Progress towards what you want
What do You want?
I mean this politely with an emphasis on the You,
When we make progress towards what we want, we feel good. When we spend time focussed on things that matter to us, we feel fulfilled. When we spend much or most of our time doing things that are not important or related to what we don’t value, we feel the opposite. Life becomes a chore.
When we complete things and achieve milestones related to what we value, we feel even better!
An interesting question to ask of yourself – write down the 5 most important things in your life – perhaps your goals for this year if you have them. At the end of each day, have a look at them. Did how you spent your time and energy today reflect what you most want in life ? Does it other days?
They say you can have anything you want – at least mostly within reason if you put your mind to it–but you cannot have everything.
When interviewed before running the first recorded 2 hour marathon in 2019 in controlled conditions, Mr Eliud Kipchoge from Kenya was asked about another event he was doing a few weeks later.
He simply answered: In my country we are taught that when you chase two rabbits you don’t catch either. He was just focussed on one event. And he achieved this amazing milestone for humanity with the support of 42 pace makers which opens the door to more people achieving this amazing feat. It is incredible what is possible with focus, consistent effort and team work.
Next time you find yourself getting irritated on the drive home from work or after an important meeting or even an unimportant meeting–rehashing what was said or not said or outcomes, or listening to a current affairs programme or thinking about a small disagreement with a family member – ask yourself has this got anything to do with what I really want or value in life? Challenge yourself.
Very often we what we say is important and what we give importance to in a particular situation are different. If you are spending time worrying about what you consider to be small things, somewhere in your mind, you are giving them more importance that what you claim to value.
Perfectionists and people pleasers (I have had both tendencies) often get distracted from their goals. This is because we get tripped up or at least slowed down by smaller wishes or lesser distractions and as a result don’t complete things or progress in what we really value.
In other cases, people value comfort zones more and others will do almost anything to avoid even the lowest level of conflict – which is sometimes necessary to work through differences.
Peace of mind comes when what we think, feel, say and do are all in alignment and When we spend our time focussed on or doing things to what we deem important and value.
Problems are part of life too. Things don’t always go our way. But sometimes things that we expect to be difficult are much easier so it can work both ways.
This week, check in with yourself. Are you spending time on what is important to you. If not, you have the power to change that and will be the biggest winner if you do.
Have a good one.