Tag: gratitude

Categories
Life

Tomorrow Starts Now

Close-up Of Businesswoman Writing Schedule In Calendar Diary

In a moment of brilliance (at least, I thought so) I got to thinking about how every minute, every thought and action collectively creates tomorrow!  There really isn’t a break in time from one moment to the next.  Life is a continuous cycle.  Man created a ‘calendar’ with its defining segments so we can keep track.  Reality is, however, that our week, for example, doesn’t actually ‘stop’ at midnight on Saturday evening and ‘resume’ a moment later with a new day we label Sunday!

What are you doing now (aside from reading this blog)?  What are you thinking?  What is your plan for the day?  What action(s) are you intending as today’s hours pass by?  If you accept that, in fact, the tomorrow you face is actually the result of what is going on in your life, you just might consider the consequences of everything you think and do.

For example.  Are you honoring your commitments?  Are you taking care of your health?  Are you valuing your relationships?  Are you serving others?  Are you living in integrity?  Do you believe you make a difference?  If your answers to these questions fill your heart with joy and well being, then you are truly insuring that tomorrow will bring you even more fulfillment.

What does it take to insure that your ‘tomorrow’ is what you want it to be?  Live with the end in mind.  Know who you are.  Know what you want.  Be willing to do the work to get the results you deserve.  Life is a gift.  It’s not an accident.  We didn’t create it.  We got it for free.  The question is this.  How much do you really value the gift of life?  What can you do now and in the days ahead to insure your life plays out with overflowing gratitude?  Be blessed.  Bless others.  You are worthy of amazing tomorrows.  It really is in your hands.  Be all you can be!

I welcome your comments, feedback.  Do you have a different spin on this?  Share it in the comments below!

 

Categories
Life

Someday IS Today

 Someday, I’ll write the book that I’ve been thinking about. Someday, I’ll lose the weight I’ve gained. Someday, I’ll take that computer class everyone recommends. Someday, I’ll finally make arrangements for that long overdue vacation. Ever stop to consider that the some days of our lives never go away? They haunt us, remind us of what we intended to do and show up every now and then.

Are we just too busy or distracted to consider what we want to do? Are we just pulled in too many directions that we don’t take time to consider what we need to do? Call it procrastination. Call it laziness. Call it whatever you want to call it. Reality check: Someday is NOT going AWAY! Someday is NOW.

Every minute, every thought and action collectively create tomorrow.  There isn’t a break in time from one moment to the next. Life is a continuous cycle. While our lives revolve around a clock and calendar, time doesn’t stop and start. There isn’t an ‘ending’ to today and a ‘beginning’ tomorrow. There are consequences in not taking time seriously. Haven’t we all experienced regret?

What does it take to insure that your ‘tomorrow’ is what you want it to be? Live with the end in mind. Know who you are. Know what you want. Be willing to do the work today to get the results you deserve. Life is a gift. It’s not an accident.We didn’t create it; we got it for free. The question is this: How much do you really value the gift of life? What can you do now and in the days ahead to insure your life plays out with overflowing gratitude. Be blessed. Bless others. You are worthy of amazing tomorrows. It really is in your hands. Be all you can be. Someday Is Today.

 

Categories
Life

Is Having A Servant Mindset a TOP Priority?

Are you tired of individuals making commitments – any commitment – and then not doing what they say they’re going to do? Are you frustrated over the lack of response/appreciation/customer service so prevalent in today’s marketplace? Are people more interested in building their Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn followers and connections then building or strengthening the relationships they already have? It’s troubling to recognize that it’s obvious we have lost human touch, compassion and genuine caring in personal and professional relationships.

Everyone is moving so quickly. Everyone is stretched to accomplish what they can in a day. We move from task to task, from one communication to another often with little time to really appreciate, acknowledge and feel blessed by simply living.

When I think of service and the word ‘serve’ I think of what can be done under any situation that lets someone know that they are important, they have value and are respected. Are we each doing our part to treat people with kindness? Are we sensitive to the needs and situations of the people with whom we interact? Are we so entrenched in our own lives that we fail to support and show compassion to those less fortunate?

The news continually reminds us of violence, hatred and disasters – circumstances of which we have no control. We read and watch and are often drawn in to heart breaking stories and accounts that fill the television screen and provide headlines in the newspaper. And we think how fortunate we are to not be impacted directly.

What we can also be thinking is: “What can I do in my small corner of the world to offset what the media portrays?” The great news is – we ALL can do our part to enhance and improve the heart breaking picture to be a more loving one. Do what you say you’re going to do. Express appreciation to those who help you along the way. Respond to situations with respect and get clarity when something is not to your liking. Create instead of react. Think of words that will be acceptable to someone else – not hurtful and destructive.

Thank the banker who takes care of your deposit. Thank the clerk at the cleaners who arrives very early to take in or tenders your laundry. Appreciate the mechanic who fixes your car and, yes, even the customer service operator who manages to resolve an issue.

I recently endured a two hour delay out of LAX airport which resulted in my arrival home later than I had wanted or anticipated. Ever observe angry customers at a gate? What good comes from poor behavior and lack of self- control when the airline staff has nothing to do with weather delays? I watched the women at the counter. They did everything they could to endure some of the poor behaviors they faced. What are people thinking? Why is decent, human kindness missing when situations are not to our liking?

I know we can do a better job. I know we want to be more loving, more accepting, more tolerant and compassion. All it takes is having a servant mindset. Be of service. Be someone on whom others can rely. We are in the journey of life together. Be a force for good in the world. We certainly need it and need you to shift what we see to what can be.

Welcome to 2018. Commit to having the best year ever by maintaining a Servant Mindset!

Categories
Professional Development

The Golden Key: Personal & Professional Development

More than 2 decades ago I had the never to forget experience of hearing Les Brown live. I was one of thousands in an auditorium and honestly thought he was speaking directly to me! It was the first time I had attended that kind of venue as most of my arena experiences were sports or concert related.

I came home late that afternoon and made a commitment that I would engage in learning. My college degree(s) and franchise training didn’t nearly prepare me for the kind of ‘life changing’ activities that had the potential to increase my confidence and competence. I was hooked. Since that time, I’ve never looked back except with total gratitude that Les had the influence he did to make me a better, more well-rounded and successful person – both personally and professionally.

In ‘those days’ (don’t you love it when our elders refer to ‘back in the days’), one primarily learned from books and seminars. Online classes, videos, blogging, websites, virtual experiences, social media interaction, etc. simply didn’t exist. Today, it’s both empowering & overwhelming the resources that are available off and online. We can engage in so many ways, as often as one chooses, efficiently and affordably.

That being said, the question becomes, where are you on the road to increasing your knowledge, value and contribution(s) to individuals and in the marketplace? Are you increasing your understanding, expanding your skills and making a more significant impact by applying new insights and information?

With 34+ years of practice, face to face networking has become my signature area of expertise. As a starter, if you want to learn and apply a few pointers in the area of networking, I would love to send you my “Learning To Network” tips to Make Every Connection Count. Stay tuned as I continue now and then to share ideas and strategies through my blog.