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When Life Feels Too Hard: How to Mindfully Get Through the Day

By in Blog, change & challenges, mindfulness & peace

NOTE: This post contains a giveaway – details at the bottom of the post!

“If today gets difficult, remember the smell of coffee, the way sunlight bounces off a window, the sound of your favorite person’s laugh, the feeling when a song you love comes on, the color of the sky at dusk, and that we are here to take care of each other.” ~Nanea Hoffman

I am currently exhausted. Absolutely beat. I’ve taken on more work than I can comfortably accomplish in my available time, I’ve been feeling under the weather for a while, and my eighteen-month-old son …

How Curiosity Can Improve Your Relationships and Your Life

By in Blog, mindfulness & peace

“I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.” ~Albert Einstein

When speaking to a parent recently, she said, “I have made it a rule that my kids read every day for an hour. There are no two ways about it. They now do it and it is great, but I have noticed that they have stopped asking questions, they have stopped being curious, and they look dull, and that bothers me.”

Strange that reading would dull their curiosity instead of sparking it. But beyond that, this conversation got me curious—about curiosity.

Why is it important to be curious? …

Calling Out Bullies: Why You Need to Stand Up for Yourself

By in Blog, change & challenges, love & relationships

“Standing up for yourself doesn’t make you argumentative. Sharing your feelings doesn’t make you overly sensitive. And saying no doesn’t make you uncaring or selfish. If someone won’t respect your feelings, needs, and boundaries, the problem isn’t you; it’s them.” ~Lori Deschene

In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, the main character Atticus Finch says, “I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter …

5 Things You Need to Know If You’re Interested in Meditation

By in mindfulness & peace

“The fruit of meditation is not the absence of thoughts, but the fact that thoughts cease to harm us.” ~Bokar Rinpoche

My inspiration to start meditating came from one of the most unlikely sources—a Star Wars movie.

When I saw the wise Jedi Master Yoda meditating, I thought that there had to be something more to this than merely sitting silently with your eyes closed.

Eventually, my curiosity got the better of me, and I decided to find out for myself.

That was over six years ago. Since then, my life has changed for the better in both subtle and …

How I Forgave When Life Felt Painful and Unfair

By in Blog, love & relationships

“Forgiving someone doesn’t mean that their behavior was ‘OK.’ What it does mean is that we’re ready to move on. To release the heavy weight. To shape our own life, on our terms, without any unnecessary burdens. Forgiveness is pure freedom—and forgiveness is a choice.” ~Dr. Suzanne Gelb

It happened, again.

I was sitting opposite one of my closest family members. The irritation coming from me could almost be felt and touched in the room. One comment from him and boom, it was like pouring gasoline on a fire. I couldn’t help myself, I used to get so upset in …

40 Reasons You’re Amazing and Worth Appreciating

By in Blog, love & relationships

I’m willing to bet that most of us spend far more time focusing on what we aren’t than appreciating who we are. We home in everything we think we lack and then feel bad about ourselves, when there’s actually a lot to celebrate if we take the time recognize it.

It’s partly a byproduct of our time: We’re constantly inundated with pics and stories narrating everyone else’s lives, when really, they’re just highlight reels. They’re the filtered, photoshopped version of lives as messy and imperfect as ours.

And regardless of where they pose, what they wear, or what they’re …

Free Recreate Your Life Story eCourse ($97 value) with Tiny Buddha’s Mindfulness Kit

By in Blog, mindfulness & peace

**Today, Monday the 30th, is the last day to get the Recreate Your Life Story eCourse as a free bonus with Tiny Buddha’s Mindfulness kit!

Another surreal holiday in the books, for those of us in the US that is.

I hope you all had a love-filled Thanksgiving, even if that love was sent from afar.

I was 3,000 miles away from my family, though fortunate to be with my boyfriend’s parents.

After I ate way too much tofurkey and pie I spent a little time reading all the comments on this week’s giveaway post, and I felt both sad …

If You Think There’s Something Wrong with You…

By in Blog

The root cause of suffering for many of us is believing that there’s something wrong with us. Psychiatrists’ and therapists’ offices are filled with people who are carrying this false belief, most often stemming from traumatic or painful childhood experiences, or even people telling us this directly.

Sometimes we inferred this idea because we were treated badly as children and/or we didn’t get our physical or emotional needs met. Perhaps we were called selfish or bad because we “asked for too much,” or we were told we couldn’t have what we wanted because we didn’t “earn or deserve it.”

Maybe …

How to Get Out of Your Head and Show Up for Your Life

By in Blog, mindfulness & peace

“If you think there’s something missing from your life, it’s probably you.” ~Robert Holden

Most people would agree that thinking too much can cost you your peace, your happiness perhaps—but your life? Surely that’s a bit of an exaggeration.

I’ll explain with a story.

I remember taking my daughter to the park one day when she was around three years old. Like all kids of that age, she was thrilled and mesmerised by her surroundings—the insect crawling up the blade of grass, the ducks squawking in the pond, the dog chasing the frisbee nearby.

She was fully engaged with the …

7 Morning Mindfulness Practices to Help You Have an Awesome Day

By in Blog, mindfulness & peace

How often do you feel energized, grounded, and excited for the day when you finish your morning routine?

And what is your morning routine?

Are you one of those people who sleep as late as possible, pound some coffee and a processed breakfast, and then rush to get into work on time? (No judgment—I’ve been there! Gas station java and pop tarts for the win!)

Or do you leave yourself a cushion of time so you can ease into your day feeling centered and invigorated, through some combination of self-care activities?

In recent years I’ve leaned toward the latter because …

Giveaway: Win Tiny Buddha’s Mindfulness Kit for You and a Loved One!

By in Blog, mindfulness & peace

UPDATE: The winner for this giveaway, chosen at random, is: Beth Gallager

Please contact me at email@tinybuddha.com with your address so I can send you your kits! I wish I could send a kit to everyone who commented, but since I can’t, I’m extending this offer here.

There’s no denying it’s a strange holiday season this year. Annual traditions are on hold for many. Loved ones are far away. And I imagine most of us are getting antsy for a return to some semblance of normal.

While a lot feels different this year, there’s one thing that remains the …

How to Create Peace and Calm Through Mindful Photography

By in Blog, mindfulness & peace

“Don’t shoot what it looks like, shoot what it feels like.” ~David Alan Harvey

Due to the current state of the world, I think it could benefit of us all to be more in the here and now, in the present, where it’s easier to find peace and calm. Or even to just be more mindful, so to speak, in what we say, do, and think, since it’s tempting to lash out at others and focus on the negative during hard times. How we act, interact, and even plan forward are more vital to our mental and physical health …

3 Ways Decluttering Can Help You Accept Yourself

By in Blog, letting go

“I now see how owning our story and loving ourselves through that process is the bravest thing that we will ever do.” ~Brené Brown

I had just squeezed all my possessions into a jumbo-sized moving van and relocated to a teeny tiny apartment. I had landed a new job in a new city, and everything seemed peachy keen… at least, on the surface.

It was a fresh spring evening in 2015, and I’d spent the entire day trying to fit all my clutter into my new home. Picture this: my 350-square-foot attic had sloped ceilings, the world’s smallest kitchen, and …

How to Tame Your ‘Tornado’ Mind and Stop Overthinking Everything

By in Blog, mindfulness & peace

“You don’t suffer because you have thoughts. You suffer because you judge them, resist them, believe them, wallow in them, or identify with them.” ~Unknown

At one point in my life, I wondered, “Will things always be this way?”

So rushed, with barely a moment to call my own. Current events swirling around, reflecting the worst side of humanity. Lost under the weight of my to-do lists, financial worries, and deadlines.

I barely knew where my thoughts stopped and I started. Would I always be this anxious, irritated, distracted, and isolated from those around me? Even from loved ones?…

Beating the Odds: Why I Survived and My Brother Did Not

By in Blog, change & challenges

My brother, Marc-Emile, sparkled brilliantly. At sixteen years old, he could expound on physics or Plato, calculus, or car mechanics, Stravinsky or Steppenwolf. At seventeen, he began reading the Great Books series, starting with Homer and Aeschylus and moving forward through the Greeks. I don’t know how many of those Great Books he read. He didn’t have that long.

My brother had everything going for him. He was kind, ethical, and handsome. He graduated high school a year early, at the top of his class, with virtually perfect SATs. He started at MIT as a physics major. He ended at …

When You’re Confused About What to Do: How to Find Clarity

By in Blog, change & challenges

“Nothing in the world can bother you as much as your own mind, I tell you. In fact, others seem to be bothering you, but it is not others, it is your own mind.” ~Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

Do you ever feel confused about what to do and unsure about how to find clarity?

Maybe an unforeseen event, like a layoff or breakup, knocked you into a mental spin. Or perhaps you’re muddling along, with no clue where you’re going.

Confusion can leave you helpless, indecisive, and afraid. And not knowing what to do only adds to your …

How to Stop Obsessing Over What Other People Think of You

By in Blog, love & relationships

“You wouldn’t worry so much about what others think of you if you realized how seldom they do.” ~Eleanor Roosevelt

I spent way too much of my life worrying about what other people were thinking of me.

I couldn’t walk down the street without sucking in my gut for fear a stranger might have thought I looked fat (mind you, I did this even when I weighed 120 pounds!!)

Going to any social gathering—a Halloween party, networking event, craft fair, even a holiday family meal—was so stressful it felt like I had a bees’ nest in my chest.

I …

How to Stop Over-Apologizing, From a Lifelong Over-Apologizer

By in Blog, love & relationships

“Forgive yourself for not knowing what you didn’t know before you lived through it. Honor your path. Trust your journey. Learn, grow, evolve, become.” ~Creig Crippen

When I was a child, my immediate reaction to most things was “I’m sorry.”

Had to miss class because of a field trip for a different class? I’m sorry.

Something bad happened to someone I knew? I’m sorry.

It didn’t matter what the situation was or if I directly caused it or even if I was involved in it in any way whatsoever. Even in the best of situations, strangely, I’d figure out …

14 Daily Happiness Habits to Adopt Right Now

By in Blog, happiness & fun

“The biggest lie we’re told is ‘Be with someone who makes you happy.’ The truth is, happiness is something you create on your own. Be with someone who adds to it.” ~Unknown

That’s what we all strive for, right?

Happiness, I mean.

I used to think that happiness was about my external world. If things were going well for me (in my career, social life, relationships, etc.), then I was happy. If things weren’t going well, which things often weren’t in one area or another, I felt frustrated, angry, or defeated.

Later, I realized that long-term happiness isn’t about …

How to Set Healthy Boundaries and Protect Your Space and Energy

By in Blog, love & relationships

“You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.” ~Buddha

This unprecedented time has given us an opportunity to pause, reflect, and focus on the things that are truly important in our lives. As an unexpected benefit, the need for social distancing has provided many of us with much needed personal boundaries.

I grew up at time when children were seen and not heard, but we were never encouraged to have personal boundaries. We had no privacy, and there was a lack of understanding for the need for alone time. It reminds me …