Stayin' Put Won't Get You There!

Stayin' Put Won't Get You There!

As the "theme" for the week continues with quotes, today I will share another of mine: "Staying where you are will NEVER take you where you want to be!"

Now, I know what I'm about to say is somewhat repetitive but, look at the picture above and ask yourself this question: "If the guy in the picture stays where he is and gives up, will he ever reach his destination?" NO!

Let's get down to it and ask it this way: If YOU give up will YOU reach your destination?

Um...in a word...NO!

Yet, every day, I'm guessing that thousands of people "give up" on reaching their goals and dreams. If you could see this visually as broken down cars on the side of the highway for everyone that has done this it would make quite an impression, would it not?

There would be car after car on the side of the road with their hood up and abandoned. Done. Finished.

It would be hard for those that are trying to stay focused on their journey to weave their way in and out of all the abandoned cars (abandoned dreams).

That's really a pretty sad picture when you think about it, wouldn't you agree?

I'm not sure that I'll ever look at an abandoned car on the side of a road (or out in a field, etc.) ever again and I hope you won't either. I hope it will be a VIVID reminder for us to NEVER give up on our goals and dreams.

I've done podcasts and blogs before about this journey and about the vehicle that is needed to take us on that journey. It never changes and the need always remains the same.

Just as it is true that cars will break down and trips may be delayed, unexpected things can and will happen in our lives that can delay or detour this journey on the way to our goals and dreams.

This is true in ALL of our lives. If it hasn't been true in your life then just hang on - it's coming!

I'm not trying to be negative, friend. I'm not trying to scare you. It's just a FACT that, if you live long enough, STUFF WILL HAPPEN that we wish would NOT happen.

But what you DO about that and with that is what will separate you from others. It is what will make the difference between your life being represented by another abandoned car on the side of the road OR one that is still moving forward.

Yep, you know it's coming and here it is: IT'S UP TO YOU!

Are you catching on that ALL of this that I talk about comes down to YOU making a DECISION? That ALL of this is a CHOICE that YOU must make.

That's the way it always has been, that's the way it is and that's the way it will always be.

So, again I ask, "What will you do?"

Me? I think I'll keep driving.

And as YOU do the same (you ARE going to do the same, right?)...

"Make it an AWESOME day! (Who else is going to do it for you?)"

Mike

Ruts and Roadblocks

Ruts and Roadblocks

How would you like to see THAT scene before you as you try to make progress on a trip? If you DID come across this then you would obviously have to make some alternative plans in order to continue on your journey.

This major roadblock was caused by a mudslide - something completely out of our hands. It wasn't anything YOU caused and there wasn't anything YOU could do to prevent it from happening. But it DID happen and, because of that, if you were on a journey and encountered this road block then you would have to make some decisions regardless of how and why it happened.

Does that ever happen to you in your life? You do understand that I'm not talking about a boulder blocking an actual highway, right? But has your life ever met up with some sort of roadblock that you had no way to control or prevent? What did you do?

Let's talk about ruts for a moment. A lot of you have HEARD about ruts but I wonder how many of you have ever actually encountered ruts while driving. It could be a rut that has been made on a snow-covered road or it could be a rut that has been carved out in a mud-packed road. Either way, ruts can cause problems for the one trying to navigate down such a road!

You can stay in a rut but you really aren't deciding which direction your automobile will go - you just stay in the rut and follow the same path as others before you. If you give just a little effort to get out of the rut you will not have much success! The deeper the rut the harder it is to get OUT of that rut!

Now, let's again apply that to our actual lives. Sometimes we get in a rut that we have carved out ourselves, don't we? We've just fallen into going through the same motions day in and day out until we have carved out a nice little rut for ourselves.

Living IN a rut is really pretty easy! After a while you don't really have to give much thought to what you are doing - just stay in the rut and do the same thing today that you did yesterday and the day before and the day before that!

Maybe you've fallen into a rut that someone else (or several someones) have carved out. You have fallen into this rut and have given in to the "path of least resistance". "Hey, this is not so bad! I just follow the crowd and don't do anything different and I can just glide right along!"

Not a bad way to live if you want to live life like a robot.

So, what if you realize that you are in a rut and you don't WANT to stay in that rut? What then?

Ruts and roadblocks - they happen to all of us.

I shared with you on today's podcast that I feel that I have faced a roadblock and that I am in a rut RIGHT NOW! I have acknowledged that even a couple of weeks ago but it seems that I'm still here staring at that roadblock and trying to look out and over that rut.

Wow. You too?

So, how did we get here? You see, to me, this is the second most important thing we can do as far as "ruts and roadblocks" go. First, we must realize we are there and it's not where we want to be and then we must try to figure out how we got here!

Sometimes, with the roadblocks - as the example shared above - it really has nothing to do with us, it just happened! That's the way life is sometimes! We can either sit there in despair and just give up OR we can plan an alternate route so that we can continue on our journey!

But, there are SOME roadblocks that we have placed before ourselves. How did THAT happen? It's very important for us to take a close look at this and try to "pin-point" exactly HOW it happened so that we can now do the "opposite" in order to "undo" the roadblock.

This ain't easy! (Pardon my southern slant on that line.)

Chances are - and chances are really good - that it didn't happen overnight (with the "we put it there" variety of roadblock). And, that being so, our "pin-pointing" won't happen overnight either. We'll get back to this in a moment and combine it with the "rut problem" as well.

How do you get out of a rut? WITH A LOT OF EFFORT!

Anyone that has encountered a physical rut - especially a deep one - can tell you that it takes MAJOR effort to get out of (and stay out of) a rut! Remember, the deeper the rut the harder it is to get out OF that rut!

How deep is your rut? Have you caught this before it got too deep or will you need some major climbing gear just to peek over the top of your rut?

The same is true for ruts as it is for roadblocks - we MUST figure out how we got here!

How do we do that with ruts and roadblocks?

THE PROCESS OF ELIMINATION.

What is DIFFERENT now than it was before?

Has the joy, energy and happiness been sucked from your life? Why? How? When did it happen?

Go back in time and try to "pin-point" a time when you actually felt the way you think you want to feel now. When were you happy? When did you feel as if you had positive and powerful energy in your life?

Take a snapshot if you will of "then" and one of "now" - what's different?

Go through a process of elimination with both the rut and the roadblock and try to determine what changed in your life in such a way that caused you to follow that path that led you to where you are today.

Take how ever long it takes to try to figure it out. Write down what you find as you go along. You likely will find SEVERAL things that have changed and not just one!

We are going to talk more about this tomorrow and also we will talk about what we do once we pin-point the problem.

But know this, friend - YOU CAN OVERCOME THIS and you CAN get out of your rut and you CAN get around, over or through that roadblock whether you caused it or life just dumped it there.

YES, YOU CAN!

Know that. Believe that. Feel that.

And, as you go through your day...

"Make it an AWESOME day! (Who else is going to do it for you?)"

Mike

What Makes YOUR Grass Green?

Fertilizer.
Plenty of watering.

No, no, no...that's not what I'm talking about!

In today's podcast I talk about two ideas:
1. Things don't always go as planned (the last blog entry and the podcast from Monday)
2. NEW isn't always better

The combination of those bring up the old saying, "The grass isn't always greener on the other side of the fence." And then there is the quote from Erma Bombeck that says, "The grass is always greener over the septic tank!"

It's easy for us to think that "others" have it better and that "other things" are better than our own - especially when things are not going as we had planned in our own lives.

Think about it - when are the times that you think that other people HAVE TO HAVE a better marriage than you? Isn't it when you are going through turmoil with your spouse? Is that what you had in mind when you got married? Of course it's not! Yet, most of us realize that those times will come and go IF we are dedicated to seeing it through. One reason affairs happen is due to what I call "the affair effect". Things aren't going well in your marriage. There are lots of arguments and disagreements. You find someone that lends you a shoulder to cry on and/or a listening ear. Wow! Someone that actually listens! And, you know what? They are attractive! Their hair is combed and they smell good! It seems that when you are with that person that everything else just doesn't matter - it's just you and them! They pay attention to YOU! They laugh at your jokes! Then it tends to go one step further and you kiss - WOW! - there are the fireworks that you remember having with your mate a long, long time ago, but THIS person really "lights your fire"! Secret meetings begin and the sex is unbelievable! Again, the world seems to stop when the two of you are together!

Hold the phone, chief. Have you ever stopped to consider the parameters on all of this? You are talking to and having an affair with someone without all of the distractions of everyday life! They listen to you? Do you think they would always have that "listening ear" when there are a hundred other things going on in your lives? No. And they are attractive! When do you usually see them? What if you were with them while they were taking care of your sick children and/or they were sick themselves? What if you saw them first thing in the morning and their hair was not all fixed up just for you? And, no, just because you spent the night with them and saw them in the morning is NOT the same thing! And, by the way, the "mind blowing sex" is once again due to... a) the newness of it all b) no distractions c) the thrill of the forbidden

So, get over yourself and realize that if you decided to jump into this all the way, leave your spouse and move in with this person that it will just be a matter of time before the exciting becomes routine - and then what?

When are the times that you think other peoples' homes are better than yours? Well, for one, isn't it when something is wrong with yours and it's going to cost you money to fix it? Again, not what you had in mind when you bought and fell in love with that house. It could also be when you have been in someone else's home and it looks so nice and clean and spacious! (Remember, they were expecting company - come back and see it unannounced! It's the same theory behind the "affair effect" mentioned above).

You see, the problems in our lives and, yes, even the people that bring some of the problems into our lives are the people and things that make us who we are! When we take off the "rose colored glasses" and see things as they really are, we often learn to appreciate even more those around us as well as the things that are around us.

Hey, the next time you think your house is not what you want or your car is not as fancy as you'd like - travel to a third world country for a short spell. I can promise you that you WILL come back with a whole new appreciation for what you DO have!

So, you see, the question, "What makes YOUR grass green?" is simply meant to help you focus on what makes you who you are. What is it - who is it - in your life that enriches your life? Helps you grow? Challenges you? Teaches you? Strengthens you? Helps you become a stronger and better you?

Think about that and be thankful for those things and people - yes, even when they don't always go as planned - that help make YOUR grass green!

And, as always -

"Make it an AWESOME day! (Who else is going to do it for you?)"


Mike