Change Your Life with One Word in 2014

Happy New Year!

As we make a fresh start in 2014 I want to share with you a life-changing concept that I came across on New Year’s Eve.

It’s something that had been stirring inside me for a while, but this Leadership Freak blog post put it across so clearly.

Rather than make resolutions this year, choose one word. Make that word the theme of your life for the year.

Keep that word at the centre of everything that you do, say and think – every day.

Let me show you what I mean.

My word is stewardship.

A steward is someone entrusted with managing someone else’s property. A steward is someone who has been given the responsibility of taking care of something on behalf of someone else.

In my life, I realize that everything that I have comes from God. Everything that I have – fitness, family, friendships, finances – is a blessing from God.

I am a steward of all that God has blessed me with. He owns everything and has simply loaned it to me. He expects me to take good care of it all. He is trusting me to take good care of it all (Matthew 25:14-30).

Question?

So stewardship is the theme running through every decision that I make and every action that I take in 2014. The question that I keep asking myself is: “Am I being a good steward?”

When I make choices about:

     What I eat...

                    How I spend my time... 

                                         How I relate to people...

                                                               How I take care of my body...

                                                                                        How I spend my money...

...Am I being a good steward?

Should I...

Watch TV... or read a book to further my personal growth...?

Snack on fresh fruit... or eat a piece of chocolate...?

Write that blog post... or scroll through Facebook for an hour...?

Stay up late watching a movie... or go to bed early and wake up refreshed to start that new project?

Exercise for 30 minutes... or continue slouching at my computer...?

Buy an extra pair of shoes... or give to the child who doesn't own even one pair of shoes...?

I've only been doing this for a couple of days but I can tell you that it’s already making a huge difference. My perspective is changing. I no longer look at people, possessions or pleasure in the same way.

Time...

But what has had the strongest impact on me the past few days is the growing awareness that the only thing I really have is time. The only thing that I am truly a steward of... is time.

...And I don’t know how much time I have.

Yesterday is gone, tomorrow is not guaranteed. All I have is this present moment.

I use my time moment by moment, and it is up to me to use every moment to the max.

Wherever I am, whoever I am with, I have the responsibility to be fully present in that moment.

If I am at my computer writing, then I need to write and not keep on flipping back and forth to see what’s happening with my email or Facebook or all the other tabs that I have open. In fact, I've decided to close all the tabs and switch off all the chimes to avoid any more distractions. I have set aside time after all my work is done to browse through my email and see what else is going on in the world without that hovering sense of guilt convicting me that I'm not doing what I'm supposed to be doing!

If I'm having a conversation with someone, I need to be fully there listening to them – not thinking about what I'm going to say next that will make me look good or sound really clever, or thinking about all the errands that I still need to get done that day, or checking my phone, or looking over their shoulder to see if someone more interesting is approaching, or chasing after a chain of writing ideas sparked off by something they said (maybe I can just quickly jot those down in my notebook?!).

Your turn..

So what about you? What is your word for this year?

Post your comment below!

For a free One Word Action Plan go here. 

LIFE LESSONS: Making that Change

‘…let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think…’

The Bible, New Living Translation, Romans 12:2

As 2011 comes to a close, many of us are full of hope about what the New Year holds. We’re busy making plans, excited about all we’re going to achieve in 2012. This is going to be the year that we make that change. For lots of people that change involves losing weight.

Luckily for those of you reading this blog, I’m an expert on losing weight.

I’ve lost weight several times in my life. The only problem is I usually put it all back on again!

Five years ago, I lost a staggering 35 kilos (about 77 pounds). I was the slimmest I’ve ever been in my whole life. Well, since I was 16 anyway. I looked great and I felt great. Unfortunately, I’d done a lot of wrong things to get there, and over the next 18 months or so, I watched helplessly as all those excess kilos slowly piled back on. 

Still, you know what they say about learning from your mistakes. Since that fiasco, I’ve begun the process of losing weight again – only this time in the right way. I’ve lost 10 kilos so far, and maintained that weight loss for some months now. Now I’m ready to continue the count down towards my goal weight, and the countdown begins, you guessed it, in 2012!

As I continue to remind myself and put into practice the lessons that I learnt from my sorry episode, I’d like to share them with you too.

These are life lessons. They’re not just for those of us who face challenges with our weight.  You can apply them to any issue that you’re dealing with.

LESSON 1: You are what you think

To change your life, you have to change your thoughts.

If you want to change who you are, or what you do, you have to change the way you think.

It’s that basic.

Watch what you allow into your head. Change what you ‘feed’ your mind.

Be particular about who or what you listen to.

Remember GIGO: garbage in = garbage out.

Let me give you a practical example.

Many times, I leave my house full of optimism, feeling good about myself and the 0.37 kilos that my digital scale shows that I’ve lost that morning – only to bump into a ‘friend’ who  says something like, “Gosh you’ve put on a lot of weight haven’t you? Are you eating too many cakes? Have you stopped exercising?” (Since when did commenting on someone’s body size become an acceptable form of greeting anyway?!).

In the past, a remark like that would really bruise my self-esteem. I’d start feeling bad about myself and end up finding solace in those aptly named comfort foods!

Not anymore!

 I made a decision.

I can’t control what other people choose to say; but I can control how I choose to respond.  

I choose to think positively about myself.

I may not be where I want to be, but I thank God I’m not where I used to be! I’m making progress and that’s what matters. The change may not be visible yet, but change has started where it matters most – in my mind.

What wrong ways of thinking could hinder you from reaching your goals in 2012? What limiting thought patterns have sabotaged your progress in the past?

Replace every negative thought with life-giving thoughts today.