Week 12

Dear Friends,

::The most important part of goaling is thinking.  I imagine thinking as a systematic way to understand and make sense of stimuli.  Stimuli is everywhere and everything.  I highlighted systematic in the first sentence because we all develop our own systems for going about thinking.  The people who get what they want are the ones who study their thoughts and optimize them to support their goals.

Each thought we have affirms something.  In order to optimize thinking, positive affirmations must outweigh the negative.   The progress I make each week with my goals is a reflections of my thinking so it is important to make sure that I am not wasting thoughts on negative affirmations.  My challenge to you is to make every thought count this week::

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Gain 10 lbs of muscle
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What have you done for me lately?: 
I was a success in my action plan last week which was to lift heavy 4 days, eat 5 meals/day, basketball twice, and yoga once.  This week I expect the same.

Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:

Lift heavy 4 days this week, eat 5 meals per day, play basketball, and go to yoga

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Save an extra $2,000

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What have you done for me lately?:

I'm still a non-smoker :) it's been 45 days give or take since I put out that last butt in an effort to preserve health and save money.  My plan last week was to start Rich Dad, Poor Dad, a book on financial literacy.  I've picked up some great knowledge already just from the first few chapters.   

Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:

  Continue listening to Rich Dad, Poor Dad audiobook

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Spend 200 hours learning and/or practicing Spanish

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.    

Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:

Read a minimum of five articles on Nulu.com

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Read 12 books

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What have you done for me lately?:

Last week's action plan was read at least 150 pages.  I ended up reading about 100 pages and finishing the second Hunger Games book which was just OK.  I'll read 100 pages next week from a book that is still to be decided.

Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:
Read 100 pages

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W  o  r  d  s   to   p  o  n  d  e  r

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“Every thought we think is creating our future. ”
― Louise Hay 

 Michael Love

Week 11

Dear Friends,

::From me::
 One of the biggest excuses is time.  Time is a cop out.  It is a safe answer to a lot ofs frustrating question (Why haven't you started Project X?).  It's safe because people understand and almost expect others to have no time for new things.  The thought process is that we never stop being busy until we die.  HOWEVER -not all of our seconds are accounted for.  There is time to work on the new project because there is time to do nothing -- "Doing-nothing-time" may be disguised as watching TV, poking around on Facebook, or insert your own place-holding activity. 

I thought I had no time to do these goals, but I somehow had time to watch a few movies a week, spend time on Facebook, etc.  If you're like me and never have time to start a new project then try giving yourself the feeling of progress.  Progress can light the match to your bottle rocket and get you going FAST.
 



::To you::
Imagine what it feels like to complete a new project that you haven't started.  Pride, excitement, joy?  Next, take a single action towards that project and reflect on how it felt.  For instance, if you want to lose weight, then workout once.  A lot of the time this can be enough to move you to more progress. 

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Goal 1: To change 30 lives
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Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:

Nothing this week

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Goal 2: To gain 10 lbs of muscle
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What have you done for me lately?: 
I was supposed to lift heavy 5 days, eat 5 meals/day, basketball twice, yoga once.  I lifted heavy 3 days,  hours, went to yoga, and played basketball one day. 

Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:

Lift heavy 4 days this week, eat 5 meals per day, play basketball, and go to yoga

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Goal 3: to save an extra $2,000

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What have you done for me lately?:

I'm still a non-smoker :)
I have a set amount of savings that I am committed to setting aside each month.

Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:

 Listen to Rich Dad, Poor Dad audiobook

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Goal 4: To develop and present a business plan to FIVE investors

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Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:

Nothing this week

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Goal 5: To spend 200 hours learning and/or practicing Spanish

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.    

Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:

Read a minimum of five articles on Nulu.com before Wednesday

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Goal 6: To read 12 books

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What have you done for me lately?:

Last week's action plan was read at least 100 pages.  I ended up reading more than 150 pages and finishing my 6th book, Veronika Decides to Die by Paulo Cuelo.  Excellent story with an excellent perspective on mental health.

Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:
Read 150 pages

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W  o  r  d  s   to   p  o  n  d  e  r

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 "Time is what we want most, but what we use worst."
William Penn

"Don’t be fooled by the calendar. There are only as many days in the year as you make use of. One man gets only a week’s value out of a year while another man gets a full year’s value out of a week."
Charles Richards

"The key is in not spending time, but in investing it."
Stephen R. Covey

"Determine never to be idle. No person will have occasion to complain of the want of time who never loses any. It is wonderful how much can be done if we are always doing."
Thomas Jefferson

 Michael Love

Week 10

Dear Friends,

::We can all agree that willpower is needed for anything worth doing especially for reaching goals.  One way to gain more willpower or self-control is to train your brain through meditation. Neuroscientists have discovered that when you ask the brain to meditate, it gets better not just at meditating, but at a wide range of self-control skills, including attention, focus, stress management, impulse control, and self-awareness. Regular meditators have more gray matter in the prefrontal cortex, as well as regions of the brain that support self-awareness according to Kelly Monigal, Ph.D. of Stanford University.  I thought I'd share this with you because my meditation practice has been central to my goals.::

 

I encourage you start your own daily meditation practice (it could even be five minutes per day!) by following these simple steps:
1. Find a comfortable sitting position then sit still and stay put.
2. Turn your attention to the breath.
3. Notice how it feels to breath and notice how the mind wanders.

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Goal 1: To change 30 lives
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What have you done for me lately?: 

Last week's action plan was to make notes / sandwiches for the less fortunate.  It didn’t happen, and I have no excuse.  Next week starts a new and I am determined to finish all action plans including giving back through this one. 

Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:

Notes / sandwiches for less fortunate

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Goal 2: To gain 10 lbs of muscle
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What have you done for me lately?: 
I was supposed to lift heavy 5 days this week, Eat 5 meals.  I lifted heavy 4 days, ran for 3 hours, went to yoga, and played basketball twice. 

Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:

Lift heavy 5 days this week, eat 5 meals per day, play basketball 2 times, and go to yoga.

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Goal 3: to save an extra $2,000

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What have you done for me lately?:

IT HAS BEEN ONE MONTH SINCE I QUIT SMOKING!!!  

I couldn’t be happier about it :)  I have more energy, enjoy life more fully, and harbor no guilt for ruining my health -- not to mention the money I’m banking by shaking the smokes.  I will keep no nicotine in my WAP until the end but this week I’ve added another money saving activity.

Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:

Choose dollar amount to set aside each paycheck and set up a direct deposit into savings account.   

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Goal 4: To develop and present a business plan to FIVE investors

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What have you done for me lately?:

Last week’s action:

Last week I said I would challenge myself to imagine my future-self accomplishing this goal.  Write one page about what it feel like//how it will affect my life.  I contemplated this while I jogging and I found that my cognition for this goal is centered on an “all-or-nothing” perspective.  I am scared to make progress because it is my fear that the idea I follow will define me.  I don’t want to risk putting myself in a box but by not trying, I am doing just that.  I don’t need to make a perfect business plan before presenting.  No matter what work I come up with the experience is priceless.  This is the attitude I will adopt moving forward for Goal 4.

Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:

Start from scratch.

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Goal 5: To spend 200 hours learning and/or practicing Spanish

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What have you done for me lately?:

Last week's action plan was to read a minimum of five articles on Nulu//schedule tutor lesson//read one page of the textbook.  I read five articles, scheduled my tutor lesson for November 5, and read 20 pages of the textbook!  That is what I would have liked to report but the truth is I didn’t make any progress.  I’m keeping the same goal but changing my attitude.  Every action plan MUST be completed for every goal this week.
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Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:

Read a minimum of five articles on Nulu // schedule tutor lesson // read one page of the textbook. 

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Goal 6: To read 12 books

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What have you done for me lately?:

Last week's action plan was read at least 100 pages.  I ended up reading more than 100 pages and finishing Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind.   It was an eye-opening read.  I’ve never thought about life from this perspective and it clicked with me.  Meditation is now the most important part of my day.  I also finished The Willpower Instinct which is a book that everyone should read on self-awareness.  Next I’m reading the second Hunger Games book, Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins next and listening to Paulo Coelho’s Veronika Decides to Die. 

Weekly Action Plan (WAP)!:
Read 100 pages.  Listen to two hours of audiobook. 

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W  o  r  d  s   to   p  o  n  d  e  r

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"If your mind is empty, it is ready for anything. In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities; in the expert's mind there are few."
- Shunryu Suzuki

 Michael Love