Advice

How To Make Time For Your Passions

The title of this post sort of seems like an oxymoron, doesn’t it? If we’re really and truly passionate about something, shouldn’t it just come naturally – without us having to “make time”? And yet, I’m sure we can all relate to the notion of being too busy for the things (or the people) we love. When we have many things going on – school, work, social obligations, extra-curriculars, family – it’s easy for our love of the easel, microphone, or keyboard to fall by the wayside. We all have a little bit of creative genius inside of us, whether we express that through computer programming, graffiti, juggling or flower arrangements. Or maybe our passions are less about creation than they are about consumption: books, art, music, fashion shows, blogs, magazines or restaurants. (I’m sure that most of us have passions that lie in the realms of both creation and consumption.) And if personal experience is any indication, our passions are the first thing to go when life gets busy and time gets scarce.

But hold up. Why should this be? After all, our passions feed us all the nutrients our spirit needs: joy, satisfaction, beauty, love.. Without them, we are flat, boring, listless. Uninterested. Uninteresting.

Of course, we all live in the real world. We all have pressing concerns, such as making a living, studying, or caring for others. Maybe it is unrealistic for some of us to pursue our passions on a large scale. But I think everyone has at least fifteen minutes in their busy day to practice their passions. And that first fifteen minutes is all it takes! Once you make it a habit, I think you’ll find yourself looking forward to those 15 minutes of you time, starting to stretch it out to half an hour, waking up earlier, going to bed later – doing anything you can do to feed your soul.

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How to Be Happier by Using the Self-Determination Theory

This week, I was finally inspired enough by Marie Forleo and her amazing Q&A Tuesday videos to make one of my own. She is a very impressive woman, and if you haven’t already checked her out, I would say head on over now! Her website is jam-packed full of amazing business and lifestyle advice, and regardless of what you do for a living, that girl preaches no-nonsense words of wisdom. I have tons of respect for the lady.

So this week, as I was facing yet another dastardly combination of writer’s block, fatigue, and lack of time, writing a serious article on my blog was the least appealing thing imaginable. I was uninspired and unimpressed, but felt an urge to post something of use online. I chose a concept, wrote down some bullet points, and pointed the camera at myself. Yes, this is my very first vlog.

In the video, I’ll be talking about a theory that I learned about in one of my psychology classes: the Self-Determination Theory. One of the theory’s key points is the 3 basic psychological needs that work to produce a person’s everyday happiness (daily well-being), and that’s what I talk about in the video.  Hoever the theory is much more detailed, you can find more information on it here.

After watching, try to jot down a few ways you could increase your daily quota of each of the three basic psychological needs, to become happier!

  1. Autonomy
  2. Competence/Mastery
  3. Relatedness

And be sure to let me know what you think of this approach to happiness: is it total b.s., or do Deci & Ryan have a point? I’d love to hear from you, either in the comments below, on twitter or by email.

How To Get A Summer Job, Part 2

You can find Part 1 of this miniseries here.

Photo thanks to Andy B Goode

I was talking about summer employment the other day with a few friends, and it got me thinking about my first article on the subject. I thought I’d made most of the appropriate points, but it occurred to me that I very much wrote it from the point of view of my upbringing and my inbred knowledge about how one is supposed to go about these things.

Bad move, sista! Clearly, not everyone had “professionalism” drilled into them from birth – not everyone applied at the grocery store in grade 9 wearing a little skirt suit. This is clear to me, because now that I have a full-time job, I see the hoards of people “cold-calling” our store to ask for work. And guess what honey? They ain’t all prepared.

So just in case you’re in any way unsure about the teensy details of how to approach your job hunt, look no further! Let’s go back to basics.

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How To Get A Summer Job

Photo thanks to Cavanimages

Before I start, let me declare loud and clear: I am not an expert in this subject! This post will be an accumulation of all the wisdom and tips I’ve gained either through my own experience or by listening to others, and it certainly won’t be the be-all-and-end-all of job-hunting guides by any means. Hopefully it will contain enough information to give you an extra boost in your search for employment this summer! Behold, a few of the pointers I’ve learned.

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