What an amazing weekend it’s been. A lot of appreciation going out to my wife for Military Spouse’s Appreciation Day and Mother’s Day; along with my brother, Jake’s, birthday; and promotion day for my Zen Martial Arts Family back in El Paso, Texas. Sending love and good vibes to all!
This reflection’s theme is Spirit, it’s been an interesting seven months here in Germany. Claudia and I were fortunate to find a place to train at shortly after we were released from quarantine, but the lockdown imposed on the country has had us training at the home gym for the past six months. The unfortunate length of the lockdown, however, has not stopped us from training. We have a power routine filled with not only drilling to progress at our own levels, but we have our kids on a strong routine as well to keep on the path of their own journeys. If you truly want something, you will find a way to attain your desire.
Ultimate Success Mantra
This past couple of weeks I finished reading “The Big Leap,” by Gay Hendricks. The two biggest takeaways I have are the Ultimate Success Mantra and Einstein Time. The USM is an affirmation Hendricks’ encourages his readers to incorporate into daily routines to ensure we ingest positivity on a routine basis. Why is this important? It’s important because you are what you eat. If your habits have you on a continuous diet of negative satirical information overload, well… you probably will not be selected as the morale officer at work. The logic behind this is routine positivity will work against the years of fear, self-doubt, and worry programmed into our upbringing. If you do not believe this to be true in your case, my hats off to you, but I can say, personally, I lived in a constant state of uncertainty and anxiety for most of my life.
I expand in abundance, success and love everyday, as I inspire those around me to do the same.” Gay Hendricks, The Big Leap
Einstein Time
Einstein’s Theory of Relativity now serves a purpose in social science as well. If time is relative, then why do we bend to the illusion of its power. This is more of a state of clarity, or functional meditative state-of-being, which helps reduce the stressors of always being on the clock. When fighting the daily ritual, instead of stressing over the second hand and the moments past, try a breathing technique to refocus your mind. Take a deep breath in with a four count, hold for a four count, and exhale at a four count. This refocusing technique will keep you in the moment and reduce your anxiety. There is a long list of things we cannot change, time is one of those things.
Being Grateful
A good rule to follow is to start your day with an affirmation and end it with a giving thanks for something in your life. Fullness is the goal of this exercise, and it’s more effective than we know. When we put good out into the world, we will find more of it in return. Some examples are more prominent than others, but I can think of a few which have occurred in the past week.
Claudia had a real estate conference that was an all day virtual affair. Instead if throwing a mantrum (Man Tantrum), I took advantage of the opportunity to spend the day with the kids at the park and was even able to watch the recent Justice League, a four-hour long cinematic extravaganza, which believe you me, I would only be able to do in an alternate universe since my beautiful bride dislikes action movies. It was a subtle example of turning a limiting belief into a target of opportunity.
In my life I’ve discovered that if I cling to the notion that something’s not possible, I’m arguing in favor of limitation. And if I argue for my limitations, I get to keep them.” ~Gay Hendricks, The Big Leap: Conquer Your Hidden Fear and Take Life to the Next level
In Appreciation
At each phase of my life in the nearly two decades history has repeated itself more than once. Claudia has been my rock at each venture of my personal and professional ambitions. I think Mother’s Day is fitting to let everyone know how much I need Claudia in my life to thrive. We have piggy-backed off of one another’s success since before our children were born. She wanted to become a medical doctor, so I decided to take my education to the next level and get my doctorate as well; I served in the military, and she decided to put the uniform on and did the same; I threw myself into Jiu-jitsu and became a vegetarian, and… you guessed it, Claudia is right there with me. I’d be ignorant to believe it’s simple to align two lives the way we have. It was fate that brought us together, and our like-mindedness that keeps us on the same path. Inquisitive minds need a partner in crime. Happy Mother’s Day to all of you great examples of what parents, not just women, should try to be for their kids. This reflection’s for all of you. One Team, One Family! ~Doc
We access–and unleash–the power of our minds through questions.” ~David Osborn and Paul Morris, Wealth Can’t Wait