What small achievements can you celebrate today

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What small achievements can you celebrate today? How?

—Calm App Reflection

Image from Unsplash by krakenimages

What make a good day a good day? How important is it for you to achieve something of great significance to place a gold star or even a check mark in the box for the day?

If our accomplishments need a certain critical mass each day, most of our calendars will appear a bit empty. Take a few hints from clever parenting charts, on which young children get stickers for eating their vegetables, putting away their toys, brushing their teeth, potty training, or simply for saying please and thank you.

EXERCISE:

What small achievements do you tend to overlook on a typical day?

In what ways can you acknowledge your efforts and progress today, and add a few more gold stars and happy faces to your calendar?

If you can’t see what you’re looking for, see what’s there

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“If you can’t see what you’re looking for, see what’s there.”

—Mark Nepo, Author of The Book of Awakening

Image from Unsplash by Anne Nygård

What is your relationship with reality? How often do you find yourself upset by the fact that your expectations of things go unfulfilled? Many of us often resist aspects of our lives only to notice during times of “heel digging” that these things seem to become even more persistent.

My meditation practice over the past several years has increased my capacity to accept and allow more things to be as they are, and appreciate the law of impermanence. Looking harder for things that aren’t actually there prevents us from seeing what it is that we can actually work with and influence.

EXERCISE:

Where is it time to take off your rose-colored glasses and see things as they are? How can and will you work with and influence your reality to improve the things you can, and accept the things you can’t?

 

The cult of productivity has its place

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“The cult of productivity has its place, but worshiping at its altar daily robs us of the very capacity for joy and wonder that makes life worth living.”

—Maria Popova, American-based writer of cultural criticism

Image from Amazon

Even the title of Clay Christensen’s book, How Will You Measure Your Life? is a profound question worth pondering. Events in recent years have had many of us consider issues through a more holistic lens, to determine what is truly important and what constitutes a meaningful life.

Where have you rearranged your priorities? What activities moved up, moved down, or were eliminated from your list? What has happened to your need to be productive at all times in order to keep up with or beat the person next to you?

EXERCISE:

What changes have and can you make in your life to score more points on your joy and wonder scoreboards?

I recommend that the Statue of Liberty be supplemented by a Statue of Responsibility on the west coast

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“I recommend that the Statue of Liberty be supplemented by a Statue of Responsibility on the west coast.”

—Victor Frankl, Austrian neurologist, author, and Holocaust survivor

Image from Unsplash by Miltiadis Fragkidis

As a relatively new grandparent, I’ve become interested in parenting approaches in today’s rapidly changing world. When I think of the phrase “Teach your children well,” I recall my own upbringing and our efforts with our two adult children, now in their mid-thirties.

Even if you are not a parent or grandparent, consider your own upbringing. How much liberty and how much responsibility were taught and modeled by your elders?

As we fast forward to today, what lessons do our children — and for that matter all of us — need to live healthy,  happy, and responsible lives within our various communities?

EXERCISE:

Where do you stand on the pursuit of freedom and liberty in the world? What is your perspective on the benefits of greater responsibility? What steps are needed coast-to-coast and throughout the world?

What new chapters do you want to write with your life

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What new chapters do you want to write with your life?

—Calm App Reflection

Image from Unsplash by Maegan Martin

I love the idea that thoughts can become things and that what we think about can come about.

What is your relationship with the written word? Have you kept a journal, written a blog, written a letter, or perhaps even published a book? How often to you text, tweet, or use email?

Alternatively, how often do you think and speak? What are the words that you form and utter that do not necessarily make it into print but have the potential to become real?

EXERCISE:

What would you include if you wrote an autobiography?

What new adventures and engaging stories can and will you write with the rest of your days?

Friday Review: Skills

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Friday Review: Skills

We don’t all have the same skills. What are yours? Here are a few related posts you may have missed.

“Left untended, knowledge and skill, like all assets, depreciate in value surprisingly quickly.”

 

 

 

“The word ‘listen’ has the same letters as the word ‘silent.’”

 

 

 

 

“Today will be what you make of it.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

“If you don’t become the ocean, you’ll be seasick every day.”

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“If you don’t become the ocean, you’ll be seasick every day.”

—Leonard Cohen, late Canadian singer-songwriter, poet, novelist

image from Unsplash by Anastasia Taioglou

How have you been feeling lately? To what degree are you experiencing a sense of well-being or discord with the world around you?

We recently had our piano tuned after moving about six months ago. They say it takes about this long for a piano to adjust to its new home so that it can be tuned in harmony with its surroundings.

This past year we’ve had our share of seasickness with numerous ups and downs. Slowly, we are regaining our sea legs and have become more at ease within the ocean of our new communities.

EXERCISE:

How can you move from some of the lower decks of your life to the bridge of your ship to settle your stomach and view the horizon of each new day?

“Without jumping off its perch, the bird would never fly.”

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“Without jumping off its perch, the bird would never fly.”

—Mark Nepo, author of The Book of Awakening

Image from Unsplash by AARN GIRI

I love to watch documentaries and educational programing about animals and our natural world. The best programs include outstanding visuals and a compelling story about how these creatures go about securing food, avoiding predators, finding a mate, and adapting to their environments.

Among all the animals, there is something magical about young birds. They go from helpless, blind, squawking mouths to feed to soaring sparrows and eagles that can inspire even the most sedentary couch potato of us to get up and spread our wings — even if it is just to secure another snack.

EXERCISE:

Where is it necessary for you or others in your communities to jump off your perch and spread your wings? What will you do, and where will you go when you fly?

the change was adjustment without improvement

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“…. the change was adjustment without improvement.”

—Toni Morrison, late American novelist

Image from Unsplash by Firmbee.com

Where have things changed in your life over the past couple of years? Where have some areas improved, stayed about the same, or regressed?

Coaching encourages people to control what is controllable and be willing to break old patterns so new and improved results can emerge. If improvement is not observed with various initial adjustments, what then?

Do we simply accept and adjust to our new reality or go back to the drawing board to devise a new plan with changed behaviors where success and improvements can occur?

EXERCISE:

Where would an “If at first you don’t succeed try, try again” strategy offer you the progress you seek? Consider the support of friends, family members, colleagues, mentors or coaches to support you in making the necessary adjustments.