The 100 Day Challenge, Day 32:
I read a quote by Joyce Meyer this morning that has really stuck by me- “You can be pitiful or powerful, but you can be both. Which do you choose?”
Success does begin with choices- from the time you wake up until the time you go to bed. Life is flying at us so fast that sometimes we make choices that do not benefit us in the best way possible.
This is why getting clear on what your values are and what choices are essential for you is so necessary. Having a personal list of rules- self imposed- that you live by. I have been using personal rules for myself for many years. It kind of grew out of my Catholic upbringing and the Lenten season. I always looked at that time as a time to renew, reinvent myself and strengthen my relationship with God. It worked so well for me during that season that I adopted it for many other seasons of my life. I just make up a reason to have new rules.
Like now, my newest reason is October 1st. That is the beginning of the last quarter. I am creating a 90 day plan to finish the year strong and to start off the new year rocking and rolling! The plan encompasses all of the areas of my life and will have some challenging, but rewarding rules for me.
Having these rules and clear values help me, even when life is flying at me, to make the right choice. If you love rules and direction, you will love this. If you are person who hates rules, you will love this- because you get to make up the rules! AND you are the one who benefits when you follow your rules. Rules don’t have to restrict you, they can give you freedom! Imagine your well meaning friend pushing a big piece of cake at you, but you have a personal rule for 90 days (or whatever amount of time you decide) that you are not eating sugar. You don’t have to think about it if there is a rule in place. You will honestly say to your friend “I appreciate that, but I have a personal rule for myself that I am not eating sugar for 90 days.” It’s almost guaranteed they will not know how to respond to that.
Being clear allows you to make the right choices and uphold your values. This is called being authentic or genuine. When followed, they will keep you out of the house of pitiful. You can live in the castle of powerful. I help my clients get to powerful- and always with a good amount of fun thrown in, too.
Homework: Set one or two new rules for yourself that move you forward toward reaching a goal or goals you have. Write them down, read them each morning, live by them each day. This is a way to stick your big toe in, you can add more rules whenever you are ready. Get the most out of yourself and your life. The power of right choices- that’s transformational!