Don't Quit

Yesterday, I was watching the NFL playoffs. For those of you outside the USA, this is American football. The two teams playing were Atlanta and Seattle. At first, it appeared that the game would be rather boring. Atlanta had a very big lead early in the game and it looked as if Seattle would not be able to come back from such a big deficit.

But Seattle did come back. And with only 31 seconds left in the game, Seattle scored to take the lead. They had not quit on themselves. They had not given up the belief that they come overcome the early deficit and still win the game. And there they were, 31 seconds away from victory. They were playing the game at Atlanta's stadium and their fans were heartbroken, knowing that it would be nearly impossible for their team to score again with such precious little time remaining.

But Atlanta didn't quit, either. They quickly moved the ball down the field until they were close enough to score with 13 seconds left. Their kicker scored the points that gave them the lead again. Even so, Seattle came close to taking back the lead on the final play of the game. It was thrilling to watch. Neither team ever quitting on themselves or on their teammates. Both teams could have quit. Seattle could have quit when they were so far behind. But they didn't. Atlanta could have quit when they lost the lead with only 31 seconds left to play. But they didn't.

And there's a lesson in this for all of us to learn. No matter how much life has you down, don't quit. No matter how far behind you are on reaching your goals and achieving your dreams, don't quit. Likewise, no matter how good things are going for you, don't give up....don't quit putting out the effort that allowed you to have it so good in the first place. Don't quit on your dreams. Don't quit on your goals. Don't quit on your relationships. Don't quit on yourself. Just......don't quit.

New Year's Resolution? Or Something Better?

Every year, the same old thing. You come up with some New Year's resolutions. Things that you want to do in your life. Things you NEED to do in your life. This is going to be the year they get done. This year you are going to stay with it and not quit. This year you're going to persevere through the setbacks. This year you will accomplish everything. Yeah. Right. The reality is that this year people will come up with the same resolutions they probably had last year and the year before that. Why? Because they never accomplish those things the first time around. Has anyone figured out that New Year's resolutions really are difficult to succeed at? This is why I am proposing something different for 2013.

This year, instead of coming up with a resolution for the whole year, come up with New Day's resolutions!! When you make a resolution you are resolving to accomplish something. Maybe you want to lose weight. Or start an exercise program. Or stop smoking. Whatever it is, I want you to resolve to accomplish it for just one day. That's it. One day. Then resolve to accomplish it the next day and then the next day after that. That's all you need to do to achieve the results you desire anyway.

Most people make a resolution for the year and when they slip for a day or two or three, they deem themselves a failure and quit altogether. But if you make a resolution every day, then if you miss a day...or slip up, then it isn't as big a deal. You just make the resolution again the next day and work to accomplish it. Just one day. Add all those days together and think of how many pounds you will have lost. Think of all the days you will have exercised. Think of all the days you didn't smoke. Think of all the negative habits that have now been replaced with newer, more positive habits. And isn't that the goal of making resolutions in the first place? My wish for you is that you accomplish and achieve all that you want in 2013.....one day at a time.