Living Right Now Blog

Spring is coming - A time of renewal and reflection

As spring approaches we're getting into the spirit of renewal and before renewal comes reflection. So what's going on for you in your state of impending springtime?

At this time of year we know it can feel like the dim days and dull weather are never ending and this can affect our state. So, we thought we would suggest a little checking in with yourself today.  

Find a quiet space for 10 minutes. Stop, sit and breathe. Breathe deep into your diaphragm breathe in and breathe out. As you breathe out,let everything that is negative go with that out breath.When you are happy that everything that you are storing that is not useful to you has gone on your out breath. Focus on breathing in. Breathe in the anticipation of spring. Breathe in the anticipation of a truly beautiful spring. A time of being in tune with a future point in time, a time of gathering in the new, of anticipating your wants and of articulating your having for the next few months.What do you want to experience? What do you want to have?  Get in tune with the anticipation of new growth. Consider what growth may mean for you.Where are you intending to grow? Where are you intending to go?  

What exactly do you want?        

Confidence - what is it and how do you get it?

We all know someone who seems to ooze confidence - no matter what the situation, you just know she's in control, and she's not afraid of anything.

But when it came to writing this blog, we had to sit and think for quite a while, because it's not always obvious what it actually IS that makes you realise someone is confident.

Is it the way they dress? The way they carry themselves? The way nothing seems to phase them?

Well yes, it is those things, but it's lots more as well. And you can be confident without those things too! Confused? We were, so we thought we'd start a list of things that make US feel confident, and we're hoping you'll add to it - so we can show that it's not always the obvious things that instil that air of confidence, and each and every one of us can get it.

So here's our starter list of Things That Inspire Confidence - feel free to add to it in the comments below...

- a new hairstyle
- knowing that the outfit we're wearing fits 'just right'
- having tackled that problem you've been putting off for ages
- slapping on a smile, even when we don't feel like it
- a compliment from someone we care about
- a pay rise we weren't expecting
- playing our favourite song while getting ready
- rehearsing properly for that job interview / presentation
- killer heels and a smile
- recognition from our peers
- knowing that others have confidence in us

Deep levels of confidence come from many other sources too, but we like the fact that simple little things give us a boost that puts a confident spring in our step.

What inspires confidence is different in each and every one of us, so we'd love to hear your contributions - what would make YOU feel more confident today?

And if you're inspired to start your own list - our Living Right Now Journal is the perfect blank canvas for just that - order here at a big Janaury discount!

Does a New Year, New You HAVE to mean a diet?

Everywhere you look this month, the front pages of magazines and newspapers are screaming with headlines aimed at women:

- New Year, New You - lose 2 stone on our amazing diet!

- Start 2010 8lbs lighter with our new eat-all-you-like plan!

- Lose weight in 2010 without giving up carbs!

It's enough to drive a woman to the nearest Hotel Chocolat in protest!

We're all for having a 'new you' in 2010, but does it really have to involve a diet?!!

OK, we'll grant you that if you're overweight, then losing a few pounds is probably a good thing - but does that mean that you can only have a 'new you' if you need to lose weight?

Of course not! There are lots of ways to reinvent yourself in 2010, and here are just a few:

- Take up a new hobby - having a hobby doesn't have to mean macrame or knitting (unless that's your thing!). If you're a budding thespian, try your hand at drama classes. Love animals? Offer to help out at your local kennels or riding schools. Dreaming of the Booker prize? Start writing that novel we all apparently have inside us. A new hobby can mean a new lease of life and a new way of looking at things, and that's a great way to find a 'new you'!

- Start meditating. Meditation is no longer the remit of peace loving hippies - a busy career and family woman can make time in her schedule for regular meditation too. And what benefits it brings! Just 10 minutes a day to centre yourself and relax can make all the difference to your attitude and mind  Make 2010 a peaceful year right from the beginning!

- Find that dream job. If you're unhappy in your job, then the chances are it will affect your homelife too. Make 2010 the time that you find that dream job rather than just dreaming about it! Make sure your CV is up to scratch and find out what's out there. Simply looking and planning will help relieve some of the pressure you've been under, so imagine how 'new' you will feel when you actually GET the job?

- Commit to YOU. It's easy to get tied up with work, family commitments, kids, pets etc etc etc. So make 2010 the year you start focusing on YOU. What do YOU want? Whether it is more time for treats, or a simple cup of tea made for you each day, start thinking about yourself a little more. The happier YOU are, the more control you'll have over other parts of your life!

If you need some pointers towards becoming a 'new you' for 2010, why not take advantage of our special offer? Our Frazzled to Fizzing book is packed full of content-rich reflections, tips, techniques and practical activities to enable you to apply the Living Right Now philosophy from the moment you start reading. And to help you start the new year with a new you, we're offering it at just £9.50 for a limited time only. Get yours now!

New Year of Living Right Now

Well, here we are in a new year. What will it bring you? What will it take from you? What will you love and what will you want to leave behind at the end of the first year of this particular decade? Instead of encouraging you to make resolutions at the beginning of this year, we encourage you to think about making them throughout the year- a series of little commitments if you like. These commitments being to look after YOU. We want you to really reflect on what YOU want from and for your ; health, wealth, career, relationships and your spiritual development this year. Our commitment to you is that  we will continue to provide as many professional women as possible with tools and tips to create the life you love, to support you in achieving  work-life balance. A lifestyle you create that provides freedom and happiness.

We said a great deal in 2009 to encourage you to accept personal responsibility for you in making choices. So, our aim at the beginning of this year is to remind you of some of those key living right now messages that we gave you during the last 12 months......

If you are wishing and wanting this is just wishy washy thinking . To be, gather, have or become something , you need to do more than wish to make things happen. We challenge you to think about why you want something and consider how you are going to get/achieve it.What's your plan? Who is on your support team? What will help you to get there?

If you find yourself unable to go for success, we have encouraged you to consider whether you are frightened of success . If you are, consider that we have approximately 60,000 thoughts a day. Around 90% of the thoughts you have today will be the same as those you had yesterday. So that's a potential 54.000 thoughts that could continually keep you fearful! So, learn to change them.

We have been coaching for so long now that we know that many of you will want to get serious about creating more work-life balance this year and that this will be uppermost in the thoughts of many of you during January. What this lifestyle of balance means, will be different for each one of you. It can start with taking just  5-15 minutes a day to think about and focus on you and your wants.You value yourself enough to give yourself the gift of a little time each day don't you?

So where are the solutions to these dilemmas? Well, in truth, they're all around you. In books, journals, Cd's, programmes, holidays, meditations etc. There are loads of resources available to you. We are rather partial to our own resources. We have spent so many years reading, researching, coaching, training, writing and just listening, that we know what works. We know that you do not need to spend hours and hours reading self development books, Cd's and the like. Nor do you have to spend lots of time attending a range of workshops to develop yourself. If you want to, by all means do.Most people who do this stuff implement a tiny proportion of what they learn.

You are busy, your time is precious and rather than being overwhelmed by the volume of what you might tell yourself you should, ought and must do/read/experience, just commit to one thing- 5-15 minutes a day or even 5 to 15 minutes a week for yourself. Time to reflect on some aspect of life that you choose to focus on and time to complete a short thinking exercise, planning exercise or activity that will enhance you, energise you and even maximise you. Buy our book if you want a  book choc full of reflections and exercises , the accompanying journal is for those of you who love to write down your thoughts and notes as you journey through From Frazzled to Fizzing. If you really cannot contemplate a book, buy the 52 card deck - a card for you to select every week. You can find 5-15 minutes a week for you can't you? (Many of our clients now keep these by their computer and start their week by picking one up every monday morning).

So, invest in you in 2010. Whatever you do, make this year the start of the decade of Living Right Now for you.  

Our very best wishes to you and yours.

Marie and Jeni xx

15 things to do with 15 minutes extra a day

When we wrote our '5 Things to do with 5 extra minutes a day', we were inundated with emails saying 'Yes, but 5 minutes isn't long, is it?' - and you're right, it's not. 

So just for you, our dear readers, here is our follow up - 15 things to do with 15 minutes extra each day.

1) Read a chapter of a book - sit in a quiet corner and relax with a chapter of a book; either a new one you've been looking forward to, or an old favourite

2) Spend time in the garden - 15 minutes is time to plant, weed, pick vegetables, or simply wander around taking in nature.

3) Watch some TV - whether it's your favourite soap that you've recorded, or that documentary you've scheduled into your 'me' time. Don't think of the TV as a waste of time - it's YOU time!

4) Meditate - 15 minutes is plenty of time to relax and concentrate on your meditation, leaving you feeling good for the rest of the day.

5) Prepare a meal - not all meals take an age to prepare. Why not spend some you time in the kitchen preparing something you normally wouldn't have time for - a quick Google for '15 minute recipes' yields some great results!

6) Exercise - lots of exercise DVDs are split up into 15-20 minute sections, so you don't have to worry about starting half way through a routine. Don't forget to warm up and cool down!

7) Sleep - okay, it's not the most adventurous way, but if 15 minutes extra sleep in the morning, a cat nap in the afternoon or 15 minutes earlier in bed at night makes all the difference to your outlook, it's 15 minutes well spent!

8) Walk the dog - get out in the fresh air and throw a ball for the dog. Great exercise for the two of you and loads of fun!

9) Cuddle the kids. Life is full of 'hurry up's' and 'we're running late's' - take these 15 minutes out to stop and have a cuddle without keeping one eye on the clock.

10) Write a poem. Let your creative side flow free - whether you show it to anyone or not, creating a poem will make you proud!

11) Tidy the house. A quick 15 minute run around any room should be enough to tidy it up - throw anything that doesn't belong in there in a basket and enlist everyone else's help to find the right homes for things.

12) Have a massage - whether it's a self massage or you persuade someone else to do the job, a massage is a relaxing and indulgent way to spend 15 minutes of time.

13) Play some music - whether vinyl, CD or MP3, or even your own instrument, just get 'lost in music' for 15 minutes. Concentrate on the lyrics or music and shut everything else out for a little time.

14) Develop a plan. Have a think about how you're going to create your 15 minutes extra each day - this is YOUR time, make it happen! 

15) Call a friend - in these days of emails and instant messaging, it's easy to avoid the telephone. Make someone's day, and relax yourself, by picking up the phone for a chat. Whoever you decide to call, we bet they'll be happy to hear from you!

So there you have it, 15 things to do with 15 spare minutes - how are YOU going to create that time today?

5 things to do with an extra 5 minutes each day

Most women will freely admit that they have a hectic lifestyle and a busy, task packed day, but we're  here at Living Right Now to help  every one of you feel inspired to  take the time to spare just 5 minutes per day to do something FOR YOU.

That's right, just 5 minutes to spend focusing purely on something YOU want to do.

In fact, why not start right now?

Here are 5 things you can do that take only 5 minutes, and will provide an energising and relaxing break in your day:

1) Sit down with a cup of tea

It's easy to spend the day running here and there, picking people up, making phone calls, cooking dinner and more, so when was the last time you made a cup of tea and actually sat and drank it without doing anything else at all? Do it now - make a cuppa and sit down for 5 whole minutes to enjoy it. We bet it will taste much better than it does when you're slurping it down whilst doing 101 other things.

2) Meditate

If meditation is your thing, take 5 minutes right now to focus on you. Think you need more than 5 minutes to do this? Take a look at http://www.fiveminutemeditation.com/  for some sample 5 minute meditations. Don’t get bogged down in “doing it right.” At its essence meditation is simply stillness whilst focusing on your breathing or on a single object, allowing thoughts to just come and go as you relax more deeply.

3) Relax with a face pack

Most face packs only take 5 minutes to set, so sit back, smother on the cream, put cucumber on your eyes and block out the world while the facepack works wonders on your skin. When did you last treat yourself and your skin to a 5 minute pamper?

4) Look at the garden

OK, so the weather isn't great at this time of year, so you may have to do this one through the window, but just take 5 minutes to look at the beauty of the garden, or your local park. The flowers may not be in full bloom right now, but look at the glorious autumnal colours, watch the wind through the leaves, and smell the cool, fresh air. It's relaxing as well as boosting, so it's 5 minutes well spent. And it will remind you that in a world of change, nature does it effortlessly – so can you!

5) Read a short story

With the internet at our fingertips, it's easy forget the simple pleasure of sitting and reading a magazine or book. We often  feel  time poor, so sitting and reading a whole book or magazine in one go may not be possible, but just 5 minutes a day of non work related reading will help you to remember that you're your own person, and not just a boss / employee / mum / wife – try it right now!

So there you are, 5 ways you can spend 5 minutes on YOU right now.

Why not have a think and see if you can come up with other ways of spending 5 minutes, and post them in our comments below?

Stuck for ideas? Take a look at our Inspiration Cards http://www.livingrightnow.co.uk/products-and-services.html  - handbag sized to allow you to dip in and out of a wealth of resources every single day. Use as a meditation tool, as daily guidance, in decision making and as a constant reminder of how easily you can choose to live your very best life.

What's your question?

In the middle of your busy day, which is only one day in your busy life, it pays to stop and ask yourself a good challenging question to get back on the track of NOW. Here are two, and they work really well as a pair so feel free to double up:

What am I doing?

What am I not doing?

Either can give you that light bulb moment. Is what you are currently doing helping you to feel happy, free and successful? Is there something you are NOT doing that could give you those feelings?

Life lived in the now is about choices and personal responsibility. Ask yourself these questions as you go about your day and notice how your mood lightens as you take greater charge of your choices, take responsibility for your NOW feelings and create your unique day.

Do you journal, diary or log?

 
Living Right Now women are different. Most people on a journey of personal development , professional growth, change or personal growth (whichever label you give it ) like to record and acknowledge what we have learnt, where we have been and where we are going. Often people on a journey, in transition or arriving at a destination record the changes they are making in some form of book; diary, journal or a learning log.Entries can vary from a list of books, courses attended, personal reflections or intentions.

We know that recording can be life enhancing because as human beings we love to see progress, acknowledge change, highlight the rocky bits in the journey and consider where next. Using a pen and paper  is a fine way to note progress and keep on track for those who are goal oriented or like to acknowledge how far we have come, note the changes we have made or the change we intend to make in the bright future ahead of us.Living Right Now women are also conscious of NOW of our intentions, today and in this very moment.

So....

We listened to those of you who asked for a journal to accompany our book, Frazzled to Fizzing which is full of juicy tips and exercises for Living Right Now.  We have just signed off the final edit to make sure that we can get it to you in time for christmas. We love it. not least of all because it asks you to focus on now, today, the present. Each day page prompts you to consider TODAY and encourages us to record "the day right now is...."

So, if you want to live for and in today not only the past or your intended future sign up now on any page on the Living Right Now website for our FREE Inbox Inspiration and we will contact you when the journal is ready. If you are already signed up don't worry, you are in our CRM system and we will contact you with the release date shortly!

Jeni and Marie xx  

Rain Rain Rain

The seasons are a changing and with that change comes the surprise that is Rain.

Now sometimes we love rain. Those lovely days when we are snuggled inside in the warm with a pipping hot cup of tea (or a hot toddy on those days we convince ourselves that we need that hot whiskey and lemon for our cold) can be great. But this week we have that relentless rain that just pours and pours and brings the cold weather alongside it. It reminds us to gather in those inner resources ready for the long winter. So what do you gather in? What is going to keep you cosy and calm in the coming months? A few novels? Some new music? Great films? Friends coming over for weekends or just dinner-what are you planning? 

We invite you to take just 5 minutes today to think about your hibernation .How are you going to use it?

Our book Frazzled to Fizzing is now available to order on our site or through Amazon- now that's worth a place in your gathering parcel of resources!

Are you being true to your career?

Being true to our careers is about being true to ourselves. Are you doing what you want to do with your working time? Your working time takes up most of your waking time so is the waking and working making it for you or faking it for you? Sometimes we hide behind our existing careers being busy busy busy and oh so important and so short of time because we're afraid to take the time to just STOP.

So we encourage you today to just stop and be with your thoughts of career for 5 or 10 minutes.

If you are just being who you want to be, is the career doing it for you? Are you fulfilling your dream career plan?

If not, and you want to talk to us about waking up with positive working head on in the mornings get in touch. We'd love to hear from you.