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Benjamin Franklin’s Project(DW #826)

growing inspiration motivation Oct 26, 2020

Some years ago, I came across something which has continued to fascinate and inspire me: Benjamin Franklin’s Moral Perfection Project

Benjamin Franklin, as you may know, started from humble beginnings and rose to become a successful printer, writer, musician, inventor, and, of course, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States of America.

While we may be aware of Franklin’s life accomplishments, what I find really inspiring is the processes he followed that led to his many accomplishments.

Franklin had a rocky start in life: by his early 20s, he had already failed in twice in business ventures. His personal life was also in trouble and he was raising a son born outside his marriage.

Personally and professionally, Franklin felt unsatisfied and decided to take charge and change the course of his life.

It seems that he realised that while he may not be able to control his life circumstances, he could control how he...

Silly small steps(DW #825)

motivation self reflection Oct 23, 2020

One of my teachers/mentors like to hammer in this point: when we planning a new habit or a change in behaviour, we need to make it EASY TO WIN.

When we are designing our new behaviours (yes DESIGNING – acting on purpose and with intention), we need to plan for days when we have the LEAST motivation.

This is not how most of us plan for change though.

We plan on change and new habits when we are the height of inspiration and motivation. And think we can take on the world.

WE ARE SO INSPIRED! We commit to huge goals – meditating for an hour, walking 10,000 steps, never eating sugar again etc., etc., etc.

And then real life hits. We have a sleepless night. The kids are being …. Children! We are tired and cranky and the last thing on our minds and within our energetic bandwidth is to work on self-improvement.

And when we fail to meet our goals, we think there is a big problem with us.

In his EXCELLENT book, Tiny...

Recommitment(DW #821)

inspiration motivation objective Oct 19, 2020

The process of getting back on track to our path of progress is called Recommitment.

We have been discussing how even with much motivation and inspiration at the beginning, there WILL be times when we fail to live up to our commitments to ourselves or fall short of the standards we set for ourselves.

Sad but true.

So then what?

Once we spend a few minutes reminding ourselves that we are human and that self-compassion will get us further than self-criticism, it is time to RECOMMIT.

Again. And again. And again.

Just like the pilot that we discussed, keeps coming back on track after drifting, we remind ourselves of our path and get back on track.

Here are the steps:

Step 1. The destination/goal/target needs to be clear of course

Step 2. Remind yourself about the WHY. Why is this important? Why are you on this journey? What does it mean to you?

When we forget our why, we lose our way.

Step 3.Commit to the process. 100%.

Step 4. Take action. Get in motion. Keep taking baby steps....

Speaking of congratulations . . .(DW #815)

motivation self compassion selfdevelopment Oct 09, 2020

How often do we stop, reflect on how far we have come, acknowledge progress and celebrate small and big wins?
Turns out, this is rather important for motivation and change.
So today, take a few moments to congratulate yourself for any progress that you have made till today in the different areas of your life.

For those of us who are super self-critical, this will be challenging and feel weird.

That is okay. Do it anyway.

Blog

Benjamin Franklin’s Project(DW #826)

Silly small steps(DW #825)

Recommitment(DW #821)

Speaking of congratulations . . .(DW #815)

Two Step