How to Write For Yourself

Hello bffs! It's been a while since I posted last and I'm so sorry, but I've been getting quite lazy since I changed my name, but that's ok. I'm still figuring things out.

Today I'm going to teach YOU how to write for yourself! I'm not talking about blogging for an audience or writing a paper, I'm focusing more on journaling and keeping up with your life. So here are some whys and hows for writing in a diary or journal.

DO IT YOUR WAY

Via thoughts-of-a-fangirl.blogspot.com

If you are a neat person and need a theme for all of your pages, then make one! If you are a mess and just need a spot to rant every once in a while, then use your book as an outlet! Don't do it one way or another because you saw it on Pinterest and thought it would be the best way. It's ultimately your own space and you get to decide how to run it. Using your own method will also make it more likely for you to want to continue. Be original :)

YOLO

What always kept me from consistently writing was not having things to write about. I was scared that my sister would find read my journal and use it as black mail or something. But you know what I decided this time around? YOLO! Who cares if she reads it! I'm not going to lay it on her pillow every night but so what if I write about my life? I will write what I want and pretend to myself that nobody will ever read it.

DON'T FORCE YOURSELF

Via etsy.com

 When I was about 10 years old I told myself I would write every single day. It got to the point where I'd scrawl out "HI IT'S 9:33 PM AND I HAVE NOTHING TO WRITE ABOUT HAHAHA HEY GUESS WHAT I HEAR DADDY COMING UP THE STAIRS NOW WHAT DO I WRITE" and that got me absolutely no where in life. So if you really, honest and truly have nothing to write about (which shouldn't happen that often, be creative !!) then skip it. Carefully though, because not writing is a very bad habit.

BE HONEST, KIND, THANKFUL

Via beautyhigh.com

Don't hate on yourself. Compliment yourself and count your blessings.

And lastly, here are some tips to add just a little spunk to your journal!

Via hearthandmade.co.uk

Hopefully this inspired you even if just for the teensiest second. Have a spectacular week!

-Bree, the girl without shame♥

How to Take a Compliment

I saw this teenager post on my Twitter feed the other day from @HuffPostTeen and I got really excited because this would make a great blog post! Obviously I googled 'how to respond to compliments' and I feel I have researched this subject thoroughly. Ok, not really, but I'm doing my best!

com·pli·ment

noun

ˈkämpləmənt/

1. 1.

   a polite expression of praise or admiration.

   "she paid me an enormous compliment"

   synonyms:

   flattering remark, tribute, accolade, commendation, bouquet, pat on the back; More

verb

ˈkämpləˌment/

1. 1.

   politely congratulate or praise (someone) for something.

   "he complimented Erica on her appearance"

Personally I get embarrassed when someone compliments me and I don't know what to say. I think a lot of kids these days have that problem too, and it all comes down to confidence. I have previously written a post called How to Be More Confident and you should probably read that too, if you are really serious about this.

Via happymonsters.tumbr.com

It really is pretty simple. You just have to have the courage/confidence to go through with these three "easy steps." 

1. SMILE
2. SAY THANK YOU
3. SINCERELY RETURN THE COMPLIMENT

Ok, the last one is really the hardest. But with a little practice, you'll be a pro! 

Here is my guide of how to return a compliment: If they compliment your appearance, make a nice comment about theirs! If they say something about your personality, say something about theirs! If they praise your actions, praise theirs right back!

But here is the important part. WHAT NOT TO DO WHEN SOMEONE COMMENDS YOU FOR SOMETHING.

Do not, I repeat, do not, deflect praise. It's not modest, it's a teensy bit rude, kind of like rejecting the person that gave it to you. For example, someone says to you "Wow, your writing piece was very impressive"

Yes: Thank you so much! I actually just finished reading your last post and it was amazing, especially the part blah blah blah 

No: Oh, no it was garbage, I suck at writing

A lot of people these days try to play down their work to be modest, but it makes the rest of us feel terrible. I know when I tell someone they did a good job, and they say they didn't even care about it, I feel like a talent-less wreck! Do you know what I mean? I tried really hard and they didn't, but they still did better!

This is especially a problem on social medias, because sometimes people post selfies to get praise, and then act like they are super ugly or something. It makes me a little upset! I just want to shake them by their shoulders and yell at them "YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND!!!!"

To fix my anger, I have decided to challenge myself by complimenting people way more than normal. Since I've been watching Parks and Recreation a lot, I have been catching on to Leslie Knope complimenting. 

If you want to do my challenge too, next time someone says something nice to you, be sincerely nice back to them. It shouldn't be that hard. You can do it!

Love, Bree♥

p.s. you are a wonderful tropical fish and thank you for looking at my blog

How To Clean Your Bedroom

Since school is over for me, I've been spending way too much time in my room, and in order to get anything done, I need my space to be clutter-free and organized. Cleaning your room could take 30 minutes to a few weeks, depending on how messy your room is, so be prepared to do some work!

• Get ready! I like to put on some music that I can sing along to, that will distract my mind from straying too far into cleaning. Let your family know that today is official cleaning day! When they know you are already doing something productive, they will be less likely to add random chores to your to-do list.

• The first step is to make your bed. That is usually the main part of a bedroom, so wash your bedding, including pillow-cases, and make up your bed again!

• While your bedding is in the wash, perhaps move onto a smaller project, like removing trash, getting rid of useless papers, organizing your makeup, nail polish or something like that. Organizing the little things makes your bedroom look much more efficient!

• Get as much as you can off the floor. If you don't have a lot of shelf space, place items into specific stack-able boxes. When less is on the floor, it's easier to vacuum/sweep and your room looks bigger.

• Laundry is always on the floor in my room, and it is my #1 problem. (I might be writing this post to avoid putting it away) My dresser is rather small, so fitting everything in is always a struggle. If you have the afternoon off, put on some music or a movie, and get rid of all the clothes you don't wear. You can give your old clothes away, donate them, and I usually give them to my younger sisters as hand-me-downs. My shirts are about 50% camp shirts, 20% School shirts, 10% ugly and 20% wearable, so I try to give away my old school tees and the ones I don't like. DON'T GET TOO ATTACHED TO CLOTHES

• Re-organize decorations. I have a cork board in my room and every couple of months I like to replace the items on it with newer things. I have post cards, drawings, quotes, pictures and a ton of other stuff that I can rotate through, to leave my room looking just a little bit newer and more exciting.

Those are just a few ways to start de-cluttering your room!  Remember to work on one project at a time until it is finished, so that you don't have several different messes in your room and no work done at all. 

Did I miss something important, or do you have a great way to clean? Let me know in the comments!

Have fun cleaning and don't procrastinate too much! -Bree

How to Handle Being Busy

Hi guys! I've been rather busy lately especially of the after school variety (Aladdin!!!) so having to be ready for the most has become a little more real to me! This will probably seem like nothing to most of you but I've never really been the kind of girl in all the clubs and sports after hours, so it's a lot for me!
Here are some hopefully helpful ideas that can save you time and come to the rescue when life happens!

+Have at LEAST 2 ways to get into where you are going. Whether it's a door, a janitor, a back road or the digits of someone that is already there, I HATE being late! So know somebody that can help you get in if you can't by yourself. I have found it really helpful to know people on the inside ;)


+Always have a snack on you. You have no idea what a big difference a granola bar can do to your mood. Try not to eat super sugary foods when you are rushing around town, because you will crash and burn!!! Also, eating too much at once and then having to keep moving SUCKS! Don't make yourself miserable.
Be smart

+If you are wearing fancy shoes that hurt your feet or give you blisters, bring socks, band-aids and comfy shoes! A lot of people roll their eyes when others complain about shoe problems because they chose to wear those, right? Well be resourceful and bring a change! I recommend flip flops because they can be shoved in a back pack without being heavy or taking up much room.
 

+Your attitude is so important omg You guys! When your life is moving fast, you're bound to trip! Being okay with tripping is essential to dealing with this stuff. Be happy shake it off and laugh! You are okay.
Sometimes when you are too caught up and stressed out and you need to lay on the floor and cry for a little bit, that's awesome too, just not every night, that's unhealthy.
 
Being stressed out all day every day is most likely not worth everything you are doing. If you need to take a night off and have some alone time, do it! Say no to going out. Breaks are good so that you can be fully focused when you need to be busy. :)

So sorry for the extremely long post, but it's Tech Week at the theatre and the show opens tomorrow, so I felt bad for not posting anything fun this week. I hope you enjoyed/got something out of this post, leave a comment if I missed something, and don't forget to click follow!