Tag Archives: goals

The Stop Light

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stop lightSitting in my car at a stop light. Waiting for the green light. Watching. Getting ready for the green light. My plan was to turn left and continue to my destination. Without an arrow on green, the left turn must yield and wait for the intersection to be clear.

The whole three minutes made me think about the times in life when we come to decision intersections. To have an opportunity presented isn’t necessarily a green light. Sometimes its best to slow down and check the intersection for clarity.

Just a thought.

KK

 

Snow Day Projects

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Four days ago our community had a foot of snow fall. Some areas south of us got upwards of two feet of snow. Yes, I know it’s checklistthe beginning of March. Winter was a little late in blooming this year. It tried to show up in November with our first five inches, but it shied away and tried to make a final stand a couple of weeks ago but decided a few days ago to go for broke before the first day of spring gets here.

The snow came and fell for hours. We woke to a foot of snow and the city practically shut down. For those who couldn’t go to work or school it was a prime opportunity to hit the list. We all have them. The list of projects or chores we save for “when we are snowed in”. These projects could range from sorting old photos into albums, cleaning out a closet or sitting in the big chair and reading all day long.

Unfortunately, we are so connected from inside our own homes to the outside world and have so many entertainment distractions at our finger tips, the snow really doesn’t keep us from doing much we would be ordinarily do. Short of a power outage, I could work and still do conference calls. My son could still watch a variety of cable or NetFlix shows. Our snow days didn’t look much different than a normal day off for the kids or a normal work day for me; ok, other than the initial excitement of a day of sledding and take-out pizza.

What will it take for me to hit the list and get it done? Sitting here thinking of two or three of my projects, I find one thing leading to another. Cleaning out a closet is going to mean sorting, organizing and more than likely a trip to Goodwill. But all of the closets need this, so do I sort and organize all of them and make a huge trip to Goodwill? How do I prioritize my list? Can I ever catch up with all of my projects? Or is this like eating the big salad? Since waiting for snow won’t get it done, guess I’m going to have to just dig in.

Here’s my challenge to you – yes, you can hold me accountable – today is March 8, 2015, Easter is April 5th, four weeks. How many of your snow day list items can we complete?

Are you game?

KK

The Thrill of Delivery

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Today is October 30, 2014.

My first email this morning was amazing. It was from the Franklin Covey Company informing me that my 2015 planner had been shipped!! [Please note, I will not be running down the street in Steve Martin new-telephone-book-style when it arrives, but I might just do the Snoopy dance in my foyer.] This along with the fact that I have to go to Staples today for some paper clips, ink and envelopes makes me smile. It’s like back to school day for a forty-something year old!! Of course, knowing my new planner is on its way and that it’s the end of the month moved me to examine the current state of the 2014 planner.

snoopy dance

The fourth quarter pages were inserted with the previous months being removed. Then I ventured to review my 2014 goals pages. Not too shabby. Several items checked off while others will move forward into 2015.

This all may sound juvenile to some, but come on, we are all grown up and completely responsible for our commitments to raising a family and bringing home the funds to care for them. We must have those moments in day, week or month that just let us experience child-like excitement.

What stirs your child-like thrill? Don’t have one? Go find one, they can be located on the playgrounds or neighborhoods when the ice cream truck music wafts through the air. Or when the first snowflakes fall and the snow day announcement comes. This high level thrill can also be found when that ONE gift is opened at Christmas or birthday; the thing they never thought would arrive. Or find yourself outside a school on the last day at the last bell. You’ll see the excitement that drifts from our scheduled behavior somewhere in our mid-twenties.

Give it a listen and let me know if you don’t find yourself a little happier in your heart.

 Linus and Lucy piano Peanuts theme song Vince Guaraldi

All the best,

KK

Everybody’s Busy

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Everybody’s busy – this seems to be the thing to say when an invitation is declined instead of saying “I’m sorry you can’t attend”. While it is easy to get caught up in all the opportunities life offers today; it’s also easy to waste a lot of time with cable tv, mobile device games, and other internet surfing.

busy peoplePeople are as busy as they want to be.  There are times when work and personal activities collide and a little hustle is required. The hours of the day are full.  This hustle doesn’t last forever.

Adults can take control of their time to fulfill their responsibilities such as work and family.  If life becomes too hassled and full, it may be time to re-evaluate the “time-suckers”.  Do they fall within personal priorities?

If someone declines your invitation, it may not mean they are too busy, it simply means that event is at the same time as something else that day.

Just a thought,

KK

Farewell 2013

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It’s half past three in the afternoon on New Year’s Eve.  I’ve spent some time in the office taking care of a few things – organizing.  The January calendar is set up and ready for the appointments I have in the first two weeks.  The whiteboard has project priorities.  There is order to my work space.

On a personal note, the checkbook is balanced (yes, I do this at least once a month and recommend it for others).  The big home projects for the coming year have been discussed and prioritized.  To close 2013, I feel the completion of 365 full and rich days. Even those with tears and challenges brought something.

It was a good year personally and professionally.  I am so proud of my son and husband for their accomplishments and letting me be on their journey just as they have rooted me on during mine.

There were goals achieved and others still undone.  Will I recommit to the unfinished?  We will see.

I have grown personally in knowledge and wisdom.  Sometimes I feel my age and sometimes my life experience. One truth is that I will never stop learning.

As we turn the last page of the calendar, may we do so with all of the optimism a new year brings.  May we breathe in the freshness of 365 blank days and look forward to all of the activities and people who will fill them.  God bless you and carry you through each one of them.

All the best,

KK

The Closing

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The calendar is waning.  Christmas is over.  Retailers are rushing us into the next holiday.  There is work to be done, but most meetings are cancelled.  The work pace is easy and there is opportunity to get organized and ready to go.  I spent some time today closing out a few files for 2013.calendar_1

It’s hard not to begin planning for 2014.  Over the last week it has been so wonderful to gear-down that I don’t want to go rushing into the New Year.  I’d like to ease into it, choose my goals wisely and roll from there.

Yes, I used the dirty word, “goals”.  We will talk about that later.  For now, let’s just spend some more time with family and play with our new things we got for Christmas.

All the best,

KK

Thought Provoking…

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“Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.”

― Benjamin Franklin

 

There are those individuals who in their 20’s after graduating college are true go-getters.  They work hard, get involved and are all about their upwardly mobile status.  But somewhere along the way they slow down and begin to cruise; maybe they gain a little market knowledge and begin to think they know a little something.  They get into their routines of life, work, family, children — all very important.  But in doing so, they don’t get involved, they just fill their time being busy — or rather they let their time GET filled with stuff.  But are they continuing to learn and expand their mind and life-experiences.  Are they watching life go by on their television screens or are they engaging in interesting and meaningful activities? Are you an active participant in life?  This quote from Benjamin Franklin made me wonder…

There is a line from the movie Shawshank Redemption, “You either get busy living or get busy dying.”

So, what are you doing today?  Are you expanding your experiences and knowledge of life, love and all there is in this great big world?  What are you doing?

Happy Friday,

KK

Why?

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Someone has asked the question, and today I’m pondering it.

Why do most people over estimate what they can accomplish in one year and under-estimate what they can accomplish in 10 years?

What do you think?

KK

Who’s the victim now?

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freedom  At some point in everyone’s life something bad happens.  The country music industry is proof of that.  How many songs are all about heart-ache and double crossing meanness?  Maybe you were shorted an opportunity as a child, as a young adult someone lies or breaks your heart, or as a professional someone discredits you to the point of losing your job.  Take a look at these three scenarios — what’s the commonality?  What could you control?  Finding yourself as a victim offers the opportunity for choices.

You have the choice to stay down in the situation and wallow, or you can take charge of your responsibility in the situation, how did it get as bad as it did?  What could you have done differently?  Answers to these questions allow the freedom to grow as a person, move forward and not remain stuck.

Even if it takes years to grow up and out of the situation, at some point in order to be free of the chains of victimization, you have to own the situation, learn from it and grow into a wiser person.

Hanging on to unfair situations in the past only burdens the future.  This process of overcoming injustices can be freedom3amazing and freeing.  Sometimes the hardest thing to do is work on bettering yourself and breaking free when others around you don’t live by the same life-long values.

Consider yourself challenged to do some soul-searching and decide today what stronghold or area of your life needs addressing.  Can you see yourself as successfully walking away from being a victim and being free from whatever restricts you from being the best you were created to be?  Is it an area that at the end of your days you will be thankful you addressed?

All the best,

KK

It’s Just a Drop in the Bucket

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How many times is the question asked, “What does it matter”? It’s just a drop in the bucket; meaningless.  Every day we make drop in bucketthousands of declarations, I do, I don’t, I will, I can’t, yes, no, maybe.  Each of these little words leads to an action or no action, but all of them move us forward.  Put these declarations in a string and the results are decisions that pave the journey of life.  Meaningless – no decision is completely meaningless and all lead to experiences that make and mold who we are.   What impact will my decisions really have, I am one individual?

Recently, I was watching the Discovery Channel with my son.  The show talked about water molecules.  Water drops tend to reach and adhere to each other.  So two drops of water close enough on a plate or counter will join and become a bigger drop.  If you fill a cup to the rim the water molecules are clinging to each other and will sit on the very edge of the cup until some other action forces them over the edge.

This bucket was set under a dripping facet – one drip at a time and a few hours later the bucket was full.  One drip barely made tdrip in buckethe bucket wet, but in a short time there is enough to wash.

Choices and decisions may seem like nothing, but they all lead to something.  Where are you going?

All the best,

KK