36525 days to live

An abstract concept that caught on about 6000 years ago and

resulted in the concepts of both the deadline and the heart attack!

That’s It !

“The key is not to prioritize what is on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.”

Stephen R. Covey

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Most of us are busier than we’d like to be.

The real question is:  Busy doing what exactly?

But how do we schedule our priorities?

If or when Life doesn’t do it for us, one of the best ways to do this is to write down your own personal mission statement.

Why?

Because if you don’t, you are running the risk of drifting aimlessly and without direction on the ocean of life.

A personal mission statement is simply a promise that you make to yourself directed towards goal achievement. It gives you the necessary focus in different aspects of your life, to attain those goals that you have always desired but never been able to achieve. You may call it a goal setting tool that helps you develop a vision for your future. The only way you can appreciate the effects of a personal mission statement is by writing one and experiencing the advantages it gives you.
How?

Writing a personal mission statement is simple, but writing a good personal mission statement is what is going to take a little time. Though it is meant to be short, choosing the right words and drafting it in a concise manner requires some time as well as the need to follow these tips:

Determine your Passion: Some of you may not be aware of it, but you’re sure to have some kind of passion, some driving force to get you where you want to be. First identify this driving force. Then point out things you are naturally good at, or things you like doing, or both. Some of you may be creative, socially active, or good managers. Whatever you think your abilities are, make a note of them.

Determine your Principles and Values: Principles guide the manner in which you go about attaining your goals. When you make a note of these, you are promising yourself to follow these to give you a direction toward your final destination. These principles also help you decide the kind of impact you want to have on the people around you, the causes you are passionate about, and the virtues that you think are necessary to achieve your goal. An important note to make is that principles are simply guidelines and can be altered as the situation demands. However, your core values such as simplicity or respect, will remain the same. So what are the principles and values you live by? Write them down.

Determine Your Goals: Why are you writing a mission statement? What is your ultimate goal? What do you intend to achieve by utilizing your abilities and your values? Identify all these to complete your mission statement.

Only when your consciousness is totally focused on the moment you are in can you receive whatever gift, lesson, or delight that the moment has to offer.

Barbara de Angelis

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It seems to me that we are stubborn students of life.

Life seems to tell us; here is a situation you need to face for your own developpement, and yet, most of the time, we will try to avoid the lesson. Why? Because it’s too damned hard! The funny thing about this is; the lesson we try to avoid seems to come back to us in many unexpected ways. Somehow, we can’t escape it.

When we focus on the moment and accept to face what we have to, it is difficult, but it is one of the best ways to grow.

What does this post have to do with time?

The sooner we understand this concept and that we put it in practice, the more time we will save to do other activities that we really enjoy. Have a nice day.

No matter what you do, time marches on at its own pace; tic, toc, tic, toc and there’s nothing you can do to change that .Time is a great equalizer; it runs at the same speed for everybody, rich or poor, jet pilot or snail farmer. You can’t manufacture time, you can’t reproduce time, you can’t slow time down or turn it around and make it run in the other direction. You can’t trade bad hours for good ones, either.

What you can manage, however, is your attention. Attention is a resource we all possess. Your attention reflects your conscious decisions about which activities will occupy your time. You are where your attention is… not necessarily where your body is.

The first step is to precisely understand your priorities. There’s a big difference between managing your attention to accomplish priorities and checking off items on your to-do list. Our natural tendency is to do what is fun, convenient, or absolutely necessary at any given time—but your true priorities may not fit into any of those categories. So, here’s a question to ask yourself, “If I could accomplish only one thing right now, what would that one thing be?”

Your answer will quickly identify your top priority, where you should be directing your attention.

“To lose patience is to lose the battle”

Mahatma Gandhi

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We don’t always have to be or look impatient to lose patience.

When we give up on something or on someone, we lose patience.

When we procrastinate with a task or a responsibility, we lose patience.

When we avoid doing what we must do, we lose patience.

It is so easy to lose patience because we rarely suffer the consequences of our procrastination right away; if we did, we would modify our behavior immediately.

The more we do what we must do when we should do it, the quicker the time will come that we will do what we want  to do when we want to do it.

Take time to laugh.

It is the music of the soul.

Take time to think.

It is the source of power.

Take time to play.

It is the source of perpetual youth.

Take time to read.

It is the fountain of wisdom.

Take time to be friendly.

It is the road to happiness.

Take time to give.

It is too short a day to be selfish.

Take time to work.

It is the price of success.

 Anonymous

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Here’s a fascinating, but little known fact about adversity.

For most people, your success is going to be in similar proportion to how much defeat and failure you have already experienced.

But…

This is only true when you have used any setbacks as learning experiences, and made the necessary changes to overcome or by-pass the obstacles.

If you haven’t, Life has a tendency to send you the same lesson again and again.

If you have, you move on to your next challenge.

And you will save time.

LISBONNE – Le Portugais Manoel de Oliveira, doyen des cinéastes encore en activité, a commencé à l’âge de 102 ans à tourner son prochain film dans un studio parisien, a-t-on appris vendredi auprès de sa société de production portugaise.

Le tournage de Gebo et l’ombre, une adaptation de la pièce de théâtre éponyme de l’écrivain portugais Raul Brandao, a débuté jeudi et doit se conclure fin octobre, a indiqué à l’AFP la société de production O som e a furia.

Au casting de cette comédie dramatique, co-produite avec la société française MACT Productions, figurent notamment le comédien franco-britannique Michael Lonsdale, l’Italienne Claudia Cardinale et la Française Jeanne Moreau.

Contrairement à ce qui avait été annoncé dans un premier temps, l’acteur français Michel Piccoli ne participera pas à ce projet.

Depuis son premier film, Douro, travail fluvial, réalisé en 1931, Manoel de Oliveira a tourné une cinquantaine de longs métrages de fiction et documentaires. Son dernier film sorti dans les salles de cinéma, L’étrange cas d’Angélique, avait été présenté l’année dernière au Festival de Cannes.

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Source. Canoe.ca September 23, 2011

You give but little when you give of your possessions.
It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.

Khalil Gibran

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Giving some of our money is difficult, but we can always earn more.

Giving of ourselves is a bigger challenge because it is giving of our personal time.

Giving of our personal time is giving of our lives.

One minute at the time. One hour at the time. One day at the time.

These minutes, these hours and these days will be gone forever.

The image of an hourglass, for me,  is a constant reminder of the brevity of our personal time.

The ticking sound of an old fashion clock.

If you have a lot of money, and you give some away, it is not a big sacrifice.

If you have a lot of time, and you give some away, it is not a big sacrifice.

It is when your money and- or your personal time are limited that it becomes a true gift.

Why?

Because you are giving a resource that is valuable for you.

I have met some people who are very generous with their money even when they had little.

I have seen people with very busy schedule giving a lot of their personal time.

In these two examples, we are watching a true giver in action.

Another example…

I have witnessed many times that if you want to get things done quickly, you ask it to someone who is already very busy.

They usually deliver what you need faster than anyone else.

In this last example, they are not only generous, but they are very efficient.

Some of you may think, how can you give of what you don’t have enough?

In this case, I would say the the gift is even more precious and valuable.

“Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up”

Pablo Picasso

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Child with a dove

If you dream of becoming an artist; a painter, a writer, a musician, an actor or an actress; what prevents you from using your free time to get started?

All of us have some free time. I know  most of us will tell others how very busy we are. The truth is that we are very good at making excuses.

I’m too tired…I don’t have enough money… I’m too old… I’m too young…My spouse won’t let me… It’s too expensive to take lessons… fill in the blank here ________________

How can some of us spend so much time watching TV, complain about our problems or gossip about others?

Why is it that some people seem to find the time to do things that they really care about for themselves or for others?

Each one of us have spare time to pursue our dream.

All we have to do is…to actually start.

Isn’t it ironic that someone who apparently didn’t want  to become popular had in time evolved into a cultural icon?

Is it possible that when we say NO to fame and public recognition that it is exactly what we will attract?

PJ 20 is a rockumentary that explains the evolution of the american rock band Pearl Jam.

It presents the evolution of a band of young people from obscurity to fame and than to maturity.

It shows the effect of time on the behavior of rock stars who tried to do it their way. With a minimum of compromise.

The end result?

A cult following!

Just like Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, The Ramones and The Grateful Dead before them.

I once read somewhere that the genius of  Shakespeare wasn’t fully recognized before 200 years after he died.

So if ever you find yourself working in obscurity, try to remember

that the long term effect of your work may be recognized over time.

Yes, but what if it doesn’t get recognized?

The most important question, I believe is the following:

Are you having fun as you are working on your art?

If the answer is YES, then you are not wasting your time…

Life is a song – sing it.
Life is a game – play it.
Life is a challenge – meet it.
Life is a dream – realize it.
Life is a sacrifice – offer it.
Life is love – enjoy it.

 Sai Baba

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“It is neither wealth nor splendor, but tranquility and occupation, which give happiness”

Thomas Jefferson

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Thomas Jefferson was describing the “Flow” before it was clearly defined by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Flow is the mental state of operation in which a person in an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and success in the process of the activity. Proposed by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the positive psychology concept has been widely referenced across a variety of fields.

According to Csikszentmihalyi, flow is completely focused motivation. It is a single-minded immersion and represents perhaps the ultimate in harnessing the emotions in the service of performing and learning. In flow the emotions are not just contained and channeled, but positive, energized, and aligned with the task at hand. To be caught in the ennui of depression or the agitation of anxiety is to be barred from flow. The hallmark of flow is a feeling of spontaneous joy, even rapture, while performing a task.

Colloquial terms for this or similar mental states include: to be on the ball, in the zone, in the groove, or keeping your head in the game.

(source: Wikipedia, english, May 18, 2010)

How often are you experiencing the Flow?

When you are in the flow: what do you see yourself doing?

When I cannot control events, I let events control themselves.

What else could I do?

Get angry?

Become frustrated?

Be impatient?

Blame others?

Shouldn’t we focus on what we can control instead?

Wouldn’t it be a better use of our precious time and energy?

If you know you will laugh at what’s happening to you in a year, two years or 5 years,

Why not try to laugh about it now?

Let the Universe manage itself. It always had. It always will.

“The future will depend on what we do in the present”

Mahatma Gandhi

(1869-1948)

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We all know this, it is so simple to understand when we read it. However, the challenge is not only to read it and understand it, the real challenge is to practice what we understand so well.

Yes, practice it day in day out, especially when you have distractions, a bad day or a good day.

Whatever is your dream, your project, your goal, pursue it relentlessly without wasting time.

You need a burning desire to keep you absorbed and focused, even when you have so many responsibilities and distractions.

Will you?

On my way to work this morning, I could have got killed by a flying wheelbarrow!

No, I didn’t take any drugs this morning.

This is what happened:

As I was driving on this wonderful Metropolitan highway in Montreal, three of four cars in front of me started to move from left to right crossing the lines. They looked like drunk drivers racing in all directions.

If I wasn’t fully awake at this point, this really got my attention.

All in a sudden, I see it, the Flying Wheelbarrow!

It is now me who starts driving in different directions to avoid the flying and bouncing wheelbarrow.

I was fortunate enough to be able to avoid with my car.

After this incident, I started to imagine what could have happened if I didn’t.

What if the wheelbarrow had hit the windshield of my car?

Would I have been able to keep control of my vehicle?

What if the other drivers had lost control of their vehicles at 90 Km/ hour?

What if I would have been distracted at this specific moment?

The lesson that I have re-learned this morning is to always give my full attention while driving my car.

The other lesson  reminds me once again that we never know what to expect in life.

This is why it is important to live every day to the fullest in the best possible ways.

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P.S. How did the wheelbarrow ended up on the highway?

Someone didn’t tie it up properly in the trunk of their pick-up truck.

“Forget the mistakes and the disappointments of the past.

It has nothing to do with your future.

Everyday is a new day. Just move on!”

Stephen Lafond

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“When you find yourself stressed out, ask yourself this question: Will this matter five years from now?

If yes, then do something about the situation. If no, then let it go.”

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“What it lies in our power to do, it lies in our power not to do”

Aristotle

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To choose or not to choose?

To invest or to spend?

To compliment or to criticize?

To exercise or to be lazy?

To eat healthy food or junk food?

To study or to watch TV?

To smile or to look sad?

To look at things positively or to look at them negatively?

To feel gratitude or to complain?

To look forward or to look back?

To use our time in a smart way or to waste our limited time?

What will you choose?

I do not usually promote Hollywood movies on this blog, but this will be an exception.

WARRIOR is a very inspiring movie. It is all about hope, courage and dealing with the hand that fate gives you.

I recommend that you go see this movie as soon as you can if you like  the edge of your seat type of movie.  

It will be a good investment of your time.

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Warrior is a 2011 American action drama film about mixed martial arts released on September 9, 2011 by Lionsgate. It stars Tom Hardy, Nick Nolte, Joel Edgerton, Justin Berg, Jennifer Morrison, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling combatantKurt Angle. The film was directed by Gavin O’Connor and produced by Greg O’Connor.

Do you remember where you were and what you were doing on September 11, 2001?

I do!

I was at work and we were watching the TV and everything appeared unreal.

Thousands of people have lost their lives quickly and unexpectedly that morning.

It reminds me that we have less control on our lives that we like to think.

It reminds me once again how fast life goes by when I realize it’s already been 10 years since the event.

Today, it is all over the medias.

This is the noisy and public thing to do.

Today, I encourage you to have a moment of silence by yourself remembering all the victims, their families and all the helpers that lost their lives in that tragedy.

There is only one time that is important – NOW!
It is the most important time because
it is the only time that we have any power.

Leo Tolstoy

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A  man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life.

Charles Darwin

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I think he was!

Making the Most of Today by Denis Waitley

What each of us is doing this minute is the most important event in history for us. We have decided to invest our resources in THIS opportunity rather than in any other.

It is helpful to remember this when we consider the passage of time. As I write this, my mother is in her eighties and I will never see fifty again. As the years pass, I am acutely aware that the bird of time is on the wing. At my fortieth high school reunion, I saw people who claimed to be my former classmates. We all had big name tags printed in capital letters so we wouldn’t have to squint with our reading glasses on, trying to associate the name with each well-traveled face. It was only yesterday that I was really enjoying high school. What had happened to the four decades in between? Where had they flown?

To the side of the bandstand, where the big-band sound of the late 1940s and ’50s blared out our favorite top-ten hits, there was a poster with a printed verse for all of us to see. I read the words aloud: “There are two days in every week about which we should not worry, two days which should be kept free from fear and apprehension.

“One of these days is YESTERDAY, with its mistakes and cares, its faults and blunders, its aches and pains. Yesterday has passed forever beyond our control. All the money in the world cannot bring back yesterday. We cannot undo a single act we performed or erase a single word we said. Yesterday is gone.

“The other day we should not worry about is TOMORROW, with its possible adversities, its burdens, its large promise, and its poor performance. Tomorrow is also beyond our immediate control.

“This leaves only one day, TODAY. Anyone can fight the battles of just one day. It is only when you and I add the burdens of those two awful eternities—Yesterday and Tomorrow—that we break down.

“It is not the experience of Today that drives us mad; it is remorse and bitterness for something which happened yesterday and the dread of what tomorrow may bring. Let us therefore… Live this one full TODAY.”

Malcolm Forbes believed the important thing is “never say die until you’re dead,” and he lived that example to the hilt. It is, as we realize when we suddenly attend our fortieth high school reunion, a short journey.

But it is difficult to be depressed and active at the same time. So get active! Live TODAY.

Denis Waitley

Life is too short, time is too precious,
and the stakes are too high
to dwell on what might have been.

Hilary Clinton.

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The words from the title were taken from the lyrics of the famous song MY WAY from Frank Sinatra.

Don’t fight against time.

Why?

Because you will lose for sure.

Time enjoyed is never time wasted.

Enjoyment of the moment always wins!

Once you have mastered time,
you will understand how true it is that
most people overestimate what
they can accomplish in a year –
and underestimate what
they can achieve in a decade!

Tony Robbins

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I think this is one of the reasons why we give up with some of our best intentions.

We have a tendency to start strong and when obstacles and difficulties arise, we stop.

It is in this way that we overestimate what we can accomplish.

I’ll give you an exemple… every year in January, the fitness clubs are extremely busy

and by mid-February, we see only the regular members working out.

What happened to the new comers?

They started strong and they stopped exercising after a few weeks.

Perhaps they were looking for a quick fix.

Quick fixes rarely work.

Most of us have our areas of our lives where we start something and don’t finish.

Examples?

Learning a new language, reading books regularly, spending time with our children,

investing in our education,eating healthier food.

You can  jot down your own here___________________________________ .

These are all examples of habits that we  must acquire over a long period of time if we want to witness some major change in our lives.

What we really underestimate is what discipline and persistence can do for us over many years.

But how do we become disciplined and persistent?

I think one of the best ways is to keep a long term vision of what we strongly desire.

Personally, I keep a picture of what I strongly desire and keep it in a place where I can see it regularly.

I write down clearly what I want to improve or what I want to accomplish.

I find ways to measure the activities and the progress towards my goal.

How else could I really know if I’m moving in the right direction?

It seems to me that almost every thing that I write down has a tendency to become a reality over the years.

In this way,I totally agree with Tony Robbins and his quote.

I suggest you read his quote again, even better, write it  down and keep it in a place where you can read again.

“It is our choices … that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”

J. K. Rowling (Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets)

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All the abilities and talents in the world will not bring us anything if there is no action.

Action requires choices.

With choices come risks, and with risks come uncertainty.

But who can live a life without any risk?

Many of us spend and waste a lot of time thinking that things will be better WHEN we lose weight, get promoted, move into a nicer place, make more money, get married, have children, get out of debt, have more free time, get the kids out of the house, retire, recover from a specific injury, illness, or whatever else it is we think needs to change in order for us to be happy.

Life is not “WHEN” ; it is TODAY.

Stephen Lafond

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“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; but remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hope for.”

Epicurus

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Epicurus ( 341 BCE – 270 BCE) was an ancient Greek philosopher and the founder of the school of philosophy called Epicureanism. Only a few fragments and letters remain of Epicurus’s 300 written works. Much of what is known about Epicurean philosophy derives from later followers and commentators.

For Epicurus, the purpose of philosophy was to attain the happy, tranquil life, characterized by ataraxia—peace and freedom from fear—and aponia—the absence of pain—and by living a self-sufficient life surrounded by friends. He taught that pleasure and pain are the measures of what is good and evil, that death is the end of the body and the soul and should therefore not be feared, that the gods do not reward or punish humans, that the universe is infinite and eternal, and that events in the world are ultimately based on the motions and interactions of atoms moving in empty space.

Source. Wikipedia, Sept 3, 2011.

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