Holding on to Passion

A while back, I did a series of posts on finding and living your life passion. (If you haven't read them, check them out: parts one, two, three, and four.) In the series, I talk about ways to discover what you are passionate about, and also how to begin living those passions once you discover them.

Passion for something is a wonderful thing. It makes us feel alive; it gives us a sense of purpose and drive. But if we're not careful, passion can smolder and eventually die. Sometimes this will be a natural thing, as our dreams and passions definitely change as time passes. But sometimes the loss of passion happens because we lose focus or because we are no longer taking action.

I've found this to be the case for me lately. I haven't taken enough action toward my dreams. I really haven't engaged in enough action, period. As a result, my life feels smothered, lifeless, and I feel myself losing all sense of passion for the things I once loved. I don't want that to happen, so it's time to make a change.

As I read back over my series on finding life passion, I saw a common theme: passion requires action. Just as our physical bodies require action (i.e. exercise) to prevent atrophy and the breakdown of the body, our minds and hearts do too. Even if you were living your life deliberately and with passion a few months ago, if you do not take the necessary actions right now, you won't feel the benefits now. I'm at just such a place, so I need this reminder.

What is holding me back from living my life the way I know I want to? Here are some of the biggest ones:

1. Fear. Passion and purpose can be scary, because you might fail. You might not get what you want, so it can be easy to rationalize that you don't really want to go for it. Or that you will take action later. It's true, your dreams will always be around, but if you don't take action NOW, you may be missing out on some amazing opportunities.
2. Complacency. Do you know why we get stuck in ruts? Because they're comfortable. They're easy. You don't have to extend yourself or make a lot of effort. Sometimes you need a little break where you are comfortable. But if you stay comfortable in life, you aren't moving anywhere or growing your soul.
3. Distractions. I say distractions, but what I mean is distraction, because my main distraction is the Internet, and I freely admit that. I'm not proud of it, but I'm coming clean and saying that the Internet is my biggest time waster and I want it to stop!

So what do we do? How do we start taking action toward our goals and dreams? How do we push past fear, complacency and all the distractions out there? I'm not certain we can ever fully beat these monsters, but if we don't fight them by taking action, they take over and we lose. Is that dramatic? Maybe. But if we don't take action now, before we know it life will be over. All we have is today. So...here's what I pledge to do, starting today.

1. I pledge to act on my feelings. Sometimes I think to myself, "I should call so-and-so" or "I should start playing guitar again." Well, needless to say, I don't often actually DO the things I think about. When I get a prompting, I will act on it.
2. I pledge to actively live my life, every day. By this I mean that I will enjoy the moments I have right now. I will seek out new experiences, do instead of think, and actively BE the person I know I am meant to be.
3. I pledge to cut distractions from my life. This is a hard one. I use the Internet for work, for communication, for entertainment. But it also wastes my precious time. I'm going to find ways to get it out of my life as much as I can. I'll detail this in a future post. Instead of allowing my mind and heart to be distracted, I want to be active, to live, to be.

Do you have things holding you back from your passions? Tell us in the comments what is holding you back and what you pledge to do in order to live your best life!

5 Quick Tips for Starting Your Day Right

Some days are really good for me. I'm productive, I feel confident and happy, and I check a bunch of things off my to-do list. Other days, I have to force myeslf to get going, and my day never quite takes off.

Why is this? I think the key is the way I start the day. The way you start the day can set the tone for the rest of the day, so it's important to get off to a good start. I've found several things that help ensure that my day is happy and productive rather than blah. Here are 5 quick tips for starting the day right:

1. Get up. Okay, maybe that was obvious, but I mean that when you wake up, get up immediately. If you take your time getting up, you'll fight grogginess for the rest of the day.

2. Meditate or pray. Spend 5-1o minutes at the start of the day in prayer or meditation. You may be surprised to find out what kind of effect these quiet moments will have on the rest of your day.

3. Eat breakfast. Your body needs fuel. We all know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so don't skip it! And bonus points if you make it healthy.

4. Exercise or at least breathe. If you have time (or want to make time!), exercise in the morning. The endorphin boost can get you going and help you feel good. If you don't have time for exercise, take some deep breaths and notice how good it feels.

5. Go for it. Before you settle in with your time wasters (whatever yours happen to be - TV, Internet surfing, chatting, etc.), get started on your first 'to-do.' Pushing forward and finishing a task feels good and can help you build momentum toward the next task.

There you have it. Try one or several of these tips and see if they help your day go better. Let me know the outcome! And if you have your own tips, feel free to comment and let me know what yours are.

Best of the Tips

Because of my participation in the LiteMind writing project, I found a few really great new blogs. Here are the entries that I have deemed most worthy of your attention:

Articles:
7 Powerful Tips to Overcome Failure
7 Tricks to You Need to Fight Procrastination (Boy do I need this one!)
26 ways to Change the world (Easy ideas that make you happy in the process.)
10 Ways to Improve Personality (Apparently it can be done. Not that any of us need to...)

Resources:
100 Resources to Improve your Career, Relationships, and Money (This is a long list of articles that look excellent.)

No Cost Business Tools: 37 Free Applications that Make Your Life Easier (Tons of free resources for getting stuff done online.)

And that's that. Stay tuned for a longer post from me soon. I plan on writing some idea and tips for the holiday season.

Blog Action Day

Today is Blog Action Day. Bloggers around the world are posting about environmental issues with the idea that if many people talk about it all at once, we can make a difference.

My post isn't about what you should or shouldn't do in regards to our environment, because each person has to decide their feelings for this earth and how they will treat it. Each of us must decide for ourselves, and every person's answer will be slightly different.

Nor will I share how-to's or tips, because believe me, there are hundreds of posts out there today addressing those issues.

So what I will say is this - take some time and think about your feelings regarding the environment. Is there something you can do that will make a difference and improve the earth? (There are so many ideas. You can find some here and here.) Take time today to think about our earth, and then take an action - even a small one - that works for you and helps the world.

I'll tell you my action. I live in Georgia where there is currently a serious drought. They aren't sure that in four months there will be enough drinking water for the population here. So I am trying to cut my water usage by at least 10%. I take shorter showers. When it's yellow, I let it mellow. I use much less water for rinsing dishes. That is my contribution for now.

What will yours be? Don't feel that your contribution won't change the world, because it will. Every action we take makes a difference somewhere. If we each make one baby step at a time, our world will be different and better.

The Reader's Turn

Those of you who have a blog will probably relate to what I'm about to say. I'm in a slump. I feel like I've written all I have to say, and I don't have any new ideas. Nor do I feel the drive or motivation I had in the beginning when I first started this blog.

But I've heard this happens to bloggers. After the first couple of months, they panic, thinking their creative flow is gone. But what's actually gone is the initial excitement, and if they stick out the rough patch, supposedly the 'flow' comes back. (So here's to hoping!)

On a more general note, I think this happens to anyone who undertakes something new. In the beginning, everything feels exciting; almost effortless. And then once the excitement dissipates, you have to find a different and longer-lasting motivation. Perhaps I'll explore that concept in a later post. (An idea! Maybe I'm not sunk after all...)

Meanwhile, my beloved readers (I know there are some loyal followers, if not a ton yet!), I turn to you. Is there a topic (either general or specific) you'd like to read more about or discuss? Or any questions you may have of me? If so, please comment below, or email me - hollijkr (at) gmail.com, and ask away.

I want my posts to be relevant to you, so any feedback you have would be wonderful. I appreciate both your feedback and your support of my blog. Knowing that people read and get something out of my blog has been my ultimate motivation! So, thank you.

What motivates you?

The blog eMoms at Home has a great set of posts called 'Monday Motivation.' In today's edition, she asked everyone to comment and share their 'to-do' list for today, and what would motivate them to accomplish these items.

I participated myself, listing things I would do today (writing this post was one of them!). My motivation is a consequence - if I don't accomplish the things on my list (and I only chose a few so I didn't overwhelm myself) I have to go back to the post and tell everyone there that I didn't do it.

This got me thinking about motivation and why I sometimes can't seem to get motivated no matter what I do. Sometimes I am motivated by the knowledge that others will find out if I fail (as in the example above.) But at other times, this doesn't motivate me, it just makes me feel bad when I do fail.

Rewards can help with motivation, too. Sometimes accomplishing something has intrinsic rewards built in, such as losing weight. If you lose weight, you look better, feel better, and you're healthier. Those rewards are priceless, are they not? But sometimes the intrinsic rewards are so delayed (as with weight loss) that it doesn't always motivate in the here and now.

I often use time rewards for myself. If I accomplish x amount of things by a certain time, I can spend x amount of time on the Internet. This only works if I'm in the mood to play along with it. If I'm not, I skip the accomplishment and go straight to the Internet. :(

Motivation is a tricky thing. Sometimes you have to use multiple methods for motivating yourself. We all have goals we want to accomplish, and at first our excitement for achieving the goal is ample motivation. After a while the excitement wears off, and we have to work hard to find the motivation we need.

But it's worth it, no? Every time we push through and do the something on our list, we gain a little more confidence that we can achieve our dreams. So, what's on your list today? What are you going to use to motivate yourself to accomplish them?

Related posts:
Habits Shape Who We Are
When doing something new, don't give up!
Overcoming Procrastination

Tips for Surviving Unemployment

When you're between jobs and searching for employment, it's easy to get discouraged. It's hard to maintain your sense of self-worth when you don't hear back from potential employers and get rejected by others. How do I know this? Because I am currently in the category of unemployed.

Last month my husband and I moved to Georgia from Arizona, where I had a full-time job. I've been looking for a job here since June, and I've had my fair share of discouragement. So this post is meant partly to inspire me, and partly for anybody in the same boat as I am.

Here are some ideas for making it through the rough times.

Seek support from friends. Your true friends will encourage you and support you, which is something you need during this time. Having the support of family and friends is invaluable. Not to mention that friends and family may have job leads. Which brings me to the next point...

Network. Tell everyone you know that you're looking for a job. Join an organization in your field. Use Internet tools like LinkedIn to network. You never know where a job lead will come from, so always network.

Brainstorm. I've found my unemployment to be a perfect time to brainstorm. I brainstorm what my perfect job would be (if you don't know what you want, how will you get it?). I also brainstorm temporary solutions - are there temp jobs I'd be willing to do? Are there side jobs I could do? Are there other solutions to your situation that you haven't thought of yet? Brainstorm away!

Cut yourself some slack. Looking for a job can be harder than working a full-time job. It drains your energy, you face rejection, AND you don't get paid for it. So pat yourself on the back for how hard you've worked. You haven't landed the perfect job yet, but you're doing what you can.

Don't take rejection personally. On a bad day it's hard not to take it personally, but the truth is that you will fit well in some jobs and not in others. There are many reasons you weren't chosen for the job and someone else was, and not all of them have to do with you. Don't take a rejection personally. Just don't.

Remember your hobbies. It's easy to get stuck a rut when you're unemployed. It gets depressing to watch TV all day in your pajamas. To combat this, do something. What are the things you like to do? This is a perfect time to do them. Get out in your garden, sew a quilt, lift weights, bake some bread. You get the idea.

Learn a new skill. The great thing about not having a job (and the worst thing about it!) is all the free time. You can't look for a job 24/7 or you'd go crazy. So how about learning something new? You could even learn something to make you more marketable. Head to your local library and find a book on something you've been wanting to learn to do.

Be positive. I know, that's easy for me to say. Believe me, I know how hard it is to be positive when you're unemployed. I struggle every day with this. But on days when I focus on the positive I have more energy, am more willing to put myself out there, and have a lot more confidence in myself and my abilities. These are all things that can help with the job search. And staying positive is essential for your mental and emotional health!

*Almost everyone goes through a period of unemployment at some point in their lives, so remember that you're not alone. What kinds of things helped YOU during that time? I'd love to hear your comments and ideas.

When doing something new, don't give up!

I've been in Georgia for a little over a month now. Two months ago I lived in Scottsdale, Arizona with a full-time job, many friends, had family close by, and I was very comfortable with things as they were.

When we moved to Georgia last month, I knew nobody, missed family and friends, and couldn't find my way down the street. I often felt hopeless and down about my situation. I wasn't worried though, because I knew that major life changes can do that to you. So I contented myself to make it through the rough times.

And a month later, I feel better. I can drive around this city, and I even have some friends. But the point is, it took me a whole month to adjust (and frankly, I'm still adjusting.)

It has made me realize that our bodies and minds need time to adjust to new things. If you're trying to set up a new habit or are adjusting to new circumstances in your life - give it time! Don't give up on yourself or worry that things will never get better, because they will. If you're like me, you'll need at least a month to get used to things, and maybe more. That's normal.

So what I'm saying is hang in there! Whatever you're working on will become part of you, and the effort and wait will be worth it.

Related Posts:
Habits Shape Who We Are
What Motivates You?
Overcoming Procrastination

Habits Shape Who We Are

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act, but a habit." --Aristotle

If the above quote is true, it would explain why excellence is somewhat rare. Habits, at least new ones, are not easy to form. I have many habits, some good, some not so good. I have a habit of leaving items sitting out when I'm done with them, which leads to clutter in my house. I have a habit of taking my medication right before bed, which is good for my health. I didn't consciously decide to form these habits; they became part of me without real effort on my part.

I find it easy to describe my current habits, and I could share with you the times when I failed miserably at building new habits. I could also probably describe how new habits are formed. What I have a very hard time doing is actually changing my current habits and creating new ones. Sometimes that seems like an impossibility to me. One example is that I want to build the habit of exercise, but every morning is a huge fight with myself to actually do it. Lately, my old habits have won out.

I know it can be done. Countless people have changed their lifestyles, formed better habits, and ditched old ones. These people are inspiring. These are the people Aristotle is talking about - people who achieve excellence. So how do I become one of them? How do you? (Feel free to insert your advice in the comments if you already are one of them!)

One thing I do have in my favor is perseverance. I may not exercise every day like I hope to, but I do work to form the habit every day. Even when I fail, effort is put into trying. I also have goals I'm working toward, which makes it clearer to me why I should follow through on creating new habits. I want to be healthy and enjoy the time I have on earth, therefore, I work every day to build the habit of exercising.

Eventually, I hope exercise (and many other habits I'm working on) becomes an unconscious habit; just one of those things I do every day. Until then, I persevere. So what do I think helps build habits? Two things:

1. Set goals you're passionate about and take steps toward them. (For example, you may not be passionate about folding your underwear, but you may be passionate about having a simple and organized home, which would help motivate you to fold your underwear.)

2. Persevere. We all have days when we forget or just don't want to build better habits. I have those days often. The secret is to try again and again until we get it right.

This post is in response to a personal development writing contest created by Jenny and Erin in their quest for understanding. Pop over there and submit your own entry for a chance at the $25 prize.

Related Posts:
What Motivates You?
When doing something new, don't give up!
Overcoming Procrastination

Overcoming Procrastination

My husband and I both suffer from procrastination at times. I avoid tasks that are unpleasant, which then causes problems later on when I have a multitude of unpleasant tasks to care of. Not to mention that procrastinating means that sometimes important things slip through the cracks, like paying bills. Not good!

I don't like procrastinating, but that's just how I've functioned for most of my life. Recently, I adopted a positive affirmation that really struck me. The affirmation is: I do it now. I say this to myself every day, and it actually works. I still have trouble with procrastination, but it's getting better!

My husband just started his doctoral program and is struggling to adjust to the demands of his studies. I know procrastination is something he struggles with, and I know he can't afford it with the time constraints he has. So when I saw this article about procrastination on The Positivity Blog, I knew I had to link to it - it's got great tips for getting past procrastination.

So if you've ever struggled with procrastination, check the article out here. And you may also want to try repeating the phrase, "I do it now" any time you want to put something off. I'm telling you, it really helps!

Related Posts:
What Motivates You?
Habits Shape Who We Are
When doing something new, don't give up!