Have you ever had a rough day? Just about all of us can say yes to that one. What about a tough week or year? How do you overcome life’s obstacles when it seems like everything in life isn’t going your way? The following blog is all about empowering you to live a life of happiness amongst the chaos. No matter how bad it seems, there is always something good we can choose to focus on. Included in this blog is evidence based research, some personal and professional experiences to help connect the science to reality and lastly I include some fun GIPHYS to help lighten the mood. If you stay to the end, I share a valuable giveaway that was SO sought after in the psychiatric hospital I worked at that patients in other areas of the hospital asked me how they could move to my hall to be in my group. You are not going to want to miss out.
Must Know #1: 
Know what it looks like to overcome obstacles
Check out this theory for some guidance: Hope and Hope Theory. According to their 1000 studies conducted, pursuing a hope goal will increase your life satisfaction. No matter what obstacles come in your way, make sure you focus on the end goal and that goal should bring about a sense of hope within you and others. For me personally, when I have a rough day in business or in my personal life, I remind myself of why I first started the business. None of you would be reading this right now had I not been obedient to the Calling. My hope is that one day everyone in the world would have a hope seeded so deep within themselves that thoughts of self-harm and ending their lives prematurely would never even be in their consciousness. It’s a very big goal and probably will not be achieved in my lifetime. However, Martin Luther King Jr. and Ghandi had big goals too!
What are you most hopeful for today? This week? This month? This year? I’d be honored if you’d share your thoughts to my Facebook account and the most hopeful story that touches my heart will be shared on all my social media channels. I am most hopeful for peace in my Nation right now and if I can help in a small way through my content and actions, it gives me a sense of purpose to keep going.Your turn 
Must know #2: Know what some signs and symptoms a friend or family member might be going through some obstacles?
I know it sounds obvious but they’re going to tell you.. They’ll say things like “I’m struggling” Or “I’m not doing well because…” My question to YOU is, how are you going to support them? What will you tell that person you care about? One of Move Happy®️Contest Winners Victor L Malloy said this week: “help someone else with the talents and gifts that you have!!! Give unconditionally and know that you will get a positive return!!”
When I’m going through obstacles and I need someone to encourage me I wish they would say things like, “ let’s talk about it some more, what’s going on from your perspective? What is something that you can do to change your situation? What is something you can’t control that you need to let go of?” Those questions are powerful to empower someone that is struggling because there’s always something they can do to change their situation and there’s always something they can let go of. Additionally, some people just try to solve your problems for you by telling you what you should do. A real friend and/or powerful therapist or mental health facilitator will elicit power within yourself to solve your own problem. You shouldn’t have to be told what to do from anyone unless its your first day on the job. I encourage everyone to seek people that will help teach you to be wiser, kinder, and more focused on self improvement daily.
Share your best ideas to my LinkedIn and the best responses will be shared! If you’re struggling with obstacles right now, write a response you wish someone would say to you. I love you all 
Must Know #3: 
Know what the Global Impact Of Overcoming Obstacles is.
It’s estimated we all go through trials at least once in our lifetimes.. Many are related to disabilities.. The United Nations estimates 1:7 people experience disabilities (like cerebral palsy, obesity, or schizophrenia) which makes it more challenging to pursue a healthy life balance.
There is a 32-page 5-year pamphlet outlining goals to help people with disabilities globally from the United Nations here. The first key to helping others overcome obstacles globally is to be aware how prevalent the problem is.. Next is to understand who has greater disadvantages to be able to positively support them (like people with Down Syndrome have a more challenging time with obesity and might need more encouragement and opportunity to move their bodies). Finally, application of knowledge in your own community first is key to greater global impact. If we start taking inventory of who needs support in our communities to overcome obstacles, and actually help them, we will lower the stats of 1:7 in the world. Nothing good happens fast alone.. We must work together to support one another and begin believing in a better future for our families, our neighbors, our country and our world .
Agree? Comment with 1 kind act you’re going to do to help improve these stats and share to my Instagram page. The kindest kind act intended and actually done (With Video/Picture Proof) will get a shoutout on all my social media AND a personal invite onto the Move Happy Movement Podcast©️later this year. You have until the end of January 2021 to qualify ❤️. Check out this page for ideas on kind acts. Love you 
Must Know #4: 
Know what the best solutions to overcoming obstacles are.
There is no magic about it. The best solution to overcoming obstacles is either solving the problem, or focusing on helping others until the problem solves itself. When we focus on giving, we forget our pain. This past year during the Covid-19 shut down globally many people have felt isolated. As a potential solution for graduate students a program based in Canada came about to bring writers together for some community. They published a great article on the benefits of it. Check it out here.
For me personally, I have been journaling since age 8 or 9. Some seasons I write more and some I write less. I have kept all journals and reflect on them once a year. Its very cathartic to see how far you’ve grown from the time of childhood, adolescence and young adulthood. My hope is to continue growing and overcoming obstacles daily. As Les Brown has often said, we’re either going through a problem, just got finished with one, or headed towards one. We might as well practice and prepare in writing how to overcome life’s obstacles and share with those we trust.
What do you typically journal about? If you feel comfortable, take a screenshot of your writing sample or favorite journal to write in and Snap it to me @TheMoveHappy.
Move Happy®️ Updates:
The Move Happy Movement Podcast©️ is going strong. Check it out on iTunes , podbean and someone added it to Listen Notes #NotMe 😂 . We are going strong thanks to YOU! No ads, no bots creating fake downloads. You are spreading the word! I hope to help at least 1 person a day with the guests I bring or when I talk about important leadership topics by myself. Thank you for helping spread the mission of empowering depressed people globally to find their own happiness through mindset, community and fitness!
Once we hit 10,000 downloads I’ll be hosting a Private VIP Concert For Those Consistently Sharing Move Happy®️Content and writing reviews on iTunes! 💃Check out where our downloads are at now ⬇️⬇️⬇️
Must Know #5: 
How Can Move Happy
Support YOU Overcoming Obstacles?
I’m really proud to share with you a journal I designed for the most sensitive population in the world . Patients in a locked psychiatric hospital. In my particular hall, my patients were there for a minimum of 180 days and some up to 30+ years. I knew within me they needed help transitioning out into the world. Our recidivism rate was 9x (which means how many times on average each patient returned after being discharged). That was a side goal which would help lower costs for everyone (including tax payers).
My main goal was to empower my patients to believe individually that they could find happiness if they kept their focus on positive outcomes. I wanted them to experience something fun, authentic and not connected to drugs or alcohol as many of my patients had co-occurring disorders (which means an addition to drugs/alcohol in addition to a psychological diagnosis).
I also knew the power of exercise on mindset and combined journaling, group discussion, and workouts with minimal equipment on improving mood. Additionally we had no budget to work with.
By the 3rd round I had earned a promotion within the hospital that no one was even interviewed with in over 30 years without a state license in psychology. However I got the promotion 
The journal had a lot to do with that because I brought it into my interview and the head of the psychology department was so impressed by what I had created 
If you click the link here it will prompt you to enter your email address where a digital version of the Move Happy Participant Journal©️ will be emailed to you.
If you are a psychologist, group therapist or a group fitness instructor that wants to combine journaling and group discussion to your workouts I strongly encourage you to download the journal and stay connected to my email list 
If you are a teacher that is doing online school with your students right now, feel free to download a digital copy and use it as part of your writing lessons. You might need to adapt the verbiage to their age level. For really young kids (Pre-K-1st graders) you might need to encourage them to draw pictures that are their interpretations of their responses to the questions. For older elementary ages, they will be able to write some. The older they are they should be encouraged to get more in depth with their feelings and thoughts (2nd-5th graders). With middle and high school students you can encourage leaders within the class to facilitate conversations within small groups depending on maturity levels. If you’re a substitute teacher, feel free to download a digital copy and have it as a backup plan for positive behavior (reward students towards the end of the day 😉).
Some of the questions I included have higher level challenges as I had some patients return a 2nd and 3rd time to the group and didn’t want to bore them with the same materials they they had increased their positive psychology strengths. Those are included in (Parenthesis). Feel free to ignore those the 1st round and incorporate them as you see fit.
Lastly, the format might be off depending on your computer 👩💻. I had them as PDF when my 1st business name was released and hired someone that didn’t know how to fix the format and I don’t know how to fix it either 😂. Feel free to adapt to fit your OCD/particular needs as it’s free for you right now 💜. #YouGetWhatYouGetDontThrowAFit
All that I ask is that if you download the 16-week journal, please use it, and email me feedback (the positive, the negative and suggestions for improvement for your age/demographics). I will share testimonials on all social media to help encourage others to use the Journal and give you credit if you’ve added your own ideas 😊. Please include whether you want recognition and your professional links if you want people to connect with you.
So there you have it folks! Thank you so much for reading this far. We talked about overcoming obstacles in this blog. I strongly encourage you to journal (either with my free giveaway above or your own personal fav), get some friends together (digital or otherwise depending on your Covid-19 numbers), and move your body daily. We all can choose to focus on terrible things. We can all choose to focus on good things. We can call ourselves “realists” and really be “Pessimists” because of all the negativity we choose to absorb on the news and other means. It really is up to us individually to choose what we allow in our minds, in our hearts, and what ultimately comes out of our mouths. I choose to minimize garbage in my life so I can be kind in my content and in my personal life. I hope you will too!
I hope I have added value to you today. It would mean the world to me if I did add any value, if you would share this blog with someone you care about.
PS: Don’t forget to tell someone you love them today…
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