Life

Behind the Scenes Look: A Day in the Life of a Freelance Ghostwriter

Did you know that around 60% of celebrity books on the top seller list are written by ghostwriters?

With so many people learning about ghostwriting, it’s natural that there’s a curiosity about what a freelance ghostwriter does on a daily basis. Some people might be considering working in this field as well, but many people want to find and hire a ghostwriter.

Continue reading this article and we will give you a behind-the-scenes look at the life of a freelance writer and incite in how to hire a ghostwriter.

Planning and Productivity

Before a ghostwriter even starts writing, they map out their day and figure out what they are going to do and when they’ll do it. Most freelancers track their hours to make sure they’re working enough to hit their income goals.

It’s easy to let your day go off the rails without proper planning. Any other productivity exercises are done early in the morning as well. If you want to hire a ghostwriter, it’s best to email them late at night or very early in the morning. Make sure to be very direct when hiring a ghostwriter so they understand what you want and how they can help.

Checking Emails and Responding

After morning planning, productivity, and some breakfast—and lots of coffee—it’s time to check emails.

Morning emails might hold requests from potential clients, or from current clients with questions about current projects. Getting these emails taken care of early in the morning will allow for the actual writing part of things that takes place next.

Writing for Someone Else

Since ghostwriters write for someone else, they have to be good at taking on the voice of other people. It’s important that people not know that someone else other than the person who’s name is on the content wrote the book.

Not everyone is good at writing and you’d be surprised how many people that are bestsellers never slaved over a computer putting their words together in the beautiful arrangement that is now their amazing book.

A large part of writing for someone else means they will need to interview that person and learn more about their story, who they are, and how they speak.

Finding a Great Ghostwriter

In order to find the perfect ghostwriter, you might need to search through a good deal of people. Keep in mind, though, that once you find the perfect person that gets your voice, you’ll be able to use them for multiple projects.

If you’re hiring virtually, don’t be afraid to ask them to hop on a video conference with you, so you can get an idea of who they are. You should also ask them to do a small sample project, but keep in mind you do want to pay them for this.

Understanding a Freelance Ghostwriter’s Job

Now you know more about what a freelance ghostwriter does and you have an idea about how to hire someone. Depending on your project, you might be able to get it done faster than you thought with a professional that knows how to get the job done.

Do you want to learn more about writing and other interesting topics? Continue through our blog to learn more.

Do you have epic fails in your life that have defined you? Sadly, you will continue to err–as you are human. While you may want to beat yourself up and scream at mistakes, your disappointments provide you the chance for one of the greatest lessons.

Failure is all around you. From raising children to working a job, you make mistakes every day. A young toddler even fails at things too. How many times have you told your infant not to touch the stove?

It wasn’t until they touch the stove and feel the scorching pain that they realize they’ve made a horrible error. However, the burn will go away, but the pain they experienced will teach them a lesson.

Your life is remarkably like that of a toddler. You’re going through life learning as you go. Did you know that the fear of failure can often be more traumatizing than the epic fails that you experience in life?

It’s natural to want to avoid things that cause you pain to develop anxiety and panic. The child who touched the hot stove might be so scared of getting burnt again that they won’t come within five feet of the cooker. It’s unrealistic to avoid a stove for the rest of the child’s life, and you can’t avoid living for fear of falling or getting hurt.

The Persistence of Walt Disney

Who doesn’t love Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy? Did you know that these beloved characters were a struggle to bring to the public? The Disney empire wasn’t always the thriving success it is today.

Walt was an advocate for falling down a few times and often showcased his failures as much as his successes. When people hear the name Disney, they associate it with prosperity, but few know that the legend behind this empire filed for bankruptcy.

All the pressures in life caused Disney to have a nervous breakdown. Even once his characters became a household name, he found himself without money again when he created Snow White’s story. He had to get a bank loan to get the movie off the ground.

Indeed, Disney once even told reporters that it was essential for life to kick you in the teeth a few times. Those times teach you more lessons than fame and prosperity could ever do.

Everyone has a story, even the rich and famous, who seem to have it all going for them. It’s what you do during those times of adversity that matters most.

Fifteen Enduring Life Lessons

Thinking back on the lessons you’ve learned throughout life, you can see the ones that made you and the ones that broke you. However, here are 15 things that you can learn from those experiences.

1. Humility

The epic fails you experience in life will teach you humility. Once you’ve had your ego shattered a time or two, you look for new paths and develop a greater understanding.

You will learn to right the wrong that caused you to fail, and you can go on to fulfill your dreams. There is nothing more sobering than falling a few times to make you humble.

2. Empathy

Many people have sympathy because they feel sorry for others. However, once you’ve been to rock bottom, you learn how to empathize. You can relate to others on a deeper level when you’ve been in those dark places. You will have compassion for others, and it changes your perceptions of things.

3. Resourcefulness

If everything is handed to you on a silver platter, you do not need to be resourceful. However, once your finances have tanked and you’ve been on skid row, you realize how important it is to find new resources. Desperation can lead to inspiration, and you will learn new methods to make things happen.

4. Better Coping Skills

When you’re younger, you may use alcohol as a coping method for stress. However, as you age, you learn that you must be mentally and spiritually sound for your family and career. When the emotions roll in like the ocean’s tide, you find better ways to deal with them.

You may have turned to prescription medications or alcohol in the past, you now have learned to meditate or journal to get rid of all the angst you feel.

5. Develop a New Perspective

Through your epic fails and disappointments in life, you learn how to put happiness into perspective. Being happy is a state of being and not a destination. You discover how to view things in proportion, and you understand that you can only embrace the moment.

6. Grasp Time Management

Everyone gets 24 hours a day and seven days a week. No matter who you’re or how much money you have, time is life’s biggest equalizer. When you have a few failures, you learn how to manage your time.

If you don’t learn to manage time, then it will control you. If you want efficiency and to improve your result, then you know strategies to help you manage your time more effectively.

7. Better Planning Skills

Establishing a concrete action plan to accomplish your goals is crucial to success. Failures teach you to become a better planner. You need to refine your approach and not alter your goals. By adjusting past methods and techniques, you learn how to make your dreams possible.

8. Discover New Meaning

Life’s disappointments push you to uncover new meaning. You’re compelled to ponder your motives for wanting things. Either it’s important enough for you to move forward, or it’s not that significant, and you quit and give up. You’ll look at everything quite differently after epic fails than you did before.

9. Gratitude

Sometimes the pursuit of happiness and financial gain makes you lose sight of what matters. Ask a homeless person that lives on the street how wonderful it was to have a house and a comfy bed to sleep in. Hitting rock bottom forges you to be thankful for what you have in life.

10. Financial Responsibility

Once you’ve been through bankruptcy court or been on the brink of financial ruin, you have a whole new meaning for managing your finances. You soon learn that those $5 gourmet coffees on the way to work are an extravagance that you don’t need. Your epic fails in life teaches you how to be responsible with your money.

11. Embrace Your Faith

Everyone has different faiths and beliefs, which is your right in this country. However, one thing that you will learn is how to call on your higher power in times of adversity. Whether you are Christian, Muslim, or atheist, everyone has something that they can call on for strength and help.

12. Your “Real” Friends

It’s easy to have a lot of friends when everything is going grand. However, it’s the ones that stick with you when you have no money, have lost everything, and have no status to offer them that count. You will discover who is your true friend when you walk through the darkest times, and they still stand beside you.

13. Examine Your Heart

Once you fail, you have no choice but to look inside to see what might have caused you to have these disappointments. Analyzing the inside can help you move past the things that held you back, and you can succeed in the future.

14. Money and Prestige isn’t everything

How many times have you seen a movie or TV stars focus so much of their attention on their careers and the pursuit of money that they neglected their family? Having money in the bank and a few luxuries are understandable, but some people will trade everything for fame and fortune. If you lose your family but have a bank full of money, is it worth it?

15. Change Habits

A recent study found that 45 percent of your daily behaviors are forged from habits. If you have bad habits that could be holding you back, it’s time to evaluate them and learn methods to conquer those tendencies. Additionally, when you add new, better habits to the mix, you can achieve anything you set your mind to do.

Final Thoughts: Learn From Jim Carrey About How to Move on From Epic Fails

Your life will never be perfect, nor should you expect it to be. When you stumble and fall along life’s journey, it’s all about getting up and having the courage and strength to start again. Did you know that the famous actor Jim Carrey had many failures?

He is the winner of many People’s Choice and Golden Globe awards, yet he doesn’t even have a high school education. His family was so poor he had to drop out of school at 15 to be a janitor to help with finances. Carrey struggled with depression, anxiety, and the fear of failure.

In an interview, he stated that he used positive affirmations and visualization techniques to help him achieve his goals. Carrey is an outspoken believer in the Law of Attraction–using positive energy to attract the best in life. What’s your destiny? Where do you want to go in life? Don’t let your failures define your future. Using your life lessons, you have the power to overcome.

Some people are so structured and seem to plan every detail of their day. Yet, others tend to fumble around, hoping they don’t miss something vital that they need to do. If you want to learn how to get everything you need to do in a day, there is no secret or magic trick.

It’s not difficult to plan your day, but it takes some determination and a few life-changing tips. Why should you plan your day? Well, here are a few reasons.

Four Excellent Reasons to Plan Your Day

Here are some useful planning tips for implementing today.

1. You’re Better Prepared

When you have everything planned, then you know what to expect. Your goals for the day are clear, and unless something unforeseen arises, you’ve got things covered. When you have a prepared mindset, you will have a higher chance of having a good and productive day.

The problem comes into play when you don’t have a clue what’s going on. You will struggle through the day fighting hard and have a low chance of success. When you wake up ready to tackle the day, you will be motivated and drive to accomplish the tasks at hand.

Your brain needs to be prepared to be able to have full motivation. If you’re in doubt, you should know that this method works, and it will help you finish the tasks you have to do promptly.

2. You Prioritize

How many times have you worked all day long and haven’t seemed to accomplish anything? You might feel like a dog chasing its tail around in circles. You must know that this is a rookie mistake, and it must be avoided.

When you plan, you have the chance to prioritize the tasks you must complete making sure each one is fulfilled. If you don’t have a plan, then you can run in 100 directions and do whatever comes to mind first. When nothing is connected or coherent, your entire day is run very haphazardly.

It’s essential that you give time to the things of the highest priority. When you start your day armed with a plan, then you can make sure that all the urgent tasks are handled. If you need to see a doctor or attend your child’s school play, then you can ensure those tasks get worked into your day too.

The fact is that you can get where you need to be, and you don’t have to compromise your responsibilities to yourself or your family to do so.

3. Improves Time Management

Your day and productivity level come down to your time management. Do you need to manage every second of the day? Well, no one is perfect, and it’s hard to have a life so scripted.

Thankfully, you can schedule your day and make good use of every minute of it. The most important task should go into slot one, followed by the next important thing, an hour for lunch, and so on until you’ve filled your schedule.

Make sure that you have a list and don’t let anything overlap. You have deadlines, personal commitments, and you must ensure that everything is planned out for 24 hours so that you don’t waste any time or feel burdened.

4. Create Structure

Do you have days when you seem to wing everything? Spontaneity is the spice of life, but you can’t live every day in that manner. It sounds fun to throw caution to the wind and not let life become too structured and regimented, but did you realize that living like that will take a toll on your mental health?

It’s not fun to deal with surprises and urgencies as they can affect your personal life and your work efficiency. When you plan your day, it brings order to an otherwise chaotic time. Planning gives you structure and order, and it will make your life seem more systematic.

Now, you shouldn’t mentally confuse a scheduled day with an uninteresting lifestyle. Having composition means that you have a plan and know what you need to do to be successful. Your routine must be pre-planned and thought out clearly.

You can boost your productivity and keep a structured life, but this type of lifestyle can help you get rid of all your bad habits and strengthen your good ones.

When you are accomplishing tasks and reaching goals, then it gives you a boost in your step. It does incredible things for your self-esteem to mark items off your checklist as accomplished.

5 Tips to Planning the Perfect Day

If you want to plan your day and boost your results, you need an effective method. Here are some tips for you to consider.

1. Begin with Clear Goals

You must first start each day with clearly defined goals. Never start a day without a plan. It’s essential to keep your daily goals on track to achieve all you need.

While setting precise daily goals, you must also keep in mind your plans for the week. You want to make sure that one day flows into the next, and you’re not left wandering around.
When you have not only your daily but weekly goals in mind, you can plan in advance. Your goals must allow you to accomplish all you need to do and allow time for the unforeseen events.

2. Each day must Be Part of the Bigger Picture

Please don’t get so caught up on a single day that you forget it’s part of the bigger picture. Remember, Monday is only one-seventh of your week, so you can’t single it out over the whole week or month. Everything you plan must take into consideration the week, month, year, and your life.

Having a cohesive plan is advisable, and it should fit into what you want to achieve for the long term. Additionally, keep the events from yesterday and those from tomorrow in the back of your mind. If you have unfinished business from Tuesday, and it’s not Wednesday, you must consider what’s left and what’s on the list for Thursday.

When you have deadlines in both the business and personal parts of life, you need to be mindful of them daily rather than waiting until the last minute.

3. Classify

Your day should be about much more than your job. In every life comes the need for socialization, personal commitments, chores around your home, and family time. You must ensure that you include all these things in your schedule and learn to make time for each classification.

Self-care is an item that many people don’t make time for in their day. You are more important than dusting the furniture, paying the cable bill, and making a work deadline. Yes, all those things are essential, but if you don’t take care of yourself and your needs, you will never accomplish all you need to do.

You should have no less than 30 minutes each day to reflect, create, and boost your mental strength. When you have it all planned according to then, it’s easier to balance your day.

4. Allow for Flexibility

When you plan your day, you don’t want to make the time restraints, so regimented that there is no time for flexibility. Life is full of surprises, and you never know what each day will hold. You must have room for adjustments.

Your boss may throw a surprise assignment on you, or your child may wake up sick. There always needs to be a plan b or backup to your day. You must be able to move things around so that you can handle life’s unexpected challenges.

5. Sustain Balance

You only have 24 hours in your day, so you don’t want to put so much onto your schedule that it’s not humanly possible to do it all. When you plan your day, you want to give yourself about one or two major tasks.

Once those big tasks are handled, then you can schedule about three or four smaller ones. Remember, some jobs will take more time than others, and you need to allow for interruptions, phone calls, and other things that can get you off schedule.

You also need to have some sort of balance. Your day cannot be all about work, or you won’t have time to relax and read a book or watch your favorite television program. Don’t cram so much into one day that it stresses you out and take the rest of the week to recover.

Final Thoughts on How You Can Achieve Better Results When You Plan Your Day

Are you convinced that planning your day is worth the effort? Make sure you make those plans the day before to wake up knowing exactly what you face that day. It’s all about keeping things into perspective and seeing yourself reach each goal that you set.

Don’t feel pressured to tackle all of these suggestions at one time. Small steps will equal big changes in due time. So start with little goal-setting and work up from there.

The goal is to see growth and development in your life, which can happen when you plan your day and make time for all the things you must do.

You have goals. That’s wonderful. Believe it or not, you’re doing great. Life coaches everywhere will tell you that a lot of people haven’t even made it that far.

Now you’re probably wondering how to achieve those goals. Many people psych themselves out at this step. It can be overwhelming trying to figure out how to achieve these grand goals you have floating in your head.

Life coach Lauren Handel Zander suggests that people haven’t really taken enough time to figure out what they want out of life. Taking the time to sit down and map out what you want can help guide your life. “Whatever you’re chasing in life — it needs to be you true north,” says Zander.

The best way to not get overwhelmed, and to achieve goals is to create an action plan. When you have a plan, you can see the journey step by step and suddenly your goals seem easy to attain. Here is the best way to create a great action plan based on advice from several life coaches.

A Ten-Step Action Plan to Help You Reach Your Dreams

Step 1: Relax.

As stated before, a lot of people can be overwhelmed at the thought of trying to achieve goals. Just relax. You need to get rid of stress first before you embark on this journey because you need a clear head.

Whatever you need to do to take the edge off, do it (as long as it’s nothing harmful to yourself like drugs or alcohol). Take a couple of days off, do yoga, read some self-help books, and get yourself in the right state of mind. You don’t want to start the journey off as a frazzled mess. That isn’t going to help anything.

Step 2: Clearly define your SMART goals.

You may have goals, but your goals need to be clearly defined. According to life coach Alexis Robin, co-founder of pLink Coaching Center, “when you get crystal clear about where you are going on a project, in your career, or in your life, each decision you make will get you closer to or further from that vision. If you are struggling with big decisions it may be because you don’t have your destination clearly identified.”

To clearly identify your goals, you should use the acronym SMART. This stands for:

• Specific – your smart goal should be as specific as possible. For example, instead of just saying you want to save money, you should specify how much you want to save and give yourself a deadline.
• Measurable – you should be able to keep track of your progress. It’s essential to be able to see the progress from week to week or month to month.
• Attainable – you should always aim high, but the goal needs to be reasonable and attainable. For example, don’t say you want to save a million dollars in six months if you’re currently only bringing in $20,000 annually.
• Relevant – the goal should be relevant to your life, skills, and needs. For example, don’t have a plan to buy a new car if your goal is to save money.
• Time-based – you should be able to set a deadline for you to achieve the goal. The deadline should be reasonable.

Step 3: Figure out your reason why.

It’s important to understand why you want to reach the SMART goal you’re striving for. Your reason why could be simple. You want to save money so you’re not living paycheck to paycheck. You want to lose weight so you can live a healthier lifestyle. These are simple, but sometimes you have to dig a little deeper to find the real why.

This could take some self-exploration and it may be a little scary to do that. However, understanding why you want to achieve that goal will provide you with the motivation you need to do it.

For example, you might want to save money so you can enjoy more time and activities with your children before they completely grow up. That’s much more motivational than simply saying you don’t want to live paycheck to paycheck.

Step 4. Create actions and a timeline.

You have your SMART goal in place, and you’re motivated to accomplish it. This part of the action plan is where you map out exactly how you’re going to do that.

You should be able to create a list of actions or tasks that will take you, step by step, to your goal. Essentially, you’re going to divide your main goal into smaller goals. Remember to keep the smaller goals attainable.

Step 5: Get started.

You would be surprised how many people create an entire action plan but never put it into action. Now that you have your plan all set, you have to start doing it. A plan without any action isn’t a plan at all.

This is where your real why is most important. It’s going to give you that fire to get started. Keep that in mind and don’t be afraid to take that first step in your plan.

Step 6: Delegate tasks and designate resources.

Parts of your plan may require the help of other people and outside resources. Don’t be afraid to seek out that help. However, make sure you’re counting on reliable people.

For example, if your goal is saving money, you might have a plan to get a promotion so you can have more money coming in. This means you may need to step up at work and take on leadership positions which include managing other co-workers. Here is where you’d delegate tasks and designate resources.

Step 7: Take your plan step by step.

Remember to take your plan step by step. Of course, you’re going to keep your primary goal in mind, but don’t allow yourself to think of the entire goal at one time. You may find yourself getting overwhelmed.

Remember, you made an action plan for a reason. Don’t focus on future steps. Focus on the step that you’re currently working on.

Step 8: Don’t give up.

Your plan makes it easier to achieve your goals, but it doesn’t make everything easy. There are still going to be challenges along the way. These challenges might push you to your limit.

You have to remember not to give up. Make sure you have a source of strength around you to keep you pushing towards your goals. Keep a reminder of your real why near you. Write daily affirmations, listen to motivational videos, and do whatever it takes to keep going. Remember, when things get hard, or almost impossible, don’t give up.

Step 9: Monitor your progress.

Keep an eye on the progress that you’re making. As you achieve each of your smaller goals, look at them as milestones. Look at them as points in the plan where you need to recognize your small successes so far and make sure you’re still on track.

In other words, hold yourself accountable. If your goal involves a team, hold your team accountable. Have meetings to make sure everything is going as planned. If you need to, meet with individual team members.

Pay attention to the needs that arise as you follow the steps of the action plan. Make sure you’re providing those needs so that your progress won’t stop. In fact, you may need to anticipate needs so that your progress doesn’t stall. You can’t anticipate needs unless you’re doing a great job of monitoring your progress.

Step 10. Celebrate your successes.

Everyone works better on a rewards system. Plan to reward yourself with the accomplishment of each small goal. It can be a small reward, or it can be something extravagant (although if you’re trying to save money you may want to go with a small reward).

If you have a team that’s involved in your plan, don’t forget to reward them for their successes as well. The reward could be as simple as recognition for their efforts. There are plenty of studies that show that employees (or team members) work harder and are more productive when they are recognized for their efforts.

This includes you recognizing yourself. It’s a great way to keep up your self-motivation.

Final Thoughts on Creating an Action Plan to Attain Your Goals

Having goals is the first step to a better future, but you have to find a way to reach them. Action plans are the way to do this. Focusing on the big picture all at once can be overwhelming but creating a plan to get you there makes your goals much more attainable.

Life coaches everywhere will tell you that smaller, attainable tasks take the pressure off you and that taking the pressure off allows you to thrive when you’re pursuing your goals. Take this advice and get started on your action plan as soon as possible. Remember to stay focused and stay motivated and before you know it, your big picture will become a reality.

Synchronicity (n.) – the simultaneous occurrence of events which appear significantly related but have no discernible causal connection. –Oxford English Dictionary

Have you ever had the strange sensation of singing a song either out loud or in your head and then hearing it on the radio shortly after? Or, perhaps you had a business idea randomly pop into your head, and then you see a vehicle with a bright bumper sticker that says, “Just do it!” pull in front of you. Some people believe this is synchronicity at work, because how else do you explain such a phenomenon?

Synchronicity means any two events which a person assigns meaningful connections to, even if they don’t seem related. For example, some people believe that seeing repeating numbers often, such as 11:11, 2:22, or 3:33 means angels or spirit guides are trying to get in touch with them. When they see these numbers, they feel a sense of comfort because they think a higher power is overseeing their life and giving them direction.

History of synchronicity

Where does the idea of synchronicity come from, anyway? Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung coined the term back in the early 1900s. He believed in numerology as well, which is the belief that specific numbers, such as the ones we listed above, have special meanings and can provide insight into one’s life path. Basically, he believed that “meaningful coincidences,” or synchronicities, occur because of cosmic forces intervening to help give guidance in people’s lives.

Today, many New Age writers talk about synchronicity, including Deepak Chopra. According to an article on his site,

“Synchronicity implies that a higher intelligence can organize events so that meaning pops up unexpectedly. Moreover, a synchronous experience defies cause and effect. If you think of a word and the next minute someone on TV says the word, you didn’t create the coincidence. But something did. In your spiritual journey, you attempt to investigate what this something might be.”

We all want to find order in this seemingly chaotic universe, so when something happens that seems too coincidental, it helps us make sense of the world. Humans always want to find patterns to understand how things work, and synchronicity is one way of doing that.

Here are eight ways synchronicity shapes your life journey:

1. It may give you a new life purpose.
   

In one fantastic story about synchronicity, Gregg Lavoy, one day felt a calling to quit his job as a news reporter and chart his course with freelance writing instead. He’d been at his career for ten years, but half that time he spent daydreaming about a life where he could call all of the shots. During his drive home from work one day, “Desperado” by the Eagles was playing, and the last line he heard before he turned off the car was “Don’t you draw the Queen of Diamonds, she’ll beat you if she’s able; the Queen of Hearts is always your best bet.” When he turned off the car and started to get out, he noticed a Queen of Hearts card lying near his foot!

Even more strange than that event was the fact that over the next two years, Gregg found five more queen playing cards scattered all over the country along his travels. He took this as a go-ahead sign to pursue the freelance writing idea because it just seemed too coincidental that he found the card right after hearing a song about it.

2. You start meeting the right people when your life path becomes clear.

Synchronicity allows the right people to come into your life at precisely the right time. For instance, maybe you just got finished writing your fiction novel after pulling many painstaking all-nighters after work. Now, you need to find a publisher. Perhaps you may find yourself chatting with someone in a coffee shop who knows a guy who can help you out. Or, you might send your script to many different publishers and finally hear back from someone who seems to be the ideal fit for your project.

Once you tap into the “flow” of the universe, everything seems to fall into place effortlessly because you’re on the right life path.

3. You attract better friendships and relationships.

Once you expand your awareness, you begin to find people who better match your energy. Your friends and relationships will become less drama-filled and more harmonious. Those who you don’t mesh with anymore will start to distance themselves as your life path becomes more explicit.

Maybe you’ve wished for a best friend for a long time, and you happen to meet a remarkable person in a random Facebook group one day. Then, you start talking and realize you relate to them on many different levels. The universe works in mysterious ways as long as you remain open to the possibilities.

4. You may start noticing repeated messages on billboards or advertisements on TV.

If you’ve been asking for a sign from the universe, you may notice more synchronicity in the books you read or TV programs you watch. Perhaps you see more messages saying to “follow your heart,” even if you don’t necessarily view inspirational or spiritual types of shows often. You may notice these messages in ads or signs around the stores you frequent. Don’t dismiss these signs as mere coincidence; if you start seeing them more often, they probably have significance for your life path.

5. Synchronicity happens if you see specific numbers more often as well.

As we mentioned above, specific repeating numbers can have special meaning as well. Below, we will go over some of the most common numbers and their meanings.

• 1111 or 111 – pay more attention to what you’re thinking about because you’ll end up manifesting it!
• 2222 or 222 – you’re on the right path, and new opportunities are coming up for you. Remain balanced and peaceful in all your dealings in life.
• 3333 or 333 – A very spiritual number, this is a sign from the angels to connect with your higher self and is a sign of encouragement.
• 4444 or 444 – You’re on the right life path; trust your intuition, and follow your heart.
• 5555 or 555 – You may need to release anything that no longer serves you.
• 6666 or 666 – Take some time to ground and focus on your inner self (higher self).
• 7777 or 777 – A sign of spiritual awakening or increased intuition and awareness.
• 8888 or 888 – A sign that you’re on the right path, a celebration of achievement and success.
• 9999 or 999 – Rebirth and transformation. Something really good is headed your way, and new doors are opening for you!

6. It may lead you to your next step in life.

As with the story about the freelance writer and the queen of hearts cards, random occurrences like these may happen when you need a life change. The universe wants to support our highest good, but we just have to remain aware and mindful of the messages it sends. For example, maybe you’ve thought about moving to a new city for a fresh start, and you start seeing more commercials about vacationing in that city. Or, perhaps you overhear conversations between strangers talking about the place you want to move.

A lot of times, the universe gives us subtle signs about our life path; we just have to pay attention.

7. Synchronicity may allow you to know things before they happen.

Have you ever heard stories about people who suddenly feel that they should reach out to someone close to them, just to check on them? Perhaps they call and find out something is wrong, or that they had tragically passed away just moments before. This is an unfortunate example of synchronicity, but it explains why sometimes you might have an overwhelming urge to call a friend or family member.

8. You may be able to avoid a tragic accident.

A friend once said she was driving along the highway with her son when she suddenly felt her intuition telling her to get into the next lane. Right afterward, a tire on the truck she was just behind flew back to right where her car would’ve been. If you feel your intuition getting more robust, this is one way that synchronicity can guide you on your life path.

Final thoughts on how synchronicity can shape your life journey

Synchronicity can help you on your life path in many ways, from guiding you to your life purpose or allowing relationships that will further your growth as a person. It can also give you a kind of “sixth sense,” which heightens your intuition, perhaps helping you avoid accidents or know things before they actually happen in real life. You may start seeing signs such as repeating numbers or messages, which some people believe represent messages from angels or spirit guides.

If you’ve experienced any sort of synchronicity in your own life, let us know your story on our Facebook page.

When you’ve finally found your partner for life, you’ll feel it in your bones that you no longer have to search for Mr. or Mrs. Right. Everyone deserves love, but that doesn’t mean it comes easily. Usually, we stumble upon it when we’re not looking for a relationship in the first place. Not everyone believes in soulmates, of course, but studies show that people have happier relationships when they view their partner as the only one for them.

This makes much sense because if you feel that no one else could ever compare to your sweetheart, you won’t feel the need to wonder “what if” about other potential mates. You’ll have that peaceful satisfaction of knowing that you’ve found the ultimate love in your significant other. However, we don’t always know when we’ve met the right person. Your intuition may tell you that you’ve found your ideal partner, but you might need some more affirmation than that.

Below, we’ll go over some common signs that you’ve met your partner for life so that you don’t let them slip through your fingertips!

Therapists explain seven signs you’ve met your soulmate:

1. You feel a connection with them you’ve never had before.

Perhaps you may feel an almost otherworldly connection with them. You feel as if you’ve known your love before in previous lifetimes. When you’re not speaking to them, the silence feels comfortable instead of awkward. However, during a conversation, you feel fascinated and stimulated by what they have to say, and you don’t need to hide or hold back your thoughts or feelings. Everything fits, and it feels like the pieces of your puzzle have finally started to come together.

You feel at home in their company and could talk for hours with them about everything and nothing at all. Being physically attracted to someone naturally happens all the time, but below the surface, we all want and need a deeper connection. When you’ve found this genuine bond, you know you have your partner for life.

2. You can see a future with them.

Soulmates usually have the same outlook or perspective on life, and may even share similar goals. When you have wildly opposing views about politics, religion, marriage, or any other significant ideologies, it makes it very difficult to make the relationship last. So, when you meet your forever partner, you will find it easy to mesh with them about important issues. Because of your compatibility, you can see a future with them, even after just a few dates.

Also, we’d like to add that having similar goals in life may help the longevity in the relationship. Not to mention, when you have the same interests, it enables you to bond in a more profound way and possibly create businesses and other pursuits together.

3. You speak the same language.

Having a partner that understands your emotions and way of explaining things helps you feel more seen and heard in a relationship. If you continuously feel misunderstood and alienated by your partner, you probably won’t want to stick around too long. However, when you’ve met your partner for life, they will never make you feel neglected or alone. They make it a priority to ask the deep questions and listen to you intently in conversations.

You both may have the same sense of humor or perhaps a similar way of looking at the world, which gives you a connection like no other.

4. They make you feel safe.

You no longer have to hide pieces of yourself or wish you could meet someone who understands you. In this person, you’ve found everything you need, and they make you feel safe physically, mentally, and emotionally. They talk problems out with you, listen to you when you’ve had a bad day, and protect you to the end of the Earth. When you meet your soulmate, you’ll know it based on how seriously they take the relationship.

Your partner for life will want to do everything they can to make you happy because they genuinely love and care about you. They have no desire to hurt you and would do anything in their power to give you the life you deserve. You have a sense of inner calm in the relationship, and insecurities you used to have just melted away. When you meet that person who wants to go all-in and will stand by your side through the good and evil, you know you’ve bonded with your special someone.

5. You feel that the challenges you face make you stronger as a couple.

Upon meeting your partner for life, you’ll notice that any obstacles you face together bring you closer together as a couple. Some people tend to clash in personality or have different conflict managing styles that make it challenging to come to a solution. However, when you’ve met your soulmate, you’ll find that you meet challenges with ease and complement one another nicely.

For instance, if you want to start a business together, they might know about finance, whereas you know more about advertising and marketing. So, you come together to use your skills and create something beautiful as a couple and utilize each other’s strengths. However, your partner doesn’t criticize you for your weaknesses; they guide you gently if you need help with something.

6. Everything works.

Of course, no relationship comes in a perfect little package of rainbows and butterflies, but in general, you don’t have too many hangups. You take care of conflict in a mature way and make sure you hear each other’s opinions without becoming overly defensive or critical. You enjoy one another’s companionship. Plus, you can’t wait to spend time together on weekends or when you get home from work. You never get tired of one another, because they feel like home to you.

You feel stronger with them than before because they’ve helped you become a better person. A healthy, beneficial relationship will always improve your life, not cause you more problems and misery. If you feel happier and more at ease with yourself and life in general upon meeting your significant other, you might have found your partner for life.

7. Your friends and family approve of your soulmate, too.

Now, we do not want you to think that you must have your family’s approval before marrying someone, but usually, your family can tell when someone’s good for you or not. If the people closest to you have only good things to say about your partner, then it reaffirms your own feelings about him or her. They may mention how you light up when you talk about them or are in their company, or how much happier you seem.

Your significant other soon will be spending a lot of time with your loved ones, so their opinion of them does matter to some extent. You want a partner who will mesh well with the people who matter to you, so if they do, this is certainly a positive sign. Make sure you pay close attention to how your loved ones communicate and respond to your partner, and listen to them if they spot any red flags.

Sometimes, our family or friends can see potential problems in a different light than we can since they have an outside perspective.

Final thoughts on signs you’ve found your partner for life

Everyone wants to find that special significant someone, but how do you know when you’ve met them? Usually, if your family and friends really adore them, you connect with them on an insanely deep level, and you can look into the future and see them there, you have probably met the one. Other signs include feeling safe and peaceful in their presence, speaking a similar soul language, feeling understood and heard, and just meshing well in most areas of your life. It also helps if you hold a similar worldview and can overcome obstacles together with ease.

Not to mention, when you’ve found The One, other people will notice. They might even feel a little jealous and wonder where they can find a partner as wonderful as yours. You’ll want to show them off because you feel so enthralled with who they are as a person. Even if you don’t believe in soulmates, however, as long as you communicate well, make each other happy, and put equal effort into the relationship, you can make it work for the long haul.

Finding your partner for life will make you feel whole and complete in a way that nothing else compares, and it will likely happen when you least expect it. If you haven’t met this person, don’t worry; they might cross your path in an unlikely place, like the grocery store or the gym! Love finds us when we’re ready, so as long as you focus on making yourself happy and following your heart, it will come to you.

One of Buddha’s teachings included the eightfold path of Buddhism, which serves as a guideline for those who follow the religion. However, no matter what your spiritual beliefs, these teachings can help improve your life in many ways. The eightfold path includes eight principles that help man to find the middle way in all circumstances and avoid the extremes, or dualities, of existence.

The eightfold path includes these guidelines: right understanding, right intent, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration. When followed correctly, these moral codes offer humankind a balanced way of living, which creates peace and harmony within oneself. Below, we’ll go over a bit of history about Buddha and his teachings, and talk more in-depth about the eightfold path.

Buddha’s early life

Considered one of the most influential spiritual leaders in history, Siddhartha Gautama, otherwise known as Buddha, grew up in modern-day Lumbini, Nepal, sometime between the 6th and 4th century B.C. He traveled throughout Nepal and India, sharing his teachings about inner peace and the path to enlightenment. Buddha means “the enlightened one” or “one who is awakened.”

He grew up in a palace, raised in an aristocratic, wealthy family of the Shakya clan. His father wanted to protect his son from all the horrors and suffering of human existence, so he sheltered his son inside the palace walls. However, early accounts of Buddha’s life suggest that he became disillusioned due to his upbringing and desired more than just riches and becoming a king. One day Buddha’s curiosity got the best of him, and he left to explore the world outside the palace.

What he saw shocked him. He left the palace with a charioteer and encountered an old man for the first time. His companion had to explain to him that all people grow old and die eventually. Buddha later went on longer trips outside the palace where he came across a man with a disease, a decaying corpse, and an ascetic (a person who gives up luxuries and practices severe self-disciple). The ascetic inspired him to continue to seek spiritual truth and understand how to defeat human suffering.

After seeing all of this, Buddha decided to leave the palace and promises of becoming a king to discover how to overcome the pain of being human. He wanted to figure out how to avoid the endless cycle of rebirths, or samsara, that comes from unfulfilled desires.

Reaching nirvana through Buddhism

Some accounts of Buddha’s life say that he meditated under the tree for seven days. During this time, the Lord of the desire realm, Mara, visited Buddha and tried to keep him from reaching enlightenment. Mara supposedly sent his daughters to seduce Buddha, unleashed armies of monsters on him, and attempted to assert his superiority. However, Buddha didn’t allow these distractions to keep him from his goal.

He called on the earth goddess for help, asking it to bear witness to his superiority and enlightenment. Buddha then conquered the desires that Mara had placed in his mind and achieved nirvana. He no longer had to reincarnate on Earth because of unfulfilled desires, extinguishing the flames of past, present, and future karma.

Buddha’s teachings

After Buddha’s awakening, he hesitated about spreading the vast knowledge he had gained with others. He thought that humans wouldn’t appreciate his teachings due to being overpowered by ignorance, greed, and hatred. However, the god Brahma convinced him to teach, arguing that some humans would grasp the meaning behind his words.

As Buddha traveled, he taught two main philosophies: the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path, which he called the Middle Way between sensual indulgence and self-mortification. Below, we’ll talk more about the eightfold path and what it entails.

The Eightfold Path of Buddhism

1 – Right Understanding:

This aspect of life relates to seeing the world clearly, not giving in to pessimism, optimism, or idealism. Instead, we should see the world as it truly is, not as we perceive or wish it to be. In this practice, Buddha stressed the idea that our actions have consequences, otherwise known as karma.

He stated that unfulfilled desires and wrong living would tie man to the cycle of rebirths unless he can overcome them by having the Right View. Once a man can clear his mind and consciousness of delusion and misunderstandings derived from ignorance, he will see this life and all his past ones.

2 – Right Intent:

The second step on the eightfold path, right intent, involves following the spiritual journey with passion and vigor. It means removing all desires except enlightenment, knowing that everyone and everything will eventually fade back into the source of all. Therefore, we shouldn’t become attached to anything on this Earth. Instead, renouncing all desires will eliminate suffering and ill will, which causes further karma.

Right understanding eliminates ignorance, while the right intent takes away the seeds of desire. Being attached to anything causes suffering due to its impermanence, so Buddhism teaches to transcend worldly desires.

3 – Right Speech:

Buddhism defines the right speech as “abstaining from lying, from divisive speech, from abusive speech, and from idle chatter.” All words carry energy with them, and the four types of speech we mentioned have negative consequences. Therefore, we should always strive to speak calmly and carefully choose our words.

Speaking from a place of unconditional love and compassion will allow us to emanate good energy. Communicating thoughtfully in the spirit of consideration and acceptance can bring people together and heal tension, so we should always speak mindfully.

4 – Right Action:

Because every action and word can either bring good or bad karma, we should never inflict pain or harm on others. Right action means living ethically, considering the well-being and happiness of others with every move we make.

This teaching includes refraining from harmful actions such as stealing and harming others and fulfilling the promises we make to others.

Buddha laid out five precepts to follow under the right action: not to kill, steal, lie, to avoid sexual misconduct, and not take drugs or other intoxicants. Right action also includes taking care of the Earth so that the future generation can live comfortably and in harmony with their environment.

5 – Right Livelihood:

Your line of work should help you progress on your spiritual path, so one should choose something that respects all life. If your line of work causes suffering to others in any way, it will hinder your spiritual progress. Buddha discouraged any type of work that deals with drugs or alcohol, involves weapons, or harms animals and humans. He encouraged any work which enriches others’ lives, such as community service.

6 – Right Effort:

This concept means cultivating the right mindset so that you can perform the right actions. It involves generating wholesome states such as peacefulness and love and working to prevent unwholesome states such as laziness, ill will, restlessness, and sensual thoughts. Feelings such as anger, resentfulness, and hatred must be eliminated as well.

7 – Right Mindfulness:

This means being fully aware of the present moment, putting one’s attention all on the task at hand. It means being transparent and undistracted, not allowing thoughts or feelings to disturb inner peace. By practicing mindfulness, any cravings will start to melt away, helping the person to expand his or her consciousness. Having a clear and focused mind allows you to see reality with more clarity and transcend the ego.

8 – Right Concentration:

This means unifying the mind by concentration and meditation. By having a one-pointed sense of concentration and giving up sense desires, one can enter into a state of emptiness and nothingness where the mind ultimately becomes liberated. You’d think that giving up the world would cause great suffering and grief, but many renunciants have spoken of the immense joy and peace that comes from this practice.

How Buddhism enhances your life

So, now that we’ve gone over the eightfold path, here are some ways it can improve your life:

1 – More inner peace.

By following the eightfold path, you will gain inner tranquility and greater resolve. Giving up desires may seem difficult at first, but in time, you’ll appreciate the simplicity of life.

2 – Better understanding of the self.

Meditation and expanding awareness to others will help you understand yourself and your dharma, or life purpose, much better.

3 – Greater compassion for others.

Buddha emphasized considering others in the eightfold path, because we all come from the same consciousness. Therefore, we should treat everyone with kindness and compassion.

4 – Improved self-control.

As you refrain from indulging the senses, your self-control and willpower will drastically improve.

5 – Mental clarity.

Without mental chatter formed from desires, you can see life and the answers to the universe more clearly. In time, this can lead to total liberation with enough concentration and desire for freedom.

Final thoughts about the eightfold path of Buddhism

You don’t have to follow Buddhism to improve your life with the eightfold path. Anyone can follow these teachings and achieve greater inner peace, self-control, mental clarity, compassion, and wisdom. It takes great dedication, but making liberation at the end seems well worth the effort.

Not all relationships last forever, but you can learn many life lessons from a failed relationship. Sometimes, we have to meet certain people to learn important lessons; oftentimes, the wrong relationships lead us to the right person eventually.

While not everyone sticks around throughout all the chapters of our lives, we meet every person for a reason. If you’ve just gotten out of a relationship recently and feel heartbroken about it, we hope the following advice can help you move through it.

“Sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.” – Marilyn Monroe

Here are 12 important life lessons to take away from a failed relationship:

1. Overthinking causes more pain in the end.

At the end of the relationship, you may feel tempted to ruminate about every situation and conversation in your head so you can try to figure out where it went wrong. Of course, this is natural to some extent – when something goes awry in life, we want to dissect it so we can learn from it. However, too much analysis and overthinking just leads to misery, as you can never go back and change what happened.

While you should try to learn from what happened, you shouldn’t dwell on the past. Feel your emotions, talk about them with friends and family, and then allow yourself to move on. You only hurt yourself more when you overthink what went wrong in a failed relationship.

2. Learn to become your own best friend.

Sometimes in relationships, we forget to love ourselves as much as we love our partner. Then, when they leave, all of our self-worth and happiness goes right out the window. If you don’t cultivate self-love, you will depend on someone outside yourself to give it to you. However, relying on someone else to accept you means that you will never feel totally fulfilled.

If you don’t feel complete within yourself, you’ll need constant validation from your partner or others. At the end of a relationship, ask yourself how much you depended on your partner for self-esteem and validation. If you feel empty without them, this makes the perfect opportunity to go deep within yourself and heal any wounds from the past. Once you become your own best friend, you’ll have even more love to give in your next relationship, and you’ll feel more whole as well.

3. A failed relationship can teach us forgiveness.

If you felt undervalued or unloved in your last relationship, you might feel like getting revenge on your ex or blaming them for everything that went wrong. However, harboring resentment will only result in adding more stress to your life. Bottling up feelings can actually cause physical health problems as well. A 2013 study by the Harvard School of Public Health and the University of Rochester found that people who bottled up feelings had a 30% higher risk of all-cause mortality and a 70% higher chance of a cancer diagnosis.

So, instead of wishing harm on your ex or trying to blame them for the failed relationship, try to forgive them instead. You’ll find that you feel much lighter by accepting what happened and choosing to forgive their mistakes. Remember also to not beat yourself up for the relationship ending and extend that forgiveness to yourself as well.

4. Healing takes time.

You’ll go through many different emotions after a breakup. People usually experience the following emotions, in any given order:

• anger
• shock
• sadness/depression
• emptiness
• loneliness
• relief
• acceptance
• excitement

You might go through several cycles of these emotions before things start to feel normal again. Just remember to give yourself time and space to heal from the relationship. Some days you’ll feel like you’ve moved on, and others will feel like you’ve had your heart ripped from your chest. Just know that healing doesn’t happen overnight and that your feelings are totally justified.

5. As much as it might tempt you, don’t run back to your ex.

After breaking things off with your significant other, you will probably get rid of all the reminders of your relationship, such as old photos or keepsakes. However, the memories will linger and will tempt you into getting back with them on those lonely nights. If the relationship didn’t work out, getting back with them will only create more of the same problems you encountered before. In other words, leave the past behind you, and remember that you ended things for a reason. Wish your ex well, and feel grateful for the time you got to spend with them.

6. Cherish the good memories and what you learned from the relationship.

While you might dwell on the person’s negative attributes and why you feel so much better without them, this will only lead to feelings of resentment. Try to think of the good times you shared with your ex as well. Just because someone no longer holds a place in our lives doesn’t mean we have to paint them in a negative light.

If you focus on the bad qualities of someone, this only lowers your frequency. However, if you can speak about your ex in a mature, respectful way, this shows you’ve moved on and have an appreciation for what you learned from your time with them.

7. Don’t try to numb the pain.

At the end of a failed relationship, many people drown themselves in drugs, alcohol, or other unhealthy habits to cope with the pain. Or, they might just keep extremely busy, so they have no time to deal with their feelings. These harmful coping mechanisms won’t work long-term, because you’ll have to face your feelings eventually. You need to give yourself time to go through the emotions instead of creating constant distractions for your feelings.

You can move on from a relationship while also allowing yourself space to process the breakup.

8. Use this as an opportunity to learn more about yourself.

In a relationship, many people feel that they lose themselves since they spend so much of their time with their partner. Hobbies and even personalities can blend together until you don’t know where you end, and your partner begins.

Healthy relationships have clear boundaries, but some relationship partners experience enmeshment and codependence. In that case, the healing process will take longer as you’ll feel you need to find yourself again.

No matter if the relationship ended on good or bad terms, you could use your newfound freedom to your advantage. Figure out what you enjoy and what makes you happy, without having to depend on anyone else for it. Create your own joy in life and keep busy with hobbies that interest you.

9. Choosing a positive outlook will help you in your recovery.

In a study of emotional distress after a breakup, researchers studied participants’ positive or negative emotions about the failed relationship. They asked participants about how often they thought about the relationship, depression, loss of self-concept, rediscovery of self-concept, negative emotional adjustment, and positive emotional adjustments.

Researchers found that participants had greater recovery if they felt positive emotions about the breakup, for example, being happy, satisfied, or relieved. The optimistic thinkers didn’t dwell on the relationship as much, had less anxiety about being single, and had fewer regrets.

10. Take the positives from the relationship and apply it to your next one.

What went right in your last relationship? What qualities did you learn about yourself that could help your future partner feel more loved, whole, or accepted? Make sure you take time to think about what qualities you brought into your previous relationship that made it more harmonious. Just because it didn’t work out doesn’t mean you can’t learn from the positives.

11. A failed relationship can teach you where you still need to work on yourself.

Expanding on the last point, think about what you could improve about yourself in the next relationship. Did you nag too much, set your expectations too high, or hold grudges? Give the silent treatment too often instead of communicating? Think about how you can work on yourself to become better, not only for yourself but for your future partner as well.

12. Life doesn’t always turn out how we plan it.

Perhaps one of the most important lessons to take away from a failed relationship is that life just doesn’t always turn out how we expect it to. The solution? Don’t have any expectations at all. Just enjoy the ride and learn from every person you come in contact with; they all have something to teach you or learn from you.

Final thoughts about lessons to learn from a failed relationship

Not everyone can stay in our lives forever, but not everyone is meant to. Some people come and go, but they all have lessons to teach us. You can learn important things from a failed relationship, such as forgiveness, how to become your own best friend, and how to just ride the waves of life.

If you’ve recently gotten out of a relationship, we hope these life lessons can help shift your perspective and remind you that just because a relationship failed does not mean you did. You learned and grew from it, and that’s a beautiful thing!

Are you tired of punching a time clock? Do you long for the freedom that a home-based business can give you? Wouldn’t it be nice to have no one looming around and watching over your shoulder, making sure you are doing your job correctly?

Starting a home business is an exciting adventure, and now is the perfect time to spread your wings and try something new. Working remotely has never been more popular than it is right now, so why not join the ranks of others? There are many things that you must consider, but the most significant advantage is the freedom that working from home allows you.

Benefits of Working for Your Home Business

While there are some obvious benefits to a home-based business, there are many things to consider that might not have crossed your mind. Here are ten ways that your new venture can give you the freedom you need from a long for in your career.

1. You’re the Boss

When you’re the boss, you call the shots. You have the authority to take a day off, take an extra-long lunch period, or say when you’ve worked enough. There will be no more demands from a boss that is unrealistic in their expectations. When you work for you, you know your limits and can set your schedule according to your needs.

Do you remember times when you had to work instead of attending family outings, or you missed a child’s play at school? You won’t have to worry about those things again. Since you’re in control, you can put everything on hold for those special moments in your life.

2. No Reason to Wear Stuffy Clothes

Most jobs have a dress code. A warehouse might require that you wear a uniform that is heavy and uncomfortable. If you work in a formal office, you might have to wear dress pants and a nice shirt. Wouldn’t it be nice to work in sweatpants and a t-shirt every day?

If you’re not in a video conference, then you could work in your pajamas. A home business allows you to be comfortable. Did you know that you will have a higher productivity rate when you are wearing comfortable outfits?

A study found that there is a connection between your garments and how you feel. Your clothes can mess with your psyche. Be careful because how you dress can also impress a potential client, but there’s nothing that says you need a three-piece suit to work a home business.

3. No More Long Commutes

There’s nothing worse than being stuck in the car for hours on end. The average commute in the United States is 26 minutes each way. There is a lot of time wasted that you could be doing something else.

What could you do with an extra hour every day and five hours a week? Plus, you must remember you won’t need to pay for gasoline to and from work anymore. There are some savings when you don’t have to commute, and it can add up quickly.

4. No More Babysitters

Many parents can start a home-based business and get rid of the babysitters. If you can rearrange your schedule to work remotely, then you won’t need a full-time provider. It’s always advisable to keep someone in reserve for those times when you need to step out and take care of business.

Think of all the money you will save when you don’t have to pay for full-time childcare. You may save enough cash to fund the start of your home-based adventure, but you won’t need someone else to raise your kids. Somethings are worth more than money and are priceless.

5. You Can Take Care of All the Little Things

Do you know how frustrating it is to need to call off work because the plumber is coming, or the HVAC is on the fritz? When you have a home business, you can work while you let the maintenance professional take care of issues around your abode.

Think of all the other times that you called off because of things out of your control. You’ve lost pay, and you may have been written up for such infractions. How many times have the kids been sick and begged you to stay with them, but you knew that calling off may have lost your job?

Any parent feels an obligation to be with their child when they are ill. Now, you won’t need to call the boss and tell them once again that one of your kids has the flu, and you need time off. There are many perks to being in a home business, and taking care of all the little things is a significant one.

6. No More Getting Up At 6 am

Are you an early bird or a night owl? When you have a home-based business, you can set the times when you want to work. Most business hours are from 9-5 pm each day. However, if you live on the East coast and you are dealing with customers on the West coast, then you don’t want to call at 8 am.

You can adjust your hours to fit your needs and preferences. You must do whatever works for you. Remember, you must be comfortable because, to make your business a success, it must fit you and your lifestyle. You may enjoy sleeping in on a Wednesday and working the night shift on Thursday. It’s all up to you.

7. You Can Work Anywhere in the World

If there ever was a silver lining, the best benefit to a home-based adventure is that you can work anywhere at any time. How would your work life change if you could take care of business on a chair positioned beachside?

The beauty of being in control means that you aren’t tied to a desk all day long. Your office can be at any hotel in the world, and as long as you have an internet connection, it’s business as usual. No rule says you can’t sightsee during the day and work at night. You can go anywhere you like.

8. Less Stress in Your Job

A significant problem with working outside of the home is stress levels. You hear people complain all the time that they are stressed out. Part of the problem is that they are trying to balance a family, maintain a house and relationships as well as keep up with their career.

It’s a significant undertaking for anyone. However, when you are in a home business, many find that their stress levels go down. Take away the morning commute, the boss breathing down your neck, and the noisy coworkers can only help. Consequently, the fact that you can throw a load of laundry in while making connections with customers means that you can run your house like a finely oiled machine.

9. You Can Have More Time with the Family

One significant benefit of working remotely is you can have more time with their family. It’s hard to see each other when you dash in the door at 6 pm, try to get dinner on the table, and be in bed by 11 pm.

It seems like there are more than 100 things that need to be done in the evening. However, you can eliminate the nightly rush when you are at the house all day long. You can make sure dinner is on the table, and you can have a beautiful, leisurely meal with your family.

You won’t feel the need to rush, and it will enhance your relationships by having more togetherness. Imagine a life where you didn’t feel hurried all the time. Wouldn’t it be fantastic?

10. Productivity Increases

Most people that start a home business are way more productive than if they were working for someone else. When you know it’s your bottom line that is at stake your productivity will be stellar.

You probably did a great job at your place of employment, but imagine what you will do when you’re trying to build a business. You will work tirelessly to ensure your future and that your family is secure.

Final Thoughts in Creating Freedom with a Home Business

You may be fearful of jumping ship and leaving a job with a guaranteed paycheck. However, some of the most important businesses in the world started in a basement or garage.

In 1976, Apple was started in Steve Job’s home. He and business partner Steve Wozniak only had a mere 1,250 dollars when they began their adventure. In 1994, Jeff Bezos started Amazon in his garage, and you see how that turned out. In 1995, Pierre Omidyar started eBay in the living room of a San Jose apartment.

On eBay, there are currently 168 million buyers each day. Don’t ever sell yourself short or be afraid to dream. Your business venture may turn you into a household name.

So here is the real question. What’s stopping you from turning your passions into a thriving home business?

Are you filled with fear or stress? Do you find it more challenging to enjoy life these days? You are not alone. We recently faced unprecedented times, and virtually everyone faces some type of struggle. And that causes stress.

For those who are unaware, stress is a byproduct of physical, chemical, or emotional factors that trigger mental or emotional tension. Good and bad stress both trigger a chemical response in the body.

This response causes it to become filled with epinephrine, norepinephrine, and cortisol. All of these chemicals play a role in the fight or flight response. Fight or flight can either motivate us to get things done or drive us to engage in acts of self-preservation.

To help further put this into perspective, let’s take a look at examples of how one might react when they encounter good or bad stress. If you’re late filing your taxes, the good stress that you feel is what will likely motivate you to get them done and sent off to the Internal Revenue Service. After all, doing so will help you get a tax refund sooner or, at the very least, avoid a late penalty.

Bad stress, on the other hand, would be something akin to losing your job and wondering how you will pay your bills. In either of these two scenarios, the fight or flight response will influence how individuals will react under these circumstances. Unfortunately, many people today are dealing with bad stress, which is often caused by family, financial, or chronic health problems.

What You Might Not Know About Stress

In some cases, bad stress can give way to anxiety and create yet even more problems for some individuals. According to a study published by the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, more than 18 percent of Americans are struggling with generalized anxiety, social anxiety, or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). And all too often, these various forms of anxiety invariably lead to chronic health problems, some of which include

• A weakened immune system
• Poor digestive health
• Cardiovascular disease
• Insomnia
• Infertility

Too much stress in one’s life not only causes these health problems but also makes them worse in many cases. In a study published by Northwestern Memorial Hospital, a nationally ranked academic medical center in Chicago, IL, researchers found that stress causes a myriad of chronic diseases and also intensifies disease-related symptoms.

What Is the Difference Between Stress and Anxiety?

Despite being thought of as the same, there is a difference between stress and anxiety. In short, stress is a response to a threat, which can be either real or perceived. As far as anxiety, it is a mental health disorder typically caused by prolonged and unresolved stress.

Of course, these differences do not negate the fact that anxiety and stress can cause individuals to become so crippled with fear that it significantly disrupts their life. Whether the official classification is stress or anxiety, nearly 10 percent of American adults have admitted to having at least one specific fear, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.

The percentage is even higher among teenagers, with more than 15 percent admitting to struggling with one or more fears, the study goes on to note. Lastly, the same study reported that 0.9 percent of those living in fear have agoraphobia. And 7.1 percent have severe social anxiety.

11 Ways to Enjoy Life and Say Goodbye to Fear and Stress

Now that we have a better understanding of how stress, anxiety, and general fear can take a toll on your ability to enjoy life. So let’s take a look at eleven things that you can start doing today to prevent such irrational feelings from spiraling out of control:

1. Embrace the Fear

Whether you choose to refer to it as stress or fear, one of the best things that you can do to prevent it from taking over your life is to embrace it. Sure, this might sound counterproductive, but there is credible evidence that proves doing so is beneficial.

Learning to face and work through your fears will keep them from morphing into physical ailments and causing worse mental health problems. For example, if financial trouble is a source of stress, instead of worrying, consider seeking the expertise of a financial planner who can help you organize your finances.

2. Give Your Fears a Name

Many people in America and around the world struggle with generalized anxiety. This widespread concern indicates there is a plurality of things that cause fear. If this is something that resonates with you, you will be happy to know that naming your specific fears can help loosen the tight grip that they would otherwise have over you.

And it is easy to do, insofar as it comes down to either enumerating your fears verbally or writing them down in a journal.

3. Distract Yourself From Your Fears

Once you have learned to embrace and name your fears, the next step should entail finding ways to distract yourself from them for at least a few hours each day. Some of the more popular ways to distract yourself from fear include reading a great book, watching movies, or spending time with friends and family.

4. Say Goodbye to Excuses

All too often, people will purposely deny themselves an opportunity to live a truly fulfilled life because of fear. And many will make excuses to justify doing so.

For example, those who struggle with agoraphobia will often convince themselves that it is unsafe to go outside. What they often fail to realize, however, is that staying cooped up inside their home prevents them from getting fresh air and limits sun exposure. For reference, sun exposure helps the body produce vitamin D, which naturally strengthens teeth and bones.

And the benefits associated with sun exposure do not end there. According to a study published by Science Direct, a leading online resource for information related to scientific, technical, and medical research, sun exposure can positively alter mood, behavior, and even cognitive abilities. Indeed, saying goodbye to excuses can sometimes improve your life in more ways than one.

5. Positive Visualization

Many people will give up on achieving specific goals without ever putting forth an effort, often feeling that they won’t be successful. Whether you’re trying to land your dream job or secure a better position with your current employer, for example, you should envision yourself being successful in all of your endeavors.

After all, whether you believe that you can or can’t do something, you will find that you’re right either way. Striving for goals is one more way that you can challenge yourself and enjoy life more.

6. Quit Smoking

If you’re struggling with low-level or chronic stress caused by world events or personal problems, smoking might offer some short-term relief from stress, but it can also wreak havoc on your physical health. After all, smoking can adversely affect cardiovascular and respiratory health, both of which can make life far less enjoyable.

7. Exercising

Physicians and exercise kinesiologists agree. Engaging in physical activity can be just as effective in easing feelings of anxiety as some prescription-based medications. Furthermore, a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate exercise each day can greatly improve cardiovascular and respiratory health.

Regular exercise can even lead to healthy, radiant skin. After all, the more you sweat, the less dirt and oil remains trapped in your pores.  And this is a good thing. That’s because studies show that when individuals are confident in their appearance, they tend to have a positive outlook on life and are genuinely happier.

8. Meditation

Similar to exercise, meditation can help distract you from feelings of anxiousness while improving your physical health. According to a study published by Psychology Today, meditation can make it easier for some individuals to cope with many of the symptoms synonymous with anxiety and even depression. A separate study published by the National Institutes of Health revealed that meditation also contributes to the following:

• Reduces stress
• Eases feelings of fatigue
• Soothes chronic pain

9. Consuming a healthier diet

Consuming a healthy, well-balanced diet can trigger favorable changes in your brain. One such benefit is increased serotonin production. Ramping up serotonin enables you to enjoy life and less fearful about what the future holds.

Further, healthy eating habits can help fend off obesity, diabetes, and other chronic diseases, including viruses. According to a study published by Harvard Health Publishing, a healthy, well-balanced diet and regular exercise help strengthen a weakened immune system.

10. Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy, which includes the use of essential oils, such as lavender, geranium, and frankincense. For example, these oils reduce the natural buildup of adrenaline that we experience when we feel fearful. That said, as you inhale these fragrant scents, your blood pressure and heart rate will start to stabilize.

For these reasons, aromatherapy is ideal for those struggling with low-level or chronic stress. Beyond that, there are physical health benefits that come with aromatherapy, including helping the body to fight off bacteria and certain viruses, according to a study published by Johns Hopkins Medicine.

11. Drinking Tea

Along with helping you to get a better night’s sleep, drinking chamomile tea is a great way to soothe frayed nerves caused by stress. For this reason, it is a go-to for many individuals struggling with generalized anxiety.

Final Thoughts on Releasing Fear So You Can Enjoy Life Again

Whether your fears stem from health concerns, financial or relationship problems, or generalized anxiety, they can have a significant impact on your physical and mental health. Therefore, you must quickly bring them back under control. Fortunately, there are many ways to prevent them from getting the best of you and forcing you into an existence filled with fear.