Are You Passionate About?
  8. See How Easily You Can Handle Change
  9. How to Maintain Professional Boundaries
  10. 5 Simple Tricks To Make You Smarter
  11. 5 Signs You’re a Pleaser and What to Do About It
  12. From Greedy to Grateful – Appreciating What You Have

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‘Tis the Season to Slow Down

holidaysmile.jpgby David Bohl

When Halloween candy hits the shelves before Labor Day and animatronic Santas are ho-ho-ho-ing at you before you’ve even had a chance to carve your Thanksgiving turkey, it’s hard not to feel rushed through the holiday season. However, difficult as it may be to pause and reflect on the meaning of the holidays, it is certainly beneficial.

If you feel like the time between Halloween and Christmas is nothing more than a blur before your eyes, try a few of these tips to slow down and enjoy your holidays this year.

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How to Change “Why” into “Why Not?”

sky.jpg“With positive internal dialogue, we can create self-power.”

~ Deepak Chopra, The Spontaneous Fulfillment Of Desire

Unfortunately one of the most common phrases in our language is “I can’t.” People say, “I can’t be that,” “I can’t do that,” and “I can’t have that” more often than they realize. And more often than they would if they knew how it kept them from being open to the possibility for more in their lives.

The more you look for reasons WHY you “can’t” be, do, or have what you want, the more you limit your chances for WHY NOT? Why not be the way you want to be? Why not do what you want to do? Why not have what you want to have?

Do you really know the answer to those questions? The answer is: because YOU say so! Only you limit what you can be, do, and have. Only you and your limited thinking, your limited attitude, your limits on what you think is possible are holding you back.

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