Tag: goals

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motivation

Feeling a little Tempted today?

Cartoon of a man with a desert. He says, "How can it be temptation if I never resisted in the first place?"
©2020 Kevin Spear

I don’t know about you, but ice cream can be a big temptation to me. Then there’s chocolate, coffee, fudge, and cookies, among others!

We all have temptations around us. Advertising plays into our temptations. As business people, we are continually wanting to find a need and fill it. Those needs can be temptations that is another person’s weakness.

When you are facing a temptation that you want to tame, here are some ways to deal with it.

  • Pause to think before you act
  • Consider if this temptation works against your goals
  • Think about how you will feel once you give in
    • How will you feel in three hours?
    • The next day?
    • Next month?
  • Talk with a trusted friend with whom you shared your goal and that supports you

It’s okay to have a little ice cream once in a while. But are there other temptations that are holding you back from where you want to be in the future? Consider the ramifications before you dive in.

Cartoon of a man with a desert. He says, "How can it be temptation if I never resisted in the first place?"
©2020 Kevin Spear
Categories
motivation

Dreamers and The Big Stretch: Dan Miller

Cartoon of a mom and a boy at a sundae. The boy says, "You just made all my dreams come true!"

I was listening to Dan Miller’s podcast the other day. He had some great insights. He was interviewing Teneshia Jackson Warner on her new book, The Big Stretch: 90 Days to Expand Your Dreams, Crush Your Goals, and Create Your Own Success. Here’s a link to the podcast:

https://www.48days.com/following-your-dreams/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+48DaysRadio+%2848+Days+to+the+Work+You+Love+Internet+Radio+Show%29

Have you had a dream lately? Has it been a dream you have held onto for years? Is it one of these dreams?

  • Someday, my ship will come in
  • Someday, my prince will come
  • This lottery ticket is going to make all my dreams come true
  • When everyone gets their act together, I am going to rock this world!

This post ties into yesterday’s quote. Until you take responsibility for your dreams, it is unlikely they will go anywhere. If you are relying on someone else or something else to make your dreams come true, you may be waiting a long time.

We all have God-given dreams. What are you doing today to make those dreams closer to reality?

If your dream is to simply have the best sundae ever. That’s all good. Let me know when you’re ready and we can share some divine dairy delectables.

Cartoon of a mom and a boy at a sundae. The boy says, "You just made all my dreams come true!"
Categories
motivation

A New Year of Risk and Reward

Happy New Year! I am with the camp that says January 1, 2020, is the start of a new decade too. So there is even more reason to celebrate!

Have you made your new year resolutions? No? I’m not one to hype resolutions either. They can be too vague and there just isn’t enough planning involved. However, if you are prey, then I agree with the sheep in my cartoon. He really needs to put his resolution into action, and quickly!

Cartoon of a sheep and a wolf

Instead of making resolutions, I am going to spend the day working out my plan with my wife. We have never been more fired up than now. It is exciting to break out of a routine and dream of what is possible. Yes, we are willing to take risks by faith. After all, we are fooling ourselves if we think there is any risk-free life. I love this quote by General Douglas MacArthur.

There is no security in this life. There is only opportunity.

Douglas MacArthur in Instant Inspiration

Too many of us think we have security. We may not like the way things are, but they are secure. It’s been this way for a few decades, why rock the boat? Just hold on until retirement and endure the current situation. We may not realize that philosophy is just as risky as trying something different.

The reality is we don’t know what the next day will bring. I don’t know what is in store for me. So I might as well dream big, plan, and take some risks. Playing it safe assumes I know exactly what will happen in the future. I don’t. What I think is safe can crumble in an instant. This is coming from a guy who experienced two layoffs in his lifetime. My father took early retirement from a seemingly conservative, stable company rather than experience a layoff. A seemingly stable business can crumble overnight.

Yes, I don’t know what tomorrow may bring. So I might as well, dream, plan and take some risks for the new decade. The reward could be huge.

How about you?

Categories
motivation

Stay on track!

Nothing great was ever done without much enduring.

St. Catherine of Sienna

Patient endurance is a quality that is in short supply these days. Marketing appeals to our need for instant gratification. The problem with that is the feeling of being gratified is gone as quickly as it came.

  • Businesses take a short term approach and are concerned with quarterly profits
  • We want our needs met and we want them met now, even if it means going into debt
  • We want that loved one to meet our needs even if theirs aren’t being met and they have a hundred things to do at the moment

But the truly great things that satisfy take time and patience.

  • Planting a garden
  • Raising healthy, independent children
  • Growing a business that lasts
  • Changing a community for the better

If you have a vision of something great, stay with it through the messy middles. There will be interruptions. There will be times something else sounds better. Be so patient it makes the hotheads want to put up their dukes because they can’t stand it!

Categories
motivation

Stay in the Game!

Cartoon of a jogging couple

I’ve been reading Your Best Year Ever by Michael Hyatt.

In the book, he tells the story of the runner, Heather Kampf. In 2008, she won a race after falling to the ground in a 600-meter dash. She could have given up. Instead, she picked herself back up and ended up winning the race.

She had a setback. Setbacks happen. If they don’t happen to you, you are probably playing it safe and not living up to your potential.

When I was active in magazine cartooning, I knew the odds were good that it would take about 120 cartoons submitted to different magazines before I sold one. There was a .8% chance a cartoon would sell. But I knew I needed to create and submit the other 119 cartoons in order to sell the one.

I knew rejection would come. But I also knew if I held out, a sale would come too. Whatever your goal, stay in the game. Know there will be setbacks and rejections. Those who stay in the game get to reap the rewards.