We all have heard about Albert Einstein – the absent-minded genius who gave the world the theory of relativity and won the Nobel Prize. Some of us have even heard that Einstein was offered the Presidency of Israel in 1952, or that there is a chemical element named “Einsteinium” in his honor. But only a few people are aware that before becoming a world-known scientist Einstein had to face repeated setbacks, failures and criticism even from people he loved most.

Who would ever guess that he had speech difficulty as a child and was considered “slow-minded” by his own parents? Or that the brightest mind of our century failed his University Entrance Exam? Or that when Einstein had applied for promotion from patent clerk third class to patent clerk second class at his first job, his request had been rejected on the grounds that he was not “fully familiar with mechanical engineering.”?

There is no doubt that Albert Einstein has been an inspiration for many great minds of Physics, but he also knew quite a bit about the Laws of Life as happiness and success.

Here are 11 Most Amazing Success Lessons from Albert Einstein himself:

1. Keep your mind opened

“The only thing that interferes with my learning is my education.”

If we think we already know something, we stop learning, we stop questioning, we stop innovating, and, inevitably, we stop improving. Do not let your dysfunctional beliefs, your negative experiences or your education, keep you from moving forward. Sometimes the best way to make a breakthrough in  life is to leave your heavy baggage of knowledge behind.

(more…)

Most relationships start so well. There are roses, smiles, fireworks and all those exciting feelings that make us feel alive, happy, lightheaded and wonderful.

Fast forward a few years and you will learn that no matter how loving and happy our relationships may seem today, this harmony can be shattered in a matter of seconds. Over a stupid fight, a simple misunderstanding or an off-hand comment or suggestion.

And suddenly the loving, understanding and caring partner of yours is no longer there. Instead you are stuck with a furious, disrespectful, read-faced creature who is shouting accusations and hurtful remarks at you, being 100% sure that “you started it”.

Well, this happens to everyone. It happens to me. In fact, I am often the one assuming the role of an unkind, foul-tempered, fire-spitting creature.

Sometimes it hurts me to think that my relationship may be falling short of what it is supposed to be. But then I am often reminded that even perfect-looking couples that appear to agree all the time, finish each other sentences and have a halo of bliss surrounding them, have their ups and downs too.

It is part of being a human – we make mistakes, lose patience and have our flaws. However, what makes a difference between happy relationships and dysfunctional ones is our willingness to work things out, to suck up our pride, put our bruised ego aside and say “I’m sorry”.

There is no doubt in my mind that in spite of the baggage of negative past experiences so many of us carry, it is possible to build and maintain happy relationships through years and years to come.

What can save us from many arguments is the knowledge of the common pitfalls and costly relationships mistakes that most couples are faced with and that cause 90% of relationship hiccups.

5 Obstacles to Happy Relationships that every couple should know about

(more…)

Don’t you wish that instead learning about Ancient Mesopotamia and the speed of electrons at school, they had taught us something more practical – for example, how to be happy.

In fact, this subject is taught. Just not at high school but at Harvard University. The course is called Positive Psychology and its underlying premise is that we can learn to be happier, just as we can learn to drive a car or to speak a foreign language.

For everyone, who does not plan on applying to Harvard in the near future, below are

10 Happiness Tips from Harvard’s very-sought-after lecturer Dr. Tal Ben-Shahar:

1. Become conscious of things that make you happy

There is a great little technique to do this. Take a piece of paper and complete the following sentence: “To bring 5% more happiness into my life…”

Think of experiences, not things. It is not a million dollars that will make you happy. It is the opportunity to spend more time with your family, to travel around the world, to gain financial stability. But Dr. Tal Ben-Shahar, suggest that we start with the smaller blessings.
If you feel that you have run out of ideas, here are some things from my list.

2. Combine pleasure and meaning

Aristotle had a great concept called “golden mean”. He believed that we should look for a desirable middle between two extremes. This makes a lot of sense, but when it comes to making everyday life choices, we often forget to follow his sage advice.

Let’s take food for example…

(more…)