Happiness Guide for 2010

I want to start by thanking everyone I have connected through this blog! Thanks for showing up in my life and adding your unique part in the story, your positive energy and feedback have been a blessing.

A famous psychologist Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, the author of the bestseller "Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience" (a great book, definitely recommend to read) says that the quality of your life is directly connected with the information we allow to enter into our conscious mind. Simply -- truly happy and fulfilled people have an ability to focus on the empowering information, things that strengthen their self image and build their confidence.

A year is gone and whatever you made happen in 2009, good or bad -- make it part of your strong and beautiful self image. All the events are neutral, what makes it meaningful is your evaluation. Csíkszentmihályi says that in order to become an truly fulfilled person you need to learn how to live in a flow. And a way to get there is to choose your own experience.

Maybe this exercise gives some inspiration. I just went through my personal evaluation of 2009, which I want to share with you. I wrote down all the wins from last year that first came to my mind and added in more details what I gained from these wins. Robin Sharma (thanks Aika for the recommendation!) also recommends to write down the things that you could have improved to get a clear picture on how you showed up last year.

Enjoy:)

My Wins in 2009

1. My connection with Maru

After the turbulent years in AIESEC I finally got back to the basics. There are things that really matter to you, but when living a too busy life those might get unnoticed. Maru is such an amazing person and a gift in my life. I don't think there's anything compared to the love that a mom is feeling for her child. I'm so lucky that I had a chance to spend a whole year together with him away from Estonia, re-discover our special bond and find my true role in his life. This alone outweighs everything else I learned in this amazing year:)

2. Learning the internet marketing business models

MindValley was my best professional experience so far. Working in one of the leading internet publishing companies in the world was the missing link between change-the-world and make-money. After the great years in AIESEC I finally learned the model how to make money with everything that I've learned so far. Can't express my true gratitude for this, amazed by the value of this experience and the difference it's going to make in my life.

3. Learning about parenting from professionals

I had more conversations about how to raise children in the past year than I've probably had in my whole life. I learned about Montessori system, Doman method, energy tools for kids, how to create healthy belief systems for kids and much more. The information we shared with the amazing people I met has changed the way I'm raising Maru and hopefully will help many other people as well.

4. Discovering Asian culture and traveling to 4 new countries

The adventurous side of me experienced so many daily wonders through living in a hot and humid muslim country, full of paradise islands, different languages and religions, culturally so different from the neighborhood where I'm from. I was taking weekends trips to Malaysian amazing islands, traveled to Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore and east-side of Malaysia at Borneo. Changed the way I see myself and the world, left me hungry for more:)

5. Got a book publishing offer

It's not a done deal, but even the idea of writing a book gives me goosebumps and is something I've always dreamed to do. Maybe this year, maybe in the future. But it's funny how your thoughts become the reality.

6. Started to shine as a woman

The amount of attention that you get in Malaysia is amazing compared to the much more reserved Estonia. I never imagined how much feminine energy I have and what big difference it makes when I'm truly connected with my nature. So grateful for discovering that part of myself:)

7. Maru got new skills

Maru learned to speak English and started to swim. He learned so much about different cultures -- his best friends were from China and Kyrgyzstan, muslim and christian. He benefited tons from Malaysian family-friendly culture experiencing warm acceptance in the kindergarten (compared to Estonian institutions that labeled him as an overly active and disobedient child), went to reading and writing class, local kids gym and LEGO-technical class that were all found in our area. And a little bit of romance -- Maru got his first kiss lol

8. I partied more than I ever have -- and I think I had enough:)

This point might sound funny, but for a former workaholic and dedicated christian girl with a strong mindset that partying is a sin, I never really partied, even though I wanted to. Now in KL it's super-easy to fulfill this desire:) So after having tried it I realize that there are other things that excite me much more. I don't mind an occasional party every now and then, but I don't need it every weekend to be happy.

9. Raised my personal standards

I was working with some people with really high personal standards. Seeing the productivity masters in everyday action and seeing the goals that global business leaders are setting for themselves helped me tremendously to expand outside of my own Estonian mentality. I created new success-habits -- regular meditation, expressing daily gratitude and journaling. Most importantly I improved my diet and was working out 3-5 times a week. Have never been a gym-person, so having learned to enjoy regular work-out is a major personal breakthrough for me. Hope to continue with that soon, gym is far less affordable in Estonia, but soon, soon:)

10. I met with some of my personal gurus

Meetings with Brian Johnson from the Philosophers Notes, Sean Stephenson, the 3-foot giant and Robin Sharma showed the human side of the gurus. I find them even more inspiring after seeing they are "real", not one of these fake marketing bubbles.

11. Chairing a conference for 200 people

The chairing experience in Singapore was truly amazing, realized that I know more than I knew I know. Was blessed by the love from the students and personal breakthroughs that I made on the journey.

12. I met with special people who touched my heart

Some people are sent from heaven:) They enter your world with a special message and teach profound lessons that you need to learn to get to the next level. My personal angels taught me among other things about independence, love and overcoming emotional roadblocks.

13. I could buy useful stuff for cheap money

Even though I'm not a huge fan of things, I'm even a lesser fan of paying ridiculous amounts for them. Shopping in Asia didn't leave my wallet empty and ensured me the wardrobe for the next year (at least for the summer period, khm, khm:).

14. Was published in Estonian media

Had a chance to make a presentation to a group of Estonian businessmen visiting KL that followed with an article in Estonian business magazine Director. Also had several articles in local Saaremaa newspaper: about views on life, business and everyday life in Malaysia.

15. I made a decision to start my own business

All in all it was a great year and 2010 promises to be a new kind of milestone in my life. I decided to become my own employer and explore the unknown. I'm very excited about this year, it'll be dedicated to business development and Maru. Ah, the smell of an adventure:)

Wish you an amazing adventure in 2010, babysteps every day and rock'n'roll all the way! Thanks for being one of the awesome readers of my blog!:)