4 Positive, Simple Ways to Improve Your Health and Well-Being

4 Positive, Simple Ways to Improve Your Health and Well-Being Brad Krause Practicing positivity can take some effort. But one of the best ways to spark positivity in your life is to take more control of your health. Thankfully, there are many simple head-to-toe habits you can easily incorporate into your daily routine. Here are some great health tips that can help you make the most of your health and this gift we call life.   Use the Right Filters to Clean Your Home’s Air   The simple act of breathing can bring you peace, but only if the air you breathe is actually clean. While there’s not a lot you can do to prevent pollution outside, you do have the power to reduce irritants inside your own home. Change out the filters in your furnace or HVAC system and opt for MERV 8-rated filters when doing so. These highly rated filters have been shown to reduce up to 90 percent of toxins and pollutants, including mold, dust mites and even pollen. To add even more air purity to your home, and a touch of natural beauty, consider adding some air-cleaning plants to your home as well. Snake plants, ferns,…

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Check Your Attitude

Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference. - Winston Churchill Check your attitude is something I've said to my kids, and to my students when the get too sassy.  And there are times when yes, they do need to check their attitudes, but sometimes I think an attitude check could be needed in other ways. Have you ever had that person that kind of just steamrolls over you no matter what?  I think we all have.  That is another time where it would be good to check your attitude and steamroll right back.  That type of attitude can make a big difference. Attitude can be a bad thing (like with my students at times) and it can be a good thing.  When you act confident, even if you're not, you're using the right kind of attitude.  And when you face difficulties with grace and a smile, you're using the right kind of attitude, and when you're grateful, you're using the best attitude of all.  So check your attitude, and make sure you're using the right one.  It can make all the difference in the world.

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Stop Worrying

You can't change the past, but you can ruin the present by worrying about the future. - Anonymous   Worrying robs you of so many things, so stop worrying. I know, I know, easier said than done, right? I am a pro at worrying.  I try not to, I try to keep it in perspective.  This quote is 100% accurate, worrying can't change the past.  The past is just that, past.  Nothing is going to change it unless you have a time machine, and if you have one of those, we totally need to talk. If you spend all your time worrying you forget to do the simple thing called enjoying life.  The future isn't guaranteed so why waste your time worrying about what may be.  Instead, why not stop worrying and take some time and enjoy the right now. Stop worrying. Like I said it isn't easy, but I'm trying.  I'm not going to completely stop worrying.  I don't believe it's possible, and I also believe that worrying a little bit is okay. It helps to keep us safe.  But I'm working really hard to stop worrying about what was, and enjoying what is right now.  

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When Is It Too Late

You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late. - Ralph Waldo Emerson When is it too late?  The second you don't say something or do something is when it is too late.  A kind word or gesture costs nothing, so why wait to do it or say it?  Because if you wait too long, it may be too late. I had a chance to do something kind or somebody once, but I didn't.  It wasn't convenient for me, and that person passed away two days later.  Not because of what I didn't do.  In fact, my not doing the kind gesture had nothing to do with the passing of that person, but it has eaten away at me for the past 29 years.  That's when it's too late. Say the kind word, or perform the kind gesture.  Don't wait, don't hesitate. Do it as soon as the opportunity presents itself. You never know if your kind word may be the only nice thing a person has heard all day.  Your kind gesture may be the first sign of kindness someone has seen in months. Reach out to people around you. …

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Give Up

You can have anything you want if you are willing to give up the belief that you can't have it. -  Dr. Robert Anthony I find it hard to believe that I would title anything give up, but right here, right now, with this quote, give up works.  There comes a time when you have to give up on the negative thoughts, and the doubts that fill you and stop you from getting what you want. I hate, and I mean hate the negative thoughts, the doubts and the negative self talk that can fill my head.  It gets in my way and stops me from getting some of the things that I really want.  I know I need to give it up, but I know for me it's hard to do and I'm sure it is for other people as well.  Those negative things can often masquerade as common sense, or the "safe" choice.  They are tricky little buggers! One thing I like to do, and it may work for you is to talk back to those negative thoughts.  That's right, talk back, in fact, you can even argue with them.  For example, I have this incredible story idea…

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Something Incredible

Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known. - Carl Sagan Something incredible. Those very words send shivers of excitement down my spine and my mind starts to imagine all these unknown, great things. This whole quote does that actually.  I wonder where the somewhere is, what the something incredible is and when it's going to be known. It's great to look to far away places for something incredible, but today, right now, I'm looking inward.  Why?  Because I'm incredible and so are you, and it's time for all of us to recognize that fact.  And more importantly, it's time to make your incredibleness known to the world.  Don't hide all the great things about you from the world.  You need to let them shine out. I think we're taught from a very early age to be humble. Of course you don't want to want to come across as an egotistical, conceited know-it-all, but at the same time, you should acknowledge all the great and incredible things about yourself.   Something incredible is waiting to be known and that something is you.  Recognize it in yourself and share it with the world!

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Just Be You

I've finally stopped running away from myself. Who else is there better to be? - Goldie Hawn Just be you. It's something I say to my students a lot to get them to stop worrying about everybody else.  They are pros at that.  They worry about what everybody else is saying, doing, and of course posting on social media.  If one person says red is the best color ever the next day, two thirds of them are wearing red. They watch the same shows, wear the same clothes, have to own the same phones. As an adult watching their world, it's exhausting. I can't imagine living it. Don't get me wrong, I can remember being sort of like that in high school.  We had to have Izod shirts and Top Siders, and jeans that had a designer name stitched on the back pocket.  And when my mom was a teen they set their hair with pin curls, pegged their pants and teased their hair.  Trying to be like everybody else isn't anything new, but oh how I wish, back when I was a teen, there was somebody to say just be you. I'm starting to just be me, and I…

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Conquer

It is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves. - Sir Edmund Hillary I had to think about this quote, which is why I'm so late posting today.  How does one conquer themselves? I just wasn't getting it, in fact I was totally over thinking it.  But then it clicked. Sir Edmund Hillary, as we all know, was the first confirmed climber of Mt. Everest.  Yes, he climbed the mountain, but he wouldn't have been able to had he not first conquered the doubts and fears that he had.  If he had given into those doubts and fears he never would have even tried. Every time we say I can't, or it's too hard, we're giving in to fear and doubt.  You have to conquer the fears and the doubts that fill you, or you're not going to succeed.  Worse, you're not going to try!  Get out of your own way, conquer the fears that live inside of you and stop you from trying.

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It’s Okay to be Wrong

Confidence comes not from always being right but from not fearing to be wrong. - Peter T. McIntyre It's okay to be wrong.  I bet you don't think it is, but I really do think it's okay.  Don't worry about being wrong and making mistakes. That's how we learn.  It's okay to make mistakes and it's okay to be wrong.  When you let go of your fear of being wrong, that's when you truly shine. That's when you start to become confident. I'm wrong a LOT, but I also worry about being wrong and I worry about making mistakes.  I worry about the backlash of when I'm wrong. I strive not to make mistakes and to not be wrong, but I frequently am.   And you know what?  I am not a confident person.  In fact, it's safe to say that I am sorely lacking in confidence. It makes me truly see the correlation between not worrying about being wrong and being a more confident person. I need to remember that it's okay to make mistakes. The question is, how do you move past the fear of being wrong, the fear of making mistakes, and becoming more confident?  I wish…

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Think Like a Child

Appreciate again and again, freshly and naively, the basic goods of life, with awe, pleasure, wonder and even ecstasy, however stale these experiences may have become to others. - Abraham Maslow Yes I know we're adults, and I'm telling you to think like a child, and honestly, I can't think of any better advice to give someone.  Before you can think like a child, think about how a child thinks. I'm serious. Think about the wonder and amazement and the zeal and zest for living that a child has.  Think about the excitement a child can have over the simplest thing - getting an ice cream, or a balloon, or even splashing in a puddle on a rainy day. That joy for life, that zest for living is something we never, ever want to lose.  Think like a child.  Find joy and beauty in the simple things, in the mundane everyday facets of life.  Don't let those experiences become stale. Don't let them sour you, and take away your childlike awe and wonderment. So yes, I will urge you to think like a child, and I will continue to think like a child.  I won't shirk my adult responsibilities, but…

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