Choose Growth

Welcome to Movement Monday!  This started as an email I sent weekly to my customers and clients designed to motivate continued action to achieve a desired goal throughout the week.  My mission is to provide the "want to" when it comes to reaching YOUR goal because the "how to" is different for every body and every goal.  When you are constantly seeking the truth, you will find exactly what you need.  Each email contains a subject, practical suggestions or encouragement surrounding the subject and powerful quotes that support the weekly theme.  After a big shift in my life, I am motivated to share my email with everyone!  My email subscribers will still receive an abridged version with a link to the full details here

We've reached the end of the first month of this new year and I've watched so many people have flipped the switch.  There is something special about the new year that encourages people to get a little more focused on improvement.  I've noticed the flip!  I've seen more participants in my group exercise classes and I've seen more bodies at the gym in general.  I've seen an explosion in activity in the online fitness and running communities I am a part of and more information and advertisements in my news feed online and on commercials on television.

"Ignorance is always afraid of change." -- Jawaharlal Nehru

Sometimes these changes stick, but more times than not they don't.  When they don't, people feel frustrated and eventually become jaded, causing them to give up on attempting to change altogether.   They'll mask their annoyance at failing by deciding that attempting to change is admitting that something is wrong with them, or that they're not grateful for what they do have.  Anything to avoid facing up to the facts that they are dissatisfied with the results they achieved the last times they attempted self-improvement.


"So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situations because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservation, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality, nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit." -- Christopher McCandless

This post is not here to motivate you to change.  I'm not going to encourage you jump on the New Year's bandwagon, if you haven't already.  I don't want you to get back on, if you've fallen off already, cause so many have.  I don't want you to just get over your failure frustrations and keep trying what isn't working for you.  All I want to say is that whether you try or not, you will be a different person this time next year.  It is inevitable that life changes us.  Time changes us.  All the past 'failures' are there to show us, not that we can't change, but that we can't control the exact outcome of of that change.  Although we aren't in control of the results, we are in control of our actions and therefore our direction.

"Without change there is no innovation, creativity or incentive for improvement.  Those who initiate change will have a better opportunity to manage the change that is inevitable." -- William Pollard

Even though the sheer numbers of people attempting a lifelong shift during this time of year may seem overwhelming, it's actually a great time to do it.  Actually, any time of year is a great time to reach for something you want.  But, if you are a person that relies on strength in numbers to stay focused or get motivated, use this time of year to get you started.  So many more people are motivated during this time of year than any other because they realized they've picked up some new disagreeable health practices over the holidays and if they shift back to more beneficial health practices, they can prevent from forming bad habits that are even more difficult to overcome.

"It is not necessary to change.  Survival is not mandatory." -- W. Edwards Deming


However, be wary of unrealistic change that typically starts with absolutes like, "I will never..." or "Every day I will..."  If it didn't work for your life before the new year, it won't work now.  You want to find small shift that enhance your life and your mood, not take from it.  More times than not, giving into absolutes leaves you in a worse position than you started and nearly guarantees failure.  For example, I saw someone attempting to exercise through an injury just to say they worked out every day this year, not realizing that this may set them up for disaster in the long run.  

"Goals allow you to control the direction of change in your favor." -- Brian Tracy

For those of you who are opposed to change, I want you to focus on reaching a goal, because it is the pursuit of the goal that changes you.  Break your big goal into small mini-goals that you adjust to over time.  Check on your progress at regular intervals to see how you are progressing towards your big goal.  Finally, when you've reached the deadline for the goal, instead of being disappointed if you didn't get the results that you hoped for, how about rejoicing that you forever made a shift in the direction your life was heading because we have created new and beneficial habits that we can build upon.

"If you don't like how things are, change it!  You're not a tree." -- Jim Rohn

You never have to live life in frustration.  I don't know a single soul who wants to live a life of stress and disappointment.  You can make changes in your life that serve you if you do it for the reasons you want and in a way that works for you.  There is no "one size fits all" when it comes to your life.  Avoid comparing what you're doing with what others are doing.  Educate yourself on how to get what you want and tweak it so it works for the life you have now.  Bottom line, be a better you at the end of this year than you are now.  Choose to grow!  I know you can do it!