Ready? Get Set! GO!

 Happy New Year!  We have 12 months or 52 weeks to get closer to achieving our goals.  And we GET TO vs have to! After changing my mindset to living my life by my design, I spent December reflecting on the previous 11 months of 2022.  I realized I’d accomplished a lot, even if I didn’t get to the end zone (owning my own permaculture homestead).

 Similar to the game of American football, you work for every inch. Thanks to my gratitude journal, many memories that had escaped me were recollected and a different perspective of appreciation applied. Looking back on those many moments (most of them were inches vs. big showy plays) seemed to calibrate my focus for the present and future, allowing my ability to recognize even small or sneaky opportunities to expand - also when and how to trust my gut or recognize personal triggers. Almost like a magnet, I recognize more of these moments. It has felt like an avalanche of growth! While I’ve been basking in my own self-made glow, I took a step back to myself a year ago and really marveled at the difference in my self-awareness and self-empowerment.  I also recognized missed opportunities and weaknesses in my game, so I get to revise my playbook!  

MINDSET. A real buzzword that starts to lose its magnitude as it gets overused without full understanding. You have to walk this walk to fully understand, and that may take a “fake-it-til-you-make-it” attitude and a gratitude journal to write in every night. At the end of a year of this routine, and a review of your journal, tell me a change of mindset didn’t or doesn’t make a difference!

Back to the here and now. Time to plan my calendar for housekeeping maintenance and the garden plan! Daily, I’ll do my morning affirmations, review my vision and mission, and plan my days with actions that serve my values and get me closer to achieving my short-term and long-term goals! And this year will be sharper and more accurate than the last, I can hardly wait!

Two resolutions I’ve made and have implemented for several weeks now are 1) stretch and break a sweat everyday and 2) turn the shower to cold for the last 30 seconds - BRRRRRRRR! What steps or strides have you made or set up? Mention in the comments to join in this self-empowering conversation for a healthier community and world. Namaste!

 

Real vs. Ideal | Sabastian Enges 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3i2auIIra4

"Success is not a destination, it is a journey of becoming." Sebastian Enges

We Always Do What We Value The Most | Sabastian Enges

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAX1zqvi5oQ

YOU ARE THE MASTER OF YOUR LIFE.  DO YOU DESIGN YOUR LIFE, OR DO YOU LET OTHERS AND OUTSIDE CIRCUMSTANCES STEER YOU?  YOUR DIRECTION DETERMINES YOUR DESTINATION.  TAKE OWNERSHIP OF YOUR VALUES AND ACTIONS AND MAKE YOUR LIFE HAPPEN.

Path to Financial Freedom

 PATH TO FINANCIAL FREEDOM

Image by Nattanan Kanchanaprat

    It has been 3 years since I opened up a secured credit card.  Since then, my credit score has shot up 150 points, my bills have all been paid on time, and I have savings piling up.  As I updated my finances and projected my budget for the next fiscal period, I realized that soon, I'll be able to borrow from myself - at 0.0% APR!  How?  Read on...

    I have been scraping by since the pandemic struck.  With increases in my line of credit, I've been able to pay most bills using the credit card.  And with cash flow at a minimum, I've had to take cash advances on the credit cards, just to cover some bills that don't allow credit payment.  While I don't like the building balance due on the credit cards, I have been able to enjoy on-time payments with no late fees and penalties, my credit rating keeps going up, and I'm earning money back on rewards.  The catch? Paying interest.  We'll get back to this.

    I have also adopted a strict PAY MYSELF FIRST policy.  Any bit of income earned gets split up 6 ways: 1) Bills  2) SAVINGS  3)Investments  4) Education  5) Giving  6) Spending Money.  At times, I'm tempted to just pay down a credit card balance and save "later" - when my credit card balance is ZERO.  But, I sock away 10% of my earnings and deal with credit card balances and interest.  My credit card balance is still not zero, but my savings account is going up up up!  I realized that I will soon be in a position to borrow from myself, should cash flow become compromised one of these months.  Of course, I'll pay myself (savings account) back - the same as I would pay back the credit card - only I won't have to deal with any interest!  

    Savings had always been something abstract: untouchable, unusable, and mostly non-existent  - but now it is something I can leverage and BANK on!  While my savings account is nowhere near 6 figures, it is growing and allowing more FINANCIAL FREEDOM!  

    This economic journey would not have been possible without the lines of credit I've opened up and used (for rewards and overcoming cash flow hurdles).  I started with a Capital One secured credit card for $400, and now have over $20,000 in available credit (a bit of a cushion = PHEW!).  You can apply for a Capital One credit card by clicking this link: https://capital.one/36KRM7m and get started on your path to FINANCIAL FREEDOM today! 

Image by Kris on Pixabay

Sia - Elastic Heart

TIME TO BREAK THE CYCLE

BUST OUT OF THE CAGE THAT IMPRISONS

PARADIGM SHIFT

YOUR LIFE BY YOUR DESIGN - DON'T BE A VICTIM TO IT

 

Sia - Elastic Heart feat. Shia LaBeouf & Maddie Ziegler (Official Video) / https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWZGAExj-es

Question: Are You Asking The Right Questions?

     In my constant pursuit of improving health (for PCE: people, culture, earth), I am always refining the plan, my beliefs, my goals, my thoughts, my processes...  I am always discovering ways to do it better, and the day that I have it down pat and perfect will be the day I stop learning (or am dead).  I don't plan on that day - this pursuit is a daily mission and my life's purpose.  

    While I appreciate a system that works, routine can sometimes cause blind spots.  How many times have you asked WHY? and the answer was "that's the way it's been done before"?  It's maddening to me, and an opportunity is missed whenever these dismissive responses occur.

    When we analyze systems (in whatever capacity they serve), we give ourselves the chance to ask questions as simple as WHY? and how could it be BETTER?  Brainstorming sessions bring out all of these WHAT IF? scenarios that we can play with, tweak, implement, or scratch altogether.  But, how many brainstorming sessions have you been part of where the brainstorming was lukewarm, generic, meh?

    The difference in a good and not good brainstorming session is the quality of questions being asked.  Drill down beyond the general obedience of the exercise and you come up with some real doozies - questions or theories that challenge the status quo or shake up the dynamic of things.  And in this space, effective change for the better can occur - even if just a seed of an idea gets the chance to germinate, maybe bloom into something brilliant never seen (not even considered) before!

    Elon Musk has found success (ya think?) in his business pursuits and companies by adhering to this philosophy of asking the right questions.  He has said that often times, discovering the right question is often harder than determining the solution.  

    Dr. John DeMartini has multiple tools on his website https://drdemartini.com/ that help you ask the quality questions that can lead you to mastering your life. He takes the generic question "what do you want to be when you grow up?" and delves deeper to make your dreams clear - which illuminates the path of action required to achieve them.

    So be sure to ask yourself the right questions - refine yourself and the environment around you - and push the boundaries of safety found in routine, precedent, or custom.  Quality questions for a quality life.

SELF-RELIANCE / The Art of Trusting One's Self - The Philosophy of Ralph Waldo Emerson

 SELF-RELIANCE:

Not just an essay or philosophy by Ralph Waldo Emerson, but a quality found in strong people (strong - not meaning muscular strength).  

Tough times create strong people; strong people create good times; good times create weak people; weak people create tough times; tough times create strong people...

Here is a clip found on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b04zs6QHuWM

Perhaps the clip is a little long - the first half is a quick biography of Emerson, but it gets good and meaty (talking about self-reliance) about halfway through.

In the wake of supply chain disruptions, food production and distribution, financial institution uncertainty, etc... some SELF-RELIANCE seems like a good thing to have / embrace.  Better than an insurance policy, self-reliance can pull one through the tough times.  We could all use a little of that!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b04zs6QHuWM