I’m not going to lie to you, after 3 days of being totally unplugged (it’s been a bank holiday here in the UK) I’m taking a while to get back into the swing of things today.

But learning how to switch ourselves back on after a well-earned rest, is one of the most important things creatives, entrepreneurs and anyone that’s out there to make things happen, can learn to do. We need to know that if we take some time out to dip into full relax mode to charge the batteries, that when we get back to it we can pick up the pace again.

For me, getting back into the zone and fired up always involves feeding up on inspiration to get the creative juices flowing. It’s the start of the whole creative journey of making things happen. I used to feel guilty about these lazy days of browsing through TED talks, going for a wander outside, pottering through Pinterest, but it’s an essential part of my creative process.

So, if like me you’re re-engaging with your work today then join me in cutting yourself some slack. Kick back, open up, absorb, be inspired until you’re ready. To leap into action and go make sh*t happen.

Here’s my Pinterest Inspiration board of videos and quotes that I dip into when I want to get inspired. Let me know if you have any suggestions of videos to watch to add to my Inspiration Board. Leave them in the comments below.

x Selina

This week I’ve got a TED talk for you to feast your eyes and ears on. It’s as funny as it is fine food for thought. It’s just over 10 minutes but give yourself an extra 5 after watching it to apply it to you and how positively your brain is wired and what you can do practically to change that…

Watch the video over here on Made in the Moment and leave your comments: https://www.facebook.com/MadeInTheMoment

For me it got me recognising how, while I am a pretty positive person, my absolute obsession with problem-solving actually has my brain hard-wired to pick out what isn’t working so well – in my life, in your life, in society as a whole – to give me a fresh new puzzle to feast on every second of every day. So while I might have a positive outlook on life, my

day to day thoughts are mainly focused on the negative.

But according to Shaun Achor from Harvard University, it’s all OK. You can totally rewire your brain in 21 days to become more positive and it floods your brain with dopamine which sounds delicious. As a result your brain will work more optimistically and more successfully.
So, as outlined in his TED talk, here is how to

Rewire your bring in 21 days to be more positive:

(this has been shamelessly lifted word for word from http://www.commongroundspeakerseries.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Shawn-Achor.pdf)

1.  Make gratitude a life habit: Each day jot down three specific things that you are grateful for and fully explain why each is important to you.

2.  Keep a gratitude journal:Concentrate on meaningful experiences and write down as many positive details as you can remember. Research has proven that keeping a journal

for six weeks can create new positive neural tracts, decrease stress and even reduce the need for medication.

3. Exercise: It improves motivation, reduces stress and increases feelings of mastery and engagement. Exercise has been proven to increase one’s IQ for two hours after the

activity ends.

4. Meditate:In a hectic world of multitasking and information overload, meditation trains our brain to do one thing at a time. Even a few simple moments of daily focus can have

enormous benefits, such as taking your hands off the computer keyboard for two minutes each day and breathing deeply.

5. Perform conscious acts of kindness: Altruism has been proven to decrease stress and significantly enhance mental health. Achor makes it a practice to start his day by praising someone in a short email. He says community service projects help families develop greater happiness and achieve more success.

* try out headspace – they are great, particularly if you’re one of those people that doesn’t think they can sit still long enough to meditate: http://www.getsomeheadspace.com

Much love,

Selina