Have you ever been tormented by the thought of making the wrong decision? What if I were to tell you there are no wrong decisions, just different outcomes, would that make it easier to break through?
We have a choice - we are faced with a or b, but what happens if the one you choose should go wrong - how will you ever cope? This is the no-win scenario - whatever choice you make you are going to beat yourself up over the decision. I knew I should have gone with the other choice. See I told you it would go wrong ...
But if you consider that there are no wrong decisions, just different outcomes - you can imagine how liberating that is. Liberating because it means you can make changes to your current circumstances knowing you can handle whatever comes your way as a result of your choice.
Jim was told he had to follow in his father's footsteps and work in the family firm. Jim dutifully went to business school, studied hard and qualified - then went to work every day in his suit and tie hating every minute of it. Jim had always dreamed of being a teacher, but he knew his father wouldn't help pay his tuition fees if he went to teachers college - so he did his job and hated every minute of it.
I'm sure you can relate to Jim - what would you have done in his shoes? What should Jim have done? What should Jim do now?
Well in this particular case there aren't just 2 options open to Jim. Stay where he is and be miserable or chuck it in and go back to school and have his father disinherit him. Nope, there are many options. Go to night school, take distance learning modules, offer to teach business modules to his fellow workers, or approach the local college with a proposal for a course he would like to run. What is holding him back? HE is. Everything that could possibly go wrong is running through his mind leaving him completely stuck. And as a result, he can't see the many options that are open to him.
Next time you are faced with making a decision - difficult or otherwise, get out your paper and pen and write down the pros and cons of each option. If you can't think of any - then imagine you are giving your best friend some advice. Just remember 2 things -
1) whatever happens - you can handle it. And
2) there are no wrong decisions, just different outcomes.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Don't lose Momentum
Missing a day makes it much harder to start again - consequently you are more likely to miss several in a row, losing momentum. After you lose momentum several things happen
You are more likely to give up completely - have you ever ridden a bicycle, have you ever tried to stop without putting your feet down? Almost impossible isn't it - yet keeping the momentum going, albeit slowly means you don't tend to fall off... well this is the same with any goal. Stopping for one day is the equivalent of falling off the bicycle because your momentum has stopped. And it's much harder to begin again.
You will struggle to begin again and when you do - One thing I know for certain is this - it takes much longer to get back to where you were BEFORE you lost momentum and stopped, consequently you are always trying to catch up with yourself. Exercise is a good example - you can't exercise once and expect to remain fit for the rest of your life. Getting fit is hard, but keeping the fitness levels up is much easier once you have reached a certain point. Once you have reached that point, you have the chance / opportunity to push further and harder. Dieting and weight loss is another great example of course. You're good for a couple of days / weeks - you lose a couple of pounds / kilo's and then something comes along and your "willpower" deserts you and before you know it you've re-gained the lost weight and a bit more besides. It takes an inordinate amount of strength to say no to temptation, but it takes even more to begin again after you've lost momentum and stopped for the gazillionth time.
No-one is ever THAT busy you can't find a couple of minutes out of the 1440 we are given each day to work on what you say is important to you. All we ask is that you do something today, don't worry about tomorrow - today is all that counts.
* I can fit in 2 x 30 minute exercise sessions today
* I can eat a healthy lunch, I can eat a healthy dinner, I can cut back on the sugar in my tea - just for today
* I can phone a client
* I can do my homework today, in fact I'm going to do it right now
* I can keep my room clean today
* I can wash the dishes in the sink
* I can take the dog for a walk
Today
Keep an eye on the long term yes, but make each day THE most important day for you there is.
So what are you going to do today?
You are more likely to give up completely - have you ever ridden a bicycle, have you ever tried to stop without putting your feet down? Almost impossible isn't it - yet keeping the momentum going, albeit slowly means you don't tend to fall off... well this is the same with any goal. Stopping for one day is the equivalent of falling off the bicycle because your momentum has stopped. And it's much harder to begin again.
You will struggle to begin again and when you do - One thing I know for certain is this - it takes much longer to get back to where you were BEFORE you lost momentum and stopped, consequently you are always trying to catch up with yourself. Exercise is a good example - you can't exercise once and expect to remain fit for the rest of your life. Getting fit is hard, but keeping the fitness levels up is much easier once you have reached a certain point. Once you have reached that point, you have the chance / opportunity to push further and harder. Dieting and weight loss is another great example of course. You're good for a couple of days / weeks - you lose a couple of pounds / kilo's and then something comes along and your "willpower" deserts you and before you know it you've re-gained the lost weight and a bit more besides. It takes an inordinate amount of strength to say no to temptation, but it takes even more to begin again after you've lost momentum and stopped for the gazillionth time.
No-one is ever THAT busy you can't find a couple of minutes out of the 1440 we are given each day to work on what you say is important to you. All we ask is that you do something today, don't worry about tomorrow - today is all that counts.
* I can fit in 2 x 30 minute exercise sessions today
* I can eat a healthy lunch, I can eat a healthy dinner, I can cut back on the sugar in my tea - just for today
* I can phone a client
* I can do my homework today, in fact I'm going to do it right now
* I can keep my room clean today
* I can wash the dishes in the sink
* I can take the dog for a walk
Today
Keep an eye on the long term yes, but make each day THE most important day for you there is.
So what are you going to do today?
Laughter is the best medicine
"You will do foolish things, but do them with enthusiasm"
Colette
* When was the last time you laughed so hard your face and ribs hurt?
* How good did you feel afterwards?
* How long did the feel good effects last?
* How many times did you go back over the reason and find yourself smiling?
We can be forgiven for thinking life is a serious business and yes it has certainly been stressful of late here in the Southern Hemisphere with storms, fires, cyclones, floods and earthquakes, let alone the wars, the unrest and the many deaths we hear about across the rest of the world. I'm not saying we shouldn't be serious or worry, but just for today could you do me a favour and not listen to the news in the car going home, nor watch the news or the current affairs programs when you are eating dinner. tonight. Oh and reading the news wires via the internet is out too today (unless you really are waiting for news of loved ones caught up in the disaster zones around the world). Turn it off and give yourself a break.
Life is about balance. You may not think the news stories are impacting on your state of mind and your ability to get things done, but believe me - they do - BIG TIME. If all we do is worry, how can we get the things we want done, done? We can't - our lives go into a holding pattern. And before you say stop being flippant - believe me with 2 deaths this week, one an uncle and one a friend of a friend - believe me when I say I can assure you I'm not. But life is about balance.
So today I would like you to have a bit of fun - for me, for you, for the families who have lost someone they care about - it's time to remember the good times. But not too much, just a little (kidding you can have as much fun with this as you like). The why is important - we need to remember some simple things - without sunshine AND rain there would not be a rainbow. Without hills you wouldn't see the beautiful valleys. And so it is with us, we need to remember the highs when things are a low.
So - how can you inject a bit of fun and laughter into what could be just another dark day?
Colette
* When was the last time you laughed so hard your face and ribs hurt?
* How good did you feel afterwards?
* How long did the feel good effects last?
* How many times did you go back over the reason and find yourself smiling?
We can be forgiven for thinking life is a serious business and yes it has certainly been stressful of late here in the Southern Hemisphere with storms, fires, cyclones, floods and earthquakes, let alone the wars, the unrest and the many deaths we hear about across the rest of the world. I'm not saying we shouldn't be serious or worry, but just for today could you do me a favour and not listen to the news in the car going home, nor watch the news or the current affairs programs when you are eating dinner. tonight. Oh and reading the news wires via the internet is out too today (unless you really are waiting for news of loved ones caught up in the disaster zones around the world). Turn it off and give yourself a break.
Life is about balance. You may not think the news stories are impacting on your state of mind and your ability to get things done, but believe me - they do - BIG TIME. If all we do is worry, how can we get the things we want done, done? We can't - our lives go into a holding pattern. And before you say stop being flippant - believe me with 2 deaths this week, one an uncle and one a friend of a friend - believe me when I say I can assure you I'm not. But life is about balance.
So today I would like you to have a bit of fun - for me, for you, for the families who have lost someone they care about - it's time to remember the good times. But not too much, just a little (kidding you can have as much fun with this as you like). The why is important - we need to remember some simple things - without sunshine AND rain there would not be a rainbow. Without hills you wouldn't see the beautiful valleys. And so it is with us, we need to remember the highs when things are a low.
So - how can you inject a bit of fun and laughter into what could be just another dark day?
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