We Are a Work In Progress
Progress: is this something that we all are working on?
Yes, would be my answer to that question. Which direction are you progressing? would be the next question that I would ask because we are always progressing one way or the other.
Earl Nightingale tells the story...
A couple went to vacation in India and from their hotel window noticed a young man sitting by a bridge everyday. One day while passing by the young man they stopped to ask why do you sit here everyday?
In my religion we believe we are reincarnated as a new being, I am sitting this life, out...the young man replied.
The young man was progressing in a downward spiral just getting enough to get by with as he traveled through what he believed to be one of his reincarnated lives on this earth.
This is not the type of progress I would like to talk about in this post. Even though it does prove a point that we are all a work in progress. But, the real question is ...
If we are a work in progress, which direction are you progressing?
Is it upward to make your self better so that you can give value to others?
Is it a downward spiral so that you destroy your self and those that you can take with you?
Or do you think you are riding a fence and doing nothing - just letting the world do its own thing?
Consider...
When you make your self better you can change the world around you.
The environment you live in... you become the start of the ripple in the water that then spreads to others.
When you are in the downward spiral you are the cyclone of water that forms when the plug
is pulled out of the tub full of water.
Everything goes down the drain.
When you are neutral - that is indifference - you are like a tree root in a sidewalk.
You have no contribution in life except to trip up the ones rising or the ones falling.
You have a choice... As the great leader of the nation of Israel Joshua once said... Choose this day whom you will serve (Joshua 24:15), for us... choose this day what you will be.
Work with your Focus on the upward progress
There are many ways to focus on progressively getting better. Let me share just a few thoughts here and below.
First, choose one goal, no more than two that you want to work on. The reason is you do not need to have more things contenting for your time. Also, you need to work one thing long enough to make it a habit.
Second, choose where you are going to work on these goal. You need a consistent work place. This way you are not constantly spending time moving things. There are exceptions if you travel in your work but even then make good habits of how you are going to work.
Third, choose what you are going to wear the night before. If you want to make it simple and not use any thinking power. Have a wardrobe of the same thing that way there is no decision to make and no time wasted. Your mind will really thank you for this.
Fourth, the night before make a list of the simple things you are going to do the next morning. I stress...a simple one, two or three things that you can rapidly get done.
Fifth, Get out of bed and go straight to the work. Only the task you have written down in #4. Do not even peep at an email, text message, Facebook quote, nothing. Have every distraction turned off. Even one second can lead to 15 minutes.
Six, make it a routine to do the above five things every day. In other words be consistent.
We all are a work in progress, make you progress for the better.
If you enjoyed this post please quickly do me a favor and share with others and comment below.
To your success
Baxter Cribbs
PS ... Growing in your social skills is always a work in progress. If you would like to see how you can grow your skills in LinkedIn click here unless you already have to many connection on LinkedIn
