...Of Discipline and the Comfort Zone..

We have often heard it said that discipline is the bridge between goals and success. True. No less true is the idea that what many perceive as luck is where preparation meets opportunity. Preparation. Discipline. Words not to be taken lightly on the  path to growth.

But just for a moment, juxtapose these words against the comfort zone of your experience. That comfort zone that has lulled you into the routine of mediocrity and under-achievement. Where fear and doubt have kept you bound to your limiting beliefs, and procrastination  has become your hiding place from the urge to try; probably causing you to feel much like the proverbial caged bird,  minus the urge to sing. I know the feeling....I've been there.

Yet, preparation and discipline wait in the wings to take you to centre-stage. Literally. To lift you beyond your current experience. Simple disciplines. Small, everyday actions. Consistent action. Without an audience. Actions that little by little create discontent, disequilibrium. Disequilibrium strong enough to push you to seek a new equilibrium outside your comfort zone; deep enough to create longings that challenge you to reach outside of your current manifestations of self  into the ultimate freedom of your possibilities. That's the magic of deliberate, disciplined, consistent action!

Beauty in Simplicity

It is interesting how much there is to learn in (or from) simplicity. I find that life's most poignant, most profound, most awe-inspiring moments are found in the simple things around us. In birds and butterflies, in laughter, in lifelong friendships, in the constancy of true love, the wisdom of experience. Unfortunately in our pursuit of earth-shattering moments, quantum leaps and momentous discoveries, we lose sight of the wonder of everyday magic and miracles. And 'ordinary' and 'mundane' become the tags with which we label our life experiences.

So one of the things I have decided to become intentional about is developing a sense of wonder about the things around me; to learn to see a blessing in every moment, to become a student in the university of life, to see each man as my potential teacher, to seek to garner the lessons from each day, to value what is, while I work to realize that which is not... to revel in the empowerment of gratitude, to bask in the security of my possibilities.

Without a doubt, it is fool-hardy to discredit or discount the power of the simple. For it is simplicity that lends its appeal to the stories of greatness and courage on which we so readily climb. It is simplicity that creates the chasms that leaves our minds agape when we contemplate the difficulties overcome, the battles won, the victories snatched from the jaws of defeat. Yes, the stories of the lives of the Oprah Winfreys, Steve Jobs, Abraham Lincolns all find their appeal in the simple beginnings and backgrounds of these people.  Their simple beginnings give their achievements an even greater sense of wonder, but more importantly opens the door of opportunity and possibility to the millions of ordinary and mundane people like the one who stares back at  you from the mirror of your dreams.

So go on, look for and embrace the simple....be intentional about finding it. For it is the simple things  that have the greatest potential for creating the earth-shattering results that you so rightly, deeply crave

The Value of Intentionality

There was a time, many moons ago, when I thought that life would automatically reward those of us who were intellectually inclined; those of us who played by the rules and were 'good' more often than not. But then, as the years went by I realized that that belief left everything to happenstance. For the most part I knew what I wanted to become..... what I wanted to achieve, but I made the mistake of assuming I'd grow into that 'space' automatically.

And so I lived everyday as it came....waiting on my big break.....expecting to become the woman I thought I was destined to be. But days turned into years, and years into mountains of frustration, resentment and anger....believing that I deserved a share of life's pie, but watching with mounting frustration as the pie passed me by….occasionally stimulated by the random, accidental or co-incidental, while all the time unknowingly being devoured by the insidious subtlety of the unplanned existence.

…until I discovered the necessity and value of intentionality. Deliberate design….taking time to design and create the results I want; understanding the importance of every single day to achieving these resluts…planting the seeds, and preparing for the harvest;  It made all the difference. Today as architect of my own life, I carefully develop the blueprints, select the inputs and daily erect monuments of my own making; experiencing the art of exceptional living. Living by deliberate design!