REPOST: "What Are Your Dreams Worth?"

I'm still away on a trip on my motorcycle, so I wanted to be sure to leave you with something to digest for today! (And, hey, it's not just sugar free - it's CALORIE FREE!).
This was my 2nd blog article that went along with my podcast on the same topic - just like I still do today. So, be sure to read the article but, also, be sure to listen to the podcast for the "complete package" on this topic. 
Enjoy!

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Today, on our way home for a High School state tournament basketball game I saw this sign in front of a church building (you know, those signs with changeable letters that many churches have out front?) - "Everyone loves the harvest - no one loves the plowing" and I thought, "Wow, how profound!"

As a matter of fact, it completely took me in a new direction for the podcast that I had already planned - but that's nothing unusual for me!

We all enjoy eating the fruit of the harvest whether it be watermelon, fresh peas, lettuce or whatever it is that you enjoy. But, how many of us enjoy the hours of hard work out in the sun that MUST take place in order for the harvest to take place?

NOT MANY!

But, if you want the harvest you prepare the soil, plant the seed, keep the weeds away, water and all of the other things anyway.

What are your dreams worth? Are you willing to put in the time and effort to make them come true? Are you expecting things to just drop into your lap? If so, join the millions throwing down their money with the hopes of one day winning the lottery!

Bottom line: You must be willing to put some ACTION into your DREAMS!

What's it worth? Is it worth turning off the television? Is it worth some exta time even AFTER you return home from your "real" job?

Only you can decide. If you listen to my podcast you will hear some trememdous quotes that I found on "persistence". The "value" that you have placed on your dreams will determine the level and amount of your persistence.

What's it worth? You decide and....

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

Mike Spillman

Future You University   FYU on Facebook!   Podcast on iTunes   Podcast RSS feed

A Revisit to the FIRST F.Y.U. Blog Article

This is a little different than what I usually do for my blog articles but, I am out for a couple of days on my motorcycle and I wanted to be sure to leave something behind for you to read and contemplate. I have "gone back in time" and decided to share the very first podcast that aired on March 2, 2009 as well as the blog article that went along with it.

Now, to be honest, there's not a whole lot to the blog article (remember, I was just starting out) so be sure to take the time to listen to the podcast - you'll be glad you did!

Here's the focus of that first article entitled, "There is HOPE - and TODAY IS THE DAY!".

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I'm not going to go back over everything I talked about in that podcast entitled, "There Is Hope" but I do want to simply "touch base" on a little of it to share with you here.

In the podcast I quote a few other people on their thoughts about "hope" and I also share one that I came up with myself which is: "As long as there is breath - there is hope." (not too shabby, huh?)

Don't ever forget that! No matter how dark things may seem - no matter how hopeless they may appear --- as long as you have breath, THERE IS HOPE!

Listen to the podcast and then begin to look around you through the "eyes of HOPE" as opposed to looking thorough the darkness of doom and despair.

Please feel free to leave comments and/or ask questions - I'd love to get your feedback and hear from you.

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

M. Spillman

Future You University   FYU on Facebook!   Podcast on iTunes   Podcast RSS feed

SHARE and TEACH

CONCLUSION: "Share and Teach Family and Others!"

"Learning", of any type, is achieved through sharing of information. Wouldn't you agree?

Parents, teachers, and others pass along information to our children and they learn - good or bad - that which is shared with them. 

If you will notice on the picture above, I have circled the focus of today's article: "Share and Teach Family and Others!". When I originally wrote the main phrase about finding and keeping our joy and peace, I realized that it was also important to TEACH and SHARE and, especially, to do so with FAMILY FIRST and then others. 

Let's talk about sharing and teaching with our family first. There are not many things that are more valuable than to help our children learn how to find JOY and PURPOSE in their lives. Notice I said, "teach them HOW TO FIND" and not, "tell them what it is". That's one thing we must be careful of and avoid. We can NOT tell anyone else what it is that brings joy and purpose in their life but we CAN help them in the process of discovering that for themselves. 

Go back and read again the articles on finding our joy and also on finding our purpose and use some of the information there to help in this process. We can help our children understand that, often, we find true joy while serving others. We can point out how this is discussed and promoted in the Bible as well as just about every "positive information" source that has ever been printed. You can also hear just about every motivational speaker say the same thing (as well as write the same thing).  WHY? Because it's true!

Helping our children to discover joy through serving as well as helping them understand that they DO have a purpose in life and it begins in the world that is nearest to them - their world - is one of the greatest things we can do for them. Help them to understand that, when we say that their purpose in life begins in "their world" that we are not saying that they are the "center of the universe of their world". Make sense? 

And, don't forget, they will learn best by observing what YOU AND I do in our own lives. That's right - they're watching us!

SHARING AND TEACHING OTHERS - I'll start this part of the article where I finished the last one. Those around us will most often "learn" through observing how we put this into practice in our own lives. Don't miss the importance of this and, especially, how it relates to this process with others (non-family).

Here's a little "warning" for you: If you try to "tell" everyone what to do in this area, you will likely be met with resistance and ridicule. And, when you have a "bad day", you will hear about it from them because you have already presented yourself as an "expert" in the area. Hey, I'm just being real here. People don't like to be "told" or "preached at" by others. 

Here's how this works with others...

Your example through discovering this in your own life will work as a "magnet" for some and it will draw them to you. Notice I said, "some". Not everyone will pay attention and not everyone WANTS to find joy in their life. I know that sounds odd but, truth be told, a lot of people ENJOY being miserable regardless of what they say.  (Also be aware that these are the same people that will likely do as much as they can to ridicule you and discourage you along the way. They are miserable and they want everyone else to be miserable as well).

But, there are those that will be "drawn" to you and the way that you handle yourself. Living a life of joy and purpose will automatically draw others to you and, many times, they will want to know HOW you are able to live life the way that you do. Don't take this as a sign to "dump it all" on them at one time! No, just take the time to share with them a little at a time - over time - so that it can be absorbed along the way. Most importantly, continue to SHOW THEM by how you live. 

You can share these articles with them. You can also share that free resource from Jack Canfield that I discussed recently (and I highly recommend that). Just go to jackcanfield.com and look for the 10 Day Transformation Course and sign up for it - again, it's FREE!

Help them understand (and this applies to our family as well) that this is something that takes time and that it is a process. It's not a magical formula that happens overnight. Every person is different and it will take some people longer than others.

That's o.k.

Life is a marathon and not a sprint. Enjoy the journey and don't focus solely on the destination. 

Thank you for allowing me to experience joy and purpose in my life through sharing this blog and my podcast with you on a regular basis. I do mean that - THANK YOU!

If you haven't done so yet, you need to listen to the podcast on today's topic. Just click one of the links at the bottom of this article to do so. There is SO MUCH MORE information and additional thoughts that I share with you there that is not found in this article. 

If you listen by going to iTunes, please take a moment and leave a review - I thank you in advance! Also, be sure to stop by the FYU fan page on Facebook and let me know that you left that review AND to just say "hello" and let me know that you are benefiting from Future You University. 

As always, THANKS for joining me today and, please, share this with as many as possible and always be sure to keep moving forward, closer to your dream!

And, until next time, whatever you do,  be sure to...

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

Mike

Future You University   FYU on Facebook!   Podcast on iTunes   Podcast RSS feed

 

PROTECT Your Joy and Purpose!

"Find & Keep/Protect Our JOY & PURPOSE For Our Lives"

(Share & Teach Family and Others!) - PART 4   

We make an effort to PROTECT that which is valuable to us. We may keep things in a safe at our home or even place items in a safety deposit box at the bank. Most people will either lock the doors on their vehicle when they leave something valuable behind OR they will lock it in the trunk.

We PROTECT that which is valuable.

Humans will fight "tooth and nail" to protect their family - especially their children. This is also true in the animal kingdom whether it be birds or bears! Have you ever had an angry "momma bird" attack you because you got too close to one of her "babies" that had gotten out of the nest? I have! And though I've never experienced this first hand, I've seen shows depicting how "momma bears" are relentless when it comes to protecting their baby cubs.

We PROTECT that which is valuable.

Let me ask you a question: How VALUABLE is your joy and purpose to you? I hope that it is of extreme value to you and for you to the point that you will fight "tooth and nail" to protect it! Now, I'm not talking about getting into a fist fight because someone "rains on your parade". However, I am talking about being aware of anyone and anything that would attempt to "rob you" of your joy and/or purpose and taking necessary action to prevent that from happening. 

It may mean removing yourself from a situation (either temporarily or permanently) that attempts to destroy your joy and/or purpose. It may mean exerting your positive influence in a way as to defeat, overcome and "squelch" the attempt to rob you of your joy/purpose. It may require you to immerse yourself in more positive information so as to better equip you to face such situations. It may mean changing friends and detaching yourself from those that constantly put a drain on your joy and/or purpose. 

You've put quite a bit of effort into "discovering" your joy and your purpose for your life and it may not have been easy. Continue to INVEST in the information needed to continually add to the "library of your mind". This is how you continue to prepare yourself for those "down days" and/or those times when others attempt to rob you of your joy and cast doubt on your purpose. 

PROTECT IT for it is of GREAT VALUE! 

 

CHECK IT OUT - If you haven't done so yet, you need to listen to the podcast on today's topic. Just click one of the links at the bottom of this article to do so. There is SO MUCH MORE information and additional thoughts that I share with you there that is not found in this article. 

If you listen by going to iTunes, please take a moment and leave a review - I thank you in advance! Also, be sure to stop by the FYU fan page on Facebook and let me know that you left that review AND to just say "hello" and let me know that you are benefiting from Future You University. 

As always, THANKS for joining me today and, please, share this with as many as possible and always be sure to keep moving forward, closer to your dream!

And, until next time, whatever you do,  be sure to...

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

Mike

Future You University   FYU on Facebook!   Podcast on iTunes   Podcast RSS feed

 

Find It and KEEP It!

"Find & Keep/Protect Our JOY & PURPOSE For Our Lives"

(Share & Teach Family and Others!) - PART 3    

 Imagine, if you will, Grandma having a group of her grandkids over for a visit for an afternoon when she discovers that she has lost her wedding ring. It is very special to her and she gathers her grandkids together to ask them to help her find the important ring. She even tells them that, whoever FINDS the ring will be rewarded with a special "something" from Grandma! That's all the grandkids need in order to get busy trying to find Grandma's ring. After a few minutes one of them comes running back into the house and excitedly proclaims, "Grandma! I found your ring!"  With tears in her eyes she hugs her grandchild and thanks them for finding her ring. She then says, "Now, give it to Grandma" to which the child replies, "Well, I don't have it with me...all you said I had to do was FIND it!"

As silly as that little story may seem, we can do the same thing in our lives in many different areas. The main thing I want to ensure is that we don't do that once we find our joy and purpose for our life. 

Yes, it IS important to FIND the joy and purpose for our life but, friend, there's more to it than that! Not only do we need to FIND it but we also need to do all that we can to KEEP it!

Just like Grandma's ring, the way to prevent losing our joy and purpose is to KEEP IT CLOSE at all times. And, the way that we keep it close is to "activate" and "incorporate" it into our DAILY activities.

In other words, we need to make sure that we involve ourselves in whatever it is that brings us joy and that we put it into practice as our purpose.

I guess to clarify it even further, just don't FIND IT and LEAVE it. It is important to keep it and to keep it "fresh" (if you will) by USING it each and every day. Not only will your joy and purpose be "fresh" but it will also GROW stronger due to your use. 

The more you "use" it or put it into practice as a part of your daily activities, the "wider" that circle of influence expands over the passage of time. 

Remember, it's the "ripple effect"!

In the next article we will continue this discussion and focus in on why it is so important to not only KEEP your joy and purpose but to also PROTECT it! Be sure to join me for that one, o.k.?

Again, as a reminder, if you haven't done so yet, you need to listen to the podcast on today's topic. Just click one of the links at the bottom of this article to do so. There is SO MUCH MORE information and additional thoughts that I share with you there that is not found in this article. 

If you listen by going to iTunes, please take a moment and leave a review - I thank you in advance! Also, be sure to stop by the FYU fan page on Facebook and let me know that you left that review AND to just say "hello" and let me know that you are benefiting from Future You University. 

As always, THANKS for joining me today and, please, share this with as many as possible and always be sure to keep moving forward, closer to your dream!

And, until next time, whatever you do,  be sure to...

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

Mike

Future You University   FYU on Facebook!   Podcast on iTunes   Podcast RSS feed