What new experience have you pursued today?

It is easy to live life the same way as you have lived all these years. We go to the same restaurants, read the same type of books, listen to the kind of music, hang around with the same type of people,---, the list can go on and on.

Is it a shame to live life in the same manner every day? No! not necessarily, however you may be missing opportunities to have new experiences that you may really enjoy.

How do you get out of this habit?

Here are a few tips:

• Ask your self this question at least once a week to begin with, 'What new experiences can I pursue this coming week?' Friday is a good day to ask this question because you then have a weekend to try it out.
• Be bold
• Seek experiences in areas you would never even dream of.
• Start small
• Have a goal of having a new experience at least twice in a month
• Take the help of others. Do things others are doing that you have never done before
• Hang out with children for new ideas
• Plan together with your spouse and have new experiences together

Try these tips. Your life will never be the same again.

Are you responsible for the rut you are in?

There are two ways to live your life, day by day. One is by getting into routines which have set in, with or without your awareness., The other by careful inclusion of those activities that tap your talents and enrich your life.

If you are alert you will weed out the routines in your life that are dysfunctional.

Here are some examples of routines that are dysfunctional:

• Reading email through out the day without doing productive work
• Surfing the Internet aimlessly
• Visiting sites that you should not be visiting
• Doing things that are the loudest and the latest
• Water cooler conversations that go on for hours
• Getting through the day without planning
• Doing things just to get by and get through the day

These are just a few examples. You can make your own customized list. I can bet that if you have not weeded out your routines, you will have a long list.

Weed the useless routines that have accumulated, and substitute them with life enriching activities.

Do you change your decision too quickly?

When was the last time you changed your decision based on somebody Else's suggestion or point of view?

Did you get into trouble because of the change in your decision?

It is time to stop this habit. While respecting others point of view is important, you should not forget to respect your own point of view.

Change your decision only if you find others suggestion superior to yours.

However, this evaluation process while changing a decision, is not easy.

Here are a few tips for you:

• Pause
• Think and weigh
• Check whether the suggestion matches your values
• Clarify all your values as a pre-work or pre-decisions exercise
• Have confidence in your ability to make correct decisions
• Remind yourself always that only you know your entire context and situation
• Look back at your decisions and learn
• Avoid making the same wrong decision again and again

Use these tips and you will breathe easy and live a stress free life.

How much can you prepare for a surprise?

Surprises come to us suddenly; That is why they are called surprises. Some of the surprises are pleasant and welcome, we love them. However, there are many that come and disrupt our lives.

While we cannot anticipate every surprise that could come to us, we can very well prepare for them. Preparation for a surprise will have to be, more at a generic level unless we can anticipate some specific surprises that could come to us.

Here are some tips:

• Keep fit-exercise daily
• Eat nutritious food
• Continuously nurture your bank balance
• Study
• Get yourself multi-skilled
• Have strong relationships-spouse, children---
• Nurture your network
• Anticipate, as much as possible, different scenarios
• Always have contingency plans-plan A, plan B, Plan C---
• Meditate and pray daily

Try them out!