Tuesday's Tip - Standing in Line

The other line moves faster. 

Etorre's Observation

I'm not a huge fan of lines.  My preference is to get what I want, pay for the purchases and then head out of the store.  Well, neither life nor soap operas go exactly as expected. 

Here then are some ideas to manage standing in line while maintaining your glowy aura.  : )  If you wish, you can also listen to "The Holidays:  Staying Healthy, Staying Sane"  which offers tips on holiday shopping, standing in line, and healthy eating while at the mall.  http://www.blogtalkradio.com/shannonmcqueen

1. Take 5 slow deep breaths to calm yourself down

2. Repeat a calming affirmation to yourself.  
    Examples from http://bmindful.com/affirmations/calm  
    My mind is calm.
    I take deeper, longer, more relaxed breaths.
   I am always calm and relaxed.  My thoughts are under my control.

3. Practice compassion for the other people standing in line and for the cashiers working at the register.

4. On the other end, maximize your time - read, check your e-mail, update your cell phone’s contacts, input your goals into your cell phone’s memo pad, , review your to-do list, clean out your pockets, adjust your attire, wipe your forehead, etc.

5. Use your imagination and create a story for the other people standing in line. Or imagine how your would photograph or report such a scene.

6. Think of a healthy/relaxing reward, you’ll give yourself for "undergoing" the holiday shopping experience.

See if one of those suggestions work for you. Or create your own strategy for waiting in line.  Feel free to leave any feedback or comments.  Also, I'll finish my website optimalhabits.com soon if you wish to check it out! 

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 30 The Finale : )

source: commons.wikimedia.org

Alas, this month is over and our 30 Day Life Improvement Plan is also coming to a close.  Congratulations to everyone for making it this far!  Here's the plan for Day 30:

1.  Review our Success Tool Kit

2.  Update our list of completed projects - Which ones did you finish/avoid?  What can you get further help with? (Check or update list of resources from Success Tool Kit)

3.  Review progress on 30 Day Life Improvement Plan - How's your life progressing?  Have you experienced any changes or learning anything new about yourself? 

4.  Decide on a technique to keep us on track beyond this plan - Is there a technique or activity from the 30 Day Life Improvement Plan that you will continue using?

Don't forget you can also, go back to the previous days or themes if you want to review or re-do an activity.  Additionally, if you wish you can have an affirmation/visualization that relates to your main project.  Some of the activities such as tracking your food & mood, unloading your thoughts and so on could be extended for a week or more!  I'd suggest continuing to weekly track your progress in the life categories such as physical health, emotional health, career/business and so on as a way to continue to manage your life.  Be patient with yourself and remember to keep decluttering and deep breathing!  : )

The Latest Show ---The Holidays: Staying Healthy, Staying Sane, Pt. 2 of 3

If you like standing in long lines and buying gifts that people don't need, then this show isn't for you.  You can though recommend this show to a friend.  And for everybody else, feel free to listen to today's show which offers tips on managing holiday shopping and mall eating.

Listen to internet radio with ShannonMcQueen on Blog Talk Radio

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 29 Time Tracking

source: batteryinyourleg.com

Tomorrow will conclude our 30 Day Life Improvement Plan.  For today, we're continuing to work on our final theme of managing time.  Here's the plan: 

1.  Rate our life (see link below) and time management skills
http://coachintraining.blogspot.com/2010/11/30-day-life-improvement-plan-day-2.html

2.  Track how we manage our time from morning to noon/noon to evening

3.  List 3 ways to improve our time management skills.  Here are some suggestions -
     Prioritizing schedule
     Planning week
     Weekly tracking progress on a certain goal
     Continuing to track how we manage time
     Delegating?Eliminating
     Doing the hardest...or easiest activity first
     Scheduling time to work on our projects
     Reducing commitments
     "Pausing" before deciding to become involved in something
     Reducing time spent on the computer, watching TV, on the phone
     Knowing priorities
     Venting about having to do something...and then doing it
     Focusing on one task at a time
     Reviewing to-do list throughout day
     Resting - sometimes we feel too tired to do something and procrastinate

Here's a rough idea of tomorrow's activities:
Review our Success Tool Kit
Update our list of completed projects - Which ones did we finish/avoid?  What can we get further help with?
Review progress on 30 Day Life Improvement Plan
Decide on a technique to keep us on track beyond this plan

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 28 Delegate or Eliminate

source: batteryinyourleg.com

For today, we're doing our weekly technology reduction "diet" but we're also doing a couple of other activities.  Here's the plan:
1.  Decrease our technology habit (watch less TV, use the computer only during the evening, turn off the cell phone for a couple of hours, etc.) 

2.  Give ourselves a mini-spa treatment (deep breathe/meditation/foot massage, etc)

3.  List what we want to do less of and think of ways to delegate, eliminate or group such activities

For tomorrow, we'll....
Rate our life and time management skills
Track how we manage our time from morning to noon/noon to evening
List 3 ways to improve our time management skills

Continued to success to everyone!

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 27 Declutter Your Schedule

source: batteryinyourleg.com

Welcome to Day 27 of our 30 Day Life Improvement Plan.  As we're nearing the end of this plan, we're working on our time management skills by focusing on our main project.  For this day, we're removing both the physical clutter and the schedule/commitment clutter in an effort to "free" up more time in our lives.  Here's today's plan:
1.  Declutter for 1 hour

2.  Look at our schedule/commitments to see if there's anything which can be "decluttered" as well

For tomorrow, we'll...
Decrease our technology habit
Give ourselves a mini-spa treatment (deep breathe/meditation/foot massage, etc)
List what we want to do less of and think of ways to delegate, eliminate or group such activities

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 26 The Main Project

source:  batteryinyourleg.com

Hope that everyone had a great Thanksgiving.  For today, we're focusing on our main project.  Here's today's plan:

1.  List why your main project is important to you.  What's the reason?  How will it affect your life?

2.  Schedule time to work on your main project.  Are there daily or weekly actions that will help you to accomplish your main project?

For tomorrow, we'll....
Declutter for 1 hour
Look at our schedule/commitments to see if there's anything which can be "decluttered" as well

Bravo to everyone for making it this far along in the process!

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 25 More time

source: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bratislava_Ne...

We now have less than 5 days before our 30 Day Life Improvement Plan ends.  With time a'ticking for these last 5 days we'll focus on how we manage our time.

Here's today's plan:

1.  Review our gratitude list (Day 11)
http://coachintraining.blogspot.com/2010/11/life-improvement-plan-day-day-11-who.html

2.  List what we would do with more time

For tomorrow, we'll...
List why our main project is important to us.  What's the reason?  How will it affect our life?
Schedule time to work on our main project

A Big Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!  I'm spending Thanksgiving with my parents' and sis which is nice.    I'll go for a pre-meal walk later today.  : )

Tuesday's Tip - Gearing Up for the Big Holiday Meal

source: dateonadime.wordpress.com

With Thanksgiving coming, I figure I'd offer some suggestions on handling the big meal.  Here are my 4 suggestions on what to do before the meal:

1. Eat during the day -You can eat lighter than usual so you’ll have some room in your stomach for the upcoming meal.

2. Exercise - Take a walk, workout at the gym or at home

3. Visualize - Visualize how you’ll eat during the meal. Will you load your plate up? Are there some favorites that you’re looking forward to eating? Do you want to feel stuffed after the meal or satisfied?

4. Practice deep breathing

If you want, you can listen to additional suggestions on "The Holidays:  Staying Healthy, Staying Sane  Pt. 1 of 3."
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/shannonmcqueen

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 23 Reviewing "Creating a Success Environment"

source:  wunderground.com

For today, we're reviewing our previous theme of "Creating a Success Environment."  Below is the plan -  

1.  See if your environment increases/decreases your energy.  Is there clutter?  Items needing repair?  Unworn or...worn-out clothing? 

2.  Decide on an affirmation/visualization technique to use for the remainder of this program.

3.  Re-read an article from your Success Tool Kit - You can read either an informative article about a project that you'reworking on or an article about an inspiring person.

For tomorrow, we'll
Pick one complaint to work on for the rest of this program
Review our unloading list from Day 1

 ..and your daily routine so far-
Continuing to work on your 4 projects

Increasing your sleep, if needed

Deep breathing

Scalp Massage (optional)

Proper posture
Eating more energizing foods

*If you're doing a daily affirmation, that's also great!

Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here.

On the Air: The Holidays - Staying Healthy, Staying Sane

I figured I'd better re-do this show.  It'll be interesting to try these strategies during Thanksgiving.

Listen to internet radio with ShannonMcQueen on Blog Talk Radio

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 22 Review: Renewing Our Energy

We have 8 days left in our plan.  Hopefully, you're experiencing some positive change in your life.  For this week, we're going to review some of the previous weeks and then go into our final theme of managing time.
Here's the plan for today:
1.  Rate your life and commitment to the 30 Day Life Improvement Plan  http://coachintraining.blogspot.com/2010/11/30-day-life-improvement-plan-day-2.html

2. Review "Renewing Our Energy" 
      How has your energy changed this past week?
      How can you begin to eat your ideal way?
      How did some foods affect your energy?
     Which people/interactions gave you energy?  Which ones strained your
      energy?

3.  Update Completed List (of projects/priorities) - Transfer any completed projects/priorities onto this list and appreciate the progress that you’re making

For tomorrow, you'll
1.  See if your environment increases/decreases your energy
2.  Decide on an affirmation/visualization technique to use
3.  Re-read an article from your Success Tool Kit

...and your daily routine so far-
Continuing to work on your 4 projects

Increasing your sleep, if needed

Deep breathing

Scalp Massage (optional)

Proper posture
Eating more energizing foods

*If you're doing a daily affirmation, that's also great!

Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here.

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 21 Have a (1/2) Spa Day!

We've made it to Day 21 of our plan.  For today, we'll continue our weekly process of decreasing technology.  We'll also end this week's focus of renewing our energy by giving ourselves 1/2 of a spa day.  If you can manage an entire spa day, then you're definitely encouraged to do so.

Here's the plan:
1.  Reduce technology habit - Watch less TV, have the cell phone on "Silent" for a couple of hours or limit your computer usage.  Do whatever works best for you.

2.  1/2 spa day - Create your own 1/2 spa day or if you can only "spa" for 10 minutes during the day, then that'll work as well.  This is a chance to renew your energy by relaxing and doing something special for yourself.  Here are some ideas of what you can do for a spa day:
Drink hot lemon water
Meditate for 10 minutes
Read an inspiring book/your favorite magazine
Eat a light breakfast
Have a leafy green salad for lunch
Do a deep breathing exercise
Try some of the flexibility stretches from Day 19
Soak in the tub
Deep condition your hair
Massage scalp and/or feet
Write for 20 minutes
Journal
Describe your Ideal Day (again)
Use your senses to be conscious of what you're doing, your environment
Practice nature awareness during a walk

3.  Review Success Tool Kit - Review your tool kit for inspiration and as a reminder of your strengths.  Can you add any inspiring quotes/affirmations about energy or health to your tool kit?  Is there anything which needs updating?

4.  For 2 minutes, visualize yourself as having more energy

---Remember to do something from your enJoy List (Day 10) today, if you didn't get a chance to do so yesterday--- 

For tomorrow, we'll....
Rate our life and commitment to the 30 Day Life Improvement Plan
Review "Renewing Our Energy" 
   How has our energy changed this past week?
   How can we begin to eat our ideal way?
   How did some foods affect our energy?
   Which people/interactions gave us energy?  Which ones strained our energy?
Update Completed List (of projects/priorities)

Before we transition into our next theme of managing time, we'll spend a few days reviewing what we've worked on so far.  Almost every day we've been doing a different activity so I think it'd be wise for us to pause and review.  ; )

...and our daily routine so far-

Continuing to work on our 4 projects

Increasing our sleep, if needed

Deep breathing

Scalp Massage (optional)

Proper posture
Eating more energizing foods

Tracking how people affect our mood (energy level)
*If you're doing a daily affirmation, that's also great!

Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here.

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 20 A Time to Declutter, A Time to Exercise

We' re nearing the end of this week's theme of renewing our energy.  If you've tried some of the activities during this week--sleeping more, eating more energizing foods, tracking your food and mood, doing a scalp massage,etc--and wish to make it a daily habit, feel free to do so.  After all, it's difficult to get the full benefit of eating more energizing foods, if you've only done so for one day!

All righty, so here's the plan for today -
1.  Continue to track how people affect your mood - Just to clarify, you can chart how people affect your mood by noting the time, the person and the effect.  Some interactions can raise your energy levels but the boost could be due to nervousness so for me, it's useful to track if my energy level went up/down and also to specify the reason.  I also include significant online interactions (e-mails, chats, etc) that affect me.  Do be reasonable, if you're reading 20 e-mails or talking to 50 people during the day, then you just note the 5 interactions that affected your mood.

2.  Fitness - Try a new exercise.  If you wish to continue with the additional 5 minutes of fitness (Day 19), you can also do so.
http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/videos/total-body-workouts/total-body-recharge.htm
http://crossfit.com/

3.  Declutter - 1 hour:  Decluttering can help if you're low on energy and dealing with overwhelm.  Again, if 1 hour doesn't fit into your schedule, do what's practical and acknowledge yourself for taking action in clearing your space and increasing your energy. 
http://zenhabits.net/15-great-decluttering-tips/

4.  Visualize - For 2 minutes, visualize yourself as having more energy.  (See Day 18)

--Also, today or tomorrow, do an activity from your enJoy List (Day 10)---
http://coachintraining.blogspot.com/2010/11/30-day-life-improvement-plan-day-10.html

Here's the plan for tomorrow:
Day 21
Reduce technology habit
1/2 spa day - soak/facial/pedicure/manicure/meditate
Foot massage
Review Success Tool Kit
Visualize

...and our daily routine so far-

Continuing to work on our 4 projects

Increasing our sleep, if needed

Deep breathing

Scalp Massage (optional)

Proper posture
Eating more energizing foods

Tracking how people affect our mood (energy level)
*If you're doing a daily affirmation, that's also great!

Before we transition into our next theme of managing time, we'll spend a few days reviewing what we've worked on so far.  Almost every day we've been doing a different activity so I think it'd be wise for us to pause and review.  ; ) 

Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here.

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 19 Today's Exercise...

For today, instead of tracking food and mood, we'll track how people affect our mood/energy levels.  We'll also work on the more active part of "increasing "our energy by boosting our fitness level.  Here's today's plan:

1.  Track how people affect your mood - As much as possible, monitor how people affect your mood (energy level).  Write down or note in your cell phone's memo pad how some interactions affected your mood.


2.  Flexibility- Do you struggle to touch your toes?  Are you stiffer than you used to be?  If so, try the exercises in the link below to help with increasing your flexibility.  Do, however, use caution and avoid overextending yourself.  (See my disclaimer at end of entry.)
http://www.shapefit.com/stretching-exercises.html

3.  Fitness - Challenge yourself by adding 5 min/more to your fitness routine.  Or walk for 5 min, if you're new to fitness.  If you're just beginning an exercise routine, see if there's someone you trust who can give you advice on fitness. 
Fitness Test
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/fitness/SM00086

4.  Schedule an activity from your enJoy List (Day 10) for the weekend
http://coachintraining.blogspot.com/2010/11/30-day-life-improvement-plan-day-10.html

Do what you can manage for today and remember to practice your deep breathing exercises!

Here's a rough idea of what's ahead -

Day 20
Continue to track how people affect your mood
Fitness - Try a new exercise
Declutter - 1 hour
Visualize - 2 min

Day 21
Reduce technology habit
1/2 spa day - soak/facial/pedicure/manicure/meditate
Foot massage
Review Success Tool Kit
Visualize

Our daily routine so far-

Continuing to work on our 4 projects

Increasing our sleep, if needed

Deep breathing

Scalp Massage (optional)

Proper posture
Eating more energizing foods

Tracking how people affect our mood (energy level)
*If you're doing a daily affirmation, that's also great!

Next week, we'll work on managing our time.  We'll focus on our list of projects/priorities and we'll utlilize our Success Tool Kit.

Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here.

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 18 Energizing Foods, Energizing You!

We are indeed much more than what we eat,

but what we eat can nevertheless help us to be much more than what we are.
Adelle Davis

For today, we'll continue to track our food and mood.  We'll also learn about eating more energizing foods and decreasing the energy zapping foods.  Finally, we'll practice visualizing ourselves with more energy.  All right, so here are the 3 steps. 

1.  Continue to track your food and mood.  (See Day 17 for more info.)
Remember again, to take 2 slowwww deep breaths before eating as a way to relax yourself

2.  Learn more about energy increasing and decreasing foods.  What are two energizing foods that you will add to your eating plan?  Are there any energy draining foods that you need to decrease?  You can click on the links below or learn more about this topic via books/Internet sites.  Also, view your food&mood journal from yesterday:  Are there any foods/beverages which lowered your energy?
Energizing Foods
http://kblog.lunchboxbunch.com/2009/09/energizing-foods-guide-rev-up.html
http://www.prevention.com/health/nutrition/healthy-eating-tips/food-and-energy/article/3c8fd08f88803110VgnVCM20000012281eac____

Energy Zapping Foods
http://www.doityourself.com/stry/energy-draining-foods-to-avoid

3.  For 2 minutes, visualize yourself as having more energy.   How would you feel waking up?  How would you move?  Would you have more patience with people? What kinds of foods would you eat?  You can look at inspiring images to help you with visualizing. 

To visualize, you can start by simply sitting still/lying down, closing your eyes and imagining a more energized you.  Also, if this is new to you, have patience.  Below is further info on visualizing.  Just an FYI, the visualization exercise in the posted link will take longer than 2 minutes:
http://www.life-changing-mind-power.com/creative-visualization.html
http://www.lawofattraction123.com/benefits-of-visualization.html
http://www.ehow.com/how_4721123_create-powerful-visualization.html

Here's a rough idea of what's ahead:
Day 19
Track how people affect your mood
Flexibility
Fitness - Add 5 min/more to routine or walk for 5 min, if you're new to fitness
Schedule an activity from your enJoy List for the weekend

Day 20
Continue to track how people affect your mood
Fitness - Try a new exercise
Declutter - 1 hour
Visualize - 2 min

Day 21
Reduce technology habit
1/2 spa day - soak/facial/pedicure/manicure/meditate
Foot massage
Review Success Tool Kit
Visualize

Here's a reminder about our daily routine so far-

Continuing to work on our 4 projects

Increasing our sleep, if needed

Deep breathing

Scalp Massage (optional)

Proper posture

Tracking our food and mood

*If you're doing a daily affirmation, that's also great!

Next week, we'll transition into managing our time.  Again, do what you can for this week!

Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here.

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 17 What's Your Eating Philosophy?

Tell me what you eat, I'll tell you who you are. 

Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

For this week, we're continuing to focus on renewing our energy.  Recently, we've worked on improving our sleep, practicing deep breathing and paying attention to our posture.  For today, we're going to consider our eating habits. 

1.  What's your eating philosophy?  Do you eat what you crave?  Do you eat a certain way for religious or health reasons?  What do you expect to get from the food that you eat--nourishment, energy, comfort?

Briefly, describe your present eating philosophy and your ideal eating philosophy.  Your ideal eating philosophy is a long-term manageable way of eating that you'd like to achieve:  It's not a short-fix diet.  For instance, if you often eat fast foods and drink soda, then your ideal eating philosophy could be to eat more home-cooked foods and to drink more water.  Here are some related links. 

http://nutrition.about.com/

http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/emotional-eating-feeding-your-feelings

http://www.emotionaleatingsecrets.com/about-us/

2.  Tracking Your Food and Mood  - For today and Day 18, track the foods that you've eaten, the time eaten and your mood.  If you want, you can track your mood both before and after you've eaten certain foods.  That way, you may be able to see how certain foods affect you.  If it's not too much work, you can include beverages as well to see how your mood could be affected.  You can make up your own chart or use this link: 

http://www.personal-nutrition-guide.com/food-diary-template.html

Quick Tip - Before at least one meal, take 2 slowwww deep breaths before eating:  See if it helps to relax you.

3.  Foot Massage - Give your feet a break:  Massage them at least twice during this week.  Massaging your feet helps to relieve stress and imrpoves overall circulation  http://www.lifescript.com/Life/Timeout/Chill/Knead_to_Relax_Give_Yourself_a_Foot_Massage.aspx

Today provides an extremely general look at eating and the different reasons for our eating habits.  If you'd like to learn more about emotional eating, overeating, nutrition and so on, feel free to explore those topics further.  I've had one nutrition class and I do like to eat but I'm not an authority on nutrition.  : )

Day 18

Visualizing

Tracking food and mood

Eating more energy foods

Here's a reminder about our daily routine so far-

Continuing to work on our 4 projects

Increasing our sleep, if needed

Deep breathing

Scalp Massage (optional)

Proper posture

Tracking our food and mood

*If you're doing a daily affirmation, that's also great!

Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here.

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 16 Posture, Posture, Posture

  I want to get old gracefully. I want to have good posture,

I want to be healthy and be an example to my children.

Sting

Today on our 30 Day Life Improvement Plan, we're going to go a li'l "old school" and focus on our posture.  We're focusing on posture because usually poor posture is a sign of low energy.  Hopefully, by being more aware of how we carry ourselves, we'll impove our energy in turn.

As a bonus for today, we're going to give ourselves a scalp...so, let's head right to it!  OK, pardon the cheesy pun.  ; )

Today's plan -
Posture - For part of the day, observe the people around you.  Notice the ones who have a confident, upright---but not military stiff---posture.  Similarly, notice the people who have poor posture.  Pay attention to what makes their posture poor:  forward hunch, drooping head, a jutting chin. 
 Now, for the second part of the day, observe your own posture.  Is your chin parallel to the ground?  Do your shoulders slouch?  Do you hunch often when seated?

Make a conscious effort to be more aware of your posture.  Below are some related links.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MIZ6Fl2BTY
http://my.clevelandclinic.org/healthy_living/back_health/hic_posture_for_a_healthy_back.aspx
http://www.bhg.com/health-family/fitness/workouts-programs/exercises-to-improve-your-posture/

Bonus - Scalp Massage:  If you wish you can begin a daily/weekly practice of massaging your scalp.  As with most things in life, be firm yet gentle when massaging your scalp.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLt8sPoGsp8
http://www.ehow.com/how_7254810_scalp-massage-instructions.html

And next....
Day 17
Eating Habits
Tracking Your Food and Mood
Foot Massage

Tomorrow, we'll begin to look at our eating habits and on Friday, we'll start working on our fitness.  For this week, do what you can.  Again, congratulate yourself for making an effort to change your life.  This 30 Day Life Improvement Plan is jam-packed so have patience with yourself and if you only do one activity a week...at least that's something!

Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here.

Tuesday's Tip - 7 Healthy Habits

So, say you're reading this post and you're in your late 20s or 30s...early 50s or whatever.  Have you thought about who you'll be in your 80s?  Do you shut down at the thought, as if 80 is a far away place in some long distant fuzzy future? 

If you're over 30, think back to your childhood.  Thinking back to that time, how did you imagine yourself at your present age?  Back then, did your late 30s and 40s, also seem to be some fuzzy far away future?  And now--congratulations!---you've reached that point.  That once far away future is now your present.  Likewise, with your 80s, hopefully, that far away future will one day be your present. 

What can you do to ensure that you make it into your 80s and beyond with an agile mind and flexible body?  Even if you're in so-so health today, you can begin to take some small action to improve your health.  Whether it's visualizing yourself as healthier or taking a walk during your lunch break.  To tweak a quote, I heard from another life coach, "Age reveals who we really are."  Thus, with time, the effects of our habitual actions and thoughts will show themselves.

OK, so before I step off my soapbox here's a recap of the 7 healthy habits for healthy aging which I gave for my radio show (still gotta get used to saying that.):

1. Research - Read books or articles on longevity. You can also check out Ti Caine’s website at http://futurevisioning.com/.

2. Attend to your environment - Strive to keep your surroundings uncluttered and surround yourself with people who encourage and inspire you

3. Eat sensibly--have a diet that’s high on fruits and vegetables and low on sugary or fried foods

4. Get enough sleep--I’m learning this one myself

5. Exercise--Exercise helps with your mood and your health.

6. Do something that energizes you--Whether it’s exercising, birdwatching or discussing movies with a friend:  Do something that you enjoy

7. Laugh - Maintain a sense of humor.

A bonus suggestion, if you know someone who's healthy and 80 or older, ask for his/her advice on healthy living.
Today's post and yesterday's show was inspired by an interview I heard of Ti Caine on Sherri Nickols' show "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun."  Part 2 of the interview will take place this Friday, Nov. 19. 

Related Show
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/shannonmcqueen

Sherri Nickols
http://www.unleashyoursparkle.com/

Ti Caine
http://futurevisioning.com/
http://ticaine.com/Future%20Worksheets%20v15.pdf

Earlier in the day...

Early this morning, I did another show for blogtalkradio.com.  Today's topic was "You at 80:  Healthy Habits for Healthy Aging."  I'll blog more on this subject tomorrow. 

Next week's topic will be coping strategies for the holidays. 

Listen to internet radio with ShannonMcQueen on Blog Talk Radio

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 15 Sleep on it

I'm not asleep... but that doesn't mean I'm awake. 

Author Unknown

For today, we're focusing on sleeping and breathing.  According to the National Sleep Foundation, adults need 7-9 hours sleep yet 33% report getting less than that.*  From personal experience, I know what it's like to have too little sleep and too much caffeine so I'm working on this habit as well.

In addition to sleeping, we'll work on improving our breathing.  When stressed, our breathing becomes constricted and as a consequence we take in less oxygen.  It can be helpful to remember this, especially during a tense situation. 

Here's today's plan:
1.  Sleeping - Are you getting enough sleep?  If so, keep it up!  If not, decide what you'll give up in order to go to sleep earlier.  You can increase your sleeping by going to bed 15 minutes earlier or by setting an alarm to remind you to prepare for bed.  During the remainder of this 30 Day Life Plan, aim to get as much sleep as possible, especially since the holiday season is fast approaching.   
http://www.bodybuildingforyou.com/articles-submit/gobala-krishnan/7-sleeping-tips.htm
http://helpguide.org/life/sleeping.htm
http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/guide/sleep-disorders-overview-facts

2.  Breathing --Are you breathing properly?  Have you paid attention to how you breathe?  Proper breathing oxygenates our blood cells and as a result gives us more energy.  Either daily or weekly, try to practice a deep breathing exercise.  (Check links for more info.)
http://www.path2healthyliving.com/breathing.html
http://www.womentowomen.com/fatigueandstress/deepbreathing.aspx
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3k_-mciE6o

3.  Time for our weekly rating:  Rate your life and your commitment to this plan (see link below)
http://coachintraining.blogspot.com/2010/11/30-day-life-improvement-plan-day-2.html

Bonus:  If you want, you can use this diary to track your sleeping habit: http://helpguide.org/life/pdfs/sleep_diary.pdf

And...up next:
Day 16
Posture

Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here

*http://www.comfortaire.com/documents/SleepHabits.pdf
 http://www.sleepfoundation.org/article/how-sleep-works/how-much-sleep-do-we-really-need

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 14 Cover Page

Success is where preparation and opportunity meet.
Bobby Unser

For today, we'll make a cover page for our Success Tool Kit* which we've been working on.  We'll also see how we're progressing with our list of projects and we'll aim to reduce our use of technology for today.  Here's the plan -

1.  Reduce our technology habit---Watch less TV, silence the cell phone for 2 hours or to decrease our use of the computer..  As always, do what works for you.


2.  Make a cover page for our Success Tool Kit - For this you can use the computer or design a cover page by hand.  A key point to remember is to be creative.  You can create a cover page with some of the inspiring images that you viewed yesterday or use an image of yourself   You can also give the cover a title and/or decorate it with positive words.
http://www.creativeaffirmations.com/positive-words.html

 3.  Review our progress with our list of projects/priorities.  Are there finished projects that you can now transfer to your completed list?  Are there projects that are no longer important to you?  Or on the other hand, are there projects that you need to remind yourself about?  During the week, aim to work on 4 projects at a time.  (You can review Days 3 and 5 for more information about making a list of projects.)

*Your Success Tool Kit should have the information which we've worked on gathering this week.  You can put your tool kit in its own binder or use a divider to separate it from the other material we've been working on.  Your Success Tool Kit should have the following--
Lists of
 Strengths
 What you enJoy
 "Gratitude"
 Resources (supportive people & resources that can help you with your goal)
 Inspiring Quotes
 Empowering Affirmation(s)
 Completed Projects (an ongoing list)
Ideal Life Description
Articles on
 An Inspiring Person
 Your Main Project
Motivating Images

Day 15
Rate yourself on plan
Sleeping
Breathing

Tomorrow, we'll move into our third theme for this plan which is renewing our energy. We'll be working on our sleeping, eating and fitness habits.  If you want to be ready for our third theme, you can decide on 2/more energizing foods to add to your "menu."  Using the links below, find what works best for you.  For instance, I don't "endorse" all of the foods mentioned in the prevention.com article but it may suit someone else's eating style.
http://www.eatingforenergy.ca/ 

http://www.prevention.com/health/nutrition/healthy-eating-tips/food-and-energy/article/3c8fd08f88803110VgnVCM20000012281eac____

Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here.

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 13 Affirmative!

First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do.
Epictetus

Believe it or not but we're close to the half-way mark for our 30 Day Life Improvement Plan.  We're also almost finished with creating our success environment.  Today's exercise could take about 2 hours:  Tomorrow's exercise will be "lighter" in case you need to catch up with the past week's exercises.

Here's today's plan -

1.  Create empowering affirmations - Create an affirmation that connects with you
Related Links
http://www.creativeaffirmations.com/list-of-affirmations.html
http://hubpages.com/hub/List-Of-Positive-Daily-Affirmations

http://abundancejournal.com/2007/how-to-get-rid-of-your-limiting-beliefs/
**This is a more involved way of creating an empowering affirmation but you can first examine any limiting beliefs that you may have and extract affirmations from that.  Some limiting beliefs could be:  Life is hard; Work shouldn't be fun; I never have good luck; Rich people are greedy; Exercise is painful.   

2.  Look at inspiring images--In books, magazines or on the computer look at images which inspire you.  You can do a search in Google by selecting "Images" and then typing keywords such as "dream house" "calm" "Kyoto" "healthy food" or any phrase that relates to your priorities.  You can print images from the computer or if the magazine belongs to you, cut out inspiring images.

3.  Declutter for 1 hour--I've noticed that when I declutter I am more at ease and my place feels lighter.  If you're emotionally up to it, remove items that don't fit into your current life and that keep you from moving forward.  (For instance, junk food if you want to be healthy or outdated clothing if you want to have an updated look)  If an hour doesn't fit into your schedule for today, you can declutter for whatever time is manageable for you.  Or schedule decluttering for later this month. 
Bonus - You can make a list of items that need fixing and also of equipment/material that you need to accomplish your priorities--running shoes, ink cartridge, water filter, etc.  With the holiday season coming up, this list could be handy.  : )

For tomorrow we'll...
Reduce our technology use (Watch less TV/silence the cell phone for 2 hrs/no computer during the evening)
Make a cover page for our Success Tool Kit
Review our progress with our list of projects/priorities

For next week, we'll focus on improving our energy. We'll be working on our sleeping, eating and fitness habits.  If you want to be ready for next week, you can decide on 2/more energizing foods to add to your "menu."  Using the links below, find what works best for you.  For instance, I don't "endorse" all of the foods mentioned in the prevention.com article but it may suit someone else's eating style.
http://www.eatingforenergy.ca/ 

http://www.prevention.com/health/nutrition/healthy-eating-tips/food-and-energy/article/3c8fd08f88803110VgnVCM20000012281eac____

Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here.

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 12 Research

source:  travelingproject.com

In order to get from what was to what will be, you must go through what is.

 Anonymous

For today, we'll continue to build up our Success Tool Kit by doing some research.   We'll be reading about someone who inspires us, getting some ideas on our main project and gathering some inspiring quotes.  Today's exercise will probably take about 40 minutes. So, here's today's plan:

1.  Read & print an article about a person who inspires you.  Suggestion:  If you're interested in a certain profession, then you can read about someone who's excelling in that field.

 2.  Read an article related to your main project.  What useful ideas did you get from the article?  How will you apply it to your project?  When will you apply it to your project?

3.  And for the list-lover in all of us!  ; )  Create a list of at least 5/more quotes that inspire you.  For ideas, you can enter "inspiring quotes" or "motivating quotes" into an online search engine, i.e., Google or Yahoo!

For Day 13, we'll...
Create empowering affirmations
Look at inspiring images
Declutter for 1 hour

For next week, we'll focus on renewing our energy. We'll be working on our sleeping, eating and fitness habits. If you want to be ready for next week, you can decide on 2/more energizing foods to add to your "menu."  Using the links below, find what works best for you.  For instance, I don't "endorse" all of the foods mentioned in the prevention.com article but it may suit someone else's eating style.
http://www.eatingforenergy.ca/ 

http://www.prevention.com/health/nutrition/healthy-eating-tips/food-and-energy/article/3c8fd08f88803110VgnVCM20000012281eac____

Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here.

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 11 Who Encourages You?

source: travelingproject.com

Continuing with our Life Improvement  Plan, we're now working on creating a Success Tool Kit.  The list of our strengths and of what we enJoy will be part of our tool kit.  Today's exercise should take about 30 minutes.  Here's the plan for Day 11:
. 
1.  List people who support/motivate/encourage you.

2.  Review your list of projects/priorities:  Is there someone with specialized knowledge who can help you with your project?  Create another list of people who can help you with your priorities.  On the same list, make another category of resources which help you with your priorities, i.e., books, videos, Internet sites, organizations

3.  What are you grateful for?  "What's great about your life?" as Tony Robbins would say.  : )  In other words, make a gratitude list. 

Coming next....
Day 12
Read & print an article about a person who inspires you
Read an article related to your main project
Create a list of at least 5/more quotes that inspire you

Also, this weekend we'll work more on decluttering and for next week, we'll focus on renewing our energy. We'll be working on our sleeping, eating and fitness habits.  If you want to be ready for next week, you can decide on 2/more energizing foods to add to your "menu."  Using the links below, find what works best for you.  For instance, I don't "endorse" all of the foods mentioned in the prevention.com article but it may suit someone else's eating style.
http://www.eatingforenergy.ca/ 

http://www.prevention.com/health/nutrition/healthy-eating-tips/food-and-energy/article/3c8fd08f88803110VgnVCM20000012281eac____

Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here.

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 10 Make an enJoy List!

source: travelingproject.com

We're now 1/3 of the way into our Life Improvement Plan.  Hopefully, you're seeing some changes in your life or at least you're beginning to think more about the life you'd like to live.  Have patience with this and, as always, congratulate yourself for taking time to improve your life.  For today, we'll review our list of projects/priorities and we'll add yet another list to our growing collection.  Here's today's plan -
1.  Review the list of priorities which you created on Day 6
     How are you progressing with your main priority?
     Do you need to schedule your listed priorities into your day?

2.  Create an enJoy List - List what you enjoy doing or what brings you joy. 
     You can list anything big or small here.  What counts is that it's something that
     uplifts/relaxes you.  For additional ideas, you can also look at your Ideal Day
     to see if it includes any activities that you'd like to do more of.

And next....
Day 11
List people who support and encourage you
List resources - people and information that can help you with your projects/challenges
List what you're grateful for

As a reminder, next week, we'll focus on improving our energy.  We'll be working on our sleeping, eating and fitness habits.  Of course, use common sense on this program and the standard of checking with a medical professional before beginning a health/fitness program applies here.

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 9 A Self Improvement Classic




source: travelingproject.com

Moving forward.  : ) Today's exercises should take about 45 minutes.  I'll just cut straight to the chase and list the steps:

1.  Vividly describe your Ideal Day.  
      How do you feel when you wake up?
      What does your room look like?
      Where do you live?
      What kind of food do you eat?
      What kind of clothes do you wear?
      What kind of car do you drive?
      What kind of work do you do?
      How do you spend your leisure time? 
      Do you spend your time alone or with friends?
      What do you and your friends talk about?
      Overall, how do you feel?  More energized?  Calm?  Patient?  Self-Confident?

2.  Declutter for 15 minutes
     If this time is too much for you, you can do something simple, like clean out
     your pockets, purse or a small file.

And for Day 10, we'll...
Review our list of projects/priorities to see how we're progressing
Make an enJoy List

Tuesday's Tip - A Short Post on Positivity

source: public-domain-image.com

You are what you think about all day long ---Dr. Wayne Dyer

A couple of weeks ago, I blogged about the news and how it can affect us...usually in a negative, disempowering way.  Recently, I came across some sites that have some positive tributes to 'em so I figured I'd share the links here.  There are, of course, other sites that you can refer to for positive news/information.

Blog
http://www.positivityblog.com/

News
http://www.happynews.com/

Positive Words
http://www.creativeaffirmations.com/positive-words.html

TV
http://untamedsuccess.advantage.tv/

Additional
http://www.positivevocabulary.com/other_positive_websites.asp

My 5 and 1/2 Sentences on Positive Thinking  : )
By becoming more aware of what we think, we can better manage and even change our thoughts.  Some people may think negatively to shield themselves from disappointment.  If you don't try, you can't fail....but you also can't succeed.  Consistently, thinking positive does take time and I won't pretend that I've mastered it.  Hopefully, the links above can help if you want to have more positive thoughts.  Below are some additional questions to consider:

Overall, are you more comfortable with being postive (optimistic) or negative (pessimistic)?

Is your optimism/pessimism acquired or have you always been that way?  If acquired, why?

Are you a pessimist on some topics/life areas but an optimist on other topics/life areas? (Life areas referring to your physical/mental/emtional health, career/business, finances, relationships, etc.)  

Who are the positive people in your life?

If you're an optimist how do you view pessimists?  If a pessimist, how do you view optimists?

Bonus Challenge -  For 3 days or more, see if you can find two things positive to say for every negative news story/gossip/complaint that you express to someone.  This may be a bit jarring for the listener but see if you can make a conscious effort to find something positive to share with people.  If this is already you...then keep up the good work! : )

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 8 Challenges and Strengths



source: travelingproject.com

We're now heading into our second week of our 30 Day Life Improvement Plan.  During this week, we'll work on "Creating a Success Environment."  Today's exercise should take about 30 minutes.  Here's the plan for Day 8:

Rate your life and your commitment (see Day 2).  Tip - Since we'll be rating ourselves for the upcoming weeks, you can create a table with the weeks in the horizontal heading and the life categories in the vertical column to rate yourself. 

List your strengths

Name at least 2 challenges that you've had during your life.  What strengths did you discover from the experience? 

Up and coming...
Day 9
Describe our Ideal Day
Declutter for 15 minutesYou can also click on this link http://www.blogtalkradio.com/shannonmcqueen to listen to a "talk"about "Finding Your Inner Strength."

Business Ready - Post 5 On the Air

Listen to internet radio with Shannonmcqueen on Blog Talk Radio
I just recorded an online radio show.  It was definitely something different to do.  The theme for this week's show is "Finding Your Inner Strength." 

Here are the coaching questions from this week's show:
1. Name 2 challenging moments that you’ve had. (Try to name a professional challenge and a personal one)

2. From those past challenges, what inner strengths or qualities did you discover about yourself?

3. How can you now apply those strengths/qualities to a current challenge that you may have?

Just in case--please pardon the show's fuzzy sound. 

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 7 Pt. 5 of 5 Observing Our Complaints

Today, November 7^th is Day 7 of our 30 Day Life Improvement Plan and the conclusion of our 5 part series on observing our complaints. Today's "exercise" will be a daylong one.  Here’s the plan:

1. Take a break from your complaints. Make an effort to not complain.  Be prepared with a complaint-free response, if someone asks you about something that you'd usually complain about.

2. Reduce your technology habit for the day:  You can watch less TV or detach from your cell phone during the evening--whatever is practical for your life.

3. List your excuses. Pick at least one complaint that you seem to specialize in:  What are your excuses for continuing the complaint? For example, if you say that you want to go back to school, what have been your excuses/reasons for not doing so?

On Monday, we'll be transitioning from our MENTAL DETOX theme and moving into our CREATING A SUCCESS ENVIRONMENT phase.

Day 8
List your strengths
Name at least 2 challenges that you've had during your life.  What strengths did you discover from the experience? 

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 6 Pt. 4 of 5 Observing Your Complaints

I'll keep this one brief since it's Saturday.  : )  Later, I'll post the plan for Day 7 because I want to reduce my online time tomorrow.  For today's exercise, we're going to create a list of our most pressing complaints.  You can call this list your "PROJECT" list or your "PRIORITY" or "INTENTIONS" list--whichever name suits you is fine.

Here are the 4 steps:

1.  Review your complaint list and your unloading list.

2.  For the urgent (U) complaints which are highlighted and underlined cut and paste them onto a separate document which is now your Project List.

3.  Review your unloading list and transfer any concerns that are important to you onto your Project list.

4.  Choose 4 projects to work on.   (Pick at least one which will have the most positive impact on your life.)

Congratulations!  You now have a list of projects which you'll be taking action on.  When you've  finished with a project, be sure to add it onto your "Completed" list.

Here's what's next:
Day 7
Limit your use of technology/take a complete break from the computer, cell phone, TV, movies, radio, etc.
No complaints - For one day, make an effort to not complain.  If you do complain, add it onto your complaint list.
List (yeah, another one!) your excuses.

Day 8
Ratings...
Challenges and Strengths

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 5 Observing Complaints Pt. 3 of 5

source: publicdomainclip-art.blogspot.com

We're now into Day 5 of our 30 Day Life Improvement Plan. This is also part 3 of our 5 part series on observing our complaints. Hopefully, yesterday's exercise was helpful.  (I made a pretty long list for both the advantages and disadvantages of complaining). 

For today‘s exercise, we’ll be working with the complaint list which we made on Day 3. A highlighter will be needed for this exercise or you could use the highlighting option on your computer. Step 2 is rather involved so have patience with that one!  : )

All right, so here are the 3 steps:

1.  Add any additional complaints, if needed, to Day 3's complaint list.  (Be sure to underline the complaint if it's one which you've expressed to another person).

2.  For the complaints that you have resolved, cut and paste them onto a separate document which will say “COMPLETED." If you’re not doing this on a computer you have the choice of crossing out the complaint and writing it onto a COMPLETED list or just simply crossing out the complaint. The COMPLETED list will help us with tracking what we’ve accomplished. You can edit the text on the list to reflect it’s completion.

3. For the remaining complaints, put a capital “U” in bold font to the left of a complaint that is urgent to you now.  Highlight complaints that have lasted for more than 3 months.  Note any complaints that are both urgent and have lasted for more than 3 months.   If you want you can the print document first and highlight by hand.

OK, that’s all for today. Tomorrow we‘ll work on comparing our complaint list with the unloading list which we made on Day 1.

Wish everyone a great Friday!


Today is...

source: commons.wikimedia.org

Today, entrepreneur-extraordinaire Diddy turns 41.  I was reading about him online during the weekend and it was pretty fascinating to read the ups-and-downs of his life.  Often, we see the results of a successful person's hard work without realizing what got him/her there.  http://www.answers.com/topic/sean-combs

I'm not saying that I adore everything about Diddy.  He's got his flaws but from a business sense his resilience and drive are admirable. 

In addition to "Diddy Day," today is also National Men Make Dinner Day http://www.menmakedinnerday.com/home/index.php and Use Your Common Sense Day http://www.budbilanich.com/career-success-coach/today-is-use-your-common-sense-day/.  Hopefully, those two days will eventually be obsolete.  I know a lot of men who enjoy cooking.  Moreover, in some countries, it's common for a man to cook dinner.  In any case, I suppose this is a day for those men who abstain from cooking to bond with the oven.

This year's theme for Use Your Common Sense Day is not to text while driving or walking.  (Confession: I added in that last part.)  If you're curious, here's some worthy  info from Answers.com on the history of this revered day -
 A day celebrating common sense in business and in life—on Will Rogers’s birthday. Rogers said, “Common sense ain’t all that common.” On this day don’t ignore your common sense—use it. Do at least one thing your common sense tells you to do: stop smoking for a day, have a talk with your children, begin an exercise program, etc.
http://www.answers.com/topic/use-your-common-sense-day

Coaching Questions:
What habit could you stop or try for today?  Perhaps if you're a guy who hasn't cooked, you could combine the two "holidays" and cook a simple dinner.  OK, I know, some people may say that's not using common sense but the key word here is "simple."

Is it easy or difficult for you to do what is beneficial  for you?

What available resources (people/material) can help you with changing a habit?

If you tried to not text while driving today, how did it go?

OK, that's it for the questions.  Let's agree to continue using common sense throughout the year.    Wish everyone a SUCCESSFUL day!

30 Day Life Improvement Plan - Day 4 Observing Your Complaints Pt. 2 of 5





source:  publicdomainclip-art.blogspot.com

 
We're now more than 1/10th into our plan!  : )  Hang in there, everybody we're still working on complaints.  Today, we'll continue to work on observing our complaints by noticing the complaints of others.  To do this exercise, you’ll have to be aware of the complaints that people make around you. Just to mention, this isn't to cast judgment on others or to give us a sense of self-righteousness, instead we want to be more aware of what people complain about and to see how we may be affected by their complaints.  For this exercise, you'll need a keen sense of awareness!  If it's manageable, during the day, you can write down the complaints you observe and use that info for this exercise.  
OK, so here's the drill for Day 4:

1.Note people, if any, who complain around you and the general subject of their complaint.  Do you also share or bond with them over these complaints?

2.  For you, what are the advantages and disadvantages to complaining?  Possible advantages could be to vent your feelings or to get sympathy.  Disadvantages could be that you could be regarded as someone who talks without "doing" or complaining makes you feel powerless.

Good job, people!  Congratulate yourself for finishing Day 4 and increasing your awareness of your thoughts.  Observing your complaints may not be the most pleasant activity to do during the day but at least you're taking time to improve your life. 

More info on the upcoming days can be viewed on yesterday's post.  For a description on the 30 Day Life Improvement Plan, you can click on this link http://coachintraining.blogspot.com/2010/11/introducing-30-day-life-improvement.html.

A Happy Thursday to Everyone!