When Life Tries To Get In The Way...

Do you ever wish that you could just coast through this life without any distractions whatsoever?  To just be able to run toward your goals without ANYTHING standing in your way?  Personally, as a recovering idealist, I love the idea of being free from ALL distractions. Who wouldn't? Unfortunately, we all know that in this life, it would never be possible. The bill collector will always be knocking at our door at least once a month. When we do arrive at a place where we start to feel financially secure, the vehicle will suddenly break down or the refrigerator will go on the fritz. Or when we least expect it, our health may even start to fail. There are so many ways that life makes attempts to deter us from staying on the path to reaching our dreams. I for one can attest to this truth. 

These are the most important things that I've learned so far on my own journey towards reaching my goals:  

Having a Solid Belief System Keeps You Grounded. 

Without question, if I didn't have a personal relationship with my heavenly Father, I would not be able to achieve my goals.  As a woman of faith, I know for a fact that it would be impossible to be where I am today without the help and support of Almighty God.  He has saved me from numerous pitfalls and has provided me with his life giving word as a light to my path. When I meditate on his word consistently, follow his principles (direction), and keep in prayer, no matter what this world throws at me, I have the confidence that God will fix it. It's only when I find myself getting too busy to meditate on the scriptures and pray that I can start to lose that confidence and allow worry and doubt to creep into my thoughts. 

Are you grounded by your beliefs?

Life Will Test Your Dedication Again and Again.

When I started on my journey towards living a well-balanced lifestyle and focusing on my writing career, it was like a walk in the park. I was motivated, focused, and stuck to a daily routine with no problem. Then maybe a month or so into it, little distractions starting to creep into the picture. As I was preparing for my vacation in October, I needed to put money out to have my vehicle serviced. And as I began adding some more challenges to my workout routine, my knee and lower back started acting up on me again. From then on, every month or so, there were other things trying to pull my focus away from keeping my inner zen. In order to achieve our goals, we need to stay centered. 

I have been resolute not to let the pull of emotional negativity get in the way. It has been no easy task. Even now I'm dealing with sinusitis that has effected my inner ear. It has zapped my energy and left me feeling miserable. I allowed myself rest these past few days (no exercise), but today I need to get back on the horse. I'm starting back on my workouts, but only for 10 minutes at a time. Just until I start to feel better. 

Are you allowing distractions to get in the way of achieving your goals?  If so, what are you willing to do about it? 

Not Everyone Will Be In Your Rooting Section.

We've all encountered situations where you thought that those closest to you would be your loudest cheering section. Only to find that in reality they are no where to be found when you want them to share in your greatest triumphs and successes. Since I'm a person who enjoys lifting up others and encouraging them along the way, it is still hard to fathom that those who are suppose to care about you are too busy at times with there own lives to acknowledge your victories. But, the bible even says this will be the case. I don't let it bother me when I'm at my best, feeling strong, healthy, and confident. But, if I'm struggling with not feeling well or having an off day...I can let that get in my head and cause me to feel disappointed. It's at that point when I really need to realize that God is ALWAYS with me and know that HE is ALWAYS available to share in my triumphs (1 John 2:5, Isaiah 41:10, Joshua 1:9, Psalm 46:1, Jeremiah 29:11, Romans 8: 37-39, Psalm 91: 1-16). 

Who can you depend on to be in your corner 100% of the time?

'A Person will be satisfied with good by the fruit of his words and

the deeds of a person's hands will return to him.'

~Proverbs 12:14

Getting Through Seasons of Change

No one ever said that life would be easy. We all must enter into seasons of change whether they bring us bliss or trials and tribulation. Just like it says in the book of Ecclesiastes in the Old Testament, 'to everything there is a season...A time to plant and a time to sow; a time to tear down and a time to build up; a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance.'  Whether we like it or not, it is all part of the plan. You may be at a place in your life where you have found contentment and peace of mind as you continue to train yourself to live out a healthier well-balanced lifestyle. However, if you believe that you will be living in a continuum of happiness without any more problems, misfortunes, or disappointments, it's time for a reality check. 

You may work hard at conquering your insecurities, doubts, fears, and negative thinking. In fact, you may have even been doing a superb job of it for quite some time now and are feeling pretty good about yourself. But,  remember that you are a work in progress. This will not be an overnight transition. There's no tapping your heels three times and poof your a new person. This is a journey that ushers in strong currents that will try to knock you right off your feet. Don't be surprised if you see some of the old habits, attitudes, and thought patterns trying to creep back in especially when 'life' happens. Don't get discouraged or you could get caught up in the negativity and be tempted to give up on yourself. Remember that you and I will never reach our full potential in this lifetime. And that is okay. 

Here are some helpful things you can do to stay focused during the rough seasons:

Practice Trusting - Trust that things will eventually change, because NOTHING ever stays the same. 

Practice Patience - Be patient with yourself as you move through your journey. Give yourself grace because you will mess up from time to time. Also, have patience for others in your path. 

Practice Gratefulness- When tempted to be discouraged or fall back into your old patterns, thank God that you have this opportunity to grow and blossom no matter how challenging life may seem. 

Practice Forgiveness - Forgive yourself when you fall short. From time to time you will have to pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and keep moving forward towards your goals. 

Keep in mind that even the most well-balanced people experience sadness, disappointment, misfortune, and grief.  It's just a matter of how long they let themselves undergo these emotional struggles before they keep it moving forward. We all have a free will to choose how long we will let ourselves stay in those dark places. The choice is yours.

The excuse you give yourself for not doing something that you should do or that would be of great benefit if you did it may seem valid and unchangeable, however, the TRUTH is that you can learn to reprogram your thoughts that will ultimately lead to positive action.

Straightening Out the Kinks
...And so I planned it last week, I was going to manage to get myself out of bed each morning at 6:10AM after the 1st snooze went off and jump into my workouts. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to adhere to that plan. The old me would have beaten myself up about it and eventually I would have stopped trying. Nevertheless, I pulled myself out of bed these past couple of days around 7:10AM and worked my tail off (major victory)!

I'm slowly learning that part of the process of change is experiencing pain. It's can be extremely hard to break a bad habit when you've been doing it practically all of your life.  Even though I may have to continue to wrestle with the alarm clock each morning, eventually I will begin to settle into this new concept of becoming an early riser. Until that happens, I will take it one moment, one minute, one hour, one day at a time. 

Testing What Works...

When you are changing your life around to make room for new goals, it takes time to adjust to the new lifestyle.  For instance, for the past few months I've been doing well with adding more time for my daily fitness routine (keeping the TV off does wonders) and taking time to do my writing in the evening after I've completed certain tasks around the home.  I've also been managing to get up a little earlier most mornings to do some spiritual reflection so I can become energized and ready to handle whatever comes my way.  

Now that I've been consistent with the regimen I've created for myself, it's time to take it up a notch and get up even earlier so that I can add more time to my quiet times, fitness routine, and start to add a time slot for my writing. This is a task unto itself, at least for me.  Anyone that knows me well, knows that I'd much rather stay up late to get things done than wake up early in the morning to start my day. I have been a nighthawk all my life so it will take every ounce of strength I can muster to do this willingly (just thinking about it makes me cringe).  Since it means the world to me to reach my goals, I will not give myself a choice.  Making yourself accountable to others helps. 

Tonight I will be setting my alarm for 5:55am and allow myself only one snooze. 

If anyone out there in blogger land cares to share what goal they may be working towards and/or how they are planning to accomplish that goal, please feel free to share it with me. 

In The Pursuit of Greatness

Have you ever thought to yourself, "I should be living a 'bigger life' than I am right now?" That idea has passed through my mind many times over the years. I shouldn't say it just 'passed through' as it jumped on top of me and pummeled me to the ground. It seems to happen most often when I have been working on freeing up my mind and living a healthy balanced lifestyle. As a creative minded individual, when my brain becomes unclogged from the clutter of everyday mundane concerns and I'm filled with that new energy, watch out! My mind turns like the tasmanian devil unleashed (the cartoon character, not the cute little animal found in Australia) and I want to absorb all the information I can get my hands on.

I'm a research freak. So, I love to learn about the newest things out there in the world of science, technology, the spiritual realm, etc... I also love to learn new languages. For instance, for some time now I've been teaching myself the Spanish and Italian languages simultaneously. I've studied Spanish in College, but that was several years ago and I'm trying to build on what I already know so I can try to keep up with my Latino friends. And since the Italian language is similar, I thought I'd kill two birds with one stone thanks to my Duolingo language app. Speaking of which, I recently took a cab ride and met an interesting man named Vernet who is from Ouanaminthe, Haiti. He was my cabbie and if I hadn't struck up a conversation with him that day I wouldn't have become friends with this amazing man. It turns out, until recently, he had taught as a Professor of Spanish and French at Penn State University. When I found out he had taught Spanish, I asked him to give me some clue how to put sentences together faster so I can keep up in a conversation. I have no problem reading and pronouncing the words, that's the easy part. But, for constructing sentences on the spot, that's a 'whole nother level' (some MADTV humor). Vernet gave me some sound advice, and one thing he suggested was to buy Spanish reading books to immerse myself in the language. So, that is what I did and now I have some awesome Spanish stories to read each night before bedtime.

The real reason I brought him up was to convey that during our tête-à-tête, he shared that he was impassioned to return to Haiti to become involved with helping out his government, which is in the midst of dealing with new Dominican (border) rules. After hearing how earnest and driven he was to serve beside his countrymen for the greater good, I felt inspired and questioned what I was doing with my life. He had a lot going for himself, but he was willing to put his own life (self-serving interests) aside to fight for a bigger cause. I was once part of a movement years ago where I dedicated my life to serving God and my community through the single's ministry in my Christian faith for many years. But, I can't rest on those laurels. What am I doing with my life right now? Who am I helping? What kind of impact am I having on others? Those are some of the questions coming to mind as I feel I could do more with my life to make a positive impact.

I've always dreamed of becoming a great writer and that I'd eventually find fame, perhaps wealth (or at least a comfortable living), and would be remembered for doing something that people could remember. We all have those, what I call grandiose dreams and desires. I'm finding out that even though I believe that I am meant to be a writer, whether I will finally gain the success I desire is not as important as what kind of impact I'm having on my community right now. I was reading an article today on relevantmagazine.com and the author, Eddie Kaufholz, shared his point of view on seeking greatness in this world. He said, "Learning to be great, at its very core, is an exercise in facing inward. It's an exercise in knowing who you really are. And it's often a painful process of chipping away at the plaque that is covering the truth of what God sees as valuable about you." That's how 'greatness' should be perceived, instead of looking for all the accolades and rewards that may never come.