Archives for posts with tag: resolutions

Imperfect Conclusions

December 31, 2015 //
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Ok so if we tally up your resolutions from last year you should:

  • Have the body of your dreams
  • Be financially independent
  • Do charity work 3 times a week
  • Have written that novel

No? Me either. But that’s ok. I’ll be honest, I’m going to add those resolutions right back on my list again this year. I’m not upset that things didn’t turn out perfectly last year. My ideal plan didn’t work out the way I thought it would. But why would I let an imperfect conclusion make me feel like a failure?

I worked at each of my resolutions. And any action is better than no action at all. I may have not come as far as other people, but I also know I have done more than others. But regardless of how other compare, I was writing my own story.  

Life is always a work in progress. Even if you do achieve your ideal body, will you maintain it? I fluctuate, because I like beer and wings, and football Sundays. I don’t beat myself up about it. I enjoy it, then I use my other time to lace up my running shoes and hit the streets. I am not a financial savant. I enjoy traveling, going to restaurants, and building on my hobbies. It’s ok!

Life happens. You are never “there.” You don’t reach any certain point and just stop. You should be always working at something, trying to improve, and be setting new goals. But it’s ok to pause momentarily (a day, a weekend, sometimes even a couple months), assess and regroup, then react. That’s not a major setback. Football teams huddle and regroup, race cars have to enter the pits and refuel, people need a day of rest.

So don’t kick yourself and tell yourself that last year was horrible. And don’t think that it was all be fixed in 2016. 2015 may have had its imperfect conclusions, but so will next year, and the year after that. Keep fighting, keep regrouping, keep using each year as one step to the next. 5, 10, maybe 20 years from now you will look back and see how far you have come.

Cheers to the next step!  

Happy New Years to all!

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Categories mindset, Values

Are you resolute in the new year ?

January 8, 2014 //
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Ok you’ve had one week to get settled and make, practice, and hopefully not yet break your New Years resolutions. So what did you come up with this year? Let’s take it a step further: we are all going to try to get in better shape and save more money. So let’s throw those two down as constants. For the rest of your life you will practice those two and not need to include them in your New Years plans. Instead you can use January 1st as your check in date and see what progress you’ve made I’m 365 days. So write down your starting numbers.

Now, what unique goals have you set for yourself in 2014? Here are mine…

1) I want to utilize the “silence” and “do not disturb” function on my smart phone more. I think cell phones are great tools and they do amazing things. Ask anyone who knows me and they will tell you my infatuation with my mobile devices. But I don’t need to check every alert the moment it comes in. I want to check them in the morning or evening or when I have free time for them. But not 6 times during a movie, twice during dinner, and every time I hear a beep or feel a buzz from my phone.

2) From seeing the local museums, to picking up tourist pamphlets at the local hotels, I always come up with ideas of things that I would like to try. I have tons and tons of digital notes on cool ideas. This year I just want to go. I want to drive downtown, head out in a given direction, and just go do it. There are free things and there are pay things, but what there isn’t is a reason not to do something. I want to explore my world !

3) I want to build this blog. It took my a while to even start it. I have plenty of ideas for it. And I want to continue to improve it for you and for me.

4) I’m pretty fortunate that I have been successful in a lot of my life’s attempts. And even with the ones I have failed at, I have learned from. If I have done this well so far, what if I pushed the envelope? I want to challenge myself this year, both in my personal and professional life.

What do you want to do in 2014? I’d love it if you’d post one or some of your thoughts in the comments section.

Cheers!

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Categories current event, mindset

A new twist on New Years goals

January 4, 2013 //
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So it’s the start of a new year. Everyone and their brother is talking about New Years resolutions. It’s nothing new, we do this every year; I will lose 20 pounds , learn a new language, become debt free, etc, etc…

And good for you for making those New Years resolutions – I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have my own.

But I want to offer you a new view on those resolutions. It’s a simple tweak of language and mindset – but it’s so simplistic it’s hard not to see how you will not be successful.

Your mission: make goals just as you have. Use the ones I mentioned above for sake of conversation. But here’s the twist… I have to credit one of my mentors JB Glossinger for this mindset, I’m simply passing it along – let’s thinks of our resolutions, or goals, as trajectories.

Do you see the simple difference? You set a goal of losing 20 lbs. but end up only losing 15. Wouldn’t you say that’s still a success? It’s 5 lbs shy but you still lost 15 lbs!

You want to learn a new language. At the end if the year you still aren’t fluent but you can hold a simple conversation or maybe you can understand when someone speaks to you. That’s still pretty good!

You end the year and still have some debt. But you paid off your two largest credit cards and continue to chip away at what debt is left.

So you set your goals and name your resolutions. And still give them 100% and plan on reaching them. I’m not saying to half ass it. Just don’t disregard any progress you make along the way.

And then hidden lesson is that although you may end the year still working to complete your goals – by then your actions may well have become habits. Healthy lifestyle habits that you will continue to carry with you.

Also, don’t wait for New Year’s Day to make goals and make yourself a better person. That’s the tradition that we always abide by. But what’s wrong with making some goals in July or October?

Whenever the inspiration to improve yourself hits you, latch on to it! You’ll be a better man for it.

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Categories mindset