7 Reasons You Should Go for a Walk Right Now
There is a Norwegian concept known as “Friluftsliv”. Hard to pronounce, great philosophy to live by. Basically it’s about being outside as much as possible. It has come to embody Norway’s cultural love affair with the natural world. First introduced in 1859, Friluftsliv, (go ahead, try to pronounce it out loud. I dare you!), refers to uplifting ambience. In fact, the rest of us could learn a lot from the Scandinavians. According to U.N. rankings, Denmark is known as the happiest country in the world, with the Norwegians coming in a close second. You may have encountered the word “hygge” (pronounced “Hue-Guh), in recent times. It is hard to translate, but at its’ essence it embraces a conscious appreciation of being in the moment and enjoying the coziness, contentment,…
Why Nature Is the Fast-Track for Personal Growth
Success in life is becoming what you want to be. Nature helps you get on the fast track to success! Here’s how: Everything alive is either growing or dying. To live means to grow. When you stop growing, you die. In his classic personal growth book, “The Science of Getting Rich”, author Wallace Wattles offers this universal wisdom – “The purpose of nature is the advancement and development of life… Every living thing must continually seek for the enlargement of its life because life – in the mere act of living – must increase itself.” And he continues… “There are three motives for which we live: we live for the body, the mind and the soul.” As we immerse ourselves in the restorative, energizing qualities of Nature…
Developing A Nature Awareness for Personal Growth
“In the woods, we return to reason and faith. There I feel that nothing can befall me in life, - no disgrace, no calamity, (leaving me my eyes), which nature cannot repair.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson You need a daily getaway, just to relax a bit and soak your soul in a virtual hot tub of nature and simplicity; a place to set yourself up for success, and immerse yourself in nature for personal growth strategies in your life. Some find it strange putting the concepts of Nature and Self-Development in the same thought. When most of us think of Self-Development - Personal Growth for success and the achievement of goals – we think of the classics, “Think and Grow Rich”, “How to Win Friends and Influence People” and…
The 40% Rule ~ Pushing Yourself for Personal Growth
The Navy SEALs have a term called “The 40% Rule”, which states that when your mind is telling you that you’re done, you’re only forty percent done. I experienced this myself during a backpacking trip through an organization called Outward Bound, the summer after my sophomore year of high school. Eight other teens and I, along with two instructors, spent a total of two weeks in the Gore Mountain Range of Colorado. We had no cell phones, no music, no connection to the outside world. We had only ourselves, and the wilderness. During this time I pushed myself further than I ever had before, gaining a much greater perspective for life. The program was designed in such a way that the instructors were only there to teach us how to…
Why We Love the Mountains
“Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wildness is a necessity.” ~ John Muir, Our National Parks My wife and I share the same sad disorder. We LOVE the mountains! (That’s not the disorder). We love their beauty and just looking at the mountains. We love to visit the mountains, take our vacations in the mountains, and have plans to actually live IN the mountains, not just at the base of them in the foothills. There is something so invigorating, soul-awakening, renewing, restoring, refreshing and healing about being in the mountains for us. (That’s still not the disorder). The disorder we have is the let down and sadness we feel as we head down out of the…
Personal Growth Strategies Through Nature
Blog Cabin, Health, Meditation, Mindfulness, Nature, Personal Growth, Simple Living, Simplicity, Well-being
So maybe you recently reached a new life stage or milestone, like a birthday, or perhaps find yourself thinking about the upcoming new year, and have decided to pull out all stops for becoming the person you want to be. You are ready to really make it happen this time! You’ve been here before and have tried and failed miserably. Or perhaps you have made a little progress but are not satisfied with your progress and want to strive for more. As you do so 2 questions should come to mind: Why didn’t it work before? What can I do to truly achieve success this time? Setting Yourself Up for Success First of all, if you believe that you truly made a decision to begin a new life, or start…
Reinvent Yourself In 10 Steps
“Our self-portrait is merely a simple description that we have made of ourselves…we are in fact much more than this.” ~ Mario Alonso Puig There comes a time in nearly all of our lives when we reach a point where we wake up one day with the painful realization that we are not the person who we once thought we would be. At this point, something deep within has died, (or is dying), and we feel a need to bring to life a new and better self. This is a normal part of what it means to be a healthy, growing and fully-functional human. According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs Self-Actualization is at the top of them. Life equals growth and growth equals change. It is normal to resist change…