Practice

It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.

Leonardo da Vinci / artist, scientist, engineer, inventor, musician / 1452–1519

We all possess invaluable knowledge of life and what it takes to excel. To realize that, however, we must take appropriate action. Acting with appropriate intent is the primary key to success. In addition, we’re defined by our actions, not our thoughts, emotions, or reputation. To fully understand our abilities, achieve our goals, and define ourselves as individuals, we must act on the plans that we have developed. Each day, we can take small steps toward our goals on a routine basis; such consistent action over time will often yield tremendous results. However, we must be sure to structure things in ways that are both fulfilling and productive. This type of approach will allow us to turn mundane actions and routine tasks into enjoyable lifestyles consisting of positive habits, and it’s those habits that will bring us to new heights over time. The following is a list of practices that you can pursue to excel. Begin with these, and add your own if desired. Persist, and you will excel.

Make strategies routine. Consider the basic strategies for life, and find ways to incorporate them into your routine on a regular basis. Each goal may require a different level of attention, however, depending on your situation. For example, nutrition should ideally be something you monitor throughout the day, and you should participate in physical activity three or four times a week ideally; however, goal review may be needed only on a weekly or monthly basis depending on your progress. Ask yourself if you’re fully leveraging these strategies in your life or if some need more frequent attention at this time. You may find it helpful to list associated actions for these strategies on your calendar or to-do list. In so doing, you can consolidate tasks such that you don’t feel overwhelmed. For example, a single item could be “morning practice” yet include multiple actions, such as hydrating, eating a nutritious breakfast, taking vitamins, reflecting on your abilities to leverage the day, and a review of your tasks ahead. Once a particular task becomes common practice, you may not even need to list it or review it daily. In any case, utilize whatever approach works best for you in order to make beneficial practices positive habits that enhance your life. If you find ways to make things entertaining, challenging, or fulfilling, then you will enjoy the journey as well as the destination, so to speak.

Ongoing education. Learn from success and failure, and improve through knowledge.
Physical activity. Strengthen your body and mind through enjoyable activities.
Proper nutrition. Ingest foods that will give you strength, energy, and good health.
Adequate rest. Sleep or rest when necessary to manage stress and to recover.
Financial stability. Obtain wealth in a desirable, ethical way, and build equity.
Social networking. Listen, communicate, negotiate, cooperate, compromise, and socialize.
Core values. Understand what you value and how that motivates you personally.
Limitless beliefs. Realize the power of beliefs, and adjust those that hold you back.
Goals and achievements. Note your accomplishments, and define your goals.
Positive affirmations. Leverage the power of intention to strengthen your resolve.
Peaceful meditation. Practice techniques to train your mind and to relax.
Creative visualization. Leverage imagination to manifest your desires.

Such a system is helpful, but it also requires balance and flexibility. It’s similar to financial planning where it can be useful to draw up a budget and come to understand your income and expenses in order to have guidelines to follow when pursuing your financial goals; however, living strictly by that budget can be tedious and may even deter from the satisfaction or enjoyment that money provides. Balance is the key, as having no budget, or routine, can be dangerous. Similarly, it’s essential to practice important strategies, such as exercising regularly, eating right, or building your social network, but balance those with time off or carefree living at times so that you don’t stress. You can also strive to make these practices entertaining parts of your everyday lifestyle as opposed to looking on them as chores that need attention. Be sure to follow your instincts, and listen to your body. If you exercise frequently but feel run down one day, then it may be best to give yourself a break rather than to push through another workout. Structure is useful to stay on track, but remain flexible so that you don’t wear yourself out.

Leverage a set of abilities each day. In addition to reviewing and implementing key strategies for life on a regular basis, tactically you can leverage your innate abilities from moment to moment in order to enhance your focus and deal with life’s daily challenges. The more you practice such skills, the more adept you will become at leveraging them to your advantage. To enhance your abilities, focus on one set each day of the week. For example, on Monday you could begin with tactics. Throughout the day, focus on the principles of relaxation, problem solving, and time management, and watch for opportunities to utilize those specific techniques. Carry that mind-set forward to the next day, but then make resolve your primary focus. Watch for situations where you can utilize valor, gratitude, and resiliency. Proceed with this approach for each set of abilities over the course of the week; this will increase your awareness of how to implement each skill while improving your performance in various aspects of life.

Monday Tactics: relaxation, problem solving, time management

Tuesday Resolve: valor, gratitude, resilience

Wednesday Unselfishness: tenderness, loving-kindness, compassion

Thursday Elasticity: patience, cooperation, flexibility

Friday Presence: awareness, concentration, take

Saturday Objectivity: tolerance, acceptance, detachment

Sunday Vision: humor, optimism, empathy

Challenge fear for the day. When you wake tomorrow, focus on the positive from the start, and then remain aware in order to spot fear as it arises. Monitor your thoughts and feelings throughout the day, and take note when you’re thinking negatively or feeling anxious. At that point, realize you’re experiencing the effects of fear, and immediately shift your focus in order to interpret the situation as a challenge as opposed to a threat; then immediately employ your natural abilities that can help. For example, if you’re nervous about an impending meeting or confrontation, then you can exercise your skills in relaxation, detachment, optimism, and humor. When interacting with others, you can also leverage aspects of cooperation, empathy, and loving-kindness. Listen well, communicate with care, and remain patient, for example. Allow valor to empower you, and if difficulties arise, then be resilient yet compassionate with yourself and others. In any case, remain present, and watch for fear. Once you spot it, employ the skills necessary to rise above it. Rest assured that implementing the skills you possess will allow you to excel in whatever it is you do.

Utilize symbolism regularly. You may find it helpful to relate a particular trait or value with an object in order to leverage it more frequently or effectively. Just as a dove can represent peace or a red rose can denote love, you can tie a particular principle or value that you have to an object or phrase, which can then help remind you to implement it when necessary. Jewelry is a common tool some people use to associate an important value to an object. By wearing a piece of jewelry that inspires love and peace, for example, that can prompt you to think and act with compassionate understanding. Nearly anything can work, such as a rubber band to remind you of elasticity and prompt you to practice patience, cooperation, and flexibility throughout the day or a piece of crystal that can remind you to see things clearly and objectively or to empathize with others. Find creative ways to associate objects to principles in order to help yourself excel. You can do the same with a word or phrase as well. For example, identify a phrase that you can use as a positive affirmation, such as “I can do this,” and then repeat that to yourself throughout the day. In particular, be sure to remember to say it to yourself when challenged. Another example would be the phrase “There is at least one solution to every problem,” which you can use when faced with trouble. If you correlate meaning to common objects or phrases that you integrate into your life, then they will help support the behavior you wish to exemplify.

Do a conscious shift each day. It’s helpful to practice relaxation techniques throughout the day to reduce stress, maintain perspective, enhance your performance, and improve your quality of life in general. If you make it a point to do a conscious shift each day, then that will help facilitate such techniques and benefit you accordingly. As discussed, a conscious shift entails pausing for a few moments to invoke each procedure. Begin with the breath, and focus on slowing it down and lengthening both the inhalation and the exhalation. As you do so, adjust your posture by straightening your spine, sliding your shoulders and head back, moving your hips slightly forward, and relaxing your muscles. Add to that stretching various parts of your body to ground yourself even further. Next, focus on positive self-talk to improve your outlook and boost your spirits, and then take a moment to visualize something that makes you happy. If you incorporate this shift into your day, then you will become more adept at leveraging the principles, and in turn they will allow you to relax and excel.

Remember that you have a wealth of innate abilities to leverage from moment to moment, and you’re skilled at many of them already. As for the others that might need some improvement, review them regularly, approach them with awareness, and practice them whenever opportunities arise. If you persist with such positive behavior and focus on your goals regularly, then you will inevitably excel—perhaps more than you might imagine. Through continued education, you can also find other resources or methodologies to aid in your success. Retain an open mind so that you don’t miss any opportunities that can help you or those you care about. Finally, you can record your efforts in a notebook or on an electronic device to remain organized and facilitate your efforts. Remember that writing down your goals and actions as previously outlined will be much more effective than simply pondering them alone. It doesn’t take long to record them, and doing so will improve your focus and give you a resource to review. Investing time in this manner is sure to pay off down the road.

You may not be able to control much of what unfolds in life, but you can choose how to interpret it. That’s essential in order to create a more positive reality for yourself and others. You choose what to focus on, and your thoughts create feelings, which in turn lead to the manifestations in your life. You also choose what to do with the time and skills that you’ve been given, so decide what you want, and go for it. Leverage your innate abilities to prevail. Establish a productive lifestyle, turn strategies into positive habits, and take small steps toward your goals each day. Over time, these little steps will hone your skills, increase your confidence, and lead to great accomplishments. In addition, through such practice, you will find that the journey itself provides fulfillment. Remain aware so that you can identify and overcome the illusions of fear, transcend the ego whenever possible, and embrace the various aspects of love each time an opportunity presents itself. Finally, remember to learn as you go, and take care of yourself and those close to you. Above all, enjoy what you can while you can, help others along the way, and don’t take life too seriously.