Being the BEST version of YOU
Posted: May 17, 2019
By Master Rappold
When your thinking and actions are aligned correctly, you live a more friction-free life. Distractions, irritations and interruptions become less and your mind and your spirit feel limitless. Thoughts leads to actions, actions lead to habits and habits, done over time, lead to the person you are destined to become. Taking conscious control of your thoughts and focus puts you in the driver’s seat of manifesting you desired results.
To bring more immediate conscious power in your life I am going to suggest changing one thought and encouraging one specific action.
First, the thought - For the remainder of 2014 commit to talking only about things you can control. Sounds simple, right? Maybe, maybe not?
Think about what you hear talked about on a daily basis: the terrorist threats, the national debt or celebrity gossip. Lots of social time is taken up focused on things that have nothing to do with us and things we have very little control over. Our mind can be kept busy and distracted in the name of keeping “informed” or entertained. This important thought action step learned from the late Dr. Stephen Covey, who called topics in this area “the Circle of Concern”, are things we discuss but can do nothing about. His other circle, called “the Circle of Influence”, are things in your immediate control – yourself, your behavior, the people and places you interact with and can positively affect you daily. By practicing the discipline of more focused time on your circle of influence, you will naturally expand your impact by focusing your energy on becoming a better you. You will be gently encouraged to switch when someone attempts to draw you down into topics that you can’t impact.
Second, the action - Actively practice the habit of “Be of Service to Others”. No other practice more readily keeps a healthy perspective and provides authentic purposeful motivation than when you are being of service and support to others. There are plenty of small opportunities that arise each day, from holding a door, to writing a note, verbally expressing gratitude or anonymously paying for the car behind you at Dunkin’ Donuts.
Particularly during November, when we celebrate the holiday of Thanksgiving, it seems the perfect time to take the action of giving of you. Whether it is for the sake of your children or just a personal choice that you make, in both cases the experience will be amazingly valuable. If you haven’t yet stepped up to give selflessly to someone who has less, you are going to be shocked just how good it feels. There is something magical that happens when you come face-to-face with far worse circumstances than what you are dealing with. You are able to lighten the load for another and at the same time miraculously step back into your world full of “problems” that now seem less intimidating. As long as you do it for the right reasons, you will always gain more than you could ever possibly give.
If you haven’t already committed, I invite you to join in with our Turkey Brigade on Saturday, November 22nd and Sunday, November 23rd as we package and deliver all of the these special gifts to local families in need of our support. Now in our 19th year, approximately 3,000 families are provided with a full Thanksgiving Dinner to enjoy on the holiday. From past experiences shared, it is a phenomenal way to usher in the holidays being among a great group of team members, friends and families of Personal Best. You will absolutely feel the goodness that comes from involvement. The translation of the word samurai is “the one who serves”. It is a piece of living the Personal Best Martial Arts Lifestyle to be of service to others.
As we enter into the last 60 days of 2014 make a commitment to do two simple things, one thought control and the other an action. You will have a renewed sense of control in your life and a strong feeling of love in your heart. Nothing can be better that bringing these into balance as we get ready to lay a strong ground for the progress and excellence that will come in 2015.
If you would like to have your child try our award-winning character based martial arts program that will reinforce family value and teach mental and physical skills to ensure they are safe, please go to the registration page to sign up today. I promise you that our team of highly-skilled martial arts teachers and mentors will make you and your family feel right at home.