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How to Practice Music Meditation

Published on February 25, 2013 by in Guest post

Meditation is an ancient practice prevalent all around the world. It is famous for the spiritual connection and mental relaxation it provides. Meditation has several types. Starting from fun and sporty chocolate meditation to chanting meditation, you can choose any. Music meditation is a popular meditation practice. It is perfect for those who are music addicts or find trouble in practicing traditional meditation.

Here is a step-by-step guide on how to practice music meditation:

  • Choose the type of music you want to mediate to. You can browse through several types of categories and choose your personal favorite. You can also find meditational CDs and DVDs at the store. These CDs are the perfect guide for beginners. They include music along with a speaking guide to help you along.

You can also try New Age Music or soothing music. They are highly popular for relaxation purposes.

  • Once you select the music, set it at the beginning of the meditation session. Load the music in either the CD player or an MP3 player. Adjust the volume of the music.
  • If you are practicing in your home, choose a room with minimum disturbances. Remember that you will not be able to concentrate if there is constant interruption.
  • Once you choose the room sit down on the floor. The best meditation pose is sitting down on the floor with legs folded and palms resting on the knee.

However, if you are uncomfortable with this position, you can lie down flat on your bed or on the floor.

  • Plug earphones in your ears and start the music. Begin breathing deeply.

As you start breathing deeply, concentrate over the music playing in your ears. Adjust your mind to the flow of the music. You can do two things here:

  • Breathe along the tempo of the music
  • Get engrossed in the music of the instruments or voice in the song
  • If you specifically choose meditational music, it may be much easier for you to practice music meditation. Meditational music relaxes and rejuvenates your mind and soul through its soothing sound.
  • While you practice music meditation, make sure that your mind is not engrossed in anything else. At that time, tune yourself solely with the music. No other fleeting thought should come to your mind.  In this process, you may even feel goose bumps or a tingling sensation. Note: this is a sign of deeper relaxation.
  • After the music ends open your eyes, relax for few minutes and gradually bring yourself back to the present.

Types of music

To effectively practice music meditation, you need to choose the right music. To do this, you need to have a knowledge of different types of music. Let’s list a few important types of music.

Music is broad category that varies from culture to culture. As a result, you can also find huge variety in relaxing music. Among the several forms of relaxing music, here are few popular types:

1. New Age music is one of the more recently famous types of meditation music. It is highly popular among those who practice meditation. New Age music is specifically used for meditation, yoga and stress management.

Popular classifications of New Age Music are:

  • Tulku
  • Enya
  • Wendy Carlos
  • Terry Oldfield

2. Celtic music is the second popular name for relaxing music. It is originally from Western Europe and has different sub genres. Popular artists who perform Celtic music are:

  • Old Blind Dogs
  • Wolfstone
  • Manus McGuire
  • Liz Carroll

3. World music is effective for relaxation. They are another name for non-western music. Popular examples are Australian didgeridoo, African drumbeats, Manu Chao and King Sunny Side Ade.

Alice Dylan is a renowned writer who has written several articles on inspiration and mind peace related article. In this article, she talks about the how a practice of meditation through music will help you re-energize and achieve a better state in life.

 
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5 Tips for Staying Sane in a Hectic Lifestyle

Published on February 13, 2013 by in Guest post
One would think that with all the time-saving gadgets of the modern world, modern living would be more relaxing and stress-free. Sadly, it isn’t. Modern living is more stressful than ever. Stress, it seems, is an unavoidable part of life and, in fact, is something that shouldn’t be avoided completely. Doctors say that a little stress is good for us. It sharpens the senses and enables us to quickly respond to rapidly-changing situations.
Too much stress on the other hand, can be deadly. It’s responsible for many health problems ranging from the inconvenient condition of irritable bowel syndrome to the even more inconvenient condition of a fatal heart attack. Stress-related illnesses don’t come more inconvenient than that. In short, elevated stress levels significantly reduce life expectancy and stress is something that needs to be managed rather than avoided completely. Here are five effective ways to reduce stress levels.
Take a walk
As a stress reliever, walking is very effective. The trick is to make a point of noticing everything around you while you walk. Undue stress comes from being too self-centred and seeing everything in terms of how it affects you negatively. Consider yourself on a mission to explore the area. Don’t think of anything else. You’ll notice things that you never noticed before
because you’re in touch with your environment and not isolated in your mind stressing over everything that’s wrong in your life. Your stress levels will quickly fall.
Most importantly, walk briskly; don’t stroll. When you walk at a decent pace, your heart pumps blood around your body more efficiently and your breathing is deeper as your lungs fill with fresh air. This physical activity brings physical improvement and physical improvement reduces stress levels even further. It’s a win-win situation.
Meditation
Simple meditation is a terrific stress reliever. There’s no need to go all Eastern and adopt painful sitting positions or chant meaningless mantras. Simple meditation involves nothing more elaborate than sitting quietly and letting your mind empty itself of all thoughts, regrets, hopes, resentments and emotions. It’s not only a relaxing and stress-relieving exercise, it
can also bring life-long mental and emotional benefits.
Take a bath
Showers are great, but nothing beats a hot bath, preferably scented, for bringing you to a deeply relaxed state. If you can arrange soft lighting and soft music too, that’s even better. Enjoy the feeling. Think pleasant thoughts. Don’t ruin it by allowing negative, stress-inducing thoughts into such an idyllic space.
Find a hobby
A new hobby can not only be an effective way of relieving stress, but it can also be a life-changing opportunity. Acquiring a new skill can be completely engrossing and very rewarding.
Obviously, it must be a hobby that appeals to you, but make sure it’s a real hobby and not just the latest computer game. A real hobby involves real interactions with real people of similar interests.
Of course, you might choose a hobby such as sky-diving, which will bring its own stress levels, but that’s the healthy type of stress that will keep you alive and will disappear as soon as you land safely.
Changing lifestyle
Doctors are always quick to point out that many lifestyle choices also increase stress levels. These include smoking, inactivity, and overuse of stimulants such as coffee. The answer is simple: moderate your behaviour.
As modern living becomes increasingly complex, the potential for increased stress levels is always going to be high. The good news is that anyone can reduce their stress levels by following any methods that suit them. However it’s done, stress management requires just a little effort for an immeasurable reward.
Laurent Kelly is a freelance writer for UK Essays, a service dedicated to assisting students with university essays.
 
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The Importance of Morale in Self-Employment

Published on December 26, 2012 by in attitude, Guest post, Time Management

There are hundreds of articles written about maintaining high morale in a team setting, as it’s a critical part of productivity. However, what is often neglected is the critical importance of morale and motivation for self-employed people. Since there is no supervisor or corporate structure present to force the self-employed to put some effort into their work, it is very easy for low motivation to translate into low productivity and limited success. On the other hand, self-employed people with high morale can grow their businesses quite dramatically through tireless work.

One of the great benefits of self-employment is the ability to set one’s own schedule. When there is no deadline looming and tasks can be carried out in a flexible order, the best policy is to focus on tasks that fit your present mood. If you are feeling especially creative, for instance, spend some time working on creative tasks such as preparing marketing content. If you are feeling especially detail-oriented, focus on organizing, proofreading or another task that will benefit from that mood. If you feel energetic and restless, take a break from desk work and go clean, visit clients or organize. The key is to remain productive during all of the hours you have set aside as working time.

Though the freedom that comes with self-employment can be a great motivating factor, there is absolutely such a thing as too much freedom. Many self-employed people find they benefit greatly from setting a schedule to give their days focus. Of course, because you set your own hours, you can deviate from the schedule if necessary, but try not to disregard it casually. Instead, stick to the plan as much as possible and make changes as you go if it proves to be necessary. Working within a defined schedule can be a huge morale booster because you need not worry about missing a commitment or leaving a high-priority task to the last minute.

Particularly for people who work at home, self-employment can cause great difficulty when it comes to creating a productive environment. Rather than just rolling out of bed, sitting in front of the computer and getting right down to business, you may have more luck showering, eating breakfast and getting dressed for the day before beginning work. If possible, try to set up a dedicated office space that is reserved only for work activities, and keep it as separate as possible from any distractions. All of these steps can get you into a productive mood while working and set a clear distinction between work time and leisure time, which remedies the crushing feeling that you are always at work.

Even highly self-motivated people find that some interpersonal interaction can be a huge help. Consider finding another self-employed person to act as your accountability partner; by acting, in effect, as one another’s remote supervisors, you can both stay motivated to keep working and improve your productivity. Networking online with others can also be a helpful accountability tool, but be careful not to waste time that could be better spent getting work tasks done. Of course, you also need to hold yourself accountable, perhaps via weekly task lists or other self-assessment processes.

Above all, the best way to maintain high morale is through positive thinking. Approach every day with a clear vision for what you intend to accomplish and constantly re-dedicate yourself to seeing that vision through. Take a moment to congratulate yourself after every success and reassure yourself after every minor setback. Keep taking those steps consistently, whether you are in the mood to do so or not, and soon enough they will become habitual. Your morale and productivity will rise accordingly.

–Philip J Reed on behalf of Dex One who provides local marketing solutions for your business.

 
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Why Sticking to Your Goals Will Make You Stronger

Published on December 13, 2012 by in Goal Setting

In life you can’t only exercise your body.  While physical exercise is important, there are other forms of exercise that you need just as much.  Exercise is just putting something into action for the purpose of training, practice or health.  In order to be a healthy person in all aspects of your life, you have to exercise your mind and even your character.

You exercise your mind by using it; by challenging yourself.  The best way to challenge yourself is through goals.  Setting the right kind of goals will help you achieve more than you ever thought you could.

There are three key elements to setting the right kind of goals.

  1. Set Goals That Make You Reach

If you only set goals that you know you can achieve as you are right now, you will never change.  You have to set goals that will force you to increase your abilities.  The point of setting goals is to change yourself for the better.  You can’t change if you only set goals you know can do.  Fear of failure is the only holding you back.  But failure is how you learn.  Once you accept failure as a necessary part of success, nothing can stop you from achieving your goals.

2. Set Long Term and Short Term Goals

You have to learn to focus on the big picture and what’s right in front of you.  Teach yourself how to take steps to get to where you want to be.  If you only set long term goals, you may become discouraged because you don’t feel like you are going anywhere, that you haven’t changed.  By setting short term goals you will be able to see a change in yourself.  Month to month you will see a difference in your attitude, your desires even your willingness to take on harder tasks.

3. Set Goals That You Want to Achieve

You need to remember that if it’s not important to you, you probably won’t do it.  If you do end up doing it, you probably wouldn’t have worked as hard as if it had been your choice.  There will be times at work that you have to set goals in order to get a project done; those aren’t the kind of goals I’m talking about.  If you only focus on what you have to and on what expectations others have set for you, you won’t get anywhere.  Decide what you want to become and where you want to be in the future.  Then set your goals according to that.  Don’t let other people dictate what kind of person you become.

Setting goals and achieving them is a way to exercise your mind and your character.  You are improving yourself as a person by increasing your knowledge, skills, talents and experiences.  As an entrepreneur, strong character is needed to be successful.  Take advantage of setting goals, set the right kind and follow through on them.

 

 
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Goal, Plan, Action: How to Set Goals

Published on September 19, 2012 by in Goal Setting

No matter what point you’re at in your business or in life, you should always strive to be better.  If you’re not setting the right the right goals and expectations for yourself, it may seem like you’re getting a lot done, but in the end you are probably wasting crucial time.   Goals should always be set high.  They are meant to encourage you to improve, to do hard things.  When thinking about goals, I like to keep in mind my GPA, not the one from high school, but my goal, plan and action.  These three steps help to keep me on track and also hold things in perspective.

Goal

There are necessary steps to take in order to achieve your goals, to make them more than just a wish.  When setting a goal, try to look at the big picture.  Think about what you want to accomplish overall.  When you decide on a goal, write it down somewhere you will see it often.  This will be a daily reminder of what you desire to accomplish.

Plan

While writing down your goals and thinking about them constantly are crucial parts to achieving success, they aren’t enough to help you completely accomplish your goals.  In order to take the next step, you have to make a plan.  Decide what steps you need to take to get to where you want to be.  Write down each step and cross it off as you complete it.

Action

The last step is the hardest for most people; action.  You have to act.  The biggest part of accomplishing a goal is working hard.  If it’s not hard, you’re not setting your expectations high enough.  Goals are supposed to be a challenge.  They won’t get done unless you are being proactive.

Discouragement

Setting high goals will make you reach and accomplish more.  But setting them too high and never accomplishing them will discourage you.  Believe in yourself, that you can do hard things.  When you don’t accomplish something take the opportunity to reassess your expectations of yourself.  If you are able to make a plan to achieve your goal, it is most likely achievable.  If you can’t figure out a way to achieve it, it might not be the right goal or just not the time.

Setting and achieving goals is a tool you can use at your disposal to become successful.  Great people don’t sit around waiting for things to happen to them.  They challenge themselves and do hard things.  If you want to be a success, be that person.  Set goals that will make you reach, that will challenge you and make you work.  Those are the things that build character.  When setting goals, always remember the three basic steps of your GPA; your goal, plan and action.  After you set a goal and make a plan, then go out and accomplish it.

 
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Being The Best

Published on August 15, 2011 by in Goal Setting, Motivational Quotes

The important thing is not being afraid to take a chance. Remember, the greatest failure is to not try. Once you find something you love to do, be the best at doing it. – Debbi Fields

If you find something worth pursuing in life you should be passionate enough about it that you want to be the very best. so many people start a business or begin pursuing a goal without finding the passion to be the best. Go big or go home!

 
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Ways to Make Yourself a Better Businessman

Published on July 5, 2011 by in Guest post

Becoming a better businessman takes work, but is well worth the effort. There are many different ways to improve your business skills and knowledge, but some tried and true methods will yield maximum results. Whether you’re looking into online college courses to further your education, or are in school now, there are countless things that you can be doing to grow in your profession.

Earning a degree from an online learning program will afford you the opportunities to learn new skills, while still being able to work full-time. Education is the number one way to improve your business skills as the knowledge and experience you gain from earning a degree are like nothing else available. Upon graduation, you’ll be able to exhibit your expertise by displaying a college degree that shows your commitment to the learning process and your desire to improve your current skill set.

In addition to earning an advanced degree, it is important to stay on top of the latest updates and information in the field. Just by reading business journals, blogs, websites and news sources, you will be informed of the cutting-edge information that can give you the competitive edge needed in this white-hot economy. Make the habit of reading a trade article every day, and to keep on top of the daily news in the industry to ensure that you are on the top of your game.

Another fantastic way to improve your business skills and become a better business man is to find a professional mentor. Having a mentor who is ahead of you in the game, has the job you want to have some day, or has accomplished things you wish to accomplish, will be an invaluable asset to you. Your mentor will prove to be a great resource for you when you have questions, need advice or simply need some guidance in your career. Talking with someone who is older or more experienced will provide you with the wisdom and insight that only comes from experience and will improve your chances of success by learning from their failures and successes.

 
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Ways To Boost Self Confidence For Those Lacking In Confidence

Published on June 7, 2011 by in Guest post

People lacking in confidence let a lot of things pass them by e.g. a promotion, a trip to a far away place, dating the ones they like, and so on. To succeed in life and be happier, you need to improve self esteem. Here are a few confidence boosting tips that will surely boost self confidence in you:

Nobody Is Perfect

You have to realize that there is not one perfect person in this world. Even the smartest, most attractive, hottest, and most popular people have insecurities, fears, and experience low esteem occasionally. It is important that you know this fact and accept your insecurities. Upon acceptance of them, it will be easier for you to change them or replace them with positive traits or attitudes that can transform you from a person lacking in confidence to a person who is able to improve self esteem.

Relaxation Time Is Vital

Whenever you’re feeling low, one of the confidence boosting tips you should perform in order to help boost self confidence is to actually relax. Do things that will bring down your stress levels and will make you feel good about yourself. You can get a body massage, have a facial, meditate, attend a yoga class, and many more, as these things can make both your mind and body feel good, and that can increase your level of confidence up a notch or more. Whenever you feel that you are lacking in confidence, try doing things you love or activities that calm and relax you, and notice how significantly those activities will improve self esteem.

Good Grooming Is Important

Grooming your self and practicing good hygiene are also included in the list of confidence boosting tips. Try spending time in the tub or in the shower, use your favorite smelling shampoo or soap, and so forth, and notice how good you’ll feel about your self, thus, following this advice will aid you in achieving your goal to boost self confidence.

Get To Know Yourself

You may think that you know yourself well, but, when you try to list down things about yourself, you’ll realize how little you can write about that topic. Knowing yourself well is essential if you don’t want to be lacking in confidence or if you want to be confident. You should know what negative thoughts you usually have in mind, what weaknesses you know you have, and what positive attributes you have. In this way, you’ll know what needs improvement and what needs to be kept, and once you make the necessary changes, you’ll more easily improve self esteem.

These are just some of the most effective confidence boosting tips that will without doubt boost self confidence in you. Make them a habit and start leading a life of confidence, success, and happiness.

Karen Winton likes to help people gain confidence. Improve confidence and reach success when you follow tips from: http://www.dp-db.com/everyday-manifesting. To start being positive and becoming happier, read: http://www.dp-db.com/the-get-happy-workbook.

 
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Don’t Think Just Do

Published on June 6, 2011 by in Goal Setting, Guest post

In the fields of body building and fitness, just do it generally refers to simply doing a workout. It is a sometimes necessary comment from a personal trainer to a client who may be wondering if he or she is really in need of a workout today. That is true when negative thoughts seem to be all-pervasive.These might be over anything from over-sleeping to wondering if they will ever see a difference in the mirror.

The most important thing for fitness or athletic success is consistency. That means doing it everyday of the week, not just every other day or when you feel like it or when you are strong enough to keep from quitting early.Just do it is the best thing to hear when the voices of hesitation become too loud and clear..

Just do it can extend to diet and supplementation as well. Just stop at the second helping; just buy the bottle of multi-vitamins, just take the green tea capsules; and just do what a future medalist would do are the phrases which should drown out all of the other whispers of fitness doubt.

Surely one does not need a PhD in athletics to know that a person who never misses at his or routine will be in better shape after a year’s training than will be the one who comes up with one excuse after another. Does this really require further thought or a graduate school study? Granted, any or all of the reasons for not doing the right thing seem all-pressing and right at the time. But they never prove to have been the best counsel in the long run. Who would ever believe that a Michael Phelps or a Dara Torres would work out only when he or she felt like it, splurged on Big Macs to celebrate a victory, or cut back on their supplements because they were getting low on cash?

Intuitively, we all know that champions are machine-like in their doing of the same right things over and over again.That is ultimately what makes them exceptional. But they were not necessarily that way when first starting out. What is seldom talked about, for example, is that some of them were as erratic and slovenly as far too many of us still are.The peerless Jack Lalanne is the best example. He confesses to having been a very out of shape sugar addict over eighty years ago.

What should the average person do when he or she feels too tired to workout today, too broke to buy the vitamins or too much of in need of a splurge to stay away from the Golden Arches? The average person should just do his or her fitness routine regardless of how she or he thinks or feels. There is no other magic other than knowing that the siren call of your mind (the voices in your head) will shipwreck your program just as sure as it would have shipwrecked Ulysses in Homer’s Odyssey.

Everyone knows this. The only trouble is that this dangerous siren call is beautiful, attractive,compelling. It is not repulsive,ugly or even unreasonable.That is why you, like Homer’s hero, must be tied to the mast to keep from diving overboard. Then and only then will you stay on course.

The good news is that once you are far enough away from the sirens’ voices you can be made just as happy with the sound of the waves hitting against your hull. That’s what accompanies the second wind while working out or the morning after a splurge, when you are the only one who said no to the Big Macs. The same is true when your jeans again look the way they ought, or, even better, when you need smaller ones.

Obese 48 years ago; state champion power lifter 1978; in better shape today at 62 than when on swim team in high school

http://www.foreverfitness.info (6.00 ebook or 15.95 softcover from publisher I_Universe, Amazon or Barnes and Noble)

 
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How to Set Realistic Goals With Your Time Management

Published on May 19, 2011 by in Guest post

One of the best ways to not get discouraged with your time managing efforts is to be realistic about how you approach your list of things to do and schedule time to accomplish them. This means understanding how long you need to complete each task, how much concentration you need, and whether or not you can work on another task at the same time without impairing the quality of your efforts.

In some cases, it is relatively easy to combine necessary tasks and save time. For example, you may find that instead of making a trip to the supermarket and then moving on to a drugstore, you simply choose to buy groceries at a supermarket that has a pharmacy department. This effectively allows you to manage two tasks at one time, and still enjoy the same level of quality with each.

However, not all situations are as simplistic as combining a couple of errands. At some point, you will be faced with tasks that require your full concentration and cannot be balanced with other tasks at the same time. The trick is to know the difference between the two scenarios.

You can identify a task that will require your full and undivided attention by the following:

* The task requires attention to a great deal of detail. Projects of this type are usually best accomplished by themselves. For example, it is not a good idea to make client calls while you are posting payments to customer invoices. Because it is important to apply the right amount to the correct invoice number under the correct client account, you don’t need interruptions until you complete the job. Otherwise, your company receipts will be out of line, making it necessary to find time to isolate the origin of the problem and correct it at a later date.

* You are unfamiliar with the task. In general, it is not a good idea to attempt to multitask when learning to handle some new responsibility. In order to master the new task, all your focus should be on that task. This will help to keep the learning curve to a minimum and allow you to begin the process of integrating that new task into your daily agenda. Attempting to learn how to handle the task in a piecemeal fashion will only drag things out and put you further behind.

* The timing for the task is urgent. For example, your client needs a report in time for his or her meeting right after lunch. Instead of working the report into your other and less important tasks, reorganize your schedule and make the report your priority. As soon as you complete the report and e-mail it to your client, you can get back to your other action items and continue on with your day.

Sometimes, the issue is not so much figuring out how to arrange your tasks to your best advantage, but rather setting reasonable time aside to accomplish each one. To an extent, this can be forgiven when you are first taking on a new task. After all, you’ve never done it before and must rely on second-hand information to estimate the time you will need to do a good job. But failing to set reasonable time limits for tasks you have done for some time can make a good day into a bad day in no time at all.

Brian Scott is a professional freelance writer and ebook author. Visit his free website, http://www.AboutMyEbook.com for new ebook releases and free ebook publicity.

 
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