Tag: good habits

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motivation

Is Any Time a Good Time For a Good Scare?

Cartoon of a girl and a ghost

I’ve never been much of a horror movie fan. The term good scare sounds like an oxymoron to me. With all the news about pandemics and quarantines these days, I’m in even less of a mood for a good scare.

I’ve had to take some breaks from the news lately. Yet, I’ve also wanted to stay informed. It is possible to do both. Much of the news can be condensed to one half-hour segment. We don’t need to be immersed in all of the updates 24/7.

No time is a good time for a good scare. This isn’t a convenient time. But since we are in a crisis, there are some things you and I can do to balance the bad news.

  • Go on a media fast for the morning. Don’t start your day with the news, until you’ve had a chance to get your bearings for the morning.
  • Read some inspirational material before you begin your day. a paper version would be better since you won’t be distracted by news alerts.
  • Spend some time in prayer or meditation.
  • Text or call a friend and let them know how much you appreciate them.
  • Write a gratitude list.
  • If you’re working from home, get showered and dressed as if you were leaving for work.

There are many things we can’t control. But we can control how we start our day and what goes into our minds. Nix the scary stuff first thing in the morning.

Cartoon of a girl and a ghost

Categories
motivation

Failure is Success if…

Failure is success if we learn from it

Malcom Forbes in Brainyquote.com

That is the whole key to success. Success isn’t about doing everything right the first time. If it is that easy for you, then you probably aren’t living up to your potential. After all, how do you know what your limits are if you’ve succeeded at everything you’ve set out to do?

The challenge is to learn from it. We humans can get stuck at doing the same foolish thing over and over again. Addictive behaviors, negative thinking patterns and unhealthy habits can make us believe we can never escape from failure.

It reminds me of the verse found in Proverbs 26:11. As a dog returns to his vomit… what a repulsive image! Yet when we don’t learn from our failures and repeat unhealthy behaviors, whe are like the dog and the fool who returns to his folly.

Let’s learn from our failures. They don’t have to hold us down. We can use them as a springboard to success.

Categories
motivation

Small Actions Make Great Strides

Cartoon of two business people. The business man says, "I like to celebrate the small victories. Today, I didn't spill breakfast on me."

The other day, I listed to the Harvard Business Review Podcast interview James Clear, the author of Atomic Habits: An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones. Here is a link to the podcast and transcript:

HBR Podcast: The Right Way to Form New Habits

More or less, the author promotes using small actions to create good habits instead of going all gung ho and overwhelming ourselves. It’s celebrating the small actions and victories.

Cartoon of two business people. The business man says, "I like to celebrate the small victories. Today, I didn't spill breakfast on me."

This is a novel approach to goal setting and forming new habits. Too often, I think I have to have a new goal all figured out. But the author suggests starting small habits that enable the big one is the way to go. Do you want to read more books? Start with one page. Do you want to exercise? Pack your workout clothes the night before and have them ready in your car. Do you want to write a book? Start with one sentence… or a short blog article!

Keep striving and finding ways to start those good, new habits. The results will be worth it!

Categories
motivation

Clean Slate

The past can feel like a clutter of regrets the wrong choices and burdens. It can be easy to play the what-if game.

  • What if my parents did this instead of that?
  • What if my family was rich?
  • What if I had a different set of friends?
  • What if I made a different decision then?
  • What if I didn’t start that bad habit?

Our life can become a cluttered room of past choices if we hold onto things. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Every new day gives us a clean slate. Instead of holding onto regrets, we can choose to learn from the past, let go of it and move forward.

  • We can choose a better habit today
  • We can be thankful for a lesson learned and make a better choice today
  • We can begin to clean the mental clutter by writing down what happened
  • We can forgive others as well as ourselves

Whatever your story, whatever your past, today is a brand new day. It is a clean slate. Start cleaning and make the best of it.

Categories
motivation

No Longer a Slave to Fear

Cartoon of son standing on sleeping dad. The son says, "Wake up, Dad! It's time to fearlessly face the day!"

There was a time I would let fear dictate my actions. If I’m honest, I’d say it was as recently as last night. It’s a constant battle to vanquish all the bad news and doomsayers from my mind. It’s a shame our minds are wired to ignore good news and focus on all the doom and gloom.

But today is a new day. It is full of potential. Nobody really knows what tomorrow will bring. So why not face it with courage? Why not be fearless?

I have to be intentional to do that. If I run by autopilot, If I allow the latest headline to dictate my mood, I can become a slave to fear rather quickly. But that’s not how we would like to live, is it?

Take some time today to find the good. One great resource I recommend is The Good News Network. Read something inspirational, such as The Bible. Be intentional in finding something to be grateful for. We don’t have to be slaves to fear today.