I hope you will forgive me for not posting last week. I am finishing up this term and was working on my term paper. Luckily, weeks 19 and 20 can be done in tandem.
First, how was getting more exercise in your life? Did anyone try anything new? I thought this would be a good time to add that I absolutely LOVE my new running shoes. I mentioned in a post a few weeks ago that I had switched to a pair of minimal shoes. I haven't had a bit of problems running in them at all. So much so that Ronnie questioned if my feet were hurting after my runs; when I told him no, he was surprised. Then again, I'm not going very far or very fast (my run pace is about a 9:30 mile). I also don't wear shoes unless I'm going somewhere, so I walk around barefoot most hours of the day. I seriously love these shoes and am so glad I made the switch.
On to the next two focuses. First up: eat more fruit. The challenge is to eat two to four servings of whole fruit per day. There are so many good things fruit provides us and our bodies. But the big thing is that fruit is a natural sugar craving killer. I have been working to reduce my sugar consumption and fruit has played a large part in that for me.
Finding fresh fruit right now isn't going to be a challenge because spring is upon us. Have you seen all the strawberries in the markets? It's also close to blueberry season! Try adding strawberries to your cereal in the morning. Pick up an apple on your way out the door to munch on while driving. Blend up a fruit smoothie at night for dessert. Replace that glass of juice with a piece of fruit instead.
While eating the fruit, you can ponder the next challenge... and the author has a doozy of one for us. The focus is to ind your purpose in life and live it every day. Oh my! Now this is more than just a what do you want to be when you grow up exercise. This is truly connecting with your calling. Now, the author gives all sorts of advice on how to do this: start a journey of self discovery through reflection, writing a personal mission statement, and then putting that plan into action and living it everyday.
I walked through an exercise similar to this a few years back. There are some pretty fantastic business books out there that are as applicable to personal development as they are to professional development. Good to Great, First, Break All the Rules and its follow up Now, Discover Your Strengths, and The 21
Irrefutable Laws of Leadership are all fantastic business books that can be easily applied to your personal life. For example in Good to Great, Jim Collins discusses finding the one thing that your company is good at and can do better than anyone else out there. He argues that businesses become great when they figure out that one thing and then build everything around excelling in that one area. What about FISH!, where even the fishmongers in Seattle have a fantastic time working in less than fantastic working conditions. My point is you don't have to read a new-age book from the self-discovery aisle in B&N, as there may be a more applicable book for your life in the business aisle.
So that's it for this week: eat more fruit and start to figure out what your passion in life is. Easy right? I'll share my thoughts on passion and drive with you next week.... don't want to give you too many leading statements now.
Other resources:
The
book we're following: http://www.amazon.com/52-Small-Changes-Healthier-ebook/dp/B0056J4ER0/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1325722556&sr=1-1
Jenn's
blog: http://thewoogies.blogspot.com/search/label/52%20Small%20Changes
