“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bow-lines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
— Mark Twain
No matter how great you may think everything is for you right now – I bet there’s probably something more you want to accomplish, right? It could be (you fill in the blank) … it all takes time, planning and action.
And that’s the hard part. Most people find planning for big goals difficult because all they think about is the all the steps they have to take and all the work they have to take to get there. As a result, it’s easy to lose interest.
Motivation dies. Goal forgotten.
But if you break up the long-term goals into short-term victories you become about 100 times more likely to achieve EVERYTHING you want to do. Teaching our students that lesson is one of Balanced Life Skills goals! When they practice that lesson – we will have helped to develop a very well adjusted and productive group of students.
How important is gratitude?
A note from one of my mentors:
“Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.”
— Abraham Lincoln
Throughout our childhood our parents taught us to say ‘thank you’ and it became a habit – something we say automatically, along with ‘please’. And because of this we have forgotten just how important gratitude is and how essential it is in leading fulfilled lives.
So why is gratitude important?
Just for a minute, think of all the things you are grateful for, such as, loving friends, partners and family, pets who love you unconditionally, good health, great holidays you’ve had, as well as everyday items such as a comfortable home, electricity, TV, fridge, and clean water when you turn on the tap.
The list, in fact, could go on and on. So how does that make you feel when you think of all these things? Doesn’t it make you feel good?
Now focus on events that have made you unhappy or dissatisfied – it’s raining, the car won’t start, a work colleague irritates you, you have a head cold. You start to feel grumpy and resentful, and that is something that certainly does not feel good – in fact it feels bad!
So which would you prefer? To feel good? Or to feel bad?
It’s a straightforward choice and we have the ability to choose how we feel. But for most of us, it just doesn’t seem as easy as that – isn’t the world out to get us? Well, no, it isn’t actually, it’s just our perception of how things are.
Let me give you an example: it’s a wet, rainy day, and immediately most people will start to complain, tell everyone who will listen what a miserable day it is, with the result that they end up feeling miserable themselves.
But look at it another way and despite wet clothes and hair, both will dry perfectly well and no lasting harm has been done. And in addition to this, because of rain, we not only live in a green and beautiful landscape, we are able to grow an abundance of fruit and vegetables.
There really is no obvious reason for feeling miserable – in fact there is a great deal to be grateful for. It’s all to do with how we perceive things.
We can alter our perceptions – our view of how the world is and how things affect us. And when we do that, then we can start to feel gratitude and as a consequence, start to feel good!
So here are a few suggestions to help you get started: Continue reading “How important is gratitude?”
Not just about test scores
This week the reports came out showing improvement in the academic test scores across the State of Maryland. While that is good, and the closing of the gap of test scores across the board of students is a good accomplishment, we should remember that education is not just about test scores. Nor is it about one’s physical prowess as a sports star, or how many toys you will be able to collect after getting this education.
It is about children growing up to be happy, productive and useful members of society. Growing into adulthood with a love for life, with compassion and empathy for others. Our goal here at Balanced Life Skills is to support every child’s most important teacher, their parents, reinforcing all of the lessons they hope for their child to learn.
Living with simplicity
I have been giving a lot of thought to the place that we find ourselves, with increase pressure from the economy and the price of gasoline and all the other pressures that we feel environmentally. I have noted before that when we approach any challenge or problem we should do so out of love and not out of fear or anger.
It is because of those thoughts that I believe it is the time as never before to look at living our lives with more simplicity. At the end of the day, it is never the things that we have accumulated that make the difference in our lives, but rather the ability to recognize the small miracles that happen around us every day and our ability to share them with others and especially our family.
Maybe the time has come to pay attention to our lives and insist on them being less cluttered, and ultimately less stressful. Simplifying may be the answer. All the things we gather really are just props, simplicity allows us to be us and to see and love the things that are really important.
How do you feel about this subject? click on comments at the top and let me know.
Determination: A no quit, go for it attitude
Determination refers to a person’s attitude towards defining goals for himself as well as his ability to take the initiative to achieve those goals. It involves a combination of skills, knowledge, drive and belief in oneself which enable a person to engage in goal-directed action.
Determined people typically have a clear understanding of their strengths, limitations, interests and needs. They use this understanding to make important decisions about their goals, evaluate their progress, make adjustments, and follow through to completion. Determined people don’t allow weakness to deter them from reaching their goals.
Given that this is an Olympic year and the games begin this month, students will be seeing a great deal of determination in action. What a great teaching opportunity! One of the key things that they can glean from watching their favorite athletes is that while talent can open the doors to great opportunities, it’s actually determination that provides people with the “ticket” to achieve their goals. As legendary actress, Sophia Loren, once said; “Getting ahead in a difficult profession requires avid faith in yourself. That is why some people with mediocre talent, but with great inner drive, go much further than people with vastly superior talent.”
This month the definitions of determination are as follows:
Young students: “I’ve got a ‘No-Quit-Go-For-It’ attitude!”
Older students, teens and adults: The attitude needed to define a goal and then follow through to the end.
During the four weeks of July we will be discussing the following:
Continue reading “Determination: A no quit, go for it attitude”
Dupont Circle Farmers Market
This past weekend Karen & I made a trip to the Dupont Circle farmers market. This is one of those things that you wouldn’t do every weekend, but every once in a while is a real treat. First of all the vegetables are amazing, fresh milk, cheeses, flowers, bread. everything you could ever want to eat and things you never knew about.
I have learned about chard and beet greens. This week I got just picked onions and garlic bulbs. I saw the most purple eggplant I have ever seen and beautiful golden beets.
When we were done there is a wonderful independent bookstore/cafe just down the street called Kramers. We went there for brunch and of course some book browsing. My son Sean went with us and he likes the bookstore so much he skipped the brunch. Go figure. If you ever have the opportunity to take a Sunday morning you can do the trip down and be back by noon or 1 PM and have a wonderful time. This is a great trip with the kids too. they get to see great farm products, meet farmers and enjoy the kids section (small) at the book store.
Why am I talking about the farmers markets so much. I really believe that this is a way for us to eat better and to introduce our children to farmers as well as lessen our footprint on the planet. More to come from markets in our own neighborhoods.