There has been a myth floating around for a number of years that’s says, “if you act enthusiastic you will be come enthusiastic”. Yes and no.

If you tend to be enthusiastic when things age going well let me ask you – do you act just as enthusiastic when you are going down in flames and life is filled with problem after problem?

The Day I Found the Lump
By Alex Blackwell

Part Three in the “Coming Into Your Own” Series

Sometimes in life we are given circumstances and conditions that are unwelcome and unfair. Going through particularly hard times can make us bitter and can cause us to feel victimized. However, there are no accidents without value. What this means is no matter what happens to us, we can find value in the event.

There’s no question it is difficult to find the meaning or value in an uncomfortable situation as you are encountering it, but when you step back and look at the outcome it produces, you can almost always find some measure of value.

The enemy waits and listens for your desperation. When you are at the end of your rope and can no longer see or feel what hope looks like, the enemy of your soul pounces on your confidence, shreds your dreams, and will cast a very dark shadow of doubt over what you want to be or do in your life.

The enemy does not want you to be successful. It delights in breaking you down to the point you surrender and exclaim things like, “What was I thinking, I can’t do something like that,” or “There is no way I will ever be able to [fill in the blank].”

You’re reading this for a purpose. You want something. You need something. You want to become something. You want to have something. You want to do something.

Two words only - You Want.

Human beings; You and I, are goal-seeking machines. Well, maybe ‘machines’ is too crude a word to use. Our brains are goal-seeking mechanisms.

Now let’s think about this thing called “You Want”-ism. Let’s say you want to be a more confident speaker.

What (effective) questions can you ask yourself that will lead you to the right thinking that in turn will lead you to the right decisions and the right actions, and lastly to your desired goal (becoming a more confident speaker)?

Just as setting small and attainable goals are the building blocks for achieving success; living a lifestyle of making good health choices leads to greater and more sustainable happiness.

The cliché “You are what you eat” does resonate with pieces of truth and common sense. There have been several health and fitness studies over the years that suggest people who are overweight, smoke and drink excessively have a predisposition to experience more bouts of depression than people who live a more moderate lifestyle in these areas.

How are you standing in the way of your dreams and goals?

It’s time to stop telling yourself lies, stop making excuses and (gulp) take a long hard look at what role you are playing in your current situation.

If you’re willing to ask yourself the hard questions now, you can save yourself from facing them as even bigger roadblocks in the future. But if you skip this step, you’ll keep coming up against these same issues over and over again, no matter how hard you work.

If you can:

Do you find that there’s so much to do and not enough time? People are so caught up in the busy-ness of life, yet often lose sight of what their true purpose is… why they are in business in the first place. Although they say their family and friends or their health are their no. 1 priority often their schedules reflect something totally different. Does that sound like you?

I met up with a colleague last week and we were discussing our businesses and updating each other on what’s been happening in our personal lives, when he mentioned about a friend of his who had died recently.

The quickest way from point A (where you are now) to point B (where you want to be, your goal or dream) is in a straight line.

And the most efficient way to stay on the straight line is to focus your energy, and attention, and to practice a consistent set of actions.

What that means, is you choose thoughts, feelings, and actions that will move you closer to that goal.