Tag: self improvement

IF BABIES CAN, WHY CAN’T WE?

Last night, Margie and I stopped at Olive Garden. Certainly not my favorite Italian restaurant, but it would do nicely when you are craving some pasta. We had a wonderful server and a very nice and filling meal.

The most impactful thing for me happened before we were even seated. Waiting for a table in the lobby we were seated next to a family that had a child between 1 and 2 years old. Suddenly, that child spotted another around the same age and took off running.

As the two children stopped in front of each other and stared, the adults looked on. These children did not know each other, were of different races and were not introduced to each other. Before long they were running around the lobby following each other.

Such a simple and heartwarming event. It was their innocence that allowed them to do something most adults struggle with. Walk up to a stranger, one who looks different than you, and just start sharing life with them. They found bliss in the moment. I think that is something we lose along the way that would be worth finding.

KEEP WATERING YOURSELF

This should be of no shock to anyone, but we live in a rather crazy world. Between the news outlets and the advertising budgets, we are bombarded with notifications 24/7! We were always taught that technology would give us so much free time, but it often gives us more stress. That is not to say there isn’t wonderful things technology does for us, but I am not sure about all of that free time.

That is why it is so important to ‘water ourselves’ with the items above. Keep the mental health up and the stress level down. Have you thought about, or do you do any of the above on a regular basis? Do you love yourself? Do you practice self-belief? How about patience? Hope? Do you have actions to help you develop or experience these things? It might be a wise idea to print out, or write down, those words and have fun finding ways to work them into your daily life. I would love to hear some of your ideas!

YOUR BIGGEST COMEBACK!

In life, so many people do their best to put us down and keep us down. It can be for our race, our beliefs or just because they are not so pleasant people. It can be quite dispiriting. What can you do in those situations?

One solution that works in every case is to work on being the healthiest version of ourself. This is multifaceted and gives us plenty to work on while we deal with our challenges. Our health consists of physical, mental and spiritual or emotional health. When we have these in order, we are poised for success. The more we work on them, the better our potential.

There are so many ways to work on our health. It can be our diet and eating better. It can be engaging in physical fitness. It can be meditation to heal from trauma. It can be learning to change our mindset to better reflect the life we wish to live.

Do not let the world get you down. When it is doing its best to try, work hard on yourself and your health. That is both your physical, mental and emotional or spiritual health. You will come out stronger no matter what challenge you are facing.

DO NOT PREPARE TOO MUCH FOR THE FUTURE?

This may seem a little contrary, but stick with us. There are so many people that spend their entire life in the planning phase that life passes them by. When they are ready to put their plans in action they are too old or life has provided a reason not to do it. It could be a health challenge or a situational change.

Life should be a balance of planning and action. Do not let life pass you by while you are planning to start it.

DON’T FORGET THIS ON MONDAY

Monday can be tough for all of us. It can start Sunday night. A tightening on the stomach knowing the work week is one alarm clock away. It is important to remember that picturing the best can help eliminate a lot of that anxiety.

It doesn’t have to be limited to Monday or work for that matter. In any situation, imagine the best case scenario. It did not cost anything and can reduce stress and increase joy.

HOW DO YOU LIKE YOUR SUFFERING?

Most of you reading this will be tempted to say, “I would not like suffering at all.” That would be an ideal life. It is also quite unrealistic. In everyone’s life, there is suffering. We do not get to choose when, or what kind we get.

What we do have a choice of is what we do with that suffering. We can grow from suffering. Like the mythical phoenix rising from the ashes. The other option is to let it destroy us. Shatter our hopes and dreams.

Suffering gives us few options. The one that we do have is a powerful one. That is what we decide the meaning of that suffering will be.

WHEREVER I MAY ROAM

Take a look around you. Wherever you happen to be reading this. It could be while getting your morning coffee. It could be in break at work or right before you go to bed. Feel free to share when you usually read this website.

Even if you happen to be reading this while waiting for the dentist, this holds true. If you look around there will be something you are grateful for. It could be that morning coffee you are making. It could be the coworker you get along with. If it is at night, your soft pillow is something worth gratitude. Even at the dentist, you could be grateful for the exit door!

I would recommend doing this several times a day. It not only increases gratitude, but gives a feeling of peace and tranquility in a often hectic world. I would love to hear both what time of day you read this site as well as what you are grateful for around you right now!

JUST A LITTLE TO THE LEFT….

Last post we discussed how small actions and habits can have disastrous results. That was a little negative. Although still very true. Today, we are going to look at the opposite. We are going to look at good habits and how, given time, they can transform our life positively.

To do this, let us look at a metaphor that might help put it in perspective. I do not play golf. I’m not sure if you do or not. We can all appreciate the basics. You got a ball and try to get it into a hole several hundred yards away.

At the point of contact, a slight change in the direction you hit the ball, even millimeters, can have a huge impact as to where the ball lands. Think of it. If you change the angle 2 millimeters and follow the ball several hundred yards, it will be in a dramatically different spot.

That’s often how positive actions and habits work in our life. We take one small action. Perhaps it is cutting out drinking our daily Coca-Cola. Nothing much happens right away. We follow that change for several months, or a year, and we discover our pants fit better and we have less inflammation.

Think of these examples when you make a small change. You might have to stick with it a while. After which, it may lead to a huge impact. Just like the millimeter and the golf ball.

INSPIRATION FROM A…TICK?

Where I live, right now is tick season. To be honest, every season it seems we are told is tick season. Ticks are nasty relatives of the aracnid (spider) family. They live on tall grass and hop on your body when you brush against them. The worst thing is what their bite can do. Ticks carry diseases such as rocky mountain fever and Lyme disease. These can, on occasion, even be fatal.

As my mother and I hiked through the park this afternoon, we pondered just such a thing. My mother remarked, “Isn’t it crazy how something so small can cause such damage?” It immediately started me thinking how true this is of many things in life.

Bad habits may seem small and insignificant, but can really add up. Say you throw a piece of trash on the ground. One wrapper, not such a big deal? If everyone in the world thought the same way, that would be roughly 8 billion pieces of trash! Just from one small wrapper.

The same holds true with people. Some people, dare I say,  share many qualities with the tick. Their ‘bite’ may seem harmless at first, but it can have impacts that could end up fatal to your goals and even you! How about the person always telling you that it is OK not to eat healthy or worry about your fitness. At first, it may even seem nice. You end up with lower standards and a stomach as big as your pile of excuses!

When it comes to friends who drink too much, or even drink and drive, it can be far more serious. Small things can have such an impact on our life that we must remain diligent in staying alert to them. Next post we will take a look at another example, but in the positive. Until then, watch your habits and watch out for ticks!

BE CONTAGIOUS

In a post-Covid world this could be an alarming title. What we are talking about here is authenticity. We are talking about courage. So many of us do our best to hide what perceive as our faults. Filters on our pictures on social media. Holding back our laugh because we think it sounds funny. There are a million other examples. Can you think of some in your own life? Nobody wants to look like they are less than perfect. There are so many benefits by doing so.

To start, it is liberating. When you become comfortable with people knowing your perceived shortcomings, it takes the power away from them. If you are comfortable with them, nothing anyone else says can upset you. That is a very freeing feeling. Second, it is vital to becoming the best version of ourselves. Admitting and working on our imperfections is the first step to improving them. If we pretend the do not exist, or spend a good deal of our energy hiding them, it will slow our self-improvement.

Lastly, the quote above reminds us that by being comfortable with our perceived imperfections, the more we give others permission to do the same. It can be contagious. Can you imagine asking all of your friends to try not to show anything that is less than perfect about themselves? Hopefully you cannot. Most people would consider that pretty rude. Not to mention, you would never get to fully know what makes up your friend. The crazy part is we basically say that very thing to ourself. By changing our inner-dialogue, we give permission for others to do the same. We get to know each other on a more deeper and intimate level. That will only strengthen our friendship.

Did you notice something else that I did throughout this discussion? I used the word perceived in front of imperfections. The reason I did that is very important. You may think your laugh is ridiculous, and it may be, but it may bring joy and a smile to the hearts of all who hear it. What you view as an imperfection may be a gift to others. What you spend your time and energy trying to hide may be just what the rest of the world needs. Even just having the courage to be imperfect can eliminate a lot of stress for those around you. Let this be contagious. Be brave enough to embrace every aspect of yourself and you give others permission to do the same!