Hurrying down Kings Street, I could hardly wait to see the store. I don’t know what it was – I don’t know how or why the influence of man dead 38 years at the time had come to be so significant to me. What I knew was this: I had seen the Autobiography of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in a bookstore window and I was determined to have it.

A big hardcover book with a shiny jacket. To me – at the time – a tome.  I read everything – the front cover, the back cover, the printer’s information – everything!

“How did he accomplish what he did?”  “Could my life have such a significant impact too?” The more I read about his life and impact, the more I read to find his secret.

You can probably relate to the desire I had then as an eager 18 year old reading that book – filled with an ambition to make a meaningful difference in the world. Filled with a determination to not to waste my life. Yet, curious as to how exactly to go about it all.

I think I have found something that may help to guide us.

The more I read and observe those who have made an impact – in whatever field – the more I recognize that  if you want your life to count for something significant, then something extraordinary is required of you: you need to be mastered by something greater than yourself.

The Magnificent Idea

What do you need to know to make a lasting difference in the world? At least 10,000 things right? Maybe not. In Don’t Waste Your Life, John Piper says something that hits the nail square on the head –  I think. You and I must be mastered by an idea. He said: 

You don’t have to know a lot of things for your life to make a lasting difference in the world. But you do have to know the few great things that matter, perhaps just one, and then be willing to live for them and die for them. The people that make a durable difference in the world are NOT the people who have mastered many things, but who have been mastered by one great thing. If you want your life to count, if you want the ripple effect of the pebbles you drop to become waves that reach the ends of the earth and roll on into eternity, you don’t need to have a high IQ. You don’t have to have good looks or riches or come from a fine family or a fine school. Instead you have to know a few great, majestic, unchanging, obvious, simple, glorious things-or ONE great all-embracing thing-and be set on fire by them. (Emphasis mine)

- John Piper, Don’t Waste Your Life (Read Chapter Online)

Read it again.

Piper’s message is life changing – if you accept it. There are at least 5 things I hope you saw:

1. YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE ‘A REVOLUTIONARY’ TO BE REVOLUTIONARY.  Most people associate making a difference to big national political movements -Che Guevara, Martin Luther King Jr and the like. They forget science, singing, coding, painting as though Galileo Galilei, Bob Marley, Mark Zuckerberg & Michelangelo didn’t revolutionize the world too.

2. BEING MASTERED IS MORE THAN JUST HAVING A FAINT IDEA. To Mastered – is to be a slave to an idea, ambition, vision, purpose or calling.

3. YOUR MASTER WILL DETERMINE YOUR MISSION. Simply put, “You will become as small as your controlling desire; as great as your dominant aspiration” (James Allen). If all you do is sleep, watch television – who is your master?

4. YOUR MISSION WILL DETERMINE YOUR MOVEMENTS. Slaves don’t sleep or eat because they “feel like it”. Slaves sleep and eat – or not, when and if their master allows.

5. YOU MAY HAVE TO SEEK OUT A BETTER MASTER (if you are serious about getting a good one). It’s like when the young clumsy warrior seeks a Sensi – think Daniel San seeking out Mr. Miyagi in the Karate Kid. If you desire become an extraordinary person, you will almost certainly need to be deliberate at finding a worthwhile master.

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Millions of Young Adults Today Are Having Failing Spiritual Health – You Don’t Have To Be One of The Numbers.

I live in a country where (according to the last CENSUS data), ALL the traditional Christian denominations are seeing their youth numbers decrease. More notably, the youth account for 40 percent of those who are now shunning ALL religious affiliation.

The spiritual life of young adults in the West. Increasing numbers are leaving not just their church but the Church altogether. | Photo by Art By Doc

That means in my country, the fastest growing religion among young men and women like me is “no religion“.

You may call it unfair, but I deduce from that data, not simply a growing disenchantment with religion, but an increasing neglect of the spiritual life (which then leads to dissociation from religion). 

Why? As far as I can see, the vast majority of people aren’t quitting church to become atheists. The majority will tell you that they find everything associated with religion boring, or onerous or weird, or displeasing in some way. 

Young Adults Lead the Nones

The people with no affiliation are called “Nones”. In October last year, in a report entitled “Nones” on the Rise, the U.S. based research body, the Pew Forum, disclosed that:

One-fifth of the U.S. public – and a third of adults under 30 – are religiously unaffiliated today, the highest percentages ever in Pew Research Center polling.

Take a look at the chart below and decide for yourself whether you agree with my analysis. I contend that while there are many young adults who have turned away from belief in God and religion with deliberate intent (the outright atheists  or conscious agnostic for example), the vast majority are just people who have been so unintentional about their spiritual life for so long that eventually they see very little, to no value in it.

In the last five years alone, the unaffiliated have increased from just over 15% to just under 20% of all U.S. adults. Their ranks now include more than 13 million self-described atheists and agnostics (nearly 6% of the U.S. public), as well as nearly 33 million people who say they have no particular religious affiliation (14%) | Photo by Pew Forum – click for more details.

My Problem with Nones

The bible calls Atheist fools. Still, they seem to me to be a whole lot smarter than Nones. Why? They recognized that they had to take a position. They had to come down somewhere in this God/Human debate. They couldn’t just sleep and eat and wait for a sign or something.

Agnostics are noncommittal and it’s not hard to see why, with all the craziness we here about “God” from all different angles. They need to go further, but they’re still better than Nones.

“A third of adults under 30 have no religious affiliation (32%)…And young adults today are much more likely to be unaffiliated than previous generations [of young adults]“.  | Data by the Pew Forum

Nones are upsetting. Nones deny by their actions things they don’t have the courage to deny in their minds and their hearts. They have an idea that they can know, see, feel, taste, and touch more – much more! Yet, they shrink back from it. Why?

1. Too much effort.
2. Too much to lose.
3. Not interesting or exciting enough.
4. Boring.
5. Uncool.
6. Too much controversy.
7. No support from friends.
8. Just not something pressing.
9. Whatever.

Sadly, when it comes to being unaffiliated, young adults – you and I, lead the way. 

Whoever you are, I want to challenge you to BECOME INTENTIONAL (or to STAY intentional) about what you do with the idea/truth/reality that God exists and that you have a spirit that’s meant to interact with Him.

I want to share with you 10 things that I submit are truths regarding this area of your life. I hope they will challenge you to value your Spirit and to demonstrate that value in how you treat it.

Want to Value Your Spirit? 10 Things to Remember:

1.It’s your duty to find ALL of yourself.

There are many sides to each and every one of us – you should find, engage and develop every aspect of your being. Some aspects of you are so important – whether you now know it or not – that you should work to know and develop them as though your life depended on it! | Photo by Peter Forret

There are MANY sides and aspects to you. You are more than just your athletic, academic or professional self. You are not a full person, nor are you living a full life whenever you ignore a major part of your being.

Note Well: I am not saying that you should “get” “find” or “begin” a spiritual life. Newsflash: you already have a spirit and therefore, a spiritual life! My challenge to you is to “value,” “improve,” and “develop” it.

Sadly this is not a mainstream message. Even today the words of Martin Luther King Jr. ring true:

Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men.

2. If God exists – that is a very BIG deal.

God – the supreme being that created every single thing that exists, from ants to arteries. If such a being exists and He made you and I, can you imagine the implications?? | Photo by Swamibu

When I was younger I would sometimes try to think about what it means that God has no beginning and no end. I would literally get headaches. Very little has changed in that regard to this day.

Where did we come from (the origins of man)? Where we are going (life after death)? How should we treat our planet and the people who live in it? It is all affected by what we believe about God.

While we may not be able to grasp the full magnitude of God – the implications of his existence are just too grand for us to ignore him.

3. This world may not be all.

Could it be that all the longing and desire we have in this world for deeper fulfillment is so elusive because we were meant to find it somewhere else…maybe, possibly in a whole other world? Sounds ridiculous, right? Chronicles of Narnia gibberish. But no, really, think about it! | Photo by by chalo84

Haven’t you ever felt as though there is something inside you that nothing you have ever seen, smelt, tasted, touched, been touched by, experienced or enjoyed has ever been able to fully and completely satisfy? I feel that way sometimes.

Could it be that there is something inside us that we cannot satisfy as much as we try because it cannot be satisfied by anything in this world. The great author and thinker C.S. Lewis puts it beautifully:

A man’s physical hunger does not prove that that man will get any bread: he may die of starvation on a raft in the Atlantic. But surely a man’s hunger does prove that he comes of a race which repairs its body by eating, and inhabits a world where eatable substances exist.”¹⁹

In other words, “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. ²⁰ 

^{(Full citation over at DesiringGod.org).} 

4. Really valuing your spirit IS more than just say-so. 

Some people just can’t wait for a new episode of their favorite show – they know all the characters, all the back-stories, all of everything. They value their TV show and you can tell by how they treat it. The same is true for your spirit – you can tell how much you value it by how you treat it.

• You get around them: You make sure the house is cleared and the TV is working in time for every episode. You call your friend and reserve time in your schedule for him/her. You try to learn everything about the girl/guy you’re into.
• You protect them: You’d share your own meal with your friend or sweetheart and if you had your way no one would ever cut your favorite program after 1 or 2 seasons.
• You seek their best: In every discussion about the best show on TV – you can’t help but jump in and mention your show. Whenever your girl/guy or friend has a project or presentation you’re there to proofread, critique and pray.
• You invest in them: When Valentines Day (and birthdays, anniversaries, graduations and Christmas) comes around, you put your money where your mouth is to show your love.

Apply those same 4 things you do to how you should treat your spirit. If and when you value it, you will protect it, seek its best, and try to understand it well through regular engagement and you will invest in it whenever you get a chance to.

5. ‘Valuing’ your spirit is not their duty.

There are some roads in life that you may choose that you will have to walk by yourself – company is great, but the journey (and moreover the destination!) is far greater. | Photo by WanderingtheWorld (www.LostManProject.com)

It happens everyday- it’s the teacher’s fault why we don’t learn, its McDonald’s fault why we’re big and fat, and it’s the government’s fault why we are poor.

While incompetent teachers may in fact hinder a student’s growth, and deep fat fried fast foods will make you fat, and poor systems of governance can and do keep many of the world’s poor poor – that is never the full story.

Often, we outsource the responsibility for intellectual growth to teachers, our heart and physical health to commercial businesses,  and the comfort of our lives to Governments. You do the very same thing with your spirit when you entrust its growth, stability or health to:

1. Religious groups (the church),
2. Spiritual leaders (pastors),
3. Chance (God giving a random sign); or
4. Whatever else.

Also, FOR THE NATURAL GO-GETTERS: Don’t you find it a bit strange that in every area of your life you take the initiative to secure what is best – but in this one area everything is left to feelings, ‘whatever-happens-happens’ and chance?

6. There are many more ‘Hungry Ones’ like you.

There are many other searching and journeying young adults out in the world – JUST LIKE YOU and I…you should FIND THEM! and go after the deep things together. | Photo by Kalexanderson

Lucky for you, you aren’t the only person with a spirit and a desire to better value it! There are many more people – just as passionate as you are about grappling with that part of their being that says THERE MUST BE MORE THAN THIS!

You should find them.

For me, as a young adult it is a tremendous benefit to know other young adults – just like me: intelligent, good-looking, exciting, ambitious, educated, critical, career oriented, etc – others just like me who are also  internally efficient, deeply spiritual and passionate about God.

How does it help?

• It gives me that “I am not crazy” feeling assurance!
• It encourages me to persevere – “They are doing it too! So can I”
• It helps to speed-up my depth and development as I learn from others how they value their spirit.

Go find your people – it can only help.

7. Not everyone (maybe no one at all in your circle) will join you.

So what if your friends don’t come along? You aren’t joined at the waist, are you? Look at how many serious decisions you have to make in life that exclude your closest friends. | Photo by lumaxart

Ok – that’s probably true (and not at all encouraging), BUT, all of your friends didn’t decide to study biology – or whatever it is you studied. Some of your friends chose not to study at all – (or maybe you’re that friend, who took a different route). All your friends cannot accept the same job as you, nor will they work in the same kind of company, and probably not even to work in the same country!

In this life, many of our most critical decisions will not be in multi-player mode. Still, we will have to face them. Apply that approach to your spirituality.

8. NOTHING significant or lasting is easy to find, cultivate, or improve.

Michael Jackson’s face is one of the most recognizable images on the planet – no matter the age/color of the face. That’s a legacy. It didn’t come easily. | Photo by 林冠昇

Just think: 1) true love, 2) the legacy of Michael Jackson, and 3) a long happy marriage.

Sure, there are those who are struck with great affection at first sight, some who are born with a golden voice, and some who were just lucky enough to marry an agreeable and attractive person.

Still, even the lucky must persevere in love to prove it true, even the naturally gifted must practice and rehearse all their songs (and dance steps) continually for years and, and even the most agreeable people will disagree.

Chicken Soup may take a while and a lot of energy to prepare, while Ramen Noodles - just pop some in the microwave for 3 minutes. I’ve never heard anyone suggest a bowl of Ramen Noodles for the flu though.

9. The whole world agrees that the ostrich is stupid.

Just because you cannot see something doesn’t mean it’s not there – we all know. The Ostrich who is eaten alive by predators after putting it’s head in the sand would tell you, if he could, that ignorance is not bliss – it’s just delayed horror. | Photo by tropical.pete

Unless your beef is “there is NO, has NEVER BEEN and WILL NEVER BE any such thing as God” – then the prevalence of controversy and confusion in relation to God, faith and religion is never an excuse to stick your head in the sand.

You cannot simply ignore so critical an aspect of your being and still be a whole person.

10. You are under no obligation to accept, own or defend the ‘party line’.

Your mom, dad, brothers, sisters, friends and bosses may disagree. They may believe that belief in itself is ridiculous. So what? You have NO OBLIGATION to believe what your parents believe. You and you alone will have to bear the inner and eternal consequences of your spiritual choices. | Photo by .Uvitra.

Ever seen how politicians vote? All Republicans together. All JLP or PNP, or PNM or whatever the party, together. They are compelled to follow the “Party Line.”

You may feel that way too, as though you are compelled to follow  what your parents, country, community, ancestors and teachers etc believe, or did NOT believe.

One of the most impacting sentence I have ever read in the bible, about 7 words, is John (7:53):

“Then each went to his own home.”

The sheer finality of the words. In the preceding verses, all the people were arguing violently about who Jesus was – some for, some against. Then came the verse: “each went to his own home.”

Do not go unthinking, blind, and without deep, conscious reflection into any path because your parents or friends did or did not. Your decisions are yours to live with.

Are you adequately valuing your spirit? Are you satisfied with your knowledge and experiences in relation to God?

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This is old news. I shared it on the Facebook page last week, but I think I should write something about the award here on the blog itself – for posterity and all.

MaximizeMyLife.com Won A Jamaica Blog Award!!

September 2011 I started this blog with the hope of sharing a bit of my life and perspective with young adults across the world, just like me, who want to make the most of their lives. Longggg before and even without a Blog Award, I have been amazed at the results of this blog.

Still, the award is very much appreciated. Let me tell you why.

Why (As Much As I, Sorta, Kinda Don’t Want to Admit It) I Really Appreciate the Award

I am a writer. I have always been. I wasn’t always as talented at writing as I am now, and I hope I am better today than I was yesterday. Writing has been my forte since I was growing up. (I used to take a small hardcover notebook with me everywhere, to write stories, all throughout high school. Story after story – I’ll tell you more another time).

Still, do you know what I found out when I began writing this blog? Writing is really hard work!

Sure, if you want to publish just random gibberish, then it’s easy. Maybe writing well is easy for you. However, I find that to write in a way that keeps hammering at one consistent message, in a clear simple and readable way, for the benefit of others is hard.

Because its hard, I am really truly appreciative whenever I recognize that my writing is understood and valued by others.

Who Do I Want to Thank?

Just so you know, it takes a whole lot of encouragement and support to build something worthwhile. I have a whole host of people in my corner – EACH – of whom are so valuable to me, I don’t know if I could my best without them.

1. Stephen + Michael  for nominating the blog.
2. EVERYONE WHO VOTED (If you did let me know! I’ll expand the list!)
3. Kelly-Rae should TOP the list. She campaigned without me even asking (and is probably the real reason the blog won).
4. Suzette who told me she voted (+ all my classmates who voted)
5. Gabrielle (well, I just have to put her here or she will feel left out. lol.)
6. Cleo – my editor in chief. Invaluable help on a consistent basis.
7. Nikeisha – faithful proofreading, critique and support from day one, right.
8. Corve Dacosta and the Organizers of the Jamaica Blog Awards.

My trusty old laptop on which I wrote perhaps all the posts published on MaximizeMyLife.com since its creation in September 2011. Been good to me. #TimeForAnUpgrade

What’s Next on the Agenda?

There are four or more major things on the agenda going forward.

• Publishing a Manifesto
  • There are reasons why you read what I write. We connect on somethings. I think there is purpose in this blog, maybe we can change our world a bit.
• Increasing Interaction
  • Between You and I (email me, andrew@maximizemylife.com)
  • Between You and You (i.e., between Core Readers Who Get the Vision & Other Core Readers Who Get the Vision).
• Writing a whole lot more.
  • Not immediately, but yea.
• Building a better blog.
  • I know you have endured many changes – I want to have a proper redesign done however so that MaximizeMyLife.com will have the look and feel of a world-class blog.
• Partnership.
  • We go further faster when two or three combine. I have a vision for MaximizeMyLife.com but it could use your strengths, skills, connections, resources to make it happen.
    • Example: I want to do interviews of people who fit the bill of what it means to Maximize Life – for the benefit of all my readers. Maybe YOU ARE that person. Maybe you know someone. Maybe you can take great photos. Maybe you want to record and edit the interview. Whatever. You get my drift. Together we can do spectacular things.

MaximizeMyLife.com was award the Best Lifestyle Blog in the 2012 Jamaica Blog Awards held on the 19th of January 2013.

It’s 3:00 a.m. Saturday morning. It was a hectic week, topped off with a long and exciting Friday night. I’m just now getting in. Upon remembering all I have to do over the horribly short weekend, I panicked. I set my alarm for 5:00 a.m. Saturday morning. Guess what happens next?

Do you find that you are always just too tired to do the Things That Matter? It may be how you treat your body. Everyone, but particularly young adults, needs to be conscious of how we treat this most critical tool. | Photo by by anieto2k

Invariably, whenever I do that madness, I end up sleeping until 10, 11 or even 12 the next morning! Having given my body a most unrealistic goal, my brain and body then conspire to ignore my alarm and instead, have me sleep until they are good and ready to wake up.

I want to encourage you in relation to how you treat your body. Right now, your primary responsibility is not to make commitments about fitness that you are very likely to break like getting  “a 6 pack,” or “a chiseled chest,” or “the most toned thighs ever!”

Instead of setting unrealistic and depressing goals for yourself (and then accomplish nothing as a result), appreciate that a priority of your life should be simply to get-and-keep your body running at its most profitable minimum standard. Here’s why:

Your Body Is Central to Your Purpose

Fact: Your body is a tool. It’s a tool that you possess for the benefit of fulfilling your purpose in life. To use the tool for that goal however, the tool must serve the workman and not visa versa.

Sometimes (most times) the reasons you give for not being able to give your time, or energy to things that matter (like going somewhere special, thinking and creating, reading, exercising, etc) though they may feel genuine to you, are really just excuses from a bad workman/woman who doesn’t actually have control of his/her tool.

As Plato said:

“The first and best victory is to conquer self.”

Ignore the Tool Long Enough And . . .

Think long term with me a second. While it is true that bad workmen/women, who lack the necessary skill and will to do a job, may end up blaming their tools, it doesn’t mean that all who blame their tools are bad workmen/women.

Sometimes the tools just do not work. Plain and simple. When that happens, try as the workman/woman may, she/he can do nothing.

If develop a culture of neglecting your body now (in your 20s & 30s) – eventually, parts will malfunction. Then what?

• You FINALLY get the job but can’t match the intensity.
• You FINALLY marry but “just don’t have the energy to keep up.” Labelled boring.
• You FINALLY have children but can’t play with them, or be active in their lives.
• You FINALLY reach that major milestone when a chronic but preventable disease kills the fun.
• You die young, from arteries clogged arteries up with French Fries.

What Your Body Needs

Why not start with the basics? Your body needs two main things:

General Maintenance

These are the regular, year round requirements of a healthy body:

1. Basic exercise (about 3 times per week for an hour or so);
2. A  healthy (in content and quantity) diet; and
3. Adequate sleep.

 Remember particularly:

1. Regular stretching;
2. High volume of water;
3. Multi-vitamins; and
4. Your relevant medication.

Improvements

Remember to concentrate on becoming healthy before you focus on additional and more complex (and often, more frustrating) goals like getting a six pack and so forth. You want to be fit enough before you press your body.

Note (re: improvements) as you improve your body, you may have to consider your wardrobe. Read what I wrote about Erotic Capital (Being Short, Fat and Ugly May Be Keeping You Poor) on MoneyMax101.com.

Resources

If you want to investigate the issue further I have addressed many of the benefits of exercise in previous articles. Check them out:

1. Summer Body? Create Your Fitness Goals in 6 Simple Steps!;
2. Only for the Serious: 50 Ways to Lose Weight NOW and to Get in Shape;
3. 5 Great Ways to Get and Stay Motivated to Exercise;
4. The Top 11 Reasons You Don’t Exercise;
5. 3 Incredibly Successful People Who Cannot Go A Day Without Exercise;
6. Everything You Need to Get a Flat Tummy this Summer;
7. It’s Time to Change Your Attitude Toward Exercise;
8. One FREE Resource to Seriously Boost Your Commitment to Regular Walking, Running or Cycling;
9. How to use GMAP Pedometer for Your Run or Ride (PLUS – a note on its deficiencies).

Ok, what will you change today to ensure that you treat your body better? 

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Seems like something worth checking out.

This seems like an event worth attending.

The U.S. Embassy Kingston in celebration of Black History Month is hosting Dr. Mae Jemison in Jamaica! She is a NASA astronaut, she actually went into orbit aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavor in 1992 and more relevant to Black History month – she was the first African-American female ever admitted into the astronaut training program.

I would love to hear what she has to say about her life, growth and accomplishments. If you can, this seems like an event you should try to make.

Cost

The event is FREE. 

However, according to the Embassy’s Facebook page “seats are for this event are extremely limited.”

How do you get in? 

If interested: send an email to KingstonFacebook@state.gov with:

1) Your name as it appears on your government-issued identification
2) Your phone number
3) Your email address

I actually signed up and it was pretty hassle free. I recommend you email as early as possible – maybe you can catch the last spot!

Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.

- Oscar Wilde (1854 – 1900)

It may sound odd (and a bit ‘airy fairy’), but I remember how absolutely amazed I was as a teenager when I came to the realization that “I can actually change my mind.” It blew me away.

How big, how wide,how expansive is your mind? Do you care for it? Protect it? Think about it? Feed it with great thoughts and ideas? In its current state, how high/how far can your mind take you ? Photo by mitopencourseware

Sadly, like the flowers outside, the sun in the sky, and the not-at-all ordinary people we meet every single day, the fact that we can think – and from that activity:  grow and change – is something we too often take for granted.

How-When-Where-&-What You Think Affects Everything

How you treat others, whether you quit when your boss/professor lands five days worth of work on your desk and demands a synopsis within an hour and how you survive when all your plans collapse in an instant.

How you respond in any one of those scenarios has to do with one thing – your mind.

The nature and strength of your mind includes:

1. What you think is important in life;
2. How much data you can manage to process under pressure;
3. How quickly you can think up solutions in a crisis;
4. How creatively you dream;

and so much more!

Having seen the tremendous benefit it brings, I have made the daily improvement of my mind one of the great passions of my life; I recommend it to you for 3 reasons.

1. Your Mind Is At the Centre of Your Happiness

I recently read a book entitled Thinking for A Change by John Maxwell (which I also mentioned in last week’s post).  The author writes the following about ‘the Impact of Changed Thinking’:

Most people who do not feel content with their lives don’t know the reason why. Often they suspect that circumstances or other people are to blame. Even honest and self-aware individuals who know the problem lies inside of them still may have trouble getting to the root of the issue. They ask themselves. “Why am I this way?” They desire to change but they don’t do anything differently so that they can change. They merely hope things will turn out all right – and they become frustrated when they don’t. Recognize that only when you make the right changes to your thinking do other things begin to turn out right in your life. (Page 27)

The problem described in the very first sentence of that passage quoted should drive you to consider the development of your mind as a serious area of personal investment.

2. You Can Never Rise Higher or Do Better than Your Thoughts

What does your mind concern itself with? Photo by by tamahaji

Do you believe that? Remember the saying “As a man thinketh so is he.” This statement suggests that our thoughts and our realities are inextricably linked. That means:

1. If you always think negative thoughts – you cannot and will not suddenly become Miss. Positive in times of crisis.
2. If you never dream original ideas, you cannot act and will not, speak or live life as anything but the carbon copy of other people.
3. If your imagination is tiny, dull and neglected you cannot and will not dream (or even properly appreciate) great, thrilling and engaging ideas – even with your job on the line.
4. If your concentration is restless and untrained, it cannot and will not suddenly submit to hours of rigorous work when your boss demands it.
5. If your mind is undisciplined, narrow and cynical – it cannot grow to be its fullest possible potential.

3. Changing Your Approach is the Only Way to Succeed Where You Have Always Failed

Forget his Theory of Relativity and others, Albert Einstein genius really shone through when he said this:

“The problems we face today cannot be solved on the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.”

To change our outcomes we must often change what we put in. Just consider how changed thinking may affect the following two areas of your life:

Your Relationships:

Can it really be that out of all the people in the world, you are the one that everyone has decided “we will not get along well with that guy/girl.” Really? Or do you need to change how you think about compromise, communication and your character?

Your Career (Academic/Professional):

1. “Always late”;
2. “Lacks initiative”;
3. “Fails to make an impression”;
4. “Easily overlooked”;
5. “Makes a weak contribution”;
6. “Lacking focus”;
7. “Often unprepared”;
8. “Not committed”;
9. “Lacks ability to take charge”;
10. “Lacks initiative”;
11. “not thorough”.

If one or more of these descriptions are used by your bosses, professors or colleagues in reference to you more than once (even worst, on the regularly) then you probably need to reconsider your ideological approach to work. Your attitude and output starts in the mind.

For these reasons, and many, many more, I challenge you to make a deep and serious commitment to the daily improvement of your mind.

What are you doing to improve your mind?

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Now this is a commitment you ought to make at the start, middle and end of every year: to get out of the pile! According to the Oxford dictionary, A pile is “a heap of things laid or lying one on top of another.” As you read, think about the definition.

At work, at school, in your relationships – are you just another pumpkin in the pile? Or are you out of the pile, and distinct because of your work and attitude? Photo by smee.bruce

I found this excellent tidbit entitled ‘Get Out of the Pile’ while reading a book entitled Thinking for A Change by John Maxwell.

The piece describes an attitude that, thankfully, I have tried to adopt for many years prior to my reading this book (my original influence was a simple verse). It really works. I have found in my own life that employers greatly respect and value this type of attitude .

Why Young Adults Should Care About ‘Getting Out of the Pile.’

As you will read – in the excerpt below – as many as 99.9 percent of the people you know and will know in whatever field you go, will be ‘in the pile’ and will hate their jobs and their status in life.

Make no mistake, 2013 will not be the year when lazy, ordinary and average workers/students/people will rise. Everything is now easier to find, easier to do, easier to outsource, easier to skip over. In times like these, if you are not valuable to your boss, you will not be valued by your boss. As young adults, the earlier we adopt this approach without complaining the more we stand to gain.

Here’s the Excerpt:

The excerpt, is a response by Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric, to a question posed by a young businessman in his mid-twenties at an event at the Fox Theater in downtown Atlanta (and reported by Gabe Lyons):

Copyright © 2003 by John C. Maxwell

One Word of Warning: People Detest Hypocrisy.

As the great Bob Marley sang: “You can fool some people sometimes but you can’t fool all the people all the time.” If you act with the wrong motive – you will be exposed. Be very careful that you act with a sincere desire to help others and to improve your organization and not just with a pushy, annoying self-centered desire to be seen everywhere, by everyone, just to get ahead.

Are you in the pile? What are you doing to climb out this year?

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I have come to believe that (as cliché as it may sound when asked) your ability to seriously answer the question “where do you see yourself in 5 or 10 or 15 etc years?” is actually pretty critical in determining the kind of life you will more than likely end up having.

Where are you headed? In 5 years? 10 years? 20 years? Have you made a personal life plan, or do you believe everything will just fall into place eventually? Photo by Lori Greig

Many people stumble from year to year with little purpose, only to find out 10 or 15 years down the road that the dreams they had are now way out of their reach. Most people chalk it up to “bad luck,” “realities of life” and “just the way things go.” The ethos of this site though is that, in large measure, we get what we strategically, consistently, and energetically pursue.

Why Should I Make A Life Plan?

There are many of you who take the John Lennon position that

“Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.”

I disagree.

I prefer the words of investment tycoon, Warren Buffett, who said:

“Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.”

The life you have today is in large measure how it is because of things you and others did or did not do yesterday. A personal life plan helps you to survey your life, see where you want to go, who you really want to be – in every area. As a result, it ensures that you are doing the things you need to be doing today to for the best kind of tomorrow.

How Do I Start?

Great question. One of the main reasons I have been able to make a comprehensive plan for my life, that I revisit and update from time to time, is the invaluable advice of American business leader and author Michael Hyatt (I previously wrote about him) in a free (short) E-BOOK on the topic. Creating Your Personal Life Plan is an invaluable resource. Go to that link, read what’s there and get your free (short) E-BOOK on the topic.

• For More Information, just zoom over to the FAQ for Creating Your Personal LIfe Plan.
• If you need more convincing, then, read: 7 Reasons Why You Need a Written Life Plan

Note – What You Can and Cannot Do

There are some who will argue “life is so uncertain, whats the point of planning?”

Just remember that: “Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never harvest.” If there is no harvest, the farmer and his family starves. What the farmer must do then is to plan wisely and act no matter the conditions of the weather. He cannot just throw up his hands and say “well I wont plan to plant next week because I don’t know what it will be like.” The weather is God’s business, planting and reaping is the farmers duty.

You are the farmer.

Have you ever made a personal life plan? Is there anything you would like to share about having/not having a plan?

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13 has always had an eerie ring of horror to it and by the major accounts, this New Year, 2013 is set to live right up that reputation.

The number 13 has always had a feel of horror to it and by the sound of pundits globally – this year will be horrible. So what? Photo by Skley

A whopping 65 percent of the 311,591,917 people living in the United States of America have predicted that 2013 will be a year of economic difficulty.

To date it seems there will be no easing in the European crisis. In fact, the latest reports are that the Greeks have discarded the use of the Euro for bartering.

Here in Jamaica – well, they didn’t even bother run a poll. #Foregoneconclusion.

But…You Can Defy the Drab Prospects

It is against this bleak backdrop that I extend a most audacious challenge to you: How about we work to Make 2013 a Stand Out year – a year of uncommon exploits, never to be forgotten?

How about we work to Make 2013 a Stand Out year – a year of uncommon exploits, never to be forgotten?

I have written 7 articles, challenging you to make serious commitments in 7 areas of your life this year.

These commitments, I am suggesting, will transform your life even in the midst of a turbulent year. Moreover, they will ensure that at the end of this horrible year, you are stronger, wiser and more ready than ever to take advantage of new opportunities.

Why You Should Care About “Bad Years”

Ever said, or heard a friend say, “Man, last year was just a really bad year for me personally”…?

I wrote this series because I believe, especially as young adults; neither you nor I can afford “bad years” in our lives.

And, with all the predictions in the world saying it will be ‘oh so bad’ socially, politically and economically – it’s clear to me, we must work double time to prevent the impact of it in our lives.

This Is Our Only Time

Bad years and hard times bring at least 3 things that do a lot more than make the present unpleasant – they attack the foundation of a great future.

We must be fanatical in our efforts not to have “bad years” as though they were like bad days. Two reasons:

1.     We only have so many of these years to spare:

People like Dr. Meg Jay, author of The Defining Decade are correct – “Thirty is NOT the new Twenty.”

Those of us long past the age may feel a sting of regret in reading this but the jury is in: what we do in our twenties really does matter.

Life does not begin when we want it to; we only decide when we’ll come alive to life.

2.     Bad years are horribly destructive to our future:

Because “bad years” bring three things:

• Deficit

In the bad year – there is a deficit of positives. Less meaningful interactions, less things read, less feeding of your imagination, less exercise, less healthy habits, less activities that matter, less, less, less.

• Deterioration

Slowly, over the course of the year, your mind and body alike become flabby. The networks you were building disperse.  The fitness you had wanes, the strong positive resolves you had are weakened, the bright, colour dreams are noticeably dull.

• Derailment

A bad year in your 20s (any point of your life! But especially here) is not ”just another bad year!”

At the end of a bad year, you may find yourself more aged but no more mature; older but not wiser; bigger but not stronger; a head and shoulder taller than everyone around you, but not an inch more elevated in their eyes and estimation.

Sadly many of us are still 13 going on 30.

I challenge you: Make this year different! Change the script. Read the series. Defy the odds.

Are you ready to face a New Year? How do you plan to meet it?

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