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Keep Moving

April 25, 2011 by Scott "Q" Marcus Leave a Comment

Small steps taken regularly generate more results than large steps done periodically.

In other words, it’s better to promise to walk a block and actually do it than to promise to run a mile and sleep in.

Most of the time that we fail to accomplish our goals, it’s because we made the process too cumbersome, unrealistic, or large. Since it would involve rearranging vast portions of an-already busy life, we choose to avoid the task, remaining in place.

Pick something smaller when you’re stuck and move forward on that. Any movement is better than stagnation.

Note: Every Monday, a new motivational memo is posted. Subscribers to ThisTimeIMeanIt.com’s coaching service get this – and many more benefits – sent to them directly. If you’d like to know more, follow this link.

Take Time to Make Good Decisions

April 11, 2011 by Scott "Q" Marcus Leave a Comment

When you don’t know what to do, it’s OK to take some time to think about it.

Most of the pressure we feel to make a decision is usually self-imposed. We are afraid that if we don’t make the decision “right now,” we won’t have the opportunity to do so, or that we’ll look stupid or indecisive by not having an answer immediately.

The truth is that if we make a quick decision under pressure, the odds are that it will not be as good a decision as taking some time to think about. It’s better to make a correct decision in a little while instead of a poor one immediately.

(Of course, if the decision affects someone else, be fair and tell them how much time you need and then don’t make them “chase you” for the answer. Get back to them when you said you would.)

Overcoming Fear

April 4, 2011 by Scott "Q" Marcus Leave a Comment

Courage is not the absence of fear; it is the overcoming.

Fear is usually something that happens when we get too far into the future. Most of the time, we’re doing all right in the present tense. But, something happens and we spin it out into the future. We imagine “worst case scenarios,” picturing all that could go wrong rather than what could go right. Because we are painting the negative so boldly, our emotions adjust, our bodies tighten, we become frightened.

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Motivational Monday Memo: Avoiding Procrastination

March 7, 2011 by Scott "Q" Marcus Leave a Comment

Don’t tell yourself you can’t.

Instead, simply say “Not right now.” Many times, you’ll find a way later.

At times, it feels like there’s too much to do, so you feel overwhelmed, opting to do nothing. Instead, give yourself a 10-minute break. Do something else. Decide again later. Give yourself a break, both literally and figuratively.

February Resolutions: Making Commitments near the Holiday Dedicated to Committments

February 9, 2011 by Scott "Q" Marcus Leave a Comment

Six weeks into the year: So, how are those New Year’s resolutions workin’ for ya?

If they’re now broken shards lying along the highway shoulder several miles in the rear view mirror, fret not, you stand not alone. According to surveys, as many as 80 percent of people give up their vast and glorious seemed-like-a-good-idea-at-the-time plans by the tail end of January; more alarming is as many as 90 percent are never brought to fruition. What might the foremost reasons for not accomplishing them be? About 40 percent of respondents say they didn’t have enough time (read that “not a high enough priority”) and about one-third say they weren’t even committed to doing them in first place. Basically, they set them to get someone off their back. Yep, nothing says “motivation to change” like a heaping, steaming pile of guilt.

Personally, I think the “New Year’s Resolution” is a manufactured event; akin to holidays we didn’t know existed until we went into the greeting card shop. We respond to public pressure, and since “everyone’s doing it,” we don’t want to pay the social price for not going along; hence we make promises we never intend to keep.

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