Saturday, October 18, 2014

20 Signs You’re Succeeding In Life Even If You Don’t Feel You Are

I was browsing through my newsfeed on Facebook when I stumble upon this wonderful article which made me reflect on where I am right now. It just hit me so hard that I've been wanting more. More money, more recognition, more things to buy, more place to visit. Then I realized, success is not defined as having all of these things I mentioned.

Please take some time to read this and hopefully, you'll be able to realize that you are also successful in ways you could imagine.

Source: Lifehack

20 Signs You’re Succeeding In Life Even If You Don’t Feel You Are 
By Carol Morgan

We all feel like failures from time to time. While this is a normal feeling, you have to find a way to see yourself and your life from a different perspective. Sometimes we ignore the “little things.” Just because you are not a millionaire, don’t live in a mansion, and you don’t drive a fancy car, that doesn’t mean you’re a failure. In fact, it’s quite the contrary.
Here are 20 signs that you are succeeding in life:

1. Your relationships are less dramatic than they used to be.
Drama is not maturity. As we age, we should develop maturity. So maybe your relationships were drama-filled in your past, but if you have moved beyond that, then you are successful.

2. You are not afraid to ask for help and support anymore.
Asking for help does not equal weakness. In fact, it is a strength. No person has ever succeeded in isolation. It takes teamwork to accomplish goals. Asking or help is a sign that you have grown as a person.

3. You have raised your standards.
You don’t tolerate bad behavior anymore – from other people, or even yourself. You hold people accountable for their actions. You don’t spend time with the “energy vampires” in your life anymore.

4. You let go of things that don’t make you feel good.
No, this is not narcissistic even though it might seem like it. Self-love is success. Love yourself enough to say ‘no’ to anything that doesn’t make you happy, doesn’t serve your purpose, or drags you down.

5. You have moments where you appreciate who you see in the mirror.
Ideally, you should appreciate who you see in the mirror at every moment. But even if that doesn’t happen, if you do it more than you used to, then that is success. Love yourself. You are awesome.

6. You have learned that setbacks and failure are part of self-growth.
Not everyone can have success 100% of the time. That’s just not realistic. Life is about victories and losses. So look at your setbacks as stepping stones to something better. In reality, there really is no such thing as setbacks. It’s all just part of a wondrous journey.

7. You have a support system that includes people who would do anything for you.
If you have figured out the people who “have your back” and recognized the ones who only pretend that they do, then you have succeeded. This is a painful realization, but once you learn to see the signs of betrayal, you can stay away from those people.

8. You don’t complain much.
Because you know there really is nothing to complain about. Unless you really have gone through some horrific life experience and had unimaginable losses, most of what we all experience on a day-to-day basis is just mundane. And successful people know that. And they live in a space of gratitude.

9. You can celebrate others’ successes.
Just because other people succeed, that doesn’t make you a failure. Applaud the people who rise to the top. The more positive energy you give to other people’s victories, the more you will create your own.

10. You have passions that you pursue.
You are not stagnant. You know you have something wonderful to contribute to the world. You have unique talents and gifts. Not only do you know that, you pursue it.

11. You have things to look forward to.
If you don’t have exciting things going on in your life that you are eagerly anticipating, then you are slowly dying inside. Successful people create goals that they are passionate about pursuing. They let this excitement drive their life.

12. You have goals that have come true.
Even though “failures” are a part of life, you have stuck to your goals and dreams long enough to make them come to fruition. You have  some tastes of victory. It fuels you.

13. You have empathy for others.
A person without empathy is dead inside. Empathy equals spreading love and positive energy into the world. Successful people know this. They love others as if they are family.

14. You love deeply and open yourself up to be loved by others.
Love is risky, and sometimes scary for people. It’s the one thing we all strive for, but it’s also intimately tied to the one thing we fear the most – rejection. If you open your heart enough to love and be loved, then you are successful.

15. You refuse to be be a victim.
You know that life doesn’t always happen to you. Many times, you are a co-creator of your life experiences. Successful people know this and refuse to be kept down by life experiences. The rise up and conquer anyway.

16. You don’t care what other people think.
You know you can’t please everyone. You know that the standards with which society judges people is many times unrealistic. So you just keep true to yourself and love the person you are.

17. You always look on the bright side.
Life can be full of disappointments – if you choose to see them that way. Otherwise, they are learning opportunities. No negative experience is ever wasted as long as you learn from it.

18. You accept what you can’t change.
Let’s face it – there many things you can’t change in life. All you can change is how you view what happens. If you can change your negative perspective on situations to a positive one, then you are successful.

19. You change what you can.
And let’s face it again – there are many things you can change in life. Successful people don’t sit around accepting the negatives that are changeable. They get out there and do something about it!!

20. You are happy.
To me, this is the ultimate definition of success. It doesn’t matter what the balance is in your bank account, how big your house is,  or how many fancy vacations you take. If you are happy, then you are succeeding in life.

Even if you don’t see yourself in many of these 20 things, don’t fret. It’s okay. Be happy that you see yourself in just a few. In time, the rest will come. You just need to keep moving onward and upward.

Friday, August 22, 2014

Finding Myself Back

It's been a long time since I've owned a blog and it feels wonderful to think that I am going to own one again and to start writing again. Reason why I decided to create a blog? Well, let's just say that I am currently at one of my lowest point in life.

The pressure at work when I always had a passing score card and but now I have to maintain a passing score card for the next three months only because I failed to pass last month's makes me nauseous and worried if I will still have a job by my birthday. Our relationship which is almost failing because we I fail to spend more time with my partner makes me dubious if it will withstand for the next days, months or another year.

Although my relationship with my family, especially with my father, is getting a lot better now but I don't think that those misfortunes mentioned above would be the consequence in making my relationship with the people surrounding me to be better.

Well anyway, as the poem "Invictus" goes:

"I am the master of my fate,
I am the captain of my soul."

Only I will determine what my fate will be for the next days or months. Tha's it for now. I hope that I'll have more tune to write stuff - thoughts that only I can say to myself, but couldn't find the courage to say or express it.

Hope you enjoy this beautiful song that I always listen to when I'm down. It's a break-up song actually, but it always gives me the strength to go on and motivates me to never give up. That every person who comes into your life will always leave a permanent space in your heart.

You Made Me Find Myself by Tina Arena