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15 Things to Give Up to Get Happy!

Here are “15 Things to Give Up” to Get Happy.

This is good advice all year long, but especially at holiday time and as we look towards the new year.

You have the power to flip this script! It might read something like THIS:

-Believe in yourself.
-Think Positive
-Embrace Failure
-Build healthy relationships
-Engage in meaningful conversation
-Speak highly of yourself and others
-Live in Joy
-Eat to fuel your body
-Get up and go
-Positive Self talk
-One step at a time
-Go after Success
-Live in Simplicity
-Be Authentic
-Become comfortable putting yourself FIRST…or at least work up to putting yourself on the list. Take care of you!

When we give up the things holding us down, we make room for more goodness and opportunity to enter our lives.

Drop us a note in the comments on which of these you are planning to give up in the New Year, or turn the phrase around (flip the script) and tell us what you WILL be doing in the days, weeks and months to come to live a healthy, happy life.

And as we approach the holiday season of light and love, we want to offer our appreciation and gratitude to our amazing tribe (that’s all of you–our readers–from all over the world) who make this community a better, brighter, and more vibrant place. THANK YOU.

All the best,

~~Lisa (aka, The Happy Teacher!)

Want to connect with us on facebook? Do that by clicking right here. If you’re on Pinterest, you can find us right here. Grazie!

www.collegereadycoach.com


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Writing Haiku in the Rain

On Wednesday, it rained in Northern California. This is something that hasn’t been happening very often. (See also: drought.) It was glorious & noteworthy.

And so, my frosh college comp students wrote haikus about the rain. Yes, it had to happen.

And it was good. To stop. To not rush. To listen. Feel. Connect. Discover. To Write. Together.

Here’s some of what they had to say. (All writing by English100 students, each space is a new writer):

RAIN~~

Rain is like wet peace

Cascading down my body
Piercing my very soul

Grey slippery drops
Renewing luscious hillsides
Quenching nature’s thirst

Joy Fills the Gray Sky
Dull Struggles are Dropped

Clouds filled with wet life
Sound of peace with sleep

The earth is renewed
Every time rain falls down
Water creates life.

Photo @ collegereadycoach.com by: lisalu22

~~~

Each line is a complete image in very few words. I compiled this one longer poem from various lines out of the students’ original work. Each one was lovely as a stand alone haiku, but putting it together like this connected writers’ ideas to a collaborative mosaic.

Do you teach poetry in your classes? If so, what do the students think? A few of mine were skeptical at first. They needed time to brainstorm, to think it out, and to really understand that there was no objective, and no assessment. If the haiku turned out well, great. If students weren’t happy with it, then they need not turn it in. Low risk and high reward, especially as students read their poems aloud. I hope you will take some time to notice the rain, or the snow, or whatever else is of interest in your part of the world. Make it noteworthy. Craft some poetry together. Share some writing. Make some connections.

~~

I happen to love the rain. Do you? I love the smell, the way the air feels. I love walking across campus in it. Here in California, we aren’t going to be making our way out of this devastating drought anytime soon, but at least we had a little sliver of silver lining on Wednesday.

Happy Friday,

Lisa (aka, The Happy Teacher)

Need a refresher course on Haiku? It’s a form of Japanese poetry made up of three lines. Lines are 5/7/5 syllables each. The first line consists of 5 syllables, the second line consists of 7 syllables, and the third line consists of 5 syllables. Haiku often focuses on nature. For more on how to write a haiku, click here.


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Goodbye Summer. Hello Students.

I love you both. And I love teaching!

It’s a brand new school year. Get ready for:

A Fresh Start.
A new semester.

New Beginnings.
New Challenges.

And all the optimism, opportunity and rewards that come along with it. 

It’s my first day! Wish me luck! When do you go back to school? Are you excited? Ready? What do you like best about the first day? For me…it’s that sense of starting a brand new adventure. New students. New faces, New dreams. Being in a room filled with dreamers is a wonderful feeling.

Have a great start to a great year.

xo, Lisa (aka, The Happy Teacher)


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Super Soul Sunday: Advice on living a happy life.

Good advice for a successful day & a happy life. Especially for us English professor/writer-types and creative people of all kinds. We need poetry, and song, and art, and connection, in all its forms. It’s good for the soul. It’s even better for fostering creativity.

I try to incorporate a little of each every day. How about you?

goethe read a little

Make sure to take that little bit of time out to do some part of Goethe’s recipe for living a happy life.

Have a wonderful Sunday.

xo, Lisa (aka–The Happy Teacher)

 


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The Secret to a Successful Sunday!

Sunday is my favorite day of the week. It’s carefree, it’s lazy. It’s coffee at the kitchen table as the sun streams in and it’s walks in the morning with the breeze at my back.

There’s a simple secret to doing Sunday right…

The secret to a successful Sunday is found in the “not-doing.” If done right, the not-doing will set you up for a relaxed week ahead, no matter how busy you are, or how much is on the “to do” list.

And I should know. I start back at teaching in just 2 weeks, and I’m currently juggling & updating like a beast…two class webpages, course syllabi, and a whole bunch of other “first day” type stuff…but for today…

I’ll notice beauty. I’ll notice awesome. I’ll be amazed.

We all need to recharge our batteries occasionally. Take some time today to just breathe…see all the beauty around us…and be amazed. It’s my favorite part of Sunday!

xo,

Lisa (aka, The Happy Teacher)

 


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Wise Words: Speak the Truth. Even if Your Voice Shakes.

As educators, we are called on to do this often. We speak up–especially when it is for our students. Shaky voices and all!

speak truth even voice shakes

The 20 Habits of Highly Authentic People

As part of my June challenge, I’m spending the month reflecting inward. This article from MindBodyGreen was a powerful reminder of how we can all (self included!) live a more authentically happy life. Build each other up. Spend time with yourself. Notice the beauty all around. Smile at a stranger.


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Writer’s Say: Just Write. Pick up a Pen and Write.

Author of Writing Down the Bones, writing guru, Natalie Goldberg, has this to say on how to be a writer:

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Why Happy Teachers Matter

This week, I’m posting some favorite quotes and images in honor of all the amazing educators out there who teach, inspire, mentor and encourage our nation’s youth to keep moving forward. Happy teachers are a positive force for change. One kind word can impact the entire direction of a student’s life, and one lesson can light the spark that produces a lifelong learner.

Remember to #ThankATeacher this week!

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Image via CommonSense Media.

A Love Letter to Teachers…or…What a Teacher Does

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Happy Teacher Appreciation Week to all of you amazing educators. Thank you for guiding, mentoring and inspiring students every single day. For the smiles you share. The hugs you give. The belief you have that every single child needs just one caring adult who believes in them. Thank you for being the change. You make all the difference.
With love and admiration~~Lisa
#ThankATeacher

College Ready

What a Teacher Does

Encourage, Influence, Guide, Inspire…and so much more.

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