by AmyD | Oct 25, 2017 | Choices, Spirituality
When we first start out at a new job or opportunity, we are like a roaring fire. Our fire burned bright, drawing eyes and attention of others. You’ve seen that fire before. Over time the fire burns down, simmers and smolders. It’s still there, generating heat. Yet, it isn’t nearly as bright or eye-catching. It may have been tempered by time and regret.
Regret is often portrayed as a negative emotion. It can; however, be a powerful motivator. Use it to reignite the dull flame and passion within you.
According to the Harvard Business Review, the top five career regrets are as follows:
1.) I wish I hadn’t taken the job for the money.
2.) I wish I had quit earlier.
3.) I wish I had the confidence to start my own business.
4.) I wish I had used my time at school more productively.
5.) I wish I had acted on my career hunches.
These regrets can easily parlay into other areas of our lives, beyond our career. Money is often an enticing motivator, but it quickly wanes. It’s shallow. The Bible states the root of all evil is money. It brings little joy and leaves regret and disappointment in its wake. It drowns our fire, and dampens our spirits.
When we place our faith in physical things, our souls are starved for more fulfilling engagement. We discover those in meaning and challenging work. So, when we regret accepting a job for money, or being motivated by money, we can use it as kindling to ignite a fire to do more. It’s the challenge that sparks our creativity, our sense of purpose, and desire to achieve.
The second career regret on the list is, “I wish I had quit earlier.” Oftentimes the warning signs along a dangerous highway are visible. We simply ignore them. Either because we’re caught in the frenzy of the ride or we’re distracted. Either way, we must focus to observe and take in what’s happening around us. Meditation can help us be present in the moment. Keeping a journal will allow us to be reflective. All of these activities will help us become more observant. We gain clarity to see when it’s time to stop.
Risk is scary. Starting a business is not only risky, but requires confidence in your abilities. It’s akin to jumping without a parachute. Life is about risk. It’s about being ignited and on fire! Be passionate about your interests. Step out on faith and gain confidence in your abilities to transform your hobby into a profession.
Education is one of the most important aspects of one’s life. Wishing more time was spent at school being productive is the fourth regret. Despite looking back on what could have been, you can seek out new opportunities in education. You can also utilize current opportunities to seek out productive ways to grow. Ask your current employer. It’s never too late to go back to school.
The final regret stated people regretted not acting on their career hunches. Like most of the previous regrets, this one stems from looking backward, versus going forward. This is also one where gaining clarity and meditating will help. Channel those feelings of regret into a fire. Use it to motivate you to push toward the goals you want to accomplish.
Regardless of what past regret is dulling your fire, you can still ignite a fire of new opportunities.
Are you reading to ignite the spark? Reach out to me, AmyD, the Peak Performance Expert and Trainer.
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by AmyD | Oct 6, 2017 | Entrepreneurship, Mindfulness
Bridges are constructed to make connections. We make connections every day in our professional and private lives. As long as the beams and foundation of those bridges remain intact, we remain comfortable as we travel them daily. We grow to trust them. They’re familiar, thus we feel safe leaving them as they are.
When those proverbial bridges begin to break down or destabilize, they threaten our mental and emotional safety. We can clearly see the danger. We recognize it, and we know we must make a decision. Often times when making decisions, we become mired in the bog of indecision, unable to move forward. The larger the decision, the harder it is for us to put our car into drive. We’re parked on a bridge that’s failing us. Or we’re at the onset of a new road, and unable to select a path. Many of life’s natural situations can create this huge indecision: marriage, relocation, promotion.
Dan Caldwell, the co-founder and president of TapouT, said, “Burn the bridges behind you.” Once the bridge is burned, even if it is rebuilt, it’s never the same. While this may sound like a negative, it is in fact, an act of commitment. Think about how fully that speaks to your commitment once you’ve burned the bridge of the past interactions and entanglements.
Now you’re dedicated to the new path presented before you. That means you’re positioned to be the best. It means being the first on the field, the court, or in the cubicle, and the last to leave. By leaving those bridges behind, we build relationships, sometimes from existing ones and sometimes from new ones. We may need those new bridges to last a lifetime, like in marriage, or for the duration of a career. Regardless, we must possess the mental flexibility and the courage to pursue new goals and new paths fully. Practicing this art of burning bridges to create full commitment will manifest what we desire.
We discover new relationships and opportunities by being strategic. We must also be open to receiving them when they become available and patient when they are not. Mental flexibility begins when we make time. When we let go of our physical fears and frustrations, we can see the path, the one we’ve chosen, more clearly. Once we acknowledge that we are more than our material possessions, we expand into something greater. A practice of meditation and reflection can guide us to this place.
Dan Caldwell’s philosophy is what he calls, “No Plan B.” The idea is you attack your life without the idea of a safety net and burning the bridges behind you. By doing so, you are dedicated to the path or choice you’ve selected. Whether that be entrepreneurship or walking down the aisle, you are committed to seeing it through. In his words, “It doesn’t matter what your past was, your future is what you want to be.”
In reading this blog, does it make you think of your next journey? Find clarity and the ability to connect and commit by reaching out to me, AmyD, the Peak Performance Expert and Trainer.
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by AmyD | Jun 16, 2017 | Success
ESPN just released its World Fame 100 list. It’s a list of the 100 most famous athletes in the world, rated according to several factors: endorsements, followers on social media, and number of Google searches. Here are the Top Ten professional athletes who have captured the imaginations of people everywhere:
- Cristiano Ronaldo, Portuguese soccer player for Real Madrid
- LeBron James, American basketball player for the Cleveland Cavaliers
- Lionel Messi, Argentine soccer player for Barcelona
- Roger Federer, Swiss tennis player
- Phil Mickelson, American golfer
- Neymar, Brazilian soccer player
- Usain Bolt, Jamaican sprinter
- Kevin Durant, American basketball player for the Golden State Warriors
- Rafael Nadal, Spanish tennis player
- Tiger Woods, American golfer
What do they have in common? What is it about them that draws the attention of the entire world? It isn’t enough to be talented, to have achieved greatness. To go from greatness to eliteness takes a combination of confidence, commitment, grace, and the ability to alter your world simply by your energy and presence.
Commitment
Every athlete on the list is committed to their craft, to their fans, and above all, to themselves.
To be committed requires dedication, gratitude and focus for achieving your wildest ambitions. These athletes are committed to harnessing their mental and physical prowess, so that every game takes them one step closer to destiny.
They’re also committed to their fans, their teammates, and the entire professional sports industry. They express gratitude toward those whose energy and support have elevated them. LeBron James, who had fallen out of Cleveland’s favor for a spell, assured his hometown that he’d come back to them. That he always had their backs. It was a promise he kept.
Confidence
To have confidence in yourself means to meet obstacles and challenges head on. The most famous athletes hold their heads up high, no matter what their critics or their opponents say. They take constructive criticism from their coaches and their teammates as valuable information that will only strengthen their game. They have an optimism for the future and see challenges as opportunities for growth, not hindrances.
Cristiano Ronaldo has often been called arrogant or narcissistic. But it is precisely his self-confidence that allows him to brush off such negative remarks and be #1 on the list. People like Ronaldo believe in themselves, and maintain their momentum throughout their entire career. They never settle for less than what they know they’re capable of.
Grace
The athletes on the list have mastered their minds, bodies and spirits so that their every movement is purposeful and intentional. Lionel Messi is a good example of this powerful grace that some have described as almost unearthly.
When you train yourself mentally and spiritually, you go beyond your physical limits. Your body is in a state of increased intuition and awareness, where it can anticipate the movements of your opponents. You begin to think on your feet and are aware of your present surroundings in a way that places everything around you at your advantage.
Changing the World
All of the athletes on the list have altered the sports industry forever. They’ve set elite expectations for their teammates and future athletes. They’re carved out new standards for peak performance and what it takes to win. All eyes are on them, not just because they’ve made history. They continue to inspire every time they compete.
Commitment, confidence, grace, positive change… these are qualities that must be cultivated every single day. If you’re a professional athlete, you can take this natural gift you’ve been given and transform it into something even more powerful than before. Reach out to me, Amy D the Peak Performance Expert, to learn how you can set an elite standard for yourself and for others in your industry.
by AmyD | Apr 25, 2017 | Leadership, Mindfulness, Spirituality, Success
In my last blog post, I discussed how your emotions impact your physical health. Your body is an entire system of thought, that communicates with itself so it can heal from illness and injury. Right now I’d like to shed more light on how mental awareness and long term meditation not only impact your brain, but also your mental and physical performance.
Studies reveal that meditation has an age-defying impact on the the brain. Those who commit to long-term meditation have more gray matter in the regions of their brain that are responsible for sensory perception, memory and decision-making. Older meditators, around 50 years old, had the same amount of gray matter in their cortex as 25-year-olds.
Whether you’re a professional athlete or a CEO, you can benefit from habitual meditation and awareness exercises, which not only strengthen your brain against the impacts of aging, but also increase your peak performance. Here’s how:
Hyper-Awareness
My clients who practice meditation and mental awareness report dramatic, positive changes in their perceptions. Through a disciplinary practice, they’ve cultivated a mindset that is clear, free from distraction, and responsive to changes in their environment. My professional athletes in particular have integrated mental awareness into their physical training regimen. The increased awareness of their surroundings allows them to anticipate their opponent’s next move with more precision than before. They know the drill. They can predict, with laser-like accuracy, when their opponent is interrupting the flow that they’ve established through their mental and physical rituals.
This altered state, called a “flow state” by experts, elevates them to a peak performance that gives them the ultimate advantage over their opponent.
Physical Well-being
Meditation inhibits chemicals like cortisol, which are associated with chronic stress. Stress hormones like cortisol and epinephrine wreak havoc on our bodies, and keep our brains from sustaining that healthy gray matter so crucial to our mental focus and our memories. Chronic stress also creates a buildup of negative energy in our bodies which increase wear-and-tear. It’s why some professional athletes report being more injury prone when they’ve stopped meditating or practicing mental awareness.
Long term meditation can act as preventative for the harmful stress placed on the body. Discipline in the art of meditation and mental awareness allows you to react quickly and gracefully to everything around you. You begin to “think on your feet,” which prevents career-ruining injuries and promotes the holistic healing of your body, mind, and spirit.
If you’re in a career that requires you to be on top of your game, at all times and all places, meditation and mental conditioning is what puts you at a competitive advantage. Ask me about Peak Performance Mentoring that can catapult you to a place among the elites. Visit my contact page or email me at [email protected]. I look forward to hearing from you!
by AmyD | Apr 13, 2017 | Health
Recent studies have shown that negative emotional and mental states, including anxiety and depression, can increase your risk of injury or illness. Professional athletes in particular are susceptible to these devastating self-fulfilling prophecies. Did you know that athletes who are stressed out about getting sick are 5 times more likely to get injured?
The good news about self-fulfilling prophecies is that they have the opposite effect. You can re-direct your emotions and your thoughts so that you can be free of illness and injury. If you’re a professional athlete, these techniques can make or break your success as a competitor. Here’s how it works.
Each part of our body sends out a chemical signature, an energy vibration that directs other parts of our bodies to follow its lead. For better or for worse, depending on our emotions, this phenomena creates a perfect symbiosis. For example, it’s proven that stress hormones, fueled by negative mental states, actually increase your risk for heart disease, diabetes, and obesity.
Catabolic energy that arises from negative mental states also manifests as pain. You know that tight, squeezing feeling you get in your chest, when you’re in emotional distress? That feeling is caused by trapped energy lodging itself into your emotional core, forming what’s called a Heart Wall.
We often think of the mind and body as separate. This is a figment of our collective imagination. There is no boundary between the mind and the body, because every part of the body has neuro-pathways that are perfect communication with all the other parts. Did you know there are so many neurons in our gut that scientists actually call it our “second brain”? The body is an entire system of thought, and that means that we have more control over what occurs within it than we ever imagined.
Instead of increasing our risk of injury or illness through negative mental states, we can encourage our body to maintain it’s health and well-being by giving off positive, anabolic energy signals instead. For example, if you practice the art of gratitude even when you’re sick or injured, your body will follow suit- acting as if you’ve already been healed and are well!
It’s up to you. You can either manifest disease and injury, or healing and wellness. If you’re a professional athlete, the choice is pretty clear.
How can you improve your physical health? Here are the very basic ways that all individuals, athletes and non-athletes alike, can begin manifesting positive energy today:
- Exercise regularly
- Get plenty of sleep
- Meditate and practice mindfulness
- Maintain well-balanced diet
- Practice gratitude
- Practice mental resilience
Some of us must be free from illness or injury in order to advance our professional careers. If you’d like an Energy Assessment, to find out where your energy is blocked and preventing you from abundant physical and emotional health, visit my website and send me a message on my contact page. Let’s start this journey together, today.
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