Today is the only day we have. Yesterday is gone, tomorrow may never come. It is today that holds all of the power. Do you regret something in your past? Today is the day you can make up for it. Worried about something in the future? It is the actions that you take Today that can help you be prepared.
It is living in the past or the future that causes most of our stress in life. Do yourself a favor and live in the present. Not only will you have less stress, but you will use the day to your advantage!
Today everyone is looking where to invest. Is it real estate? How about the stock market? Crypto currency?I have an investment that is not only more valuable, but will pay far greater dividends. If you would like to know what this investment is, and how you can take advantage of it, read the rest of this post.
First, let us look at the value of this investment. Diamonds, for example, are rare and expensive to mine. Therefore, they hold great value for the consumer. The value of stocks is relative. They can be worth $70 in March and be worth a little as $15 by September. This investment is not only more valuable than Diamonds, it is literally priceless. Speaking of price, the value of this investment never decreases. To the contrary. As time goes on,this investment becomes more valuable.
The investment I am speaking of is time. Before you roll your eyes, or stop reading right here, let me explain. There are many things you can get back. Lose a lot of money? Many people have lost money only to regain their fortune. Even if you lose a diamond, another can be purchased. What if you lost time? You wastedit with mindless scrolling online, or you were forced to sit in an airport because your flight was delayed. Can you get that time back? No. It is gone forever. I don’t care how wealthy or well–connected you are, you can’t get more time.
The way to take advantage of this investment? Make good use of your time. Have plans. I heard a quote that says, “For every minute of anger, you lose 60 seconds of happiness.” Meaning that time spent in anger is gone. You will never have that 60 seconds back.
This sense of urgency in regards to time was brought home to me when I knew I was having open-heart surgery. There was a 2 month time frame. I realized I could be staring down my last 60 days on earth and thought about all I wanted to accomplish. Here is the thing, you don’t have to be facing a dangerous surgery. Any of us, or our lovedones could check out at any time. The thing about time, it is always running out. The time to invest in our time is now, before it is too late!
One invention that has always amazed me is the thermostat. A device that takes the temperature of your house, compares that to a desired temperature and makes adjustments as needed. This could mean turning on the heat if it is too cold, or if you have central air, turning that on to make it cooler. How amazing is that? When you think in the 19th century that would involve hearing aunt Margaret complain she is cold and throwing another log on the fire. Now, you can even make adjustments to your thermostat via your cell phone! Even if you are nowhere near your home. This is crazy cool when you stop to think about it.
Here is a question. Would you allow your neighbor to control your thermostat? Unless you are close to your neighbor and have the same hot and cold tolerance, your answer is probably a resounding ‘no’. It seems insane to let someone else determine how hot or cold your house would be. How much energy you would need to expend and pay for.
As foolish as it would be to let our neighbor determine the temperature in our house, we do this very thing with our personal thermostat. What on earth is a personal thermostat? It is the level of joy and peace in our lives. Far too many of us let outside circumstances determine this. If good things happen to us, we have a good day. If things do not go so well, we are grumpy or depressed. As the wise Mr. Aurelius points out, we should not let outside circumstances to distress us. We must realize our power to revoke whatever reaction that has us feeling negative.
Take control of your own personal thermostat. Set it for “An enjoyable day filled with peace”. This is not to say you may not have to make adjustments, just like the thermostat in your house. Hear some bad news? You may have to ‘turn on the furnace of happiness’. This could mean listening to some music that makes you smile. It could be spending time with someone you love. The boss treat you harshly or unfairly? You might need to ‘turn on the air conditioning’ and cool yourself down. This could be hitting the gym or going for a walk in nature.
It is time to control your own internal thermostat. Just as it would be foolish to let your neighbor control the temperature inside your house, it would be equally foolish to the outside circumstances to control your inner well-being. Take back your power and take back your own thermostat.
Everyday we cross paths with so many different teachers. I’m not only talking about the ones employed in the field of education, but everyday folks who teach us so much! It could be the person behind the counter at the coffee shop. It could be a particular friend or coworker. Everyone could teach us something if only we paid attention.
In my life I have had so many great teachers. My grandparents taught me a lot of interesting lessons. My mother teaches me a lot of great things by her example. My lovely lady teaches me how to maintain a young spirit. We can learn from anyone if that is the approach we take.
Who are some of your favorite teachers and what have they taught you?
Here is a picture of the moon I took at work this morning. Yes, I start before the sun comes up. As you can see, only a small portion of it can be seen. It is slowly getting bigger, that is more can be seen, every day.
The moon goes through two distinct phases. The waxing phase. This is the phase it is in now going from a dark new moon, getting brighter until it becomes a full moon. Then there is the wanning phase. Where the moon goes from a bright full moon, getting smaller until it returns to a dark full moon.
What do these lunar phases have to do with us? Personally, I use them as reminders. When the moon is getting bigger, I focus on things I want to put in my life. This could be a new healthy habit, or a something I want to get better at. When the moon is getting smaller, I focus on things I want to eliminate from my life. These can rangefrom unhealthy things I eat, to toxic people I give too much time to.
Just an example of using nature as a gentle reminder to improve ourselves.
Too many of us are concerned with being perfect. This could be in any field. Perfect parent, perfect car sales person or perfect best-selling author. What we would be better off focusing on is continually improving.
How about you? In what area are you striving for perfection? Are there ways in which you could simply improve and get better?
Recently I had the honor of speaking at an event for the West Allis Masterminds.In this video I will explain how I got started in the self-improvement industry and where I would like to go from here.
Check out the video on my YouTube channel at the link below. While you are there, feel free to subscribe so you will be the first to be notified when I post a new video. Special thanks to my lovely Margie who filmed the talk.
There have been many versions of this quote throughout history. I’m using this one because I am both a fan of Inky Johnson, and I like the way this is worded. “Commitment is doing what you said you would do long after the mood you said it in hasleft. “
How many of us have made a commitment and then lost the spirit to maintain it. Say around January 1st? It is easy to say you will go to the gym after a good night’s sleep and everything is going well in life. What happens if we only work out when we feel like it? Not much, if anything at all, would be the answer.
This holds true in every area of our lives. It is easy to be a caring and romantic partner when everything is going great in life and the relationship, but what about when you have challenges in life or the two of you are not getting along. Can you still be committed then? That is the ultimate test.
The week is starting to wind down and we might be already looking forward to the weekend. There is one thing we can do to finish the week off right and start the weekend in a positive note. What is that one thing? Following the recommendationof the loveable bear above, we should love ourselves first.
When we develop a positive self-image, not only are we able to conduct our lives better, but we can help others do the same. Loving ourselves first can be one of the healthiest actions we take. I’m asking you, the reader, what ways do you loveyourself first?Let us share with each other and develop a healthy action plan.
How many of us spend way too much time on things we cannot control? Lol at everything outside the circle in the photo above. Are there any that you spend too much time worried about? It does us little if any good. They are by definition, things beyond our control.
How about the things inside the circle? The things within our control. Far too many of us focus on these slightly, if at all. How about you? Are there any of the things in the circle you could spend more time focusing on?
Here is the crazy thing. If we spend a concerted effort improving the things within the circle, or more to the point within our control, the things on the outside of the circle will improve as well.
