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| Photo by Radion Kutsaev |
I have a confession to make. I collect quotes. I have a
subscription that sends me daily quotes and if I like the quote, I print it and
glue it in a little book. I would like
to say that they are all by famous people that inspire me. I do not know the
person quoted most of the time; nor do I know the context for the quote. The words speak to me so I keep a copy.
I did not immediately recognize the name
Misty Copeland. Thanks to the internet, it takes just a second to find out who
she is and why she would be quoted. Misty Copeland is the first African
American female dancer with the American Ballet Theatre. If you would like to know
more about her, you can see an interview
from CBS Sunday Morning. I had seen another interview with her and she has
quite an interesting story.
But the point of me sharing this quote with you today is
that I think sometimes we box ourselves in to thinking that we have to do
something a certain way to get to a goal. Using myself as an example, I had
success using walking as exercise. Yes, it was combined with an eating program
but I enjoyed walking. I had a path by a lake and I would see lots of different
people and enjoy the fresh air. Unfortunately, my knees have betrayed me and
taking long walks are not possible for me right now. I do like to swim but it
is can be an expensive form of exercise and there is something about going to a
pool and changing in a drafty changing room in the winter.
So, since I can’t walk as I did, I have found lots of
excuses not to exercise.
The path to your success is not as fixed and inflexible as you think
You can probably guess what the upshot of this is – I have
gained weight. I find it very easy to get up in the morning and come in my office
and work all day. Before Sadie the rescue dog came into the house, I didn’t
even get up and just walk around as much as I should. Now, I have a little face
that comes in and bothers me to get up and take her outside. As much as the interruption
sometimes drives me nuts I know it has been a good thing.
The problem is also that I let myself stop because I could
not do one form of exercise. It was as if that was my only choice and since I
could not do that, I could not do anything. I have been so busy looking at what
I can’t do, that I am not looking for what I can do. What can I do? I can ride
a stationary bike. I can do exercises that strengthen my legs (which helps my
knees) and I can work on upper body strength (of which I have none.) There are classes that I can take that I
might even enjoy if I tried them.
How about you? Are you stuck on thinking that you have to do
something one way but yet you can’t? Is it time for you to think about how you
are going to change and accomplish your goal by taking a different path? Here
is a suggestion. Go outside with a pad of paper and a pen. Look at the sky, the
clouds, trees, and the roofs around you. Just look for a few minutes. Then
think about your obstacle. Think about what changes you can make to get around
it. Write them down. Let your mind go and write down silly nonsensical ways
around it. The sillier the ideas the better. Laugh while you are writing. Write
down 5 -10 ways around your problem. Then stop. Look at the sky again and think
about that color blue and wonder how many types of birds live in your
neighborhood. Think about your best experience outside and smile at the thought.
Then revisit your list. I think you might find an idea of how to reach your
goal in those silly (and not so silly) ideas. Take that idea and start to incorporate
it slowly into your life. If you find it doesn’t work out, what have you lost? Not
much. Try the exercise again. Or you might find that you wake up some morning
with the answer. You just need to seriously pose the question to yourself and
let you mind have a chance to work on the answer without you trying so hard.
Sorry, I need to go there is a little face that wants some
fresh air.
Thanks for reading.
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