What Is Your ONE WORD?

One Word!  

Maybe instead of a long list of resolutions, you can choose one word.  

One word that sums up who you want to be or how you want to live. One word that you can focus on every day, all year long.

It will take intentionality and commitment, but if you let it, your one word will shape not only your year, but also you. It will become the compass that directs your decisions and guides your steps.

Discover the big impact one word can make.

One word. 365 days. A changed life.

Check out these websites for more ideas on the one word.

http://oneword365.com/

http://myoneword.org

Self Sabotage

Stop Sabotaging Your Potential for Change. 

Subconsciously, we use defense mechanisms to protect ourselves from situations we perceive to be scary or painful. A part of you may want to grow and change, but another part may be resisting because change always takes you into new territory in your thinking and emotions.

If you find you are getting anxious, fearful, angry, frustrated, dismissive or unmotivated, then defense mechanisms are at work. Watch for them and know they are signs of fear that want to hold you back. Once you identify that fear, courageously move through it and keep going!

Come Alive

What makes you come alive?  

Go do it, and make a difference!

Talking To Yourself

Replace fear and "I can't" with determination and "I will give it my best and try." 

You will be amazed at what you can accomplish!

Comfort Zone

Are you living in your comfort zone, or are you stepping out of it, and really living life?  Live a life of no regrets, think you can do it, and reach for some goals.  Leave behind the fear, and live a life of purpose and passion. 

Achieving Success

Success comes when we overcome the fear of failure, push forward to get past the obstacles in our path, say I CAN DO IT, and keep going!

It's The Thought That Counts

"It's the thought that counts..."  

Your thoughts really do count/matter because what you think is usually what you become, what you achieve.  Toxic thoughts often hold us as prisoners and affect our life and our relationships.  You can overcome those thoughts by replacing them with Truth.  Truth that you matter.  Truth that you were created for a purpose, by a God who does not make mistakes.  

Dealing With Depression or Anxiety?

Feeling down or depressed? Need to overcome your depression, sadness, overwhelming anxiety?  A few simple steps are guaranteed to ease those feelings.  

Unplug. 

Take a break from Facebook, Twitter, the news, social interactions and discussions, people who cause much unneeded drama in your life.  Instead, take time to focus on good things in life, the things that bring you joy.  Go outside.  Read a book.  Go for a walk.  Have a true face to face conversation.  Enjoy a hands on hobby.  Go for a drive and enjoy the beauty of nature.  It will change your mood and your outlook on life.  

Change Your Course

You are only one important decision away from a completely different life. One important decision can change your direction and put you an a whole new path. 

Do you need to change course today?  

Do You Need To Reboot Your Life?

Strength to Overcome

Are you willing to step into the uncomfortable & unfamiliar, and overcome?

Keep Going

Don't lose heart. 

Don't lose hope. 

Don't lose faith. 

Don't lose patience. 

Keep asking. 

Keep seeking. 

Keep knocking. 

~Mark Batterson

Improve Your Life By Identifying Your Core Values

Do you know what your core values in life are?  Do you live by those values?  Are your decisions guided by those values?  Do your relationships reflect those values?

Core values help us to know what is important in life, what drives us.  If our actions do not line up with our value system, we can experience stress, lack of focus, confusion, and miss out on our purpose in life. 

Have you identified your top core values?  You can't live by your core values if you have not identified them.  Start by identifying your top 10 values.  Write that list down, then set it aside for a couple days.  Pay close attention over a week time frame as to what really is important to you.  Revisit your list and see if the top 10 values you chose are truly your how you live your life.  If your list needs a realignment, then make it.  Once you do that, then narrow it down to your top 5.  These should be the things that shape your decisions and how you live your life.  

One question you can ask yourself to focus on if you are aligned with your values is this: Do my actions, my schedule, and where my money is spent reflect the values I say are most important to me?

Here is a list to begin with.  There are many other values that could be added to this, but this is a start:

Appreciation   Accountability   Artistic    Authenticity    Accomplishment   Achievement   Adventure  Belonging   Beauty   Building    Being in Control   Bold    Caution   Career    Changing the World    Compassion   Creativity    Calm   Community   Creation  Competence   Collaboration    Communicating     Competitive   Consistency    Cherish  Cleanliness   Considerate   Confident   Challenge  Cheerful   Clear-minded    Diversity    Diligence    Dedication    Devotion   Determined   Dynamic   Excitement   Education   Efficiency    Encouragement     Excellence   Ethical   Enjoyment  Enthusiasm  Explore  Expertise    Family      Faithfulness   Fun    Freedom    Forgiveness      Faith    Financial    Forward Thinking     Frugal       Fulfillment      Fair    Fitness   Flexible   Gentleness   Gain   Giving   Genuineness    Goodness   Growth    God   Generous   Gracious   Honesty    Hard Working    Humility     Humor    Health   Happy    Help     Integrity    Impact Others   Influence   Inspiring   Independent   Intelligence   Joy   Kindness   Love     Loyal    Love of Learning   Life   Leadership   Marriage      Mentoring    Make a Difference  Nurturing      Obedience     Orderliness     Optimistic   Patience    Peace   Perfection    Performance-Driven    Persistence   Power     Physical     Productive    Purity   Passionate     Positive    Quality   Quiet    Respect    Risk Taking       Relationships    Recognition   Relaxation   Respect for Others     Resourceful   Security      Self-esteem      Self-expression   Sensitivity    Servanthood     Service     Silence   Sincere    Solitude     Self-control   Spiritual    Stability     Success    Safety    Serenity  Simplicity  Spontaneous   Structure   Support     Strength   Temperance         Tolerance     Tranquility   Trust     Truth      Trustworthy   Timely     Thoughtful    Teamwork    Uniqueness    Useful     Vitality    Vision  Winning     Worship      Wisdom 

Ask this as you work to narrow the list to five....do I appreciate this value?  Does this value truly reflect my character?  Do I enjoy this more than other things?  

Once you identify your top 5 values, what are some key action steps you can take to make very clear boundaries around your values?   How will those boundaries impact the life you live and how you treat others?  

Life Theme for 2014

I posted the below post a year ago today.  I chose overcome for my 2013 theme, and I had many moments of overcoming.  I overcame some habits, I started to work out and reached goals in working out that I never imagined I would reach.  I haven't lost much weight, but I am stronger, feel better, and am continuing to build my strength. I overcame a fear of heights over water by walking across a swinging bridge that was close to 150 feet long and 100 feet high.  I overcame past hurts and found peace.  I could go on, but you get the idea.  

How about you?  Did you choose a word or theme last year?  How did yours go?  

What about this year?  Have you chosen a theme to live by for 2014?  I am sticking with overcome, and adding in intentional.  I want to be very intentional this year in relationships, in things I want to accomplish, and in the way I live my life.  

Join me, and share your theme/word.  I would love to hear your story!

From 2013:


What one word can become your focus for this year?  What one word do you want to be your life theme,  do you want to strive for, to describe your life in the year ahead? Put that word up in front of you, like on a mirror, a wall, your refrigerator, in your car, and live that word out each day.  Read books on that subject, look up quotes and verses that will inspire you to live that word out and make it your theme for changing something in yourself this year. 

My word is overcome.  It applies to many areas of my life already this year. 

Words have great power to change our lives.  

Here are a few words that may inspire you:

Courage     Hope     Overcome     Joy     Passion     Purpose     Forgiving    Worthy 

    Change     Discipline     Intentional     Empowered     Grateful     Transformation 

  Bold     Trust     Thankful     Health     Wisdom     Compassion   Balance 

     Perseverance     Simplify     Listen     Restore     Whole     Gentleness     Integrity

Fearless     Worship     Transparent     Friend     Quiet     Focus    Beauty

     Surrender     Humble     Action     Mercy     Laughter     Love     Grace     Peace

Selfless     Give     Content     Obedience   Truth    Faithful    

Worry-free     Organized     Strength

Self-esteem     Rest    Relentless



It doesn't matter if you haven't chosen a word yet this year, choose it now.  What is your word?  What will you do to live it out, to change things about your life?  Please share with me what word you will make your theme for 2013. 

Overcome The Lies

"I'm too old, it's too late, I can't" are all lies that the longer we believe, the truer they become. It's time to overcome those lies. As long as you have breath, you have a purpose! Don't waste your life!

Make A Difference, Work For Your Goals

“I am so thoroughly convinced that if we don’t set goals… and learn how to master the technique of living to reach our goals, we can reach a ripe old age and look back on our life only to see that we reached but a small part of our full potential. When you learn to master the principle of setting a goal, you will then be able to make a great difference in the results you attain.” –M. Russell Ballard



Have you set any goals yet this year?  Goal setting doesn't have to start at the beginning of the year.  As a matter of fact, it's best to set goals all year long.  A new year just reminds us of new beginnings, so it is a great time to set some goals.  

The way I am setting goals right now is month by month, broken down by the week.  Yes, I have long term goals, but I am focusing more on the short term, to achieve small steps of success in a shorter time.  When I look back in a few months, I hope to see many goals reached.  

I sat down last night and wrote out fitness, health, home, and personal goals.  I need to write out my goals on what I want to achieve in my faith life, my marriage, and occupationally.  I am sure I will come up with other areas, as well, but those are my main areas right now.  What are some areas you are focusing on?

I am writing my goals on 4 x 6 cards.  A couple of them focus on fitness.  I wrote out what I did at the gym yesterday...how long and how many strides on the elliptical, how many weighted crunches I did, the amount of weights I lifted and the number of reps, and how long I punched the punching bag.  I took those numbers and wrote out what I want to achieve within a week, then I wrote out what I want to achieve by the end of the month.  I kept my goals realistic, but not easy, because growth shouldn't be easy.  I took these same principles and applied them to what I want to achieve in my goals personally, in my home, and in improving my health.  

It's not difficult, it just requires taking the first step and writing down your goals, whether in a notebook, on cards, in your computer, or phone.  It is important to write them down and have them in a spot that is visible to keep them in front of you.  Goals require action, and follow through.  They  require effort, but the effort is so worth it.  

One way to write out your goals is to use the SMART acronym.  Are your goals:

S = Specific

M = Measurable

A = Attainable

R = Realistic

T = Timely

Will you join me in setting some smart goals this year, this month, this week?  Don't just go through your life, live out your purpose and live passionately.  Don't waste the precious gift of each new day that you are given.   You have a great potential to make a difference in this world, so start today!  You won't regret living out each moment of your life to the fullest. 

A New You

A new year....a clean slate, a fresh start, this year I am going to change, it's going to be different this year....

Are you hearing those statements a lot the last couple days?  I am.  We will continue to hear those words for the next couple weeks, but then what?  It seems people can lose their vision when setting 'resolutions' because they want the instant fix, the instant change and when that doesn't happen, they give up and go back to their old ways.  We live in a society that lives on the instant fix, the immediate details, the "I want it now" syndrome.  We would probably all like to drop a few pounds without having to work at it, and without being sick, but reality is that losing weight and keeping it off, takes making long term changes such as eating better and getting some exercise.  Most things we want to change requires some work, and definitely a change from how we are doing things at the current moment.  Unfortunately, many quit when it's not going the way they had planned.  Many people try to change for a couple weeks, but when they haven't achieved their goals in two weeks, they give up.  The great thing is, we can try start over, have a clean slate every day, not just once a year.  

2014 offers each of us 525,600 minutes.  Each of those minutes is a precious gift.  We each have a choice to decide how we will spend most of those moments.  Yes, we will all have things happen that we didn't expect, both good and bad. In the moments that lie ahead that are difficult, we can seek joy despite our circumstances, find peace in the not so peaceful times, and offer forgiveness and love to those in our lives, even when we feel they don't deserve it.  Life is too short to live in the what-if's, should have's, and to hold grudges and not offer forgiveness.  The past is behind us.  Let it go.  Today.  Move forward, don't live in the past.  

Want a better you? Start with overcoming things that personally bog you down in this new year and make your number one goal of change, to be a change of you, from the inside out.  Yes, fitness and eating better goals are important, but not as important as getting your heart right, to focus your attitude on joy, love, kindness, forgiveness, peace, and faith. Focusing on these things will bring the best you in 2014 and will impact the world around you in deep, personal ways. Remember, if you slip you can always start over.  Each day is a new beginning, a new chance to change.  

Be An Overcomer

Perhaps strength doesnt reside in having never been broken, but in the courage required to grow strong in the broken places. ~Kristen Jongen  

Be an overcomer!  

Don't Waste A Moment

Don't waste your life. 

Spend time with those you love, and love them deeply.

Life can change very quickly, so take time to truly love those in your life.

Worry Less, Give Thanks More

Worry less, give thanks more.