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Spinning

27 Oct

There is a game children play that’s like baseball but before the “batter” can run, they must stand the bat on the ground, place their head on top of it and spin around it several times.  Then they stand up – as best they can – and try to run to the bases.  It’s very funny to watch the players try to proceed in a straight line when they’re dizzy from spinning.  If you’ve ever played this game, you know how difficult it is to find direction when you’re completely disoriented.  Sometimes it can feel like our lives are like that.  We know where we want to go, but somehow no matter how hard we try to advance in a straight line, we end up going in lots of different directions.  There are complications, misdirection, distractions, and endless influences that pull us off our course.

Getting from point “A” to point “B” seems like a simple idea.  We just need to look at them objectively, and plot a course from one to the other.  It sounds easy but when we’re dealing with other people whose decisions also come into play, it can get confusing.  Most of the things we do in this life involve others.  We have to find a way to cooperate and work with their ideas and visions, as well as our own.  Although we may be sure which way we need to go, and we have the plan already formulated in our minds, their ideas of how proceed may be quite different.  When we try to put them together and come up with a workable plan going forward, the path may get fuzzy, and if we aren’t careful we can lose our way.  It’s like spinning before we walk forward.  We know where we need to end up but trying to walk a straight line to get there eludes us.

Before we start any journey, we need to be clear in our objective and understand the mission we’re trying to accomplish.  It’s important to know exactly what we’re trying to do before we start out.  Sometimes that’s easy to discern, but other times it can be obscure.  We have an idea of what needs to be done, but really aren’t sure about the desired destination.  Before we even begin to formulate a plan, we need to clarify exactly where it is we want to end up.  Otherwise we may find that although we eventually get to a destination, and achieve something, it isn’t what we needed to accomplish.  Sometimes that happens because there is too much input, and sometimes it’s because there isn’t enough.  Either way, if we aren’t sure where we’re headed, when we start the journey it’s difficult to get our feet pointed in the right direction and in the end may end up far from where we want to be.

Today if you’re confused about which way you’re going, if you aren’t sure what the objective is, stop and determine exactly what you need to do.  Don’t waste time spinning.  Get clarification before you proceed.  Once you’re clear on where you’re headed, you can plot your course, and despite what stands in the way, will be able to get there successfully.  You have all the tools you need to get wherever you want to go.  Clear your head and make your plan.  You’re just steps away from arriving exactly at the right spot.

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Not Even

14 Oct

There are a lot of things to learn in this life, and more things to try.  It would be great if we succeeded at everything we attempted, but that will not be our experience.  Nobody can do everything well.  It’s impossible, but despite that, we all hope for success in everything we attempt.  If we didn’t think we could achieve the objective we wouldn’t try.  But success may be elusive in some arenas, and although we hate to face it, sometimes we will fail.  We’ll flame out, crash and burn, and fall flat.  And when that happens we may lose our confidence.  We failed.  We did our best and it wasn’t enough.  It hurts, but failure is just one event.  It isn’t a life choice, it isn’t our destiny, and it isn’t permanent.  When it happens, if we can remember that, we can move forward with more certainty.  Even though things didn’t go as planned this time, what we try next may be a resounding success.

Daring to try new things takes temerity and courage.  It’s easy to be safe and secure doing the same things every day.  It’s easy to take a back seat to life and let others drive.  We can skate through our days and not try anything new, or see how far we can go.  But a life like that is not as rewarding as one where we dare to try and see what we could do.  There is no way to know if we stay in our comfort zones and refuse to venture forward.  We are capable of far more than we generally realize.  We can climb Everest, we can sail around the world, we can go skydiving, we can become fluent in five languages, or we could become President of our local club.  We can do a lot.  We just have to try.

If we fail at something we really want, it’s heartbreaking.  There is no such thing as fate and we can live our lives any way we want to.  But some things we want to achieve will be out of reach.  When that happens it will hurt, and we will be disappointed.  We may become depressed but we can’t forget that failure is not a destination.  It’s just a passage.  And today’s failure may open doors to a success we haven’t yet dreamed of.   Everything we experience in this life, even failure, brings new opportunities.  Being open to them, seeing them, and deciding to walk through new doors is exciting.  There is so much we can do, and today is the best time to start again.  If we can forget the loss of the past, and let it go, we can look ahead and move forward.  Life is all about forward momentum.  We can’t let failure slow us down.  There is a lot yet to do.

Today if you’ve been stung by failure, remember it’s just a passage to something new.  Try again.  Be brave and open all the doors.  You have so much promise and there are exciting and fulfilling opportunities all around you.  See them and embrace them.  Failure is just a way of fine tuning your path.  You know more now.  Go forward with that knowledge and conquer your dreams.  You can do anything.  You are invincible.

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All Set

13 Oct

Being busy is just part of life.  We have things we need to get done, and things we want to get done, and there are always complications that eat up our time.  We have tasks that keep us busy, and we have goals for things we want to accomplish.  It takes planning to get everything done, and if we aren’t careful, the daily tasks that pop up will take all our focus and we’ll forget about the goals that are waiting in the background.  We can think about our tasks as short term projects, things we have to address now.  The goals we’ve set for our personal growth are generally more long term.  If we want to accomplish them, we need to manage our time, and make a plan so we can succeed.  Our daily chores are important, but our personal goals are important too.  They help us define who we are and who we want to be.  Although we may think of them as a priority, if we don’t take time to plan for them, they may get lost in the shuffle.

If we have a goal that requires significant time like going to the gym for three hours each week, if we want to make it happen, we need to get it onto our schedule.  If we write it down and decide that no matter what comes we are committed to being there, we have a better chance of making it happen.  If our goal is to have more down time by ourselves it may take careful planning to be absent from our routine.  We can figure out how to excuse ourselves, and find a private location where we won’t be disturbed.  If we want to develop a more extensive social life, we can make plans for local events, and if we invite friends to join us their participation will ensure we actually attend.  No matter what the goal is, if we want to achieve it we need a plan.

Sometimes our long range goals involve a financial aspect.  We may not have the funds for them now but if we commit to a date to be ready, make a plan for saving the required amount, and implement it, we’ll be prepared when the time arrives.  If they require a fitness level we haven’t yet achieved, we can start training and maybe work with someone else until we are strong and ready for the event.  There are few things more rewarding than planning for, and accomplishing a long desired goal.  We feel gratified and happy when we realize we did what we set out to do.  Even very difficult challenges may be attained if we work for them, and plan for them.  If we start out believing we will achieve them, and refuse to let complications stand in our way, we’ll get there.  We can do anything we want to, and we can fill our lives with exciting changes and new experiences.  We can reach for the brass ring, and we can grasp it.

Today if you’re thinking about something you want to do, make a plan to achieve it.  Schedule your time to allow for it, and believe that you will accomplish it.  You can make all your dreams come true one step at a time.  Believe in yourself.  Believe you can, and you will.  You have the courage and determination to get this done.  Reach high and stretch.  There isn’t anything you can’t do.

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Getting Back Up

12 Oct

In football, the object of the game is to move the ball from one end of the field over the goal line on the other side.  It seems simple enough but there are a lot of players on the field, and half of them are determined to prevent the ball from going forward.  Everyone does their best to push ahead, and because they are struggling with each other to get to the goal, they spend a lot of time on the ground.  They fall either being knocked down by their opponent or because they are taking another player down to prevent them from advancing.  The hits are hard and sometimes they are injured and unable to get up.  But mostly, they jump back up and push forward again and again.  They take a beating as the game progresses.  Seeing it play out, it’s not that different from what we experience in our personal lives.

We’re all trying to move forward in one way or another.  We push, and maneuver, and try to gain a little ground each day.  Sometimes we get further down the road.  Other times we get knocked down.  Something goes wrong, or someone doesn’t follow through, or what we thought would work out didn’t.  If the goal is important and we’re knocked down, we have to get back up and try again.  The first few times that’s a little easier than it may be after a dozen hits.  But if we want to succeed we can’t stop.  We have to muster our courage, regain our strength, and stand up again.  There is opposition in everything we do, and if we want to win we must be determined that no matter how many times we’re set back, we will continue to push forward.

With everything we want to accomplish we weigh the costs.  Great accomplishments often require great sacrifice and time.  But they also carry the greatest rewards when we succeed.  We need to decide if those rewards are worth whatever we must do to achieve them.  If they are, and we can see the big picture instead of the problems and inconveniences we’re going through, we have a better chance of success.  There isn’t anything we can’t achieve if we want it badly enough.  If we’re resolved in our purpose, and steadfast in our focus, we can face whatever comes.  If we get knocked down, we can get back up.  And when we do we’ll be smarter, and stronger going forward

Today if you’re trying hard to accomplish a goal and you’ve been knocked down, get back up.  Envision the success waiting for you at the end of the struggle.  There isn’t anything you can’t do.  You have everything you need to succeed.  Just keep going.  You know what you want, and you will have it.

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Doing Well

29 Jul

As we go through our lives there are countless things to do.  We have responsibilities to our families, our jobs, ourselves, our homes, our cars, and the list is endless.  There is always something to do.  We have tasks, and chores, and details that seemingly never end.  We’re busy much of the time, and when there is a lot to do we may try to finish quickly by cutting corners.  We might try to do the minimum required to get the job done so we can move on.  Sometimes that works and we get by, but other times it ends up causing us more issues to fix later.  We can rush, and we can cut all the corners we want, but in the end if we haven’t done the best we could do, it may come back to bite us.

There is a saying, “Any job worth doing is worth doing well.”  There is great truth in that.  If we apply ourselves to our tasks and do them as well as we can, we will be happy with our performance, and we can move on with confidence.  There is little gratification found in rushing, and trying to just patch things through.  When we look back at a task we’ve done poorly because we tried to do it as quickly as possible, there is no sense of accomplishment.  However, there is great value in doing our tasks well.  And when we do them well, we know we’ve done our best.

In order to do our best, we need to focus.  Recent studies show that there really is no such thing as multi-tasking.  It turns out we can really only focus our attention on one thing at a time.  So if we want to do our tasks well, we need to zone in on one at a time, and make it a priority.  It may be something small, some errand we have to run or some menial chore that needs addressing, or it might be something really important.  Whatever it is, if we put our complete focus on it, and don’t try to do three other things at the same time, we will be happier with the result.  And in the end, a job done well done may prevent additional complications later.  And nobody needs more complications.

Today if you have a lot to do, and you’re rushing around trying to complete everything, try to focus on one task at a time.  You’ll get things done more effectively and because you have eliminated all the distractions, you’ll get them done more quickly.  Do one thing, and then move on to the next.  Before you know it you’ll have completed everything, and looking back you’ll be happy with what you’ve done.  Remember, “Any job worth doing is worth doing well.”  You can do everything well.  And when you do, you’ll be happy with the result.

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