Working Hard / Hardly Working?!?!
I’m starting with the wo-man in the mirror. I’m asking her to change her waaaysss (sang in my absolute best Michael Jackson voice). 2019 is well underway and either your resolutions have stuck like glue, they’ve led you to, what feels like, a permanent seat on the struggle bus, or you’re finding yourself somewhere in the middle. Starting a new year is tough stuff, changing your life is tough stuff, and geesh even just getting used to setting an early alarm is rough after several day of holiday snoozing. I call on good ole Michael because the best way to start changing your life, creating new habits and ensuring your New Year’s resolutions transform your life is to look first in the mirror and ask yourself. . .
“Am I working hard? Or. . . Am I hardly working?”
A lot of times, when we aren’t achieving our goals or things aren’t coming as easily as we might like them to in life it is a direct result of the effort we either are or aren’t putting in. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve opened my mouth to complain about something going wrong in my life or a situation I wish had unfolded differently and soon realized that had I been more focused the outcome could’ve been a lot different.
Growing up the daughter of parents who spent time coaching and playing sports at the collegiate-level, sports were bound to play an influential role in my life. I played both basketball and soccer year-round and don’t remember a time when I wasn’t running from one practice to then next or squeezing in extra moments on the court or the field. There were certainly days where I wasn’t much feeling like hitting the weight room, running sprints or moving through drill after drill, but I also, even at a young age, had an understanding of how critical those things were to game-time performance and achieving my goals.
There’s no doubt in my mind my perspective on hard work was shaped by two very distinct aspects of my life growing up. . . first, the endless lessons my parents taught me about dedication and commitment and second, through my involvement in sports. More times than I can count, my parents used examples from my time spent playing sports to further drive home their point about working hard to get what we want in life.
I was on the phone with my Dad the other day, talking about basketball, which if you know my family, you know basketball is the topic of conversation 97% of the time at this point in the year :) He dropped a nugget of wisdom about hard work that was the exact reminder I needed at that very moment (Yes, even at 27 years old I ‘m still taking notes from my parents & you should be too!).
He said, when things aren’t going well in life, the one thing he knows can help turn it around is working harder.
Putting your nose to the grindstone has always led my Dad to improved results and if I’m being honest with myself, it has for me too. Putting in the effort, the time, the blood, sweat and tears only makes us better at what we do and better at overcoming adversity when challenges arise. Through hard work we become stronger both mentally and physically, more qualified and more experienced and more prepared for whatever life might throw at us next.
So what’s the secret sauce to making your hard work pay off? For me, there are three things that have helped me greatly in seeing my hard work lead to tangible results.
Get super clear on what you want. Write it down, every last detail about your goal. . . what it will feel like to achieve it, what physical results will occur when you get there? Being detailed about what you want will help you realize when you’re not taking the necessary steps to get there.
Do one to two things each day that will get you one step closer to your goal. Hard work doesn’t pay off over night so make it a point to chip away at achieving your goal daily. All good things take time and patience so getting together a game plan for how you make consistent progress is key.
Don’t give up when feeling discouraged. Life can be daunting sometimes and achieving our goals can even seem impossible too. The difference between the people who make life changes, adopt new habits and achieve their goals and those who don’t is simple though. . . those people DO NOT give up when things get tough. Keep going, keep working, keep believing and you WILL get there!
As they say, “Dreams don’t work unless you do.” Neither do our goals come true or our resolutions become habits. When life seems to be falling apart and things just aren’t going your way, the quality of work you put in and the commitment you have to changing those circumstances is a game changer. As we move farther and farther into 2019 and farther away from the glamorous side of all of those New Year’s resolutions we set, I’d like to ask you one thing. . .
Are you working hard? or Hardly working?
Light, Love & the Highest Vibes,
Lon
