Author: CLFurlong

You are worth so much more than you could ever imagine! You just need to realize it! You need to claim it, own it and take it wherever you go.

“Until you value yourself, you won’t value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it. ”– M. Scott Peck

Maybe you have problems identifying who you are? Maybe you need to ask yourself some questions?

• Who are you?
• What motivates you?
• What saddens you?
• Why are you driven by one thing but not another thing?
• Why do you feel upset in one situation and not in another situation?
• What are your values and beliefs?
• Where did they come from?

Do these questions challenge you? Prompt you?

Looking back over the past months, 2016 is ticking on quickly and soon enough we will be knocking on 2017. The scary fact is, people are planning next year already and we haven’t even finished this year, let alone hit half way. So it is important you make your next 6 months better than the ones before.

If you think you’ve already made it, that’s when you can fall short and go backwards. I’m constantly pushing forward and chasing the element of perfection. – Jason Derulo

But in all honesty, this quick checkpoint should tell you one of two things. Either you need to up your game for the next 6 months, or you need to keep on keeping on. Regardless, there is no backing down. So either way you need to be moving forward.

On paper my year is progressing well. I am learning lots, growing lots, achieving lots and majority of this is in my work life. This is great as I have had a goal to set a deep foundation in my career, setting me up for the longer years ahead. Likewise, I have also achieved some things this year in my personal life which I have been trying to do for a while. So in all honesty, I should be proud!

But if I have done all this in the first 6 months, what do I have to aim for in the next? I know exactly what. For the next 6 months I want to up the anti. Recently, I have had to focus on work, which I have loved and will continue to do so. However, I also want to grow things out side of work too. I want to ensure that my work skills don’t only reflect there, but reflect across my entire life. And vice versa.

So what am I going to do?

I’m going to push harder. I will look at the next 6 months just like another day. And each day I strive to do and be better than the day before. If I don’t end up coming out better, than the experience itself is worth it. I still have some goals and things I want to knock out and I still have 6 months to do it. But my plan is to overcome these goals and go greater.

The question I have for you is; what are you going to do for the next 6 months. Checkpoint today and take a high level evaluation of what you have done for the past 6 months. Are you happy?

We can all improve, but if you are not happy, what are you going to do about it. That is the ultimate question. What are you going to do about your next 6 months?

If you’re an iPhone lover, then the mention of the classic alarm ringtone will give you anxiety every time.

Anyway, each morning your alarm goes off and you are given a split moment to make a decision. As you open your eyes you know what needs to be done, but within the first 5 seconds of waking you fight every urge to decide shall you snooze or shall you get up.

For me, this is 4:45AM sharp. My back up alarm is 4:50AM, just in case.

As you make this decision, and depending on the day, you are reminded of the places you have to be, the job you have and the responsibilities you have.

For some the snooze button is: The easy fix for all things annoying.

For others it is a reset button of something new, something fresh. A new challenge, a new day. It is a chance at something more. Maybe even a second chance. But no matter what the day is, this day is opportunity.

So what does this ongoing battle to snooze or not snooze mean? Well below I have some points and theories which you may find relevant.

If you don’t hit snooze, it means facing your issues.

This is GREAT. It means you know you have things to do, things you are not scared to face. Or maybe you are terrified, but you are bold enough and brave enough to take a stand and take ownership of your day. Even more so your life. I say skip the snooze button and jump out of bed, as today is your day and you never know just what wonders may come a float!

HITTING SNOOZE IS LIKE…

You always end up giving up when things get too messy.

Mornings are hard. Relationships are hard. You’d rather hit snooze and just… not do anything. Life is hard…You know getting out of bed will have to happen eventually, but it sounds so hard. You’d rather just go to sleep than deal with anything stressful. I personally don’t like the sound of this one…

You never want to open your eyes.

You do not want to open your eyes and see the harsh reality of the day. You get anxiety wondering if this is going to be a bad day.

You’re constantly delaying things.

You press the snooze button, delay the things you need to get finished, and nothing ever really gets completed.

You always think something better will happen in five more minutes.

Maybe it will… but most of the time you just fall behind…

When you finally summon the ambition to move, you’re already behind.

By the time you are up and moving, you are already rushing as you are behind. You feel like a mess, you haven’t eaten and your rushing to get out the door or make it time for your first meeting.

“Nothing will work unless you do.” – John Wooden

So there you go. 1 Positive and 5 Negatives. Seems like hitting the snooze button aside from some extra sleep, is only going to limit your ability to commit and push forward. If you went about snoozing for a year straight, or even a month… imagine the bad habits, or the lack of routine you would create. Do you really want to let yourself down, all for another 5 minutes. As one day, that 5 minutes will turn into a loss of a job, a missed opportunity, a lazy lifestyle and eventually it will start to play on your mind, potentially having you start to second guess, question and challenge what you are doing with your life.

I say get out of bed.

I’ve always been one to aspire further and higher than the day before. The urge and drive I have to move forward, higher, further, deeper and closer towards my goals, grows stronger each day as I apply daily discipline. This creates a new habit through willpower, which further proves to myself that I can and that I will conquer. In doing so, I am motivated more and more by the result.

I remember back when I started to run 10 km in a single session. It was 2 years ago I was completing my first 5 km. And less than a 3 years before that I was barely surviving a 3 km run. The point is, the longer you push, the stronger you push and the deeper you push, soon enough you will GROW, and you will step out of the box you were held by and you will be released into a bigger box. This is called your comfort zone. Then you start again. Working day by day to move forward and closer to your goal.

The sooner you give up, the sooner you accept defeat.

My challenge to you is; before you start moving forward, why not take a moment to identify the next step it is you need to take. What will it require from you and what will you do about it? Sometimes, we can be so caught up in moving forward we miss what we are actually trying to achieve.

Regardless, each day is a chance to start fresh, start clean and a chance to start again. Will you be willing to take today as that chance? Are you up for it? 

You have the power and the ability to do amazing things, and it is all controlled with a simple YES or NO.

Will you continue to do what you are doing and avoid making the necessary decisions?

Or will you make the hard decision to make a stand and fight yourself to be the change you have been looking for and to take ownership of your life?

“My life didn’t please me, so I created my life.” ― Coco Chanel

It wont be easy, but each day is a single step and it only takes a few steps to build momentum. So I suggest you go cold turkey, you get serious and you start taking the required steps. In no time you will be looking back in awe to see how far you have come.

Just remember, that every mountain has a view at the top which makes the struggle and climb well worth it.

Will you make the decision to change your life? The question I ask you is… how much do you want it?

If we spent more time focusing on fixing ourselves, trusting ourselves, believing in ourselves and learning to be confident, then we would have the characteristics to enable and equip us to change the world.

I’m not trying to say that we are all not wise, but sometimes, we think we are making a difference doing something, when really all we are doing is exactly that; thinking that we are. Being clever is great, but being wiser will always supersede being clever.

Knowledge is knowing Tomato is a fruit Wisdom is not putting it in fruit salad –  Shwetabh Shekhar 

Cleverness/intelligence is the ability to solve a problem. Where, wisdom is the ability to know whether the problem needs to be solved, whether it’s the right problem, and whether it’s a problem at all.

Being able to solve the problem is always required, but knowing whether it is even required, will save you from doing something that wasn’t necessary.

We may have all the intelligence or cleverness in the world, therefore we think this will help change the world. When really you need to be the change you want to see in the world.

My challenge to you is; next time you think you are making a difference, changing the world or providing a solution. Ensure that there is a problem to solve. The last thing you want to happen is, you were the problem the whole time and you were changing everything around you to make it better. When really you are the one that needs to change, adapt and understand.

If you realized how powerful your thoughts are, you would never think a negative thought. – Peace Pilgrim

Desire is defined as a strong feeling of wanting to have something, or wishing for something to happen.

Fear is defined as an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat.

As soon as you start to take FEAR and put this greater than your DESIRE, this desire will be overwhelmed, diminished and drowned.

At times when an individual desires something, there are often mental barriers and sometimes-physical barriers that prevent him or her to obtain whatever he or she wants. 
As noted before, these barriers may be realistic, and it may seem like there is no way around the circumstances or the situation at hand.

However, the old idiom says, “If there is a will, there is a way.”

If nobody listened to their desires, then we would be dull, primitive beings.  Our desires shape the world we live in, and it is up to us to understand and know what we truly desire.

People do not have to accept the common desires that are being promoted in society. You have the freedom to live according to yourself, you have the freedom and right to live according to whatever your dream life is as long, as it does not harm anybody or anything.

Why embrace it?

You can meet somebody tomorrow who has better intentions for you than someone you’ve known forever… Time means nothing… Character does.

So at any given moment, your life can change for the better or the worse, however… if you embrace it, you will always be stretching yourself outside of your comfort zone, which means you will always come out that little wiser and brighter. Yes there may be some lessons learned, or some trial and error, but you will be building your character, your wisdom and hey… you may even have some fun along the way.

So next time a little bit of change comes your way, jump on the change train, go for the ride and be ready for anything.

These are short and to the point, however it is suggested you take these points and think about them, dig deeper into them and adapt them to how they can be applied to your life.

Hoping drains your energy. Action creates energy. – Robert Kiyosaki

Energetic people…

1. Do meaningful work

They love what they do for a living. And, when you love what you do for a living, you simply have more energy. So, if you hate your job, now might be a good time to try to fix that.

2. Get enough Zzz’s

The most energetic people in the world sustain their levels of intensity by getting at least 7-to-8 hours of sleep every single night. I think this is debatable, as it will work different for everyone.

3. Take specific rest and renewal

Elite athletes take a psychological break by “going somewhere else mentally.” What do you do? A tennis player, for example, might walk away after a set, playing with the strings on his tennis racket, while his opponent uses those few crucial seconds to stress out about what to do next.

4. Do what it takes to stay fully charged

Tom Rath said, there are three keys to energizing your work and life:

1. Energy (Eat well and sleep enough.)
2. Interactions (Surround yourself with the right people.)
3. Meaning (Do meaningful work that gives you a sense of purpose by focusing on how it benefits other people rather than just yourself.)

5. Eat well

They have a proportional amount of fiber, protein and essential fatty acids to keep them energized and focused to dominate their day. What are you having?

6. Exercise regularly 

One of the reasons exercise increases your energy is because it boosts your metabolism and gets your blood pumping and flowing through your body.

It even helps with cognitive function.

7. Practice mindfulness

Take the time to think about what you are doing…
– Stop
– Take a deep breath
– Observe the situation
– Proceed appropriately

8. Always learning