HUNT it DOWN!

Being Fearful of change, getting scared when you’re about to do something new, having doubts that you aren’t making the “right” decision… These are challenges every human being faces.

We can’t avoid it… It happens.  It’s the cycle of life.  Some days we feel on top of the world and other days we feel like nothing’s working.  BUT if we stay in the game long enough we realize that everything always comes full circle.  If we play by the rules and keep reaching for it… GOOD things will come our way eventually. It’s a law of nature.  If we break the rules and treat people like dirt some thing is going to come our way too.  Karma can be a REAL BI*$%#@ so watch out  :)

These are MY Top 3 Tools For Battling Doubt

1.    I think every Individual on this planet should have their own personal Mission Statement.  What do you stand for as a human being?  When times get tough and I start doubting myself I know I can always go back to my personal statement to bring me strength. 

My Mission Statement – I stand for hope and possibility in my life and everyone else’s life.

So when a friend comes to me and is looking for advice I always know how to respond.  I never doubt it… I’m there to support them in whatever they want to become.  When I doubt myself, I go back to my mission statement and I remember I can’t doubt myself because I stand for hope and possibility.  If I can remember to never lose hope than I can be, do, or have anything.

2.    After you know what you stand for I think it’s important to write down what it is you want out of life. What do you want? What are you goals?  It’s important to make a list of crazy goals, goals you have trouble writing down because they’re so BIG. Goals that you have to whisper at first because they make you blush   After you write those goals down I believe it’s KEY to write down WWHHHYYYYYYYY you want them?

I was talking to my friend the other day and she kept repeating the phrase… “I want to be rich, I want millions.”  And I was like… yeah, get in line sistah!   No no, I said why do you want to be rich?  And she said then I could spend more time with my husband.  And I said… you don’t need to be rich to spend more time with your husband you can do that now?  Then she said I want to travel more… And I said… You don’t have to be rich to travel more you can travel right now? 

Once you figure out your dreams/goals it’s important to have an understanding of why you want them. People think that being Rich is the answer to their prayers.  But having lots of money doesn’t always make you “rich.” 

Here’s one of my favorite quotes – “No man is a failure who is enjoying his life.” Being RICH is a feeling; you can be rich without lots of money.  I feel like I’m rich and I’m by no means a millionaire, yet    But what I’m saying is that just because you have lots of money in the bank you won’t automatically be happy.  BE RICH NOW.  Travel now, figure out what you want to do if you have millions of dollars and start doing it now!  That will make you feel rich I promise.  It will bring back the passion in your life and a smile to your face.

For me one of my big goals is to make MILLIONS but it’s a secondary goal and my reasoning is this.  I would like more freedom to do whatever I want to do… And if I have more money I know that I will be able to work with even more people.  Working with people is what I love to do. AND working with People is what I do right now.  Ironically I’ve personally discovered that the more invested I get in doing what I love the more money I’ve made.  It’s like the Law of Attraction or something?  It’s like when you follow what you’re meant to do the money comes. Do what you would do even if you didn’t get paid for it, do it now.  Do you get what I’m saying?

3.    Here’s MY all time favorite way of handling the doubt that comes with achieving my goals/dreams. Everyone that‘s come over to my house knows I do this.  I Love to make LISTS.  I will break it down for ya  :)

For 2009 make a list of your Top 10-20 Short Term Attainable goals.  Here’s what I like to do… Divide the YEAR up into 3month segments, 4 TOTAL. Soooo

1.    Jan, Feb, March

2.    April, May, June

3.    July, Aug, Sept

4.    Oct, Nov, Dec

Then you take your list of 10-20 goals and you put them into the months you think you can realistically achieve them.  Once you’ve done that you go for it for the next 365 days Every day, every moment you work towards achieving your Top 10-20 Short Term Attainable Goals.

So now on your wall YOU have the big list of 10-20 goals and the 3 Month List of which goals you are going to work towards in those months.  In the January, February, March SECTION write down all the Major Goals and Minor Goals you want to attain.  BUT do more than write it down! You need to make it a must that you will find a way to complete all the tasks on that Months list in the 31-28days.  ATTACK THEM baby… HUNT them down!  A dream, is a dream, is a dream.  YOU gotta go after it. That’s where the magic comes from.  The path and the choices you make every single day is what’s going to get you where you want to be.

Finally – Every week I make a list of what I am going to achieve on that day… The musts.  So this is the 3^rd List for Goal Setting.

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday… AND OTHER in case there’s anything left over that I could maybe squeeze in.  You may think this sounds crazy but what’s CRAZY is how well it works

FIIINNNAAALLLYYYY the 4th and final list– Everyday I make a list that I carry around with me on a piece of paper so I don’t forget my objectives of the day.  I’m very old school I like to write it down, but this can all be done on the Blackberry or Iphone too.

Here’s an Example of my Day Tomorrow.

Monday January 12th, 2009

^{1.    Wake up 5.18am -Walk the Dog, mail bills}

2.    6.30am Spin Class Greenwich

3.    Make Sure Amy’s on the guest list for Lunchtime Spin

4.    8.30-10.30 Meetings

5.    Lift weights from 11-12

6.    12.30 Spin Greenwich

7.    Home – lunch – Office work Emails/ call Con Ed – walk the dog

8.    4.30-7.30pm Meetings

9.    Plan out Tuesday, rest, dinner walk the Dog

If I can’t fit some “Other” stuff in there like calling Con Edison I’ll tack it onto Tuesday, no biggie.  I always know what my Major Objectives are for the day because they are written down.  I know exactly what I need to do.  There’s NO ROOM for Doubt in my world because it’s organized in the way I want my life to go.  And I never lose sight of what I stand for: Mission Statement of Hope and Possibility.   Everyday I carry that badge with me wherever I go – In my classes of 30-40 peeps and with every individual I encounter. 

When you know who you are.  When you know what you stand for.  When you know what you want… that’s a very powerful place to be.  It takes away the distractions because you are on a direct path to “YOUR” goals… You see BS for what it is, because frankly when you’re excited about where you’re headed you don’t want anything to get in your way.

Like I said in the beginning, Trust your journey.  If you’re truly working towards something that you know in your heart is right for you… YOU never need to doubt yourself.  Believe in it BABY!

This is a good prayer/affirmation to repeat to yourself when all else fails…

“God grant me the SERENITY to accept the things I cannot change, the COURAGE to change the things I can, and the WISDOM to know the difference.”

May all your hopes and dreams come true.

 

 

Past, Future, PRESENT!

You Never Know What’s Coming for You…  I didn’t plan to meet Jessica, it just happened.  

Today I’m going to talk about some tools that help me to deal with Doubt bbuuttt before I get into that I think it’s important that we start the New Year with a clean slate, don’t you?  :)  Think of 2009 as your opportunity to make everything right in your life.  Nothing from the past is going to get in your way.  You are going to use this year to take the necessary steps towards all of your goals.

 

My goal setting for this year was something I had to work through with Jessica.  I was freaked out because sooo much happened last year. I looovvee to make stuff happen- EVENTS, CAMPS, TV… I like to go for it 100% all the time. 2008 was an amazing year, but this year Jessica helped me to understand that the EXPLOSIONS of success will happen… but some years of our lives need to be devoted to building structure so there’s space for more.  2009 is a structure year for me.

An example might be that we work really hard to find success in our careers. After a couple of years we make “career success” happen.  Then we find a lover and we want to have relationship success.  After a couple of years you and your partner decide to have a child.  Sooo, you make a conscious decision to pull back a little at work and redefine what success means to you. Maybe in 2009 your success is defined by being a GREAT parent?  That might not meet your bosses needs but it meets your needs as a human being and you need to recognize that your needs are always more important than anyone else’s.  Defining your Professional AND Personal goals in The New Year is key.

I heard an interesting Quote the other day that really made me stop and think… “The past is history, the future is a mystery, and right now is a gift… That is why it’s called The Present.”

If you break that quote down it’s very true.  That quote sums up almost everything I stand for.  Lets break it down together.  The past is history.  Often times I hear people stuck in what happened to them.  They let the tragedies, setbacks, and obstacles of the “past” cloud their vision in the present.  The past is HISTORY.  You need to work as hard as you can to leave the past in the past because it cannot help you in the right now.  The past only becomes your present if you bring it there.

The way your crappy ex treated you is not a reflection on how your next lover will treat you.  The way your ex boss was amazing is not a reflection on how your future boss is going to be.  Before we move forward in our lives we can’t put band-aids over our past mistakes… If we are going to keep bringing them up in our present then the past IS a vital part of your lives. You should make a goal of 2009 to tackle those issues so you can leave the past in the past where it belongs.

The Future is a MYSTERY.  You can catastrophize about what’s going to happen in the future.  You can dream a million dreams of what’s coming in the future. BUT, the truth is that the future is mystery.  That’s the beauty of life.  You never know what’s coming for you.

I was single for three years. One day I woke up and I went to work.  I knew I wanted a relationship but I didn’t know how it was going to happen, we never do. On that lovely Tuesday morning as I was rushing to the stairs I ran into a member.  She literally bumped into me.  We laughed, she said excuse me, and then we shook hands…  she said, “pleased to meet you I’m Jessica Clark, would you like to grab a cup of coffee sometime?”  You never know what’s coming for you, you never know who will cross your path… It’s a mystery.

Right now is a GIFT.  We don’t remember days we remember moments.  The only things we have control over in our lives are the choices we make in the moment.  When we wish time away for our vacations or our retirements… WE are wishing away the moments, we are wishing away our lives.  All you have to do to have an extraordinary life is to take the time to make every moment, of every second, of every minute, of every day matter.

How do you do that?  How do you get rid of the doubts of not being able to meet your life’s potential?  How do you find success?   The truth is that life is going to happen. Thinking you have control over life is an illusion.  No one has control over anything.  All you can do is your best.  You can’t force your boss to give you raise, you can’t force your lover to marry you, you can’t make someone be your friend.  There’s no control… WE must learn to let go.  The past doesn’t matter, the future doesn’t matter, and The PRESENT is what your life is.  So don’t skip over it… 

I rambled on about this quote for my entire post today But I think it is important to go over.  Before I talk about battling the doubt we need to lay a solid foundation of trust. I want you to understand where I’m coming from.  In order to achieve greatness in our lives we must learn to let go of the past and the future.