When I started working in the strategy branch, being interested in self-development and leadership, I was surprised to learn how similar the steps are between strategic planning in government and steps one may take to improve his/her life. Many books on self-improvement captured strategies that sounded very similar to the ones I applied at work….
Author: Annette
8 Creative Ways for Beating Anxiety or Building Your Resilience
Fear causes anxiety. Fear of unknown, fear of change, fear of negative outcome, fear of upcoming test of your relationships (e.g. serious conversation) or fear of a test that evaluates your skills or performance. There are so many sources of stress in life. There were many times in life when I thought I wouldn’t make…
Spring Clean Your Life
Since I was a kid, my mom would always get excited by spring cleaning. She wasn’t a stay-at-home mom. She had a job, but she really liked some housewife-type tasks. She found joy and inspiration in them. They made her feel better. Just like Monica from “Friends”, she would appreciate and find joy in little…
5 things I learned in Paris
I was dreaming about going to Paris since I was 9. At 15, my good friend went to Paris and sent me a card with an Eiffel Tower that I kept for a while, dreaming that one day I will go there too. At 24, we were planning to go to Paris for our honeymoon…
Self-Development 101: Stop lying to yourself
You’ve seen and you’ve met people like that. You see that that there is something wrong with their lives. No, cross that. You see exactly what’s wrong with their lives, and how they can fix it, and you are surprised that they didn’t do it already. However, when you start talking more to these people,…
30 Ways to Feel Good in 5 Minutes
Listen your favourite song Listen positive classical music like Strauss’ Blue Danube or Vivaldi’s Four Seasons Listen to the sounds of nature, music for meditation or birds singing (bonus points if you listen to real birds by going outside) Drink water – you may feel bad because you are dehydrated and water brings more energy…
The importance of a role model
Many people are wondering how to become successful, regardless of how they define success. For some, success is about money. For others it is about making a difference in the lives of many. For others it is inventing something new. Regardless of what success is for you, there is one thing you can do to…
Getting Fired as the Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me
Getting fired is stressful. It is unpredictable and it kills confidence. It sucks. However, I learned that getting fired may also prove to be one of the best things that could happen to you. My career was always important for me. Even my first part-time job in a coffee shop (Tim Hortons) felt like a…
Christmas Competition or How I Learned Not to Chase Happiness
Today’s Western culture and especially marketing strategies often make us believe that there is a connection between things, which is not necessary true. They make us believe, for instance, that there is a connection between dressing fancy and being successful in our careers or dressing fancy and being successful in our relationships (so that they…
The Power of Vision Boards
Why does it seem that some people live in a dream, while others have no idea what they want in life? Did you ever notice, at a party, how one friend would go on about her aspirations, her current success and some goals for the next year, while another friend would always respond with “same…
