Never Settle For Less

These days its relatively easy to lose your focus.  So many things get thrown our way in the course of just one day. Between working long hours, going to the gym, playing with the kids, feeding the dog, going grocery shopping, cleaning up the house, and trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle it’s easy to forget which way is which.  Did I forget to mention we also need to rest and relax.  With so many things pulling at our attention its easy to lose focus on the things that really matter.  Whenever I feel myself losing grips with what I came to do I answer three simple questions:

• Why do I do what I do?
• What am I doing?
• Who do I do it for?

Remember WHY you came to the party

Knowing why you do something is the most important aspect of staying focused.  If you don’t pay attention to why you do something you’re not likely to get very far.  I’ll use myself as an example.

When I started working out I knew exactly why I was there.  I was sick and tired of being out of shape and I knew I could do better.  Weighing in at 250 lbs, sporting the 40 inch waist, and wearing a XXL T-shirt wasn’t doing much for me.  Like most people on the outside looking in I wanted the coveted “six pack”.  I even thought I could carve it out in 30 days or less thanks to some late night infomercials (yup…I too was a supreme sucker).

Vain as it was the “six pack” was my motivation.  Whenever I was asked “why do you workout so much” the answer was simple.  I’m trying to get my six pack to show.  People laughed and giggled, called me a health freak, and one of my very best friends even said my goal was unrealistic.  Talking doesn’t get to me much so I kept my eyes on the prize.  Each day I’d wake up with six-pack on the brain.

Eventually my hard work began to pay off.  The fat was peeling off.  The muscles were bulging.  People were still talking but the comments changed dramtically.  Instead of laughing they were admiring my dedication, asking me to personalize workouts for them, and now I’m looking as good or better than the friend who said it wasn’t going to happen.  I’m not saying it to brag but it does prove my point.

The knowledge of WHY you’re in the game keeps you in the game.  It’s not very likely that everybody will understand you.  It’s not important that they do either.  All that matters is that you can look yourself in the mirror and know WHY you’re driven to chase your goals. It may sound silly.  It may be unpopular.  It might be borderline crazy!  Honestly, who cares if its borderline crazy because its your motivation to do what you do.

I write this bodyblog because I’m practicing for when I launch my own blog site in late December/early January time frame.  I believe I have much to offer the world and I intend on doing just that.  I’ll use that site as the basis for my Professional Speaking business.  Eventually, I’ll replace my current income with profits from my internet business and be on my merry way.  So that’s WHY I’m here 2-3 days a week doing all I can to bring the best blogs I possibly can.  Thats sound silly to a good number of people.  So did losing 50 lbs to see six stomach muscles.  Oh yeah…I’m starting to see those muscles I was aiming for.
Remember WHY you came.

Pay attention to WHAT you’re doing

Spend a good amount of your time thinking about WHAT you do. 95% of what I do is done for a reason.  Some people say I have a premeditated agenda.  I prefer to say I’m living with purpose.  I’d much rather do things that have some tangible results versus spinning in the hamster wheel.
I’ve met plenty of people who want to get buff in the gym.  A good number of those people hop on the elliptical machine EVERY SINGLE DAY.  4 months  later they’re complaining about their shoulders and biceps not getting bigger.  If they knew WHAT they were doing they wouldn’t come close to making a ridiculous statement like this.  I personally value my time way too much to not have a pretty good idea of what I’m doing before I hop into something.

I urge you to place a high value on your time.  When you do you’re not very likely to waste it not knowing what’s going on. Spend your time doing things that add value and you really can’t go wrong.  Once I began to focus on my productivity and getting outcomes I had to cut out many frivolous activities and add better ones like:

1. I dramatically reduced the time I spend watching TV
• It’s down from about 30 hours a week to about 3
2. I totally cut out video games
• It’s not that I don’t enjoy video games they just don’t produce much value for me
3. I started reading more books and gaining more knowledge
• No matter what jungle you play in knowledge is king

Your quality of life improves dramatically when you focus on WHAT you do.  Their really is no other option.