Poll: Honestly, How Awesome Is Your Life?

change02 · 11-07-2011 12:28 PM

You got that right! Nobody's perfect and nothing's impossible if you really work hard for it.

Good luck to your goals!

stacey_dream · 12-13-2011 01:23 PM

Hello everybody, I missed ya all so much!!! My life has been very busy and generally good, but I had a lot of thinking lately. I'm questioning my beliefs, values and choices all over again, and I'm not sure I'm in the right place now - not that it's bad, but it's just probably not for me... Idk. I'm thinking.

As for The Law of Attraction - I've attracted another dream-come-true into my life - my hubby and I are going to Egypt for New Year

It'll be my first New Year's Eve out of Russia! I'm so excited! I guess it's time I started dreaming bigger!

Lots of love!

Matt · 12-13-2011 05:08 PM

Egypt sounds awesome, Stacey! Be sure to take lots of pictures for us.

How is everything going a work? I read your tweet the other day about a new ESL course you might be taking. It sounds exciting!

stacey_dream · 12-14-2011 03:16 PM

(12-13-2011 05:08 PM)Matt Wrote: How is everything going a work? I read your tweet the other day about a new ESL course you might be taking. It sounds exciting!

Hey Matt!
My main job is getting more and more boring for me, but I promised myself to stay there for a year. As for my teaching, I'm still in love with it! :love:

I'm always thinking about new creative ways of teaching English - and this is really my calling!

How's your creative life going btw?

stacey_dream · 12-15-2011 10:38 PM

My Life has been great so far! A lot of things has happened:

I raised the price of my teaching sessions (now it's about $13 an hour) and learned to work less while earning more.
I bought a membership in a fitness club, so now I work out 3-5 times a week, run, dance hip-hop and new style, and keep fit.
In a week my hubby and I are going to Egypt - I'm so excited! Can't wait to relax in the sun and get some tan! And then back home, back to work!
Due to the elections in Russia I had some hard time at work (cuz my boss belongs to the party I don't support). But he appeared to be a wise and understanding person, so the problem has been successfully solved.
I started thinking about my own business again. It will be connected with English for sure, but I promised myself to work for my current employer for a year to get as much experience as I can. But then I won't fear any more and do what I must - start an English School!
I participated in one grant, now preying to win! If I do, I'll go to USA to study! Wish me good luck!
I'm trying to go vegan - it's been fine so far! I guess it really resonates with my values - I think people don't have a right to kill animals for their needs. Cuz why don't we eat people then? Their meat might be even more delicious... :/

I hope to appear here more often, as there are a lot of exciting things going on in my life right now and I wanna share them with you, my friends! I also feel like starting a new challenge - however, I need to think carefully about the Goal for it (it might be the peace of mind or the law of attraction, idk yet). I suppose the end of the year is the best time for challenging myself to become more positive and to concentrate only on the things I want in life.

Matt · 12-16-2011 07:12 PM

That's awesome. I imagine you can get exhuasted having two jobs so it's great to hear you are charging more and working less. Has it actually worked out that way though. I can imagine some people charging more for their services but still working the same number of hours a week as they always had.

A gym membership is a good idea. I sorely need to get one myself. Last year at this time I attended a little hole in the wall gym in my city. I think I will get a membership by the end of the year so I can attend during the Healthier Life challenge next month.

What kind of grant did you apply for? Do you know what subject you would study in the US? Spanish?

Things are going fine in my creative life. I'm working on a new project actually. I hope to show it to everybody next week and I would post in my journal.

stacey_dream · 12-21-2011 01:00 PM

Matt I applied for the Muskie Program! I'm really hoping to win!

I wanna go to Harward

Today My hubby and I are going to Egypt! I can't wait to just relax and forget about all the problems! I'll keep you guys posted!

stacey_dream · 01-24-2012 01:25 AM

Hello, guys! Sorry for not having been around so long! I guess I'm back again

First off, a few words about my New Year's Eve and brand-new plans for 2012:

I celebrated New Year's Eve in Egypt with my hubby. We had a great time together, went to see Pyramids and Sphinx, enjoyed the beautiful sea and the first warm winter in our lives. Hope this year will bring a lot of such fantastic experiences in my life!
I entered this year with 2 great jobs - at a nonprofit organization and at my own English courses (I am just a tutor, but dreaming of getting it serious and starting a business). This is a topic for discussion, cuz I'm at the crossroads now and feel at a loss as for what to do... Talk about it a little later!
I bought a membership in a fitness club, so now I attend yoga, dancing, run on a treadmill about 3-5 times a week and feel ALIVE!
I became vegetarian - I don't eat neither meat nor chicken. However, I eat little fish and seafood, because in my region you HAVE TO do it.
I've returned to my beliefs which lie in the sphere of Wicca (Blessed Be! :angel.
I've been giving money for charity for 6 months now and can't imagine how I used to live without it. It makes my life meaningful. I wish I could spend more money on improving the world.
I failed to get the Grant for studying in USA - I was extremely upset, I even lost the vision of my future and my goals. Now I'm still not sure what I want from life. Trying to fix it though!

I'm really confused about what I want in life - let's say, I don't know why I wake up in the morning and go to work etc. I am considering becoming self-employed, but it takes a lot of courage, enthusiasm and self-confidence, so I end up doing nothing but dream. I'm going to take a step forward and finally set goals for the near future.

I want to start my own business. But there are some reasons I postpone it: my colleague is pregnant so I can't leave the company now when I'm about to remain an only worker until they find her substitute, my boss is a wonderful woman and she trusts me, my job is quite easy and lazy which is also an advantage of some kind. Maybe there's something else I missed, but you can get the picture. Do you think there's any chance for me to keep the respect at my current job and at the same time start a business?

Moirawr · 01-24-2012 09:08 AM

Stacey! It's good to see you around. I'm sorry that you've felt so down about the grant but I am sure there are many other opportunities out there for you. Maybe this is where you are meant to be so you can catch one of the other opportunities and if you were in the states you would miss it. You never really know how these things work. So just keep your chin up and try your hardest because I've seen what you can do when you put your mind to good things.

You are amazing and good things will come to you.

Tina · 01-24-2012 02:07 PM

I think it's great that you want to start your own business. Just be sure you have some money saved up as a safety net. You should have a detailed business plan in place and get everything worked out as best you can. I'm glad that you raised your prices for you English lessons. It shows you know your worth and give you a better idea for what skill level and what price range you'll need when you do start your business.

And it's okay to have moments where you wonder what you're doing. Sometimes we need to re-evaluate what we're doing to make sure it's what we really want and not just what we want right now. Take some time to think it over. The answer will come to you. When it does, the motivation to work on it will be there. Best of luck!

stacey_dream · 01-24-2012 02:54 PM

Thank you Moira and Tina, girls I missed you so much! :hug:

This is sad but true - in our everyday life it's too hard to find like-minded people who would pursue their goals and follow their hearts. So I'm more than grateful to Celes for this wonderful forum and her blog! glomp

As for my life, I need to decide what I really want - some particular changes, be it business, entertainment, family or anything else, or some serious inner transformation, which would help me learn how to enjoy whatever is going on. But if I'm working on the latter, I get a feeling that I'm missing something in the outer world. Like, I could spend time working and making money instead of reading, meditating or doing yoga. Again, if I'm working too much, I start feeling stressed out and mixed-up, as if it were absolutely meaningless and useless. You see, I'm really confused right now. I don't know what I really want and need.

I'll spend a couple more days thinking over the above described problem and then I'll put myself to achieving whatever I choose - outer success or inner peace. I guess the peace of mind would be of more importance... Idk. Please share your thoughts, I'd appreciate it! :angel:

stacey_dream · 02-12-2012 04:50 PM

I've been reading a book by Ayn Rand lately and it made me think about who I really am - like, without the layer of others' opinions and tons of books I've read. Only me - who I was born to be. It's kinda hard, I might even consider another challenge to answer this question. However, for now I need to remember at least something about the real me.

I'm going to speak about who I used to be when I was a child, as I think I was real at that time more than ever.

I loved to draw, paint, make up stories, write poems, act, dance, sing... I was very creative!
I spent a lot of time outdoors with my friends or by myself.
I won different competitions and wasn't afraid to become the best.
I was very active. I loved to bike, run, climb, MOVE. I wasn't afraid to break a leg to fall down.
I liked reading. Thank God I still do!
I liked some people and hated others. I allowed myself to have different feelings toward different things. Not just limitless love.
I loved animals.
I treated people as they deserved.
I didn't pretend to be more beautiful, intelligent or cool than I really was.
I was a real entrepreneur: I was selling my pictures, different toys, my crafts - and my friends paid for them
I didn't waste time thinking about how people see me. I had more important things to do.
Maybe all this explains why when I went to school, my class mates didn't like me - I refused to belong
I wanted to become a teacher

This list is to be continued, I only wrote what came to my mind. I want to go back to my real self, even though I don't know how and why. I'm just sick and tired to being torn between my self and my social mask.

stacey_dream · 02-22-2012 12:51 AM

You already know that my life is taking a serious twist – I’m kind of starting my own business in March! “Kind of” – because I’m not going to register it for the first few months till I figure out all the important stuff. Till then I will be working at home, while buying some equipment for my future office (chairs, blackboard and so on – you can guess what I might need for a language school). I’ll see how many students I’ll be able to attract (now I have 12) and how much money I’ll be able to earn.

Anyway, I need some more discipline to succeed. I’ve been a little lazy lately – I have a membership at a local fitness club, but I go there only once or twice a week, which is definitely not enough. I also have a long list of things I’d like to make a part of my life:

Early rise and a short nap at noon

Daily exercise

Daily yoga and meditation

Daily English and Spanish lessons

Weekly massage

Weekly cleaning-up

Weekly meet-ups with my family and friends

Daily Wicca (I’m doing pretty good with this one, actually)

Creativity (at work and out there)

Less speaking, more listening

Patience

Passion and Excitement about every day

Constant growth

I bet I haven’t mentioned something, but I’ll add to the list if I remember it. The purpose of this post is to describe my current situation, set the goals for 21-30 days (a number of habits to develop) and make a daily/weekly plan. Here it is:

My current situation: I wake up at about 9 am and go to work. My work starts at 10 pm and end at 5 pm. After work I have a session with one of my students, then surf the Internet and go to bed at about midnight. I exercise about 2 hours a week, read a lot of books (I’m crazy about reading, which is becoming too much of an addiction sometimes), hardly ever do the cleaning-up at home, practice Wicca at least once a week, meet with my mom and grandparents weekly, very seldom write poems and stories of my own, procrastinate too much on the longterm goals (I often choose to think that I don’t want something instead of going and getting it). I can’t control my thoughts and emotions most of the time, and I’m too lazy to kick my ass out of the house. I’d rather change this picture, honestly!
My desirable picture of life: I wake up at 8 am, take a shower and meditate for 5-10 minutes. Have breakfast, of course. Then I go to the fitness club to exercise for 1-2 hours. I go back on foot (it’s about 30 minutes walk to my home) and have lunch (I might want to buy some food on my way home – to cook lunch instead of ordering-in, which is my bad habit). After lunch I have a short nap (1 hour) and then prepare for work: write lesson plans, check homework etc. I have 3-5 sessions a day. After work I have dinner and walk my dog. I practice Wicca, read some fiction book, do something creative (connected with work or just some writing/painting), meditate for another 5-10 minutes and go to bed at about 11-30 pm. I meet with my family and friends weekly, I regularly do the cleaning-up so that my flat is always cozy and perfectly clean. I cook as often as I can, think positive, have fun and feel excited about every single day!
Daily/weekly action plan:
*Wake up at 8 am and go to bed at 11-30 pm.
*Take a nap at noon whenever I feel up to it.
*Exercise EVERY DAY! Walk, meditate, practice yoga.
*Keep on practicing Wicca.
*Make a plan for the next day: what’s important and due soon/not due soon. Try to do everything from the list.
*Cut down the time spent online: USE INTERNET FOR WORK AND EDUCATION PURPOSES ONLY!
*Stop reading as a way to procrastinate: read only fiction books for no longer than 1 hour a day.
*Write more: in my blog, on 750words.com etc. Be creative!
*Enjoy my work! Do my best in it! Have fun at work and take it as a hobby (because in fact it really is).
*Study English and Spanish – DAILY. Consider taking Spanish classes.
*Stay positive. No complaining, grumbling, criticizing, worrying, NO NEGATIVITY!
*Cleaning the house whenever it needs to be done. Never let it get dirty or messy.
*Become thrifty – question my every purchase.

By the end of this challenge I’ll have become more disciplined, more energetic and positive, more productive and good looking. My life will have got meaningful!

It’s time to shoot for the Moon! )O(

stacey_dream · 02-24-2012 02:20 PM

It's Day 5 of my challenge, and here is a short report:

I've been waking up at 8-30 which is already an achievement! I went to bed at about 1 am. As I can't wake up earlier, i decided to go to bed later. This is how I'm going to become more productive.
I've exercised only twice, but I still have 2 more days. I don't think I'll go to the fitness club every day - I'll exercise at home every other day.
I've been very productive - I did everything from my TO-DO list!!! This is really motivating!
I can't use Internet less -this is an addiction! But I did limit the use of it!
I started learning English again - I love it! I don't know how I'd been living without it!

Next week I begin working on my own, which means I'll be able to improve my schedule and daily routine. I hope to become even more disciplined and see greater results of my Challenge!

Kimberly · 02-24-2012 11:01 PM

Hey Stacey, just wanted to say great job on your achievements so far! We have a couple goals in common... I am also trying to exercise everyday - it's tough! Just wanted to wish you all the best too in your new business!

stacey_dream · 02-25-2012 12:04 AM

(02-24-2012 11:01 PM)fireflyz56 Wrote: Hey Stacey, just wanted to say great job on your achievements so far! We have a couple goals in common... I am also trying to exercise everyday - it's tough! Just wanted to wish you all the best too in your new business!

Thank you so much for your support, Kimberly! I really appreciate it! Just wanted to say that I also checked your thread today and felt that we have very much in common! Good luck on your goals too :hug:

stacey_dream · 03-07-2012 01:48 PM

My Discipline Challenge is almost over! I've been through hard times lately: first got sick, then lost the person I loved... So I wasn't up to any discipline stuff, frankly speaking. I've been writing my to-do lists and trying to complete all the tasks from the list, but I know I would have been more productive, if it hadn't been for the terrible things going on around me. I have to be strong, which takes away all my energy and desire to move. I can only work and read books. I don't even want to exercise - I'm going to do it today, but not sure if I'll manage to kick my miserable ass out of home...

stacey_dream · 03-11-2012 02:14 PM

OK, The Discipline Challenge is OVER!

What I have achieved:

I started to prepare TO-DO lists for every day and complete all the urgent tasks.
I was trying to exercise at least 2-3 times a week - unfortunately, my health and family issues prevented me from doing it more often.
I have become more active: I've done quite a lot for my work!
I've been going to bed after midnight and waking up at about 9. This schedule suits me better than if I lived from 8 to 11. I just wish I could sleep less: 7 hours would be great. But if I go to bed at 1. I just can't get up at 8! I'd rather sleep till 11.
What I haven't achieved yet: I still need to find time for learning Spanish and English. I want to grow in the field of languages! I also need to exercise every day without excuses. I think I'll start the exercise challenge after the positivity challenge is over.

To cut it short, I'm pretty satisfied with the results of this challenge, but due to some circumstances I haven't achieved what I was hoping to. However, I'm not giving up - I'll keep on working on my discipline and moving toward my ideal life. I just need a little more strength and persistence.

Matt · 03-13-2012 11:08 AM

Hey, Stacey. Have you become more productive during this challenge? I would imagine your to do lists are much longer now that you are starting off on your own business.

I have seen you mention several times that you want to find more time to study English. What exactly does that involve? From what you write it already seems like your grasp of the language is perfect. Your grammar is better than mine BTW. What is there left to study?

Is the Ideal Woman plan from your other thread your new March challenge? I always liked that you took such initiative to start your own challenges in your threads and keep everyone up to date on your progress. I'm actually stealing that idea for my own journal now. I'm working on health first before I move onto other subjects in the following months.

stacey_dream · 03-13-2012 12:07 PM

Hi Matt! The fact that you're following my challenges means a lot to me! Thank you glomp

As for becoming more disciplined - there's still a long way to go, but I became more responsible for the things I 'don't have time for'. I understood that there's enough time for everything - sometimes we just don't want bad enough. My problem is, I prefer to sleep instead of waking up bright and early and doing as much as possible.

Speaking about my English level - I guess it's never going to be enough. Now I understand that I need to learn a lot of new words, phrasal verbs, idioms etc. Of course the best thing would be to go to USA or UK and spend up to 6 months there, speaking with real people in real life. You know, when you're teaching English, you have to choose simple words and grammar, which isn't helping my fluency very much. I sometimes feel that I'm a perfectionist and I'll never be satisfied

Yes, My Ideal Woman plan is my next challenge, beginning today

I just can't stop - whenever one of my challenges comes to an end, I already see what else needs to be improved in my life (read - in me). I know that who I am now is 99% of hard work and only 1% of nature. Now it's time I stopped caring too much about my social status and started working on my Female Part. Otherwise I'll never be truly happy with who I am and how I look, and what I say, etc. I have a feeling that this challenge may bring about great results!

Poll: Honestly, How Awesome Is Your Life?
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	It's OK, but could be better
	It's even better than awesome!

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