#UnBlockYourself

Today we are creating a working Done / Doing List for the new year. The "Done" part of the list are the things God has brought us through, accomplishments large and small. The "Doing" side of the list are the things we are setting out to do. As we do them, we move them to the "Done" side, and add more things to the "Doing" side, so it is a working list. Let's do great things in 2022!   “Commit to...

MOST OF THE THINGS WORTH DOING IN THE WORLD HAD BEEN DECLARED IMPOSSIBLE BEFORE THEY WERE DONE. - Louis Brandeis   What is it that you are working on that is worth doing? What is that thing that is so worthy of your time, sweat, and tears?   Is there something urging you to press on? To move forward? That thought or idea that will not let you go? It may be your greatness calling you out to fulfill...

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”” Deuteronomy 31:6 NIV   Today’s prompt comes with a quote:  “My favorite thing is to go where I’ve never been” - Diane Arbus   Where can go today? I live in a small town so there aren’t many places I haven’t been, but new things open all the time,...

“Whoever watches the wind will not plant; whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.” Ecclesiastes 11:4 NIV   This was the prompt for today. I asked God for wisdom and understanding. In my mind we sat down in the garden, and a strong breeze blew through the trees. I the feeling was great, and the sight of the trees moving as if they were dancing was beautiful! I looked up and the clouds moving qui...

Yesterday we touched on the fear of losing, and there is nothing wrong with that. We get knocked down sometimes, or maybe even a lot. Every time you get back up, it is the start of a new win! As the quote said yesterday, “Every time you win, it diminishes fear a little bit”.   Muhammad Ali put it this way, “Inside of a ring or out, ain’t nothing wrong with going down. It’s staying down that’s wron...

One of my coaches long ago said, “Action is the antidote to fear”. This has always stuck with me because I had to prove it as a false statement or a permanent practice.   The journal prompt today deals fear too. The quote is from Authur Ashe and it reads, “Every time you win, it diminishes fear a little bit. You never really cancel the fear of losing; you keep challenging it.”   What’s a fear you...

Challenge yourself: Let’s grow! We can challenge ourselves to be and do better by taking small steps outside of our comfort zones!   Today’s challenge:  When two paths come before you, choose the harder one! What’s the hard thing you’re going to do today?

Hopefully you are starting to see in your day to day journey some activities that you take part in pointing to your true Ikigai. My cheat sheet has the pillars in pairs: Kaizen and Kodawari Accepting and Releasing Yourself Harmony and Sustainability Enjoying the little things And today: the Here and Now   The here and now is the main idea behind “Ichigo Ichige”, (once in a lifetime meeting), meani...

Quick Recap: Kaizen and Kodawari - to start small with high standards in the details in the things we do.  Wabi Sabi for acceptance and releasing yourself to do great things. Ikigai flow having harmony and sustainability as you go about doing these things.   Today is about the things you do bringing you joy. It also brings back the little things, the small details, those things that warm your hear...

So far we use kaizen and kodawari to start small with high standards in the details in the things we do. Next is acceptance and releasing yourself. This is Wabi Sabi choosing to accept your imperfections and use them to define how wonderfully different you are. And now harmony and sustainability.   One of the great things you’ll notice when are flowing in your ikigai is that things you do come tog...

Awakening your ikigai pillar 2 Starting small was the first pillar, and small steps to improvement is the essence of kaizen. Also in starting small we took care of the small things, the details. Kodawari is the high standard we have in what we love and do that takes care of the little things, because we love what we love.    Another pillar in our ikigai is releasing yourself. Releasing yourself to...

The essence of your personal ikigai working for you lies within five things happening within your ikigai framework. Starting Small Releasing Yourself Harmony and Sustainability The Joy of the Little Things Being in the Here and Now   Kodawari is the commitment to doing the things you are called to do to a high standard or level of quality. It is all in the details. The very small things that matte...

One of the many meanings of ikigai is the reason you get out of bed in the morning. Today, we are going to get a little head start on accomplishing things in our day by starting to get up earlier. One of the things about fall that I like about this country is the time change. We set our clocks back an hour and what we do with that extra hour is up to you! You can sleep in, (but your body’s rhythm...

There are many facets to discovering and understanding your own personal ikigai. We have to take time to examine our lives and notice the little things. More than likely, you function in your ikigai everyday, but since there’s is no emphasis on it, it doesn’t seem strong enough to fulfill your mission, purpose, and vision, for your life.    I think back to when I went to a certain class on relatio...

Finding our ikigai in our lives will stem from the things that are important to us. Everyone is different, so no one’s ikigai will be exactly the same. Some will serve the community using their talent because that is all they will focus on. Some will try to change the world by using every ounce of everything they own, it all comes down to the balance of the four essential elements: What you love W...

Our ikigai trickles little by little or like a flood into our work and lifestyle when we “go with the flow”. The flow is that where space and time seem to no longer bind you as you are doing the very thing you were called to do at that very moment. You are no longer just you. You are the ultimate version of you. Ultimate Super Sayan you.    That “flow” manifests itself when what you love, what you...

A strong mindset can determine what you are able to accomplish, but the intensity of the struggle between the mind and body will dictate how fast you’ll get there, depending which one is in control.    If you are led by the body, you will see that the body: Will give up without much of a fight when things get hard.  Will always look for the easy route and cut corners.  Will look for immediate grat...

I was driving my golf cart this weekend looking at the sights and noticed that the cart would go in the direction I was looking. So when I wasn’t looking at the road, i kept going off of it. I wanted to talk about that today.    “We walk by faith and not by sight” - 2 Corinthians 5:7   As I was sitting in my thinking chair this experience and scripture came up. Then my favorite radio ad of all tim...

When dealing with others today, consider the emotional bank account. Even if we do not know the person, (which makes it easier because we are not starting with a negative balance) we can make the first step by making deposits right off the bat!   Here a few things to consider if things are starting to south in relationships or encounters with others.    Big problems usually are a sum of a bunch of...

Last night I was encouraged to revisit my vision, to keep it before me so I can chase after it. It’s hard to chase after something that was once in front of you, but now in a notebook on a shelf fading away due to time…   It all started with at church where Pastor Eric Clark encouraged us with one of the main scriptures was coming from Habakkuk 2:3: “For the vision is yet for an appointed time; Bu...

Our last of the Seven Mudas is eliminating wasted time and resources due to defects.  From a business standpoint, this is when You have products that require rework because they are not functioning the way they were designed to. Every step in production after the finished product will have to be delayed because the product has to go back and be repaired or redone. It’s good to get the kinks out wh...

Today’s focus will be on eliminating wasteful inventory. In business, this is where what you have produced, sits on the shelf. If it has a shelf life, it must be sold or it will be no good. Even if it doesn’t, it must be stored at a cost, and kept safe and protected. This all will be at a cost to your business when you cannot sell what you have over produced.   In your personal life, materialistic...

Today we look at Excess Processing:  Where in business, this focuses on products that must be repaired to satisfy customers needs after the production of the product has been completed. In simpler terms, having to go back and get stuff right when it should have been right the first time. Somewhere in the production line something is amiss or not inspected, and cutting corners may cost you you more...

In business, this waste is due to Overproduction: When there are more parts in the production line than customers are purchasing. Since the balance is off, where there is more time being wasted in the production of goods that will not be sold, time, money, and resources are not being utilized in different areas where they could make a difference to the company.   In our personal lives, this balanc...

“But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint…” Isaiah 40:31   “He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”” Psalm 46:10   The 2 verses come to mind whenever I think about waiting. There are 2 elements to most...