Take off the mask you have been wearing
and start to live a life of authenticity.

Show your true self because it is a crucial aspect of who you really are. We are perceived by our authenticity, and it significantly influences the pleasures we derive from our experiences. It also affects our engagements, practices, and our behavior in life. Learning how to be your authentic self is an essential part of building meaningful relationships and having a stronger mindset.

What you do in life aligns with what you say and your story. It is your deepest core speaking to who you are. Some people fear being unaccepted in their circles or being judged for who they are. Living in a world of pretense gives you the sense of false security that makes you believe something that you are not. The deception is a facade and not the real you. Simply put, your authenticity means you are true to your own personality, values, and your behavior is genuine.

Living an authentic life offers more abundance than hiding your true self. People can often tell when your character is presented inauthentically or fake. Honesty is an important part of being authentic. It fosters trust and welcomes a fulfilling experience with those around us.

There are benefits to being your authentic self. We stay true to who we genuinely are – no pretending. We follow our passions, do what makes us happy, and we live life to the fullest.

Other benefits of being your authentic self:

• Integrity – you don’t hesitate to do the right thing.
• Ability to deal with problems – builds strength and openness instead of procrastinating.
• Confidence and self-esteem – you trust yourself to make the right decisions.
• You experience personal growth.
• You have enriched relationships.
• You promote personal well-being.
• You have a complete feeling of being you and loving yourself.

How to Be Authentic

You can develop your authentic self through a lifelong process of discovery. It is a practice and requires patience, time, and dedication to doing it. Consider these strategies to make a start:

1. Live by your values
2. Communicate honestly
3. Identify who you want to be
4. Manage your emotions
5. Practice mindfulness
6. Be impeccable with your word
7. Learn to say no and define your boundaries
8. Listen to your inner voice to hear your hopes and dreams
9. Pay attention to your goals and reflect on your journey
10. Be grounded by the truest version of yourself

Living authentically is like any other learning process. It starts with reflection to pause and become self-aware of who you are.  From a place of strengthened self-awareness, you can begin to show up as your authentic self in life. Develop the courage to face your fears and take daily actions towards discovering and being yourself.

Enjoy living authentically!

Check out this link to an article on Psychology Today:

Develop Authenticity: 20 Ways to Be a More Authentic Person

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/click-here-happiness/201904/develop-authenticity-20-ways-be-more-authentic-person?eml

I recently learned from a family member of their concern about the demise of our family legacy. No surprise but some disappointment when you search for reasons that many families face during these unpredictable times. In my opinion, everyone has a duty and responsibility to build on the legacy gifted to them from birth. If you look back and examine your family’s history, something has been left and remains for you to cherish, remember, nurture, and continue planting the seeds of fruitful knowledge.

Legacy is defined as the long-lasting impact of particular events, actions, or benefactions. But legacy can take many forms. A legacy may be of one’s faith, ethics, and core values. Yes, it can be monetary or assets, it can also be measured by one’s character, kindness, inspiration, support, humility, integrity, forgiveness, and the life you lead – setting an example for others and to guide their futures.

Sure, we can leave money, houses, and land but leaving the legacy of love and faith is wisdom that will impart to live on in their hearts long after we are gone. We can display a legacy of love by teaching the power of family values by caring, sharing, and distant engagement through communication. The most important part of leaving a legacy of family love is what is happening now, while you are alive.

Live a life of fulfillment and your legacy will pass on. – Gloria Sloan

To read more click HERE

You become extremely excited and anxious when the time to go on what is perhaps a much-needed vacation or travel to an adventurous and fun destination. The itinerary and scheduled details for what, when, and where have all been planned and arranged. All you need to do is pack your suitcases and go. Everything for the trip is prepared and ready – you cannot wait to get there!

Life’s journey requires some preparation with enthusiasm and eagerness much like planning for an exciting trip. The skill of preparation actually gets you ready to do the work. Planning is the original step to help get life-changing wisdom off to a good start. The desire to have a life of fulfillment is universal. By human design, we naturally seek to not only survive but to live life to the fullest. It is wise to plan to make the most of what you have.

The art of preparation is a skill that you can hone. It requires self-discipline and practice. Life is about preparation and the willingness to put in the work and time to become great at what you desire. The challenge is to repeat and be great over, and over again. The preparation to live fully is an ongoing process.

To prepare yourself for greater heights begin by investing in your mind to set the emotional tone for work to come. Program your mind in the “golden hour” of the morning to start the day with fresh positive vibes. The golden hour is the first hour after sunrise and the last hour of light before sunset that produces natural light, also called the magic hour. Developing a healthy morning routine can make you feel more in control of what is to follow in your day.

The minute you wake up, every decision you make drives your brain into exertion searching for influences and discipline. Map out what you can the night before. The start of a good morning embarks a sense of well-being that supports readiness to prepare for actions and planning.

• Make planning a habit
• Use time management
• Make a to-do list

Plan and Assessments

Living human beings have dreams, wishes, and desires of the heart. Plan for the possibilities in life with a written promise to yourself. If it is in your mind and you want it, write it down and go for it. Be flexible and make necessary changes as you grow to achieve and succeed. Expectations can be a powerful attractive force when used in your life plan. The more you expect what you want the harder you will work on planning to achieve it.

Creating a life plan will help you to establish a roadmap to prioritize the decisions you want to make in life. A life plan becomes a personal guide to how you want to live and what you need to do to achievement fulfillment. It will also serve as a good reference for managing a personal development plan that I will discuss later in more detail.

Focus on what you want in your life plan. Too often more attention is given on what others expect of us. Be creative and give yourself permission to dream. Ask yourself what really matters in your life? What would your best life look like?

There is no defined rule for learning how to create a life plan other than being realistic and true to yourself. A good life plan will include:

Self-Assessment

• Look for past motivations
• Review failures (you are not alone)
• Examine habits or disabling situations
• Clear your direction for a bright start

A Vision

• Plan with what you believe (values)
• Consider what would bring you more joy and happiness
• Interpersonal relationships and social roles
• Think about what you want to accomplish

Priorities

• Make a chronological list of them (future plans)
• Put things in order that you want to achieve
• Show details of how they can be carried out
• Determine and outline a time schedule

Sometimes it is a matter of taking small manageable steps on the path of getting where you want to be. Experience the accomplishments with gratitude while sustaining motivation to make positive changes as you move forward. Reflect on current priorities in life and what is important or needs to change. Create systems surrounding your life that will support these changes. This includes staying close to your faith for the spiritual direction during uncertainty or when challenges exist.

Managing Your Steps

Planning the steps needed for growth requires a self-developing attitude with a strong willpower to reach the destiny of your desires and passion.  Everyone’s path to success takes a different route and some may travel a longer or shorter distance. The steps you take will be the ones that will fuel the drive to succeed.  direct your future. If you step outside the path, tread back on course, and learn from any mistakes that were made. Stay focused on what is important and if adversity shows up, rely on your strength.

Look around at people you know who have made great strides at success. Whatever level of accomplishments they made it took vision, courage, commitment, and planning but the most important thing was managing every step along the way.

Navigating Personal Development

Living offers a wealth of opportunities that afford us the possibility to progress in life and find the roads that branch out to discover our passion, purpose, and potential. When you look at your life in pivotal review and see complete fulfillment, know that you are blessed. But even when you seem to have it all sometimes there is a feeling of unrest to satisfy the inner soul.

Personal development has many distinct sectors that take place in your life during the advancement process as you venture for possibilities. It will consist of activities that develops a person’s capabilities, potential and build human capital. Personal development can be any skill that you want for self-improvement – the key is taking the right steps that will help to ensure achievement that reaches your goal. Personal development is a process that never ends, and you are the deciding factor that controls the destiny.

Successful people always invest time to work on themselves. Some people dedicate up to thirty minutes of their time every day toward personal development. There are others who dedicate a significant amount of time continuing to learn. A good place to start is to begin every day with something that gives enlightenment, encouragement, and brings positivity in your life. Identify areas that can help you improve or maximize your potential. Feed your brain with positive things and new information on a regular basis.

To read more books, you need to make reading a higher priority in life. There are so many options that compete for our time making it difficult to work in the flexibility of reading. It is important to remind yourself of the unique rewards of book reading. Consider making a significant effort to develop new reading habits that will support your determination and willpower.

Reading affects our attitudes, beliefs, thoughts, feelings, and moral judgements. Research shows reading strengthens the brain, improves cognition, can help with depression, and provides other health benefits. Studies show people who read continually improve communication skills that strengthens the development of large vocabularies, increasing the ability to empathize and understand others. Reading is good for the mind, body, and soul. It enriches well-being and enhances knowledge. I recommend inspirational reading to my coaching clients embracing a wholeness journey.

The importance of books in our life not only help in broadening our horizons but also function as doorways of connecting us with the world around us. Books supply us with life lessons and contain the knowledge of past cultures because they have been here for centuries. They can increase the power of our imagination, creativity and dreams.

I recently came across an article on the correlation between reading and successful people. Check it out. https://thebookbuff.com/reading-makes-you-successful/

Reading books is easier than you think. Reading just 20 minutes per day, you actually end up reading 1.8 million words in one year. With an average of five hundred words per page, which means you would read 3,600 pages per year. That is twelve books with three hundred pages each according to Basmo Book and Reading Tracker.

Reading increases your intellectual capacity and ability to retain knowledge. The more you read, the more you know.

There as so many true and appealing things to say about reading. It can serve as a source of entertaining and enjoyment surrounded around others or with groups. Children develop positive and independent reading habits engaging with others. Early reading sparks curiosity and helps in the development of other skills such as problem-solving.

Another important fact about books in our life is that books are one of the most creative forms of art. Every book that we read has the power to transpose us in diverse ways through amazing characters or opening the doors for us to dream more vividly. Reading a book is like dreaming with your eyes open.  What is your current read?

Helpful tips on how to read more books:

• Start with motivation, first think about why and what you want to read. Find books that you enjoy and brighten your interest.
• Plan a schedule and establish the groundwork for your new reading habit. Always have a book in your space ready for your next read when you have unexpected downtime.
• Devote time to your own reading challenge while working toward your reading goals. Keep it simple in choosing your selections and remember to ask others what they are reading. Check out best sellers lists or consider joining a book club. Cheers to reading more books!

Golf is played by around 55 million people on 32,000 courses in over 200 countries. The stunning fact is that all of these people could be substantially benefiting their health in the process.

The benefits aren’t only limited to physical health, with psychological benefits including mood, reduced anxiety, and increased confidence. Golf is also known to boost social connections and self-esteem. A study found that golf has a positive effect on the brain as well. It can contribute to improved focus and attention.

I’ve heard that golf makes you smarter. I’m not sure how true that is but I plan to keep practicing my skills with self-development to get better. The game requires mental agility and prowess…critical thinking improves the ability to concentrate, I get it! For me the challenge is applying the much-needed physical skills associated with playing the game well. I admit to being an infatuated novice, although playing the sport on and off for years. Every good golfer I know plays on a regular basis to stay good and I know that is what it takes. I’m ready to go tee up and have some fun, come join me!

Did you know?

Golf is a good workout for your brain. Playing golf helps improve brain function and math skills because players need to know how far they are from the hole, what club to use, and also keep track of their strokes. This boosts mental alertness and critical thinking skills, both of which are important to self-awareness.