Progress Archives - Page 40 of 49

Start Making Plans

Posted on December 26, 2020

Get a jump on the new year. There is no time like the present. You have had a couple of days of celebrations and relaxation. Now start making plans.

There may only be one good time to start anything. That time is now. Don’t lose another day, hour or minute. You probably still can’t believe how quickly the last 12 months sailed by. In the moment, it might have seemed to be dragging on due to the challenges of 2020.

However, the clock keeps ticking. Whether you are happy with it or not. Whether you are lying in bed, lazing around, working away or spending time with friends and loved ones.

Time waits for no one. And if you keep doing the same thing as previous years, you will continue to get the same results. Little changes at the edges are a good start. Though you will need to make bigger changes to see really significant shifts in your reality.

Life is very exciting. Small steps completed daily will be compounded and will, in time, bring results you may not have imagined. Press on! Get going today. Write down 20 things you want to achieve this year. Select five from that list. Focus on these ones. Put a start date and completion date next to these five items. Then get going.

Start making plans.

Progress Think About It

So Now What?

Posted on December 25, 2020

When you get through a big event, or reach a big milestone or a significant goal, there is often a big sigh of relief. Then comes a feeling of, ‘So now what?’

We often need a moment or two to relax and recharge. Not just physically, but emotionally and mentally too. That can be part of the celebration of having completed. Some people will go all quiet and others will jump up and down and be very vocal.

Regardless of how you celebrate and recharge, there will be a requirement to fix your mind on a new goal or event. Without a new focus for your days, you may start to drift. As you drift, you can lose your way. Your good habits may dwindle and poor ones may develop in their place.

So switch your focus onto the next big event. Lock it in and start taking the next steps required. Start building momentum toward your next big adventure and victory.

The time between Boxing Day and New Year’s Eve is an excellent time to reflect on your next moves. There is a lull in the universe. It allows you to gather your thoughts and prepare for the challenges ahead.

So now what?

Observe Progress Time

Plans Change

Posted on December 21, 2020

Hello 2021!! I can see you over there in the corner. Don’t be shy. It’s time to start making a name for yourself. Plans change as life goes on so you need to quickly prepare for alternatives.

It’s almost inevitable that people start thinking about next year in December. We start to think about a fresh new year with a clean slate. It will be full of promise, excitement and opportunity. New goals and objectives with ambitions to achieve anything we can dream of.

2020 wasn’t quite the year many had expected. Some people did very well and some did not. Some people had to change their plans for schooling, work, travel arrangements, family visits and all manner of things.

Interruptions occur in life as do distractions. We need to practice being nimble and flexible. Rolling with the punches is a good skill to have. Developing different talents, income, career paths and relationships can be helpful.

Many things you thought you would do in 2020 might have been postponed until 2021. Hopefully that will now work out. However, if things don’t go as you expect, you will need to make other arrangements.

With just under two weeks to go until the new year, you best get your goals and targets locked in for 2021, 2026 and 2031.

However, prepare for alternative options, because, plans change.

Gratitude Observe Progress Think About It

Who Guides You?

Posted on December 18, 2020

We have all followed someone else’s advice at one point in our lives. Sometimes it will have turned out well and other times not. Who guides you?

There are many traditional people that give advice that people have listened to over the years. Examples range from the head of your local or national government or religion. In addition, it might be the senior member of the armed forces or your royal family.

You might also have chosen to consider the words in the book of your religion, your local or national media outlet, or perhaps an influential magazine or book. There can be many people putting these printed items together. Though the key pieces will be influenced most by the author and senior editor.

Then, of course, there are friends and family, neighbours, teachers, professors, doctors, and other members of the community. Finally, there is also the voice inside your head. Sometimes this intuition or inner voice will be the most influential or powerful. Other times, we bury it, subordinate it or completely ignore it.

All of the above have their own angle, bias, desired outcome and experience in life, through which everything is filtered. Be conscious of that. In the end, it is your life. The voices you let steer your ship will have a significant impact on the joy, pain, challenges, success and gratitude in your life.

Who guides you?

Progress Time

Ready To Go!

Posted on December 12, 2020

Hopeful but misplaced optimism. Sometimes this phrase is warranted and other times it is not. Sometimes people are actually ready to go!

It is a funny phrase at times, especially if preceded by, ”just one more thing and then we’re”… Lot’s of times people will say they are ready only to find out that they aren’t really. We do a little bit of that before we head off on a camping trip. There always seems to be a dozen last minute things that need checking or that we haven’t got in the car. A lot of running in and out of the house then ensues.

However, when used as it is intended, as a rallying cry, it can be brilliant. if it is true and said with enthusiasm, it is a great way to start an adventure. It is such a positive and robust sounding phrase. I love it!

A friend and I were laughing recently at how loosely this phrase was being used with respect to a property deal. It gave the illusion that everything was done and just signing was required. However, it still had a long way to go. Many twists and turns and additional requests, challenges and issues were to come.

Thankfully, these seem to have been juggled adeptly.

Now it does seem they are actually, ready to go!

Action Progress Reframe your thoughts

You’re On Track

Posted on December 9, 2020

You are where you should be based on those things that have come before. You may prefer to be somewhere else, but you’re on track at the moment.

Everything you have done in life has lead you to this moment. Decisions you have made, and the decisions of others, have all contributed to getting you here. It’s a strange concept to consider sometimes. It can invoke different feelings about the control you have over your life and circumstances.

If you like where you are, you may feel confident and happy. If you do not, you may feel anxious, frustrated or concerned. Either way, you are where you are.

The great news is that you can change things. The quickest way to make a change is to look at things anew with fresh eyes and an open perspective. Gratitude will help quite a bit here. Right now may not be perfect but it is probably better than a Guatemalan jail cell.

You can also look five years ahead and decide that you will be at a different destination at that time. Write the story of what your life will be like then. Note down your age, your relationships, your occupation, wealth, fitness, health and lifestyle. Then decide what you will start to do differently from today to get there in time.

It’s ok. You’re on track.

Action Progress Reframe your thoughts

Today Will Be Different

Posted on December 2, 2020

Yes it will and no it won’t. Every day is unique despite being broadly the same. Today will be different for those looking for differences. And, it will be the same for those looking for similarities.

Broadly, today is just like yesterday. The sun rose in the east, crossed the sky and set in the west. It will tend to get warmer and lighter in the middle of the day and be colder and darker in the early and later hours. There will be roughly 24 hours in the day. (Technically a day consists of 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4.0916 seconds.) But the point remains that it is the same length of time each day.

Now for the differences. It may be colder or warmer and the sunrise and sunset may be about a minute different, depending on how near you are to the equator.

Now, as for you, you have choices. You can decide whether you want the day to be the same old, same old or to be different in some ways. For starters, you could set your waking device to wake you 10 minutes earlier. You can decide to be the most positive and enthusiastic person you know. Additionally, you could start a new exercise regime today or order better food from the shops.

The detail of today will be different, unless you decide to let it be the same.

Action Goals, Results & New Thinking Reframe your thoughts Time

Have A Good Filing System

Posted on November 27, 2020

Do you spend time trying to find things? It does seem crazy, at times, how long it can take to find an item. Have a good filing system and that can change things.

We used to have an ok filing system. Now it is much better. I can recall times where I spent 10 or 15 minutes looking for one piece of paper. That rarely happens anymore. When you have a good system and you use it properly, you can save yourself a lot of time and aggravation.

It is good to have a strong process and system for physical filing as well as digital filing. Then it is particularly important that you stick with the process and system as much as you can. Of course there will be moments when you don’t replace a folder or file right away. Additionally, you may not get to the filing room straight away so you create a new pile.

If this happens, be sure to correct this as quickly as possible so that the system doesn’t fall over and you can’t find things again. This also helps to keep things looking tidy in other areas of the house or office.

It can take some time to set up a good system. However, when you weigh it against all the time you will save looking for things, it will be worth it.

Have a good filing system.

Action Health & Fitness Progress Reframe your thoughts Time Weight

Up Your Game

Posted on November 25, 2020

Whatever you are doing is not good enough. Your potential is well beyond your current activity. It is definitely time to up your game.

On Sunday I went for a run and it was a gorgeous day for it. I decided to go around the whole of Richmond Park. By the time I’d returned back home, I had completed 16 kilometres (10 miles). It was a great run. I felt good, the scenery was excellent, the air was fresh and clean, not too many people out and I listened to a great book called Psycho-Cybernetics.

Ten Years ago I ran in a race called the Cabbage Patch 10 – a 10 mile flat race. As a sprinter with forays into 5 km and occasionally 10 km, that 16 kilometres was very tough. My legs were aching for days. I even had an ice bath after to reduce swelling.

However, in the intervening period I have upped my distance, stamina and perception of the distance. So much so, I was simply running along on Sunday, enjoying the experience, and decided I would stretch my run from 10 km to 16 km. In addition, a couple hours after I returned, I went for a family walk for almost two hours.

This is just one area I have built resilience and made a definite improvement in my life. I am working on others.

It’s time to up your game.

Action Progress Reframe your thoughts Time

You Need A Full Court Press

Posted on November 14, 2020

Sitting back and waiting for things to happen is not always a good strategy. Sometimes you need a full court press. It’s an extreme defensive strategy used in basketball, which can be seen as a form of intense offensive strategy.

Sometimes you just need to be patient. For example, with a pregnancy, despite any anxiousness, it is generally best to be patient and breathe well. For other things, like buying concert tickets or a property, it can pay off if you continually press things forward.

This is where I like to use the full court press term and analogy. In our experience, people have a specific pace to get things done. When you combine that with other people and their pace, it tends to mean things move at the slowest pace in the group.

Unfortunately, this is not always ideal. This is because there will be times that you have a property opportunity that could disappear if you are not quick. Many people say that it takes months to complete on a property transaction. While that may be true, if you are patient and let the process run at their pace, if you get engaged, you can complete in a few weeks.

The key considerations are next steps, planning and communication.

Then you need a full court press and to continuously move everyone forward each day.