plans – Bert Oliva

Commit Me!

By Bert Oliva

19
SEP

Ever have one of those days? I had a great Friday today. A day filled with excellent meetings that left me excited and ready for upcoming projects. And I ended it by spending time with close friends and playing some games. I even have an amazing Saturday planned, filled with breakfast plans and errands and fun things. I’ve been looking forward to my Saturday all day.

When I got home however, I discovered one of my family members is very ill. Not an emergency, but I have to take them to the doctor first thing tomorrow morning, which means my Saturday plans are now not possible. My family member’s illness of course takes precedence but I must admit I went through the normal gambit of human emotions: disappointment of the missed plans, resentment of the situation, justification of the situation, frustration and much more, till I finally just settled with it. It is what it is. I have a commitment to my family and that comes first.

Commitment is a big deal to me. I recently made a commitment to myself that I would write one blog post a day. Which is why I’m writing this at 2:58 in the morning. Just because situations and circumstances arise, there is no excuse to let your commitments slide. This is not because the people you’ve committed to will not understand your extenuating circumstances. This is for you. Subconsciously speaking, whenever you let yourself off the hook for something you’ve committed to, you begin to build a pattern of breaking commitments. You train your brain to not take commitments seriously, which makes making and keeping commitments that much harder.

Because of that, I am very careful with what I commit to; if I am not sure that I can fulfill something asked of me, I do not commit to it, but rather am honest, “I will do my best, but I can not guarantee I will be able to do it,” etc. This way I am honest with those around me and I am honest with myself. This builds trust with those close to you and trust within yourself. As you begin to become someone who fulfills their commitments, you will be surprised at how your confidence soars and how much better you feel about yourself overall.

So the next time you have one of those days where everything seems to be conspiring against you, take a moment to accept everything that is happening. And then get started on your commitments.

Live Life,
Bert Oliva

Not How I Planned It!

By Bert Oliva

3
JUN

What do you do when things do not go as planned? When your car breaks down or you get a phone call that changes your plans for the day? Do you get angry? Do you get frustrated? Or do you take the situation for what it is and keep moving forward?

We’re all human. We all get frustrated and annoyed at times, especially when plans fall through or change due to circumstances beyond our control. The question is, how long do you feel that way? Do you allow yourself to feel your initial reaction to the situation and then continue with you day in whatever way it turns out to be? Or do you allow your initial reaction to control how the rest of your day goes?

If you tend to do the second one, you are not alone. However, that also means there is still work to be done. If you work on going with the flow more and not allowing situations and circumstances to upset you, you will have more happier and fulfilling moments throughout your life.

Remember, the one thing in life that is constant is change. One of my favorite sayings in life
is “We plan, God laughs.” So, the next time plans don’t go your way, go ahead and laugh along with him. It’s much more fun.

PowerTools™
1) The next time something happens that changes your plans, give yourself one minute to feel your initial reaction. Whether it be frustration, annoyance, anger, etc., everything goes for one minute. If you can, write down your feelings or let them out in another form for that minute.

2) Once that minute is up, it’s time to change your state. For at least 30 seconds, do something totally out of your norm to get yourself out of your mood. Do some jumping jacks, dance, sing your favorite song, etc. Do something that will get your mind off your emotions.

3) Now that you’re back in the driver’s seat of your emotions, look for the positive. What’s the benefit of having your meeting cancelled this morning? Do you have more time to prepare? If your significant other has to miss your special date tonight, that gives you time to spend with you, etc. It may be small and require thinking out of the box, but every negative truly has a positive. Find yours.

Live Life,
Bert Oliva

Posts Tagged 'plans'

Commit Me!

Not How I Planned It!