“Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.”

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“Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.”

—Michael Pollan

Image from Unsplash by Diana Polekhina

Did you do it again this year? Have you announced to the world or perhaps just spoke quietly to yourself that this is the year you will definitely lose weight and get in better shape? Physical distancing and working from home these past two years have made this goal extra challenging.

The quote above sounds so simple but as we all know it is far from easy. Countless external and internal factors can cause us to slip, slide, and fall off our health habits around mid-February only to promise ourselves to give it another go tomorrow, next week, after a vacation we deserve, or next January.

EXERCISE:

Check out Ju Young Kim’s impressive article entitled Optimal Diet Strategies for weight loss and weight lost maintenance.  I will be happy to send you a copy — email me at barry@dempcoaching.com. If time is limited, just post today’s quote on your fridge.

“Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.”

Posted on by

“Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.”

—Michael Pollan

Image from Unsplash by Diana Polekhina

Did you do it again this year? Have you announced to the world or perhaps just spoken quietly to yourself that this is the year you will definitely lose weight and get in better shape? Physical distancing and working from home these past two years have made this goal extra challenging.

The quote above sounds so simple but as we all know it is far from easy. Countless external and internal factors can cause us to slip, slide, and fall off our health habits around mid-February only to promise ourselves to give it another go tomorrow, next week, after a vacation we deserve, or next January.

EXERCISE:

Check out Ju Young Kim’s impressive article entitled Optimal Diet Strategies for weight loss and weight lost maintenance. I will be happy to send you a copy if you email me at barry@dempcoaching.com. If time is limited, just post today’s quote on your fridge.

To be To do To have Take life in this order

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To be. To do. To have. Take life in this order.

—Calm App Reflection

Image from Unsplash by Paico Official

The CALM app I use each morning recently added a new seven-minute morning meditation/guided journey called The Daily Jay with Jay Shetty. Jay is an English author, a former Hindu monk, and a life coach. Prior to joining the CALM team, he was perhaps best known as the host of the podcast On Purpose which included many famous guests and has received over 60 million downloads.

In a recent offering, he suggested the idea of a To-Be list to go along with our often-crammed To-Do lists.

Considering how we currently behave, and then shifting and choosing how we would prefer to be as we do the things we need and want to do, can make a remarkable difference. Consider the following word list and expand it for yourself as you do your chores, go to work, listen to your children, and relate to others in your various communities.

Calm Patient Positive Hopeful Courageous
Generous Loving Supportive Helpful Kind
Open-Minded Bold Caring Disciplined Funny
Joyful Content Fair Nurturing Adventurous

EXERCISE:

Add an extra To Be column next to your To-Do list today.  Please reply to this post about the kind of day you have. What other words of being did you add to your list?

Friday Review: Reputation

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Friday Review: REPUTATION

How aware are you of your reputation? Here are a few related posts you may have missed.

“Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.”

 

 

 

“Men’s evil manners live in brass; their virtues we write in water.”

 

 

 

“Approach every task as though it were the moment that will define you.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

“But what difference does it make who spoke the words? They were uttered for the world.”

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“But what difference does it make who spoke the words? They were uttered for the world.”

—Seneca, ancient Roman Stoic philosopher, statesman, and dramatist

Image from Unsplash by Shakti Rajpurohit

The Quotable Coach blog recently surpassed its 2500th post. The vast majority of the quotes that inspire these posts are not mine. They represent nuggets of wisdom offered to the world from many brilliant individuals, including Seneca. I do my best to offer the correct attribution whenever possible.

I admire and appreciate Seneca’s sincere words and generosity of spirit intending to support others without seeking credit.

When we interpret and share our views of these lessons and come up with some of our own, we too can release our own generous efforts to serve and support others.

EXERCISE:

Where and with whom do you pay forward words of wisdom from others in your communities? How does this deepen the value and impact these lessons have had on your life?

 

How can I begin anything new with all of my yesterday in me

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“How can I begin anything new with all of my yesterday in me?”

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

Image from Unsplash by Jaakko Kemppainen

How easy is it for you to begin each day with a clean slate? How often do you feel that mornings are filled with an abundance of opportunities and possibilities?

Most of us tend to hold on and drag around yesterdays filled with our worries and fears, or perhaps pine for the “good old days” when life seemed much better.

Cohen’s quote asks us to put a period at the end of our days with a “what is done is done” perspective.  Without letting go of the past how can we free our hands and hearts to grasp for today and our tomorrows?

EXERCISE:

With Spring around the corner, how and what can you do to clear and organize your yesterdays to more enthusiastically step into each new day?

Beauty was not simply something to behold It was something one could do

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“Beauty was not simply something to behold; It was something one could do.”

—Toni Morrison, late American novelist

Image from Unsplash by Blake Wisz

My son-in-law Chris did something beautiful on a Friday night a few weeks ago. He made homemade pizza. Discussing his process of proofing special pizza flour for 48 hours and making his sauce with fresh garlic and basil made us all drool as we waited for its exit from the oven. He topped off his masterpiece with mozzarella and locatelli, which brought back memories of my mom from childhood. I devoured four pieces and had to restrain myself from another.

We all took delight in the joy Chris experienced as he created and presented his work of art with love. He now intends to begin baking homemade bread.

EXERCISE:

How much beauty do you experience each day? Where and how can you create more beauty in your world to please and delight yourself and those around you?

Check in with yourself. Schedule a ME-Ting

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Check in with yourself. Schedule a ME-Ting.

—Calm App Reflection

Image from Unsplash by Jordan McQueen

How many meetings did you attend last week? How many are scheduled for this week? What percentage of them are you looking forward to, and serve an important purpose?

How much time do you carve out of your days for “Me Time”?  How often can you guarantee that you will have the time to work on your top priorities or simply relax and recharge after a day of attending other’s meetings?

EXERCISE:

Block out time on your schedule today for a ME-Ting with yourself to do whatever you want. Experiment with different amounts of time and different times of the day to see what works best. Try this exercise on both weekdays and weekends to both check in and check out when needed.

Friday Review: Innovation

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Friday Review: Innovation

How has innovation played out in the course of your life or career? Here are a few related posts you may have missed.

 

“Old ways won’t open new doors.”

 

 

 

 

“Getting an idea should be like sitting on a pin; it should make you jump up and do something.”

 

 

 

 

“Innovation is born from the interaction between constraint and vision.”

 

 

 

 

There is a vastness that quiets the soul, but sometimes we are so squarely in the midst of life’s forces that we can’t see what we’re a part of

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“There is a vastness that quiets the soul, but sometimes we are so squarely in the midst of life’s forces that we can’t see what we’re a part of.”

—Mark Nepo, Author of The Book of Awakening

Image from Unsplash by Sebastian Pichler

Wendy and I purchased our 3½ year-old grandson a junior planetarium as one of his holiday gifts. Weston loves anything to do with the planets, rocket ships, and learning new things.

Those first few weeks when his toy was a novelty, he often urged me into his room — complete with room darkening curtains — to swap out the numerous discs with multiple images like the old viewfinders from childhood.

Beyond the many beautiful images of the other planets, nebulae, and star fields, we always paused a bit longer when we saw the photo of the earth to see the big picture of where we all live.

EXERCISE:

Where and when do you take the time to zoom out far enough from your daily activities to see what you are part of? Try this zoom out technique and see if and how this wider view quiets your soul.