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Diet & Nutrition

2007-09-01 09:59:00

Being the best...

Answer: Being the best you can possibly be in every area of your life. That is the ultimate goal. It may sound impossible and overwhelming. While perfection may be impossible, improvement and striving for something better, is always attainable. Many times day to day life stresses bog us down and halt our efforts toward improvement. We begin and fail at weight loss, get stuck in dead end jobs, and remain in unfulfilling relationships. Each of these stresses occur when there is an imbalance between what we have in mind as ideal and what we are actually doing in our lives. Permanent happiness, success and balance come when we’re working to make our whole life better, not just one piece. When each piece is getting better, the stress load goes down. When the stress load goes down weight loss happens, career goals are achieved and relationships are more fulfilling. In order to improve, we must realize the task will require long term commitment to planning, focusing, and learning. First, develop long-term perspective. This will be a marathon, not a sprint. Your real success will be based on the person you become and the results you have achieved one year from now. Patience is a must. We want to do it all and we want results right now, but sometimes we have to start modestly and then fall in love with the process so that we then make learning and growing a priority. It is a journey because you will not get there overnight, but you will get there. Step by step, you will get a little bit closer – a little bit further down the path. Second, create a personalized plan. A good plan is one you can follow for the rest of your life… the one that fits your life. You see, each of us is unique and motivated by different factors and you’ve got to develop one that is right for you and fits you. We all must have a plan, along with goals in that plan, to move us along. Whatever your personality, your strengths and your weaknesses, develop the plan around them! Your plan is the roadmap for reaching your goals. Jim Rohn says, “Setting goals is the greatest influence on a person’s future and the greatest force that will pull a person in the direction that they want to go. But the future must be planned, well designed to exert a force that pulls you towards the promise of what can be.” Third, have a specific focus for 30 days at a time. Learn something new you can put into practice to move you toward your goal. Make that principle your focus for the entire month. In doing so, you’ll make whatever you are working on a habit. The following month you can build on whatever you achieved. Establish times to spend working on your plan and goals. It may be every Sunday night. It may be 10 minutes each morning. It may be in the car listening to CD’s every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Whatever it is, set the times and do it. In your step-by-step plan, put down points that you can accomplish every week. Develop the discipline and take those steps everyday, you will move you closer to your goals and where you want to be. Fourth, get supplemental audio and books to listen to in the car and read at night. This is so important. By, receiving multiple injections of ideas and strategies in a variety of ways through the week and month, you will be propelled toward your goals. Donna Krech calls this BYB or “bombarding your brain” with the positive stuff. Then, keep a Journal. Take notes. It may be on paper, it may be on a micro-recorder. Record the ideas and inspiration that will carry you from where you are to where you want to be. Brainstorm with yourself on where you are going and what you want to do. Record your dreams and ambitions. Create time for reflection, a regular time and the end of the day to go back over, to study again the things you’ve learned and the things you’ve done each day. I call it “running the tapes again” so that the day locks firmly in your memory so that it serves as a tool. Your journals are a gathering place for all the valuable information that you will find. Finally, act on your plan. What separates the successful from the unsuccessful so many times is that the successful simply do it. They take action, they aren’t necessarily smarter than others; they just work the plan. And the time to act is when the emotion is strong. So set up the discipline when the idea is strong, clear and powerful – that’s the time to work the plan. Even the smallest action is important -- because the value and benefits that you receive from that one little action will inspire you to do the next one and the next one... So step out and take action on your plan because if the plan is good, then the results can be miraculous. By developing a plan, making the commitment to focus on the goal, and being open to learning new ways to grow, you can achieve your goals and dreams. You can make every piece of your life better. You can say at the end of the day, “I’ve accomplished what I set out to do today”.