"Your Idea is a Good One! —Motivational Monday"

Howdy Friends,
 

Often we have good, or great ideas, thoughts, plans and positions and find ourselves doubting them. Others tell us we are wrong, too complicated, too risky, perhaps controversial. Then self doubt creeps in. Next uncertainty, sometimes leading to defeatism.

Me admiring President Monroe's grand oak, and the man, on Independence Day

Have you ever seen an acorn sprout? Tiny little white, fragile stem pushing its way from the acorn shell. It’ll have a dainty green leaf on top. That tiny sprout will one day be a majestic towering oak. It will of course take years, perhaps centuries, but without out an ounce of self doubt it will reach for the sky. Every day.

This Independence Day, Robbie and I toured President Monroe’s home The Highlands, in the front yard stood a grand white oak estimated to be over 300 hundred years old. Some speculate James Monroe chose the exact location for his house because of that tree, which of course would have been nearing the century mark at that time. Think of that tree, and that man—neither wavered from their ideas and convictions. Admire their accomplishments.

Second guessing ourselves is of course a part of human nature, and sometimes it can prevent mistakes. Second guessing though can also chip away at confidence, drive ... and success.

It is wholly correct to permit, and use, caution as a tool to refine and enhance a thought, idea or strategy, but it must also be managed in a way that it becomes an asset, not a hindrance.

Your idea was a good one, there is a reason it came to you. Stick to it and become a mighty oak!

Gitty Up, Dutch Henry

"Simplicity, don’t overlook it ~ Motivational Monday"

Howdy Friends,

Simplicity, while often a great asset, is sometimes overlooked simply because it’s well, simple. Not everything requires deep thought, even though it may be sometimes be called for, but many things just require motivation and sometimes we discard simplicity for procrastination sake.

We’ve all been there. We need to create something, solve something, fix something and we begin with a great first thought, then stop to consider the effects of our actions, and dream up all manners of complicated intertwined reactions and cascades. We make the simple complicated.

Our world has become increasingly complicated. Everything seems to have layers upon layers, consider our TVs, phones and computers, all have dozens upon dozens of functions most of us will never understand, much less use. Our jobs and careers have layers of regulations, guidelines and rules, of course that may be necessary but, is it any wonder that we as individuals struggle with simplicity.

Simplicity, where have you gone?

Making the things in your life you indeed have control of simple, can be a powerful motivator. Eliminate the complexities, the layers, the stalls and self-doubt. Trust your gut, believe in yourself. Many times simple is best.

Gitty Up, Dutch Henry

Try Happy—Motivational Monday 6-22-15

Howdy Friends,

Try Happy! More than a state of mind. More than a suggestion. And certainly more than an emotion. Happy is a tonic, an elixir for what ails ya.

Happy is a motivator, too. We all struggle with de-motivation, especially when tasked with things that we know to be difficult, challenging or intimating. If we paint happy in our hearts and thoughts, those challenges find it much more difficult to hold us back. A blast of happy is like high-test in the tank, higher octane emotion to push us up out of life’s valleys to the

highest peaks of success and wondrous achievements. Happy is easy to do too, and it’s free!

Of course it’s not natural, or sane, to be happy all the time. Things happen. Sometimes really serious things. The key though is to be so practiced at wearing and living happy, those difficult times and sad, worried emotions cannot long survive. The elixir of happy can, and will, push those struggles right out of sight.

How does one learn, “The art of Happy? ” Smile. It’s really very hard for sadness, worry and stress to compete with the power of your smile. At first it may feel strange, clumsy even, but with a little sincere practice a smile is one of the easiest things to perfect. And everyone can indeed have a perfect smile. If they practice.

Stop reading right now and smile ... Feels good doesn’t it?

Now, smile with your entire body. Yup, your lips, your cheeks, your chest, heart, arms, belly, legs and feet. Breathe in a smile. Breathe out a smile; let that happy smile consume you all over. Feel it?

Even if you are today tasked with a challenge, I’ll bet you feel a tiny bit better. Try it again, right now—Breathe in that smile, from your eyebrows to your toes, breathe a big happy powerful smile. Now breathe out a big happy powerful smile.

Now ad to that happy breathing smile, a happy thought or two. Don’t stop breathing—just ad a happy thought. Remember a happy moment, surprise or person or adventure. Perhaps a place you love, a time you love, or song, book or movie. You might even want to think of a happy dream you have, perhaps a trip you’d love to take.

Allow your mind to shift from worry, stress, sad or overworked, to happy. Make it up as you go, there are no rules. Except to smile, think happy, and oh yes, breathe happy.

It might take a little effort, at first, but step by step you will master the art of happy. I promise.

I’ll bet you’re smiling right now.

Gitty Up, Dutch Henry

"Indecisiveness, does it second guess you?"—Motivational Monday

Howdy Friends,

We all struggle sometimes with making decisions, especially really tough decisions. Tough decisions require a ponderence of thought, or we would not consider them tough. Some choices, ideas, strategies and decisions are far to important to skim over, take lightly. Some are not so weighty and we can make them in a blink of an eye, for instance deciding whether or not to grab and extra 5 minutes sleep before starting the day, should not take too much thought.

However taking the entire day off from work might require a bit more consideration. What if the question was not only taking the day off, but to quit your job? What if quitting your job was only part of the thinking? What if added to that was the idea of starting a whole new career? Maybe it would involve a move to a new town, or state. What about the children, school, friends and family, and security of sameness? Interesting isn’t it how layers can stack up, thicker, heavier and more cumbersome.

For some folks making decisions, no matter how involved or serious, is as easy as changing channels on the TV. For others just the thought of changing those channels is reason for hesitation, stress and uncertainty. In their mind they can build layers of questions, reasons pro and con. Sometimes they can talk themselves completely out of changing the channel, or anything else in life, simply by building walls of indecisiveness.

What do those folks possess who always seem to find decision making no big deal? A crystal ball? Probably not, but in most cases folks who wrestle with indecisiveness also struggle with self esteem. They are afraid to trust themselves, their own opinions, ideas and feelings. 

Simple decisions for some folks become layers upon layers of random, and not too random thoughts, problems, and created pitfalls in their thoughts. It is not hard to wrestle with doubt and worry on big decisions like changing careers and moving, but a decision on a movie, a TV channel, or even a new car, should not have the power to hold a person hostage.

Confidence, that more than anything can cure indecisiveness.

How does one build confidence? Simply by telling themselves they are in charge, and taking instant command of the little choices. Just make them. Toss that self-doubt out the window, go for it. The more often you make choices, the more confidence builds, and the easier it becomes. Here’s a little shared secret, folks who don’t have any problem with making decisions are wrong as often as anyone else—they just don’t let that stop them, they take it in stride. They understand not all their decisions will be winners, so they don’t let that worry keep them from finding the ones that are.

So if you sometimes, or all the time, struggle with making decisions remember, no matter how hard you ponder you’re going to be correct some of the time, and not so correct some of the time. Begin by going with your gut. It is often said the first thought you have is the correct one, and I have found that to be most always the case.

Now this is not to say you should forget about due diligence, we can’t run around making brash decisions willy nilly, with no intelligent thought. But building layers of self-questioning delays is a sure way to chip away at a person’s self confidence. There is no future in that. Whereas moving always ahead, being decisive builds confidence, and success. Go for it!

Gitty Up, Dutch Henry 

P.S. ~ You might also want to read, Motivational Monday—“What is Fear?”