"Cheer Up love, it might never happen!"

Being happy and staying happy isn't up to your genetic makeup or the hand life deals you, according to a 'happiness researcher' called Sonja Lyubomirsky from the University of California, Riverside, who told an audience at the American Psychological Association that people can add to their capacity for happiness through techniques that can be learned to boost their joy.

Lyubomirsky, a psychologist and author of the 2007 book The How of Happiness: A Scientific Approach to Getting the Life You Want, offered some of her happiness insights to a crowded room of psychologists who deal with miserable people all the time.

She said that the genetically determined " happiness set point" only accounts for about half of someone's happiness and 10% can be attributed to life situations. The rest — a great big 40% — we can do something about.

Studies Lyubomirsky has conducted using certain interventions in which people express gratitude and optimism are among those that do appear to make a difference and increase happiness, she says. So be thankful, and stay Relentlessly Positive...and see the difference it makes!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!



I hope you had an absolutely brilliant Christmas and I wish you an even better new year! Why not start 2008 how you mean to go on and join the New Year Revolution? Part one, with great advice from Suzy greaves about how to live your life as if you had already achieved your goals, is already online for your delectation, and you can sign up for daily updates at



http://newyearsrevolution.blog.co.uk/



I thought I'd also share some great advice that I've been sent from the authours of The Secret. The book was a massive hit in 2007, and it's managed to get something of a cult following. Whether you believe in the Law of Attraction or not, it's still a cute book and one of those little books that you can just dip into every now and again to make you think about how positive attitude can really shift your life into gear!



Here's the message..



"How do I stop my negative thoughts?" - is a question that I have been asked many times. If you have ever asked this question then you will feel such enormous relief in knowing the answer, because it is so simple. How do you stop negative thoughts? You plant good thoughts!


When you try to stop negative thoughts, you are focusing on what you don't want - negative thoughts - and you will attract an abundance of them. They can never disappear if you are focused on them. The "stop" part is irrelevant - the negative thoughts are your focus. It doesn't matter if you are trying to stop negative thoughts or control them or push them away, the result is the same. Your focus is on negative thoughts, and by the law of attraction you are inviting more of them to you.


The truth is always simple and it is always easy. To stop negative thoughts, just plant good thoughts! Deliberately plant good thoughts! You plant good thoughts by making it a daily practice to appreciate all the things in your day.



Appreciate your health, your car, your home, your family, your job, your friends, your surroundings, your meals, your pets, and the magnificent beauty of the day. Compliment, praise, and give thanks to all things. Every time you say "Thank you" it is a good thought! As you plant more and more good thoughts, the negative thoughts will be wiped out. Why? Because your focus is on good thoughts, and what you focus on you attract.


So don't give any attention to negative thoughts. Don't worry about them. If any come, make light of them, shrug them off, and let them be your reminder to deliberately think more good thoughts now.


The more good thoughts you can plant in a day, the faster your life will be utterly transformed into all good. If you spend only one day speaking of good things and saying "Thank you" at every single opportunity, you will not believe your tomorrow. Deliberately thinking good thoughts is exactly like planting seeds. As you think good thoughts you are planting good seeds inside you, and the Universe will transform those seeds into a garden of paradise. How will the garden of paradise appear? As your life!


Rhonda Byrne



The Secret...

I always like to bring you unusual and creative ideas, and here's just the thing if you want to find the ideal Christmas gift, something nobody else has!

Rachel Mackay and her mother Sharon are the brains (ad beauty) behind the glamorous and gorgeous Chantilly Lace boutique.

Chantilly Lace is a luxury boutique that specialises in classic quality products for women who appreciate the girly and the beautiful things in life. The women founded Chantilly together and have been working together ever since to make sure that they cater for different age groups, and because of that, the website is what you might call a veritale treasure trove of exclusive and vintage products...all with a modern twist.

Rachel spent a year travelling around Australia reently, and credits her experiences 'down under' for the decision to start the company.

"I loved the spirit that the Australians have and their ability to just relax and enjoy life. Australia inspired me to set up Chantilly Lace which is much more than just the gifts we offer but a way of thinking and living.

"We believe that every woman has the right to feel great about herself and treat herself once in a while. "

I couldn't agree more!

How's this for a proper, girly gift? (Hint: I want one, Santa!)

Breakfast at Tiffany's

Simply stunning, lavender filled Eye Mask. Perfect for totally blocking out the light and sweetening the air around you with a relaxing aroma.

An exquisite assorted selection of handcrafted 'real chocolates'

Thick rich body cream, with a little added sparkle, will nourish your skin and leave you with a subtle glow. The ultimate bathroom glamour!

A charming little book which offers a rare glimpse into the woman behind the mystique and is the definitive guide to living with glamour and grace.

Get glam on a budget

Good news for all glam girlies on a budget - you can all now pamper and preen in style at a fraction of the price with LynkU.com. Definitely one of my super-favourite websites for bargain spotting, it's just been revamped and is absolutely crammed with exclusive discounts and offers from celebrity hair stylists, great spas and health retailers - not to mention some cracking one-off promotions for beauty treatments.


You can buy must have beauty classics from Dior and Clarins for a mere 50% of the usual price, gorgeous fragrances at a discount, and even better, if you're feeling a tad stressed you can book yourself a relaxing therapy like acupuncture or a massage.

Trust me, ladies (and gents) www.lynku.com is definitely one to save in your favourites’ list.

There are fashion exclusives on the site too, amazing designer discounts in women’s, men’s and children’s clothing and accessories plus some must-have home interior bargains.

If you get yourself hooked up with the site, you'll a weekly email update with all the latest offers and discounts in it, so you get all the best deals sent straight to your inbox!

The site also sends you an email alert when your favourite salons and shops launch their sales....so what's not to like?

Say thank you, now!

In the new postive thinking tome "Thank You Power," TV journalist Deborah Norville taps the emerging field of positive psychology to argue that everyday expressions of gratitude are one giant step down the road to happiness.

Like many proponents of the whole new age 'The Secret' style philosophy, Deborah noticed that when she focused on what was going well in her life -as opposed to fixating on problems - she was happier. No sh*t Sherlock...but she goes on to explain that her book differs from plain old positive thinking because of the power of the pen!

"You have to not only count your blessings but write them down."

Like all good self help manuals, Thank You Power has 'steps'. Deborah says that she jots down three or four things a day that she's grateful for in a little notebook. Mine would say Green & Blacks butterscotch chocolate, lie-ins, Ugly Betty and Facebook. Although focussing too much on Facebook just means I get less work done :-)

"Focusing on these moments puts you in "positive affect"-which is the scientific word for feeling good."

Is it? Well, OK, lets' work on the assumption that it is...

Deborah thinks that her wise words should be available for failing pop stars too. She says that if Britney Spears were to give her book a try, and had some 'thank you power' training, she might find her life a bit better to live...

Well, if you want to be enlightened:

http://www.dnorville.com/

National Commute Smart Week runs from from Sunday October 28 to Saturday November 3 2007.

November 1 last year was the first Commute Smart Day - and it got a massive thumbs up from everyone involved, so they've extended the initiative to last a whole week this time!

Workers in the UK already have the longest average daily commute in Europe: some people add another working day each week in travel time. I know how that feels, I used to spend three hours a day travelling so that's another two days sitting on buses and trains a week. I hated it and boy am I glad not to be at the mercy of public transport every day now...

Add to this the misery of traffic congestion and overcrowded public transport, and now the prospect of travelling to and from work in the dark for many months, it is no surprise that many succumb to depression and despondency. Not to mention 'public transport cold' - yuk.

Commute Smart Week, which starts on the day the clocks go back, will give a tantalising glance into a working life beyond the daily misery-trek. Employers that embrace smarter working, flexible working times (including flexitime, condensed hours and nine day fortnights), staggered journeys and part home working, reduce the overall need for their staff to commute, with flexibility in the times when they have to commute allowing them to avoid peak times.

If more employers took the plunge and looked into adopting these smarter working practices it wouldn't just be great news for harassed staff members, but it could have significant impact on traffic congestion (rather than just charging people for daring to drive to work) and public transport overcrowding by extending the rush hour and reducing peak demand, making the daily commute more bearable for those workers that have no choice.

Smarter working could also be good news for hospitals and emergency services - there is usually a significant increase in deaths and injuries on roads in the UK during the winter months, many of which are schoolchildren. So all in all, it really does pay to look into ways of making working days that bit smarter for everyone.

Work Wise UK will be publishing a series of tips and guidance on working smarter,but for now you can find details about Work Wise UK can be found on the website.

Free Chocolate!!!

http://www.aerobubbles.co.uk/main.aspx?page=empty

Click on this link and it will take you through to the Nestle home page - where you can print off a voucher for some free Aero Bubbles. Don't say Relentlessly Positive never gives you anything...

Who's been eating my porridge?

Patients at a Romanian psychiatric hospital were terrified when three bears broke into the building in search of food.

A mother and two cubs smashed a window and pushed open a door to gain entry where they found some food in a metal canister, which they dragged outside. Hospital staff called hunters to the facility, which is in a forest near the mountain resort of Predeal, 75 miles north of Bucharest.

Hunter Aurel Iordache said: "We shot her with a tranquiliser." The mother bear was seen waddling away into the woods - still woozy from the tranquiliser - with the food canister stuck on her head.

I don't know how true this story is...but it was so cute that I had to share it...

Zillions of Advantage Points and a new online boutique!

Good news for beauty junkies, the Boots Beauty Boutique is now open. If you pay a vist to what's being billed as the UK's biggest online beauty emporium you can take advantage (if you'll excuse the awful pun) of an extra 1500 Boots Advantage Points too.

The offer lasts until 10 October. All you have to do is spend over £50 before 10th October on any of their fabulous new glammed up luxury stuff.

The first 50 glamour goddesses to make a purchase also receive a luxurious Beauty Boutique goodie bag. Yippeee! I'm off there now to hunt down some Caudalie or Bliss goodies. Or maybe some Trilogy Everything Balm...or maybe some Burts Bees....what's a girl to do?

If you quite like the idea of having your hair 'pooed by a top snipper - hairdresser and celebrity stylist Trevor Sorbie is supporting Marie Curie Cancer Care this October by taking on the role of a junior at his salon on Floral Street in Covent Garden, London, for one day on October 9.

The event is part of Marie Curie Cancer Care's Back to the Shop Floor initiative which is sponsored by Persimmon Homes and encourages staff across England to sponsor their boss to take on their roles and responsibilities for the day.

Trevor will shampoo clients, make drinks, sweep the floor, run errands and clean while dressed in the all black uniform that his team of 10 juniors wears; the money raised helps provide high quality nursing to terminally ill people.

Trevor also offers a service called My New Hair where he offers advice to women suffering from medical-related hair loss.

To sponsor Trevor visit www.justgiving.com/trevor_sorbie

Have you got teenage daughters? If you have - make them visit this page:

http://www.oprah.com/presents/2007/girl/girl_main.jhtml

Oprah - queen of schmaltzy feel-good type stuff, is encouraging girls to 'learn to love themselves' and stop beating themselves (and each other) up because they aren't what the media call perfect. What *is* perfect anyway?

The O Girl, O Beautiful campaign is asking girls to sign a 'contract' with themselves, agreeing that they are smart, unique and beautiful, and will promise to find something to appreciate about themselves every day.

http://www2.oprah.com/download/pdfs/girl/girl_contract.pdf

OK, it's reeeeeally cheesy and very American. But the sentiments are good. Download it, give it to your daughters, tell them they are gorgeous and give them a big hug.

If you've ever fancied a taste of the tropics without the carbon footprint the flight would cost (or even the credit card bill) you can close your eyes and pretend you're far away with the divine Pure Fiji range.

Pure Fiji was born when a Fijian mother and daughter duo decided to save some money by making their own soaps using all of the ingredients from their local Fijian shores. To this day all ingredients are grown in the wild and hand picked.


Pure Fiji has won fair trade awards and the company is responsible for helping to build schools, water tanks and local shops for the surrounding villages. The Pure Fiji products and Spa treatments are centered around ancient Fijian tradition and focus on total wellbeing and rejuvenation. Yummy exotic nut and floral extracts are blended with fresh coconut milk and virgin coconut oil to hydrate, condition and protect skin and hair, adding vitality and softness.

Even the celebs are getting in on the act with Denise Roberts, Rachel Hunter and Jessica Alba all fans of the range. Pamper yourself in an eco-friendly way, and smell damn gorgeous at the same time!

If you're fed up with the countless single-mum bashing stories in the press, and of hearing about how hard it is being a single parent - when in fact you wouldn't have it any other way right now - how does a social network for single parents sound?

There's every reason why single parents should enjoy life to the maximum, throw themselves into parenting, work and socialising with other single parents and love every minute. Stick two fingers up to the nay-sayers and log on to singleparentfun.com instead.


Launched in June 2007, singleparentfun.com is the ultimate networking community site for the 1.9 million single parents in this country. Founder and single dad Gary Spicer wanted to join single parent families together, to encourage friendships, share experiences and find out about the best attractions to go to.

The site already has more than 2,000 members from all walks of life and family situations, from working parents to full-time carers.

Wheelie-Chic!

Well, one of the distinct advantages of being my own boss now is the freedom to lounge around in my PJs watching Lorraine Kelly on GMTV. Usually it's just frothy stuff that dosn't tax my brain too much before I have to start working (and it beats waiting at the bus stop in the rain like I used to have to...)

This morning I was half watching while drinking my first coffee of the day when something caught my eye - it was Kerry McGregor (one of last year's X Factor finalists) helping to promote Wheelie-chix-chic - a new range of clothes designed for women in wheelchairs.

The idea was developed by Louisa Summerfield, who was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis when she was just nine years old. The autumn/winter '07 and spring/Summer 08 collections have been designed by Swedish designer Amelia Ursache, a previous Elle Fashion Award winner.

Louisa says:

"We are a unique fashion concept designing clothes that are specifically tailored for wheelchair women. All our designs enhance and flatter a woman's body when sitting and yet at the same time are ultra fashionable, elegant and chic."

Brilliant idea!

Louisa applied to the British Fasion Council to be allowed to exhibit the collection as part of London Fashion Week, but they turned her down (and I thought they were supposed to be innovative and forward-thinking?) but undeterred, Louisa decided to go ahead with her own show.

"I took our designs to the British Fashion Council thinking they would jump at the chance for WheelieChix-Chic to exhibit on the catwalk at London Fashion Week, but when our application was unsuccessful I just knew the show still had to go on and so I set about organising our own fashion show.

I'm a wheelchair user myself and I'm sick and tired of making do with conventional high street fashion. I'm a big believer in that fashion should be for everyone and not just the standing up body beautiful".

Here's to that!

Well, it's not often that we have some good news about missing children...but little Alex Olver was found safe and well...and under his bed...following his a massive search for that involved a helicopter, sniffer dogs and dozens of neighbours.

The five year old crawled under his bed, fell asleep, and snoozed through the whole pandemonium as his frantic mother Claire panicked at the thought he'd wandered off on his own.

While worried neighbours, including the town mayor and the local football team rallied round and scoured the area around Alex's house in Saltash, Cornwall, he snatched forty winks...and was found by a sniffer dog.

Claire said, "We woke him up and he was very dazed and when we told him what had happened he said he wanted to see the police helicopter."

I bet he did. Oops .

Well, I have to own up to having been exceptionally lazy with this blog, but I have recently got back into the swing of things with the Queen Simply Be blog so I've decided that while I'm updating the site and giving is a brand spanking new make-over, it's about time I started posting.

I'm changing the angle of Relentlessly Positive - The Blog as well. I want to make it a bit more about life in general, and not about me. So I'm going to be scouring the web and the news for stories that are actually quite positive, and ignoring anything about the deluge of misery we seem to get swamped with on a daily basis. There's no escaping that!!!

Please take the time to visit the website, and if you've got any comments, give me a shout!