Since we can’t eliminate conflict, we should at least know effective ways to deal with it, starting with creating healthy boundaries and balancing our emotions to reduce unnecessary stress and anxiety. 

Here are five steps for handling and reducing conflict for a happier, more peaceful life. 

1. Identify the Source

Where’s the conflict coming from?

You’ll be trapped in an endless cycle of conflict until you identify and deal with the source. 

Conflict resolution 101: You can’t fix a problem until you know what the problem is. 

Sounds simple, right? Then why do so many people evade or avoid their problems? 

Evading or avoiding the problem makes it worse and keeps you stuck in a relentless cycle of conflict, which is no way to live. 

By identifying the root cause of the problem, everyone involved can work to fix it, so it stops happening.

2. Be Brave and Talk

The thing about conflict is that you can’t let it fester. So once you’ve identified the root issue, find a safe, quiet place to talk about it.

(Sometimes, a safe, quiet place might be a counselor’s or therapist’s office.)

Not talking about it makes it worse. The issue will keep growing and growing until it blows up in your face.

Remember that we’re not talking about something as simple as having a difference of opinion that leads to a minor, harmless disagreement. We’re talking about full-blown conflict. 

When you sit down to discuss the matter with the other person, how you communicate makes all the difference. 

How you say something is as important what you say.

Be brave and have the courage to face the issue; deal with it if you want a better life. 

3. Listen to Understand

Active listening is listening to understand the other person, which plays a huge role in conflict resolution. How you listen makes the issue better or much worse.

Be patient. Let the other person speak. And really listen. 

Do not interrupt them – interrupting is a sign of close-mindedness, defensiveness, and disrespect.

Show respect. 

Respect their point of view, opinions, and feelings; let them be heard and make their point. 

Treat them how you want to be treated in the conversation so they will give you the courtesy of listening when it’s your turn.

4. Share Solutions

After each person has shared what’s on their heart, it’s time for compromise and mutually agreed upon solutions. 

It’s okay to list solutions on paper; brainstorm options together.

Write out all your ideas, even the crazy ones, because sometimes they are the ones that trigger thoughts that lead to creative solutions.  

Focus on the solution to make this work; don’t focus on the other person; don’t make it personal. 

Focusing on the problem makes everyone feel safe and lowers defenses, paving the way for people to find solutions instead of being defensive and justifying their actions. 

Criticizing and judging will get you nowhere. 

5. Implement the Best Solution

After rolling up your sleeves and finding common ground, agree on the best solution and implement it.

Finding and implementing solutions is easier if everyone feels heard and considered. 

Each person must set clear and reasonable expectations, which can only happen when you truly listen to and respect each other’s differences and points of view.   

Final Words…

Approach conflict as an opportunity to grow, not something to avoid or a fight to the death. 

Conflict resolution can reveal helpful insights if appropriately managed, strengthening your relationships because you will become more attuned to the needs of those around you.

Once you muster the courage to open the communication lines by facing the conflict, take the time to really listen, and collaborate on solutions, it’s all downhill from there. 

Everyone will feel safe to speak their mind and share their ideas in a genuine effort to move forward in a way that’s healthy and mutually satisfying for everyone involved as they continue unlocking their best lives. 

The post 5 Tips To Reduce & Resolve Conflict appeared first on Lifestyle.

Life isn’t easy.

Of the many techniques to cope with stress, deep breathing is among the best. Besides lowering stress, deep breathing improves blood flow, makes you feel less anxious, and improves sleep.

What Is Deep Breathing?

Deep breathing relaxes your body and nervous system by replacing shallow breathing from your chest area with full, deep breaths from your abdomen area.

Deep breathing works because it reduces the release of stress hormones, which calms and relaxes the body and decreases feelings of anxiety. Deep breathing enhances your overall well-being, too.

Deep breathing can also help with certain conditions such as obesity, Type-2 diabetes, and high blood pressure when practiced regularly. 

People can make rash decisions when feeling angry, anxious, or afraid. But practicing a few minutes of deep breathing can slow you down enough to give you the time you need to think things over and make better decisions in the heat of the moment.

How Deep Breathing Works

Deep breathing floods your bloodstream with oxygen. As soon as the brain detects this rich supply of oxygen, it reduces the concentration of stress hormones. You immediately start to feel calmer and less stressed. 

Deep breathing is easy. Just follow these steps to give it a try: 

1. Place one hand on your abdomen.
2. Place your other hand on your chest.
3. You may either close your eyes or keep them open. 
4. Take two or three deep cleansing breaths expanding your abdomen to get a feel for it. It’s called diaphragmatic breathing.
5. Next, take a long, slow breath, filling your lungs fully; feel your abdomen expanding as you breathe.
6. Then, slowly let out your breath.
7. As you exhale, feel your abdomen get smaller, but your chest only moving slightly. 
8. As you breathe in and out, focus on how much calmer you feel.
9. Repeat 5–7 times.

Benefits of Deep Breathing

Ever notice how you breathe when you feel calm and relaxed? You take long, slow breaths through your nose. But it’s a different story when you are stressed because that’s when the fight or flight response kicks in.

When that happens, your breathing becomes quick and shallow to increase the oxygen supply to your extremities so you can run for your life or fight.

But what happens when you live in a world where you don’t run or fight? An imbalance of oxygen and carbon dioxide is created, which affects health and well-being. Deep breathing to the rescue to restore balance!

Controlled, deep breathing offers these benefits: 

• It lowers heart rate and blood pressure. 
• It helps with reducing built-up lactic acid in muscle tissue.
• Improves the immune system.
• Boosts physical energy.
• Reduces stress hormones.
• Increases feelings of calm and relaxation.

Deep Breathing Tips

After practicing controlled, deep breathing and getting a feeling for it, use these tips to help reverse your stress responses even further and feel calmer.

• Your first two full exhalations are the secret to going from chest to abdominal breathing.
• Pushing out all the air from the bottom of your lungs creates a vacuum that will allow you to switch to abdominal breathing on your next inhalation. But pause for a second or two before inhaling slowly.
• Breath through the nose, if possible, and exhale through your mouth. 
• When first starting, stick to no more than five deep breaths because more than five breaths tend to make most people feel light-headed. If five breaths are too much, take 2-3 breaths and build up to five. 

The beauty of deep breathing is that it works, and you can do it anywhere! So the next time you’re feeling stressed, anxious, or overwhelmed, give yourself the gift of a two-minute break and enjoy a few controlled, deep breaths. You’ll feel calmer and happier and restore your inner peace. 

The post Use Deep Breathing To Restore Inner Calm appeared first on Lifestyle.

What beliefs about yourself have you accepted or convinced yourself are true?

Your opinion of yourself and your place in the world is a self-determining prophecy that affects your happiness, success, and relationships.  

Your beliefs about yourself affect everything you do and can even lead to panic disorder, anxiety, and depression.

Some of your beliefs are based on false emotions, memories, or the erroneous beliefs and misguided opinions of others.

How Faulty Beliefs Affect Everything You Do

For better or worse, your subconscious mind operates according to how you see the world and your place in it. 

You’re either stacking the odds in your favor or against you.

This might sting a little, but the truth is that you’re holding yourself back from living a fulfilling life that overflows with adventure, love, opportunity, and joy. 

Tony Robbins said: “The only thing that’s keeping you from getting what you want is the story you keep telling yourself.”

But here’s the good news: YOU can change your story right now! It won’t feel comfortable at first, but the power is yours to make a new choice.

What Are Faulty Beliefs?

Limiting beliefs are the opinions and thoughts you believe to be 100% true and are anchored deeply within your mind because you’ve thought about them so much and for so long. 

We blame others to feel good about ourselves and as an excuse for why we’re not living the life that we say we really want to live.

It’s time for blame to have a funeral so you can finally unlock your best life. 

You can engage in blame, adhere to faulty beliefs and thinking, and endure a stunted existence, or say, “Enough!” and press onward, despite your fears and what “they” told you.

It’s your life. 

If you’ve felt stuck, held back, incompetent, and that failure follows you wherever you go, know that you don’t have to live like that anymore. 

Where Do Faulty Beliefs Come From?

Faulty beliefs are developed very early in childhood. According to Dr. Bruce Lipton, the first seven years of our lives are extremely critical because our brains soak in everything, unfiltered. It’s how we learn right vs. wrong, good vs. evil.

Children born and raised in a caring, cheerful, positive, and supportive environment who feel loved and valued grow up believing that they are valuable, that their lives matter, and that they are worthy of love, success, and affection.

Unfortunately, the opposite is also true. 

Children who are neglected or abused grow up believing that they’re not worthy of love and affection.

Here are some of the negative by-products of faulty beliefs:

• Anxiety
• Conformism
• Imposter syndrome
• Overthinking
• Perfectionism
• Procrastination
• People-pleasing
• Validation-seeking behavior

How to Identify Faulty Beliefs

Step 1: Notice Your Thoughts

Pay attention to your thoughts. The next time that little voice in your head tells you that the good life isn’t for you, ask, “Why not?” Let the little voice answer you. And then ask, “But is that really true?”

Step 2: Confront Faulty Beliefs

Challenge your faulty beliefs head-on; don’t just sit there and take it. You deserve better. You’ll have a better life the day you start treating yourself better.  

Disrupt negative thoughts and beliefs by asking, “Is that really true?” (Most of the time, it isn’t even close to the truth!). 

Next, replace that negative thought with at least two positive ones – or two things for which you’re grateful, or two positive attributes about yourself. Start practicing being your own best friend. 

Slowly, that little negative voice in your head will get weaker and weaker as another voice, a stronger, truthful, more confident voice, takes its place. 

You’ll notice that your mental and emotional energy don’t feel as drained, and each day is a little brighter.  

Step 3: Develop Healthy Beliefs

Acknowledge and embrace your self-worth. Love yourself (not in an “I’m better than you” sort of way; that’s arrogant and selfish). 

You’ve done an amazing job getting to where you are right now! No one tells you often enough, “Good job!” so say it to yourself! Be proud of your life and accomplishments.

Now that you’re empowered with compassion, confidence, and a healthy sense of self-love, think about one thing you try to avoid on purpose; perhaps it’s social interactions.

To overcome that fear, press forward through your discomfort and commit to engage in a brief, meaningless conversation with one or two people each day. 

Putting yourself out there can be scary, so what? A lot of things are scary or uncomfortable at first. It’s okay to feel awkward and uncomfortable sometimes – just look at a baby learning to walk! It’s about the most awkward and uncomfortable thing you’ll ever see!

Confident, optimistic people press forward despite their fears and keep moving forward until they’re comfortable in their own skin. 

To unlock your best life, don’t blindly accept what you’ve been told. Challenge your faulty beliefs! Choose to finally start seeing yourself for who and what you really are because when you do, a whole new world of hope and possibility is within reach.

The post Confronting And Replacing Your Faulty Beliefs appeared first on Lifestyle.

When was the last time you gifted yourself a few minutes just to enjoy nature? The warm, nurturing glow of the sun as it slowly sets beyond the horizon, or the sound of the wind blowing outside the window, rain drops on your skin, or the stars at night. We are surrounded by elegant, graceful, calming beauty.

According to science, spending time in nature is good for the soul; it benefits our entire well-being. Walking through nature and being mindful of the green grass, trees, and flowers has been associated with helping with mental health issues such as depression, ADHD and has been shown to lower blood pressure. 

We all have “those” days when we feel overwhelmed, and stress seems to be winning. Research says that one of the best gifts we can give ourselves on those days, or any day, really, is a few amazing minutes outside. The sun restricts the release of stress homes and encourages the release of feel-good hormones like serotonin. And the negative ions in the fresh air have a calming effect on the nervous system.

Time spent in nature is never wasted; it’s one of the healthiest things you can do for your mental and emotional health. It reduces stress, relieves tension, and helps restore your energy, increasing productivity.

Here are some tips for intentionally bringing nature into your life.

1.   Match nature’s pace.

Nature is calm. It takes its time. So should you. Walk slowly through nature; breathe deeply; you’ll feel more peaceful and more relaxed immediately.

Slow down to observe your surroundings; take it all in. It might be a yellow flower growing through a crack in the concrete, a cloud floating overhead, or the fragrance of cherry blossoms. Savor it.

Nature is a kind of dance. Sink into its rhythm.

2.   Take off your shoes and socks, and breathe

Search all you want, but you’ll never find a squirrel sprinting by you in a pair of sneakers.

Consider taking off your shoes to feel the earth beneath your feet. Feel grounded and connected to something bigger than your life.

Explore your surroundings for a peaceful spot where you can regularly go for your soul to breathe.

Go there. Maybe it’s a park, garden, or someplace in the forest, or the beach. Close your eyes and breathe deeply for a minute or two while being mindful of the sun on your face and the warm ground against your body.

3.   Eat outside

Why eat inside under artificial lighting when you can take a blanket and a book and enjoy a picnic outside? It doesn’t have to be anything fancy.

4.   Lean against a tree

We climbed trees, hung from branches, and leaned against their trunks when we were kids. Trees are amazing. The oldest ones have been alive for thousands of years. We rely on trees to supply our environment with fresh, pure oxygen.

Why not connect with your inner child and act like a kid again. Lean against a tree with a book or a video on your phone and enjoy a few minutes of “me” time. Or, if you prefer, take a friend with you and visit for a while.

5. Visit a greenhouse

Visit a nearby greenhouse that has some of your favorite plants. Walk-in and savor the aroma of the lush vegetation. Consider buying a plant and bringing it home to enjoy.

Slow down and use all of your senses to enjoy nature. We were all born with an expiration date. So take time to savor life along the way.

The post Find Inner Peace In Nature appeared first on Lifestyle.