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By Casey Grey
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On January 8 of 2019 I committed to a Daily Blog and I kept that commitment. 365 days of a posting a blog every single day!
Not only have I kept it but I will continue to write every day. I will commit to another year and I suspect it will continue on after that. But that’s not my commitment for 2020... Today, January 8, 2020, I am committing to something new... I’m committing to a daily podcast. I will make sure that everyday you will hear my voice (if you choose to subscribe to Lean In with Casey Grey). Just like when I committed to writing daily, I am doing this because I want to be better than I was yesterday (or in this case, last year). I want to become a better speaker and storyteller so that I can help people find that inspiration inside of them and release it! I said it last year and I’ll say it again. New Year's Resolutions are useless unless you are committed. What are you going to commit to today? Perfectionism is often frowned upon. To be a perfectionist is to be too picky or too hard on others or yourself.
But what is a perfectionist? I believe that being a perfectionist is having high standards for whatever you create and put out into the world. To make it right in your eyes. And perfect is just a matter of opinion. It's different for everybody. We're all perfect in our own way and we need to own our perfection! The picture below is something my son made for me. Something I can read every morning when I wake up. To me, it's perfect. How often do you go out and look for feedback?
How often do you ask for feedback? Do you only ask when you know it's going to be positive or are you open to the negative? In reality we're constantly getting feedback. We get feedback from our bodies in terms of how we feel. If we're fat, that's an obvious sign that we're not eating healthy. If we feel sluggish or have a foggy brain, that could be a sign of lack of sleep or also not eating healthy. If we have have pain in our joints, that could also be related to food or lack of exercise. If we feel anxious, perhaps it's a sign that we need to get something off our mind. Whatever it is, it's up to you to listen to the feedback and do something about it. We get signs from our kids. They are sponges and products of their environments. If my son starts to be rude, get frustrated or show any signs of inappropriate behavior, the first place I look to is myself. Did he learn this from me? If so, it's a sign I need to change. If it's not me, perhaps it's a sign he needs to be in a different environment. If your kid is hyperactive, perhaps you need to cut back on the sugar he eats. If your kid is showing signs of aggression, perhaps he needs to watch less TV. If your kid is not listening, perhaps she just needs some more attention. Once again this is all useful feedback. We also get signs in other areas of our lives like our careers, our relationships and our finances. If your career is not going as planned, perhaps you are in the wrong field or working for the wrong company. If your partner is being distant, perhaps they need a little more attention. If you don't have the money you want, perhaps you're spending too much in the wrong places or perhaps you're not delivering enough value. The list goes on... But it's not all bad. If you have lots of money or your kids are fantastic or your career is going great or you're in the best shape of your life, that means you're doing something right. Figure out what's working and do more of that! Just don't ignore the other signs. Keep in mind that it never stops though. Things are changing all the time. It's the natural way. Be open to feedback and go out looking for it. You will be better because of it. I know I need to eat healthier.
I know I need to exercise more. I know I need to spend more time with my spouse and kids. I know I work too much. I know I need to sleep more. I know I need to read more. I know I need to meditate more. I know I need to quit my job. I know I need to start this new business. I know, I know, I know... Knowing is not enough. You need to take action. What are you actually going to DO this year? Make 2020 a year of action. Brian and I are starting the year off with a bunch of recording today. Watch out 2020! Here we come! In order to have more you need to be able to receive more.
In order to receive more you need to be able to give more. In order to give more you need to be able to have more. It's a continuous spiral and it's up to you to make sure that spiral is going upwards and expanding outwards. I hope you had an amazing Christmas, received everything you wanted and gave everything you could. (This guy sure did...) What is the magic of Christmas?
Or has Christmas lost it's magic for you? Have you seen it through the eyes of the children? Do you remember what it was like when you were a child? Sullivan woke us up 6 times last night before we finally got out of bed at 5:15am. He was so excited! Santa was coming and he just wanted to get up and see if he came. What makes it so magical? It's the belief. They believe that Santa is real. Belief is a powerful force. And who's to say that Santa is not real? Kids all over the world believe in Santa and kids all over the world get presents from Santa. Perhaps Santa lives through us parents... Is your life comfortable? Is it okay? Perhaps it's not bad but it's not great either... What about your job or your business? Is it comfortable or are you being pushed beyond your perceived limits? Does your partner encourage you to reach further? What about your friends? Do they challenge you? Are you doing something that makes you uncomfortable every day? Over the holidays, it's nice to be comfortable. To relax and enjoy what you have. But the rest of the time, comfort will only slow you down. "Everything you want is just outside your comfort zone." Being a parent is one of the most challenging and most rewarding things in life. As a parent, if you are conscious of your kids actions, you will realize that your kids simply mirror back their environments. If you are a big part of their environments (which I'm assuming you are) you will see that they have the same habits as you (good and bad).
Seeing how Christmas is less than 10 days away and the magic is in the air, I figured it was time for another post similar to How To Keep Your Wife Unhappy and How To Feel Terrible All The Time. Here's some tips on how to squash your kid's dreams:
Come to think about it... Are we doing these things to ourselves subconsciously? When things are simple, the mind says "that can't be right." It has trouble trusting things that are simple. It wants an explanation.
A tree, for example, needs good soil, water and sun to grow. Simple on the surface but complex when you dig into how it does this. Do I need to know the complex workings of a tree to understand and trust the process? No, but the mind wants it. When I think of my life, simplicity comes from my intuition. Deep down I always know what I need to do and what is right for me in that moment. But then my mind gets in the way and tries to rationalize everything and turns it into a complex mess that takes me off track. My heart and gut have never steered me in the wrong direction. My mind on the other hand... Well... Let's say I'm still working on fixing those complex workings. Where are you adding complexity to your life that, if you listened to your soul, would be simple? We all have a vision for our lives. There are things we want to buy, places we want to visit, relationships we want to create, experiences we want to have and a person we want to become.
But most of us keep this vision bottled up. We keep it to ourselves because we think people will think it's dumb and impossible to achieve or, even worse, we think it's dumb and impossible. But look around. People all around us are making their dreams happen. There are amazing people doing phenomenal things from all walks of life. So it's definitely possible... Below is my vision for my life. I'm putting it out there. I'm surrendering to the universe and will act on what the universe puts in front of me to make this happen. I will no longer slow it down.
This WILL happen. Do I know how or when? No. But it does not matter. It's already in the works. The universe is lining everything up perfectly and all I need to do is say YES! What's your vision? When are you going to be courageous enough to share it? The universe is waiting for you. |
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