Please Take My 2015 Reader Survey

Please Take My 2015 Reader SurveyHi, friends!  I hope you are having a marvelous day.

I have a huge favor to ask that will only take a couple minutes of your time.

Would you pretty please complete my short reader survey?

Your input is really important to me and will help me to know what you prefer to see on my blog.  Really you’re doing yourself a favor by completing this survey! ; )

The survey I created is easy to fill out and you should be able to finish it in two to three minutes.

Click here to take the survey.  I can’t wait to get your feedback!

Please share my request today with all your friends.  If they are readers of my blog, their input will help me a ton too.

I hope you have a great day!

Jill xx

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Four Steps to Living An Authentic Life

I observed a few things while travelling recently that really made me stop and think about how some of us have fallen into creating a false representation of what’s really happening in our lives.  We need to be careful in how we portray ourselves for those around us as well as for ourselves.  In today’s video, I’ll share some simple ways to live a more authentic life that brings you joy and contentment.

Watch here and let me know what your thoughts are on this topic in the comments section below.

Have a great day and remember these four steps discussed in the video on how to live a more authentic life–the life you were meant to live:

  • Check Your Motives
  • Be Yourself
  • Stop Comparing Yourself to Others
  • Express Gratitude

Don’t forget to leave your email in the subscription box so these posts are delivered to your inbox each week.

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Taking Time to Develop My Passion in San Diego

B Letter to readers

If you’ve read my blog before, you know I am a big believer in self-care and personal development.  As you can see from my note above, I traveled to San Diego, California this week to do a little of both: attending a one-day conference and visiting with family.  I won’t be writing a typical blog post this week, but wanted to share some photos with you for fun.

If you’ve never been to San Diego, you must!  It’s a beautiful area.  I’m going to share a few photos below of the first 36 hours of my visit.

I should have known something was going on when my luggage was held up in security.  They spend a good two minutes eye-balling my bag under the x-ray machine.
I’m guessing this stash below was the reason why.  My husband snuck in these tasty goodies to surprise me on my trip.  Yep, he’s a keeper!

B Treats from William

The weather in San Diego is typically clear skies and sunny with an average temperature of 70 degrees.  Not too shabby!  It has been a little overcast and in the mid-60’s on my visit thus far.  Great walking weather!

I’m staying in the La Jolla area and there are lots of surfers, and as you can see from the photo below, scuba divers too, that frequent this beach.

B La Jolla Shores Beach with air tanks

Beach art!

B Seaweed at La Jolla Shores Beach

I could watch sandpipers all day.  They walk super fast and stick their long beaks in the sand to pull out insects and other small organisms to eat.  Check out his reflection.

B Sandpiper in La Jolla

This seagull had a cool personality.  He was strutting around like he owned the place.

B Gull strolling on the beach La Jolla

Surf rescue gulls!

B Gulls on the rescue patrol La Jolla

These beautiful trees, at a park along the beach, are works of art!

B Cool tree in La Jolla

These flowers along the beach path that smell like heaven!  Not sure of the name but I had my nose buried in these every chance I got.

B Delicious smelling flowers

Leaving the beach area now and strolling through some neighborhoods close by…

I have some horticulture, landscape design friends who laugh at me because instead of identifying plants/trees by their real names, I just name them for how they look.  I have named this tree a “painted bottlebrush”.  Please chime in down in the comment section if you know the true name.

B Cool tree blooms La Jolla

Bird of Paradise!

B Bird of Paradise La Jolla

Amazing succulent garden in someone’s front yard.

B Succulent garden La Jolla

These beautiful gated entryways to homes are typical in this area.

B Lovely entry way in La Jolla

I feel sorry for these people.  Just look at what they have to look at every day!

B Killer view in La Jolla

Rusty pelican guarding this home’s front entrance.

B Pelican Yard Art La Jolla

After enjoying a long walk, I headed off to my conference.

This was my view at the conference.  That’s Chris Ducker and Pat Flynn up front.  The day was AWESOME!  I met so many smart, kind and generous people with hearts for making a difference online.  I’ll tell you more about it in the future.

B My view at the conference

I’m here for a few more days to spend time with some of my West Coast family.  Look forward to meeting you back here next Saturday!

Jill xx

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Combat Fear and Shame by Sharing Your Story

Last week I talked about the lessons I’ve learned after recently reading my mom’s autopsy report.  I have received countless messages, mostly private, from people telling me that reading that post really struck a chord with them—many could relate directly to the problem with alcoholism in families, others could relate because they have been or are going through some other sort of trauma in their lives.

Many people told me that by reading my story, it helped them to see their own situation in a different light and encouraged them in a profound way.

This is exactly why I write this blog…to share stories, ideas, and perspectives that will impact and improve our lives—whether it be related to goal setting, overcoming obstacles, finding the extraordinary in the ordinary, or about opening up about a difficult time in your life, like I did with last week’s post.

My goal today is to encourage you to think about sharing your story.

If the idea of sharing scares you, remember that there’s not a “sharing formula” you must follow.  You don’t have to write about it like I did in a blog, you just need to move forward…take the first step.

Maybe you’ll choose to share with a friend or a counselor, confide in a support group, write in a private journal, or maybe you’ll be the one to share your story in a memoir for the whole world to see.

If sharing were always easy, I wouldn’t be writing this post, would I?  Let’s talk about a few of the obstacles we face in sharing our stories and then finish up with some reasons that support the importance of sharing:

REASONS YOU MIGHT CHOOSE NOT TO SHARE YOUR STORY: 

Fear.  You were not created to live in a state of fear.  Fear is like a bully who holds you captive, preventing you from reaching your full potential.  A key to overcoming fear is to name it, so you can deal with it.  Answer this question: Why are you scared to tell your story?  Embarrassment?  Shame?  Being ostracized?  Once you name your fear, you can begin breaking down the reasons for it and addressing how you will overcome it.
Shame.  Dr. Brene Brown has studied shame for many years and offers the following counsel: “Shame cannot survive being spoken and met with empathy.” She gives these three points to combat shame: 1. Talk to yourself like you talk to someone you love.  2. Reach out to someone you trust.  3.  Tell your story.
Timing.  Don’t rush things.  What I shared last week took 11 years for me to be able to share to the degree that I did.  There are other chapters in my story that I’m actively working through—parts that I may share in the future, or may not.  It’s important for each of us to use discernment and to allow the right timing to unfold.

REASONS YOU SHOULD SHARE YOUR STORY:

Bring Light to the Darkness.  Have you ever woken in fear from a nightmare and as soon as you switched on the light, you felt better?  It works the same with real-life nightmares.  When we tuck things away in the dark, we allow them to haunt us.  Darkness is fertile ground for breeding fear and shame.
Healing.  Sharing you story can bring tremendous healing, both physically and mentally, to yourself and to others.
Sharing is Caring.  Sharing is both an act of self-care (healing) and altruism.  When you share you have the ability to make a positive impact in someone else’s life.  Don’t be stingy with the blessing you are meant to be. : )

Whether I’m fortunate enough to witness your story sharing or not, I thank you in advance for being courageous.

As always, I appreciate you spending time with me here today.  Please share this post with someone you care about.

Have a great day!

Jill xx

Don’t miss a post…just enter your name and email in the subscribe box and all future posts will be delivered directly to your inbox each Saturday.

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Lessons Learned: Perspective from an Adult Child of an Alcoholic

I received a package in the mail this week that contained my mother’s autopsy report.  She died 11 years ago, but some of her things were sent to me recently after my step-dad passed away.  My mom’s death certificate, which I had a copy of, listed her immediate cause of death as “complications due to alcohol use”.  Until now, I’d never laid eyes on the actual autopsy report.

I didn’t know it back then, but I wasn’t ready to read this report, full of detail, 11 years ago.  I was too close to my loss and too wrapped up in the pain of my circumstances.  Reading it at that time would have been like pouring alcohol into an open wound.

Reading the narrative from the medical examiner’s office this week was not pleasant–I felt nauseous and I sat and cried for a while.  But, you know what I realized?  It didn’t feel like a Band-Aid being ripped off an exposed wound.  It just felt like I was reading a sad chapter in my mom’s life…in my life.

The lens in which I view that part of my life is different now, it’s more focused—in a good way.

These last 11 years have taught me plenty, but these two quotes beautifully sum up what I know to be true today.

“Every single thing that has happened in your life is preparing you for a moment that is yet to come.” –Unknown Author Read more

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The Art of Delegation – Let It Go

Today wraps up our three-part series on self-care.  Week one, we talked about taking care of yourself before you crash and burn; week two, we talked about the power of saying “no”; and this week we’re tying this self-care package up with a pretty little bow called DELEGATION.

Now before you decide that the only people who have authority to delegate are people that have employees, think again.  Let’s see how Merriam Webster defines the word delegate:

delegate definition

Good news!  Every single one of us has the power and authority to delegate stuff in our lives!  Stuff in our work lives, stuff at home, stuff in our community involvement, etc.

My list of current “would love to delegate” items include: monthly deep cleaning at my house, some of the back end tech stuff for this blog, picking up dog poop in my yard (ok, that’s just dreamy talk…I wouldn’t ask anyone else to do that awesome job!).  We did recently hire someone to mow our lawn (our son who has moved off to college was our previous delegatee for that job).

Lazy or unrealistic you may say??  I beg to differ!  Here are a few reasons why I think it’s important to delegate as part of your self-care regimen:

  1. You will open yourself up to more meaningful opportunities. If your schedule is full, you will likely turn down or miss out on really good opportunities because you can’t fit them in your schedule.
  2. You should always try and utilize the highest and best use of your time. For example: Say you have 15 potentially productive hours in any given day.  Here’s a hypothetical breakdown:  Work at your job = 9 hours, commute to and from work = 1 hour, grocery shop = 30 minutes, prepare & eat dinner = 1.5 hours, laundry/iron = 1 hour, exercise = 1 hour.  That all equals 14 hours.  You’ve got one hour left of “awake” time in your day.  Would you rather have some down time to read, work on a fun project, visit with a friend, spend quality time with a family member OR mop the floors?  I say throw the dang mop in!  Hire someone to do the deep cleaning of your house.  Can you tell I’m working on convincing myself here? ; )
  3. You empower and/or provide opportunities for others when you delegate. That’s right!  Consider your delegating as an altruistic act.  : )
    On a serious note, we often hold on to tasks/jobs/activities for the wrong reasons—we’ll discuss some of these below–but by letting go, you may be giving someone else an opportunity at a learning experience or a chance to shine in something they do very well.

So now that we have some good reasons to do some delegating in our lives, let’s flip the coin and address some reasons as to why we might have trouble actually delegating stuff in our lives.

  • Fear.  Many people, especially in the workplace, fear if they delegate, their job might be in jeopardy or they will be needed less or seen as less important.  This is generally not the case.  Someone in a company who masters the art of delegation, will usually get more accomplished by utilizing the highest and best use of their own time.  The same thing can happen with families–for all you homemakers out there–it is not a sign of failure if you decide to delegate some of your home management duties.  You know the saying, “If mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.”
  • Loss of control. Whether you are a perfectionist or uncertainty causes you anxiety, the idea of losing control is a tough hurtle to overcome.  You must first come to terms with the fact that no mortal being has control over the future and to charge one’s self with the weight of this is an unrealistic burden.  Secondly, fighting perfectionism is an uphill battle.  If you can manage to let go of control, you will experience a freedom like no other.
  • Martyrdom.  If you are taking things on to make people feel sorry for you, please find it within yourself to stop immediately.  Martyrdom is the wrong reason to do anything.  It is a form of manipulation that is not healthy for you or those around you.
  • Lack of money. I mentioned wanting to hire someone to do the deep cleaning at my house—yes, this costs money, but my husband and I both have full-time jobs and we make decisions and sacrifices that will add value to our chosen lifestyle.  Obviously, each individual or family has to make their own decisions as to what is important to them and what they can afford.  If I make the leap to hire a housekeeper, I would personally make a decision to cut back on eating out.  If it’s not an option for you to delegate tasks where a fee or charge is involved, I would highly recommend a barter.  Using my example, I could offer a housekeeper free marketing or business coaching in return for his or her services.  Get creative…there is usually a way to make things work.

We all deal with different obstacles when it comes to empowering ourselves with delegating, but the key is to remember that the point of delegation is to create a life for yourself in which you are free to do what you were created to do, what you enjoy doing, what is necessary for your family, and what you do best.

I encourage you today to take a look at areas in your life that may be worth delegating, so that you can get to the really good stuff.  I’ve created a Delegation Worksheet to help you get started.

Click here to download your free Delegation Worksheet.

I’d love to hear what you decide to delegate!  Leave your one thing or a list of items in the comments section below.

Thanks for spending time here with me today!

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How Saying No Will Improve Your Life

NOTE: This is the second of a three-part series on the importance of self-care and easy steps to make it happen.  Click here to read part 1.  

Mr. Jobs had a few good thoughts running around in his head, don’t you think?

Let’s read it again…

“It’s only by saying no, that you can concentrate on the things that are really important.”  Steve Jobs

So true, yet many of us still get caught up in saying ‘yes’ to too many things.

How can such a little, tiny word -‘no’- be so difficult for us to utter?

For me it’s usually one of three reasons:

  1. I don’t want to let anyone down.
  2. I don’t want to miss out.
  3. I don’t want to offend anyone.

One has to be careful with this type of reasoning.  It’s not productive and can lead to unnecessary stress and worry.

I’ve found that the best way to combat this type of thinking is to live your best life, try and make thoughtful decisions, and be at peace with the outcomes.

In an effort to be a good steward of both your yes’s and your no’s, I want to encourage you to take a look at the activities and relationships in your life and see where that little two letter word might be needed.

I asked some readers where they needed to work on saying ‘no’ in their lives and combined those answers with some of mine and here’s what we came up with:

JUST SAY NO (thank you) TO…

Internet & TV.  This can be a MAJOR time suck and pull you away from things you should be saying yes to instead!
Constant checking, messaging and posting on your smart phone.  One reader shared that she and her husband had decided to consciously put down their smart phones when they get home in the evening, so they could better enjoy each other and their children.  Emails and Facebook can wait!
Participating in every social engagement announced.  It really is ok to miss out from time to time. : )
Rude people.  Engaging in conversation with someone who is looking to stir up conflict is a losing proposition.  Get rid of people like this in your life.
Volunteer opportunities.  Just because you’re awesome, doesn’t mean you have to tackle every project that comes along.  Think of your ‘no’ as leaving open an opportunity for someone else to give their well-cultivated ‘yes.’
Unwanted advice.  While well meaning, sometimes you just need a listening ear or a shoulder to lean on.  It’s ok to tell someone you’d rather just have them listen instead of giving you advice.
Unfair or uncomfortable situations at work.  Just because you’re getting paid, doesn’t mean you don’t have a right to speak up at your place of work.
Excess of anything.  Moderation is a good thing.
Your children.  Children need to hear the word ‘no’.  It will make them better people.
Church obligations that you perform out of guilt.  Don’t worry, God’s not gonna strike you down! : )
An overly demanding friend or relative.  It’s important to create boundaries in all of our relationships.
Your own excuses.  Just because you’re tired after a long day at work, doesn’t mean you should allow yourself to eat poorly and blow off exercise.

Stephen Covey sums it up well here: “You have to decide what your highest priorities are and have the courage—pleasantly, smilingly, non-apologetically, to say “no” to other things.  And the way you do that is by having a bigger “yes” burning inside.”

Anything you would like to add to the list?

Do you have a burning “yes” just waiting for room to come out and blossom?

NOTE: This is the second of a three-part series on the importance of self-care and easy steps to make it happen.  Click here to read part 1.  

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Taking Care of Yourself Before You Crash and Burn

NOTE: This is the first of a three-part series on the importance of self-care and easy steps to make it happen.  Read part 2 here.  Read part 3 here.   

Do you ever feel like you’re running in 101 different directions?  Are you busy taking care of everyone and everything else, leaving you exhausted and running on fumes?  Have you reached a state of burnout?

How are we supposed to properly care for others, if we are running ourselves ragged?

Let me ask you a question?  What happens if you do crash and burn?  I’m talking about getting physically sick or having a mini or even a major emotional breakdown.

One of two things will likely happen:

  1. Things in your life will fall apart and some of the pieces will be picked up in the interim, while others will be waiting for you to rise from your “sick” bed so you can pick up those pieces left lying around and get back on the crazy merry-go-round you’ve been on. Spoiler alert: This is an unhealthy pattern that needs to change!
  2. People in your life will step in and help out. Some of the responsibilities you’ve been shouldering will fall to others temporarily.  Others will fall away completely…right into the lap of the person who should have been handling that responsibility in the first place (spouse, kid, needy friend, fellow committee member, co-worker, etc.)

What I’d like to propose, since we can’t manufacture 10 more hours in a day, clone ourselves, or add an extra set of hands to our bodies, is that we focus on taking better care of ourselves, so we can better care for those around us.

Whether you have kids at home, you’re taking care of elderly parents while holding down a full-time job, or you’re somewhere in between–life can be crazy busy.  Setting aside time to care for yourself is critically important to your physical and emotional well-being.

A reader commented on last week’s video post about overcoming obstacles, on our tendency to show more compassion to others than we do to ourselves.  This is so true!  Don’t you think you and I need to show the kindness and compassion for ourselves that we show to our most precious family members and friends?

I’ve got a simple and fun exercise I’d like you to complete today.

Before we begin, let’s get you in the right frame of mind.

Please, please, please…

Give yourself permission to care for yourself.  Remember the reader comment I mentioned earlier about how we show more compassion towards others than we grant ourselves?  Imagine you had a friend that was burning the candle on both ends and about to collapse.  Would you tell them to buck up and get their lazy butt moving?  No, you would likely insist they immediately either take a couple days off, get a massage, put their duties aside and take some long walks, head to the nearest bed and breakfast to hide out for 24 hours, or a combination of all of these.  You get the point…we would wisely urge them to do what it takes to take care of themselves.  I encourage you to give yourself the same caring advice next time you are running ragged.

Ok! Let’s get started on this fun exercise to see how you can best care for yourself immediately and in the future:

I recommend you keep this list in a journal or notebook that you can refer back to in the future.  How about keeping a running list of dates and self-care activities too!  Click here to download a free printable worksheet to complete this exercise.

Step 1: Write down three to five extravagant (to you) things that you would love to treat yourself to (if only you had the time and money).  Think BIG here.  Pretend that money is no object.

Step 2: Now, write down three to five things that you would love to do if you had an entire 24-hours free, but you weren’t allowed to go more than 15 miles from your home.

Step 3: Last, but not least, write down three to five things that you would love to do if you had an entire 24-hours free, but you couldn’t leave your home.

Now, take a look at the last “home” list and circle your top pick from the list.  Do the same with the two other lists.

Get your calendar out and schedule, in pen, that one thing from your “home” and “15-mile” lists.

Here’s the hard part…make sure you don’t allow yourself to knock the activity or non-activity you’ve scheduled from your list.  You don’t cancel your yearly physical at the doctor’s office, do you?

You’re probably wondering about what you’re supposed to do with the first “extravagant” list.  That list is to keep you dreaming big and setting high goals for yourself.  Take your top pick from that list and figure out how to make it happen…even if it’s 3 years in the future.

Please don’t see this as a one-time exercise.  If you start regularly scheduling these types of things for yourself, you will see a huge improvement in your life.

Enjoy the special time you’ve got planned!

As always, thanks for spending time with me here today.  I would love to hear some of the things you will be scheduling in.  Please let me know in the comment area below.

Guess what?  I’m taking some of my own advice and am headed out this weekend for some rest and relaxation at a cabin in the woods with some girlfriends.

Thanks and have a great day!

Jill xx

Don’t forget to click here to download the free printable worksheet I created for you to complete the exercise we’ve talked about today.

NOTE: This is the first of a three-part series on the importance of self-care and easy steps to make it happen.

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5 Steps to Overcoming Difficult Obstacles

Trying something new this week…a VIDEO blog post!  

Let me just begin by telling you, it’s not as easy as it looks!  I decided after 20 + takes that it’s better to put something out there than nothing at all.  You’ll understand what I mean when you watch the video.  Please excuse my mess ups, and just know that I’m speaking from my heart.     

So, what you’ll hear me talking about is something we can all relate to — the need to overcome obstacles that will inevitably show up in our lives.

Whether you’ve been through something in the past, you’re going through it now, or there’s something around the bend that’s about to smack you in the face, obstacles are a part of all of our lives, so it’s in our best interest to figure out how to deal with them.

Enjoy the video!

By the way, I filmed this video in a hotel at nearly midnight with my camera propped on an ice bucket…oh the professionalism!  : )

I’d love to hear from you.  What have you found to be helpful in overcoming the obstacles you’ve encountered in your life?  

I’d also like to hear what you think about the video format?  Do you like or do you prefer the fully written post?  Please let me know in the comments below.

Thanks and have a great day!

Jill xx

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Get Back On Track After Falling Off the Wagon

Do you feel like you’ve experienced a bit of whiplash with how quickly these last two months have flown by?

I sat down the other day and reviewed my written goals for the year (which I strongly urge you to do at least once per month) and realized that of the 15 goals I set back in January, I’m only following through with eight of them.  I know I should be happy with the progress of the eight, but it’s the other seven that are staring me down and making me feel bad.

Here’s the deal–and I’m talking to myself just as much as I’m talking to you: There’s no time to sit around and feel bad about what could have been.  It’s time to get back on the wagon.  We can’t change the past, but we can certainly learn from it.

I’ve got three simple steps to get us back on the right track.  There’s no time like the present, so let’s get started!

NOTE: If you wrote your original goals in a journal, I suggest you do the following exercise in that same place.  It’s helpful when you can look back and review where you’ve been and what you’ve accomplished.

First Step:  Figure out what the stumbling block has been for you to achieve or move forward with your goals.  Warning…you’re gonna have to be introspective and honest with yourself in this step.  It might even be helpful to put the superhero cape aside during this exercise.

Ask yourself the following questions:

  1. Do the goals I came up short on, scare me somehow? What fears do I experience when thinking about those goals?
  2. Are my goals unrealistic? Have I set too many goals?  Have I set crazy timelines that I can’t possibly meet with the demands my busy schedule?
  3. Have I failed to set proper systems (time management, accountability, etc) in place to help me succeed?

Second Step:  Now that you’ve defined the problem, the next step is to figure out how to fix it.  Let’s address the three questions you answered above:

  1. Fears: Break down any fears you have associated with your goals. Oftentimes, when we break things down like this into bite-sized pieces, the “scariness” falls away. Now, these bite-sized portions of your big goal become manageable mini-goals.  Now you can begin working on each mini-goal, one by one, until completion.  This really works!
  2. Unrealistic goals: Maybe you were a little ambitious, like I was, at the beginning of the year and set too many goals. If that’s the case, list out and prioritize your goals.  Maybe keep the top 3-4 and drop the others.  You can always focus on those you dropped later in the year or even next year.  If the main problem is the unrealistic deadlines you set for some of your goals, then set new dates that are more realistic to match your lifestyle.
  3. No systems in place: Say your goal was to organize your house this year, but you didn’t set up a proper system to accomplish it. Now you’re sitting here a couple months later with the same mess and even more stress about it.  Make it your goal today to set up a system that will help you achieve success.  It may be as easy as creating a weekly project checklist.  Don’t overwhelm yourself by assigning yourself too many tasks each week.  Maybe set two 30 minute time slots per week to tackle a specific area in your home.  Once you finish that area, start on the next.Just as we talked about earlier, cutting your goal up into bite-size pieces will cut back on the overwhelm and make your project manageable.  This is key…Don’t forget to keep yourself accountable by scheduling this in your calendar and set a timer to work by.  Take your goals seriously and don’t let anything interrupt the time you’ve set aside to accomplish these goals.

As I mentioned earlier, I fell off the wagon on some of my goals this year, too.  Here is how I worked through the exercise we just outlined:

I’ve narrowed it down to two trouble areas for me:

  1. Problem: Wasting too much time online.  I would start to do some research for a blog post I was working on and next thing I knew I was reading about Madonna’s daughter’s new fashion line!  And just so you know, my research had nothing to do with fashion!  It’s super easy to get sucked into the online vortex, but admitting your problem is the first step, right?
    My fix:  About a month ago I began setting a pretty strict morning schedule for myself.  The routine has been great, but after the first month, I realized I needed a little more structure to ensure my success, so I incorporated tracking each of my daily tasks in a planner and using a timer.  This has worked very well.  Daily accountability in black and white and on a countdown!By the way, I plan to write an entire post on the beauty and benefits of setting a morning routine (even for you non-morning people) with some really great tips for you to consider, so be on the lookout for that in the future.
  2. Problem: I was overly ambitious and set too many goals.
    My fix: I had to reprioritize my goals and drop some of my overambitious goals off my list.  The ones I dropped are still important to me, but I dropped them in an effort to do better in certain areas and not spread myself too thin.  I will revisit those goals in the future.

I hope working through this exercise will help you to get back on track.  It has helped me!  Now, one last thing…

Third, stay positive!  Don’t dwell on what could have been.  As long as you made an effort to understand what the obstacles to your progress were, and have set some solutions, get back on the wagon and enjoy the ride!  Pat yourself on the back for the successes you’ve already had this year.  Even if you’ve only accomplished or have improved on one goal on your list–good job!

I’d like to hear from you.  How are you doing now that we’re two months into the year?  Are you doing well with achieving your goals, or can you relate to this post?  What have you struggled with?  Please do tell…you’re helping others by sharing.

As always, thanks for spending time with me today.

Jill xx

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