Reframe your thoughts Archives - Page 83 of 107

Be Confident In Your Position

Posted on June 17, 2021

You know what the best path is already. Don’t let others distract you or put you off. Be confident in your position. Carry on with your plans.

Often times we know the best solution to a given situation. We may not have 100% of the information but we need to make the decision. No one ever has 100% of all the relevant and related information. You need to have enough information, and a good feeling about things, to then press on to the conclusion.

I like Colin Powell’s 40-70 rule in this regard. With less than 40% of total information, your odds of making a good decision are lower. Obtaining more than 70% of the total information is time consuming and unlikely to change your decision.

Who knows what ‘total information’ really means? And how does one truly measure 40% or 70%? Don’t get caught up in these things. It is a rule of thumb. Get to where you feel pretty confident in the decision you are about to make. Know that the information you have is accurate and from a good source. Then get on with the decision and move to execution.

Usually you can adjust later if the decision did not bring about the outcome you were looking for.

If you have experts with field experience providing your information, you should be fine.

Be confident in your position.

Action Gratitude Reframe your thoughts

Smile And Laugh More

Posted on June 14, 2021

Force yourself to do it if you have to. This idea seems crazy but we can forget to see the lighter side of things. Smile and laugh more because it feels good and others respond well to it.

Sometimes we take life, or ourselves and our situation, a little too seriously. It is easy to do. We can get caught up in the hub bub of daily life and just press on through. But it is so nice to see people smile and hear others laughing. It often makes us want to smile and laugh too. It is a wonderful way to quickly feel better about things.

Think of a fun time you had with a friend recently, or 20 years ago. Hold that thought. Hear the laughter in your mind and feel the giant smile on your face. Maybe you did something that scared you a little. Maybe it felt daring or a bit crazy. You did it though! And you can relive that memory as often as you like. It is free and provides a great feeling.

Think of those favourite songs of yours. Think of the happy ones, not the break up, drown your sorrows ones. Maybe some favourite scenes in some great movies do it for you. A great vacation or an activity you did or shared with others could be the smile trigger. Get five or six of these great memories and moments and write them down. Note a few key words to remind you of each one. Keep it in your pocket or on your phone. Look at it often.

Smile and laugh more. We’ll all benefit.

Action Reframe your thoughts

How Do I Do That?

Posted on June 12, 2021

You probably don’t know this, but this is the most important question in your life. For everything that interests you, ask “How do I do that?”

Ask yourself or Google or anyone, to start. Then upgrade to people who have some experience in that space or activity. Then start asking people with greater success than them. Read books on it. Search it up on the internet. Speak to practitioners, professors, experts, gurus, journalists, commentators and avid fans of the activity.

Too often we start off on the wrong foot for these things we want. Sometimes we just sit there amazed it is being done. We don’t even consider it as something we could do. Even if we do think we would fancy a go at it, we too often think, “No chance, not me. I couldn’t do that.” Well neither could the person doing it now, when they first started.

Sure it looks difficult or even ‘scary’. But so did most of the great things you’ve done in your life. Like learning to walk, asking someone out, skateboarding, or living on your own.

If you want to super charge your life for fun, excitement, thrills and happiness, start asking this question and follow the process.

How do I do that?

Action Financial Observe Reframe your thoughts Time

The Power Of Compounding

Posted on June 11, 2021

Following on from the last few days, I’m combining retirement thoughts with compounding. The power of compounding is quite incredible.

I read an article recently about setting aside almost $3,000 for a child when they are born. This money could come from parents, grandparents, uncles and aunties or even from crowdfunding, I suppose.

The idea was that you could put that $3,000 into a low cost S&P 500 index fund and just let it sit there for 65 years. You would not take any out, nor would you need to put any more in. You would just let it roll over and compound.

Using the figures from the article, it noted the S&P had delivered an average annual return of between 10% and 11% in its nearly 100 years of existence. If it continued to average that rate, or even a little less (9.5%), the account would be worth over $1m by their 65th birthday.

This is more than 90% of what people would have in their retirement savings. By doing this one thing, during pregnancy or within the year after their birth, you would set them up for retirement. Regardless how their financial habits developed, they could always count on their $1m retirement fund when they turned 65.

The power of compounding is compelling.

Action Health & Fitness Observe Progress Reframe your thoughts

Going Faster

Posted on June 9, 2021

Life seems to be going faster. Expectations and everyday things seem to change more quickly than before. Going faster can be great though it is good to slow it down occasionally too.

With most things, there is a finite limit for speed. Even light seems to reach a maximum speed. Other things like cars, rockets and airplanes have been pushing their limits further for decades. Though there is a point where it is not safe or technically possible to go faster.

Perhaps people reach that point too. Getting all those things done in one day might not be possible. Nor should we try to do it. Speeding around in a car isn’t good. Rushing through work may reduce the quality we bring to the table. Rushed conversations are rarely productive, especially if they have some differing views or involve a delicate subject.

When do we assess we are going fast enough? Is it when we have an incident or accident or health scare? Clearly going slow has its own challenges, which we won’t get into here. However, as individuals, we do need to double check that all that ’faster’ actually translates into better somehow. If it doesn’t, we should consider adjusting some things in our life.

Going faster is fun and desirable, but is it the best option?

Action Reframe your thoughts

Changing Your Name

Posted on June 2, 2021

One way to change your life is to change who you are. Who you are is tied up in all sorts of things. One way to start this process is by changing your name.

Most of us will change our name once in our life. We will shift from being Scott Gregory to Master or Mr Scott Gregory. Many women will change their names by adding a Miss, Mrs or Ms. I realise these are titles and not an actual adjustment in the spelling of a name. However, a title does change the perception of the person. This change can be noted by the person and the people with whom they interact.

Some people use a motivational persona, like Beyoncé does with Sasha Fierce. Others add their initials when writing their name like John F. Kennedy. You can also shorten or change some names like Robert to Robbie or Rob or even to Bob.

Some people go even further and change a part of their name or the whole thing. David Bowie was David Robert Jones and Elton John was originally Reginald Kenneth Dwight.

There are lots of ways to alter our identity. Our name, title, prefix, suffix and other name adjustments are just one way to make a change in our life.

Changing your name can be the beginning to a different life.

Gratitude Reframe your thoughts

Deciding What Is Important

Posted on May 31, 2021

What is the deciding factor for relative importance in your life? For most people it is their values. Deciding what is important is an ever-shifting game you play in your head.

Do you remember what was important when you were three days old? Perhaps it was food, warmth and comfort. But when you were eight, 16 and 21, what you prioritised may have been different. I am almost certain that it would have been.

What is valued by a 30 year old is unlikely to be the same as that valued by an 80 year old. Time, location, wealth, health, education and family will all have an impact on what you think is valuable. In addition, what you value can shift as your life shifts or with new information. It is inevitable.

A good way to discover what is truly important to you, is to check how you spend your time. If you spend your time at the pub with friends, family may not be as high on your list as you thought. However, working everyday to bring in the income, so your family can be fed and safe, may take precedence over spending time with them.

Deciding what is important can be tricky and have many layers.

Action Reframe your thoughts

Shine Your Light

Posted on May 30, 2021

You can make people happy. You have the power to help others feel lighter and more joy-filled. When you shine your light, so many other people benefit.

People have happiness triggers. There are certain things that will bring a smile to their face or laughter to their heart. You need to observe them or communicate with them to understand what the triggers are. Once you have the information, it makes it a lot easier to elicit a smile.

It can be quite an incredible feeling when you help someone find their smile. To see the joy in their eyes and the curling up of their lips can make you smile too.

Some people are brilliant at this. They have developed a knack for it. Comedians and talk show hosts seem to be able to get the smiles going. Sometimes it can be doctors, clowns and young children that help lighten the mood.

Presumably this is simply another skill that can be learned and improved upon. Most people should be able to get a few of their friends to crack up now and then. To improve in this capacity, buy a book of clean jokes and learn a few. You can also watch people perform their comedy routines on YouTube. Keeping a positive mental attitude can help too.

Shine your light and let the whole world shine with you.

Action Gratitude Health & Fitness Reframe your thoughts Time

Have A Fabulous Day

Posted on May 29, 2021

I love great days. It’s brilliant when everything is firing on all cylinders and everything is feeling right. Have a fabulous day like I did and it will make you feel 10 years younger.

Clear the decks from all responsibilities and go enjoy. Be present and let the day unfold. Attack it with a lively and positive attitude. Let little things slide. Give every moment a smile. Do it even if you would rather flip it the bird. Life zips by as we zoom around the sun.

Take advantage of every moment you have. You will reach a moment in life when it will get quite difficult to do things. Even thinking or remembering could get difficult. So pick a day here and there and dedicate your life to it.

It does not have to be expensive or difficult. We went for a family walk / hike at Box Hill. It was a brilliant day out. We brought water and snacks. So a bit of petrol and a small car park fee were the only costs. Pretty awesome for five people to have a fabulous day.

Use a simple outing to create a great and lasting memory. Maybe book one of these days in every month. I’m looking into it now.