Your To-Do List For Success! Part 1
Updated: Apr 27, 2018
You might say I'm a list maker by nature. I love crossing things off. It's such a feeling of accomplishment. But there are lists, then there are lists. The list I'm going to suggest you start following ASAP will move you forward in life, get you unstuck . This list is compiled of little gems that you can start implementing immediately.
We are a people that like comfort. And why not, it feels good. But being too comfortable and complacent prevents any growth from taking place. And let's face it, you don't want to be in five years where you are today, do you? I didn't think so.
Let's start. Grab a pen and write these down. Practice makes perfect, remember? Post this list wherever you can see it on a regular basis to remind you to ACT!
1) Look up and forward, not down and back.
If you stay focused on something that happened, something about which you can do nothing, you might as well be wearing a straight jacket. Take it off. You don't need it. Besides, it doesn't do any good. Movement only occurs when you move, not when you're sitting still.
2) Don't wait until the last minute; you might lose your chance.
If you snooze, you lose, as they say. I once received an email with tickets to So You Think You Can Dance. Immediately, I signed up and printed them out. My daughter-in-law, however, waited. And waited. By the time she went to sign up, there weren't any tickets left. I got to go to the show and experienced one of the most enjoyable times of my life. Don't wait!
3) Clean up after yourself--either put it away or throw it away.
No one likes to spend time cleaning; specially cleaning up after someone else. Be courteous. The longer you leave something laying on the floor, the more things will pile up. Then you won't be putting away a pair of shoes, you'll be putting away a pair of shoes, a shirt, last night's dish, last week's newspaper, etc. The longer you wait, the more you'll have to do. Make sense? Make life easy for yourself.
4) You're not going to want to do it, so don't think about it. Just do it!
I get up three times a week to teach a class at the YMCA. I have to be set up and ready by 6:00 a.m. It's not fun. There's no morning when I wake up wanting to leave my cozy bed to start doing cardio in a cold gym. So I don't think about it. It's something that's good, good for me, and for the class. When there's something you need to do, (i.e., a doctor's appointment, typing up that paper for school, calling someone back, etc.),don't think it through. Doing it will yield the results you want. Sitting in contemplation won't get you much. As a matter of fact, it will make things worse because you'll have to work that much harder and faster!
5) If it's scary, it will take you out of your comfort zone.
Are you doing anything in your life that causes you fear? If you're not, then you're too comfy in your life. You're not moving in any direction. I was once asked to give a speech in front of my peers at Antioch University. Now, that was scary! I almost said no; talked myself into believing I was too busy. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that it was fear keeping me from giving the speech. I accepted. Faced my fear. Gave the speech. In that experience I grew, felt better about myself, and relished in my newfound confidence.