10 Lessons I have learned in Life

Life is the best school and experience is the best teacher. Following are the 10 Lessons I have learned in a hard way -

1. If you are passionate about something, it's worth pursuing. Take action towards your desires. Life is too short and all you have is "now". So make time for your passion, chase your wildest dreams.

2. Thoughts become things literally. Our thoughts and beliefs create our world. Positive thinking will assist you in more ways than you can imagine. A positive mindset is a must to achieve great things in life.

3. Some people will say mean things about you. Don't give up on your plans because others are criticising your ideas. It really does not matter what others think about you.

4. Choose your friends wisely. Some friends can enrich your life while some others can abuse you. Also, we become like our close friends so pick your pals carefully. It's better to be alone than in the wrong company.

5. Be prepared. There isn't really a shortcut to success. You must be willing to consistently work on your goals. Hone your skills, read and learn a lot. Outwork everyone around you. As they say, preparation beats talent every single time!

6. No one is coming to save you! This is your life and you should take the full charge. Don't expect others would come to make things easier for you. You have to make decisions and you have to take full responsibility for that.

7. Set high standards. It's absolutely foolish to say " yes" for things you know are a "no" for you. Be firm with your non-negotiables and never compromise on that.

8. Difficult times show the real character of people. In your bad days, you'll painfully observe the true colours of many people including some friends and loved ones. Learn the lessons and move on.

9. Time is the most precious thing in life. Our lifespan is comprised of packets of time. The time you give to people and things are portions from your own life! So use your time well. Stop spending time on useless stuffs and worthless people.

10. Money is the most powerful tool on earth. A penniless person is useless however kind and loving they are. Money gives you freedom and money does buy happiness. So it's better to start earning and investing money as young as possible.

~Article written by Ishita Ganguly, M.Sc, B.Ed, MBA

Affirmations: Why Positive Affirmations Work & How To Use Them

Most of you have heard about the term affirmation. Many of you might also be using it to channel your way towards success. But do you know why affirmations work? Also, are you using them in the correct way to get the best results?

In this article, I am going to dig deep into the technique of affirmation.

What is an affirmation?

Firstly, we must know what an affirmation is practical. An affirmation is a positive statement, uttered repeatedly with a strong belief, to make positive changes in life.

An affirmation could be a declaration of a specific goal in it's completed state or it could be a positive, empowering statement to replace any limiting belief and reprogram your Subconscious mind. [Recommended How to become Successful in Life using the Power of the Subconscious mind ]

Successful people, from entrepreneurs to award-winning actors, champion sportsmen to best-selling authors practice daily affirmations to achieve their goals!

Recommended Famous people who succeeded using Affirmations

Why Positive Affirmations Work?

● Affirmations are one of the best tools to use the Law of attraction in your favour. The more you repeat positive affirmations, the more you start attracting resources, situations and people in your favour.

● Affirmations also help you to develop a positive mindset. It helps to eliminate the negative thoughts and beliefs from our mind and cultivate a winning mindset.

● Affirmation is an excellent technique to reprogram your Subconscious mind. The limiting and disempowering beliefs imprinted in our Subconscious could be easily replaced with positive affirmations repeated on a continuous and consistent manner.

How to use Positive Affirmations? 

■ Firstly, choose your affirmations from the suggestions from renowned Life Coaches and Personal Development books. Or you create your own affirmations.

■ State your affirmation in a language you are comfortable. Ideally, it should be stated in your mother-tongue or in a language you prefer.

■ Form your affirmation in the present tense and start with the words " I am" or it's equivalent in your language.

■ State it in the positive sense. It should be about what you want, not something you don't want.
For example:
I am in good health. (correct)
I am not ill. (incorrect)

■ Keep it brief and specific.

■ While affirming feel your emotions. At first, it would be mechanical and rehearsed, but as you progress, try to add some positive emotions with it, even if it's fake.

Your subconscious mind cannot distinguish the difference between real and fake emotions!

The affirmations get impressed in your mind easily when an emotion or feeling is involved.

■ Repetition is the key. Repeat your affirmations again and again. Speak each affirmation for at last 20 times every single day. If you want faster results, repeat each affirmation at the last 200 times at one go!

■ Practice affirmations several times a day. Take one affirmation, repeat it continuously before moving to a second one.

■ For even better results, visualise while affirming.

■ You can meditate before or after affirming, to achieve your goals sooner.

■ Speak, read, write and listen to  (recorded) affirmations to reprogram your Subconscious quickly and create your dream life.

A few of my favourite affirmations are:

▪ I am happy.
▪ I am blessed.
▪ I am loved.
▪ I am grateful for all that is.
▪ I am in good health.
▪ I am successful.
▪ I am confident.
▪ I am beautiful.
▪ I am prosperous.
▪ I love and approve of myself.
▪ Every day in every way I am getting better and better.
▪ Everything I need is coming to me easily and effortlessly.
▪ Money comes to me easily and effortlessly.
▪ I attract love wherever I go.
▪ I am always in the right place at the right time.
▪ I am surrounded by happy, positive-minded, successful, prosperous, kind and helpful people in my life.

Recommended: 101 Best Affirmations of All Time

~Article written by Ishita Ganguly, M.Sc, B.Ed, MBA

7 Amazing Benefits of Laughter

A good laugh with friends makes us feel relaxed and happy. But did you know that laughter can actually improve your health?
They say "laughter is the best medicine" for good reason!

"Always laugh when you can, it is cheap medicine. " - George Gordon Byron

I am going to share with you 10 amazing benefits of laughter.

1. REDUCES STRESS HORMONE LEVELS - Recent research shows that laughter decreases the level of stress hormones, cortisol and epinephrine.

It also releases the neurotransmitter Dopamine that creates a sense of euphoria and instils motivation.
From scientific studies, it has been proved that watching comedy movies decreases levels of stress hormones!

2. IMPROVES YOUR CARDIAC HEALTH - Laughter can actually improve the health of your heart.

It improves the functioning of blood vessels by increasing the blood flow. This improves your circulation of blood that can actually reduce the risk of heart disease!

3. BOOSTS THE IMMUNE SYSTEM  - A good laugh can boost your immune system with disease resisting powers that will help you to stay healthy!

Stress reduces immunity and laughter reduces stress. Naturally, laughter reduces your chances of falling ill.

4. ACT AS A NATURAL ANTI-DEPRESSANT- As we laugh, certain feel-good chemicals called "endorphins" are released in our body. Endorphins act as a pain reliever and happiness booster.

 As a result, it instantly lifts our mood and creates a sense of happy feeling. Laughter reduces negative emotions and makes you feel better.

5. REDUCES BLOOD PRESSURE - One of the dangerous side-effects of stress is high blood pressure or hypertension.

However, it's not possible to stay stressed when you are laughing! A few scientific studies show that laughter can actually lower blood pressure!

6. IT BURNS YOUR CALORIES -  Now laughter cannot replace workouts for sure! But a good, hearty laugh can burn some of your calories.

As laughter raises our heart rate and calorific expenditure, it has been scientifically studied that 15 minutes of laughter actually burned 10 - 40 calories.

7. INCREASES CONNECTION WITH OTHERS - "Laughter is the shortest distance between two people." - Victor Borge
It's only normal that people would approach you if you are smiling and cheerful.

Our emotions are reflected on our face and this is directly related to how others would perceive us. Emotions can change body language. So if you are always irritated or angry, that will get expressed in your body language and personality! To make more friends or get more dates, it's better than to have a smiling face.

ONE FINAL TIP: After reading this, if you feel that it's not possible for you to be this cheerful all the time. That you have stress and complicacies in life. Let me remind you that we all have some difficulties in life. It's always better to focus on what's good and what's working in life rather than what's bad and what's beyond our control. Shift your mindset to a positive one! If you are still having difficulty just fake it till you make it! Try and see. It's that easy!

~Article written by Ishita Ganguly, M.Sc, B.Ed, MBA

Also, Read How to be Happy | 12 Simple steps to happiness