Planned Positivity

Stock photo (Please excuse that click-baitiest of titles. I couldn't help myself.) It's a cold and blustery Wednesday morning. I'm not a fan of cold and a bit worried about the freezing rain forecast for my commute home. I'm writing this post on a small plugged into a narrow space between a stack of tasks I don't really want to do.  I'm sitting at my desk smiling my face off. Why? Endorphins, my friend. Endorphins and dopamine! Was I doing drugs?  Hell no. I will admit I feel a tiny bit high and have for the past two days.  How did I achieve this state of mild nirvana? I exercised.  That's it. A half weight training circuit. Thirty minutes of fun in exchange for days of mood stability. It's almost as if people weren't designed to be sedentary.  What else has happened since my work out session? Let's see... I'm clearheaded and focused and I get shit done. Partly that's because I have clarity and I can remember what to do.  It's in the

 Sounds easy, right? Have a dream, set a goal, smash it.  Hardly ever works out that way, does it? You get as far as setting a goal, and then you trip. Your goal of getting in shape falls to quarantine couch potato-itis. Your goal of going on holiday fell to bad shopping habits. Your goal of learning to play guitar went down in flames against the temptation of a series of Netflix binge sessions.  How do you avoid the trap?  Break it down. The goal is too big to take on all at once. If you decide your goal is to run a marathon once we're all safe and vaccinated, you need to get off the couch first. If you just pop up and go for a 10K jog, that'll be the end of your journey because tomorrow you will hurt so much you'll convince yourself it's not worthwhile.  Aim for getting where you want to go without blowing your motivation (or your knees!). The best approach? Small steps.  Instead of that exhausting 10k run, try a ten minute walk.  Pick a time for that walk, and schedu

[Warning: this blog will contain foul language. I use the right word for the job.]   Hey there!  I'm so happy you've found my little corner of the web. Now that you're here, grab a cup of tea and pull up a spot on the couch. We've got plans to make, and this is important brainstorming my friend.  We're going to improve our lives. Yeah, I know. Everybody's promising that these days. 15 Yoga Poses That Will Make You Flexible And Super Rich! Eat These 3 Foods to Achieve Nirvana and Levitate! (I'm exaggerating a little, but you get my point.)  But I have a system that works. I've been testing it for many years and it's taken me from being a miserable disorganized negative creep to a (mostly!) happy, confident and positive human. I find myself fielding messages from friends looking for advice on the subjects of organization and attitude adjustment, which frankly shocks the hell out of me. I'm going to call myself an expert for no better reason than th