Anonymous free lattes

I just finished sending anonymously free latte coupons to a few of my coworkers (free holiday latte at Tim Horton’s) 

I’m seeing a trend where I like giving anonymous gifts, and not dealing with their reactions. Or seeing their reactions but not being there when they are pleased. I thought, hey I just like being nice, and I think I also sort of wish these people pay it forward and grow in their own ways, to be better people. Perhaps it is somewhat selfish to be around people who would pay it forwards, but at the same time it is very selfless in the fact that I am giving for the sake of giving and not expecting anything in return (which is awesome!)

At the same time, it makes me wonder – is there a fear that I have? Probably: I’ve recently had an “aha!” moment realizing I have a fear of intimacy, in the way that I can’t pay a compliment and look someone in the eye, or be confrontation and look them in the eye, or be vulnerable in any way and look at them in the eye. As soon as I say something personal, nice or mean, I look away. As soon as I’ve said what I wanted to say, I look away, afraid to see what happens and be present for the reaction. When it’s a compliment I am paying, or something nice, often I will defend myself or not take ownership “well, it was going to happen anyway”. Another way I fear intimacy: I have a way of skipping over the bonding, “how are you?” part of a conversation to just get to the point… while other times, I’ll only ask about the other person so that I don’t have to say anything about myself (and be vulnerable).

The challenge here will be to say “I’m the one who sent it to you”, look that person in the eye until their reaction comes, and just listen and accept whatever the reaction is with humility and respond calmly if necessary. “It was my pleasure.”

Secret Agent K

Five things that make me happy this week

1. Baking , especially when it's to raise funds, and I don't have to do the raising. 

I made marshmallows flavored with Cream of Earl Grey tea from DavidsTea (the recipe is here), and I also made apple turnovers, which were both surprisingly easy to make. We raised money for Centraide. The department at my work was organizing. So many sweets were made and about 400$ were raised! Wonderful!

2. Leaving anonymous gifts to put smiles on people's faces! Inspired by Secret Agent L.

I left these at the gym! Random Acts of Kindness is the way to go :)

3. Complimenting people by way of post-its, idea from Operation Beautiful

This one I put up on a car at the gym. I'd have done it for more cars, but it was raining and I didn't have an umbrella! It will definitely brighten someone's day!

4. Made a cake for my friend's birthday! It's a butter pecan cake with whipped cream frosting. It was a total hit at the party! I may one day start making cakes for money  - wouldn't that be something? 

5. Pretty boxes for cupcakes I  just ordered from my friend's company Georgette Packaging

Have a lovely week!

Happy K

The fine line

There's a fine line between acceptable and non-acceptable behaviour, and that fine line exists everywhere. So if you were to draw all the fine lines that people metaphorically walk on, or beside, there would be one everywhere we looked, there are so many. And worse, if we drew my line and your line on the same subject, and colored in the space between, well, we wouldn't see in front of us at all.

This week, the fine line has been on my mind constantly. I'll talk about those more prominent lines I experienced in the last few days.

The fine line between being funny and offending

This one happened to me big time today. Yesterday's funny picture I made about my coworker made everyone laugh wholeheartedly, but was a really bad joke today that warranted immediate action. By respect for him, I deleted the picture, the emails, all links to it, and then cleared my recycle bin. I was so proud of it too, and we laughed the big laugh together - the kind of laugh that gets me coughing for the next 2 hours. Oh, what a nice laugh it was. But I've managed to offend. 

It's about trust and relationship - have I managed to create a sense of relation with this person? Does he trust me enough? The answer is : No, he doesn't trust me. He doesn't trust me, because I sent it to someone (someone I trust). He doesn't know I wouldn't hurt him. He's my favorite person in all the company and he doesn't know it.  Because of that, the line gets blurred. My line isn't the same as his line. 

The fine line between discipline and punishment/violence

I've been having big questions  - will I ever want kids? I really feel right now like I don't have what it takes to be a parent . My kids would end up more messed up than me, what with a mother who has trouble dealing with negativity, people, who compares herself and blames herself for a lot of shortcomings, and a potential father who well, has his own set of faults (he's got some good sides too). 

A good friend of mine just got a puppy. They are trying to train him, to be a disciplined and caring dog. They've decided not to "punish", as in be physically violent, though a lot of discipline techniques are physical, so what's the line between violence and discipline?

As a kid, I remember thinking many time that my mom was my enemy for forcing me to ___ (fill in the blank) but ended up realizing later it was a good idea (but never admitting it). Those are instances where they've stood their ground and I HATED it, like I thought I deserved a better life, and I thought I was unjustly being punished. I thought it was violence, and aggressiveness, and was only there to make me hurt. How my line had been different from my parents' line. To them, it had just been discipline, and was necessary. 

So, no matter what I try to discipline my children, they'll think something else. And no matter how violence-free my friends think they are raising their dog, we'll never know who the dog perceives being touched when he's angry. It's a matter of perspective! (Everything is a matter of perspective)

The fine line between being caring and obsessing & between assertive and defensive

There are things I really care about, but when I speak about them more than once, I am often told to stop "preaching to the choir". It seems to others sometimes as if I obsess in an unhealthy way, however what I see is something that drives me, that inspires me. I am not trying to convince those around me that they should change their opinions... What I wan't is for the other person to think about it and engage me in a meaningful discussion. It gets to a point where I end up defending myself, where I should be speaking my mind. 

What I've found out here is that the difference lies in 1) my interest in what the other person thinks of me and 2) how I see myself/my confidence. 



All in all, due to this week's theme of "the thin line", I've realized that my self-confidence is being tested since I still care about what other people think of me and whether they judge me. It's a fear I need to take hold of, understand, accept and move on - i.e. don't let it bother me as I keep putting myself in action. The confidence and self-respect will come!

Keep the faith,

Happy K

Getting out of the vicious circle

"If you feed the madness, it feeds on you" from the episode I JUST watched in Once Upon a Time

A few "bad" things (it's a matter of perspective, don't you think?) happened in a row and it snowballed: I lost control of myself then got into a doom & gloom mood for a couple of weeks, a "phase". In that phase, which I've had before a few times, I go down hard on myself, and then hate myself for everything I do. It's the harsh self-talk that goes on in my head when I'm not doing something fun. I do do fun things that make me temporarily happy and forget, which I think is part of the reason I get out of the negativity phase eventually, but they feel like escapes. Because when those fun things end, I go back to the black cloud mood where it's easy to be mad, it's easy to hate, it's easy to blame. 

I had this twice since I went to Open Heart in April 2014, and got out of it consciously, using the tools I got from the seminar. Because of that course, I'm aware and conscious. It sucks, but it's good at the same time because I know what I need to do. It sucks because it adds another reason to hate myself (therefore, vicious circle), but it's good because, as I ruin, blame, cry, get angry and wish bad things on people who didn't do anything, I also put time to exercise, do my written exercises that I learned from the seminar, take time to do breathing exercises, and meditations that inspire me, because I know those work. 

But man, is it hard to start, to put effort and be uncomfortable! But starting, well, that's non-optional for where I want to go!

I have motivation to find the happy version of me, it's really good, and I'm so thankful to have found a way to get there, even if I have to do it over and over .

People and sites I follow that inspire me:
http://instagram.com/maddykatelier
http://mindvalleyacademy.com/
http://cupcakesandcashmere.com/ (special mention for her newest post my-5-steps-for-tackling-anxiety)

October

I cannot believe it is already October, and I cannot believe I had forgotten about this blog for the last couple of months. I was reminded of it because it’s fall now, in full swing, with leaves turning yellow, orange, red and brown, falling away, and the cold it has brought in. I love fall! I remember that in fall of last year, I was giving out small gifts around the office and other places, inspired by Secret Agent L, and posting “you’re beautiful” notes, inspired by Operation Beautiful. As I signed up for Movember again, I remembered last year my post-its aimed at men. And I remember that although I’ve gone through a lot of emotional pain in the last year, my heart was in the right place a year ago. That person felt hope drift away for herself, but knew that spreading love to others would help mend her broken heart. The Me now loves herself a helluva lot more – anything is a helluva lot more than zero – and still wants to spread the love to others. I’m becoming the person I want to be. Love myself AND others. That’s what life is about!

And so, on that note, I'm setting up a to-do list for October. My inspiration comes from an old post by Emily Schumann of Cupcakes and Cashmere, one of my favorite blogs.

1. Bake 3 pumpkin recipes

2. Go Hiking

3. Drop anonymous gifts (Secret Agent L-style)

4. Recruit a friend to grow a stache and raise funds/awareness for Movember

5. Complete class Science of Happiness on edX.org 

7. Meditate to build intuition and to ground myself

8. Work out 3x / week to get fit for my Hawaii trip in December

9. Help host a fall party 

10. Practice gratitude by counting 3 good things every day

What's on your list this season?

1st Tip on Building Relationships

Hi there

My new interest is LinkedIn Updates, a sort of news feed with interesting articles. After posting a few shares with a small comment, hardly difficult, I was asked whether I wanted to join LinkedIn as a Publisher. Hmm, interesting. I don't know if I am good enough at writing to actually publish anything of value, and I would definitely want to post something of value if anything at all, but I added that feature to my profile nonetheless. 

Since my steps towards betterment with my personal development courses and home work, I felt a sort-of wave of understanding towards the people and world around me and an inspiration to motive those people to take similar steps or to simply be slightly happier or take steps to better themselves. In other words, I found a way to contribute to the world. 

It's important to have a reason to contribute, a darma, a personal life path/purpose, even if it's vague, or just a gut feeling. 

I don't know what I'd write about, I figure I'd use this blog as a way to collect my thoughts. Afterall, no readers, yet accessible. I want others to see that it's possible to have questions and be uncertain, and be all sorts of unhappy while also taking steps to find that happiness, take it back, choose it and work on yourself.

One thing I can think of right now is that to build a relationship with anyone, boss, friend, sister, coworker or anyone, it's important to be open and honest. It doesn't mean divulge all your deepest secrets, but it means, don't expect the truth and openness from the other person if you're not ready to give it out yourself. One coworker told me in an attempt to give advice, that being open at work is a sign of weakness. I used to believe that, so much that it ruled my entire life from day one to a few months ago. I still do unconsciously.... But boy is that wrong. 

No wonder I have had troubles building trusting relationships with my coworkers (I want to trust them to be honest and reasonable with me and anyone)! How could I expect them to open up and be real if I wouldn't let the real Karen out? 

Think about it, it starts with body language. You wouldn't approach someone who looks grumpy, but rather go to someone who seems happy or peaceful, for whatever reason. So, basically if you want anything from the other person, they have to first feel like they can get something from you - it's like a payment I guess, but it's true. First you open up - it's a risk, but it's worth it. You say "hi, how are you?" if they say "good, you?" you won't want to say anything more than "good" also. But if they build a story around how they're feeling, you're likely to give the same sort of response. 

So, that's something I would need to fix up a little before sharing........

Balanced Assertivity

I struggle with being the correct level of assertive. I am a push-over then I am pushy. I am working to eliminate the push-over side and it's working. Then I say one thing and I am pushy. 

What's pushy anyway? If you close up and shut down, you've been exposed to someone who is pushy. I think when Martine and Sylvain called me to do the Leadership program they were being pushy. 

But then I build the relationship with my mom, let her open up to me for a few weeks, ask her questions for introspection, but as soon as I talk about 'the course', it becomes pushy?!? How does one word change the conversation? How does it go from being open to being closed and I become shut out? Am i pushy or is she closed for support? Why is it too often?

But it's not just my mom. It's my mom, my sister and my boyfriend. Maybe more, but they're the ones who have said it. That means it's something I do. What do i do that makes people close up and shut down? 

You have to ask yourself: do I close up and shut down? am I afraid of support? Was it that I didn't build the relationship enough? Am I afraid of intimacy?

I think I am open to support. Probably too open. Though, I don't necessarily apply the support I get right away... which might be the cause. I was certain that I built the relationship enough, because sometimes all it takes is a simple "how are you?" and actually care. I care! 

Caring, overthinking and analysing though, I am not sure those get me to the place I want to be. 

It's frustrating, but something to think about.

Let me just add a link: http://leadershipfreak.wordpress.com/2013/12/18/how-to-be-assertive-not-pushy/ 

Be happy now

I've been watching a lot of videos on MindValley's various websites, and here's one that I watched yesterday and it marked me more than the others: it's about gratitude. Instead of thinking along the lines of "I'll celebrate when I get a promotion" or "I'll be happy when I own a red camaro", instead of waiting two years to be happy (and in two years, you'll know you'll just have some other goal 2 years after that), instead of postponing happiness, you must take it now, choose happiness now, be happy with what you have now, because the present it all you have. 

Somehow all this I just wrote, I knew it before, I always knew it but it never really clicked until recently (a weekend seminar I took really did it for me), so I encourage you to keep learning and keep remembering it until it really clicks and it becomes easy to do. Keep trying, you'll get there, be confident in the process. You're on the right path.

So, back to that, the above concept is from this guy Dan Sullivan and his theory "the Gap". Here, watch this video from Mind Valley. 

The concept is to instead celebrate the you now compared to the you from two years ago. That's called Gratitude. And gratitude comes easily when you're on the right track (once it "clicks") but until then, practicing gratitude even if difficult at first will bring more gratitude easily into your life. That's happiness. Embrace it.

So, to finish, I want to add this "Happiness Challenge" image I found on Pinterest. It comes from this site. It's true, everyone's ultimate goal is happiness, but happiness is a feeling, a momentary emotion. Choose happiness today, and build it into your life using simple gratitude processes, such as those below.  



Good Luck!

Who am I?

I am generous
I am observant
I look out for people
I am curious
I want to learn
I am happy
I enjoy life, food, discoveries
I have an inner child
I am flexible
I respect myself
I am confident
I am creative
I am organized enough
I care for the environment
I am positive, optimistic
I trust easily
I am supportive & compassionate
I am sociable
I am intelligent
I give good advice
I am kind
I am funny and I have a sense of humor

What other people say:
I'm confident 
I try things 
I am daring 
When I choose to do something, I do it (no matter the after-thoughts...)
I don't need to ask permission
I'm a pro at desserts
I respect myself
I am loved
I'll be missed
I'm beautiful
I'm fun
I'm very friendly
I'm generous
I'm a giver

Tips to Love Yourself

1. Ask for a list of things people like about you (get it by email to keep)
2. Make a list of things you like about yourself. Be honest. if you have trouble, think about thinks you value in your friends and see if you've got that too. Write in a special notebook, a beautiful notebook. Read and repeat.
3. Make it part of your daily routine to praise something in yourself or think of something you like about yourself, or something you did to make others feel good. Praise as if you're a friend of yours.
4. Love yourself like you love a friend. Close your eyes. Think of someone you deeply love and trust and who you know loves you. Think of all the things you appreciate about them. Notice how love feels, how it feels good. Now be the friend, feeling love back at you. See yourself through gentle eyes, with compassion and love, the way your friend does. Receive that love, from your friend to you, feel the warmth move through you. remember how it feels. repeat.
5. Make a note everytime someone says something nice to you. Put these notes in a container 'good things about me'. Decorate it. Read & repeat. 
6. Have compassion for yourself: if you're feeling judgemental, try to get where it comes from, from deep down. fear? insecurity? past voice? listen to your feelings. Hug and reassure the kid inside you. Tell her you did nothing wrong, tell her you love her. As if you're your friend.
7. Recognize love comes from you, not from parents, but from you. You deserve it. You deserve love and acceptance. 
8. Use affirmations. Write, say strong loving things even if you don't fully believe. for example: "I utterly and completely deserve love and kindness", "I am a very loveable person", "I am kind, compassionate, intelligent and wise". Put affirmations up where you always see or touch (e.g. book), or both. Read them daily. Write love notes to yourself. Read them slowly and really feel it. 
9. Recognize self-criticism. Notice it, then ask your evil voice "why?" Remind yourself you no longer need to do that to survive. You're free to make up your own mind.
10. Counteract negative thoughts about yourself. Write down all the negative thoughts and messages in your head. Figure out who told you them first. Respond to them by counteract, as strong and loving as you can. Ask a deep/wise part inside you. Think about how your friend would say it. 
11. Do comforting and nurturing things for yourself. Feel good and feel how good you feel. You deserve it. Seek ways to feel good. 
12. Ask yourself what you need to do - trust your intuition.

The new boss in town: the Heart

Today I made a decision to review the Open Heart seminar. I totally didn't expect it! As most things... I have never really been prepared for things, and I certainly don't expect things to go bad when they are good. As Martine consoled me, as I cried that I was not good enough (untrue), or that I can't do it (untrue), that I haven't learned anything (super untrue), that I'm right back where I started 3 months ago (really untrue), that I had fears (ok that one's true) about being judged, being compared, losing approval, not caring about my money, anyway, as you can see, I have a lot of emotional things to settle, limiting behaviours to erase or unlearn, things to let go of, things to accept, such as me: accepting and forgiving myself... 

I am so aware of all this now! How did I not see it before?? It's like Martine put it (as she got it from Lyse), a story that depicts the mind vs. the heart: you own a Dep, but you've been away for 30 years, and you come back and it's a mess! the current manager (metaphor for "the mind") thinks it's got the situation handled, but the ways in which he works are totally opposite what you'd do. This manager sees his store as if it's running smoothly, and you can see now from an outer perspective, that you could be making a helluva lot more profit, by cleaning it up, changeing the management, changing the staff, changing the methods... it's still the same store, but with the heart in charge, man is it going to flourish!! And I guess the store is a metaphor for the body! Hehe, it's a nice story, huh?


So I'm going back to the seminar - to complete my Leadership Course. I'll get back and see it from a different perspective. And more importantly, I'm making a decision that puts my heart back in charge of the store. The mind can have its 9-5 desk job back, do the analysis, design and mathematics, and leave the other stuff for the new boss in town, the heart. My heart and my Self.

This is a beautiful end (of my Open Heart experience) to a beautiful beginning (that is my happy life).

The blog's first "What's So" : a Current-reality reality-check

Dear Internet,

I know I don't have readers, and actually this blog is actually my online diary. In a recent course that I did, last April 2014, I realized a lot of things about me, about my past, about my parents, and understood a lot about why I am the way I am, what I've been lugging around (behavioural patterns) and how I can clean myself right up to be this bright brand-spankin'-new me out in the world, as if for the first time. 

The point is not to heal by learning something new but by unlearning limiting behaviours... Something like that - I saw this quote on a site about meditation, that I really liked. This seminar that I did focused on psychological patterns that humans have, and looking into our parents identities to see if we have strings in common, then acquiring tools to allow us to deal with those things, and let the past go. Take a decision to be your own person now.

I know I've had issues being my own person in the last months....years...my whole life, really. I don't remember many times when I stood up in front of a crowd speaking my mind on my own free will, or when I stood up for myself after being made fun of or verbally agressed, or when I didn't let that shit fly before it even happened, or when I stood up for someone else without thinking of the consequences. Somewhere down the line, I lost my sense of self, and only now am I trying to get it back.

I probably lost never really had a sense of myself... In this culture, I don't think that mindfulness and body awareness are taught. At least, a few months ago, the only thing I was listening for in my body was hunger or need to use the bathroom. Kids are probably really aware of their body. I of course don't remember being a kid much, let alone being a baby, but I would think the whole reason a baby cries is because he's learning to be in his own body, learning to use it, learning to understand the world, learning and absorbing. I also read somewhere that kids have a really good understanding of whether they are hungry or thirsty, and that that ability is one you lose through the years. That article said that actually a lot of adults confuse them and eat when in fact they are hungry... I don't know how true that is, but I definitely know I can't really tell when I'm thirsty, and I definitely stopped paying attention to my body a long time ago. 

This TEDtalk video I watched the other day, about how education kills creativity - a must-watch, seriously... said at some point that a lot of those intellectual professors, etc, see their body as a way to get from A to B, something that carries their brain from seminar to seminar! Haha that's interesting imagery, but that's actually what I've been feeling like.... that is, being "in the head", analyzing every single situation, acquiring data, testing, analyzing, estimating, judging, watching, as if every situation is a scientific experiment. I've come to notice that I've got a lot of suppressed emotion - a direct result of over-analyzing situations instead of acting, but then also keeping emotions to myself, just because I've assumed, in my head, that the person I'm talking to doesn't really need to know what I have to say, or how I feel. I don't think I ever really learned how to express emotion and be proactive in tuning in to other people's emotions (ok that I can do), but actually being proactive about helping them out, asking what they need, instead of assuming the person will figure him/herself out. 

So, all that to say, that I've decided to stop over-analyzing my posts, to stop worrying about coming out with a structured post with not a lot of information for the small brains. I'm much better off writing this blog from the heart, and breathing and being present as I write this. I'm much better off speaking without barriers, because, to be honest, I've had barriers up my whole life and it's time to bring those down. 

So, maybe I'm going to be a bit, or a lot, all-over-the-place in this blog. Without really knowing what I'm going to write about until I get there. I am just listening to myself, to my feelings, and I'm leaving my "What's So", a current-reality check. And this is the new me. Say Hi!

Until next time,
Miss K

'Open Heart' seminar that changed my life as I knew it

Dear reader,

I’m writing because I took this really interesting weekend 30-hour seminar in April in Montreal, QC and I thought I’d share it with you because it really changed my perspective, improved my self-esteem and awareness in general. Also If you are interested in bettering yourself, like I am, you might find something of value in my experience.

This weekend seminar is called Open Heart and, in a few words, deals with breathing, self-awareness and introspection. So I went to this weekend seminar because I wanted to get rid of stress I was having at my job due to projects (my hard time completing them) and stress related to my relationships with my coworkers (who are nice and evil and really screw with my mind). I received tips and tricks for dealing with the stress, but what I got out of this seminar went a lot deeper than that: I realized my stress wasn’t just about my projects and my coworkers, but it went a lot deeper into my sub-conscious.

We examined negative repetitive patterns that everyone has at least a bit of, so I figured out mine (the major one is seeking approval in everything I do and say), I understood where they come from and why I act like I do, how it has affected my life to date and how I can fix it.

I realized how my relationship with my parents has shaped the way I am in the world, my relationship with people (including coworkers) and with things (such as projects) as well as the way I communicate. I am somehow more self-aware and I realize more than ever how much is in my hands, and that I have the power to change my environment. It’s funny, I used to know this in my brain, and I thought I knew it, but the truth is that I realize how that I never really felt it; I sort of had a breakthrough and now see things way differently.

After realizing my patterns and because of the exercises we did, I’m able to let go of things that used to eat me up inside, short-term tiny things like a fight or the traffic and long-term things like how my parents raised me.

So, since the seminar, I’ve noticed a major change in my communications: I had a terrible relationship with my mom: always falling into her negative trap and struggling for air, whereas now I don’t let that shit fly! I may not be able to change her, but I sure as hell can change how I communicate with her and it’s become much easier and possible! I actually am able to have a real conversation (about real things, not the weather). I’m so proud of myself. I’ve also changed my communication in a similar way with my boyfriend, coworkers, and other people – I am used to reacting instead of responding reasonably and I am much more assertive and able to relax faster when stresses come up. Additionally, I am aware now of the negative behavioural patterns that people have and I can see them all around me and protect myself from getting absorbed into the negativity, mind games, etc.

Lastly, many of the exercises made me more aware of myself physically and emotionally. I live a lot more in the present and I have noticed a significant shift in my overall positivity.

This is what it brought for me in the last month and I am really grateful to have taken the risk in taking this course, and I encourage you to do the same if you see anything of value for yourself. I have increased my self-esteem, I improved my current relationships and communications, I am meeting new people and having good conversations with them, I also started to find hope in my career, I am able to deal with stress a lot easier, I live less inside my head and would say I am a LOT closer to inner peace. This seminar could also help you let go of illness if you have and increase your prosperity.

The seminar is called Open Heart (www.lyselebeau.com) and the next one is June 27^th (evening), June 28 (all day) June 29 (all day) and July 2^nd (evening).

If you have any questions or comments or would simply like to talk about it, please send your comments. I look forward to your reply, and have a nice day,

Miss K

Put a smile on your face!

Yesterday, I went into my yoga class happy to have finished the day. Soon enough, I find that I can't find my sense of balance and I have small pains here and there, and that I can't seem to hold a pose for more than 1 second. Soon enough, I start saying to myself that I suck and that I am not good at yoga. Also I cried a bit during Shavasana (a first). Needless to say, I had become in a bad mood, and needed to see this list asap. Sparkpeople is a site I like, and I've used it to count calories and exercise for a few months. There are some pretty good suggestions. Might I add: opening a bottle of wine and watching a favorite quirky tv show (since yoga didn't work). I knew that for me, I probably needed rest so when I got home, I went straight to bed.

Quote of the day

Every day, treat yourself as if you were your own best friend.

We will be victorious (Inspirational Sounds)

I have taken a giant step for myself in the last week, being assertive and putting my needs above others (which doesn't really happen a lot). But unfortunately, my actions caused a negative reaction, and a very immature reactions. I have been feeling like I have lost the power over my own feelings, since I went from "this is good, I am being assertive and confident" to "I did the wrong thing, why am I feeling like this?". So there are a good songs to boost my mood up and to let go of my doubts. 

1. "Uprising" by Muse, one of my favorite bands!!

Rise up and take the power back

It's time the, fat cats had a heart attack

You know that, their time's coming to an end

We have to, unify and watch our flag ascend

(So come on)

They will not force us

They will stop degrading us

They will not control us

We will be victorious

So come on

2. Wings by Little Mix

Your words don't mean a thing

I'm not listening

Keep talking, all I know is :

Mamma told me not to waste my life

She said spread your wings my little butterfly

Don't let what they say keep you up at night

And they can't detain you

'Cos wings are made to fly

And we don't let nobody bring us down

No matter what you say it won't hurt me

Don't matter if I fall from the sky

These wings are made to fly

Milkshake for a saturday morning

Matcha sort of makes me happy. It's green and grassy and it tastes of spring! It's super caffeinated (well, it takes only a bit to get the same buzz from a big cup of coffee) and it's delicious in a milkshake, latte, or desserts. Also in white chocolate (I am especially liking this one at DavidsTea). Matcha is expensive though, when you compare it to other teas. It's because it is simply exceptional! It is also super healthy, you can read about it on the internet... I actually bought a "watered-down" version of matcha from DavidsTea that is basically matcha mixed with powdered sugar. 

So I made this milkshake this morning:

1 cup Soy milk
1 teaspoon matcha
1 big scoop of vanilla ice cream

In a blender or Magic Bullet (which is what I have)

Yum!

Happy weekend :)

Less-than-happy K (a note on courtesy)

I'm supposed to be Happy K but lately I just find things that make me Mediocrely-happy-K. But, at least I am Aware-K who is also Working-on-being-happy-K.

Currently, the issue is keeping calm when people don't respond to my emails or texts or invitations right away, or ever. For example, I asked one friend 3 times by text message and once by facebook if she wanted to go with me to the Ballet, and that over the last month and no answer yet... That's only one example. 

I have issues receiving a "yes" to invitations that I sometimes make, be it to one person, or several, friends, acquaintances or coworkers. The current situation (inviting five REAL friends by Facebook Messages and getting zero replies) makes me think the problem was asking several people (5) at once. If I really wanted to go to the Ballet with someone, I'd have asked people individually, right? I'd take up most of my day to email or call and follow up many times. Note that these people had previously expressed interest in joining me!

I got me wondering, how many times am I required to follow-up? How many texts should I send before giving up? and what am I doing wrong so that people don't bother replying? Is it a coincidence that everyone in the thread accidentally forgot or had way too much going on in their lives to remember? 

So, a dozen Google searches later (the first ones only coming up with social-media related invitations.......don't people care anymore about real manners and real live hanging out?) I found a site that addresses ways to invite people out, and, using the second link, how to get them to say yes!

http://www.succeedsocially.com/invitingpeopleoutexamples 
http://www.copyblogger.com/get-to-yes/

I just wish more people applied common courtesy in their lives. Just because I have used facebook to invite my friends, doesn't mean I want you to treat it like a Facebook event! (i.e. don't answer, maybe means no, yes doesnt necessarily mean yes)....Either I have always had this problem, or maybe Facebook is the problem... 

Anyway, if there is anyone reading this blog, please remember your social manners and be courteous to people who invite you to do anything! Thanks!

Here's a short list of etiquette that people seem to forget:
http://www.affluentmagazine.com/articles/article/371 

yours,
Still-hopeful-K

Stop manipulation!

What I find difficult today is dealing with manipulative people.

Change can be good, even the most negative experiences can bring out happy moments, learning experiences, new friends, etc. But there can easily be more bad out of a situation than good, and that’s usually something that tells you that more change needs to happen.

A co-worker, let’s call him Steven, has moved to the group many months ago and it has since modified the group dynamic, and I don’t like it… Sure, it has made me realize all the sorts of things that I do not tolerate or that I let myself tolerate, and consequently things I need to change about myself (don’t care as much about people that don’t care about me, don’t care what people thing, do things for me and not for anyone else, etc.). But, this guy is, basically, in one word, aggressive. He’s not violent or physically aggressive, nor does he use strong words, but he makes people (me!) around him uncomfortable in his mannerisms and words. He verbally aggresses people by making fun of them, and manipulates others. Worse, he’s nice one-on-one, with few such aggressive aspects, but in a group he is dangerous. In addition, he’s sort of the Alpha male, leading everyone together, but conjunctively we all become his puppets. I say “we” because I too have been victim. Actually, I trusted him until he used my information, things I have told him in confidence, against me to destroy my relationships with other coworkers. Now I cannot trust his smile nor his friendliness in any situation.

I have determined that he is manipulative. He bullies, makes people feel bad about themselves, and thinks that he is superior to everyone else (and that he has the Power over the rest of us). Here’s proof: he’s got a puppet! That is, another co-worker, let’s call him Joey. Joey sits beside Steven, asking Steven many questions about his life, how he has gotten to this point, financial questions, life questions, work questions, people questions (it’s very annoying). More importantly, Joey follows Steven around, only goes to the social activities Steven does and let’s be honest, is becoming like Steven. Joey was (yes, was) a really nice guy, one-on-one or in a group, he stayed true to himself, and that was really awesome! When Steven showed up, he sort of lost the nice personality and started taking on one of “Steven’s apprentice”, or “Steven’s puppet”. And, when someone pisses him off, he makes his puppet stop talking to that someone too. Steven feeds on other people’s weakness.  He’s fed on mine much too much also, but that is over now!!

I’m not very assertive, but trying to be! He’s trying to manipulate me and I have to say no! I have to stand my ground, but I also have to become distant, passive, stop caring about everything, stop trying to change them, and stop being annoyed with their behaviours. I am trying to be indifferent towards my coworkers’ stupidities! Clearly I am not there yet, since I’m currently very annoyed as I write this, but at least I am aware of what I need to change and also I have resisted against his manipulations.

So dealing with a manipulative person:

1) Have to stay calm, relaxed, think about something else if you have to
2) Have to say no when I don’t want to. I have to remember that everything he says is for himself and that he doesn’t care about me. I must remember that. I need to think about me also!
3) Have to move on to another conversation topic

I like the points from this article as well, http://www.sheerbalance.com/mind-body/6-steps-to-stop-being-manipulated/ which is "6 steps to stop being manipulated". Also this article, http://lifehacker.com/5672291/how-to-manipulate-people which breaks down manipulation into a number of smaller aspects, which sort of sheds a light on the whole thing and would help you develop an anti-venom against manipulators.

Good luck!

15 Tips To Turn That Frown Upside Down!

This article "15 Things to Give Up to be Happy" is awful. I've seen it multiple times over the internet, I'm not really sure who's the real source behind it anymore... I think this is a really awful article because 1) it's really negative (stop this, stop that, don't be this, don't be that - no one responds well to negative commands!) and 2) it makes happiness a destination, a goal. When in reality, people who are happy don't actually TRY to be happy. Trying to be happy is the opposite of being happy! It's so frustrating....

Ok breathe... 

Be zen...

So, according to me, this is the way the article should go:

1) Accept that you are sometimes wrong.

2) Let situations, people and things be as they are. You can only control yourself. Relax and go with the flow. 

3) Take responsibility of your life. You are the only person who can control your actions and make changes to your life and your personality.

4) Believe in yourself. Keep a positive outlook on yourself. You are beautiful and you are loved.

5) Believe in yourself. You can do anything! The sky is the limit!

6) Your point of view and your emotions are controled by you only. Turn your complaints off, you dont need to be upset if you dont want to be!

7) Let them be. Let other people live their own journeys. Everyone wants love and happiness; we're all looking for the same thing, so let them find it at their own rate and in their own way.

8) Be yourself - and that's what will impress others!

9) Accept chabge. Change is ok. Know that there is always something good that comes out of change.

10) Be open minded to new experiences and welcome learning. You will be better for it.

11) Just do it! Fear is in your head. Think of it as strength and courage.

12) Just do it! Excuses are lies in your head. Excuses are a waste of precious time. You only have one life.

13) Live in the present. Take a breather and live for right now. How do you feel right now and how would you rather feel right now. Be the best you at this given moment. Forget the past and the future, its not worth losing time over something that doesn't exist.

14) Be at peace, be zen, be tolerant, be serene. That is how you let go.

15) Be you and be yourself. Listen to yourself, your mind, your body, your heart. Live your life to the fullest. 

And honestly, these guidelines have already helped me on numerous occasions and have already started to transform me into a better me. Whereas that other article? Makes me want to crawl into a ball in the corner. 

Love, K