Archive for the ‘The Dash’ Category

Monday Morning Mojo: Realizing a Bigger Glass

0 Comments

A PGA tour player just shoots the best round of his career and when the sports reporter asks him “what was going through your head” after he finishes scorching the golf course with a round of sixty, he says, “I was in the zone… it was effortless… I was relaxed… everything was just going in the hole.”

After winning what many will argue is the most violent non-contact sport in the world, the one hundred meter sprint, the Olympic sprinter when interviewed and asked, “what where you focused on during the race” says just one thing, “relaxing.”

I have a personal trainer who I work out with once a week.  Besides having been in the circus, he was a strength coach for the Stanford University track team and actually coached several Olympic sprinters.  He was the one who told me about the one hundred meter sprinters mindset.

He is not your typical trainer who has you pumping iron until the veins are popping out of your head.  He is about 5’ 7”, 140 pounds, has a limp from a bad hip and he is all about helping you create what he calls a “bigger glass,” opening you up so you can fit more in.

Weird isn’t it?

He tells me I can lift weights and run until I am blue in the face, but for me to continue to improve and get more of what I want, I need to open up my body and mind so I can fit more in.  Because my “glass is full” and if I continue to do what I’ve always done, all I’m going to do is over flow the glass and cease improving.

So, how do you make a “bigger glass?” You guessed it, relax.

Imagine me spending an hour with a guy whose whole goal is to get me to “relax” and not fight so hard to get more of what I want, but to just let it in.  Now, don’t get me wrong, when I am working out with him, it is very intense and I am sweating my ass off, but very rarely do I ever even pick up a weight. He has me stretching, balancing, and breathing so that my body can actually expand.  Because right now it is constricted by my thoughts and how I have tricked my muscles into what they actually can and cannot do.

The same thing applies to your mindset and getting more of what you want in all of the areas of your life. You need to make your “glass bigger.” This is why things like affirmations, meditation, and dream boards are so important.

Over the last few weeks we have discussed creating your passion so that it will pull you towards what you want to attract in your life.  We have talked about having focus and intensity, about speeding up, and about accountability and discipline.

This week I am going to recommend relaxing and letting your passion pull you. Don’t force it or all you are going to do is get pissed off and quit.  The key is not to try harder, but actually take your parking break off. You will find you run smoother and faster without it on.  It is all about creating flow and ease in what we do, being focused on what we want and letting go.  It is like running a one hundred meter sprint or shooting a great round of golf.  The more you “relax,” the faster you go, or the lower your score.  Now don’t get me wrong, you still need to be committed, disciplined, accountable and work your ass off. You need to do your best both personally and professionally to get what you want in life.  What I am saying is just don’t force it.

A big part of not forcing it and taking the parking brake off is changing the thoughts that are going on in your head every day about what you need to do to get what you want in life.  Remove words like – I can’t, I’m not, I won’t, from your self talk. You need to have positive thoughts and words – replace them with words like, I can, I am, and I will.

Have a great week, RELAX, make a “BIGGER GLASS” and don’t forget to take your parking brake off.


Monday Morning Mojo: The Ax vs. the Sledgehammer

0 Comments

Whack, whack, goes the dull ax against the tree making dents instead of deep, sharp, cuts.

In life how often do we experience this?  Instead of taking the time to slow down and sharpen our ax so we can be more productive, we find ourselves in a hurry to get things done by pounding away at our problems and tasks with a dull blade yielding the same result as the solid surface of a sledgehammer – dents not cuts.

If we would just take the time to slow down and sharpen our ax, not only would our trees get chopped down faster, but it would require a whole lot less effort.  And in the end, we would actually get more trees chopped down and have more time to spend in the other areas of our life that we are neglecting. Sometimes we get so consumed with getting stuff done that we don’t slow down long enough to educate ourselves and evaluate what we can do to be more efficient and effective.  This applies to everything in life – business, finances, relationships, faith, health, etc.

So my advise is take the time to sharpen your ax, your skills, and your mind.  Continuously learn, grow and try new things. Ultimately it will make your life easier and you will become more productive at a quicker pace. And remember a sharp ax cuts through a tree swiftly and with ease, as opposed to a sledgehammer which only makes a dent.


Monday Morning Mojo: Make your “Dash” count

0 Comments

“It’s terminal” — 2 of the scariest words we could hear about ourselves or someone we care about.

Yet “it’s terminal” is exactly the 2 words which describe the fate of each and every one of us.  No, it hopefully will not be today – next week – next month – next year. Hopefully not for several decades, but lets face it, all of us have a “terminal illness” and it is called mortality. Our days on this planet are indeed numbered.

So, the question is, knowing this, are you spending as much time as humanly possible with those who are truly most important? Are you making a difference in the world? Are you going to have regrets for the way you have lived your life?  It’s funny how it does not hit us until we hear those 2 frightening  words. But let’s face it, as scary is it is, it could be anyone of us tomorrow.

Sit back and think about this for a minute. If you have years or decades to live, if a doctor could tell you the exact day and time you where going to pass, would you start living your life differently today?  I think so.  It’s because we don’t have that definite date and time that we continue to say “I will do it tomorrow”. “I will go see them next week”. “I will do it when I retire. “We think it goes on forever, but it doesn’t.

We all get caught up trying to get ahead in life. Measuring our success by how much money we make. By our belongings. By our power.  But lets face it, what really matters most is our relationships with those most important to us – our family and our friends. It is the difference we are making in peoples lives.

So my challenge to myself and everyone who receives this is to find the power to take time and reflect on our/your life. What it is you are doing and re-prioritize to really make sure those people and things most important in life are on the top of the list. Those people and things which when we finally realize it’s terminal we have no regrets for the way we lived our lives.

Check The Dash and make sure your “dash” really counts. make sure you won’t have any regrets.  We only get one sho at this life. There are no second chances. Don’t waste it on things that don’t really matter!!

Make your “dash” count and make it a GREAT week!!!!!