The New You: Attitude and Motivation

Good Friday morning to you. Did you have a great week? Are you planning a great weekend? As we get ready for new things in our life, the first question we need to ask ourselves is will it be great? Let me ask you this: how many times have you heard the question “Do you see the glass as half empty, or half full?” Well, it has nothing to do with the glass, or the water. The question has to do with how you see it. No matter what you are going through in life it is about how you see it.

This morning I slept in after a late night last night to see a friend’s band. I have told you before how I have my days of depression. Well, when I woke up today it was one of those days. I know what I have to do on those days. I know that the feelings of depression are not what I need to act on. I know people who use different ways to move them past the feelings that depression can bring. Some use drugs or other chemicals that could offset it; others use alcohol to take away pain, be it physical or mental pain.

One of the chemicals that I have used in the past to give me the energy to get through my day is energy drinks. I love RedBull, but know the damage it can do to the heart at my age, especially with a history of heart problems in the family. So back to this morning. What did I do to motivate me and keep my attitude looking at the glass half full?

I put a few songs on a play list and plugged in my earbuds. It was time to listen to some music and meditate on the goals at hand, to meditate on those things that are great and need to be built upon to bring my goals and dreams to life. Well this week I added some music that was not in my library to listen to again. We had the CDs but I hadn’t loaded them into iTunes.  The great vocals and music of SoundGarden was what I chose. Today, the first song I played was “Fell on Black Days.”

I mention this because I wanted to talk about the first line of that song. The first line is “Whatsoever I feared has come to life.” This is one of those gut checks for me. Fear or faith which are you going to choose? Taking the question of half full or half empty, imagine that what you fear is coming to life.

In this week of giving you the preview to our upcoming e-course, The New You, we have featured some things from the course as well as adding a few things that make you think about what you are doing to create a new you in your life. The truth of this concept carries through all the goal setting, the reinvention process, and the setbacks we must overcome. It will go nowhere if you have the wrong attitude. If you have the right attitude, you will always be motivated to succeed. Good attitude versus bad attitude. Sounds simple, right? Sorry, it is not just a simple plan.

Today I will give you some pointers on how you can form the positive mental attitude that will help motivate you to succeed at creating the New You.

1. Start small. I heard it once said it is better to see with one small candle then to curse the darkness. Well, to light your path you must start somewhere, so find one small area that you can build this positive attitude in, then cement that into your life. I once went through a seminar where they wrote things on washers and kept them on a small metal ring. If you owned that thing in your life (courage, wisdom, self esteem, etc.), you could give that washer off your personal ring to another person. If you did not have that in your life, you could not give it away yet. So take some small area, build it in your life till you own it. This is what coaching does: helps you build these areas one by one.

2.  Maximize your potential. In life you have to expect the best and work towards it, but be ready for the worst to happen. That way you build your life and little by little things stop becoming obstacles. Be content with where you are in life, but take five minutes each day to meditate on each of your goals and seeing them come to being. Actually close your eyes and see yourself living that dream. Then mentally focus on it coming true, think backwards step by step to where you are now.

3.  Raise you self esteem. Each of us has a challenge with this. I had to fight to grow in this area in my life for years. Even while running a successful business, I still had self-doubt, didn’t think I deserved the success that I achieved. You have to build this up; you are human just like your favorite hero, just like the president, just like anyone else. Motivate yourself to think highly. Not so highly that you look down on others. But you should never feel so low that you look up to everyone else. Part of our American way of life is the fundamental belief that we are all created equal.

Once you finally get to the place in life that you feel you are equal to anyone, then you will start living that life of Faith instead of facing fear. If I could re-write the first line of the song that I spoke of today, it could also say “Whatsoever I had faith and believed would happen has now blessed my life.” I now can live and walk in faith and walk in a light of Joy.

I’m Tim Gillette, the Rocker Life Coach. It’s time for you to live the life you always wanted, learn to love what you do, and be a RockStar in your world.