“Your mind is a garden,” my wise friend said to me many many years ago.
“Whatever you plant, grows. So plant good things.”
In continuing along with our 2021 theme of personal development, we’re using this “garden” lesson because I’m hearing from too many people getting stressed out and caught up in pandemic losses. This is a waste of mental energy.
Listen, I understand. We’re all frustrated. The antidote to this frustration and stress is planting good things in your mind!
“Where attention goes, the best things in life flow.”
If you are giving in to anger and frustration, you’ll be destroyed mentally. If you are overwhelmed and inactive, you get anxiety.
Be careful about the seeds you sow.
If you plant the seed of hope, light, and optimism in your mind – and those around you – it will be enough to get you through tough times.
Pour your energy into listening, leading and being an inspiration. Be the ROCK for your family, friends, and community.
If you plant the seed of personal responsibility, which I like to call agency, and massive action in your mind, you’ll build the habits of doing the right things to protect and nurture yourself and your family so that you weather any storm.
Bottom line: Your mind. Your garden. Your choices. Choose wisely.
NOW Let’s Get Specific!
5 Mental Mistakes Holding You Back From Being Your BEST Self
No matter what your goals, dreams, aspirations, or desires are in life, there are similar challenges to face. Whether you’re starting a new diet or starting a new business (or any endeavor, really), you’ll need to overcome similar challenges.
Diet Bombs and Destructive Distractions…….
For the dieters, having bags of chips and chocolate in the house on Friday night can lead to 5,000 calorie binges that destroy a week’s worth of healthy eating.
Likewise, when you’re working on projects or at your job, social media apps and phone notifications can destroy the best-laid morning productivity plans. Remember, when you own the morning, you own your day!
You must have systems in place for eliminating these Diet and Distraction BOMBS.
Doing the WRONG thing once can destroy the results of doing the right thing 100 times.
This is true for your nutrition, your workouts, and your productivity.
I want you to build:
- Your NOT to-do list
- Public Accountability for better habits and big goals and dreams
- An environment that prevents bad behavior (toss the temptations and block the distractions)
With these in place, you can avoid these 5 mental mistakes holding you back from achieving your aims.
1. The Healthy Lifestyle
If you snooze, binge, or avoid difficult discussions and decisions, you are taking the easy way out in life.
YouTube and Netflix after your designated bedtime,
Binging of food or coffee,
Hitting snooze……….
All of these are stealing what matters in your life for creating the healthiest and best YOU possible.
2. Perverse Forms of Procrastination
Ever notice yourself cleaning your house when you should be finishing a task on your to do list? I used to vacuum to avoid tasks. I also used to rewrite my to do list when I should have been ACTING on those tasks.
Are you choosing the path of least resistance in the A.M. and going immediately to social media?
You think you are being productive with so-called self-care……..but it’s likely holding you back. Do only what is right and necessary and then get to work on creating a great day!
3. No Planning or Prep the Night Before
A common obstacle among people is getting so busy they forget to plan tomorrow……. today. That leads to an ineffective morning routine as they scramble to create a plan. The solution? Do your planning and prep as early as lunchtime. Better to be early than to not be prepared at all. I never go to sleep without having a keen sense of what my tomorrow looks like.
4. Not Saying NO to The Trivial Many
A wise coach once told me, “If you want to do great things, you must do fewer things.” Cut out the “trivial many” activities and focus on the “vital few” that produce disproportional results. It’s the 80-20 principle at play.
5. Skipping Self-Reflection or Introspection
I’m hoping you’ve heard about the power of “watching the movie of your day”. This internal audit/self-reflection exercise shows you where you can improve. Don’t judge. Rather, watch and observe and notice where you can improve and get better each and every day!
Don’t skip this exercise!
If you focus on tackling and putting the kibosh on these 5 mental limitations, you’ll have exponential growth in whatever directions you choose in 2021.
Until next month, plant good things and watch them grow!
shelli
P.S. I need YOUR help! My goal this year is to double the number of readers enjoying these newsletters each month. Why? Because I hope you agree that each month valuable, actionable information and inspiration comes your way, and I want as many people as possible to have access to it.
Here’s the catch, though. Due to privacy restrictions, readers HAVE to sign up for the newsletter. I can’t just send it to anyone. Please encourage family and friends who would benefit from the newsletters to sign up here. Thank you for helping me share my passion with others!
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