Archive for the ‘monday motivations’ Category

Why Procrastination is Not Always a Bad Thing

Sep 10, 2012 monday motivations

Procrastination is often given a bum rap. It’s equated with lazyness and a lack of follow through.

Granted, people do put things off simply because they don’t want to do something. I’m guilty of this as much as the next person.

This has nothing to do with procrastination – it’s just a gratuitous puppy picture.

But procrastination can sometimes be a sign that there’s something wrong with the path you’re on or the project you’re working on.

Procrastination can also stem from being overloaded mentally. It’s your brain telling you that you have too much going on in your life and it simply needs a break.

So next time you feel like putting something off, ask yourself why you’re procrastinating.

Is it just that you don’t want to do it? If the answer is yes, then ask yourself if it’s really something you need to do. It’s easy to say yes to projects and time commitments, but sometimes, you just have to say no if your heart just isn’t into it.

Do you want to do it, but can’t summon the energy (mental or physical) to get the job done at that moment? Then take a look at your life and ask yourself where you might be allotting too much time and energy. You only have 100% to work with. Procrastination can sometimes mean you’re diverting your resources in the wrong direction and don’t have enough to – as Larry the Cable Guy would say – “Git ‘er done!”

So the next time you feel yourself putting things off or dragging your feet, take a few seconds to figure out why. Often times, the answer will get you back on track and on schedule.

And if you still end up procrastinating, don’t beat yourself up. We all need a break from our lives every now and then.

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Pick Any Five Off This List…

Sep 3, 2012 monday motivations

Since today is Labor Day, today’s Monday Motivation is going to make you “work” just a bit.

I want you to look at the list below and pick any five that appeal to you.

Then do them sometime this week.

After, I want you to blog about it or just comment here and let me know what you picked and how you felt about doing it.

Enjoy yourself!

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A Quick Exercise to Boost Your Self-Confidence

Aug 27, 2012 monday motivations

A lack of self-confidence is one of the biggest reasons people never accomplish their goals.

Maybe others told them they couldn’t do something. Maybe they have a fear of failing. There are a myriad of reasons why people lack self-confidence.

But if you don’t believe in yourself and your abilities, how are others supposed to?

 

So here’s a quick exercise I’d like you to do, to remind yourself of how awesome you can really be.

While you’re sitting here reading this on your computer, go and open any kind of note-taking program you have. It can be as simple as the notepad program that comes with most computers.

Title the page: “THINGS I’M GOOD AT” – yes, in all caps.

If you can, bold it and change the font color to bright red (or your favorite color).

Then I want you to make a list of everything you can do well.

Can you speak more than one language? Bake a mean cupcake? Run a marathon? Touch the tip of your tongue to your nose?

Do you always remember important dates of friends and family (birthdays, anniversaries, etc.)? Can you figure out a 15% tip in your head? Can you put on your eyeliner in a straight line (I’ve tried, really, I’ve tried)?

Do you always know how to cheer someone up? Know how to dance? Can you say “watermelon” five times fast?

It doesn’t matter how trivial, funny, or weird you think it is, if you can do it, write it down. Don’t leave anything out.

Then save the file where you can find it on your computer. Feel free to add to it whenever you discover there’s something else you’re good at.

Next time you need a boost to your self-confidence, open up that list and read through it. It’s a good reminder that you are capable of accomplishing things, even when you have those days where nothing goes right.

Believe in yourself.

You CAN do it.

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Why You Shouldn’t Put Off Dreams

Aug 20, 2012 monday motivations

It seems from birth, we are conditioned to believe that we go to school, we get a job, get married, start a family and then we retire. Sensible, but unfortunately, we are also taught that we need to wait until we reach that retirement stage to do things we’ve always dreamed of doing, like traveling.

But if you have a dream, you shouldn’t put it off.

People go through life indoctrined that it’s wrong to just go for what they want. Most wait until they retire to do what they’ve always dreamed of.

Why not do it now?

I believe people should do what makes them happy. No, it’s not always possible, but as I stated before, most failures occur simply because the person doesn’t even try.

So what’s your dream?

Want to be a gourmet cook? Take some classes. Want to travel? Put aside the money and go. Want to run a marathon? Get off the couch and start running.

Yes, it’s good to have a big picture of your dream, but to make it happen, you need to not get bogged down with the enormity of it all. Break it down and plan it out.

In fact, write it down.

Seeing it in print helps make your dream more tangible and attainable.

Remember those outlines you used to write in school? Make an outline of your dream and the steps you need to accomplish to get there.

Some dreams may need more than one page. That’s ok. Again, don’t let the big picture overwhelm you. Start at the beginning – what do you need to get the ball rolling?

Not every dream is immediately attainable. However, if you keep working towards that goal and you can keep crossing off those little steps you wrote out, you’ll be that much closer to making it happen.

Positive thinking works wonders.

In order to make your dream real, you have to believe it can happen. Too often, I see people tell themselves they can’t. Don’t do that to yourself.

Really, what do you have to lose? Even if it doesn’t happen, at least you made the effort. But if you psych yourself into thinking you can’t accomplish something, you never will.

So don’t wait until the end of your life to make dreams happen. Do it now. You deserve the happiness.

[photo courtesy of antixstar]

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If You Don’t Go After What You Want, You’ll Never Have It

Aug 13, 2012 monday motivations

Often when I’m talking about life goals or bucket list items or whatever it is you want to call them, people always invaribly say something like, “I’ve always wanted to do (fill in the blanks).”

So the first question I’ll ask them is: “What have you done to try and achieve that goal.”

Usually the answer is, “Nothing.”

I’ll then ask why and I’m offered a myriad of excuses.

Truth of the matter people, things don’t usually just happen to you.

Almost everything you go through in life is a consequence of things you’ve done somewhere along the way. Yes, there are things that are out of your control, like interactions with others and what I like to call “acts of God” that there are just no planning for.

But if there’s something you’ve always wanted to do with your life, whether it’s a career choice or just an experience, it’s not going to happen without you taking that first step forward. Even if it’s just a baby step, without that initial inertia you won’t have any energy to accomplish what you want to do in life.

Yes, it’s easy to let self-doubt and a fear of failure stop you from trying.

I understand this all too well. But there’s nothing I’ve accomplished in my life that has just happened. It all started with me exhaling and taking that first step.

Yes, I have failed at things.

I’m no different from anybody else. But if I hadn’t at least tried, it would’ve been an automatic failure. At least when I do attempt to achieve a goal, I stand a chance of success.

So, next time you want to achieve a goal, don’t psych yourself out of doing it. Just take a deep breath and give it a try.

If you don’t, you’ve already failed.

[photo courtesy of Mattox]

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