Present Outlook: Inspiration & Motivation To Improve Your Life

Healthy Skepticism

Is a rare thing. Self-proclaimed skeptics generally aren’t skeptics, they’re just people who enjoying disagreeing with things. But healthy skepticism is a different thing. It’s good to have a look at things before trusting them. It’s good to consider what people are saying before agreeing or disagreeing with them. It’s good to keep an open…

You Don’t Have To Play By The Rules

Society has norms, or accepted ways of doing things. Generally people follow these norms, and generally they do so on automatic pilot. So over time these norms become rules. If you break them then people want to know why. But if you look at the really successful people in this world you will find that…

Scratch That Itch

Unfulfilled dreams are like an itch you really want to scratch. You forget about them for a while but then when you think about them you really want to scratch them again. If you want to be successful the trick is to keep your dreams in mind… Post them on the fridge, Write them on…

Back Yourself

We too often doubt our ability. We look at the success of others and think, “I could never do that”. We think that others have talents that we do not possess and are incapable of developing. We judge ourselves harshly. Humility is a virtue but there’s nothing wrong with realising your potential. You are far…

The Key To Success Is Actually Really Simple

Confucius summed it up beautifully. Those who achieve greatly do so by throwing themselves completely into whatever they are doing. They have a singlemindedness of focus. They have an intensity of purpose. They are prepared to make sacrifices. They are prepared to shed blood, sweat and tears. The only way to be really successful, regardless…

Would Your Life Make An Interesting Story?

It should. It doesn’t have to involve wild adventures in far flung lands (although that would be cool). But it should involve some challenges that you overcome, some risks, some things that don’t work out, and some things that do. In every good story: things happen. People get hurt, humiliated, challenged, bruised, upset, defeated. But they…

The Rich List Aren’t Any Smarter Than You

They were just in the right place at the right time. But it wasn’t luck. It was because they worked hard to ensure they were in lots of different places at lots of different times. So sooner or later they were bound to be in THE right place at THE right time.

You Have 12 Months Left To Live, What Do You Do?

If you knew for certain that was all you had left, how would you spend it? You would probably appreciate the people around you more. You’d try to get some quality time in with friends, family. You’d play with your kids more. You’d go to the beach, try bungy jumping, eat raw squid. You’d be…

Why?

Have you asked yourself that lately? Why are you doing what you do? Is there a good reason for it? It’s easy to get stuck into a routine, or a rut, and just keep on truckin without paying much attention to where you’re going and why you’re heading in that direction. But it’s worth stopping to take…

The Future Of Personal Development…

…is service. Rather than contemplating our own navels and focusing on how we can get more ‘this’ and more ‘that’ we’ll look to see what we can do for others. Not helping people get better at tennis or making money. Not just helping little old ladies across the street but REALLY helping others. Helping people…

Here’s What You Are Really Capable Of…

Pretty much anything. What is stopping you from achieving it is the part of you that disagreed with the previous sentence. That part of you is the problem. That part of you is where your battle lies. That part of you is what you need to override. Image: kelsey_lovefusionphoto

Why Aren’t You Living Your Dreams?

It’s a pretty safe question to ask because few people are. We all like to dream – on the bus, waiting in line at the supermarket – but most dreams stay just that, dreams. Life isn’t very long. Each year seems to go by more quickly than the last. Time is speeding up. You have…

The Quick Fix That Works For Everyone…

…doesn’t exist. We always hear about the latest diet that will help you lose weight, or the latest exercise machine that is guaranteed to give you abs of steel, or the latest motivational book that will help you achieve financial success, or the latest strategy to make yourself more attractive to the opposite sex etc…

Before You Make A New Year’s Resolution…

…remember the resolution you made last year. Did you keep it? Do you even remember what it was? Men should pledge themselves to nothing; for reflection makes a liar of their resolution. – Sophocles Was Sophocles being harsh above? Or realistic? Resolutions are great, if you make a real effort to keep them. But otherwise…

It’s Never Too Late

It’s never too late to be what you might have been. – George Eliot I happened to be visiting a high school for my work when I saw Tommy the Clown in action live. I’d first heard of him when I watched Rize but never expected to see him in person. But there he was.…

If Your World Is Falling Down Around You Here’s 3 Top Tips To Deal With It

Firstly, complain. If you were to follow the example set by most of the people around you then surely this is what you would do. If everyone is doing it then it must work mustn’t it? I can’t complain, but sometimes I still do. – Joe Walsh Secondly, blame someone other than yourself. This is…

Motivation is not a physical, tangible thing

It isn’t something someone can give you. It isn’t something you can buy or sell. All another person can do is show you where it is inside you. They may be able to point it out to you in a way you hadn’t seen before. But once they’ve pointed it out, it’s up to you…

Life Is Amazing

Imagine if birds never existed. Imagine if everything else on earth was exactly as it is except for one thing – no birds. Then imagine if one day, all of a sudden, you saw a bird. That would be pretty amazing wouldn’t it? I mean it would have to be the most amazing thing you…

Are You Honest With Yourself? Really?

Sometimes if we want to move forwards we have to take stock of where we are. We have to look at what’s working and what’s not. We have to be honest with ourselves. Brutally honest. This isn’t as straight forward as it sounds. Being brutally honest with yourself can be difficult because we regularly lie…

Do You Really Want It? Probably not.

If you really wanted it, you’d have it. Sure you can make excuses about how it’s because of ‘this’ or ‘that’. Probably all perfectly good reasons. But maybe you just don’t want it badly enough. What about if your life depended on it – is there anything else you would do to get it then?…

How To Snap Out Of Depression

Everyone gets a little depressed from time to time. Some of us more than others. So I’ve put together some tips on how to snap out of depression to help you beat the blues and get yourself out of a low patch. If none of these work and you’ve been feeling this way for a…

Procrastinatio……n

It’s taken me ages to get around to writing this post (cue laughter). That’s a terrible line to begin this post with, but it’s true. Unfortunately for us procrastination is a part of human nature. You may even be procrastinating now – are you reading this blog when you should be doing something else? Everyone…

The Secret Of Getting Ahead Is Getting Started

I’m going to start my own business one day… I’d like to run a marathon one day… I’m going to get a new job one of these days… I’m going to paint the house pink one of these days… Sound familiar? We’ve all said the above or similar and then not followed through. But…

If Eddie Izzard Can Do It So Can You

I just read about comedian Eddie Izzard running 43 marathons in a row (6 days a week for 7 weeks). The remarkable thing is that he did very little training before hand. What I love about this story is that it shows how greatly we all underestimate our potential. Eddie Izzard isn’t a naturally good…

Everyday In Every Way I’m Getting Better And Better

Around a century ago a Frenchman named Emile Coué coined a phrase that could change your life. It’s an often quoted phrase that you’ve no doubt heard before, and one that initially doesn’t seem terribly remarkable. Coué was a psychologist and pharmacist who believed that most mental and physical illness was a result of the…

Success is…

Success is the ability to go from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm. – Winston Churchill Winston Churchill can say this with some authority. After all he was a washed up ex-British Prime Minister after the Second World War. Although he led Britain, and in some ways the world, through an extremely turbulent time,…

How To Write A Diary

Image: pedrosimoes7 Life passes by quickly. Soon another year will have passed. With the fast pace of life it can be hard to keep stock of what’s going on in your life and where you’re heading. This is where keeping a personal diary or journal can be really helpful – so let’s look at how…

You Are The Average Of The 5 People You Spend The Most Time With

Most of us have people we work with, or live with, or have to deal with in some way another, who really irk us. Some people are just poisonous – the atmosphere deteriorates as soon as they enter the room. They bring a dark cloud with them. Then there are the kind of people you…

43 Ways To Improve Your Situation

Image: Only Sequel 1. Automate your bill payments using online banking so its one less thing to worry about. 2. Pay off your credit card every payday. If that’s not possible because your debt is too big then make yourself a plan to pay it back. 3. Pet your cat or someone else’s; repeat regularly…

Why You Should Never Compromise On What’s Important

Sure, you can compromise on what you have for dinner tonight, what you watch on TV and who does the dishes. But never compromise on what’s important. And what’s important? Your values. If you compromise on your values then you’re missing the point of being alive. Never give in – never, never, never, never, in…