Well, 75% of the year is GONE! Yes, you read that right. Only 3 months remain in 2018 and they'll be gone before you know it. In the last 9 months, have you accomplished all you wanted to for the first quarter of the year? Are there missed opportunities that you're still kicking yourself for not leveraging? Can you remember the good days or does your mind get stuck on the bad ones?
Psalm 90:12 has always convicted me. As a matter of fact, one of the bracelets that I wear references it so I won't forget this paramount verse. It says, "Teach us to realize how short our lives are. Then our hearts will become wise." So, how do we spend that time well? What does it look like for us to get better at accomplishing our goals, taking ahold of opportunities that come our way, and remembering the good days? Here are 3 life hacks that have made my life immensely better since I've applied them.
Plan your week with someone else
I know, I know... it sounds simple and obvious, but in actuality it's neither simple nor obvious. Many of us never really sit down and have time each week to specifically map out our week. We need to intentionally plan out week and doing so with another person gives us accountability. If you're married, you SHOULD do this with your spouse. If you work closely with someone at work, you should probably plan out some of your week with them as well. If you're not married, maybe there's a family member or friend that you can start this practice with. Each week Amy and I talk about our schedules for the upcoming week, as well as updates for the month we're in. This discipline hasn't only aligned our appointments, but it has greatly improved our communication. We aren't running past each other during the week. We're also good sounding boards for each other and can encourage the other to really pursue an appointment or to get our heads out of the clouds---you get the point.
Start a grateful list
Since Christmas eve last year, I've been keeping a list of things that I'm grateful for. Each day, I write down at least 3 things I'm grateful for in the morning and 3 more things in the evening. They can be people, events, opportunities, or even the small things. I've learned that the more grateful I am, the better my attitude is. In the last 3 months, here are just some of the things that I've written down... improving health of my family, happy kids, increasing self-awareness, my dog, long talks with Amy, better sleep, and I could go on and on, but you get the picture. When I get down, it's SO easy to improve my attitude when I see all the blessings that God has given me. Also, beginning and ending the day with a perspective of gratefulness sets up your day for success!
Keep track of lessons learned
In a similar fashion as my grateful list, at the end of each day I write down at least 3 unique lessons that I've learned (or realizations that I've had). Seriously, I cannot overemphasize the importance of writing down lessons that you're learning! The truth is---we're always learning lessons and we would hold on to them better if we recorded them. Here's a small sampling of some of my personal lessons over the last 3 months... my emotions influence my physical feelings, Joel needs more encouragement than what I realize, I need to schedule rest time after I travel, we have people investing in us that we don't always notice, questions help people drop their guard when they're frustrated, scheduling weekly think time for myself helps me process lingering questions and situations, etc. Again, listen to me on this: you will be surprised at all the amazing lessons that God is teaching you daily if you just take time to write them down each day!!!
I don't think of myself as an extremely wise person, but I believe these 3 adjustments have helped me to take even more ownership of my life. The more I put these 3 practices into action, the wiser I become (which has needed to happen for a while, LOL).
Godspeed for the rest of 2018!!!