Choose Your Mood

You ever have one of those days, weeks, months….lives…..where you wake up just feeling like a grouch every morning?  Before you even get out of bed you are frustrated with the tasks of the day and feeling overwhelmed by the chaos of your schedule?  Haven’t made it to the coffee pot yet but you just want to kick the dog and go back to bed and pull the covers over your head?  Well, good news, you are in good company.  Too many of us today experience this type of daily anguish.  We live at a break neck pace seldom taking time to regroup, refresh and rejuvenate ourselves.  All this leads to a chronic state of feeling out of sorts with the universe and makes us tired, troubled and frankly, quite irritable.

So, you’re thinking to yourself….gee, that’s all true but it’s all well out of my control.  I challenge you to rethink that mindshare and consider for a moment what your life would feel like if instead of waking up feeling out of sorts with the world every day, you woke up and couldn’t wait to embrace the day?  The demands of your day haven’t changed yet you approach them all with a vision seen through a totally different lens.  Just as a lens alters the convergence of light rays, as for magnification, or in correction of visual defects, you have the power to change the way you experience things and alter your mood.

Just like choosing what you are going to enjoy for breakfast, you are empowered to choose how your mind is going to control your day.  Happiness is, in fact, a choice.  One that is far too seldom selected by the vast majority of people but I challenge you to consider how your day would be altered if you subscribed to this philosophy for just one 24-hour period.  You owe it to yourself (not to mention to those around you) to live with joy in your life.  Try it for just one day…..make the commitment to yourself that regardless of your circumstances, you are going to approach each task with enthusiasm and the heartfelt pleasure that accompanies doing something well.

You’ll likely discover that your feel good state of mind is contagious and that those around you begin to notice your new approach to life and want some of it.  Imagine what it would be like to actually enjoy your daily activities and complete each day with a sense of fulfillment and completeness.  Pretty simple equation.  Change the viewing and you will change the doing.  You can do it.  Give it a go.

"Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day."

 -Henri Nouwen

Afraid of Taking Risks? – Five Steps to Making “IT” Risk Free

Risk taking is typically not a natural inclination for most people yet we live in a world that mandates change is inevitable and therefore is seen by many as risk.  What if you were able to change your model of the world by thinking in terms of performing experiments to achieve the desired outcome vs. taking risks which infers a possible opportunity for failure?  What if someone told you there were no negative consequences in not achieving the desired outcome first time out of the chute?  Would you feel more comfortable with stepping outside of your comfort zone if you had a strategy which guaranteed you that you  could redirect your activities to ensure “success” or scrub the plan completely?  Thinking in terms of “experiments” vs. “risk” allows you to do just that.  Let’s examine the steps you might explore to “experiment” with a new approach to reach both a positive outcome and achieve the desired change.

1.       Determine what the desired outcome would be.  What would it look like?  What would it feel like?  How would you or others know if you had accomplished this?

2.       Define a series of small steps that advance you closer to achieving your desired outcome or goal.  Be specific about what evidence will be there to support your successful completion of each step.  Be honest with yourself.  If you can’t support the evidence, regroup and execute upon another small strategy that will allow you to arrive at the same place before moving on to the next step in your plan.

3.       Enlist the aid of a trusted accountability partner.  That may be a coach, a mentor, a co-worker, etc.  Ask them for their constructive feedback as you move toward your defined desired outcome.  Be receptive to their input but also remember that a good accountability partner doesn’t criticize but uses their input constructively and offers suggestions/recommendations on more effective methods for achieving your goal.

4.       Test your findings.  Observe others as they observe the changes they are seeing in you or your business model or sales strategies or whatever your desired outcome is.  Are they relating to you more easily, working more productively, becoming a more cohesive team?  Again, validate your progress through your observation of its impact on those around you.

5.       Lastly, determine at the conclusion of your experiment whether or not you feel you have reached your desired outcome or goal. 

If the answer is yes, then congratulations.  You have developed a new skill that will only get better with practice.  Take a moment to document the steps you took to arrive at the new model of your world.  Also, give yourself permission to feel good about stepping out of your comfort zone and trying new techniques through experimentation vs. the dreaded “change equals negative/fearful” mindshare that you may have been plagued with in the past.  Don’t forget to offer your appreciation to your accountability partner and share your new found model for success with those around you.

However, if the answer is no, go back and assess how closely you followed the steps outlined above.  Determine when you failed to recognize that the steps you were taking were not delivering the results you desired.  Once you identify the pitfalls, go back and try your experiment one more time.  I’m confident you will experience a better outcome and will have honed new skills that will continue to serve you well.  Congratulations on allowing your model of the world to change.