Do you have something currently going on that’s bothering you? Perhaps a problem that is causing worry or stress? I’d like you to shift perspectives for just a moment.

Imagine that instead of that being your challenge—it’s someone else dealing with it.

When you step back from your situation and look at it as an objective observer, what advice or counsel would you give that person? How can you be a valuable to this person? What recommendations would you make?

As you brainstorm and lay-out the options to them—write down what you come up with. Make a list of possible actions that can be taken to make the situation different, or begin to break out of the rut. List as many possibilities as you can think of.

Are you doing any of those things now? Are you making strides to break out of that stuck state using any of the possible actions on your list? Do it.
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You can take action, or you can procrastinate. You can go for it, or you can make excuses why you can’t. Going for it can be scary, but ultimately it’s much more fun, and significantly more fulfilling.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Don’t be too timid and squeamish about your actions. All life is an experiment.” An experiment implies that action is being taken. Even if the experiment is to sit totally still—that is still action being taken.

There is no difficulty you cross paths with that you can’t do something about. Some experiments are larger, some are miniscule. No matter what the size of your challenge—do something—take action.
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I’m writing this after receiving an email from a gentleman who has applied this strategy for only one week and is raving about the results he’s gotten in that short time. He wrote, “Larry, I can’t believe what an amazing, positive change I feel in only one week. I’ve told my wife, kids and co-workers about this. I wish I’d known this 20 years ago.”

Have you ever wished you were better at a job, sport or hobby? Did you ever struggle to improve at a skill but it was so slow to develop you got discouraged? Have you ever told yourself that there must be an easier way to build competency in a task? Do you have unwanted emotions hanging around and you can’t snap out of them? Here’s a way to diminish the things that bother you, and expand the skills and feelings you want.

There ain’t a magic wand. But…there are strategies for rapidly increasing your skills or competency in a chosen area.
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Have you ever had a really fun time in your life? Have you ever been to a beautiful place in nature? Is there an activity you love to do and experience pleasure from?

You can use all of these to enrich your life.

Years ago, I had a beautiful house in rural Hawaii. It sat in the middle of five acres, with a 180o view of the mountains behind, and a 180o view of pasture land and the ocean out in front.

There are times in all our lives that are stressful. An easy way for me to take a break and refresh my mind during the craziness, is to mentally re-experience that amazing Hawaiian view.
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What if someone told you to throw your money away—would you? Throwing money away makes no more sense than does throwing away positive thoughts. Yet every time you allow your mind to dwell on negativity and become pessimistic you are throwing away the positive.

What investment are you making with your thoughts? Is your focus being spent on things you fear, worry about, have guilt over, or create anxiety? Or is your focus on uplifting, encouraging, humorous, goal focused aspects of life?

Each thought is your choice. Whatever you dwell on most—you will have more of that in your life.

Is life a struggle at times? If it’s not—you must live on a different planet than the rest of us earthlings. Just because things get tough does not mean you have to spend all your time focused there.
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The other night my family had another family over for dinner. After dinner we were playing a game called “Imagine If….” Very fun (check it out—it’s great for all ages.)

The question was, “Imagine if…Sydney (my daughter) was a sweater, what kind of sweater would she be?” Varsity, Holiday, Cardigan, Cashmere, Ratty or Fuzzy were the choices.

Only a few people got it right. The answer Syd and her brother Nick chose for her was “Holiday”. Why? Because Sydney “IS” a holiday. In her attitude, her actions, the way she lives her life, etc. she is a “Holiday”.

A direct example of Sydney as “Holiday” is: As soon as Thanksgiving Dinner is completed and dishes done, Syd starts dragging out all the Christmas boxes and unpacking them. She has done this since she was little. Her passion and enthusiasm for much of life is the spirit of a holiday in many, many ways.

The purpose of this story is to prod you to “Be”. Be good fortune, be an author, be the best friend in the world, be an exceptional parent, be the embodiment of what you want your life to be or become.

Because it’s an absolute fact, you are a “Holiday”—you are “Good Fortune”. Don’t settle for less. Your life is an active sport. Don’t sit and watch it roll by like you are a “spectator”—YOU ARE NOT!

Each moment is a moment to make a difference for you and for others that cross your path. Imagine the possibilities—and then step into them, and be the “Holiday”!

When doing an internship for my masters in psychology, a therapist I worked with had me study many types of therapeutic interaction. One of those was Transactional Analysis by Dr. Eric Berne.

In Transactional Analysis there are three major components to consciously managing ones life. They are: Awareness—Choice—Control.

Awareness is recognizing what is going on around you and within you in your life situations. It is noticing how others are behaving and speaking, and your response to those interactions. Awareness is becoming conscious of the various options you and they both have as you deal with each other.

Choice is about what you are giving your focus to. Everything people do is the result of a choice. Someone will say, “I have to work I don’t have a choice. If I don’t show up for work I will get fired.” They still have a choice, though they may not like the choice of getting fired it is still within their options to go to work or not go to work.
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How big are your dreams? Be certain they are big enough that the obstacles you encounter don’t block them.

Do you ever get discouraged? You wonder sometimes how you’re going to keep going? Do the trials you go through at times seem like they are just too much? Well you can overcome all of this.

When you have enthusiasm and passion for what you want, it keeps you moving. The bigger dream combined with passion, helps you manage the rough spots and keep going.

You must be solution focused, instead of problem focused. Yes, there are problems. And, you can spend all of your time thinking about them—which will absolutely discourage you.

Or, you can acknowledge the problem, but spend more time focused on solutions. This solution focus supports your dreams.
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