I love my life, every minute of it.

Drew’s Reminder,

    I love my life, every minute of it.  I have this phrase affixed to my car.  The same car I wash every week.  As with many men, my car is my pride and joy.  I get a special feeling when I see it.  Yes, I am that guy that drives down the storefronts of a shopping center and look at the reflection of my car.  I say to myself, “yeah that’s me.”  To hear all of this you would think I drive a 2016 Bentley.  However that’s not the case.  I drive a 2008 and it’s paid for.  I have no intention of replacing it just to have something newer.  Yes, I have a desire for a convertible but I know it will come when the time is right and I’m completely happy with that.  I tell you all of that so you understand what a big deal it is for me to affix anything to my car.

    I chose to affix “I love my life, every minute of it.” to my car as a reminder.  I know that I will get in my car at least 85% of any given year when I factor in current business and personal travel time.  Many of these days I will do so multiple times.  Each one of those times I will walk by my rear window and read, “I love my life, every minute of it.”  It makes me smile.  It gives me confidence.  It gives me peace.  One of the best feelings is when someone sees it in the parking lot and comments on it.  Those comments are typically; “wow, that really makes me think” or “I love it”. 

   Yet, I know there are some of you who are saying; “yeah I love my life but every minute of it? Come on be real.”  I understand your sentiment. What about the times of crisis in my life?  I have them just like everyone else.  The times when my health is failing, the times when I am in financial crisis, the times when my relationships are failing and so on and so on.  Those times hurt me just like they hurt you.  The naysayer would say to me “you don’t love those minutes of your life.”  Sometimes they aren’t even minutes.  Those times of crisis could be days, weeks or even months.  I couldn’t possibly love my life during those times could I?  3 years ago I would have agreed that I don't love my life during those times.  Fortunately, 3 years ago I started to I began what I like to call my enlightenment.  I began to understand my life and how I want to live it.  I learned that I truly create my own reality.  I took responsibility for the good and the bad.  With that new accepted responsibility I decided that I needed to change the way I thought about many things in my life.  


     One of the first changes I decided to make was to begin to truly love myself.  Not just love myself but love myself unconditionally.  That meant that every "bad" decision I made in my past or may make in my future would be forgiven.  It didn't stop at forgiveness.  I also decided that it didn't have to be "bad".  Every failure I have had was a part of me and their best use was in making me better.  I took responsibility for my failures and I also decided they were part of life.  They were part of a life that I love.  One definition of love is "the object of attachment, devotion, or admiration".  Webster's give the example "baseball was his first love".  That is exactly how I see my life.  I am attached to my life.  I am devoted to my life.  I have the deepest admiration for my life.  I have to.  I can't count on anyone else to do it for me.  I can't provide true love to anyone else if I can't provide it to my life first.  For those of you that are married you took a vow to love and to cherish, until death do you part.  That is only possible if you love and cherish your own life first.

   So yes, "I love my life, every minute of it."  It is important for me to do so.  It warrants a reminder so I never let myself forget it.  I believe it warrants a reminder because there are multiple forces in this world that could make me forget it if I allowed them. To prevent that from happening I decided to place that reminder somewhere that I know I would see it often.  I put that reminder on my beloved car. I am grateful that every time I see it, I get to feel a little bit of peace.  It makes me smile.  It makes me feel confident that I'm ready to face whatever is coming my way. I look forward to the day when I see it first thing in the morning.  I feel grateful for the day when I see it on my way home from work.  I feel happy to walk into my wonderful home to see my beautiful family when I see it as park my car at home.

     There you have it.  I love my life, every minute of it.  You are welcome to join me.  I'm not asking you to put a vinyl decal on your car.  I am asking you to think about the importance of loving your life.  Especially the importance it has to the quality of your life.  You know the only thing I want is for your life to be of the best quality possible.  That's why I think you should love your life, every minute of it.  You decide.  I'm here to support any decision you make.  As always, I wish you the best and implore you to enjoy the journey.

With gratitude,

Drew

What to do when I'm worried?

Drew’s Reminder,

     The act of worrying has never helped you have success in any situation you’ve ever been placed in.  Think back to any situation in your past.  You lost your job and you were worried about how you would replace that income.  Worry didn’t help you replace that income.  You were sick and the doctor’s didn’t know what it was or how bad it would get.  Worry didn’t help you get healthy.  You failed a class and you were worried if you would still graduate on time.  Worry didn’t help you graduate.  You were given a target plan at work that you thought was unachievable and you were worried you wouldn’t get a bonus because of it.  Worry didn’t help you achieve that target or get your bonus.  

     The only thing that can help you in any of those situations above is to focus.  After you lose your job you must now focus on replacing that income.  When you are sick you need to focus on getting healthy.  When you fail a class you must focus on how you will still graduate on time.  When you have what you think is an unachievable target you must focus on how you can achieve it and still get your bonus.

     However, that initial worry still has value.  It has value because it allows you to acknowledge your fear.  That acknowledgement can help you quickly move to focus and faith.  How so?  Think about the situation.  What are you worried about?  What do you fear?  Next, think about what you are confident about.  Whatever you are confident about is where you should focus.  Acknowledge the fear, focus on what you are confident about and have faith it will all work out.

Here are some examples:

Situation	Your Fear	Confident that?	Where should you focus?
Lost your job	□ You will run out of money and can’t pay your bills □ You won’t find a job □ You won’t find a job paying you enough money	□ There are numerous ways to make money in America. □ There is a job market out there with job openings. □ You have experience that demands a salary you desire. □ People lose their jobs every day and they bounce back.	□ Ways to make money in America. □ Job openings in the market and how to find them. □ How to market your experience to demand the salary you desire. □ How others have bounced back from similar situations.
Sick and don’t know how bad it is	□ You could have a terminal disease □ You could lose some function of your body permanently □ You could have to miss work □ You could have so much pain you can’t handle it.	□ There are great doctors out there that can help me. □ I’ve been sick before and survived. □ My body needs my positive attitude now more than ever.	□ Finding great doctors who have had success in these type of situations. □ How did I survive my other sicknesses? □ How can I stay positive because I know my body needs it?
Failed a class	□ You won’t graduate □ You will be highly stressed	□ There are numerous resources (coaches, mentors, tools, techniques) that you can tap into to assist you in your efforts. □ You are not alone. □ You have passed many other courses in the past.	□ What are numerous resources (coaches, mentors, tools, techniques) that I can tap into? □ How have I passed other courses in the past.
Given a target you believe is unachievable	□ You won’t achieve the target □ You won’t get your bonus □ You will be highly stressed the entire time □ You will be blamed for not making target	□ You are experienced enough to do the best of your ability. □ You have had success in your past when you initially were not sure. □ There are numerous resources (coaches, mentors, tools, techniques) that you can tap into to assist you in your efforts.  You are not alone.	□ What are my strengths that will help me achieve this task? □ What have I done in the past that has been successful? □ What are numerous resources (coaches, mentors, tools, techniques) that I can tap into?

     Follow this process the next time you are faced with a situation that causes you to worry.  If you don’t you will just find yourself wasting your time and energy worrying which in the end will never help the situation.

1.  Acknowledge you are worried.

2.  Write down your fears.

3.  Write down what you are confident about.

4.  Focus your efforts on things you are confident about.

5.  Have faith that it will all work out.

     I highly suggest going through this exercise with a pen and your journal, however that is not required.  The only requirement is to go through the exercise so that you can focus your thinking. If you've read any of my previous blogs you know how important I believe your thinking is to your success.  You create your own reality.  That is because your beliefs drive your thoughts.  Your thoughts drive your feelings.  Your feelings drive your actions.  Finally, your actions drive your results.  Whatever results you are getting out of life are all a result of your beliefs and thoughts.  Let this be your reminder the next time you find yourself worrying about a situation in your life.  Quickly move into focus so you can make things happen.  As I always, I wish you the best and enjoy the journey!

With gratitude,
Drew