I once heard someone say, “You are older than you have ever been and younger now than you will ever be again.” Sounds crazy, but if you ponder that, it is really true. How quickly can life be turned upside down? You could lose a physical ability you have today in an instant. A friend or relative could move away, or worse pass away. Every second is such a gift. Can you think back 10 years? What would you have done differently or wish you would have done? Realize the same will hold true 10 years from now. Live life to its fullest every second of every day.
I would love to hear some of your stories. What do you wish you would have done differently 10 years ago? What do you do to enjoy life in the present? What do you suggest for our readers that will help them enjoy their life more?
When the world around us tends to look darkness, perhaps it is is who need to be the light. We can be like the lotus in mud. A bit of beauty in an ugly world. When you find yourself in a negative situation, do not only look for the light, but think of ways in which you can be the light!
I would love to hear any of the personal examples you may have.
It is often when we are down that we fail to appreciate, and sometimes even notice, the little gifts that life provides every day. This can be when we are hurting, when we are exhausted or in my case Monday mornings, when we are tired.
Most of you know already that going from being a DJ to my day job on Monday I get about 2 hours of sleep. It can be tough to look around and appreciate the Miracles of life when you are that tired. It is exactly that which will give us the energy and keep our vibration from slipping lower. Draining us physically, mentally and emotionally.
This past Monday serves as a good example. As I was driving to work, cursing the lack of sleep and energy I was feeling my favorite song came on the radio. Being it is not one of the 10 the are paid to play on repeat all day, in fact it is quite rare, made it stand out. I felt grateful.
It was also a wake up call to remind me to focus on what was working and good in my life instead of what was lacking. After over 20 years of working in self-improvement and with the law of attraction you would think I should know this. As stated earlier, being in a depleted state can make you forget what you know.
The great thing was after that initial noticing, I started to notice other things to appreciate. The great cup of coffee that not only tasted great but would help me wake up. The car that helped me get to work. Even the work I was going to as so many others are looking forwork. Make sure you are always on the lookout for the little Miracles life sends you.
Sometimes life is ‘addition by subtraction’. That is, there are things we have, or do, in our lives that make them worse. Is it an addiction to sugar? Maybe we are prone to gossip? Perhaps it is hanging with a crowd we just know are not good for us. Whatever the case, our lives would be better without them.
What we struggle with is the perception of these things. They are not just ‘bad habits’, they are literally stopping us from becoming all we can be! They are an internal enemy! We must fight to eliminate them from our life!
My suggestion is to think of one food, habit or person that you would be better off leaving in the past. Work on eliminating that from your life. I would love to hear what you are working on!
Life is a balance. This quote is a good representation. I think most of us fall on either side of this equation. How about you? Do you act without engaging your thinking apparatus? Perhaps opening your mouth while keeping your mind shut? Perhaps you are someone who sits on the sideline wargaming everything but never engaging in action? Worried about making the wrong decision so you never make any decision at all.
Next time you are facing a challenge in your life, ask yourself which one of these two camps you fall in. Are you acting without thinking things through? Maybe you are spending too much time in your head and need to get out there and start taking more action. Even if the action you take is incorrect, you will certainly learn that quicker than if you never acted in the first place. Can it really be this simple? Find out for yourself. Next time you are challenged, ask yourself if you need to act or to think more.
Love the last line of this quote, “and it’s not only about trains.” Raise your hand if you have found yourself on the ‘wrong train’ in life? If you do not have your hand up, you have been extremely lucky or are not being completely honest with yourself. We have all been there and there is no harm in getting on a wrong train. That could be a job, a relationship or any other area of life. Sometimes it takes a while to realize where the train is headed. Sometimes we change our destination and need to adjust what train we are on. Life can be like that sometimes.
What is meant by the longer you stay on the train the more expensive the return trip will be is that the more we persist in the wrong actions, the more difficult, and often more expensive, turning things around will be. How many of us have heard people stay in jobs or relationships they know are wrong because they have been there a long time. It is equivalent to staying on a train that is heading to the wrong destination. Here is another fact to keep in mind. Even when we do get on the right train, we do not get to our destination right away. We may often have to travel back through some of the same ground that we have already passed. Take relationships for example. You may finally find the right partner, but experience some of the same problems from the partner you left. This can be for 2 very good reasons. First, you might be part of the problem. Second, to this relationship, the problem is brand new. You may have fought about it with your ex countless times, but hey, this is a new train. If you are practicing the tools and strategies on this site and in my books, you will be better equipped to handle it in a more productive fashion than you have in the past.
While you are traveling on your right train, be sure to enjoy the scenery. Often, we are so focused on the destination we miss enjoying the trip. Plus, the scenery can tell us that we are on the wrong train, or at the very least, our train might be on the wrong track. Perhaps you do have the right partner, but your relationship may need a little guidance. Focusing on a shared destination and what is important to see on the journey.
Speaking of the journey, it can often be misleading. On the way to a tropical destination, you might have to go through the mountains and see some snow. Keep the destination in mind and adjust your travels. If you are looking to get to the tropics and the weather outside the train seems snowy for far too long, maybe it is a sign to ask yourself, “Is this train headed in the direction I want to go?” If it is not, maybe you need to switch trains, or switch tracks.
Same with careers. Is your job using you or are you using your job? My day job used to feel very incorrect for me, but I have learned to ‘switch tracks’ and put it to use for me. I practice the tools and strategies I learn on my coworkers, helping them level up and live the best life they can. Can you find ways to put what may seem like the wrong train on the right track?
Let me share a little bit with you. I am currently reading a book on persuasion. It is really eye-opening. How advertisers, politicians and others use persuasion to influence our decisions. We have all experienced this. We are looking up camping spots for our friend when we suddenly start receiving ads for camping gear, woods themed bedding and even a stuffed bear that talks. Yes, advertisers will use social media to put ads for things we have expressed interest in. Even if that interest was to help our friend get a spot to put up their tent.
Here is the tricky bit, most influence is not that obvious. Cereal makers place sugar filled, unhealthy and addictive cereals at eye level…for children. The boxes are full of bright colors. Ones that have been studied to foster a sense of hunger. They also have bright cartoon characters. They may even feature phrases like, “part of a healthy breakfast.” What they fail to mention is that it is a very small part, like the treat you would give yourself for eating something actually healthy. Most of us fall victim to these methods of influence. Here is the scary part. When we grab that box off the shelf, we think that we are the one choosing what cereal we are buying. As you can see, there are lots of influences we may be unaware of.
Political ads. Here is another source of influence that people do not realize. Firms are hired to pick pictures, pieces of quotes, what words have the greatest emotional impact down to even what colors reflect what emotion. Then they are mailed out to you and I. They come on our phone, our laptop, our television, our radio and even that meditation video you are using to relax on YouTube. Before long you find yourself parroting some ridiculous story about the opposition riding with the headless horseman stealing babies. Things that if you really stopped and thought about really do sound insane. Here is the truth – divided people are easier to rule. You might want to read that again.
This post is not about political ads, however asinine they may be. Trust me, there is always an election going on somewhere. It is about that fact that a good portion of our lives is manipulated by others. Even beliefs we grew up with. We might have been raised to think a certain group of people are bad. Armed with this knowledge, we never associate with such people. After all, why would you want to associate with a group of people who are bad. By never actually getting to know them, we just continue to foster the belief that was thrust upon us before we were old enough to think for ourselves.
Starting today, I beg of you to begin to reclaim your life from the advertisers, the politicians and even the outdated beliefs. Have an honest conversation with yourself as to why you believe what you do, why you act and speak as you do and where that information comes from. Before you go to the store, know what you are looking for and what is important to you. Read labels. If you still want to buy a Pop Tart, go ahead, but do so because that is what you really want to do, not because it is in front of you in the snack aisle.
Life is over quicker than we think. It is up to all of us to make sure we are living a life of our own choosing. Do not hate your neighbor because someone else told you that you should. Get to know your neighbor. We all have our faults, but we all have our skills and redeeming qualities as well. Live your life on your terms!
Here we are, Monday morning. Back to the grind as they say. What all of these cliches do not tell you is what this ‘rat race’ may be costing you. Many people have greatness deep within them waiting to come out. In fact, I would say all of us have that area in which we both love and do well at. The sad truth is that most of us are too tired at the end of the day to pursue this course of action. We give our best time and energy to keeping the lights on and a roof over our head. That is admirable for sure.
What this post is here to remind you of, is that we must give ourselves time for self-reflection. Many do not know what the area we were born to do is. We do not know what that intersection of self-fulfillment and service is. We might work on it on the weekend or the occasional day off. Some of us put discovering what this is until after we retire. By the time we figure out how to put in action and bring it out to the world, we are dead. That is a sad truth. Let me assure you that I understand being tired. Working 55 hours a week at a day job, DJing on my only day off can be exhausting. Still, my life mission of helping others become the best version of themselves and live their best life is so important to me, we are currently at 1040 days in a row of bringing you content. I am also working on bringing my fourth book to life.
That is why it is so vital that you begin to explore what really lights you up inside. Is it fishing? Is it painting? Is it talking to others? There are opportunities in all of this. Begin to explore those things in hobbies and side hustles. You might have to lose a little sleep, but you will gain energy with the excitement and passion you use. I promise you this is how you can make the biggest impact in the world, by doing what you love. What the world needs are more people doing what sets their soul on fire. Won’t you join us?
It would be safe to say that the world feels pretty divided right now. There are lots of folks fighting for their beliefs. Sadly, there are many fighting against each other. This may come as a surprise to many, but you cannot bully, yell or argue your way into convincing someone your way is the best way. What you can do is become the best living example of why your way of life is admirable. Would you take financial advice from someone who is broke? How about workout advice from someone who is hopelessly out of shape? Probably not.
See this happy couple? People ask us our secret all of the time. I would like to see more couples respect each other and constantly work on improving their relationship. What do we do? We are that couple. Do we always get it right? Of course not. Then we hopefully work on being an example of the kind of people we would like to see handling a disagreement with their spouse correctly. It is not only intimate relationships either. How you engage with anyone says a lot about you. Do you wish people would respect your beliefs? Then ask yourself if you are someone who respects other’s beliefs? Do you wish we would treat other with kindness? Ask yourself how you treat people who cannot do anything for you. Do you still treat them with kindness and respect?
My favorite bit of advice has always been “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” I do my best to live up to that every day. How about you? Are you the personification of the changes you wish to see in the world? If not, wouldn’t it be a good time to shine by example?
Every day it seems we are bombarded with messages to create a sense of urgency on our behalf. “Buy this before you will miss out on this epic sale!” “Pay you tax bill before you go to jail!” “See the doctor about your condition before you fall over dead.” Obviously, some of these are good advice to follow. Generally, waiting to deal with a problem seldom makes it better. It is good to tackle that debt before it gets out of control. It is better to see the doctor at the first sign of trouble. As far as buying that exciting new sports car before the summer sale is over? That might be pushing it.
Many of these advertising giants employ two tactics to create this urgency. One is fear of what might happen if you do not address it. This works very well in our tax and doctor example. The other is fear of missing out, or FOMO as it is known. What will you miss if you do not act now? Will it be saving large amounts of money for a car to impress the neighbors? We sure can be moved to action by those who would like us to buy their products.
Here is the crazy thing, we are missing the sense of urgency we should have. That is to make the most of life. I realize that this may sound like some cliche put forth by a self-improvement guru, but hear me out. Every day, sometimes multiple times a day, we lose opportunities. People pass away. Jobs are lost. We get a terrible diagnosis. The sands of the hourglass do not stop. Not for us, not for those we love. To some, this may sound like I am dwelling on a morbid subject. View it how you will, but it still remains true. The days, and the chance to make the most of them, are slipping away by the second. This becomes more clear when you go through a near-death experience or as you grow older. Being a member of both of those clubs, let me assure you that I see this fact very clear.
You might think this has little to do with you because you are still young. Not so. Yes, the more years you put behind you, the more likely you are to meet an untimely demise, but youth is not a promise to life. In today’s world we can see this more and more. War, famine, political unrest and social violence has all but come the norm. Not to mention the lives of others in your life. You do not know what their situations are. Your time with your children is growing shorter parents. Children, you will only have your parents so long. Best friends are only rented, even if they last a lifetime. We are never promised tomorrow, but we can make the most of today. That is the urgency we are trying to convey here today. Tomorrow is not promised for any of us. Say “I love you” one more time. Forgive and move on, not for their benefit, but so you can reclaim the peace in your heart you so richly deserve.
Look at the sands in the hourglass. They fall second by second. The amount on top forever getting smaller. We do not know how much is left on the top of hourglass. What I can promise you is that it is less then it was when you began reading this post.
SECRET 2 AN AMAZING LIFE 