The Optimist Living
Let accountability serve as a motivator and reach your goals
We’re now arriving at that point of the year where people start to lose sight of there new year’s resolutions. Maintaining focus on goals is simply a hard challenge, but when you bring the idea of accountability into the equation, it can become a lot easier to cultivate the motivation you need Read More...
Acquire a new skill in just an hour a day
… and you need only 5 hours a week to acquire a new skill. Malcolm Gladwell famously introduced the “10,000-hour rule”, which states that spending 10,000 hours working on any skill can help us master it. Gladwell referred to careers of “trial and error” where ultimately the 10,000-hour Read More...
How mindfulness meditation makes you a better entrepreneur
There are many reasons to meditate and practice mindfulness. It helps decrease stress and anxiety. It’s also been shown to increase focus and productivity. And if you’re still not convinced, science is now telling us that entrepreneurs practicing mindfulness are gaining a competitive advantage Read More...
Here's how to make an amazing first impression
Everyday we meet new people, but how many of them do you actually remember? Well, the answer really depends on how many people you met that stood out from the rest of the crowd. When trying to make a lasting impression, the only thing that will help you stand out is by being true to yourself. If Read More...
8 ways art can benefit your health
If you don’t think of yourself as an artist, it might feel intimidating to create your own piece of expression. However, creating art can bring real healing benefits if you open your mind, body and spirit to the process. Give self-expression a chance, and experience these 8 healing Read More...
5 ways to stop checking your email so often
Like many things, email is an addiction. We constantly check it to make sure we’re on top of everything, and its detrimental to productivity. The funny thing is, however, that we are the ones who control how much email we get. Here are five tips for getting control of your email habit and cutting Read More...
Want to increase your empathy? Visit a museum
The growing divisiveness in society is hurting many people. Here’s an innovative way to find healing: Visit a museum. Most people visit a museum for the arts or for history, but a new book argues that museums offer other inspiration as well. Fostering Empathy Through Museums showcases a variety Read More...
5 habits that break routines and boost creativity when you need it
Routines are not helpful when you need to solve a problem. You have to break out habitual patterns to find new answers. So what do you do? Here are five habits to improve your creative chops, backed by scientific research, that don't require committing to a specific daily practice: From taking a Read More...
Listening to these 5 songs makes you happy, science says
Music is deeply tied to our emotions. Listening to music releases dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure. Music allows humans to access a different mental or emotional space than the one they were in before. A research team has discovered five songs that are particularly effective in Read More...
How to create good habits that stick, according to a Stanford psychologist
When it comes to establishing habits, the trick is to make whatever you’re doing enjoyable. If you do something you don’t enjoy and subsequently fail to make it habitual, it can actually cause more harm than good. Here’s a three-step method for creating good habits for Read More...