Choosing Health, Wealth and Happiness
AHA Moments of Insight should never be ignored!
If you look deep into your heart, into your soul what is it that you truly want? Seriously think about it. I will wait.
I just read that opening line again and a song lyric popped into my head. “Tell me what you want, what your really, really want” by the Spice Girls. YES, I had to look that up! Sorry… I digress!
How many answers have you come up with? One? Three? Five? Zero?
Image by OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay
Continue reading “Playing Offense”When you are feeling stuck in a rut what steps do you take to get out? I am discovering the steps that work for me but am wondering what works for others. I have been in a rut before and know the signs. When I am in a rut, I feel listless and dull. I have no energy and dread the day. I start believing everyone feels the same and that we are dragging each other deeper into the rut. Deeper and deeper, making escape seem impossible. I avoid people, I avoid social situations, I even avoid conversation, as they all irritate me. I try hard to not let others see my irritation but am not always successful.
Yes, when stuck in a rut I am not much fun to be around. Hey – don’t judge, I bet when you are stuck, you aren’t much fun either…
Would your life be different if money was not a concern? Would you be different? How would things be different? Would you behave differently? Would you still be you? So many questions this morning. Sometimes when I read books or listen to podcasts I take notes so I can go back and review them at my leisure. This can be the catalyst for a blog post, for some introspection and for some inspiration.
I was checking out a document on my computer that I saved under the title – “Things I Want to Do” and the first section looked like this:
If $ Was No Concern, I would love to:
We often use money as an excuse for not doing something we claim we want to do. It is true that money is an important tool to getting what we want out of life but it is not the only tool available. As a tool, it can be used in a variety of ways to help us reach our goals. How we choose to earn money, spend money, save and invest money all have a impact on how much is available to address our needs as well as our wants.
I spent 20 plus years working for the same company. Most of that time, my job didn’t pay well and the benefits were just okay. I saved a little, spent a little and invested a little. Mother Fran was my early financial mentor so I always had enough to cover my monthly bills and a bit set aside for emergencies. But for some reason the thought of leaving that job to pursue another in order to increase my income didn’t really occur to me! I did meet some pretty amazing people some of whom are still my close friends.
I digress – if money was not a concern what would you love to do? Make a list of your top 10 things. Hell list out your top 20 or 50 or even 100! This is a day dreaming type of exercise afterall! Really do it now, it only takes 5 minutes. After jotting down the list above, I remember staring at it and thinking “what can I do now? What can I do today to get one step closer to each of these 10 things?
Then there was one of those AHA moments where I kicked my ass into gear and made another list! It looked like this:
Figuring out the first step for each item on my list cost me nothing. What it did do was help me realize that my dreams were possible and that I could complete some of them sooner than I thought.
“Sometimes not doing what we think we want to do is less about money and more about inertia!”
Lake Girl @ My Little Blue Kayak
Spending 50-10 minutes on this exercise might just propel you to take the first step toward reaching some of your dreams, and then another…
Lake Girl
Are you a dog owner? If you are than you know that taking at least 2 walks a day is the standard of care. Dog owners are more consistent than the Post Office Deliver guys and gals. We walk in the rain, sun, snow, sleet, and fog. We walk in the blizzard, hurricane winds and blistery heat. I don’t always look forward to my daily walks but I always feel good when I return. I just got home from my morning walk with Fenway and she is passed out on her bed. I am reflecting on the emotions raised by this simple morning walk that often feels like an obligation I need to complete before I get on to the important tasks of the day.
This morning while out for a walk, I got to see what Mother Nature had to share with me in the wild suburbs I call home. The calendar may say it is April and the season is spring but it is flurrying and the temperature is in the 30’s! Ah, life in the Finger Lakes of Central, New York!
You know that feeling when you get into intense concentration mode? Your head is down and you are focused on the task at hand. You have a deadline to meet, a goal to reach, a task to complete. You don’t have time for anything else and you do not want to be disturbed. You won’t stop to stretch, to pee or even to get a drink of water. Depending on what you need to get done and how far along in the process, this can be overwhelming or satisfying.
Some of us are so stressed we never get out of this mode. We always feel under the gun, far behind and unable to catch up. Can you think back to a time when you felt like this? I know I can and my stomach turns just thinking about the pressure. When I am under a great deal of pressure, I start to shut down. I am unable to think about anything other than completing the work.
I use this blog as my therapy. There, I said it – my secret is out. I don’t write for you or for my friends or family. I write this blog for me. I write to keep myself sane. I write to figure out how to solve big and small problems. I write to make better decisions day in and day out. If you follow this blog at all, you know that I have been slacking lately. One of my goals for 2018 was to average six posts per month. I am currently averaging less than four. Oops – time to get back on track.
Continue reading “Everyone I Know Needs Therapy – Even You!”
When did busy become a good response to “how are you”? Do people take pride in being busy or is it just the state of affairs for many of us? Is it just a way to give a neutral one word response to a simple question or a reason to mutter it and keep hustling along to the next task that life throws our way?
We are busy. Busy busting our chops to earn an income, busy spending our hard-earned money on shiny new gadgets. Busy taking care of our families. Busy socializing with our friends. Busy at work, busy at home – busy, busy, busy!
If you dream of living your life in a manner that maximizes health, wealth and happiness; then I suggest you slow down. Sometimes we get so caught up in being busy that we forget to think about the big picture. We forget our true goals and lose sight of; or worse never determine our destination.
“If you don’t know where you are going, any road can take you there”
Lewis Carroll
“If you don’t know where you are going, you might end up someplace else”
Yogi Berra
I had a few easy tasks to complete today, an interesting book to read and some thinking to do. I love days like this!
The high temperature today is 29 degrees here in the Finger Lake Region of New York State. There is a fresh coat of snow on the ground and it is calm and still outside. The sky is a beautiful blue with big, white clouds loitering on the horizon. The sun is shining brightly, reflecting off of the snow and it is blinding. Too bad I can’t find my sunglasses.
Other than venturing out to walk my dog, I have been inside of my house, sitting on the couch, relaxing all day. I consider myself blessed to have opportunities like this to regroup, to think, to unwind.
So many people simply don’t know how to relax. They are hyper-focused on one thing and never stop to smell the coffee much less the roses.
One year ago I picked up a book at the library by Allisom Rimm titled The Joy of Strategy: A Business Plan for Life” The introduction begins with: “The joy of a life well lived – our work well done, our cherished ones well loved, our potential realized. Isn’t that what we’re all after? You don’t need to leave your dreams to chance. However achieving this most fundamental and often elusive goal doesn’t just happen. It requires a strategy. To create a meaningful plan, you need a structured approach that guides your through the process of defining what is most important to you and what you must do to get it. The world’s most successful businesses do this as a matter of course, and there is no more essential business than the business of your life”.
I read those words and got excited. I had already been doing a lot of soul searching and had a pretty good idea of what was important to me and the type of life I wanted to live. I had already gotten a taste of freedom by moving the lake and I wanted more! At that time, the life I so desperately wanted looked like this:
Imagine going out to a cool brew pub in Harvard Square with your best friends. It is crowded and noisy and you are sitting on the inside of the booth which makes you want to flee. Imagine trying to make rice balls for dinner and jumping up and down every time you touched the mixture because it felt sticky and wet. What about getting stuck in a crowd during the Montreal Jazz Festival and grabbing your friends belt buckle, begging him to lead you to safety.
Weird right?
