(via wide open spaces)

The view out of your office window may not look like this, but we all can imagine.

Take a second, close your eyes, and see yourself looking out your window and seeing this image. Now smile and get back to work.

Happy Thursday.

(via Joie De Vivre)

Need a playlist to match your spring-cleaning mood, or songs to be your “just wake up” boost, or perhaps a “chill” playlist during dinner with friends? Being emotional has never been more fun!

Stereomood.com is the emotional internet radio, providing music that best suits your mood and your activities. You just click the words that best describe your feelings and a great playlist of mood-appropriate songs pops up!

You can also join (for free!) and start creating your own mood lists or variations to save and stream whenever you like. Be it “Feel like crying, “Focus on” or “Just wake up” there is a mood list available.

Print these out, stick them up on your wall. Save them as your background on your computer. Or share them with others who might need a motivational boost. Happy Thursday everyone!

(via Joie De Vivre)

Do you ever feel unmotivated? Is today a day where you just didn’t want to get out of bed?

Well, you’re not the only one. In times when we are feeling like this, we need to help each other.

Here are a couple things I do whenever I’m feeling unmotivated and discouraged to do anything:

1. Listen to music

Put on your favorite album while you’re getting ready for work, sing along to music in your car, or if you can, listen to music while at work. Last.fm is a good site that recommends music, videos and concerts based on what you listen to. This calms my stress levels and always puts me in a better mood.

2. Get Inspired

I subscribe to a bunch of design-related blog sites that I view in my Google Reader that really inspire me. Take for example this cleverly designed Endless Ring Calendar at Design Crush.

And I absolutely LOVE this blog by Mrs. Lilien. This Mrs. delights in bestowing her fabulousness and sharing all her magnificent Mrs. finds with friends world wide. Her little rhyming stories are so adorable and always put a smile to my face.

So on a day like today, I will go to these sites and look at great design and read pithy rhymes and just these little things will motivate me to start my day and get things done.

What do you do when you feel discouraged or unmotivated to do anything? Please share in the comments box below!

I started the new year sick.  That first critical week where resolutions go to die: I was applying vaseline to my nose so that people wouldn’t assume I was the second coming of Rudolph.  In some ways it’s awesome because now I feel better and I don’t have the pressure of sticking to things because I never even started them!  In other ways it’s tough because I’m lacking on the motivation and I have no momentum.

I’ve been really busy though.  I’ve been busy procrastinating.  I know how I get…there is one task that I don’t want to do (or six or eleven) and I would rather do LOTS of things then do those tasks.  I have a list for such times.  A list of things that I normally don’t have the patience to do….but in a situation of procrastination I can get them done.  Here’s a few examples:

Light Bulb Shopping – I have a notebook in Evernote for household stuff.  In there I mark the types of lightbulbs when I buy new light fixtures.  When procrastinating I will check to see if I have a backup of those lightbulbs and I will shop for ones that I don’t have a back up for.  It’s ONLY at times of complete procrastination desperation that I will ensure that I have the 30 watt bulb for the lamp on the night stand in the guest bedroom.

Cleaning the Kitchen Utensil Drawer – sorting through the spatula’s that have seen their last days and letting them go is not something you can do on just ANY Saturday night after all.

Matching Socks – I’m not sure how it happens and I think I’d need a PhD in something to figure it out but I can tell you that the odds of me pulling a lone sock out of my drawer that doesn’t have a partner is VERY good.  I just can’t seem to be bothered by this at the point of things being put away.

Evaluating Kitchen Towels – There comes a point where even a heavy launder can’t make a clean towel look clean.  It seems that I always pull out a clean and heavily stained with tomato sauce, avocado and black licorice towel out when I have someone here.  These towels get recycled to the dry off a wet dog pile.

But once those things are done it’s time to just buckle down and get to work.  I set a timer – I have an old fashioned egg timer on my desk – I set the timer to 27 minutes and I commit to working on ONE task that I’ve procrastinated – if it’s not done within the 27 minutes I’ve usually found enough momentum to push through to completion.

What do you do when you’re procrastinating?  And how do you grab the bull by its horns?

So it’s January 5th. How are you doing on those New Year’s Resolutions?

Need a kick in the pants to get yourself moving? I sure did! I promised myself that 2010 would be a year to get back in balance, starting with taking care of myself physically. But here it is January 5th, and I have yet to make it to the gym…

So I put together a “Hot Mama” playlist because there’s nothing like a little music to make you want to get moving! Anyone who comments on this article by tomorrow (Wednesday) at noon will be entered into a drawing to win this playlist from iTunes.

The Hot Mama Playlist

Hey Mama – The Black Eyed Peas
Bootylicious – Destiny’s Child
Sexy Back – Justin Timberlake
Stronger – Kanye West
Just Dance – Lady Gaga
Are You Gonna Be My Girl – Jet
Let It Rock – Kevin Rudolph & Lil Wayne
Viva La Vida – Coldplay
Human – The Killers
Marching On – Timbaland
Picture Me Rollin’ – Tupac
The Skin I’m In – Gavin Rossdale
Beautiful – Christina Aguilera

For an extra entry, tweet about it or post it to your Facebook page and let us know that you have done so by putting a link to your post as a new comment. The winner will be chosen at random using Random.org

If you’re feeling a little overwhelmed with all that you have left to do this week – try this little strategy to keep your mind focused on the light at the end of the tunnel…

Break up your to do’s on index cards

Reevaluate your to do list and rewrite it, even if you don’t necessarily change anything. But here’s the kick: write each task on its own index card (or cut them in half to double its use). Lay them out next to each other and rearrange them in the order you prefer to do them, a pile of “agonizing must do’s” on the right, a pile of “easier to do’s” on the left. Now, pick up one of the index cards from each pile, alternating as you go. Bind the now combined stack with a binder clip. From there, begin to complete each task, one at a time. After each completed task, tear it up and throw it in the trash! It feels so good, that moment of achievement. The smaller the stack becomes, the more motivated you will be to finish off the stack!