As Easy As Getting FAT

 

(I'll do a podcast on this soon, once my voice gets better following a cold that I have had).

 

 

This graphic came across my social media page earlier today. Yes, I know, it is meant to be light-hearted and funny. Believe me, I DO understand that. I'm not one that lacks a sense of humor!

 

But, I have to be honest with you and tell you that the first thing that went through my mind when I saw this was, "There are LOTS of things that are as 'easy' as getting fat!"

 

Now, first off, for all of you that want to get offended and start sending me all kinds of complaints - DON'T. Listen to me...I have battled the struggle with maintaining a healthy weight for my entire adult life. Been there, done that and STILL have to work on trying to keep things under control. So, due to that, I DO have the "right" to speak on this, o.k.? Secondly, I KNOW that there are certain conditions that cause a person to be overweight (or "fat") that are beyond that persons control. I get that, o.k.? Now, if you STILL decide to get all worked up and upset about this article then you are actually making one of my points for me - and I'll address that point in a bit.

 

There. I hope we have that all out of the way now. Let's move on to the points of this article...

 

PREMISE: Being "fat" is "easy" because, for the most part, is is the result of the habit of taking the path of least resistance. Again, if that upsets you, go back and read the highlighted AND bolded paragraph above, o.k.?

 

It takes DISCIPLINE to make wise food choices. The path of least resistance says, "Eat whatever you want, whenever you want and as much as you want!" It takes DISCIPLINE to actually get up and participate in some sort of exercise while, at the same time, the path of least resistance says, "Exercise? You already DO exercise! You get up out of bed and walk to your chair (or the couch) and then you get back up when it's time to go to bed!" It takes DISCIPLINE to make a decision to make those necessary changes and to actually stick to them and do them consistently. The path of least resistance says, "Don't worry about it. You're just 'big-boned' and there's no real rush with this anyway."

 

Now, with that premise in mind, let's consider that, in fact, there are MANY things that we can do that are as "easy as getting fat". Here's something that will "hurt" to admit with these as you go through them. It's the FACT that NONE of them are of any value! So, I guess, in reality, here's another PREMISE that needs to be set: Following the path of least resistance never leads to anything good or positive!

 

1. GETTING OFFENDED is easy! Too many people get offended too easily in our world today. People seem to get offended by just about every little thing that someone may say - or NOT say. Getting offended is EASY and is evidence of a person taking that path of least resistance! Easily getting offended often leads to arguments and hurt feelings and, sometimes, even worse results. If something DOES offend you, discipline yourself to NOT react and say or do anything at that point. Just because something offends you does not mean that everyone has to know about it. Practice the discipline of NOT responding or reacting and then do some self-examination (this requires discipline as well) as to WHY you get offended so easily by so many things. Yes, I agree that there are times that we MUST stand up and fight and make our voices heard. But, at the same time, I'm also convinced that it is not nearly as often as some people make happen.

 

2. BEING NEGATIVE is easy! Hey listen, I understand that there are things in this world and in our individual lives that we can become very negative about very easily. But, friend, it is a CHOICE that each of us must make and, allowing ourselves to take the path of least resistance (no discipline), will make it EASY to have a negative attitude. Don't you just love being around negative people? Of course you don't! Then, friend, what makes you think people enjoy being around you if you have allowed yourself to become negative? Many times a person doesn't even realize that they have become this way. Ironically, this type of person will often criticize and complain about their coworkers or "friends" being negative, rude and unfriendly because they don't seem to want to interact with them. Hello? It takes DISCIPLINE to fight a negative attitude and it takes DISCIPLINE to do it on a daily (that's right - DAILY) basis. It takes DISCIPLINE to truly pay attention to your attitude and actually allow yourself to admit the amount of negativity in your life and your mind. What's in/on your mind usually will come out of your mouth.

 

3. NOT SETTING OR REACHING GOALS is easy! A goal that is easy to reach is not much of a goal. Wouldn't you agree? The idea of a goal is to cause us to stretch and challenge ourselves to do more and to be more than we are right now. One easy way to avoid the fear of not reaching that goal is to simply NOT SET a goal. What has been said is true, "Aim at nothing and you'll be sure to reach your target every time!". Maybe you are one that has actually set some goals (New Year's Resolutions?) and are struggling. Here's a few things to consider (remember, it takes discipline to do this kind of self-examination) about such goals. Perhaps you set unrealistic goals in the first place. Perhaps you never intended to do anything to reach those goals, you just set them because you always do and everyone else does. Perhaps the "fear of failure" has you paralyzed to the point of making no move toward that goal. The path of least resistance says, "Everyone sets goals and everyone falls short so, why set out on a course of failure?" That's EASY. Discipline will challenge a person to push and grow as they go through their days and get closer to reaching their set goals.

 

4. BEING CRITICAL is easy! This is closely related to #'s 1 and 2 in this list but I still want to address it separately. Do you know anyone like this? Could YOU be that person? It is EASY - by following the path of least resistance - to criticize anything and everything and everyone around you. It is EASY to always find what is wrong about something or someone. It is EASY to always voice your critical opinion on these things. It takes DISCIPLINE to "hold your tongue" when tempted to be critical. It takes DISCIPLINE to work on a better idea - if one even exists. You may find that coming up with good ideas and solutions is not as easy as being critical. In that case, it takes DISCIPLINE to compliment and encourage those that must come up with these ideas and solutions. It takes DISCIPLINE to not allow yourself to take that path of least resistance by being critical instead. Here's another heads up for you: NO ONE LIKES BEING AROUND A CRITICAL PERSON.

 

CONCLUSION: Living an undisciplined life of least resistance leads to many problems in our lives and in our world. Crime, alcohol abuse, drug abuse, sexual gratification - regardless of one's marital status, along with many other addictions and vices, can be brought back to taking the "easy" road or path of least resistance. I know that some of you would want to argue that point on some - or all - of these issues. But, I won't argue with you on this. Again, I'm not saying that this is 100% true in EVERY situation but, overall, I believe this to be true a majority of the time.

 

So, bottom line, perhaps the original phrase in the graphic should be, "I wish everything of value and worth was as easy as getting fat." Some still may not like the comparison, but it would be closer to the truth.

 

Please share with anyone and everyone that you feel would benefit from these thoughts as well as the many others that you find on this blog page. You can also find the links to my podcasts below. Again, once my throat gets better, I will be doing a podcast to go along with this blog.

 

Until next time, always be sure to...

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

Mike

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