Is It Time To Rediscover Your Life?

Will your life “tomorrow” be different from your life today? What about your career or business?

 

Sadly the answer for the vast majority of people is that little, if anything, will actually change in their life over the next twenty four hours or beyond. The reality is that they aren’t doing one single thing to be proactive about changing what needs to change in their lives.

 

One of the significant issues that my individual clientele, business owners and corporate clients must come to grips with is the same issue that I now ask you… What is the one thing that absolutely has to change in your life?

 

The companion question that also requires your complete honesty is… What is the consequence if it doesn’t change?

 

In almost every instance, the answers to these two insightful questions come to mind in a virtual instant, because they are already weighing heavily on your mind. Simply stated, the answers are immediate and obvious to you because you already know exactly how it will affect your life.

 

The true oddity here is that most people utilize superficial thinking and problem solving in dealing with their lives. Consequently, the decisions that they make and the actions that they take are likewise superficially based on what is immediate and obvious to them. Yet, even when you know exactly what needs to change in your life and why… You still choose to do nothing. This principle holds true for both your professional life, as well as your personal life.

 

Come tomorrow, you will invariably execute the exact same hum-drum routines in the exact same order as you did today. Will this simply occur out of established habits that have you running on auto pilot? The factual truth is that you are far more likely to make a clear conscious choice to not step outside of your comfort zone.

 

While this is your “reality”, it is not the reality that you should be opting for. You don’t have to live a lukewarm life, nor do you have to be lukewarm about your work. There was a time years ago when you were full of excitement, optimism and passion for what you were going to do with your life.

 

What has actually happened to you over the years, is that you have allowed the predictability of your responsibilities to rob you of your zest for life and the meaningful work that you do. You have become far more focused on perceived material necessities, than on your beliefs about what is truly important in life. Somewhere along the road of life, you swapped your passion and spirit of adventure for complacency and a false sense of security.

 

The proof lies with the tens of millions of adult American’s who sat comfortably at home watching Macy’s Fireworks Spectacular on TV (or other such events) on the evening of July 4^th. Have you become one of them? Yet, there was a time in these same people’s lives when they would have clamored to get the best possible spot to view the live fireworks event in their home town.

 

Over this past holiday weekend, the Hallmark Channel was airing Christmas movies. Concurrently, many retailers were also attempting to cash in by having Christmas in July sales. It would be my observation that there is a take-a-way that you could apply to your life here. Think back to last December, what were your hopes, dreams and goals for the coming year? The great news is that half of the year is still in front of you and it remains filled with endless possibilities for real achievement. Be gracious enough to give yourself permission for a do-over.

 

Virtually every electronic device that you own has a “reset” feature or button. There is no time like the present to hit your reset button and reboot your life, career or business. There is absolutely nothing standing in your way… but “you”.

 

Call a timeout and then get your life, goals and priorities straight. Stop taking the easy way out. Stop living life vicariously through other people. Decide what it is that you truly want. Dust off a dream and then pursue it with everything you’ve got. Determine what’s missing in your life. Press past your fear and do something that you have never done before. Dare to live your life boldly.

 

When you do, not only will you take back control of your life… You’ll discover a new found zest for living like never before!

 

The Leadership Academy… Learn more… Do more… Become more….

Copyright © 2014 Developing Forward | Thomas H. Swank, CBC | All Rights Reserved.

2014 Your Best Year Ever

2013 is in the history books and whether it turned out good, bad or mediocre, your results are official. And although the New Year is barely a week old, many people’s wishes for the New Year (resolutions) have already veered of course and into a ditch alongside the road of life.

No need to worry… there are still 51 weeks remaining to make 2014 your best year ever! The all important question is what will it take for you to be able to state on December 31, 2014 that “this was my best year ever?”

» What exactly would have to happen?

» What would have to change?

» What will constitute real success for you?

The question that I am really asking you is this… How do you define personal success on your own terms? If you find yourself struggling to come up with a clear definitive answer, the first thing that you need to know is that you are not alone. The vast majority of people worldwide don’t actually know what it is that they want for their lives or what they want to happen in their lives. This accounts for the very reason why 95% of all people fail to keep their New Year’s resolutions. It is this same lack of clarity about what they want the sets them up for the trap “when this or that happens” I will be happy > I will have arrived > I will be successful.

However, the temporal rush of the new luxury car, tropical vacation or dream home soon wanes. People then find themselves all too quickly back in search mode for the next great thing that is destined to make them feel fulfilled this time.

Unfortunately, it just never quite works out for them. The reason is that true success does not equate with the outdated bumper sticker that says “He or she with the most toys wins”. Authentic success is something far more than the accumulation of “stuff”.

The key to defining what success is centers on your ability to determine what it is that you want out of life and why it will provide real meaning and value to your life.

As for your own New Year’s resolution, if you haven’t fallen off of the horse yet… that’s great. The thing you need to be crystal clear about is that you are not going to accomplish what ever your resolution is solely on the basis of your own will power. It simply doesn’t work that way.

Whether it’s simply this year’s resolution or something more substantial such as making 2014 your best year ever, the truth of the matter is that you are going to need an actual “plan”. Even if you claim to know how you are going to do it, the facts and statistics are clear that the general ideas rolling around inside of your cranium aren’t going to get the job done. More than likely those thoughts and ideas are a bit fuzzy and won’t provide you with a decisive course of action that will result in eventual achievement.

Real success at any level requires a roadmap to follow in order to get to your eventual destination. For instance, if you lived in New York City you couldn’t just jump in your car, start it up, put the transmission in gear and drive to Los Angeles without a roadmap. And just in case you have a lot of stuff including a GPS, your global positioning system is nothing more than a computer driven interactive “roadmap”.

Success is out there for the taking… If you are willing to do what it takes. So decide what you want for your life this coming year, make a concrete plan on how to get it and obtain what ever help you need to assure your success. When you do, you’ll be able to say that 2014 was your best year ever!

Copyright © 2014 Developing Forward | Thomas H. Swank, CBC | All Rights Reserved.