Im back!!

Yes..I’m back!!

For far too long I have been putting off my posts, I guess I just fell out of routine to posting, but truthfully I have kind of enjoyed a break…but now it’s back to business, and back to my daily routine.

What set me back was a close friend being diagnosed with two large cancerous tumours – one her lungs and the other had attached itself to her spinal cord…but get this – she called me from her hospital bed, only just an hour before she underwent surgery! – She told me she had some bad news and that she was about to undergo 8 hours of extensive surgery… I was shocked! mainly because I had only just caught up with her a week or so earlier, and she seemed ok, although she was complaining of being in slight pain, and she just assumed it was arthritis and was just taking pain killers for it..How wrong her doctor was to just assume without sending her for tests, they could have perhaps gotten to the tumours before they grew so big!

But never mind…she has undergone an intense 6 weeks of radiation treatment, and the true fighter that she is, she is now back on her feet.

It’s great to be back and posting again…I’m looking forward to connecting with you all and reading your stories as well.. 🙂 xo

And a Baby Boy Was Born…

Ok ok…I’m going a little off topic here..but I could’t resist!! 

Whether you’re a royal fan or not, pictures of the gorgeous couple and their newborn boy are everywhere..

The thing I really like about Kate and William is that they are both so relatable to a lot of us, – what  I mean, is that I think that a lot of us can relate to them both, with their friendly, warm and gentle nature. Unlike some famous people, they really are both just down to earth kinda people, and you can bet your life their beautiful new boy will grow up just as adorable as his mum and dad!

Here’s a cute message to Kate & William from Miss Piggy and Kermit….

Have You Ever Wanted Something So Bad…It Hurts?

Today I’m having one of those days…

Starting out anything new is kinda scary…especially if it is totally out of your comfort zone and something you have never ever done before.

I  love writing my blogs, and I have a big heart for social media – I think it’s amazing. But my issue right now is getting more traffic to my posts. I keep asking myself what am I doing wrong, when the actual fact is that I’m not doing anything really ‘wrong’ – I’m just not reaching the right people with my posts…and it’s doing my head in!!

So, how do we overcome this anxiety of wanting something so, so badly?

Firstly, grab yourself a cuppa…may it be tea, coffee, or a nice creamy hot chocoalte…what ever feel like..

Take a deep breath…everything is ok…and you’re going well so far!! Don’t beat yourself up so much worrying about the nitty-gritty.

Have a think about how far you have come already…even if this is the very first day on your new journey..give yourself a little pat on the back for making the decision and taking action…Good for you!!

know that you really aren’t alone in your journey – connect with others following your same path and with similar interests. – Google+ Communities  and Facebook groups are a great way of connecting with like-minded people.

Look for people already successful in the niche you have chosen and learn from them – sign up to receive their email updates and follow them through social media.

…And lastly – be easy on yourself!! Success only comes from loving what you do and doing it consistently..so instead of worrying so much about things, get yourself busy making things happen for you…each and every little step you take is taking closer and closer to success..so hang in there!!

Thank you so much for stopping by…I would love to hear from you – How do you cope on those days where you feel a little overwhelmed?  

Change Your Thoughts And You Really Can Change Your World…

A note to anyone who suffers from mental illness or depression…

I’m not shy to say I have suffered from depression, and to let you all know that I’ve been diagnosed with depression and anxiety since I was quite little. In fact, I think depression is quite common…it’s just sad there’s this kind of stigma attached to depression and mental illness, it’s almost like society seems to think that you are not ‘normal’ – some people from my experience used to say to me, “depression is just your way out of not doing things, and stop trying to take the easy way out” – instead of showing a little empathy and understanding my circumstance.

Depression and mental illness can be a very very dark and lonely place..and yes, it may be hard for someone that never has experienced depression to understand what you are going through..but the thing is, and I mean this in the nicest possible way – mental illness and depression is your problem, and therefore only YOU can fix it by helping yourself, and until you realise that it’s only you that really can fix you, then you will most likely continue down the same old lonely path with your mental illness or depression.

It’s your thoughts that ultimately control your actions…you would have probably heard it said it a million times, that your thoughts become things, and what you think, you become. – It’s true…our thoughts are extremely powerful, they have the power to really make or break us, because whatever thoughts we have we tend to manifest upon subconsciously and therefore they can result in our moods either being good or bad, happy or sad.

What has really helped me is finding myself a new hobby. – Sometimes all it takes to lift you out of a bad mood is to refocus you attention to something you enjoy. So instead of sitting around thinking “why me?”, and focusing your attention on how you are feeling, think what it is that you enjoy…perhaps you feel alone, and if you do,why not talk to someone about it? You see, that is the magic of social media – it gives us all the ability to reach out to people right across the world..and believe me, there’s a heap of people out there, with some sort of mental illness or depression that are more than willing to reach out and help you! Jump onto Google+ and join a Mental health community, and you can see just for yourself that you really aren’t alone with what you are going through, it might be just the support you need to get you through what ever it is that you are going through.

Be easy on yourself though, I think having depression you can be so used to beating yourself up with your own thoughts that it can be almost habit and so easy to fall back into the trap of sitting back and not getting things done because of your ‘old way’ of thinking. – Now, I have called it your ‘old way’ of thinking, because if you really want to beat this thing, and become a stronger, happier you..then your ‘old way’ of thinking simply has to go. Just learn to be mindful of your thoughts…are they good or bad? What purpose are they serving you?

Learn to be ok with failure. – I used to get so uptight about failing that I never ended up finishing things. I would purchase a course, and sometimes not even get started with it, because I was afraid of failing..but in actual fact, that is just how we all learn. No one has ever been successful from not trying and not making any mistakes…and if success for you is simply just finding happiness, and what makes you really shine…then keep trying new and different things until you do find the one thing that really makes your heart kinda sing! We all are talented in one way or another..for me I have found solitude in writing, and connecting with people through social media…perhaps it might be the same for you? Give it a go…just allow yourself to shine in whatever it is that makes you glow!

….So there you have it…you really CAN change your thoughts..and you really do have the power to change your world. It all starts with YOU!! – So go out and shine that magic you have within you!! xx 🙂 

Setting up Social Media for your Start-up

Building an awareness of your brand is not always easy…it takes time. Here’s some brilliant little tips to help you get started with social media, by social media maven… enjoy! 🙂 xx

Is Just Getting Started Your Biggest Hurdle?

Starting out on a new journey is not always easy…and the hardest part is just getting yourself started. The thing is, whatever it is that you are setting out to achieve, you have to almost go against what you may have grown up to believe, get yourself a little uncomfortable for a little while and stepping outside of your comfort zone…and that can sometimes take effort, and a fair bit of it, if you are anything like me, and used to doing your own thing, not testing your limits and trying anything new. Sorry to say, but there is no fast track to success, it all comes from trial and error, so mistakes are actually a really good thing as long as you learn from them.

I think the biggest fear with getting started is that you will stuff up and and the fear of failing can be the biggest thing that will continue to keep setting you back from achieving your goals if you keep giving in to fear. Fear is ultimately what keeps most of us in our comfort zones.

Here’s some handy tips to help you get started:

Surround yourself with people already successful – Facebook, Twitter and Google+ are great for connecting with like minded people and finding inspiration.

Create yourself a vision board – Pinterest can be a good place for this, inspiration is almost limitless on Pinterest. Create a board and pin all the places you would like to go visit in the near future, it can be a kind of ‘bucket list’ if you wish.

Start blogging! – Blogging really is awesome, it gives you the ability to voice your opinion on whatever it is that you are passionate about, and another plus with blogging is – you can make blogging more than just a hobby and make it a way of income for you if you wish..Why not make a nice tidy income from your posts since your putting the effort into them? – Sounds good to me!! ($$$$$ CA-CHING!!!!)

Wake up each day with purpose – do a 5 or 10 minute meditation to kick start your day and get you in the zone and ready for success.

Listen to inspirational audio – To be successful, you have to be prepared to learn and open your mind up to new things. Podcasts are great to learn from and get you inspired,  there’s a tonne of them on iTunes, or you can simply do a web search for a Podcast, – there is possibly a podcast out there for anything you wish to learn!

Watch, Listen and Learn – As I already mentioned above, you really have to be prepared to learn in order to get anywhere and be successful. YouTube is brilliant for tutorials, and you will find a tutorial for just about anything on YouTube.

Watch your thoughts – Thoughts really do become things! – What you think you really can become..it’s fact!. So be mindful of your thoughts..are they positive? do they serve you purpose? You really can’t set out to become successful with a negative mindset, so be careful.

Inspire others – By inspiring others you also inspire yourself! post some uplifting quotes to your blogs and across social media, – we all need a little inspiration..it’s what drives us to be successful.

What motivates you? – whether it’s listening to your favorite music, or reading a good book, – do more of it! – just do what ever it takes to get you in the mood and ready for success!

Get busy!! – Consistency is vital to anyone’s success, so prepare yourself to get busy doing what it is you want to become better at, and get busy!! Try and spend a good amount of your spare time on whatever it is to start with..this is why it is also important to love what you do, if you don’t truly love or have a passion for whatever it is, you simply wont be driven to success. Just follow your heart and go with the flow. Be easy on yourself though…success wont happen over night, and it’s not going to happen if you’re not consistent.

.….So there you have it follow these tips daily and you will be sure to be on your way to success! 🙂 

The Upside to Feeling Down – The Good Side to Feeling Bad

Feeling a little down in the dumps, and overwhelmed?

Relax, it’s totally ok…and to have these feelings once in a while, is actually a good thing! Here’s why:

-It shows that you’re human, with real feelings

-It gives you time to reflect and grow, by thinking about your problems

-When you are a little down and overwhelmed, it’s a good time to reach out to your close friends and ask for support.

Now, of course it’s not a good thing to be feeling rotten all the time, but if you get a little down once in a few weeks or so, perhaps, don’t be so hard on yourself, it’s perfectly fine to feel a little ‘yuck’, – but use it as some time to reflect upon your problem, and how you can overcome it…use this time as good ‘you time’ – go for a walk, do some meditation, listen to your favorite music, watch a good comedy..talk to your friends…just do what feels good…sometimes it just might be having some alone time, and even having a good old cry if you need to. Just know that it’s perfectly OK…we all have these days from time to time!

Here’s a little further reading with 30 Ways to Improve Your Mood When You’re Feeling Down by tinybuddha

Thank you so much for stopping by…hope you enjoyed this little read. Please feel free to leave your thoughts, I would love to hear from you xx 🙂

The Ultimate Guide to Facebook Marketing | Copyblogger

Have you got your business on facebook yet? Almost every business these days is  jumping on the band wagon, and marketing their business on Facebook…it’s a brilliant way of getting your voice heard, showing off your business and reaching a wider audience.

If you are yet to catch on, but have been considering it…don’t worry, you’re not alone! Here is a brilliant article I have found by copyblogger that gives you the complete run down with with facebook marketing, – from showing just how to get your page started, how to get more people to “like” your page, the best ways to use facebook and how to measure your progress, this answers all those questi0ns and so much more…it will get you posting to facebook, and marketing like a pro in next to no time!

Read the full article here: The Ultimate Guide to Facebook Marketing | Copyblogger.

Remember: Be easy on yourself, when your starting out something new. It can be so easy to let yourself get frustrated with so much to learn…just take one step at a time, knowing that each thing you do will reach you higher and closer to your goals. There is no race to be won here, and it’s your very own journey to success…so embrace it and have fun with it! 🙂

Thanking you for stopping by…You’re amazing!! xx

10 Feel Good Thoughts for a Bad Day

See on Scoop.it – Cheeky Marketing

Practical Tips for Productive Living

Katrina White‘s insight:

The one thing I have learnt through life is that we are all equal..no matter what shape, colour or religion. And for sufferers of deression or mental illness it can be hard to really understand where you "fit in" in life. Here are some really thoughtful and insightful tips to help you through a bad day. So grab your self a cup of tea, and sit back and have a read… 🙂

See on www.marcandangel.com

This Brain Part Decides What Goes Viral on Social Media

See on Scoop.it – Cheeky Marketing

The Temporo-Parietal Junction is the area of the brain that gets activated when we’re thinking about how to share something and who to share it with.

Katrina White‘s insight:

If anyone started talking to me about their Temporo-Parietal Junction, I would immediately assume they were talking about some train station that I have never heard of! – This is a really interesting article with great insight to what causes us to share something across social media..I don’t know about you, but I find psychology and this kinda stuff really interesting…take a read…

See on mashable.com