It's Only A Mistake

Do you find it hard to admit to yourself, or to others, that you made a mistake? Or, when you do make a mistake, do you beat yourself up mercilessly and give yourself no slack for it? Do you judge others who make mistakes and give little space for their humanity?

The reality which none of us like to admit is that all of us make mistakes. If we didn't, that would mean that we were perfect, and perfectionism does not exist here on earth. We're all human. Some of us may attempt to strive for perfection, however this is an unrealistic goal.

It Wasn't Me

So many of my clients, and the people that I come in contact with, struggle with admitting mistakes. Some may be challenged by either judging one's self, or others, for mistakes, or by not being able to take ownership of one's own mistakes.

• Do you find yourself blaming others for your mistakes?

o I would not have made that mistake if...

o It's not my fault. If my boss didn't...

o If only my partner hadn't...

• Do you measure your self worth by the number of mistakes you make, or not make? Is it hard to simply own a mistake and say,

o "I'm sorry, I'll try to do better next time."

Being the Bigger Person

I was inspired to write this article when I heard about the mistake that was made recently on the Oscars announcing the incorrect best picture of the year. The graciousness of the "La La Land" Producer, Jordan Horowitz, impressed many. When he was informed that the coveted award was not his, he simply stated, "I'm sorry, there's a mistake, 'Moonlight', you guys won best picture. I'm going to be very proud to hand this to my friends from, 'Moonlight.'"

He didn't seek someone to blame, but instead acted incredibly courteous in a moment that had to have brought much disappointment to him, and the rest of the cast. Would you, or I, have been able to act with the same cordiality in such a moment? That may be determined, in part, by the environment, and the people, who raised us.

Placing Blame

What we were taught as a child, an adolescent, or an adult, about mistakes helps to shape our beliefs about them. We must first consider, when growing up, what we were taught about mistakes. Was it communicated verbally, or non-verbally, that it is okay and human to make a mistake? Or were you ridiculed, or punished, for them?

Methods in which we might judge ourselves, or others, may be overt, or covert, and may also be quite subtle to the point that we aren't aware of our behavior.

Oops, I made a mistake

As an adult do you find that the people in your life-partner, friend, or family, have little tolerance for mistakes and you are always apologizing, explaining, or feeling terrible or not good enough? Do you recognize any of these ways of communicating that a mistake has occurred? Consider whether you think such words to yourself, say them to others, or someone in your life says something like this to you.

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Message From the Universe: You've Done It - Bravo!

"I just can't think of anything more important to tell you today than "Congratulations, outstanding, well done!"

You are now, officially, the person you once dreamed you'd become.

It always works, 

The Universe"

You dreamed it, and it all happened. Many of us dream, come up with genius ideas for products, ventures or whatever else. We think about it but unfortunately for many, we stop here. We just think, and some time wait for the best time to bring this idea/dream/intent to reality and it never happens. We look at others follow their dreams and risk it all and succeed. Of course, there are some who do the same and fail and let their failure dictate the rest of their lives. You can't let that happen. If you fail, look at it as a lesson, a lesson to do better, a lesson to grow from this failure and not repeat the same mistakes. Tony Robbins, Zuckerburg, Trump, Besos and all the others who risked it all and jump into the unknown to follow their dreams and became the top 4% richest humans on this planet. They didn't let anything take them away from their ultimate purpose of becoming who they are today. They had that intuition, that desire, that purpose to do what they truly believed in and looked into the future with clarity and loads of determination. This is what a true entrepreneur is. Did they fail? Dammmm yeahhhhh. Many times over but did that deter them from pursuing their goals? Hell NO!

Life will throw you tons of challenges to overcome, obstacles to avoid and everything else that will come towards you and possibly bring you to dementia or/and full blown depression. It will be up to you to fight these urges to let life take over and do whatever it takes to move forward and learn from it. It is inevitable that these negative feelings will sometimes take over and block us from our initial pursuit of success but that can ONLY happen if you allow it. More difficult the challenges are to bring yourself to ultimate success, better it is for you. If it was that easy, you wouldn't feel that accomplished. You would always think that everyone else can do it, so you are not that special. However, when you do overcome what seems to be impossible and come out as a winner, you will change the way you look at things from this point forward and nothing will ever stop you from reaching your ultimate happiness.

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Success Is Really Possible

All human beings have dreams and wishes. We all want something to happen in the future. These days, many of us turn back to look at the year that ends and forward into the year that is about to begin, and ask ourselves what it is that we did wrong and what to do better. Many propose solutions and tips and still others promise methods and strategies to stick to our plans... Unfortunately, most of those are not solidly based on anything but hope... hope that you stick to their proposals, hope that you don't give up or forget, hope that you listen to them now... even if for a short while. Real change only happens when properly undertaken. Real change is the result of planning and execution, not the product of wishful thinking. If you really want your wishes and dreams to turn into goals and methods, please, continue reading below...

Key differences between wishes and dreams and goals and objectives:

Wishes and dreams are ideas while goals and objectives are plans

Goals and objectives contemplate and consider what resources are available and which ones are necessary... Wishes and dreams don't even think about that!

Goals and objectives are set in definite terms which include deadlines and measures of success... Wishes and dreams are vague and undefined.

Goals and objectives identify existing and probable obstacles and look for the best use of combined resources to overcome them... Wishes and dreams don't even stop to think!

Bigger objectives include smaller, easier-to-reach goals and how they should be reached in an organized, logical way. Wishes and dreams are still undefined.

Goals and objectives establish the real steps to take, after studying everything above. Are you still wishing or dreaming?

Like everything else in life, identifying, setting and reaching goals and objectives is not something we know how to do through inspiration. We try to learn by imitating others but sometimes fail because there's no method in our endeavors. Resolutions lack the basic structure to become attainable. In order to be successful, certain methodologies should be applied. This is true of personal as well as professional goals and objectives. The same rules apply. Learn about them now. Stop just wishing and dreaming, and choose to take control of your desires by giving yourself the tools that you need to master this art. It really is something to be LEARNED!

Don't just wish or dream. Give yourself the chance to finally, truly enjoy life, ALL of it,

http://ezinearticles.com/?Success-Is-Really-Possible&id=9864097

Do Less To Do Better

So often we think of productivity as doing more and more each day, packing in everything like an overstuffed suitcase. Just one more email, one more call, or one more thing before we collapse into numbing exhaustion at the end of the day. Wikipedia defines productivity as "an average measure of the efficiency of production." Note that it does not say the amount of production but rather the efficiency of production. Just because we are busy doesn't mean we are productive or efficient.

One of the greatest detriments to productivity is that we live in a hyper-stimulated world, we continually have our boss, our co-workers, our clients, our emails, phones (multiple), social media, and a multiplicity of other things clamoring for our attention. God forbid our families, kids, or loved one want time carved out for themselves, we just don't have anything left. We are running on fumes most days.

A couple of simple, yet powerful, concepts and techniques can make a radical difference in our lives, freeing us to focus on what is essential in life.

Focus on What is Essential

In his book, Essentialism, Greg McKeown talks about doing less to do better. I can hear the alarms bells going off here, as you say - "But I have SO much to do." McKeown argues that when we are maxed out with multiple projects and endless to dos, we don't do anything really well but rather our efforts are diluted and dispersed because we get overloaded.

What if we eliminated those things that were not truly essential? Do we need to go to every meeting, or say "yes" to everything we are asked to take on? Develop 1-3 core objectives for your job, your business, and your life and evaluate everything as to whether it adds or subtracts from your objectives. This takes time and practice but the payout is huge.

Make Space for What is Important

Following on the concept of essentialism, Leo Babauta with Zen Habits gives a wonderful analogy of filling up you weekly buckets with Big Rocks first, then leaving space for pebbles and sand to fill in. The Big Rocks represent the most important things you need to do in the coming week to meet your objectives. Babauta recommends having no more than 4-6 Big Rocks. The Big Rocks should include non-work items as well (your family and friends will thank you!). By focusing on the Big Rocks first we get the most essential things completed. This also helps to avoid procrastination as we focus on our mission critical first. It also gives us greater permission to push back on those things that clutter our ability to focus on what is most important.

Bite Off Small Chunks

Two things that contribute to our overload are underestimating the time it actually takes to complete a project and putting things off until the last minute because we really don't want to do them. The Pomodoro Technique can really help to address both these issues. Its philosophy is simple - break things down into 25 minute increments. When working on a project or studying set a timer for 25 minutes. Eliminate all distractions during this time (turn off phone ringer, turn off computer notifications), and focus only on the task at hand. No multi-tasking here as it defeats the purpose. Take a couple of minutes break after the 25 minutes and then move onto the next project for 25 minutes, or add increments of 25 minutes to complete a project.

I struggle with underestimating some projects especially if it is a new area, or the project is more complex than I anticipated. I find myself becoming frustrated because I either have to finish the project and put off other things, or I need to leave the project temporarily to complete another scheduled task. Either way I end up feeling frazzled. I have found the Pomodoro Technique is really helpful for this. Start putting down expected time for a project, then log the actual time it takes to complete the project or task. For example, if you write a weekly newsletter and you normally block out 1 hour for it, but with research you find it normally takes you an 1 hour and 30 minutes. This information will really help you be more realistic in planning out your week. It will help you focus on the important things but also helps better schedule your calendar so you don't end up with an unrealistic schedule that leaves you unfocused and over-scheduled.

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