The Decade That Was!

A couple of weeks ago I wrote a post titled the Ten Great Happenings from Last Year and I briefly mentioned that this past year was unique because it wraps up the first decade in the new millennium. That realization got me to think about the ups and downs that have occurred in the past ten years. Upon that reflection no matter how bad things seemed at times (Y2K, 911, brother passing away, father passing away, stock market crash 1, housing bust, and stock market crash 2) I still have way more positive things that have occurred that outweigh the negative. Trust me, I have had my dark moments. My brother and father passing away was the hardest thing I have ever had to endure but my faith and my attitude has always helped me when times get tough. I am very blessed to have those strengths within me, and I know for some of you it is not always easy to believe or stay positive. However, if there is one thing that you need to start working on is having the right attitude! So, start off the next decade with the right attitude. Here are some questions to ask yourself in order to start planning your next ten years.

The first thing you need to do is start a “Life List.” Several years ago I came across an article that mentioned a guy by the name of John Goddard. John at the age of fifteen created a list of 127 goals he wanted to achieve in his life. What an inspiration to us all.

The second thing you must do is find your purpose in life. When I was young I never thought about that and had I at least put those thoughts into my head earlier in my life I would have had an easier time with the path I have carved out for myself.

The final thing that you need to do is to act. So many years all I did was read and think about how I wanted to be a successful business person. It wasn’t until the death of my father that I realized I needed to start doing the things I have dreamed about doing all these years.

So, as the next decade approaches make sure you start off strong by implementing these simple tips into your planning process. The past is the past and whether or not it was a bad ten years or a great ten years the next decade can be what you want it to be by using these three tips. I wish you a Happy New Year and a Happy New Decade!!

10 great happenings from last year

The holidays are just about here and every year around this time I begin to reflect on the year that was. This year is unique because not only do we finish another year, but also wrap up the first decade of the new millennium. I can not believe that another decade of my life is complete. I’ll focus on that later, but today I want to talk about reflecting back on the past year. Last year I was introduced to Darren Hardy’s “How to have your best year ever” ebook and I have to admit I made some better strides in achieving the goals that I had set for myself. Maybe it was his system or maybe after all the years of me reading about people becoming successful I decided it was time for me to actually quit reading and thinking about being successful and actually start doing. Regardless of why I made better strides the real point I am going to make here is that one of the exercises Darren recommends to do is to write down 10 great happenings from last year.

The first time I did this exercise I had a difficult time coming up with 10 great things that had happened. I have to admit it really bothered me that I could not write down 10 great things that had happened throughout the year. However, what I walked away with after this exercise was really insightful. The light bulb finally went off and I realized that like most of us we tend to remember and dwell on the negative things that happen to us instead of the positive things that we experience. Once I had my list complete I realized what an amazing year it really was. Because of this exercise I came to the understanding that when something great happens you need to celebrate and also write it in your journal, so that when you reflect back you can realize that no matter how tough times might be there are plenty of things to be grateful for. So, as we wrap up this year take some time and write down 10 great happenings that you have occurred in your life. Once you have them written down reflect back monthly, quarterly, and at the end of the year to remind yourself of the great things that you have done in the year. Stay tuned for my next posting because I am going to share my 10 great things from this past year.

Coach Dave