Motivation – Page 3 – Life Lessons

Don’t Limit Yourself

Can you imagine living in a world of your own with no limits? It would be like having a season pass to your favorite theme park. No one can deny you entry, and you can go whenever you want to during park hours. You basically paid a one-time fee to ride or splash as much as you want! If your current lifestyle doesn’t allow you to splurge, then you just might be living within limits. I may have a resolution for you.

The key elements contributing to your marginal lifestyle may be one of the following:

You

You, yes, you can limit yourself with your tongue and inertia. The tongue is the most powerful part of your body because it sends messages to your brain, be it positive or negative. Therefore, if you are speaking negatively over your life, your brain will respond accordingly. Try repeating positive affirmations to trigger more positive thoughts. Replace the words “can’t and won’t” with “can and will”. This small change in your vocabulary can help tap into strengths you didn’t know you had.

Once you’ve trained your brain to start thinking positively, you must begin to act on what you speak about. You can repeat positive affirmations day and night, but unless you take action, nothing will happen or change. You can’t expect your ideas to materialize without breaking the curse of inertia. This can mean making changes in your behavior, routine, or environment.

Time

Many of you are stagnant because the lack of time. Surely, we only get 24 hours in a day, but if you use this time wisely, you can take steps toward achieving important goals. Eight hours to work, sleep, and play? Yeah right! If this were true, we’d all get plenty of our personal work done without cutting into our sleep time. As for play time, exactly when does that happen for the average full-time employee or mom? Never! Thus, you must take advantage of every break or downtime you have in your days.

I understand some careers are more demanding than others, but no one is working all the time. You may have some longer days than usual when you really don’t get many breaks or much downtime, but eventually you do get some time to yourself. If you don’t, you must learn to make some time for yourself. Everyone needs that. Nevertheless, the only way you can make changes in your life is by sacrificing some time. You may have to sacrifice some lunch breaks, social media, tv time or even family time, and miss a few parties or events. The key word here is “sacrifice”.

At a previous job of mine, I could not seem to find a way to prepare for a certification I wanted to obtain because the internet had too many restrictions, and I sat in an open cubicle. Therefore, I started bringing my iPad. I would eat my lunch and cover as much material as I could within that time frame. Then, I tried to cover some in the office by reading the transcript instead using the audio feature, but the connection kept failing or running too slow. Between using my lunch breaks, some short breaks, and allotting some time in the evening, I just didn’t seem to be getting close enough to my goal. A year had passed since I purchased the program, and I was struggling to finish. It’s a good thing I was able to move at my own pace.

After finally completing the course, I took the first practice exam and failed terribly. I had forgotten much of what I had learned! So I did some more studying and attempted a few more times, and I still failed. I thought to myself, “There’s gotta be another way”. I needed a way to study on the clock during downtime. My solution was to use my cell phone. It was small and easy to conceal or put away quickly in case my supervisor walked up. I started studying my practice exam every day I had a chance to, and my score kept going up! Guess what happened eventually? You guessed it…I starting receiving a passing score consistently! After a couple of weeks of preparation, I took the test and passed!

I wasn’t happy at the job. I didn’t like the idea of being watched and controlled. I felt like I was limiting myself, so I did something about it. Complaining surely wasn’t getting me anywhere. But my certification did.

On another note, if much of your time is consumed talking on the phone, schedule appointments for important calls and designate a “talk time” that’s convenient for your leisure calls. For example, my talk time is in route to or from work, usually from work. This tends to work for me.

Money

In order to break some barriers, it will cost you. Most educational or vocational training programs incur fees that must be paid in order to enter. If you can get free assistance through government funding or some other source, that’s great, but there are no guarantees. Nevertheless, you shouldn’t let fees discourage you. Where there’s a will, there’s always a way.

Think about a time you wanted something so badly in life, but you weren’t sure how you were going to finance it. It could have been your dream wedding or vacation, a new car or house, or some new furniture. You found a way to make it happen.

Other things that can cost money include investment opportunities, starting a business, expanding a business, acquiring real estate, etc. As long as you make it your priority or goal combined with sacrifice, the money will come with your efforts.

People

Believe it or not, this can be one of the biggest hindrances. Why? Because people can consume so much of your time. This is okay as long as you are working toward a goal together or sharpening each other. But the wrong people can consume a large fraction of your time and interrupt your progress with negative energy. Negative people will not support your ideas or contribute to your growth. However, how much time you spend with anyone other than your immediate family should have its limits.

Caveat: Negative people are not always boisterous and hostile. They can silently show lack of support by constantly trying to pull you in the wrong direction. For example, if you say you need to study for an exam, they’ll still try to get you to hang out with them.

Summary

Don’t get in the way of your own success with your tongue.

Make more time for your goals and less time for play.

Don’t let money scare you. Let it prepare you.

People can be a distraction. Purge as necessary.

And remember…
“Make sense of what you do, and make every cent count.”

What are your thoughts? I’d love to hear them.

Submit topic suggestions using the “Contact Me” page.

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The World Owes You Nothing, But You Owe Yourself The World

As long as you are breathing, you will face problems on Earth. But you must understand that you are not the only one with problems. The lower class have a hard time keeping bread on the table. The middle class have a hard time keeping bread in their accounts. The upper class have a problem with sharing their bread. Now while this may not apply to every individual from each class, it does apply to many oftentimes.

What does this have to do with me?

Everything. When you hit a brick wall with your finances, you tend to single yourself out as if it has only happened to you. You get in your feelings and begin playing the “blame game” so people can feel sorry for you and offer aid. But you tend to leave out how you brought much of your stress and frustration on yourself in some instances. People from all walks of life do have problems of their own. They’re just not airing it on social media or bogging you down with it. And it’s because they understand that they are not exempt from encountering problems. It doesn’t mean they are not affected by them either. They just deal with them accordingly so they don’t worsen. When you realize that each day has enough trouble of its own, you learn not to spend too much time on present-day problems. Like laundry, if you let problems pile up, the load will only get heavier. Lighten your load before you explode!

So how do I give myself the world?

By protecting your peace. More money won’t bring you peace. A new body won’t bring you peace. A new car or home won’t bring you peace. A new job or career won’t bring you peace. A new mate won’t bring you peace either. You get my drift? You’re responsible for your own peace and how you obtain that is by learning to effectively manage the problems in your life. You can face a problem in ANY aspect of life, and that problem will welcome unwanted stress if you let it.

“Stress kills and joy fills.” (I’m G.O.O.D. Getting Over Obstacles Daily, Vol. 1)

“Peace and joy are priceless because they secure happiness. Though they may seem elusive at dark times, they deserve the energy burned trying to obtain them. Your sanity is worth it. Otherwise, you’ll lose yourself in a battle that can leave you scarred for life.” (I’m Still G.O.O.D. Getting Over Obstacles Daily, Vol. 2)

Turn your problems into solutions and your pity into a purpose. Then you can enjoy a world full of peace .

Don’t be selfish. Share this with your family and friends!

Are You Ready For The Second Quarter?

Speaking in terms of life, did your game start out quite well, or was it pretty bad? This is the question you should be meditating on because the end of the first quarter of this year is already near. Thus, it’s time to make some changes. Companies operate like this, so why shouldn’t we? Don’t wait until the new year to make necessary changes in your life. Start assessing your behavior and tracking your progress quarterly instead of yearly. By applying this method, you will begin to realize improvements in your attitude and reach your goals faster. Besides, why carry on a behavior or practice all throughout the year when it can be corrected or improved sooner?

If your first quarter went well, good for you. Let’s keep it going. But if you are working towards human improvement as well as success, which are equally important, let’s go through a few check points to make sure you’re on the right track.

Behavioral Assessment: (answer all that may apply)

1. Are you still holding on to something you should’ve let go by now?

• You should let it go because it can have power and control over you and block your blessings, which will hinder your success. You may not think it is damaging to your spirit, but it is because you haven’t let go. When constantly speak negatively of that person or situation, you haven’t moved on from it. You may have learned from it, but you certainly haven’t moved on from it. You become free and clear of the bitterness when the thought can run across your mind without disrupting your spirit. You learn to speak of it from a positive standpoint.

2. Have you admitted to any wrongdoings?

• You’re still holding to on to what someone has done to you, but you never admit to your own wrongdoings in the same situation or another. What makes you so different? If you’ve had many instances like this, you may be the problem. And I don’t mean that in a negative way. Sometimes our approach to handling certain situations is not always favorable to the outcome. Hence, you should always think before you speak or act in any given situation. It can preserve your reputation and make your more diplomatic.

3. Have you forgiven a person(s) who have done you wrong?

• Before diving in, I’d like to add a disclaimer. Holding on to something is not an implication that one hasn’t forgiven a person. Some people say you should forgive and forget. But truth is, you forgive and recover, but you don’t forget. That’s like asking someone not to be human. You can forgive a person instantly, meaning you have no malice in your heart for that person. However, you have resentment or bitterness if you haven’t let go. Forgiveness is easy. Recovery is hard and can take some time. Depending on the severity of the action, it can take months or even years.

Forgiving a person doesn’t mean it erases the pain you feel consequent his or her actions. Nevertheless, you cannot let anything go without forgiveness, but you can forgive without letting go. Resentment causes the situation to gain power and control over you, not unforgiveness. Once you’ve forgiven and let go, then you can recover. As a result, it will no longer have power and control over you.

4. Are you still afflicted with a vice or bad habit?

• You can’t say your path is clear for the second quarter if you are still afflicted with a vice or bad habit you said you would let go for the new year. I understand some habits are harder to break such as smoking, but are you at least cutting back on the number of cigarettes you smoke daily? If you are taking steps toward overcoming that vice or breaking that bad habit, then it’s safe to say you’re moving in the right direction. Now if you are a cheating spouse whose resolution was to stop, you can’t give yourself credit for dropping the old one yet picking up something new. That does not count. Instead, you should consider a new hobby other than hunting or fishing.

5. Are you taking care of your body?

• You might not see how health and wellness correlate until you realize it’s harder to achieve your goals with a poor engine. You want to drive trucks? DOT won’t clear you with high blood pressure. You want to join the police force? They might tell you to lose weight. Considering modeling, acting, or singing? You’re going to need a lot of energy for that, and aesthetics is everything. If your goal is just to have a good life insurance plan, you might get denied if your levels are too high. So be proactive, get healthy, and get in shape.

6. Have you helped someone in need?

• If you have achieved success in the first quarter and you’re not giving back, then you have selfish motives. But whether you have or haven’t, you’re missing an important step because you reap what you sow. You never know when you might fall. People file bankrupt all the time, and it’s not just poor people. Should you ever fall short, would you expect people to give to you if you haven’t given to anyone? Your gifts don’t always have to be money. You can help people by offering your time or services. If you’ve done all the above except this last step, make it an appointment to give your time, talent, or treasure to someone who can benefit.

Life Goals

1. Is your current strategy working? Meaning, are you seeing results?

• If yes, keep it going and monitor activity regularly. This gives you the opportunity to focus on another goal. If no, try something different or improve your current method.
2. Are you tracking your progress?

• If not, you should. Otherwise, you won’t be able to determine what’s working and what’s not.
3. Have you met your quotas?

• If yes, great. Keep it up! If not, it doesn’t mean you’re doing something wrong. Just set realistic goals next time, push harder, and be patient.
4. Are you on schedule/meeting deadlines?

• If yes, great! If no, consider budgeting your time wisely. Time management is crucial to success in any realm.
5. Have you written your goals for the second quarter?

• If yes, you’re on the right track. If no, what are you waiting for? Without goals, you have nothing to shoot for. Can you imagine watching a basketball game without goals? 😊
6. Are you keeping quiet about it?

• If yes, awesome! If no, hush. Your goals should be personal and as private as your social security number. You don’t have to tell people everything. If so, throw them of and remain a mystery. Some will applaud. Some will hate and pray on your downfall. And some will copy or try to beat you to the finish line.

So, whatever you are shooting for this year, map out a plan and follow it. Re-evaluate the plan every quarter, and make changes accordingly. You don’t have to stick to one plan for an entire year. Just try sticking to it for that quarter. But if you have no plan to achieve your goal, you can plan to fail at that endeavor.

And remember…
“Make sense of what you do, and make every cent count.”

What are your thoughts? I’d love to hear them.

Submit topic suggestions using the “Contact Me” page.

Something captured your interest? Don’t be selfish. Share with your friends!