Personal Growth Cafe

May 9, 2018January 7, 2018

The Importance of Critical Thinking

Critical thinking is an incredibly important skill.

We use this skill (or ought to) in every aspect of our lives every single day.

Although it’s an important part of academic and business success, it’s not often taught at school unless it’s part of a math, science, or business curriculum.

The basic definition of critical thinking is the ability to take information and make informed decisions without being influenced by your own opinions.

Critical thinking is all about being in control of your own thought processes rather than letting it take control of you.

Teaching Children Critical Thinking

As with most things in life, if you begin teaching your children how to think critically, they can master this process, which will benefit them greatly as adults.

Here are a few tips to help your children expand their problem solving capabilities:

Ask your child questions. Reinforce what they’ve learned at school with simple questions about their homework.

Ask their opinions about their social activities or their favorite television show to spark conversation and encourage kids to think of relevant answers.

Respect your child’s opinion. Children are complete individuals with their own belief systems.

Listening to and considering their opinions will give them confidence.

Confident children who voice their opinions will become confident adults who will actively participate in their workplace.

Let your children think for themselves. If you do everything for your child and answer every single question for them, they’ll always rely on you – the parent – for their answers.

Encourage your child to find their own answers to their questions and praise them when they find the answer.

How Can I Develop Critical Thinking Skills?

Because of its importance in our daily lives, critical thinking is a skill that anyone would benefit from developing and using.

You can certainly learn how to think critically and improve your problem solving skills with little extra effort!

Practice these techniques both at home and at work and soon you’ll reprogram your brain to automatically look at all sides of a problem:

Think for yourself. First, don’t be so quick to ask others for the answers to your problems.

Step back from the question and look at the subject from all angles.

Consider all relevant information about the situation to exercise critical thinking effectively.

Try not to make snap judgments. Examine all of the evidence closely and absorb all of the data first.

When you consider all relevant data, your decision will be well reasoned.

Evaluate objectively.

Evaluating the information without letting your own opinions affect your judgment is one of the biggest hurdles people face when trying to develop their critical thinking skills.

Objective reasoning doesn’t happen overnight!

You may need to make a conscious effort to think past your own opinions.

Imagine that you are not yourself, but instead a totally neutral outside observer.

How would this change your view of the situation?

Being able to get yourself into this mindset will go far towards your development of effective critical thinking capabilities.

Even if it takes some time to sharpen your critical thinking skills, the benefits far outweigh the effort.

Critical thinking will teach you an entirely new way to look at the world and can do wonders for your abilities as a problem solver!

As a critical thinker, you’ll be better equipped to face the challenges presented by an ever changing world and you’ll be well served in both your personal and professional life.

Why is critical thinking important in life?

How can you develop critical thinking skills?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

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May 8, 2018January 7, 2018

Believe you can and you are half way there. – Theodore Roosevelt

May 8, 2018January 7, 2018

Searching For the Excellence Within

When you think of excellence, who’s the first person that comes to mind?

Is it you?

If not, why not?

Perhaps you need to change how you view yourself!

We all should view ourselves as excellent people.

You should start each day expecting only the best from yourself.

You can do this by putting your best foot forward and being the best you can be in every part of your life.

Practicing being your best each day can soon turn into a rewarding habit!

If you feel that striving for excellence is a lot of work, you’ll be delighted to discover that you can use techniques to seamlessly integrate the process into your everyday life.

Discovering the excellence within you can be easier than you have ever imagined.

Overcoming Self Doubt

Many of us doubt ourselves too much.

To find out if doubt is stalling your search for excellence, think about these questions:

Do you find yourself doubting whether or not you can live up to your own or other people’s expectations?

When you have the opportunity to do great things, does something stop you from following through?

Does your negative internal dialogue keep you from enjoying your successes?

If you are nodding your head and answering “Yes” to these questions, using affirmations can silence the doubt and give you the confidence to embrace excellence.

How Can Affirmations Help?

Affirmations are simple statements that prompt you to move forward and embrace behaviors or attitudes you desire.

For example, affirmations for success allow you to reprogram the way you think about success, and particularly how you relate to success.

Success affirmations let you replace self-doubt with statements like, “I see each success throughout my journey,” or “I am on the path to great success.”

When you learn to use affirmations, finding success can be as simple as saying, “I am already a winner!”

Many people who use affirmations for success consider these statements to be self-fulfilling prophecies.

You are reaffirming the phrase and making it real every time you say it aloud.

Even if you’re too hard on yourself because you’re a perfectionist, or if you simply don’t believe in yourself, you can teach yourself to see excellence in everything you do.

The great thing about this mind reprogramming is that it doesn’t have to cost money.

Many people buy books and pay counselors to change their lives, but success still eludes them.

Then they blame the books and counselors for bad advice.

But do you know the real reason why things stay the same for them?

Their life doesn’t change because they don’t affirm what’s being taught.

Their thought processes don’t change and therefore their views of life and self don’t change.

If you truly want to change your life, affirmations are your key to unlocking your excellence.

The Affirmation Process

How do you use affirmations to change your life? Follow these steps:

Obtain a list of affirmations.

Choose the ones that speak to your heart the most.

Repeat them aloud at least three times a day and more often if possible.

Apply them to your life every day.

You can reaffirm these statements when you are in search of excellence, for a boost of confidence, or to give you the courage to take the right actions for your success.

Remind yourself that you are a source of excellence and you don’t need to find it elsewhere. You have the potential to do great things!

How can you find excellence in the things you are doing?

How can living in Excellence bring joy to your life?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

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May 7, 2018January 7, 2018

Action may not always bring happiness; but there is no happiness without action. – Benjamin Disraeli

May 7, 2018January 7, 2018

Returning the Gift of Holiday Weight Gain

Returning the gift of holiday weight gain can be a true challenge for most of us.

This is why it’s important to try to avoid getting a holiday weight package in the first place!

There’s no benefit to approaching the New Year with a lot of extra weight that you have to lug around all year.

However, if you do gain a little weight, it’s a good idea to know and understand the measures that you can take to eliminate those extra pounds before they become a problem.

You can learn all about returning the gift of holiday weight gain in the tips below:

Get Moving

One of the best ways that you can maintain your current weight through the holidays, or shed those extra pounds from your holiday blessing, is to exercise!

You should strive to get at least four hours of exercise weekly.

This may sound like a lot, but there are many exciting physical activities that will enable you to lose those unwanted pounds.

You can take a walk around the block to savor one last look at those Christmas decorations, go swimming in an indoor heated pool, or warm up in an aerobics or dance class.

Go up and down the stairs a few times. When you’re done, your heart will surely be pumping!

Learn some basic yoga moves and start or end your day with some deep stretching and relaxation.

Make Healthy Food Choices

During the holidays, fresh fruit assortments are a big hit and make eating healthy much easier.

A good goal would be to eat five servings of fruits every day.

When you snack on fruit, you’ll avoid the urge to sink your teeth into that hot apple pie and those other tempting desserts that tend to line tables and counter tops when the holidays roll around.

In addition to fruits assortments, vegetable trays are a great, healthy choice as well.

With fresh fruits and vegetables, not only will you be able to eat plenty of foods that taste great, but you’ll also get your daily dose of essential nutrients and vitamins that assist in the many functions of the body.

It would be unreasonable to expect you to avoid all of the delightful foods that tempt you during the holidays.

In fact, you shouldn’t deprive yourself at all! The key is to enjoy these sweet desserts in moderation.

Fill up on the healthy fruits and vegetables first and then ask for a small serving of pie.

You’ll get a sweet taste without the desire to devour the entire pie.

Try to limit yourself to just one treat a day.

Setting limits will allow you to enjoy all those seasonal foods that you love without causing holiday weight gain.

Share your cookies and treats with those at your office, church, or homeless shelter.

If the sweets tempt you too much at home, share them with others.

Party Etiquette

Prepare yourself for social gatherings, family dinners, and festive holiday parties.

The foods and beverages that you find at these parties are generally loaded with fat and other unhealthy ingredients.

Eat a healthy meal before going to holiday parties. If you’re not hungry, you’ll indulge in fewer unhealthy foods that can add pounds.

Focus on enjoying the company rather than on the food. Engaging in conversation will allow you to forget (momentarily!) about the food buffet.

During the holidays we all want to indulge in traditional holiday treats.

Being conscious of portion control will help you avoid gaining a significant amount of weight this holiday season.

Returning the gift of holiday weight gain is much easier when it does not involve too many pounds.

Using these tips will keep the weight gain to a minimum and help you to shed those few extra pounds that do materialize.

How has the holidays caused you weight gain?

What do you do to avoid too much weight gain during the holiday season?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

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May 6, 2018January 7, 2018

Life is ten percent what happens to you and ninety percent how you respond to it. – Lou Holtz

May 6, 2018January 7, 2018

Self-Motivation Strategies – How to Get Motivated, Quickly and Easily

Getting the motivation to do something – whether it’s a trip to the kitchen or to pursue your dream career – seems easy enough, but few can sustain the motivation to follow-through consistently.

There’s always too much to do.

The task is too big. Tomorrow’s a better day to get started.

Right?

There are a million reasons we don’t act, but almost always the consequences of our inaction are guilt and regret.

You’ll be glad to discover that you can stop that vicious cycle of inaction and regret and become the self-motivated person you always wanted to be!

Here are some excellent tips on how to motivate yourself, even when you’ve hit a setback, are in a slump, or haven’t even begun to figure out what you want from life:

Focus on just one goal at a time.

Even if you’re working toward improving several areas of your life, focus on each goal separately.

This helps to keep you from feeling overwhelmed and prevents you from giving up before you get started.

Flush out everything else from your mind, and keep your energies focused on the one goal.

Develop a tunnel vision focus to tune out unimportant tasks and distractions.

Envision results. Remembering why you’re inspired in the first place will refresh your motivation towards attaining your goal.

Think of how your life will be changed and improved once you achieve this goal.

Start small. Determine the tasks necessary to reach your goal. Now divide these tasks into a series of smaller tasks.

Continue this process until you’ve obtained tasks that you know you can accomplish. It’s like bite-size chunks.

When the chunks are small enough, you know you won’t be biting off more than you can chew at one time!

Attaining many small goals on your way to the big goal keeps you happy and motivated with constant successes.

Talk to friends, coworkers, and experts in the area you seek to master.

Get them to share tips, advice and experiences they’ve had that can help you to reach your goal.

Surrounding yourself with people who have the same goals – or have already attained them – will inspire you to act.

Tell people about your goals. By telling people about your goal, you are making a pact that you will follow-through.

Tell your friends, family and coworkers to energize your motivation.

Dedicate daily time. Dedicate a certain amount of time each day specifically to furthering this goal.

Investing time in attaining your goal every day will keep it in your mind as positive action.

Positive action propels success and diminishes doubts and regret.

Research industry or topic books, blogs and forums.

Anything you do to make yourself more knowledgeable about your goal can inspire you to act.

Reward yourself. When you accomplish a step or a positive outcome in your goal plan, reward yourself with a nice dinner or something that will make you feel special.

Learn from your mistakes. First, recognize that you will make mistakes and accept this. Second, take the opportunity to learn what to do (or not to do) the next time.

Analyzing how to fix the error will push you forward with greater confidence.

Replace negativity with positive thoughts and actions.

We all encounter those negative thoughts that tell us to give up, but knowing how to counteract them will keep you on track toward your goal.

Your mindset and attitude determine the positive or negative outcome of any situation.

Keep those positive thoughts and actions coming and success will surely follow.

Negativity is not reality unless you make it so.

Self-motivation begins with the end in mind, and the only person who can get you there is you!

By using this combination of tips and techniques, you can motivate yourself to take action toward your goals.

You’ll be proud of yourself for doing something positive to make your life better.

Plus, you’ll develop a mindset that will serve you well into the future for achieving more and more of what you want out of life!

How easily are you motivated?

What is your source of motivation during difficult days?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

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May 5, 2018January 7, 2018

In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: IT GOES ON. – Robert Frost

May 5, 2018January 7, 2018

The Art of Self-Reflection – 5 Exercises to Find Peace in Your Life

What is it you want to do with your life?

How do you think you’re going to make it happen?

If you’re not sure, then self-reflection is in order.

Even if you have an idea where you want to go, you may want to consider doing self-reflection exercises to ensure that you remain on the path toward success.

When you are on the right path, you can also find peace in your life.

Here are 5 self-reflection exercises that you can use to put things into perspective.

These exercises can help you to clear your mind, relax, and find that peace you crave:

1. Compose affirmations. Write a list of at least 50 affirmations.

These affirmations should embrace what you want to achieve and what you want to become in your life.

Write them in present tense and be sure to use the word “I” throughout the list. For example, “I am always good at my job.”

It is important to focus on the things that are occurring now that will lead to your future success.

You may hear words in your head such as, “But you messed this up the other day” or “You weren’t as productive a few days ago.”

If you are hearing things like this, then banish those negative thoughts. It can take some time to get used to positive thinking, but it’ll be time well-spent.

Repeating your affirmations aloud will enable you to reprogram your mind with positive thoughts.

2. Tap into your subconscious mind. Your subconscious mind is where your self-image is stored.

All of your attitudes, experiences, beliefs, and values are here. Your subconscious mind is the core of who you are and it’s a very powerful force.

If you go inward and reflect upon what’s inside this storehouse within the mind, you can gain a better sense of self-awareness.

Some may call this meditation. Regardless of what you call it, this process helps you to attain a higher level of consciousness.

Better self-awareness can provide you with many answers about yourself and your true beliefs.

3. Visualize creatively. This is a fun way to self-reflect!

Make yourself a box to show your hopes and dreams. Or you can create a vision board.

Place pictures and words that represent you and your thoughts into your box or on your board. The more details you include, the better it works!

Imagination is the key and the sky is the limit!

4. Ask yourself questions. Ask yourself questions about yourself. Write down your questions and your answers.

Ask yourself questions about the present and the future and provide yourself with positive answers.

You can be creative with your questions because only you know what’s inside of you.

Be sure to structure your questions to include details about your hopes and dreams.

5. Write and reflect. Purchase a journal and write in that journal every single day.

Each day, first write down something positive that occurred that day.

Next, write down a question for yourself.

Don’t answer that question then and there.

Reflect on that question and write your answer the next day as a part of your journal entry.

As you can see, self-reflection truly is an art.

It involves tapping your inner being and using that to figure out what it is you really want.

In time, your reflections will enable you to achieve the peace and serenity you deserve.

How do you bring peace to a very busy day?

How can finding inner peace cause you less stress?

Talk about that in the Personal Growth Cafe Community!

Before you leave…

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May 4, 2018January 7, 2018

Posts

The Importance of Critical Thinking

Believe you can and you are half way there. – Theodore Roosevelt

Searching For the Excellence Within

Action may not always bring happiness; but there is no happiness without action. – Benjamin Disraeli

Returning the Gift of Holiday Weight Gain

Life is ten percent what happens to you and ninety percent how you respond to it. – Lou Holtz

Self-Motivation Strategies – How to Get Motivated, Quickly and Easily

In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: IT GOES ON. – Robert Frost

The Art of Self-Reflection – 5 Exercises to Find Peace in Your Life

Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction. – John F. Kennedy