Bad Days

-by Matt Leedham

I have to be honest. I’m a little surprised you’re even reading this post right now because I could barely get out of bed to write it. Yesterday I developed a fever that spiked at 102.5 degrees and after hardly moving all day, I popped some Nyquil before going to bed at 9pm. I woke up this morning, still battling a fever, but feeling a little bit better and am willing myself to write this.

What do you do with bad days? Like yesterday, sometimes they knock you on your butt. Other days aren’t quite as bad. Sometimes you are ill. Sometimes you are blue. Sometimes you just wake up on the wrong side of the bed. Sometimes you receive news that isn’t so great, and sometimes people do things that aren’t so great. And sometimes your motivation meter is registering low.

Speaking from experience, one bad day can snowball into multiple days, a week, and sometimes get you completely off track. When you have big plans to achieve big goals, these disruptions can be devastating.

Here are some tips to get back on track:

1. Be honest with yourself. Recognize and acknowledge what is happening. Many times, this alone will end the vicious cycle.
2. Make a plan for tomorrow. Jot down your ideal day for what tomorrow will look like. Review it before you go to bed and prime yourself to succeed when you wake up.
3. Talk to someone. I find that just being honest with someone else about how you feel reduces the perceived size and importance of what’s holding you back.
4. Re-center yourself. Whether you meditate, pray, exercise, or do yoga, spend some time bringing yourself back to center. For me, a simple 5-minute breathing exercise is enough to ground me and bring clarity to the day.
5. Write and write often. If you don’t already have an outlet for writing, consider journaling or blogging. This can be done in many ways. For example, I have committed to keeping a gratitude journal in 2011. I plan to jot down 3-5 things I am thankful for each day. If you’re just getting started, start with one thing a day and go from there.

For more tips on overcoming material and emotional obstacles, join us for our special New Year’s Resolution Workshop on January 8, 2011. You can sign up here, and use the coupon code “GoalGift” to take 60% off the registration fee!

Don't Let Your Feelings Get in the Way

- by Matt Leedham

“It’s not how you feel, it’s what you plan to do.” - Warren Rustand

I’m not going to harp on this one because it speaks for itself. Think about it.

“I don’t feel like going to the gym.”
“I don’t feel like getting up early to work on that business plan.”
“I don’t feel like going over to the in-laws this Sunday.”

If we all operated based on how we felt, guess where we’d be. Nowhere. It’s not how you feel, it’s what you plan to do. Each of us makes a conscious decision to tackle a goal or not based feelings, our gut emotions, desires, ambitions, etc. However, once the decision is made, feelings need to go out the window. Especially if you care about achieving the goal.

I’ve run two marathons in the last 5 years. The first one was the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, DC. I “hit the wall” at mile 17 and limped my way to the finish line 9 miles later in 4 hours and 34 minutes. That was a very disappointing time for me – my goal was 4 hours. Why didn’t I achieve the goal?

Because I didn’t feel like pushing through the pain to achieve my goal. I stopped. I drank water. I stretched. I walked. I stopped again. And for the next few years, I regretted that I let my feelings get in the way of my goal.

This past February, I ran a marathon in Austin, TX. I crossed the finish line in 3 hours and 42 minutes. Why did I not only achieve my goal, but crush it?

Well, I certainly didn’t feel any different (or look in any less agony - see picture). I definitely wanted to stop, stretch, drink water, and give up. But this time, I would not let myself stop moving. I didn’t care that my pace was a 7:50 minute mile on miles 1-19, and then slowly decreased to 9:10 on miles 20-24. I told myself, “just keep moving.” And before I knew it, I was circling the Texas State Capitol building and sprinting down North Congress Avenue looking at that big, red, digital race clock…well under 4 hours.

I worked on that goal for 4 months through the harshest DC winter in decades. It was what I planned to do. I’ll be damned if I was going to let my feelings get in the way.

Don’t just dream it, achieve it!