Author: cbarney.45

Gratitude versus envy

“It’s a funny thing about life…once you begin to take note of the things you are grateful for, you begin to lose sight of the things that you lack.” – Germany Kent

Many of us live a life of over abundance. We are surrounded with a surplus of food and drink to keep us from feeling hunger, of toys and games to keep us from being bored, etc. But because we are constantly surrounded by more and more things (we can’t even get away from it on social media), our focus often shifts from being grateful for what we have to always comparing our lives to others and wanting more. If we focus on what we lack, we will never have enough. But if we focus on being grateful for what we have, envy, jealousy, and desire will have less control over us.

Worry, fear, and anxiety

Worrying is like a rocking chair. It will give you something to do, but it won’t get you anywhere. ​
Worrying is like a rocking chair. It will give you something to do, but it won’t get you anywhere.

“Worry won’t get you to where you want to go. Action is the only way…”

To me, the only potential benefit to worrying is that it might help you think of ways that things might go sideways, allowing you to plan your next move ahead of it. But if you just get good at thinking of all the angles ahead of time, putting a contingency plan in place, and then still take action, you’ll be better off.

Where people get in trouble is when they let their worries, fears, and anxiety take over. When they overthink a situation, it’s almost like they’re in quicksand and can’t move. But if they realize that many of their worries will never actually come to fruition, they’ll be better off.

Another way to think about fear is this…what do I really fear about this situation? In a worst case scenario, what is going to happen? Maybe someone will tell you no or you’ll be embarrassed. Well, get used to it. All successful people have been told “no” a lot in their lives. All successful people have had to take a chance (and often fail) to get to where they are.

Worrying is like a rocking chair. It will give you something to do (there’s always something we can be worried about), but it doesn’t get you anywhere.

Believe in yourself

“Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” – Theodore Roosevelt

If you want to achieve great things, the first thing you must do is believe…believe that you can do it! Because if you don’t really think it’s possible, you’ll subconsciously look for reasons why you can’t do it instead of finding ways to do it. You might have to think outside the box to get it. You might have to follow a path someone else has already cleared. But almost assuredly, if it’s a challenging goal, you’re likely to at least stumble along the way. This is why believing that you can do it AND believing that you’re strong enough to overcome any adversity that comes your way is so important. When you inevitability make a mistake, you’ll realize it’s not permanent, and you’ll find a way to move on and grow from it.

Believe in yourself. Make a plan. Take action. Re-evaluate as necessary. Persist through difficulty. And continue to make progress towards your goal(s) every day.

Setting yourself up for success

No matter what you do, whether you are an employee at the bottom of the totem pole, a middle manager, an independent contractor, or a business owner, there are certain things that you can do to set yourself up for success. Four things that you can do that guarantee your success are the following:

1) Have a great work ethic. People say work smarter, not harder. But I believe that you should work smarter AND harder. Do you things well, do them efficiently, and do them more often than your competition.

2) Be willing to do the tasks that are “not your responsibility” when needed. This doesn’t mean to overstep your boundaries. There should be defined roles and responsibilities for each job position. But if you notice something needs to get done right now and nobody else is picking up the slack, do it. You don’t need to advertise what you’ve done, just get it done and move on.

3) Always be willing to listen and to learn more. Pick the brains from those who have done it before you and from the top professionals in your field right now. Listen to podcasts, read books, read blogs, network, etc. The point is to not think that you know everything. You can always improve.

4) Be optimistic. Don’t let your current circumstances get you down. Be optimistic that you have the ability and determination to turn things around. Being optimistic doesn’t mean that you think things will magically get better, but that things can and will get better if you do something to make it better.