Page 2 – Personal Growth Cafe

December 3, 2018February 19, 2018

To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

December 3, 2018February 19, 2018

Handling Difficult Conversations with Positive Statements

No matter how hard we may try, there’s just no way to avoid some difficult conversations.

However, there are positive things you can say and do to help you handle them better.

Your first response may be to change the subject when faced with a difficult discussion.

This won’t solve the problem or heal the hurt that caused the situation in the first place.

It’s better to take a deep breath, gather your thoughts, and face the difficulty now rather than later.

Remember it’s not your job to fix the situation unless you were directly involved.

People sometimes just need a friend to listen when they’re going through tough circumstances.

They really don’t want you to fix things for them.

Being available to listen is sometimes the best way to show your friend that you care.

If the situation requires you to talk with someone going through difficulties, try to put yourself in the other person’s shoes.

What would you want a friend to say to you if you were in that situation? In all likelihood, they would like to hear the same thing.

Here are some positive ways to handle difficult conversations:

1. Try to help them identify the problem they’re facing.

Maybe they’re upset over something that’s not related to the perceived problem.

Listen to your friend as they talk, trying to ask questions to help them determine the real problem.

2. Avoid acting like you know what will happen next.

If your friend’s going through a difficult time in a relationship, don’t tell them everything will work out.

Instead, tell them “I’m available to you whenever you want to talk.”

3. Ask general questions rather than expecting them to answer questions they may not be ready to answer. “How’s it going?” is a better question than asking them if they’ve moved out of their home after a breakup.

Let them bring up additional topics when they feel comfortable doing so.

4. Refrain from judging others.

Rather than saying you’ve never trusted a particular company when your friend has just lost a large sum of money, you might want to ask, “Is there anything I can do to help?”

Most likely they’ll tell you no, but will appreciate your asking.

5. Your similar situation isn’t the same as theirs.

While it may be true that you’ve lost a job or a pet, it’s not the same thing as losing a loved one.

Try to encourage your friend to think about the good times rather than their loss.

6. Acknowledge your friend’s feelings.

“I understand that you were hurt by what they said. I would be hurt, too” is better than telling your friend, “There’s no reason to be upset about that.”

Acknowledge and validate their feelings, and they’ll feel better.

7. Think about what your friend needs most.

It may be to have someone tell them “I love you.” Try to be alert to your friend’s unspoken needs.

Be reassuring when possible regardless if your friend has spoken a need or not.

8. Let others know you understand their point of view.

Telling someone, “This sounds important to you” doesn’t mean you’ll go along with what they want, but at least you acknowledge what they believe to be the best solution.

9. Stay focused on the problem and don’t get dragged into a fight.

If they verbally attack, don’t take the bait. “I see you’re upset, and I’m sorry.

Maybe we should take a few minutes for each of us to calm down.”

It’s important to remember that no matter what the difficult situation happens to be, it’s better to listen more than talk.

When you do talk, use the positive statements you find here to help you handle the conversation in a supportive and caring way.

How do you stay calm during difficult situations?

When was the last time you learned from a difficulty you encountered?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

Also, as your gift for taking this to heart – and this is profoundly important… to us ALL – go to UnitingPlanetEarth.com/ignition/ and do the Uniting Planet Earth 7-Day Quick-Start Ignition Program… and Allow it to Transform Your Life.

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December 2, 2018February 19, 2018

Today I make a beeline towards my goals.

December 2, 2018February 19, 2018

Eating Healthy on a Budget

With the economic situation in the world being what it is, it’s important to find ways of eating healthy on a budget.

It’s possible to purchase foods that are good for you and your budget; you merely have to plan ahead to get the best food you can for the money you have available.

Having a plan and sticking to it can help you get more food at less cost and allow you to prepare better, more healthy meals.

Here are some tips to help you succeed in eating healthy on a budget:

Grocery Shopping

1. Set aside time to make your food plan.

Find the sales ads for each of the grocery stores in your area and decide on your meals for the coming week ahead of time.

2. Make a list.

After you’ve planned your meals, write down everything you need for each meal.

Check your pantry, freezer, and refrigerator to see if you already have some of the items.

Make your grocery list and determine to stick with it!

Include what you’ll need for drinks, snacks and desserts.

Remember your ingredients for preparation, such as butter, flour, sugar, and spices.

Replenish cleaning supplies.

3. Clip coupons for items you know you’ll use.

Leave the remainder of the coupons at home so you’re not tempted to “save” money on items you don’t need.

4. Never go grocery shopping on an empty stomach because you’re more likely to buy items that look good rather than those on your list.

If you can’t go to the store right after a meal, take along a light snack to help you resist temptation while in the store.

5. Buy items on the perimeter of the store first because these items are the healthiest choices.

This will include fruits, vegetables, meats, and dairy items.

The center items are processed or convenience foods.

Not only are they more expensive, but they aren’t healthy.

6. Look for fruits and vegetables that are in season as these will often be cheaper than non-seasonal choices.

While you’re looking at the fruits and vegetables, see if there are any sales on these healthy, nutrient rich foods.

Choose large bags rather than individual pieces of fruit. The larger bags are often cheaper by the pound.

7. Buy store or generic brands.

There usually isn’t much difference in the way the foods taste but you can definitely see a difference in the price.

Other Ways to Eat Healthy on a Budget

1. Make your own snacks for your family’s time away from home rather than allowing them to purchase food from vending machines.

Fresh fruit and vegetable sticks with dip are much healthier than the bags of chips or crackers that come from the machines.

2. Eat at home. Whenever possible, make your food from scratch and eat it at home.

Not only will this give you more control over what your family eats, but it can also save you a considerable amount of money.

Eating out also encourages overeating because portion sizes are massive.

3. Drink healthy. Finally, when eating healthy on a budget, don’t forget to think about what you’re drinking.

Expensive, sugar-laden drinks are the bane of your budget and counter-productive to healthy eating.

Look for 100% pure juices.

Drink low fat milk.

Drink more water.

Cut out soft drinks.

If you follow these tips, you’ll soon discover the joys of healthy eating and you’ll save money in the process.

You may have to spend some extra time preparing food, but the benefits are astounding!

How important is being healthy to you?

Why is health considered as a source of wealth?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

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November 29, 2017

I allow others to love me.

I exude confidence because I am proud to be the person that I am.

That confidence helps me accept the love that others offer.

I know that others can genuinely love me because I am worthy of love.

My friends and family love me just the way I was created.

I receive their friendship with arms wide open and I hold onto them tightly.

Those closest to me know that I welcome their affection because I make them feel comfortable when they are near.

I embrace those I love with warmth and fondness each time I greet them.

I open myself to others because friendships are my life’s greatest treasures.

My friends and family know their love is appreciated by the way I receive them. I welcome their love with freedom and trust.

I know that I am forgiven and accepted just the way I am. I remove expectations from my mind when meeting new people and I allow others to be themselves around me.

I give love therefore I receive love. When others smile at me, I smile back as a way to communicate to them that I welcome friendship and love.

Today, I choose to receive the love that others share with me with open arms.

I attract people with my positive attitude and receive their love with sincerity.

How can you attract the love of others?

What can you do to remove expectations about people?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

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November 29, 2017

When you love and laugh abundantly, you live a beautiful life. – Henry Drummond

November 28, 2017

9 Ways to Enjoy the Holidays without Stress

While the holidays have the power to bring some of the most joyful times in your life, they can also be the cause of a great deal of stress.

The stress can stem from many different situations such as family disagreements, scheduling conflicts, and money issues.

No matter what situation your stress is coming from, it’s important to take a step back from the stress to hold onto your sanity.

Try following some or all of the following tips:

1. Get Your Shopping Done Early. When you get your shopping out of the way early, you can save yourself stress on a number of levels.

You won’t be battling other shoppers during peak shopping times. You won’t have to worry about making split second decisions on gifts.

You’ll also have the time to craft a budget to help make your money stretch to the best of your ability.

2. Take Time to Yourself. We often take the time to think of others during the holidays. While that’s very important to maintain, you can’t forget about yourself in the process.

Remember to schedule “me” time and concentrate on winding down. In order to take good care of others, you first have to take care of your own health and well being.

3. Keep a Cool Head. While it may not be a problem with every family, sometimes the togetherness causes conflicts and clashing.

Before you enter a family holiday event, tell yourself that you’ll take the high road. You don’t want an argument to ruin your chance at fun during the holidays.

4. Keep Up Your Exercise Routine. Sometimes the thrill of the holiday season can disrupt your daily routines.

While a little break from exercise might not make a big difference in your physique, it might make a difference when it comes to your stress level.

Try to keep up some form of exercise, as it will provide you with a release from stress.

5. Watch your Diet. It’s not fair to yourself to completely avoid indulging around the holidays, but at the same time you should always remain in control.

Watch what you’re putting into your body, because large amounts of certain foods can definitely affect how you feel. The two big ones to watch are caffeine and sweets.

6. Buy Yourself a Present. While you’ve been budgeting money for everyone else, there’s no reason why you can’t buy yourself a little something.

After all, you’re sure to be getting something that you want. You can even schedule yourself a massage, which is an excellent way to maintain a healthy stress level.

7. Get Enough Rest. The excitement definitely kicks in during the holidays. Sometimes you’ll lose sleep because of stress, and sometimes you’ll lose sleep because of excitement.

Either way, you’ll be doing yourself a favor by concentrating on relaxation and getting to bed at a good hour.

If you start a pattern of getting less than 8 hours of sleep per night, you could be setting yourself up for stress without even really knowing it.

8. Learn to Delegate. If you come to the realization that you’ve been put in charge of too many things, don’t pile on the stress – instead, delegate the tasks.

Be wise enough to know when you need some help and ask for it. You can even get the kids involved with certain preparations.

9. Be Flexible. Of course you have an image in your head of how you’d like certain holiday events to play out.

You also know that things don’t always go according to plan. Realize that certain things will not be perfect, and you won’t feel so much stress if things do go wrong.

Go with the flow and have back up plans if necessary.

How can the holiday season cause you stress?

Which among the tips above can help make your season fun and bright?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

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November 28, 2017

Experience is not what happens to you; it is what you do with what happens to you. – Aldous Huxley

November 28, 2017

8 Ways to Foster a Joy of Learning in Your Children

When you foster the love of learning in your children, you set them up for a lifetime of happiness and success.

Children are born with a drive to learn and explore the world around them, and parents have the ability to nudge them in the direction of continuous learning.

Your ultimate goal as a parent should be to discover your child’s preferred method of learning.

You can do this by encouraging them to pursue hobbies that they find exciting and enriching.

You also need to maintain the wisdom to know when your children might need an extra push in a certain area or whether they need to change their course entirely.

Consider some of these simple strategies to foster a joy of learning:

1. Reading Stories. Your children are never too young to enjoy a story. Start reading to them when they’re babies and you’ll foster a lifetime of love for the subject.

When it comes to reading, as long as they keep practicing the skill they’ll keep getting better at it.

Encourage your children to read more, regardless of their age or topic of interest, as long as it’s age-appropriate.

2. Get Excited About New Things. It’ll help if you maintain a certain excitement about the things your child discovers.

When they’re babies, cheer when they learn to walk or roll over. Cheer as they learn to ride bikes.

Continue to show excitement every time they start something new.

3. Be Inspired Yourself. It’s important to remain inspired and continue to go after your own wants and dreams.

In life you never stop learning. If your children see your personal love of learning, they’ll be inspired, too.

4. Give Your Child a Choice. While you don’t have to allow your child to do whatever they want, you can still give them a choice in what they’d like to pursue.

When children have a choice, they feel like what they think makes a real difference, and it does! Let them choose their own books, hobbies, and so on.

5. Stay Involved with School. Make sure you stay on top of the topics that your children are learning in school.

You kids will like the attention and they’ll appreciate that you’re involved in their life.

You can go over assignments at home or you can even have frequent meetings with your child’s teachers.

6. Field Trips. Maybe your children will be scheduled to go on field trips with their school.

If not, you can always create your own field trips for afternoons and weekends. Schedule field trips that pertain to your child’s personal interests.

They will certainly be inspired to learn more and you’ll still be personally involved in their lives.

7. Show Your Support. It’s always important to show your children support no matter what.

Even if they’ve chosen a subject to pursue that you don’t enjoy, as long as it’s appropriate, it’s important to be there for your child.

If they suspect that you’re unhappy with their personal decisions, they may be less likely to continue with their studies.

8. Provide Resources. While you may not always have a great deal of cash available for your children’s hobbies, it’s a good idea to provide them with the necessary resources to allow them to fully pursue their interests.

When they’re toddlers and young children, it can mean just providing them educational and age appropriate toys.

It may be more of a financial burden when they’re older because you may need to invest in advanced training or camps.

You really only want what’s best for your children.

You’ll soon realize that as long as you remain loving and accepting, your children will continue to come to you for guidance and advice.

When you start learning with them while they’re young, fostering a love of learning will come naturally.

What is your child’s attitude towards learning?

Which among the items on the list above would be most useful for your child?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

Before you leave…

Please share the link to this post on your Facebook, Twitter, etc., and like it, and comment right here – THANKS!

November 28, 2017

Archives

To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Handling Difficult Conversations with Positive Statements

Today I make a beeline towards my goals.

Eating Healthy on a Budget

I allow others to love me.

When you love and laugh abundantly, you live a beautiful life. – Henry Drummond

9 Ways to Enjoy the Holidays without Stress

Experience is not what happens to you; it is what you do with what happens to you. – Aldous Huxley

8 Ways to Foster a Joy of Learning in Your Children

To repeat what others have said, requires education, to challenge it, requires brains. – Mary Pettibone Poole