"Achievement is largely the product of steadily raising one’s levels of aspiration and expectation." – Jack Nicklaus
Challenge yourself to raise your aspirations. Dream bigger.
Challenge your expectations of yourself. Don’t let yourself get away with anything but your best.
Make it a great day.
Jake
Sometimes the solution is just being willing to come back day after day after day. As the saying goes, success is right around the corner. Well, that corner you are talking about may have a very long ass hallway that requires a lot of navigation.
Very few people want to talk about their truth. A lot of us are looking for that four-lane highway. That highway makes the journey of life so much easier. A lot of us dream big but once we see the work involved, we often choose a different route.
Edison made 1,000 unsuccessful attempts at inventing the lightbulb. When asked how did it feel to fail 1,000 times, he replied “I didn’t fail 1,000 times, the lightbulb was an invention with 1,000 steps.”
You must have that same mindset to succeed in life. You must be willing to return to the scene of the crime. A lot of us need proof that something is going to work before we are willing to commit. Resilience, grit, courage, perseverance, guts, etc.- these words are often used to motivate the unmotivated. A lot of us wonder how to develop these traits. You develop them by being willing to fail 1,000 times until you figure it out! Make it a habit to get up quickly!
In spite of the invention of the lightbulb, many of us are still in the dark about how facing the things that make us the most uncomfortable create the most growth.
Challenge uncertainty!
This was a recent post from David Goggins on the FaceBox.
I’ve been following him the last couple of months and his perspective is interesting.
Growth comes through being uncomfortable and suffering.
So if you want the most growth, you have to be the most uncomfortable.
David has done this in the physical realm (achieving some unbelievable things), but I also believe that it works in the rest of our lives as well.
Growth comes through challenging ourselves.
Make it a point to get a little uncomfortable in your life.
Make some changes.
Spur some growth.
Make it a great day.
Jake
Today is Annie’s 9th birthday.
Annie is the middle child and that in itself has taught me a few life lessons.
The biggest one is making the best of something.
I’ve always told her that she is the lucky one – she gets to be a little sister and a big sister. No one else in our family gets to play that role and that God has a special plan for her.
We don’t get to choose a lot of life that happens to and around us.
But we can choose our attitude.
My sincere hope is that Annie is able to keep that attitude about being the middle child for the rest of her life.
She’s done a great job so far.
Make it a great day.
Jake
If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one. – Mother Teresa
Andy Stanley says it like this – do for one what you would like to do for all.
We all see things we would like to be changed in this world.
Broken homes, hungry children, lonely shut ins, the list goes on and on.
It all seems so daunting when you look at all of it at once.
But if you focus on what’s in front of you, it’s not that bad.
Focus on the family and friends around you.
Help the local charity that could use a few extra dollars.
You don’t have to look far to find someone in need.
I’m convinced that the world really would become a much better place if we could just figure out how to be kind to those we interact with daily.
Do something small to help today.
Make it a great day.
Jake
(This one comes with a special appearance by the Donald).
Classic Ghostbusters memories coming back from this one.
Movie themes and soundtracks are an integral part of the movie and our experience watching it. They bring us along emotionally with the story line.
Make your theme song today something positive.
Create a positive energy and enthusiasm by introducing some positive music.
Make it a great day.
Jake
Teach self-denial and make its practice pleasure, and you can create for the world a destiny more sublime that ever issued from the brain of the wildest dreamer. – Sir Walter Scott
Make its practice pleasure.
To me, this is why attitude is important.
Our attitude or philosophy about something often determines our enthusiasm level.
I often think of ice cream vs exercise (I do this because I’m not a huge ice cream fan so it is easier on me).
Our attitude towards the two can make a big difference.
If we can choose to embrace exercise as a pleasure and relegate ice cream to something less, we’d probably make some better health choices.
To paint the picture of how that might go, think about a few scenarios….
Had a rough day…..a little exercise will perk me right up.
Had a great day….let’s top this off with a run.
Out of energy….man, I need to get my blood pumping – better get moving.
Time to celebrate…..let’s get out and go for a run together.
To be sure, if you said these things out loud most people would think you are a little strange. You wouldn’t be normal.
But that is the rub, do you really want to be normal?
If this analogy (ice cream vs exercise) isn’t useful for you, try to think of another one. Shopping vs reading. Watching TV vs praying. Stressing vs planning. I’m sure there are tons of good examples where an attitude or perspective change might do you some good.
Talk about it with someone. Write it down somewhere where you can see it. Practice some self talk to reprogram your mind.
Make it a great day.
Jake
Every charitable act is a stepping stone toward heaven. – Henry Ward Beecher
My understanding is that the charity of old is more like love than of giving to those in need.
This quote then tells of the truth that acts of love bring us closer to heaven.
I imagine heaven as a place of nothing but love.
Of kind and loving acts performed all day, every day.
The more of these actions we perform, the closer we get to the unimaginable joy of heaven.
Take a few steps closer to heaven today by acting out of love for those around you.
Ask yourself “what would be the loving response?”
And then do it. Every time.
Make it a great day.
Jake
Success is never final, failure is never fatal. It’s courage that counts. – John Wooden
Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point. – C. S. Lewis
This quote from John Wooden reminded me of one of my favorite CS Lewis quotes.
Courage counts because it’s what gets you through when things get hard.
And only by pushing through when things get hard do we grow.
Courage counts when your honesty is tested.
Courage counts when you can be patient or give in.
Courage counts when you have to pick an apple over that donut.
Courage counts when you tell someone no in order to honor your previous yes.
In these small moments, a courageous person is built.
Make it a great day.
Jake
Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light. – Albus Dumbledore
Maggie has been reading a few of the Harry Potter books lately and so we watched some of the first movie over the weekend.
The books and movies do such a great job of taking you into a different world.
But they also do a great job of weaving in universal truths like the one from the quote above.
We can take inspiration and encouragement from the Harry Potter series.
If you aren’t already, I would encourage you to pick up a fiction book or book series.
Learn lessons and hone your personal philosophy by comparing it to the imagined world you are reading about.
Weigh their choices as if they were your own.
Face their fears as if they were yours.
Be inspired by their success.
Make it a great day.
Jake
The kids sang this song at church last Sunday at church and it has been in my head all week.
Today is Good Friday, Sunday is Easter Sunday.
Easter is a great reminder of what Christianity is all about.
The simple idea that Jesus suffered and died for us because of his everlasting love for each and every one of us.
Happy Easter.
Make it a great day.
Jake
A version of the same song with a little more pep (fast forward to about 1:30 to get right to the singing):
Practical Steps for Friendship, Unity and Intimacy in Your Marriage
