Your HappiNewsLetter

– APRIL –

APRIL – Welcome to your HappiNewsLetter!

I am so happy to share with you tips and reflective topics that inspired me during the last months.
Check out as well what’s cooking for the following weeks.
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~ APRIL ~

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“April is a promise that May is bound to keep.” ~ Hal Borland
Let’s use the month of April to visualize what we want for ourselves by the end of the year. What do you dream of? What situation would be so nice? Who do you want to BE then?
Close your eyes and see what’s coming first.
What promise do you want to make to yourself? 

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Take good care, you are precious.

Choose to Savor

Cherry & White House

The National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington D.C. takes place from March 20 to April 10. This festival celebrates the gift of 3,000 cherry trees from Japan to the United States in 1912. Today, the festival includes events such as a parade, a kite festival, and a lantern-lighting ceremony.

In Japan, during the festival, people gather under the cherry trees to admire the blossoms and have picnics with friends and family. It’s a time for reflection on the transience of life and the beauty of nature. It is a reminder to appreciate the present moment. 

What can you do to appreciate the beauty around you and savor the present moment? What’s your cherry blossom?

Embracing Change

“Change is the only constant in life” – Heraclitus. Whether it’s a career change, a relationship ending, or a health issue, change is challenging and difficult to navigate. But it’s also an opportunity for growth and transformation. Embracing change means accepting what is and actively looking for ways to move forward. It means being open to new possibilities and perspectives, even if they’re different from what we’re used to. One way to embrace change is by focusing on the present moment, rather than worrying about the future. It’s helpful to seek support from others, and address it in a coaching session. 

What does embracing change mean to you and what opportunities can you see?

Happy Earth Day

Earth Day is celebrated on April 22nd, and it has become a global event to raise awareness about the environment and the need to protect it. This day began in 1970 with protests and the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and led to the passage of several environmental laws. Today, Earth Day is celebrated in over 190 countries, with people participating in various activities such as tree planting, litter cleanups, and environmental education programs. It’s a reminder that our planet needs our care and attention, on this day and every day. 

What can you do to reduce your environmental footprint and contribute to a healthier planet?

What’s next?

The Victim

It’s the end of the Saboteurs’ list with this month’s Saboteur: the Victim! 
It has a bad reputation, yet people with this Saboteur have plenty of beautiful qualities: they are sensitive, emotional, capable of deep introspection, and to appreciate the uniqueness of each individual.
However, when they go too deep, they feel criticized, misunderstood and alone. They tend then to withdraw, pout, crumble and ultimately give up. The anger becomes sadness and fatigue. They seek attention and affection, but it often backfires and pushes people away.

Challenge of the month: To deal with the Victim, remember that you are NOT what you feel. Dwelling in sadness doesn’t lead to better self-awareness, as it clouds your judgment. You are unique, but also very commonly human. Expose the lies of the Victim drama to get attention and love.
In which other ways, based on positive emotions, can you be seen and loved for who you are?

Learn more

Gratitude Attitude

Gratitude is the practice of acknowledging and appreciating the good things in our lives.
It’s a powerful tool for cultivating happiness and personal growth, and improving mental health and well-being. Research has shown that people who practice gratitude regularly have more positive emotions, better health, and stronger relationships. Gratitude can help us focus on what we have, rather than what we lack, and it can shift our perspective from negative to positive.

One way to practice gratitude is by keeping a gratitude journal, where you write down 3 things you’re grateful for each day. Another way is to express your gratitude to others, by telling them how much you appreciate them. 

How can you help yourself create a regular gratitude practice? 
Take a few moments to reflect on what you’re grateful for, and see how it transforms your perspective. Book a time with me if you don’t manage to practice on your own.

Book a free consultation

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The post Unlock Your Happiness Potential – APRIL 23 appeared first on Anne-Laure Coaching & Co.

During this Coronavirus crisis, we are facing exceptionally difficult times, filled with unwanted worry, stress and anxiety. Although it is natural to fear for our health and well-being, additional anxiety can appear and trouble our minds even more. This is due to the particularly high level of uncertainty on how the future will be, for ourselves, our job, our finances, but as well for our parents, family and friends, and even for the global economy and the world itself.

We also suffer from social pressure on what we are supposed to do or not to do, how to stay busy and maintain a perfect household. We tend to wonder how we can possibly contribute to saving the world while actually only staying in pyjama all day and checking the news, which makes us even more anxious and unable to let go…?!

How to let go and find Happiness?

1) Develop a positive attitude to be Happy

It is a very simple, yet not simplistic approach!

It means taking the time to stop, take a step back and change our mindset on how we react to a given situation. There is always another way to see the world. Can you try it out and switch to your optimist’s hat? Can you find something positive to say about that person, or that moment? It can be even a small detail. The idea is to focus on the opportunities instead of remaining stuck on all the constraints we are facing. And great news, the more you do it, the easier it gets!

A great example of optimism during the crisis is when looking at the positive environmental impact that the virus is enabling! And did you pay attention at the compassion, recognition and care for each other that people are developing lately?

What about the fact that staying at home empowers you to be more creative, to cook more, tide up your closets, spend more time with your loved ones (partner, children, doggos…), or even become more digital, and stay connected to your students, colleagues, clients, friends and family?

Oh! And congrats on putting some pants on today!

What else can you award yourself right now?

2) Focus on the present

When we are in a difficult situation, it is very tempting to look back at memories, people or place we enjoyed and feel nostalgic. We also fantasize about the future, being in the anticipation of a different and potentially better time. Basically, we unconsciously try to escape the situation in which we are right now.

When thinking about the remembered past or the imagined future, the mind tends to trick us in focusing and looping around negative thoughts (what if…, if only I…, I will never…).

Unfortunately, this only creates tension in the mind. Ultimately, when we come back to the present moment, the discrepancy we face generates mental conflicts.

How to find your peace of mind? It’s by embracing the present moment, the here and now, and let go of your internal chatter, that you can find a greater place of ease.

Mindfulness is the art of awareness of the present moment, of your current emotions, feelings and thoughts. Practicing regular meditation is one way to help you be more mindful during the day. Luckily, you don’t need to practice hours of meditation like a monk, but you can simply try out the following:

Can you feel your body pressing down against your chair (or the sofa) right now? Or the soles of your feet on the floor (or under the blanket)? Do you notice any particular tension in your body? What sounds can you notice right now? Now, try to take 1 full breath in and out. Here, you just practiced mindfulness! Well done, try again tomorrow to be Happy a little bit more every day.

3) Practice gratitude

Another way to find happiness is to remember what you are grateful for. This doesn’t have to be complicated or poetic. You can think small!

What nice things did you notice today around you? What made you smile (internally)?

What did you see, hear or do that you liked?

Taking a moment to note these little moments brings you happiness and ease of mind. You are basically putting on your internal smile. For example, I love hearing all the different bird songs outside. I’m grateful for a nice cup of coffee or matcha that gives me energy during the day or sitting in the sun on my balcony. I always smile when I catch the moon through my window before going to bed.

These are small things, but of course, you can find larger life-size gratitude… Being grateful for having a stable job, having a good partner, a nice roof above your head, a comfy sofa, friends that ask about you, nice quarantine snacks or just grateful for being alive…

Thinking about what you’re grateful for enables you to realize what is important in your life and be Happy.

You can write it down, a few bullet-points every day before sleeping, or post it on social media if you feel like it, but you can also just stop and think “oh, this is nice”, or “what did I enjoy today?”

4) Demonstrate kindness

Kindness starts with yourself! Be kind to yourself, please.

Can you try it right now? Can you let go? It’s OK to be worried. It’s OK to be confused. It’s OK to freak out. It’s OK to be bored!

The most important is to realize how you feel and to be open about it. Share it with people around you, your friends, or share it with us in the comments!

When expressing it out loud (or in writing!) you might realize that it is actually not as a big of a deal as it felt in your head. Maybe you’ll realize that other people are facing the same thing. It will then diminish your mental strain and even give the opportunity to people to support each other!

You become kind to others by starting with yourself!

And this is how you can develop true compassion and kindness for others, moving away from automatic criticism. Consider that there is a lot in someone that you don’t know and don’t see. We can only assume they are trying their best in the conditions they are in.

Is there someone or something you criticized unnecessarily recently? Can you manage to share kind thoughts and compassion instead?

I hope these few tips can help you remember that the road might be bumpy, but the happiness bus is still rolling. As Queen Elizabeth II just said:

“We should take comfort that while we may have more still to endure, better days will return: we will be with our friends again; we will be with our families again; we will meet again.”

Help us support each other and let us know what are the little things that you enjoy or what are the difficult things that you are stuck on at the moment!

Contact me if you want to know more or book some time to discuss with me! You can also directly look at my Calendly: https://calendly.com/annelaurecoaching/intro-call

#unlockyourhappinesspotential #stayhome

The post How to let go and be Happy? appeared first on Anne-Laure Coaching & Co.