“You’ve Got To Have Heart” picks up where we left off with last week’s “This Year Will Be Different” blog, which is where I shared strategies for goal attainment.  No one starts out on a journey thinking they’re going to fail.  We all start out with intentions of succeeding; excited because we can’t wait to see the fruits of our labor.  We start out full of vitality and energy, steadfast in our resolve.  And then…time passes. Doubt creeps in and you start to question yourself asking, “Why did I decide to take this on?”  It’s been a week and I haven’t lost the twenty pounds I set out to lose.  Or I haven’t made the $1000 I expected to make.  And this is where the problem starts.

And so, it goes…with the start of every new year, people identify goals they want to achieve for the coming year.  For some whose goals are fairly similar to the prior year’s resolution, there’s this sense of, “This year is going to be different!” Which camp do you fall under? Are you happy operating in “your comfort zone”?

“The things you do for yourself are gone when you are gone, but the things you do for others are your legacy.”

– Kalu Ndukewe Kalu

The death of a loved one is never easy. It doesn’t matter if it’s sudden or whether your loved one has been battling an illness for many years. The sting of death cuts so deep and can be quite incapacitating. This past week, my dear Uncle Henry passed away. The purpose of this blog was to not only remember my Uncle and celebrate his life, but to also remind each of you that life is short. Is there someone in your life you haven’t spoken to in a while? Have you let a lot of time pass from the last time you saw them? If someone comes to mind as you read this, don’t let another minute pass.

I can’t imagine living a life without inspiration. When I’m inspired, I get excited; I have hope; I feel like I’m invincible.  I would compare life without inspiration to being like life without color.  The sky is gray, flowers are not vibrant, and everything is just drabby.  And because life looks this way there isn’t any real joy or passion.  In those moments when you need a little pick me up or a reminder of the many great things you have in your life, turn to the power of inspirational words and watch your attitude change!

Have you ever heard of the adage, “slow and steady wins the race”?  In many situations, this approach is sometimes true. The tortoise in the story of the tortoise and the hare won the race not because he was the smartest, fastest, or even wittiest. Rather, he won the race because he was so focused on the end result: crossing the goal line. Like the tortoise, you too have the ability to with the race.  Here are some strategies you can use to give you that edge, to stay laser-focused, and stay motivated so that you can achieve your goals.

You take the time to meal prep on the weekend to ensure that you eat the right foods during the week.  You feel good.  You feel accomplished. You’re making progress.  Until the evening hits.  Are you successful with sticking to your diet all day long but then struggle with late night cravings? Find out more about why it is that when you eat matters almost as much as what you eat. You may be able to enjoy more of the foods you love and still lose weight with these easy lifestyle adjustments.

Productivity is the rate at which people do useful work.  Often times, productivity translates into time and money.  In some situations, the more productive you are, the more money you can earn.  You can also save time. Just think.  The time you save can be spent on anything you like, including making more money. Read on to see ways that you can improve your productivity.

Groups of people that have similar results have similar habits. Health-conscious people have similar habits. Thin people have similar habits. Overweight people have similar habits. Productive people have several habits in common. Likewise, unsuccessful people have several habits in common, too. If you’re struggling with your productivity, this article is for you.

The effects of COVID ran deeper than just the world shutting down. Each of us had to learn how to deal with and adapt to the changes that COVID thrust upon us. To some it meant effectively balancing work while learning how to homeschool your children. Those of us in the service industry were forced to shut their doors until we started to see the number of people affected by COVID significantly drop. And yet others struggled with isolation as we were mandated to stay home and limit who and how we socialized. With limitations placed upon us, what did you do to stay on top of your fitness?

So why do people cringe when you mention doing a vegan diet? Could it be that the thought of not being able to eat meat (no bacon!) turns them off? Or perhaps they think that eating vegan means they’ll be starving all the time? Maybe it’s because it is an unknown and new territory that many people have never been taught about. Well, if you’re open to a vegan diet and want to explore how you can get started eating vegan, read on!

Like it or not, we have all judged a person, at some point in our lives, based on that first look. Think about the thoughts that pop into your head as you’re walking down a busy street in New York City. When you think about these people that you see, you inherently start to form an opinion. It’s human nature. What impressions do you make on people the first time they see you?

When you experience a negative event, do you find yourself reaching for a bag of Oreos or a handful of pretzels? Maybe you’re the type of person who reaches for that same bag of cookies when you experience a positive event? If you think all stress eating is the same, think again. Recent studies have found two distinct patterns. See which style describes you and how you can change it.

If you ask me, I think the ability to stay motivated is a continuous event. It’s not something you implement once and forget. It’s not something that, when done, is performed the same way every time you do it. I believe staying motivated is something that you do often and the way you go about it changes based on the timing or situation. What do you do to keep yourself motivated?

After a long day at work, who wants to slave over a hot stove, cook dinner, and then clean up? Meh. Doesn’t sound too appealing. I think I’d be tempted to order out or grab some food on the way home from work. No doubt, it’s the easier thing to do. And doing it every now and then is not a big deal. But if you make this a way of life, you’re asking for trouble. Constant eating out is what I’d label as unhealthy eating and unhealthy eating can lead to medical problems. Read on to learn what you can do to get on the road to healthy eating.

Feeling out of place and like you don’t belong or are not accepted can certainly make you feel alone and uncomfortable. The way that one handles this uneasiness varies from one person to the next. Some avoid the situation as much as possible. Others face the challenge head on. While others find it difficult to make decisions or even worse, fall victim to mistreatment and abuse. In Part 2 of Fitting In, we’ll delve into the reasons why people change their behavior based on who they are with .

At some point in your life, have you have experienced that awkward moment, that moment when you have felt uncomfortable? Maybe you felt like you don’t fit in or that you don’t feel accepted by your peers, co-workers or family? Maybe you just felt like the outsider. What is it that makes us feel this way? Is it something that we are innately born with? Or is it learned? Perhaps it has something to do with the way we feel about ourselves? What do you do when you find yourself in these situations?

As I sat down to write this week’s blog, I was thinking of a “catchy” or “misleading” title to capture the content being discussed. Then I realized, with my sense of humor, I just may miss the mark with being catchy. Or what I think is misleading is pretty apparent to others. In any case, I landed on “My Personal Space” as the title.

Does the thought of getting old cross your mind? Perhaps you find yourself thinking about it when you stand up quickly and you experience a weird twinge or an electrical shock shooting down the lower part of your back. Maybe it crosses your mind as you try to play dodge ball with a younger group of kids.

I can remember thinking when I was a little girl, “I can’t wait until I get older. Then, no one can tell me what time to go to bed.” When my teenage years hit, I wasn’t concerned with bedtime. Now, I wanted to control curfew. “Why do I have to be in by 11:00pm when all my friends have until midnight?” “Life has got to better when I get older!”