GenuLines (blog) | Chi For Yourself

Balance Life and Work When Working From Home

September 29, 2020 John Uncategorized No comments

The flexibility of working from home is a boon for more people than ever. There are no stressful commutes, fewer interruptions, and often, less structured work hours.

But balancing life and work can be tough, so GenuLines offers some ways to do that.

(You can listen to this article by clicking here)

Balance Life and Work When Working From Home

If there’s one pitfall with working from home, it’s keeping a balance between work time and “you” time. Here are four ways that can help you pull it off.

1. Have A Dedicated Work Space

If you work from home you need to set aside an area for business only work. A separate room for a home office is the best solution.

But if you don’t have the space for that, a dedicated workstation will be fine.

Make sure that this space is only used for business purposes (this can be important for tax reasons too). If you’re in your living room, make the boundaries clear.

Keep the television and radio switched off. And avoid the temptation of doing housework between tasks.

Separate work and home life as much as possible.

2. Schedule Downtime

Downtime is as important as work time. If you don’t make sure you relax you’ll end up burning out.

Signal the priority you give to your downtime by scheduling it in your calendar. Be clear about your working hours.

And resist the temptation to peek at your work emails when you’re supposed to be relaxing.

3. Stick to A Working Week

Weekends are essential – you need time away from work to recharge. Keep to having specific days that are workdays and two days a week when it’s your weekend time.

These don’t have to be Saturday and Sunday. You can choose which days work best for you and your business but do take a weekend’s worth of time off.

4. Make Self-Care A Priority

Self-care is vital when you work from home. You might feel tempted to work all hours.

But you need time to chill, to exercise, and in general, take care of yourself.

Working from home makes it easier to stick to a healthy, nutritious diet. You’re in control of what food comes into the house.

Be sure to take lunch breaks, stay well-hydrated, and get a good night’s sleep.

JohnK 9-29-2020

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Overheard: “We can be sure that the greatest hope for maintaining equilibrium in the face of any situation rests within ourselves”

~Francis J. Braceland

Is Age Really All In Your Mind?

September 21, 2020 John Uncategorized No comments

You grow older and you die. That’s a common timeline for many of us.

But how you deal with aging is another story, and GenuLines says that’s up to you.

(You can listen to this article by clicking here)

Is Age Really All In Your Mind?

Now we don’t mean that your mind can keep you from aging. But it can make you feel that way!

You often hear people over the age of 50 talk about aging. They talk about deterioration, decline, and feeling unwanted and not useful.

One way to deal with this is to focus on the positive things age brings. Things like wisdom, understanding, and the ability to help others.

Doing your best to be healthy is another way to keep the bad thoughts at a distance.

Your outlook and quality of life are likely to increase, too.

Ignore the Culture Surrounding You

We live in a world obsessed with youth. Every day, older people get pushed to the side in favor of the young.

The late teens and early twenties are the years called prime.

To get past this and actually start living with an ageless mindset, you have to do your best to tune it out. You’ve aged to the best you’ve ever been.

You’re wizened and seasoned. Stop denying your aging and own it; that’s what will truly make you ageless.

Love Your Body and Own Your Age

The only way to ensure you keep having the ageless mindset is to continue to love your body. Remind yourself that you’re getting better with age.

Appreciate your body for what it does for you and how far it’s taken you. Every day that you’re alive, you can learn something new and adapt to changes around you.

Never Say ‘Never’

One thing that will knock you off your path towards an ageless mindset is negativity. We psych ourselves with an attitude that we’re too old to do certain things.

You feel too set in your ways to learn. That can lead to feeling too old to be of value.

These thoughts are toxic and they threaten the positivity you’re working to maintain. Block negative mind chatter about your abilities, your worth, or your age.

It may take you a little extra effort to get where you want to go, but if you make the effort, you can.

How you deal with aging is up to you. You can dye you hair and lie about your age.

Or you can move forward with a new positive mindset that will have you feeling ageless.

JohnK 9-21-2020

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Overheard: “Age is not important unless you’re a cheese”

~Helen Hayes

Hard Times And Their Important Lessons

September 14, 2020 John Uncategorized No comments

Hard times are a breeding ground for hopelessness. You can slip into a feeling that you can’t win.

But today’s GenuLines message asks some important questions to help you prevail.

(You can listen to this article by clicking on HERE)

Hard Times And Their Important Lessons

These days hopelessness is a common feeling. There’s bad news in the media every day.

On top of that, our lives can bring personal challenges and negativity.

Everyone faces these situations in a different way, though. Some find comfort in religion and spirituality; others turn to meditation or therapy.

Unfortunately, others adopt unhealthy coping mechanisms,. Things like drinking to manage their grief, anguish, and sadness.

But if you look at hard times in a different light you can come up with more positive coping mechanisms.

One good way to reinterpret hardships is to find meaning in them.

And how can you do this?

When you’re facing a negative event, pause, and ask yourself how you can make the event meaningful.

For example, let’s say you get fired from your job. It’s a distressing situation that can leave you feeling afraid, angry, and ashamed.

Especially if you have a family, debt, or you don’t like your chances of finding a new job.

For example, ask yourself questions such as:

• Did I really like that job? Often, we’re stuck in a job that no longer makes us fulfilled, but we’re too scared to quit.

• Is this situation freeing my time for better opportunities? A job you no longer enjoyed could have been a roadblock in your professional development.

• What did I learn from that experience? The skills you learned at that job can be a launching point toward better opportunities.

• What went wrong? In this case, be honest with yourself — why were you fired? Look at the causes and don’t be judgemental.

• Are there any areas for growth? Regardless of what caused the negative situation, think of how you can use the experience to grow.

When you ask yourself these questions you give meaning to a negative situation. And you also take back control of it.

You re-frame the negative as an opportunity to grow and thrive in unexplored areas.

Look at it this way. A lost job is a chance for new growth. A new business, a trip, time off for family and friends, continued education, and more.

It’s healthy to feel down when you have a bad day. But it’s also important to take complete responsibility and be proactive.

Only then, can we find meaning in our lives and reduce uncertainty.

Luckily, this isn’t the only way to find meaning in difficult times.
When hardships come, it’s easy to over-think the situation.

But, dedicating at least some time to others helps put life into perspective.

When you give away your time and energy to help others, you create a connection with them. Life is no longer something that happens to you.

Instead, it becomes a network that you can influence in a positive way.

Finally, difficulties are part of life. Trying to avoid them keeps you from focusing your energy in purposeful, selfless directions.

So face tough times with patience and compassion toward yourself and others.

Every situation leaves its mark. That means you’re growing,

You’re building your own path of self-acceptance and compassion. You have the power to take control of your life by reflecting without judgment.

Accept each situation as an opportunity, and work with and for others.

JohnK 9-14-2020
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Overheard: “Fall seven times, stand up eight”
~Japanese proverb

4 Solid Ways To Stop Procrastination

September 7, 2020 John Uncategorized No comments

Procrastination.

I do it.

You do it.

The fact is, we do it more often than we like to admit.

So GenuLines urges you to get moving on some ways to stop procrastinating.

(You can listen to this article by clicking HERE)

4 Solid Ways To Stop Procrastination

Procrastination is more than turning in school or work projects late.
It can also include putting off important life decisions.

Like whether to ask your boss for the raise promised you last month. Or whether you should join a gym, or end a relationship, or have a baby.

The list of possibilities is endless.

The effect of not dealing with this can be life-long. Your relationships, career, and health might all take a hit.

But the tendency is to put things off until later. There’s always tomorrow, right?

It won’t be easy but try to identify the stress factor behind your procrastination. It could be fear of failure, fear of confrontation, fear of not being perfect.

You are your own worst critic.

Follow these tips to help you avoid procrastination once and for all.

1. Turn burdensome tasks into habits

We all have enough willpower to get about 3 or 4 tasks done each day. Turn yours into habits rather than mundane tasks.

You’ll give it less thought, and rely less on willpower. You won’t fall into the procrastination rut.

Why not turn healthy eating, daily exercise, or turning in reports ahead of time into daily habits, too? Procrastination is all about taking that dreaded first step.

So why not ease into it knowing that in time, or once you’ve finished X, you can watch videos or head outdoors.

2. Break work tasks into chunks

Instead of cleaning out the entire garage, do the right side first. Take a break.

Then do the left side. Take a break, and then finish off the rest.

At work, big tasks may seem daunting when you look at them as a whole. The answer?

Break them down into smaller tasks. Make an outline of the entire project, and then divide it into smaller tasks.

Working in 30-minute increments also helps break down tasks into smaller chunks. Those are manageable and not so intimidating.

After the 30 minutes, take a break and assess your work. Seeing how much you’ve accomplished will give you that boost of confidence you need to keep at it.

3. Remove distractions

Checking your email every 5 minutes isn’t doing you any good. So, once you’ve committed to doing the job, limit distractions by putting your away.

You can find apps that help you stay on track, but some will say that’s completely missing the point.

The important thing is that you set up a certain time for checking emails or your social media. Once you’ve started your task, you avoid the urge to take a sneak peak.

Another serious distraction is multi-tasking. Even though it may seem that you’re being productive, the truth is it wastes time and energy.

Yes you’re working more. But your end results will be below average.

4. Work during your peak hours

We all have certain times during the day when we’re most alert. Some of us are morning people, some are night owls, and some have more energy during the afternoon hours.

Find out what your peak hours are and tackle your most difficult tasks then. You’ll be more of a powerhouse then with your brain working at its highest capacity.

Procrastination is different than laziness. When you procrastinate, you delay one task for a more pleasurable activity.

So why not turn that mundane task you’re dreading into something more fun and enjoyable? Then you’ll put the brakes on procrastination.

JohnK 9-7-2020
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Overheard: “Procrastination is opportunity’s assassin”
~ Victor Kiam

Article image by Sam Solomon on Unsplash

6 Hacks to Keep Your Motivation Going Strong

August 31, 2020 John Uncategorized No comments

Motivation is great- when you have it. But sometimes it slips away like the proverbial thief in the night.

Just ahead you’ll find some GenuLines tips to bring the motivation back where it belongs.

(To listen to the article click HERE)

6 Hacks to Keep Your Motivation Going Strong

So you got motivated recently. Maybe you saw an awesome speaker or got a stinging dose of honesty from a friend or family member.

But initial motivation often fades…so here are a few ways to keep it going strong.

1. Remember the pain points

In sales lingo, pain points are problems that come about when the solution offered is not taken. Try to keep in mind all the things that could or will happen if you don’t stay the course.

For example, if you were once motivated to go running three times a week. Think about what will happen if you don’t give your heart the exercise it needs.

2. Don’t play leapfrog

Feelings of motivation can sometimes slip into the category of finding the next high. Don’t bounce from goal to goal.

Instead finish what you start before getting motivated about something else. Let’s say you enjoy language and made a goal for yourself to learn French.

Learn it before you switch to learning German, and then Italian, or whatever else.

3. Know Thyself

When you try to reach goals that other people set for you, your motivation can wane. Take a look at those goals.

Make sure they’re yours…not goals that other people want you to achieve. If they’re not, you may want to set them aside and reassess where you’re going.

4. Visualize

Picturing realizing your goal is a big help in motivating you to succeed. And it has some awesome side effects.

The positive energy you give that imagery will affect you at a subconscious level. The mental affirmation that you can achieve it will do loads for your self confidence.

This will also also help you stay the course.

5. Let go of stuff beyond your control

When it comes to motivation, it can be easy to give up because things don’t’ go according to plan. Learn to let go of things beyond your control. If you don’t they’ll reduce your motivation to succeed.

6. Get organized

If you want to stay motivated, you need to work a little bit to keep the motivation alive. If you don’t it’ll slip under the radar.

Motivation will be just another feeling unless you crystalize it. Put your goals on the calendar and make an action plan.

JohnK 8-31-2020

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Overheard: “People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing–that’s why we recommend it daily.”

~ Zig Ziglar

Article image by Dmitry Abramov from Pixabay

Make Sure Your Priorities Are What Matter Most to You

August 24, 2020 John Uncategorized No comments

Think about your priorities. I’ll bet it took you some time to remember what they are. Today GenuLines nudges you toward putting what matters most to you at the top of your list.

Make Sure Your Priorities Are What Matter Most to You

Your success can hinge on focusing on your priorities. It’s easy to get caught up in unimportant things such as social media and life’s little dramas.

Forgetting this will hinder your progress.

Let’s say you had a dream to own your own business. But you held off on taking action because of job and family priorities.

You can find a healthy balance between those duties and pursuing your dreams.

Having your priorities out of whack can be very mentally draining, too. Focusing on stuff that holds you back from your goals can stress you out.

And you may not even be aware of it.

You get tired of doing a lot of work for no gain, like helping everyone else with their projects. You can put plenty of hours into helping your coworkers and friends.

But that doesn’t mean you’re going to get much out of it besides a thank you.

This is unfulfilling work, and you shouldn’t let it hold you back from accomplishing your dreams. There’s also an emotional benefit to having your priorities in order.

It comes from the self-satisfaction of knowing you achieved or moved closer to you goal.

Sleep on it

You don’t want to go to sleep each night knowing you didn’t make any forward progress. Doing things to their completion puts a positive light on your week, month or even year.

This forward motion will give you more of a sense of well-being.

To get your priorities on track, you first have to identify the main cause of stress or displeasure in your life. For example, you might have a job that you can’t stand go to.

You wake up every day dreading the trip to work.

This should be your starting point for change – spend your time searching for other jobs. Make it your primary focus.

Once you have your job sorted out you might take on other issues. Are your car troubles stressing you out?

That can be your next priority – getting the car repaired or selling it to buy a new one. Always focus on the primary cause of your stress in the moment.

You’ll be more likely to live a happier, stress-free life.

JohnK 8-24-2020

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Overheard: To succeed today, you have to set priorities, decide what you stand for

~Lee Iacocca

Article image by Mary Pahlke from Pixabay

Change Your Beliefs – AND Your Behaviors, Too

August 17, 2020 John Uncategorized No comments

Your beliefs can and sometimes do change. The process of living has a way of forcing us to see things with new eyes.

If so, remember to consider these GenuLines points to bring your behavior in line with your beliefs.

Change Your Beliefs – AND Your Behaviors, Too

A powerful enough event can change even your closest held beliefs. It could have been something traumatizing.

Or something minor, like reading a blog post.

But a change in thinking doesn’t mean you’ll change your behaviors to match your beliefs. For example, you read how successful entrepreneurs master time management.

It sounds great, but you don’t act to change your disorganized behavior.

Or you might find a new way of dieting, and you start noticing the many unhealthy things people eat. Then again, you might not actually be eating the healthiest yourself.

And you might want better treatment, while still being a bit unpleasant to those around you.This kind of behavior can hurt your relationships with your friends and family.

And it can kick up your stress, too.

Practice what you preach or those around you will see you as a hypocrite. They’ll only accept your beliefs if you reflect them in an accurate way.

It can be difficult, though, to make these changes. When you realize that you’re not behaving as you believe you should be, it can be hard to change your actual behavior.

Spend time every day thinking about what changes you want to make. Then dedicate time to following through with those changes.

It won’t happen right away – it’ll take a few weeks for you to get used to changing your behavior.

In the meantime, ask a friend or family member to help you focus on this change and keep you on track.

When you start acting as you believe you should, you’ll find that you’re happier with who you are as a person. You’ll feel better about the quality of your personality.

And your social life will improve.

The accurate display of your beliefs will make you seem more trustworthy. Folks then show you more respect.

You did the hard yards. And now you’re actually following through on what you say.

JohnK 8-17-2020

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Overheard: “Man is made by his belief. As he believes, so he is”

~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Article image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Choose Your Reaction to What Life Sends Your Way

August 10, 2020 John Uncategorized No comments

Life has a way of knocking you to your knees. And tough times just seem to keep the bad stuff coming.

But GenuLines wants you to remember that a thought-out response can protect you from action you’ll regret.

Choose Your Reaction to What Life Sends Your Way

Whether life slams you or only throws you a curve you might tend to react without thinking. But making rational thought your first reaction puts you in control.

Knee-jerk reactions rarely work to your advantage.

Here’s an example. A customer says your product is horrible and wants a refund.

You’re on the defensive but your calm response takes away the person’s power.

Now your life isn’t dictated by things happening around you. You control your emotions.

Taking the “reins” in this way keeps your emotions under control. And making this a habit can contribute to a happier and more satisfying life.

Reactions that aren’t thought out tend to be irrational. And this can get you into a lot of trouble.

Highway tailgaters might seem like your enemy. You get upset and you try to get away from them.

Or, you try to get back at them.

This can cause a crash or an altercation Think about simple solutions to solving the problem at hand.

There are times when an immediate reaction is appropriate, such as the loss of someone close to you. You’re not going to make a situation like that positive.

For the emotions that follow, such as grief, choose how you’ll handle having these feelings.

Talk things out with a grief counselor. Don’t put it on the back burner.

It’s important to recognize situations in which instant reactions are acceptable. Don’t confuse them with situations that call for well thought out, controlled responses.

JohnK 8-10-2020

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Overheard: “In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: it goes on”

~Robert Frost

Find Your Authenticity by Embracing Your Inner Self

August 3, 2020 John Uncategorized No comments

With all the madness we’re seeing in society it’s easy to lose connection with our authenticity. Who can be blamed for feeling a little like part of the “herd mentality?”

GenuLines understands that feeling and offers this bit of support for staying connected to your “genuine self.”

Find Your Authenticity by Embracing Your Inner Self

Human beings have an inherent tendency to avoid standing out from the crowd. From the very beginning, our survival relied on safety in numbers.

And that habit stays a part of our nature despite any real need for in today’s world. This reality flies in the face of a society that lives on social media.

Every day there’s pressure to mask your authentic self. It could be at work, with friends, or on social media.

In this article, we look at a few of the many reasons that embracing your inner self benefits you. And how it can benefit most everyone around you.

One of the best traits of human beings is that each of us is unique. We differ in our individual talents, abilities, perspectives, and so on.

But we often mask these differences to avoid standing out. This deprives us and others of the benefits of our self-expression.

Think about history’s greatest inventions and discoveries. These came from people willing to be different and to resist the status quo.

We do want to accept ourselves. But this can clash with the need to fit in.

When you’re able to embrace your inner self and go against the grain, you invite others to do the same.

When people around you notice your self-acceptance they’re more likely to follow suit! It’s a ripple effect.

The others gain from the fellowship of collective talent and abilities.

It’s ironic that you burn more energy blending in than by being your genuine self.

Going with the crowd involves a conscious effort to act and behave a certain way at all times.

It wastes mental resources you can use in much better ways. Going your own way can bring impressive results.

No Regrets

One of the most painful feelings we can experience is that of regret. You don’t need a reminder to know that life is short.

If you squander your gifts the sad day will eventually come when you’re aware of what you did.

Often the most monumental chances in life come and go in the blink of an eye. And when those chances are gone they’re gone.

By embracing your inner self, you can mitigate so much regret down the road.

Standing out from the crowd will feel odd at first.

But, you’ll find that the benefits to you and those around you are more than worth it!

JohnK 8-3-2020

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Overheard: “To find yourself, think for yourself”

~Seneca

Are You Wasting Your Energy on Meaningless Things?

July 27, 2020 John Uncategorized No comments

Challenging times demand that you maintain a state of peak energy. But that peak condition can wear down in ways you’re not aware of.

Today GenuLines looks at ways you might be squandering your energy.

Are You Wasting Your Energy on Meaningless Things?

When you get too caught up in the things you don’t like, it’s easy to lose sight of your goals and the path to achieving them. When you begin to indulge in your anger, you feel worse each day.

You end up fueling all the wrong emotions.

Let’s say you wake up in the morning angry and disheartened over things you don’t like. You’ll live much of your life in a negative energy mindset.

And that’s bad for your mental and physical health.

Staying in a constant state of anger or sadness is bad for your health in many ways. You might find yourself experiencing more frequent headaches, fatigue, and stomach problems.

These are all side effects of stress, which goes hand in hand with negative emotions.

Mentally, you’ll be more irritable and upset, which can affect your loved ones, too.

What’s more, you won’t have the focus you need to work on your dreams.

If you dread seeing a certain coworker each day change your thinking. Be grateful that you have a stable job.

Focus on the things that you love and the things that you need to do.

Complaining about your coworkers is useless, and it only causes you issues, not them. Instead of complaining about things that’ are wrong, focus your efforts on fixing what you can fix.

Energy Re-direction

Put your attention on the things that you enjoy. Spending your energy working on things that you want and enjoy cuts into your stress.

You wake up feeling energized and excited to start your day.

Doesn’t that beat dreading another useless day of getting nothing done?

Get on a good sleep schedule if you’re not already on one so that you can spend more time doing the things that you love. You’ll find that your mind is more at ease and you feel much healthier.

You’ll gain a sense of satisfaction by knowing that you’re taking control of your path. And that you’re living life on your terms,

JohnK 6-28-2020

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Overheard: “The energy of the mind is the essence of life”