“Take it day by day. Don’t stress too much about tomorrow”. I understand, and I’m guilty of it too, we all have a master plan that we are working toward. That master plan might not come into fruition for many weeks, months, or years. All of the work that needs to be done to get there might be daunting, but by giving it time, you’ll inch your way closer.

When it comes to stressing about tomorrow think about what that means. It means you are allowing something that is out of your control to affect your current mood. Maybe there’s a big event or family situation that is causing stress that won’t resolve for a few days, but even that future date is out of your control.

However, what you can do, and what you are in control of, is you can pick things to do in the moment that helps alleviate the gravity of the situation. Remember that you have the choice, and the ability to impact the situation immediately is an optimistic thought and a reminder that things will be okay.

So, “take it day by day. Don’t stress too much about tomorrow.”

Health is an extremely important part of your life and path to personal development, but as you may or may not have noticed, we haven’t shared anything really related to best health practices. Gina B is a registered dietitian, published author, and well renowned speaker in the dietary community. In the video, she tells us the foundation she teaches to having a successful diet plan.

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 I was on the phone with Lulu Yanez, a motivated and self-driven woman with a booming Instagram page, who shared with me a technique she uses. She stores all of her content ideas and impressions on post-it notes that she sticks to the door in her room.  Her door is filled with ideas, and it is a great reservoir of thoughts that she can tap into any time she needs to!

I decided to give the same concept a try at work, but with organizing my task list. I created three sections for me to put post it notes and organize my to-do’s.  Things that are urgent, things that are ongoing, and things that are completed.

I think this method really worked for me, and here is why. First, using post it notes and keeping them on my desk has allowed me to easily refer to my next objective, eliminating the down time between working on tasks. It also helps me reduce disruptions and distractions. Also, as random thoughts or tasks pop into my head, I can write it down immediately and take care of it later, instead of dropping what I’m doing to address it. If certain task are too big, I can write them onto separate post its, creating a natural plan of attack instead of being overwhelmed by a larger goal.

In sum, it’s rewarding finishing a task and moving it to the completed section, thereby validating the effort I put in and helping me keep track of how much I am getting done!

Social media sometimes gets a bad rap for all of the distractions, and bad information that it offers. However, it also does an incredible job connecting people. That’s the purpose of it! It provides instant access for two people from across the world to communicate, who may not even know of the other person’s existence. It’s crazy if you think about it, and there has to be some value in it.

Well, within the topic of self-improvement, that value is motivation and accountability! When interacting with other like-minded people, you feel motivated to do even more! It acts as the reminder you needed to take yourself seriously and follow through on the things you said you were going to do. Even though you’ve never met this person, you are still terrified to disappoint them, and will work extra hard to avoid a confrontation.

So, to really leverage this power, the best thing to do is to join an accountability group! 

I just learned about Earl Nightingale, a World War II era philosopher and author, and am blown away by his work. He shares a simple message about our psychology that has lasted the test of time and will continue to ring true. Our minds are powerful and capable of influencing our life. He gives a great metaphor for this in this meddage.

He goes on to talk about the power of our mind, and perception. Limitations are self-imposed, and if you feed your mind with limitations, it will begin accept them and produce more of them. The same goes for solutions and ambition. So, fill your mind with goals, ideas, and solutions that all point to success, and your mind will amplify that intention on its own.

This quote is similar to the distinction between 'playing not to lose' and 'playing to win'.  When you play not to lose, your focus is on not making mistakes. Your execution will become really rigid.  You’re more likely to put pressure on yourself and not perform like you should.  On the other hand, when you play to win, you have nothing to lose and can attack the challenge head on.  This allows you to take chances on your way to earning the result, without fear of what might happen.

To continue, using a lens of positivity helps you see opportunity. The reality of every situation we inherit is we can either go up or go down. You can get promoted, or you can get fired. You can get engaged or break up. Although both possibilities seem equally likely, when you choose to focus on what there is to gain, the perspective you choose tends to be favored in your life and transpire more often than you would think.  So, use positivity to see all that there is to gain. Don’t focus on what you have to lose.

The question is: Should you care what others think about you?

If I’m being honest with myself, I do. I do care what others think about me. I definitely identify with living a lifestyle that other people respect and appreciate. But, having said that, I am going to present both sides of the case, but ultimately I’m most curious to know what you think!

First, I’ll present the opposite argument which is the assumption that you shouldn't care what other people think. Why should we live to meet others expectations? It’s a sad life if we can’t find fulfillment intrinsically, and you’ll never find true happiness if you don’t do things 100% for yourself. If anything, others’ expectations are suppressing our most natural state, right?

Okay fair, but let’s listen to the counter assumption,which is why should you care what others think about you? Well, for one, we live in a world full of people, it’s not just us and the planet. So, isn’t it important to understand our role in the ecosystem, and be sure that we are contributing in a generally positive way? Or, even looking at the individual, some people respond better to external accountability, and don’t necessarily even know what’s best for them. So, being open to others’ opinions and critique might actually present a path where they are better suited to succeed or find that eventual intrinsic joy.

I want to introduce you to a resource I just learned about by way of habit formation expert, Nir Eyal.  

It’s called Focusmate, and basically, it helps you find a temporary online accountability partner. You log on to the website, become paired with a motivated stranger, share your action items for the working time period, and get to work! At the end, you tell them about how you did and go on your way.  

If you are working from home, have an important project to get done or list of online errands to take care of, then this could be an awesome solution. What it does first is it forces you to come up with a list of things to tackle in the next hour, because you will share that list with your Focusmate partner. When it comes time to get to work, you have a list of things to get through, so you have no shortage of things to do, as well as the external accountability of someone else who is going to ask you about your productivity. I imagine it makes for an awesome combination. So, if you’re a lone entrepreneur or looking for a bump in motivation for a few hours, definitely give Focusmate a try! 

But, accountability comes in so many different forms. For instance, there’s hour to hour motivational accountability, accountability to responsibilities and expectations, maybe from a boss, and accountability to a certain lifestyle or attaining personal growth.

CEO, Kim Kaupe, has a really valuable message to share as her main takeaway from the Ms. USA pageant judging experience.

We look up to celebrities and wildly successful people like they aren’t human, but when you look a layer deeper you realize they are a person, just like you, who started small, worked hard, and earned their way. If it happened for them, why can’t it happen to you?  It’s okay to dream big because if one person can accomplish something, why not make it you? And why not start now?

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