5 Ways to Improve the Quality of Your Life

One of the best gifts you can give yourself is sometimes free and easy to find: the gift of time. Make a pact to be good to yourself by creating more time to relax, meditate and step away from the distracting, noisy motions of daily life. All of these things can do a world of good. Here are some easy ways to make 2014 a stellar year for ramping up your quality of life.

1) De-Clutter

One of the easiest ways to feel "lighter" and "happier" is to de-clutter your life. Make time to clean out closets and drawers, the garage and basement in a methodical way. In the end, you will add more time to your life.

Most of us waste time trying to find something in a closet that is stuffed with years' worth of clothing and odds and ends. If you're ultra-organized, you may latch upon just what you were looking for. But over time almost everyone finds they have accumulated too much stuff. So stop wasting time looking for things you want through mounds of things you don't use.

How long has it been since you've done a thorough sorting and tossing of your storage areas? Chances are it's been a long time. Once you've cleaned the house, make a commitment to not let outdated or non-essential items stack up again.

When you shed yourself of once loved, no more needed items, you'll feel years lighter. You'll feel so proud of yourself you'll have a nice happy feeling every time you open your closet doors. Get rid of the things that are accumulating space in your life. If you haven't worn something in six months, give it away or donate it.

2) Take a Walk

There's a centuries-old Latin adage that goes like this: solvitur ambulando, which means "it is solved by walking."

If you want to brighten your day and have a healthier lifestyle, put on your walking shoes and take a walk. Walking can open up many new possibilities. Walk where you can enjoy the scenery or may run into a neighbor you know or a neighbor you can get to know better.

Walk to think better. As the old Latin adage portends, if you're walking and enjoying life, chances are you'll find solutions to problems that might not have occurred to you when you were stuck to the couch watching TV.

And of course walking provides numerous physical and mental health benefits. Research has also linked walking to a probable reason why walkers often live longer than their peers.

3) Join Friends for Dinner

This sounds so simple you wonder how having dinner with friends can really help improve your life. It's fun to get together with people you enjoy, but it turns out there are more benefits than just that.

Science has found that the number "five" may be the magical number when it comes to dining out and health. When five or more people go out or eat together around the dining table at home at least once a week, they tend to be happier than those who eat alone or share the dinner people with fewer people.

Not only is it the dining experience that plays a part. There's also a health benefit in the anticipation and looking forward to doing something easy, simple and fun.

4) Get Inspired

What if someone told you the quality of your life could improve if you found inspiration in your life. You might be surprised to learn that scientists have found that people who have found sources of inspiration tend to be happier and more content. For some people that may come from being connected to a church or spiritual organization. Others may find inspiration, solace and beauty from exploring the world around them.

Look around... you may find inspiration in some of the most surprising ways. It may come from being a mentor to a young person who needs help and guidance or shut-ins where you deliver community-based, low-cost meal, or at hospitals or hospice centers who greatly appreciate your volunteer efforts. The bottom line is get involved in life and you'll be richly inspired and rewarded.

5) Spend More Time Sleeping

That's right, you read it correctly. Many busy people have found the secret to having more time during the day is having a longer, more restful sleep. That means spending more time in bed!

If you're not sleeping and not getting seven to eight hours of sleep each night, you may become sleep deprived. Researchers have found that sleep deprivation affects everything you do. When you are sleep deprived you react more slowly (especially when driving) and you don't have the same focus and energy as those who get a rested, good night's sleep.

What's even more disturbing is that many people don't know what it feels like to be fully awake during the day -- they're just marching through life without the benefit of quality sleep each night.

There are many ways you can improve your sleep patterns such as avoiding eating meals after 7 p.m. or cutting back on drinking alcohol or caffeine in the evening, and sleeping in a cool dark room. Try several lifestyle approaches such as reading a good book, taking a bubble bath or drinking a cup of warm milk before bed. The key is to find a pattern that works for you.

In addition to these six tips for improving your life, add in these elements too:

• Maintain a positive attitude. Stay focused on the good things going on in your life.
• Reflect on your successes instead of things that are out of your control.
• Take one day at a time. Focus on making the most of the present moment.

3 Reasons Why I Think Anxiety Therapy Sucks

Many people over the years have asked me a question that I feel I should address in one of my posts, and that question is what do I think about therapy. Well, in a nutshell I think that psychotherapy is a complete waste of time and money, due to the length of time it takes to see any kind of results (please not another conversation about how my father treated me when I was 7). Counselling is decent for mild anxiety, anger, and any other recent mild crisis you may be going through (don't expect any inspiration or success stories of how others have gotten to where you want to go though).

I can't say it was all bad, I did get some 'techniques' from my anxiety therapist on how to cope with a panic attack, I had someone there that would listen to me when I could afford it, and the coffee was fantastic! I want to share with you 3 important reasons why you might want to consider firing your therapist:

1) The Finish Line Was Rarely Discussed - I don't know about you, but for me it seemed like things were always about the process, the process, the process. Rarely did we ever talk about the end result! My vision, how my life MUST be in 6 or 7 years from now. Let's just say I didn't get the inspiration I needed to get me to the finish line, and on with my life.

2) My Therapist Never Considered Alternatives - I'll tell you something, if i'm in a tennis match and i'm getting my butt whooped all over the tennis court... it's time to change my game-style. Unfortunately even after a year and a half of anxiety therapy and still being couped up in a room talking about the same old things, my anxiety therapist never gave me a second option. It's the therapists job to get you into a state of 'no return,' to not accept your condition for a minute longer and to build a bond that will create change. Simply put if something's not working understand that there is more then one way to get to a destination, admit it and break your ties.

3) He Or She Is Just Too Bloody Old School - If this is the case remind your therapist that Freud is long gone, and that there have been significant developments and improvements in the approach since (spiritual approaches, meditation etc). Also ask your anxiety therapist what the difference is between coaching and therapy and if he says coaching should only be used in a sports arena, it's time to pack up your journal and leave.

Basically what i'm asking you is to think outside the box. It doesn't have to take 10 years of therapy to get results. Personal growth and recovery from anxiety disorders can be done naturally and quickly through pursuing not-traditional healing options, as well as coaches who may not have the book expertise but know what it takes to create a lasting change in your life (there's nothing that can replace a good bond between client and coach).

Increase Your Natural Immunities by Being Happy

We know we can increase our immunities by the foods we eat (and avoid), and the way we exercise. But it is also possible to build our immune system by changing our lifestyle; that is, by being upbeat and positive. Traditional medicine has generally said talked down this whole idea, and for the cynic in us we may think that they would endorse this idea if it could be sold in the pharmacy. But unless you spend money on therapy, you can get it all for free if you put your mind to it.

The first I had heard of this concept was from the experience of Norman Cousins. In 1976 he wrote of the way he beat a painful, life-threatening form of arthritis after doctors gave him little chance of recovery. After leaving the hospital he checked into a hotel, took huge doses of vitamin C and watched endless Marx Brothers movies, all the while roaring out loud with laughter. He has gone on to write about how people can heal themselves through laughter.

Though many immunologists are reluctant to recognize that a positive emotional state will have any impact on overall health, everyone seems to be in agreement that depression or stress will have negative health consequences. Studies as far back as the 1980s showed a connection between the brain and the immune system. So if stress or any other negative feelings can negatively affect health, why is it so hard to accept that positive emotions can positively affect health?

It is also interesting to note that not all pleasurable experiences give the same immunity benefits. Happiness derived from short-term emotional experiences does not provide the same benefits as those derived from activities that give life a greater sense of meaning and purpose. In other words, it's good to take care of ourselves and our individual needs, but even better to gain happiness from helping others and have a greater community involvement. Yet more evidence that our emotional state is tied to our immune system.

Unfortunately most people will find happiness to be quite elusive, as it is pretty much a mind-set most everyone searches for. As Abraham Lincoln once said, "Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." But for most people a lot of different things go into being happy. Certainly reducing stress will play a part, and there are tricks we can play on ourselves to keep it to a minimum. People that were put into stressful situations and then were given exercises to take their mind off that stress had significantly lower stress markers in blood samples than those that ruminated on the stressful situation. To put it another way, put your stress behind you.

A whole lifestyle reboot may be needed more than just changing a person's way of thinking. Besides managing stress and getting ample sleep regularly, keeping your insulin levels under control with a healthy diet is vital. Making water your beverage that you consume almost all the time and exercise on a regular business all plays a vital part. Everything contributes to changing your lifestyle habits.