How to boost your motivation at work!

We will all agree with that, sometimes we better stay under our blankets and do nothing than going to work. It happen to everyone to hate their job & have an hard time finding motivation.

In my country, I used to have a job at customer service that I truly hate, but I had a big salary, good benefits etc... I had to find a way to stay motivate & love going there 40 hours per week or I wouldn't be able to survive. Now I am lucky I have a job that I love & I'm working from home but sometimes I still need some motivation!

Let me share what It really work for me :

Bond with your colleagues!

It is the first thing to do. I don't tell you to love everybody, but find at least one person to be friend with, to have good conversation at break time, someone you can talk to when you think you are not able to do it anymore.

Stop complaining

Yes your job suck, yes you are tired, yes you are not pay enough, yes your boss is a jerk ...all the reasons are there when you want to find negativity! Stop complaining & having a pity party. Put your big pants on and handle every situation with a big smile & positive vibes. Even if you are complaining every seconds about everything, it won't change, you will still be there until the end of your shift.

Have a passion outside work

Have a passion outside work that make you feel like you are doing something with your life. Whatever it is, do something you are passionate about & make you feel good to be alive. It will keep you in a good mood to handle life at work.

Take a breath of fresh air

At least one time per day, go outside and take a breathe of fresh air. A short walk or just sitting outside will make you feel like you are enjoying the day & will provide you the energy you need to keep going.

Have pictures that remind you your life "outside"

Surround yourself with pictures of your people, your cat, your dog or everything that make you happy. You work to pay a trip to Bali ? Put some pictures of Bali on your desk & focus on this. When you have a hard time, look at your pictures or things that remind you "your life outside work". It is just a job, not your whole world.

Make something special

Once per week, make something special. Something like : every friday we are eating out, every friday morning you buy yourself a coffee & a donut at the coffee shop.. Something that will make you look forward to that day & will make you feel like you did it!

Be a better employee 

Ok this one seem weird but it is true. If you are trying to be better at your work, you will find that you like it more. Sometimes, all we need is a little boost of self confidence to kick us & give us the motivation back. You think you need more training to improve ? Ask for it.  I bet your boss will be happy to know you want a be better. Do the best that you can, everyday so at the end of the day you can enjoy the fact that you did good.

Don't bring your problems at home

It is ok to talk to your people about your struggles. But if you come back home everyday super moody, complaining about everything, they will be tired of earing you. Manage your stress and your hate & if you really need to talk about, do a 5 minutes of complaining & then get over it.

Get over it

There is no perfect job, there will always be at least one colleague that will get on your nerves, there is always phase when you want to quit everyting and say fu....that sh... but get over it. Brace yourself, chin up & be an adult. Yes working suck sometimes but this is part of life. We can't be all hippies doing nothing all day & living from the homemade soap we did every full moon ..

You can do it !
Make a huge coffee and face the week!

Unplug yourself !

One of the part of the Hygge and Minimalist Lifestyle that I really like it's to unplug ourself from social media & technology to learn how to live in the moment.

It is super hard those days to do it! It's just part of our routine to do it.
For me, the social medias are a good way to stay in touch with my family & friends that live so far away from me.

The other day the storm in the south was so intense we lose TV & Internet and we almost hyperventilate. No joke, we we're like... boring! Because we are not used to live without it, live like we used to do before.

But I learn throught experience and years that social medias need to be use in the good way.
I will say something that can't be read everywhere... the stalking on social media.

You know, that ex you broke up with a couple years ago that you go take a look at his page sometimes ... The girl your guy used to date, and you  taking a look at her instagram and compare yourself.
The test of : what kind of tattoo you should have? what haircolor is your perfect match ? what Simpson's caracter are you?.....

You know what I am talking about...that time waste. I used to have a routine with social media everynight I was taking a look at my facebook before I go to bed and every morning when I wake up... Why ? What would I miss ? Hum... Nothing. That Jessie is Lisa, that my aunt should have a butterfly tattoo and that the girl I went to kindergarten with, got a new boyfriend.

Yes, this is the kind of infos we are looking at everyday and they are more than useless.
When I was a teenager we didn't have all that (thank god!) and I spent my free time, making my homework, hanging out with my friends  & family and Reading.
So why now that I am an adult and more responsabilities ( so less free time) will I spend that precious time on social medias?

Yes this technology have some good, publishing that blog, having new clients, making friends, staying in touch with our people and this is how we should use it.

I am not proposing to live a life without that (it's not realistic) but to set some goals to unplug sometimes.

• Making a movie night with the cellphone in a basket in the center of the table so nobody touch it.
• Going eat out with your love one and no cell phone
• No cell before going to bed, a good book, a magazine or just enjoying each other
• A saturday outside with your family without any cellphone!

You understand the idea.. just unplug it sometimes and appreciate the real life, the real moment, the real sunset, the real funny move of your kid (or dog) and make memory in your head, like we used to do!

And you, do you unplug sometimes?

From a Canadian City to Deep Country in Mississippi

I was born & raised in a 100 thousand people  city in Québec, Canada. My whole family speak french, they all live in the city too. So my experience with the dirt and the mug of the country was quasi non-existent.  A few visit at a farm… and that is it.

By destiny  I met an american online and after months of relation, I decide to take the big step and move with him in the deep country of Mississippi.

Maybe one day I will talk to you about all my cultural shocks but this is not what this is about today. Today I want to talk to you about the evidence that we are made for a certain lifestyle and we just don’t know it.

I never thought that at 30 years old I will move from my hometown and I will live in a place where the closest shop is twenty minutes of car away. I thought this lifestyle was absolutely NOT  for me.

I couldn’t stand to think that I will be bored like he.. l in a town where nothing happen. But I was motivated by love and probably a lot of hope.

You can imagine how surprise I was when I first saw a cow in the backyard. I was like : Wô, this is cool (and that stink too), neighbor's dogs running everywhere without a leash, a bunch of goats in a front yard and all that stuff I haven’t seen yet.

It took me two months to realise that this was my life now  and I have to stop “grieving” my old city lifestyle.  And then it happen : I realise that I love country. I love that everyone waves hands when they see you, the breath of fresh air when you take a step outside, the absolutely amazing view and the calm of it. The calm of not having the pressure of a social status, the calm of being who I am, the calm of a walk outside with my boyfriend looking at the cows playing with each other. Having the chance to have a nature lifestyle.

I thought that I was a city girl cause I haven’t experience anything else. Now that I took a step out of my comfort zone, I realize that I was made to be a country girl. I raise and feed chickens and it make me happy and alive. I’m proud that they were just baby chicks and now they are big and ugly. I’m proud that I contribute directly to nature. I slept every night without car or motorcycle sounds!

I have the feeling that I am in communion with myself here and it’s amazing. I saw a sky full of stars for the first time without buildings, house and everything. Just a dark sky and thousands of stars. I was almost in tears. What a beautiful life is out there that I knew nothing about.

I always been a nervous person in the city and here, I am more in peace. I found calm and beauty everywhere. Why ? Cause I decide to take a step outside my comfort zone. I decide that I will try something else, I will learn, I will live and I will maybe enjoy it.

Now I know that I am not just used to it, I am happy in it. I am happier in this environnement.  I still enjoy going out in the city for a couple of days, but I am happy to see my stinky chickens and come back in this small town.

You know when you read something like you are just one decision away for a complete different life. This is it. I took the decision to follow my heart and It lead me to found the real me.

This is what life is about, experiment, take a chance, step out of comfort zone, make mistakes, try, learn, assume your choice and then found happiness.

Love,

Vé

Are you a city or a country girl and why ? Leave a comment

5 easy steps to start a more minimalist lifestyle!

I’m not the only one who discover that she get over budget after the holidays. It is not the first time that I have been interested in that minimalist and simple lifestyle but it seem too much for me to really commit to it.

Six months ago, when I move from Canada to the United States, I need to pack my stuff to make them fit in my car. Considering that my precious dog was taking the passenger seat, everything need to fit into the trunk and the back seat. So I had to make life choices. I had to pick my favorites clothes, my favorites home decor, books, kitchen stuff and everything.

When I arrived here I notice that I made really poor choices for almost everything. My clothes were not appropriate for my new climate, I left my coffee machine for cookie stamps….(yes really) and by hairdryer for a ton of jewelery & nail polish.

After six months, I realised how much money I spent to buy things that I really need and clothes and shoes that is really useful insted of cute.

I’m now working from home so I don’t need a whole office wardrobe. I am living in the country so rain boots are more useful than highheels that hurt my feets. Nail polish? Haha a real joke.

I always use the same one anyway! So why are we so attached to superficial things ?

The answer is simple, we do think we need them to be happy. This is what marketing want us to believe.

My own example : the nail polish? If I ever ran out of my favorite one (which I doubt by the way) i’ll buy a new one.

My high heels? If I ever really need shoe like that for an event, I just have to borrow them to someone. You see where I am going.

We have to redefined our priority and our way to see material stuff. What makes me happy in life have nothing to do with a statuette in ceramic. Society, marketing, facebook and all social media make us think that to be happy we have to reach a certain standard of material. This is so wrong. Why ? Because happiness is free.

So in case you want to start a more minimalist lifestyle here is my first 5 easy steps.

1. Time to declutter your house!

When I first visit New york city, I bought Fridg magnet : I love new york, a statue of liberty in ceramic, a yellow cab in plastic...all stuffs that get dust in my closet and that I never really used. So the first thing to do is to identify all the things you don’t need anymore and get rid of them. A tip : if you haven’t use a thing for more than a year, you don’t need it!

Make 3 piles : To give, to sell and Trash.

Sell all the things you don’t need or want anymore and that you can have money for it. Use facebook site, app like let go, ebay ...etc. Take all the money that you make for it and keep it to pay your debt! You will see that the things that you don’t want anymore worth more that you think. 

2. Make a good inventory of your closet

Now that your house is clean make a really good inventory of your wardrobe. Classify your clothes by seasons and put in the attic your clothes that is not in the current season. This way, your wardrobe will be simple and you will know and see what you have. You will also use your clothes. You will probably realise you already have more than you need. You don’t need short in winter time, so no need to keep them in your wardrobe in that period. It took much space and make you lose time when you dress in the morning.

3. Need to buy something?

You need to buy something new ? Think. Do I really need it? Can I borrow it ? Can I make it? Can I buy it used?

With these simples questions you will realise if it’s a need or a desire. If you can live without it and if you can save a couple bucks by buy it used. It’s not about stopping wanting to buy things, it’s more making better choice, buy more quality that will last longer and used the things you already own.

Simple but this is what minimalism is about.

4. Look what you can cut off.

It’s not about cutting everything in your life all at once, it’s to simplify your life. What’s in it need to be cut off ?

Reduce expenses :For example, you have HBO and you pay for it every month and watch a movie once in a while ; You don’t really need it.

You buy a coffee every morning on your way to work ; try to make it at home at least half of the week.

You pay a lot of money on your hair or your nails ; learn to do it yourself.

Reduce stress and toxic : You realize that one of your friend is always negative and complaint a lot and make you feel anxious ; Try to reduce the contact with that toxic person for a while.

Work or school stress you ; Learn how to meditate, deal with your stress with simple tricks that work for you.

Reduce wasting time for quality time :

You really like to workout and you have the feeling you don’t have time for it in you busy schedule ? Take a close look at your habit ; you may waste a lot of time on social media, in front of the TV on tv show you don’t really like.

You can reduce the time you waste complaining, laying on the couch, scrolling your facebook etc to spend quality time doing the things you really like and make you feel alive.

Think about what is the thing you want to change, what is your goal, write it down and make a plan!

5. Be happy with what you have and learn to find happiness in free stuffs.

Walking with my dog , drinking the first sip of a warm coffee, writing in my journal, planning in my agenda, spending time in the nature with the people I love make me happy. All those things are free. For you it might be something else but if you really look at all those little things that you do that make you feel better, you have something. Write it down and even create a routine with it will help you be more mindfulness and you will learn to be happy with things that doesn’t cost a penny.

Another thing, is to be happy with the stuff you already have. Yes in this life someone will always have something prettier, better, more expensive than you. So what? Is it a sign of happiness? No. Be happy and content with what you already have, this is the way to be happy with a simple life. Material is not a sign of success or a sign that you will be happy. Happiness is an inside job and it can be create by yourself. After all, it all start with the choice that you made and the effort that you put in it.

That is my first easy steps to start having a more simple life. Do you have any tips you want to share ? Is this article speak to you? Leave a comment!