Let's Connect!

Achieve Your Best Life

Live your life your way

distractions

What if…?

by

daydreamerAre you a daydreamer?  Do you ever wonder ‘what if I…?’ and then fill in the blank with wonderful images that float around your head?  Do you let these images grow and enthuse you or do you quickly pull yourself back down to ground level and keep a realistic outlook on life?  Or, maybe you just find it difficult to daydream because your mind is so full of all the things on your To Do list or your commitments to other people so that there is just no room for daydreaming?

Wherever you sit on the imaginary daydreamers scale there can be no doubt that it can have both positive and negative effects on our lives.  But, taken in moderation, and used appropriately, I believe that daydreaming can have a very positive effect on our lives.

The key of course is to not spend all our time daydreaming at the expense of doing.  Instead we must follow up by actually identifying those parts of our daydreams which seem to re-occur to such an extent that they appear to be sending us a message…a message that says I’m waiting for you to do something about this! [Read more…] about What if…?

That’s Just Too Bad!

by

As some of you may know, I post a daily status update on my Facebook page which is aimed at being inspirational, encouraging and a call to action.  I was interested to see this week that one status update in particular was viewed more often than others, and so I’ve decided to expand upon it in today’s blog.

Here’s the update:

SU21

Or you can click through to it on Facebook here.

There are a few themes running through this update, so let’s take a look of them in turn.  I’ve also included a link to earlier blog posts for each area which you can click for an alternative view or wider discussion. [Read more…] about That’s Just Too Bad!

The Quote Series: Why It’s Good To Be Self-Disciplined

by

cakeThe word ‘discipline’ can have many negative connotations.  We can associate it with being restricted in some way or being prevented from doing that which we want to do, it can also be associated with corporal punishment and therefore with pain.  Is it any wonder then that today’s society is perceived as lacking the discipline of our forebears?

Nowadays we are perceived as a generation of people who, through lack of discipline or knowledge or peer and/or media pressure seek instant gratification, forgoing the foresight to assess the results of our current actions on our future selves.

Maybe our society, in an effort to ‘be all things to all men’ has become too liberal, or maybe we’ve just forgotten the benefits of a disciplined life and the long term advantages this can have for us, or, by contrast, the difficulties which await us in the future should we choose to live an un-disciplined life now.

Below I’ve picked out a few quotes which delve into the subject of discipline, with an emphasis on why it’s so important.  A key concept to remember though is that discipline isn’t something we ‘do’ to other people.  Instead, the emphasis is on self-discipline, which, in time sends out a clear message to those around us about our values and underlies our personal integrity.  It is also likely that our self-discipline will ‘rub off’ on those around us, especially our children who, of course, learn from our actions. [Read more…] about The Quote Series: Why It’s Good To Be Self-Disciplined

Of Ladders and Rocks!

by

Of Ladders and Rocks!

Does life sometimes feel like a perpetual merry-go-round?  Either we can’t get on or we can’t get off!  There’s always far too much to do than there is time available to do it and even when we manage to catch a passing chair and get cracking with our to do list, it’s a race to fit in as much stuff as possible before we fall off again!  Sometimes it feels like it’s never-ending!

To add insult to injury, while we’re trying to control our day-to-day activities, we never really seem to get ahead with the things that really matter to us, or the things that will really make a difference to our long-term future, and so we keep catching the ride, and then watch ourselves merrily go around in circles!

Does that sound familiar?  I must admit that my life can descend into this kind of merry-go-round chaos on occasion.  It’s characterised by times when I’ve taken on too much either because the project sounded so interesting I just couldn’t walk away or because I was just too embarrassed to offend and didn’t say no when I knew that I should have. [Read more…] about Of Ladders and Rocks!

From Funk To Action: A Case Study!

by

penholderI’ve woken up this morning in the doldrums, this is at best inconvenient (I have a blog to write today and a myriad of domestic chores to finish before the working week descends once again), at worst it could potentially leave me moping, lethargic and unproductive all day.  My only salvation is that I hate to let people down, and, although for the most part I can probably pass up the domestic chores without it causing too much damage (although it will result in lots of rushing around to catch up as the week progresses), I cannot avoid addressing the issue of writing the blog.  This is a *good thing* I tell myself…

So today will be about tricking, cajoling and generally compelling myself to complete the work.  This won’t be easy, but it will get the work done and I also know that by the time I finish, I will be feeling much better!  What I don’t fully understand is why I feel like this in the first place, although I guess we can’t be upbeat, enthusiastic and raring with energy 365 days a year…I just wish we could!

So, with Wayne Dyer’s words ringing in my ears… “Be miserable.  Or motivate yourself.  Whatever has to be done, it’s always your choice.”  it’s time to get to work.

First port of call is to sit down at the computer, open the page, and start typing.  Unfortunately for my readers, today it’s the trials and tribulations of a would-be writer, but hopefully I’ll be forgiven for baring my oh-so-human weaknesses. [Read more…] about From Funk To Action: A Case Study!

The Quote Series: Procrastination

by

ProcrastinationToday I’m going back to basics and taking a look at procrastination through the eyes of a number of influential and/or famous people.

Procrastination is a problem for a lot of people.  Sometimes it’s just an occasional problem but for others it can be a chronic habit that causes difficulties in many areas of their lives.

Napoleon Hill describes procrastination in terms that we will all find familiar:

Procrastination is the bad habit of putting off until the day after tomorrow what should have been done the day before yesterday. 

Like many people, I recognise myself in this quote, although I don’t procrastinate over everything.  Some tasks are appealing enough in their own way and I need nothing more than for the task to present itself for me to take action.  But sometimes, even tasks that I find appealing fall out of favour and I find myself putting things off.

Why do we procrastinate?

I love this quote from Christopher Parker which illustrates one of the reasons why we procrastinate:

Procrastination is like a credit card: it’s a lot of fun until you get the bill.

Imagine all the fun, exciting or relaxing things we can be doing instead of getting on with the task that we know we should be doing.  By ‘should’, I don’t mean things like getting the washing up done or washing the car.  Instead I’m thinking of those things that will bring us longer term enjoyment and gratification.  Our problem is that we’ve become a generation who are obsessed with instant gratification.  If it doesn’t please us right now, then we don’t want to wait, consequently taking action on our long term goals is delayed.  We take our fun now, and then have to live with the long term consequences. [Read more…] about The Quote Series: Procrastination