Make Excellence YOUR habit

"We Are What We Repeatedly Do, Excellence Then Is A Habit"

--Socrates

Backstory: I have to admit, I have not been living up to my full potential. Not as a student. Not as a daughter. Not as a sister or an aunt, or as the giver of information. I have been a slacker. I fell into a rut and I didn't realize it until I got out of it. A very good friend of mine (who shall remain nameless) called me out. She said "What are you doing with your life? Why are you playing around? You have so much potential and you could be doing so much better but you aren't applying yourself and its so obvious. I'm frustrated with you right now." You want to know the truth? She was absolutely correct.  For the past few weeks, I have been coasting by doing just enough to get by. It was my friend's words that woke me up and shoved me back onto my path. I felt invigorated and renewed. I had found my motivation. Her words will be the next thing I frame and hang on my wall to look at every time I want to waste the night away looking at photos on the book. 

Image source: http://iconicphotos.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/black-power-salute-jpg.jpeg

STOP: Its your turn to reflect.Is there something you can improve upon? Don't worry you don't have to shout it from Mt. Everest and we wont judge you if you do. Do you actually work while you're at work? In other words, are you working hard or are you hardly working? Get my drift? Good. Moving on.

Image source: http://typeinspire.com/images/0509/temp/excellence.jpg

If you have fallen into a rut and even if you haven't, consider this YOUR shove! Practice excellenece in whatever you do. If you must work the mail room, do it with excellence. If you must shovel snow, do it with excellence. As the above quote says we are what we repeatedly do. There is repetition everywhere. We learn by repitition. If you don't believe me stay awake until 2am and sit through an infomercial for "Your Baby Can Read." What I am challenging you to focus on is what you are repeating.  Many of us awaken at the same time every morning and go to bed at the same time in the evening. The great Ricky Bobby proclaimed "I wake up in the morning and pi** excellence." We brush our teeth, cleanse our pores and dress ourselves every day. We become prisoners of our habits. Such habits are not easily broken but there is hope. Since I love all of you, here are 3 ways to make excellence YOUR habit:

1. Realize your potential. Do not sell yourself short by forgetting what you are good at. Hone in on the things that make you great and harness them to become better. Realize that you were born with great potential and since you can't take it with you, I encourage you to spend it. Spend your potential like its going out of style tomorrow. End each day knowing that you gave every task your all. Realize that you can be excellent.

2. Focus on productivity. After a few nights of endlessly browsing through photos online and chatting with old friends (yes it took me a few nights, I feel you judging me), I realized how much time I was wasting doing nothing. It was time I could have easily spent doing research or reading a good self-help book.What did I gain from those many nights of browsing? I caught up with my high school buddies and laughed at silly drama. Bottom line: I gained things that did not help me reach my goals. What did I lose? Time. My time is valuable is so is yours. Its precious and it is nonrenewable. Think about the things you do that do not contribute to your goals. You have 2 choices: (1) stop doing them completely or (2) use them sparingly. Plan your time in an honest way that allows you do to the things you enjoy while also doing the things you need to do. This means that TV lovers should schedule time to watch their favorite shows as runners should schedule time to run. Doing this will allow you free up your mind when it time to grind. You will not be preoccupied wondering what happened on 24 this week nor will you feel guilty for skipping morning workouts. If you are able to focus when you need to, your productivity will increase.

3. Practice. Practice. Practice. Focus on doing everything in your life with excellence. Exercise with excellence. Speak with excellence. Walk with excellence. Breathe with excellence. Become the prototype for excellence.The quality of your life is in direct proportion to your commitment to excellence. YOU are in charge of your own destiny. Grab the reigns and steer with excellence.

Share your thoughts, tips on how you have made excellence YOUR habit and your journey to excellence in the comment section. Don't be shy you are amongst friends.