Inspiration. Tips. Finance. Priorities. Happiness.
Women are blessed. It seems that they posses the happiness gene, or so a study done by researchers at the University of South Florida has discovered. The study explains why women are often happier than men, depending upon the presence or lack of a certain gene in the brain.
A gene called ‘MAOA’ affects the levels of feel-good chemicals in the brain, and is responsible for fluctuating moods in both men as well as women. Apparently, it works more to women’s advantage.
The little girl was staring at the man with the disfigured face. She whispered to her mother, “Why is that man so ugly?”
The woman tried to hush her daughter….but it was too late. The man had heard.
He stood up and crossed the waiting room. He sat down beside the girl. “Would you like to know how I got these beauty marks?” he asked the girl, with a wink and a smile to the mother.
“Uh-huh,” the girl answered.
“One day, there was a fire in my apartment block. Everybody had to leave their apartments and head for the street, safe from the flames. One mother was beside herself in panic. She had arrived on the sidewalk with her daughter, but her son was nowhere to be found.”
“A man nearby ran back into the apartment to find her son, and bring him to safety. He picked up the boy and carried him out. But on their way, something burning fell across their side. Both the man and the boy caught fire. There was nothing to do but run down the stairs and out the door as fast as possible and roll in the grass.
“Both the man and the boy survived. And they both were left with matching beauty marks,” the man finished with a smile.
In a voice not much louder than a whisper the girl said, “Wow. You saved the boy. That’s what the marks of a hero looks like.”
The man just laughed. “No, these are not the marks of a hero. These are the marks of love. You see, I was that boy. And a stranger loved me enough to share these marks with me.”
People sometimes wonder how step families work and how they merge together successfully. It can be difficult as there are a lot of emotions involved. But my children have taught me that what makes the most difficult situations work is quite simply love.
Love makes the world go around as they say and in our case love is what makes it possible for our situation to work so well.
My husband has 3 children from his first marriage and we have had two little girls who now are 3 and 5. But despite what you hear of the horror stories about step families and evil step mothers we actually all somehow manage to get along famously.
We don’t all live together all the time though so I guess that makes it a bit different but the 3 children who are 14, 11 and 9 come and stay with us in the school holidays and gosh do my girls absolutely adore them. They roll into town like a carnival, full of stories and endless games. The girls literally count down until they come to visit and get so excited to see them.
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I really love my husband’s children from his first marriage. They are bright, funny and well-mannered and have embraced the girls like a rugby team embracing the quarterback who just won the game. It is so lovely to watch them all together. The care and concern the 3 older children display for the little ones is extraordinary. They all formed a bond very quickly.
I don’t think we could have anticipated how well it would all merge together but thanks to the children really it works. The holidays are filled with boisterous fun as they older children entertain the girls for hours and hours and the girls are lit up like Christmas trees the whole time.
I guess I wanted to share how special I think the bond is between them and that love binds it together. I sometimes think you can read all the books written about how to make these situations work but in this instance the children have shown me that what makes it work is love actually and lots of it. The love they show their little sisters and how much the girls love them is the glue that holds this together and makes it what it is.
Here are 3 lessons that I’ve learnt about being part of a step family:
Josie loves her big family and knows the truth in the saying ‘love makes the world go around’.
In today’s competitive world, gaining your dream job is a greatest thing to achieve. Employers often prefer recruiting candidates who are perfect in each and every thing they do. Thus, the only way to impress and realize the employers that your are the appropriate candidate is to draft an effective and error free resume. Any small mistake in your resume can create a severe drawback and decrease your chances of getting selected. Apart from resume mistakes, candidates are unaware of many other reasons that snatch away their job opportunities. Following are some of the common mistakes made by applicants while applying for a job or going for an interview.
The above points well help you understand some of the common mistakes made by applicants while applying for a job. Your career is the most important thing in your life. Thus, avoid making any mistakes that would snatch any good job opportunities from you and restrict you from building a bright career.
Ana can provide more information on career guidance and help you take your career at top. Visit www.bestsampleresume.com/
How is this for a different idea for you? If you sometimes feel like you keep messing things up (yes, I’ve been there), like everything you touch seems to turn to mud, how about giving yourself a gold star?
Yes, a gold star. 
Early in school, teachers would reward us kids with gold stars or some other sticker (dolphins, horses, and of course other shiny stars in red, blue and green) as an incentive to motivate us to do better, to improve. Just giving yourself a formal recognition that “I did it!” will boost your self-confidence and self-esteem … and how happy you feel.
You will want to do better to earn more praise and more recognition.
Where to place the gold star? On your “to do” list, as you cross off another item accomplished. In your journal beside each thing you accomplished today. Maybe you know of a better place in your own life.
Give yourself a gold star every time you accomplish something, even something small and mundane. Because accomplishment is never mundane.
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Were you ever told by your parents or a teacher to “stop daydreaming”?
Too bad. It is important to have dreams, to envisage what you would like your relationships, your home, your world, your life to be like. It is important to let those images form themselves with abandon, to show you glimpses of possibilities.
Of course, it is important to follow through on those dreams, to be true to them. At least, those that inspire us. But first you have to have them. Remember the song from “South Pacific” (the musical from several decades ago): “How you gonna have a dream come true?”
Happy talk, keep talkin’ happy talk,
Talk about things you’d like to do.
You got to have a dream,
If you don’t have a dream,
How you gonna have a dream come true?
Go ahead and daydream. And please, if you have children, don’t tell them to “stop daydreaming”. Let them dream.
When was the last time you volunteered? Some people help out a local charity. Some get involved with a service club. Some people help clean up the environment or strengthen the community or provide a warm face to those in need of comfort.
It’s about community spirit, giving back – just being an all-round good person.
And there is nothing that feels so good and makes a person feel so fulfilled as knowing that she is making a difference in the world.
Before I was balancing two active kids, I volunteered at my local food bank. It did not take all that much of my time (not as much as it should have, at least), but I never missed a scheduled time, despite a hectic schedule even before kids.
You see, it is not so important how much we contribute, but it is very important that we do.
In a few years, my life will change all over again – and I will return to volunteering more frequently.
I have been reading a series of four books referred to as “the wicked years” (amazing storytelling!). They are about Oz, but with a twist.
Most readers are familiar with Oz from the movie version(s) of The Wizard of Oz. But there are actually 16 Oz books written by L.F. Baum, and several other approved books written by other authors, Yes, it is a much bigger series than Narnia or Lord of The Rings.
But the Oz you might be tempted to read – yes, even as an adult I enjoy rereading those books – is a fairy tale. It leaves out adult topics, such as romance and war, political manoeuvring and poverty, swearing and cruelty.
The good guys are good, and the bad guys are bad; but in real life, most people are pragmatists with good intentions (or at least they justify their actions with good intentions).
The Wicked Years is a series of four books (and now a smash hit Broadway musical, too!) that tells the “real” story of Oz.
There are trains and industry and bigotry and much less magic than in the fairy tale version that came down to us as kids and through Hollywood.
So which is better? The sanitized version for the kids? Or the “true” story for the adults?
Frankly, I like them both.
In real life, the truth is important. But so are our fantasies. You might be more disposed to one or the other, and that is fine. Don’t underestimate the other. Truth and fantasy make a powerful combination.
These are the four books – I highly recommend them.
Doubt and business seem to be two words that are never far away. Doubting yourself is so easy to do when working because there is so much pressure. You want to make sure that you do everything correct because having a job is what allows you to pay for the important things in life—a place to live, a future for your child, a car to drive. You want to make sure that your boss likes you and that you are appreciated, so doubt is almost inevitable.
Unfortunately, doubt is something that can seem difficult to shake. Doubt is one reason that someone may feel unhappy, so it’s important that if you feel like you always doubt your decisions you determine three things: Where the doubt comes from in the first place, how to get rid of self-doubt, and how to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
Why Are You Feeling Doubtful?
There are many reasons that a person might let doubt bring him/her down. It is important to understand where your doubt started so that you can better make sure it doesn’t continually take away your happiness. Consider some of the reasons you may feel doubtful below:
As you can see, there are really two different types of doubt: One you feel because of someone or something telling you that you can’t do it and the other because you actually cannot complete the project. No matter what the reason or reasons for feeling doubtful, it needs to come to a stop so that you can be happy again!
How to Get Rid of Doubt and Start Being Happy Again
As with any problem, there are different ways to get to the answer. You must determine what is right for you in order to get back to your confident self, and in many cases this will be a few different things:
You have to be motivated to complete your task. If you think you feel doubtful because you simply are not qualified to complete a task, then the answer is to stop trying! Do not let someone, even a boss, persuade you to do something that you are not equipped to handle. A challenge is always great, but sometimes a person just flat out does not have the time to learn an entirely new skill. If someone asked me to balance the company checkbook while the accountant is on vacation, I’m going to feel doubtful because I am not qualified for that job. However, if you are really motivated to do something, this is the first step in making sure you kick those doubtful emotions.
Many people feel doubtful because they are moving too fast. If you’re not sure what’s happening, of course you’re not going to be confident that everything is running smoothly. You want to make sure that you’re completing your task one step at a time. In the long run, this will probably save you time because you will not have to go back and fix mistakes. In the majority of cases, your boss will understand that doing something slowly and correct is better than being quick and sloppy.
Confidence often disappears when someone tries to do something alone. If you need help, it’s important to ask for help. Nobody is going to see this as a problem, so it’s important to get over your fear of asking questions. Even if you don’t have a question, just have someone look over your work when you’re finished before you submit it to your boss. It is always easier for someone else to see your mistakes, so take confidence in this.
How to Make Sure You Stay Happy by Overcoming Doubt
The truth is—it can be difficult to always feel confident. Do not get discouraged if sometimes you feel doubtful, but rather do what you can to remain happy. After all, feeling doubtful about feeling doubtful is not going to solve your problem! You want to make sure that you ask questions, take your time, and make sure you have the right motivation for the task at hand. Try and surround yourself with people that make you feel confident, and lean on them if things get stressful and overwhelming.
Have you ever felt doubtful at work and let it affect your overall happiness? What did you do to solve the problem?
Amanda DiSilvestro is a writer on topics ranging from social media to background checks. She writes for an online resource that gives advice on topics including phone systems to small businesses and entrepreneurs for a lead generation company, Resource Nation.
