I love this, and thank you for sharing Jessica (my office manager).
However, don’t let this mislead you into thinking the one step will equal achievement.
Another quote a love is “growth is a process, not a light switch.”
They key is to combine both and know the ONE decision you make (or are not making…which is still a decision) will push you toward your goal and could be the final step. But even if it is not the final step, but rather the first or 23445th, making the decision will propel you more toward the life you want.
On December 30th, 2021 our community was shaken by tragedy.
A brush fire, fueled by 100 mph wind gusts, quickly evolved into fear, mayhem and devastation.
Over 900 structures burned, many of which were completely destroyed.
People were forced to evacuate their homes, and told to only grab clothing for a few nights, important documents, and flee.
It has been a tragic ending to 2021 and a devastating beginning for so many to 2022. So many coping with “what do I do now?” “How can we re-build our lives?”
This event is a reminder of how quickly things can change, in a flash.
My family and I are OK, our home is ok, my business is ok, our school is ok. So many people (including friends) were not as fortunate.
I know the community will come together to help rebuild, regenerate and re-grow.
You can help too.
To start, anyone and everyone can help by putting more love into the world. And love is the ONLY thing that can truly overcome devastation.
You should definitely check out The Ed Mylett podcast and Mel Robbins book: The High Give Habit
There is power (and research) in celebrating small victories, congratulating ourselves, and setting intention.
One thing the book and this podcast episode touches on is the fact that, unfortunately, we are prone to feeling unworthy of celebration. In fact we are prone to feeling unworthy in general.
We can raise that baseline simply by incorporating small celebrations and acknowledgements of our amazing worthy-ness into our daily lives.
We all deserve love. And we definitely deserve to love ourselves.
We have survived every crazy challenge that has been put before us to this point.
We have overcome many obstacles.
We do A LOT of things l, very well, every day.
We impact lives (whether we know it or not).
We have style.
We have grace.
We smile, we laugh, we love, we help, we even provide energy for others (including nature).
We are amazing.
Listen ti the podcast, read the book, and HIGH FIVE yourselves today!
There are a lot of bite-sized inspirational talks, given by people from all walks of life (coaches, speakers, charity founders, teachers) and they are wonderful.
Some of my favorite quotes so far:
“You don’t choose your negative thoughts but you can choose not to listen to them”-Jay Glazer
“The best way to win the day is to win the moment. Moments turn into days, days into weeks and weeks into years.”-Doshia Woods
“Unshakeable confidence isn’t about the results. It’s about self awareness.”-David Nurse
“It’s not always the path of least resistance that gets you where you want to go, it’s the path that’s worth taking”-Sam Acho
“When we focus on honoring others as our mission in life, differences fade. Prejudice becomes a foreign concept.”- Miles McPherson
There are a LOT more. You should definitely check it out.
You most likely will find something there to help fuel you daily, and I guarantee it will make your Tuesday a little happier!
In his book, The Infinite Game, Simon Sinek discusses the ideas of constant improvement.
Too often, businesses (and individuals) look at this constant improvement in the form of procedures, policies, accolades, awards, etc.
There is absolutely nothing wrong woth all of that.
However, the true idea of constant improvement should come in the forms of improving teamwork, mindset, skills, connection with others, compassion and leadership.
These traits are more important because they drive us to create a better now, and to leave a better legacy fo the sake of our family, friends, customers, loved ones and communities. The accolades are achieved as a result of these things.
The great (and sometimes frustrating, depending on how you choose to look at it) thing about these intrinsic improvements (as opposed to accolades and awards) is that there is no “finish line.” The goal is to constantly improve, not to “arrive.”
So today, envision your life improving for the sake of improvement and any awards, goals or et cetera are just mile markers along the infinite game of life.
I just started reading it last night, but I love it!
Simon talks about the difference between finite games and infinite games in business, and in life.
Finite games are “played” with a goal of winning, beating the competition, becoming “the best.”
In life (and in business), the best things are truly INFINITE.
You don’t truly want to be “the best” at what you do. Because, in reality, you know that being the best is HIGHLY temporary. There will always be new players, new competition, new rules, new advancements, new hurdles, etc.
Take for instance, the NFL. The NFL is most likely switching to a 17 game season as opposed to a 16 game season. Think about how many “bests” will be beaten with one more game. Passing records, rushing records, sack records, etc. all have a HUGE probability to be beaten with the addition of one more game.
Being the best, ends.
Looking at FINITE successes eventually leads to a cold-end game.
Instead, as Mr. Sinek proposes, focus on infinite successes. Fulfillment > Victory.
Focus on fulfillment for you, your family, your friends, your community, and for future generations and you will lead a much happier life, and your “victories” will go on in the future, rather than being the used-to-be best.
Lead with inspiration. Focus on doing what you love for the betterment of others (and in return, you will reap rewards yourself-that’s the way this amazing universe works), rather than short-sighted gains of trying to get ahead.
Live a life focused on fulfillment and we WILL ALL benefit.
In the book: Grit by Angela Duckworth, she quotes Will Smith as saying “Harmony is aerodynamic.”
When we can find our passion, when we can align that passion with our work, and even more so when the vision of our team member’s/families/coworkers, our movement toward that vision becomes so much easier.
That is why it is so important to have discussions about your goals with the people on your various “teams” (work/home/etc).
When you articulate your goals and they articulate theirs, you will find common ground and that makes it all the easier to move toward that future.
Work on collaborating to become a supremely aerodynamic force today 🙂
So…it’s (its?) July, 2020 and the world is definitely on the wackadoodle side of normal. I guess a pandemic can do that. The thing that is most concerning to me, isn’t the virus. It is the fear, and how when left unchecked, it becomes a guillotine, sharp and divisive. Left vs right. Black vs white. Mask vs no mask. Vaxxers vs anti-vaxxers. The world has gone bi-polar and the middle ground (which is where I prefer to live on many things) is becoming a deeper and deeper canyon. Fear is a powerful and useful emotion. It is a great tool to spur action, to incite change. Fear should urge us to consider our options and steer our trajectory toward a brighter future. The key is it should help us use our other emotions and logic to make a decision. Fear should never drive the decision alone. Many times fear is irrational, and making decisions based on fear usually results in less-than-ideal situations. Fear is meant to propel us in short, fight vs flight moments. “Should I run from the grizzly bear, or fashion a bow and arrow out of that pine tree sapling and go toe-to-claw with the big fella?” Fear is definitively useful in those types of situations. But when fear gets to drive us on a day-to-day basis, the road we take will not be a straight, calm, collected or enjoyable one. When fear is behind the wheel, we are all over the damn road, erratic, swerving and taking a heck of a lot longer to get from point A to point B, because we aren’t really concerned with getting to point B at all, we just want to get as far away from point A as humanly possible in the shortest amount of time allowed. We aren’t concerned with a brighter future, we just want to run as far away from the here and now as we can.
Fear is regulated by a part of our brain called the amygdala, a primitive portion that when activated, shuts down our parasympathetic (resting) nervous system. Our heart rate increases, blood pressure elevates, energy is pushed away from our reproductive system and digestive system. The amygdala also puts the brakes on our prefrontal cortex a bit. As Marwa Azab, Ph.D. states in PsychologyToday.com (https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/neuroscience-in-everyday-life/202003/10-things-the-brain-does-in-response-pandemic) “In situations that may compromise your survival, the brain would rather be overcautious and wrong. Rumors, fake news, and anomalous stories gain credibility.” Our emotional systems override our logic-based ones and we begin actively searching for threats, rather than working toward a more calm and collected state.
In scrolling through the “news feed” of the day, I can’t help but stop at some comments that I know incite even more divisiveness. And when I read the comments, I am saddened by the loss of connection that is propagating. No matter what side people fall on any of the topics, I can’t help but feel disheartened by the anger and estranging comments. There is so much “if you don’t feel this way you are actively trying to hurt others.” Or “If you don’t feel this way, you are a sheep, blindly following those in charge.” As I said before, I wholeheartedly believe neither of these positions ring true one bit. For the past few years I actually have been telling my wife that I was concerned how separated our world was becoming. It seems there are two sides to so many things, and too often only two sides (I know that’s a lot of twos and toos). Recent events are increasing the gap and that worries me.
Human beings thrive on connection. We don’t always need to agree on everything, in fact having some discourse and disagreements can help us learn, grow and understand. But when we are sitting in a place of fear, anxiety or worry, the disagreements can escalate to firm, immovable stances, and “immovable” definitely implies, “not-growing.” It has been said numerous times before, but it bears repeating: we are only going to get through this crazy time together. I don’t mean that in a cliche sense. There have been numerous scientific studies that show the power of connection. In one such study, strong social connection was correlated with a 50% increase in longevity (https://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1000316) and other studies have shown that social connection boosts immunity, lowers stress and increases empathy (which is something we all could use right now).
So, during this time, it is O.K. to put your stake in the ground so that others know where you stand. Just also realize that others have a different stake in a different ground and the best thing we can do as Stephen Covey has said is to “Seek first to understand.”
Great messages throughout, here’s some of the lines that hit me right in the feels…
“And I’m an icon when I let my light shine. Shine bright as an example of a champion, takin the advantage, never coppin out or cancelin. Run like a chariot, learning how to carry it. Maverick. Always above and beyond average.”
“Realize I’m supposed to reach for the skies. Never let somebody tell you otherwise.”
And the chorus:
“Theres something in your heart, and it’s in your eyes. It’s the fire, inside you. Let it burn. You don’t say good luck, you say don’t give up, it’s the fire. Inside you. Let it burn.”
I love the song because it ain’t just about “winning,” it’s about acknowledging your purpose, your inspiration, your fuel that keeps you fired up.
Not simply about the accolades.
And when you let your fire burn, you warm everyone around you, and you light up the world with positive change.
We need your light. Let it burn!
Focus on the fire (your why) and there’s no limit to the skies you will reach.
Dissemination of Inspiration 