Category: Random Thoughts

My daughter is at that stage where she claps for herself after everything she accomplishes.

She can stand up on her own and clap. She can balance on her own and clap. She can play with a toy correctly and clap. Of course, I clap with her and encourage her. Her excitement is infectious.

Clapping for yourself and being proud of your accomplishments, no matter the size, should be something that we do throughout our lives. Daily, we do individual things that we should be proud of. Things that can bring confidence and positivity into our lives if we acknowledge them.

Celebrating our achievements, big or small, is a powerful way to cultivate self-confidence and positivity in our daily lives.

We can show appreciation beyond merely saying “thank you.”

We can express gratitude through our actions, attitudes, and even our energy. It’s easy to feel undervalued even when someone says “thank you.”

It’s the concrete actions that hold the most significance.

In sports, you can be losing a game, then go and make adjustments at halftime, and go out in the second half of the game and win. You can also be winning going into halftime and not make the right halftime adjustments and end up losing the game.

Whether it’s sports or personal lives, a few adjustments to our actions can lead to big changes. It’s just important to make the right adjustments for they can either result in positive changes or negative changes.

Also, not making any adjustments at all can lead to negative change. No matter what it is you’re doing or pursuing in life, make the adjustments to win.

Delayed gratification is something we all must embrace; the sooner we learn, the better. There are no shortcuts to success, and a lot of times the results that come from the effort we put in do not manifest until much later.

We must also expect delayed gratification from others. We often find ourselves doing things for others that may go unnoticed or unappreciated at the time. That’s okay. It may take time for them to fully understand and appreciate what you do/did for them. And even if they never fully understand or appreciate what you do, the final results from your actions can still bring you gratification.

Remember, patience and perseverance often lead to the most rewarding outcomes.

No matter what it is in life, you either get better or worse. To improve something takes more effort over time. To even stay the same over time takes more effort over time because the price we have to pay for something always increases.

If I want to maintain the same weight and physique that I had in my youth, I must increase my effort. My metabolism isn’t what it once was. If I continued to do what I used to do, or even less than what I did, the results would change negatively also.

So maybe you’ve been making all the right choices in life, but not progressing as much as you’d like. You may just have to do more. Put more effort in, try a new endeavor or challenge.

Continue to push yourself to your limits, and your limits will continue to increase. Don’t push yourself to your limits, and your limits will eventually decrease. Remember, continuous effort is key in maintaining progress.