| Chris is a popular speaker and writer as well as the President of
Made for Success and
Extraordinary Leaders, two companies helping individuals and organizations
turn their potential into performance, succeed in every area of their lives and
achieve their dreams. |
Monday morning on a radio station in the southeast that I enjoy very
much. You can imagine though that it can become routine. So to make
it a little more fun, the host nowadays doesn’t even tell me the
topic before we go live on the air – that puts some excitement
into it!
This past week he asked me the
following question cold at the beginning of the show: How can a
person guarantee that they will have a great day, every day? Now
some may find that a hard question but for me it was actually a very
easy question to answer (a little harder to actually live, but not
that hard). You see, I believe in principles that govern our lives
so that we can control our destinies and create for ourselves the
kind of lives that we desire. People who live based on principles
achieve what they desire while people who live reacting to
circumstances do not.
 So, what were the principles that I
gave to guarantee that a person could have a GREAT day every day?
Here they are:
Focus on today only. Yes, we need to
have long-range goals. But our focus must be on today. My old
equation is that your short-term tasks multiplied by time equal your
long-term accomplishments. With that in mind, it is imperative that
we focus in on our short-term, to control it and make it what will
eventually, when multiplied by time, equal our long-term goals. Don’t
think about tomorrow. Today is enough trouble in and of itself. You
can work on tomorrow when it gets here. Instead, make today the best
day you have ever had. Realize that when you lay down to sleep
tonight you will have just given up the only shot you will ever have
at today. Today is now gone and it is only a memory. You only get
one shot at your today so focus intently on making it all that it
possibly can be. Focus, focus, focus! When you focus on making today
great, you are on the road to guaranteeing that you will make your
day GREAT, every day!
Embrace your power to choose. Dwight
D. Eisenhower said that “The history of free men is never written
by chance but by choice, their choice.” When your today becomes
your yesterday, you will look back and realize that that day was a
result of your choices and your choices only. “But wait Chris,
what if my boss controlled my day? That isn’t my choice!” But it
is your choice to work for someone else! You chose to let someone
else tell you what to do. You chose the feelings of helplessness
that overwhelm you when you feel bad that you do not control your
own destiny.
The moment we realize that we have a
gift from God that the animals do not have, mainly the gift of free
will and choice, and when we realize the inherent power within that
gift, and ultimately when we finally begin to exercise that gift,
then and only then, will we begin to create for ourselves a GREAT
day each and every day! Take ownership of the direction in your
life. Make your choices then carry them out!
Your attitude is up to you. Yes, bad
things may happen in your day. The pitcher for Team Circumstances
may have a tremendous curveball waiting for you and you cannot
control that. You cannot control what others may do or say. But you
do control your attitude. Your attitude about whatever happens to
you is up to you.
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