READY… "There aren’t enough Fridays in the week.” ~All Famous Quotes on Fridays
AIM… Thank God It’s Friday!! Have you had a crazy week too? Yep, it is nuts in my world right now. I’m SO glad it’s Friday because that means it’s the weekend and I can catch my breath to regroup before Monday rolls around again.
What is it about the normal week that leaves us giddy with excitement that Friday has finally arrived? I guess for the person who works a typically scheduled job it means time to rest and renew for a few days on the weekend. For the college student, it means party time! For the restaurant owner and retail manager, it means cha-ching: business = bonus. What does Friday mean to you? Whether you like it or not, today is FRIDAY, and I’m sharing my enthusiasm out loud. Join me chanting T-G-I-F, T-G-I-F!!!
FIRE! So, what do you have planned for your Friday? This week, even if you don’t have plans, do something totally spontaneous and make sure it is fabulous and FUN!
Be Excellent!
Lori
February 10, 2012
January 31, 2012
Frenemies
READY… "Always forgive your enemies -- nothing annoys them so much." ~ Oscar Wilde
AIM… At some point in life, each one of us will encounter someone we considered to be a good friend. Sadly, for one reason or another, that friend turned out to be a false friend. I know you know what I’m talking about. Those folks are called frenemies: friends who agree to walk beside you when life is rosy and run the other way when the days aren’t so cozy.
Some of us are able to recognize a frenemy from a mile away; while others of us keep giving the frenemy second, third and twentieth chances to redeem himself and be a trusted companion. My friends, life is simply too short to surround yourself with people who aren’t interested in sharing your biggest celebrations AND your humblest defeats.
I encourage you to take some time this week to evaluate those “friends” with whom you are spending your precious time. Are they soothingly sincere and worthy of your life-long loyalty, or are they secretly shady and quick to run for the safety of the shadows? Only your heart will know the truth and can decide what’s best for you. Listen to what it says.
FIRE! Are you a friend or a frenemy? Evaluate how you treat those you consider to be your friends. Then, either make positive changes to correct your faulty behavior or step aside gracefully and allow time and honesty to mend your broken fences.
Be Excellent!
Lori
AIM… At some point in life, each one of us will encounter someone we considered to be a good friend. Sadly, for one reason or another, that friend turned out to be a false friend. I know you know what I’m talking about. Those folks are called frenemies: friends who agree to walk beside you when life is rosy and run the other way when the days aren’t so cozy.
Some of us are able to recognize a frenemy from a mile away; while others of us keep giving the frenemy second, third and twentieth chances to redeem himself and be a trusted companion. My friends, life is simply too short to surround yourself with people who aren’t interested in sharing your biggest celebrations AND your humblest defeats.
I encourage you to take some time this week to evaluate those “friends” with whom you are spending your precious time. Are they soothingly sincere and worthy of your life-long loyalty, or are they secretly shady and quick to run for the safety of the shadows? Only your heart will know the truth and can decide what’s best for you. Listen to what it says.
FIRE! Are you a friend or a frenemy? Evaluate how you treat those you consider to be your friends. Then, either make positive changes to correct your faulty behavior or step aside gracefully and allow time and honesty to mend your broken fences.
Be Excellent!
Lori
January 25, 2012
Distraction Detours
READY… "By prevailing over all obstacles and distractions, one may unfailingly arrive at his chosen goal or destination.” ~ Christopher Columbus
AIM… Have you been distracted from the focus of your life plans or projects? If you don’t think you’ve been distracted, you’re not being honest with yourself. Every day we are faced with multiple opportunities to choose to stay focused on our tasks or to stray from our target. Cell phones, email, Facebook, the internet, video games, food, television, other people – they are ALL distractions we encounter daily. So how can we refocus and detour ourselves from all the distractions?
We need to get honest. Try to determine how much time you are spending checking your email, surfing the web, or creeping on Facebook each day. Look at the minutes you spend vegging in front of the tv or playing apps and games. Once you get an idea of how much time you are truly spending doing things that don’t contribute to the success of your plans, then you are ready for the next step. Plain and simple: Set limits for yourself. We set limits and boundaries for our children, thus we adults need to establish healthy limits for ourselves as well. Choose two times a day when you check your email account. Decide to surf the web or catch up on Facebook statuses once a day. Pick your most favorite television shows and only veg out when you have time to watch just those shows. Will setting limits for yourself be easy? Probably not. Will it help you reclaim your lost time and allow you to have free time to spend making strides toward reaching your goals? You bet. No pain, no gain, right? Let’s do it!
FIRE! Take a baby step this week in eliminating one distraction from your daily routine. If you cannot eliminate it completely, set a limit for yourself and stick to your limit. You’ll discover a new found freedom and wonder why you didn’t make that change sooner.
Be Excellent!
Lori
AIM… Have you been distracted from the focus of your life plans or projects? If you don’t think you’ve been distracted, you’re not being honest with yourself. Every day we are faced with multiple opportunities to choose to stay focused on our tasks or to stray from our target. Cell phones, email, Facebook, the internet, video games, food, television, other people – they are ALL distractions we encounter daily. So how can we refocus and detour ourselves from all the distractions?
We need to get honest. Try to determine how much time you are spending checking your email, surfing the web, or creeping on Facebook each day. Look at the minutes you spend vegging in front of the tv or playing apps and games. Once you get an idea of how much time you are truly spending doing things that don’t contribute to the success of your plans, then you are ready for the next step. Plain and simple: Set limits for yourself. We set limits and boundaries for our children, thus we adults need to establish healthy limits for ourselves as well. Choose two times a day when you check your email account. Decide to surf the web or catch up on Facebook statuses once a day. Pick your most favorite television shows and only veg out when you have time to watch just those shows. Will setting limits for yourself be easy? Probably not. Will it help you reclaim your lost time and allow you to have free time to spend making strides toward reaching your goals? You bet. No pain, no gain, right? Let’s do it!
FIRE! Take a baby step this week in eliminating one distraction from your daily routine. If you cannot eliminate it completely, set a limit for yourself and stick to your limit. You’ll discover a new found freedom and wonder why you didn’t make that change sooner.
Be Excellent!
Lori
January 17, 2012
Staying On Track
READY… "If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.” ~ Henry David Thoreau
AIM… Alright, we are a few weeks into the new year and I’d love to know what you think. Is 2012 turning out to be a better year for you? Are you on track with your goals, dreams and resolutions? Often times, this is about the point where folks drop off the wagon and simply give up because they haven’t achieved the success they were expecting. I want to encourage you to jump back on the wagon; to keep pressing toward the finish line. Even if you feel like you’ve failed, all you have to do is start again. Tomorrow is a brand new day for a fresh new start. Embrace the opportunity to try again! If you are still on track – yay you!! Keep that momentum rolling and moving forward in a positive direction.
We all have hopes, dreams and aspirations for our futures. Even if you aren’t ready to speak those goals out loud or write them down, you know in your heart the things you want to accomplish in life. Thankfully, God also knows the desires of your heart. Proverbs 16:3 reads “Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.” Even if you simply let God know that you are trusting Him to provide the blocks of the foundation to achieve your goals, He will present the path on which you should follow.
No matter where you are at this stage of the new year, I encourage you to lean on the never-failing power of God to give you strength, guidance and opportunities to make your dreams come true.
FIRE! Make today count! Do something that takes you one step closer to achieving your dreams. Even if all you can do today is pray to allow God to be in control of your destiny, that’s making one HUGE step in the right direction.
Be Excellent!
Lori
AIM… Alright, we are a few weeks into the new year and I’d love to know what you think. Is 2012 turning out to be a better year for you? Are you on track with your goals, dreams and resolutions? Often times, this is about the point where folks drop off the wagon and simply give up because they haven’t achieved the success they were expecting. I want to encourage you to jump back on the wagon; to keep pressing toward the finish line. Even if you feel like you’ve failed, all you have to do is start again. Tomorrow is a brand new day for a fresh new start. Embrace the opportunity to try again! If you are still on track – yay you!! Keep that momentum rolling and moving forward in a positive direction.
We all have hopes, dreams and aspirations for our futures. Even if you aren’t ready to speak those goals out loud or write them down, you know in your heart the things you want to accomplish in life. Thankfully, God also knows the desires of your heart. Proverbs 16:3 reads “Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.” Even if you simply let God know that you are trusting Him to provide the blocks of the foundation to achieve your goals, He will present the path on which you should follow.
No matter where you are at this stage of the new year, I encourage you to lean on the never-failing power of God to give you strength, guidance and opportunities to make your dreams come true.
FIRE! Make today count! Do something that takes you one step closer to achieving your dreams. Even if all you can do today is pray to allow God to be in control of your destiny, that’s making one HUGE step in the right direction.
Be Excellent!
Lori
January 3, 2012
It's A New Day
READY… "As you step into this new year, be bold enough and daring enough to believe in the abundant good that has been prepared for you." ~ Norman Vincent Peale
AIM… Each one of us is looking at 2012 with different eyes, a different attitude and different hopes. Instead of preaching to the choir, I’m simply going to give you a healthy dose of motivation and inspiration. Embrace it!!
"This is the beginning of a new day. You have been given this day to use as you will. You can waste it or use it for good. What you do today is important because you are exchanging a day of your life for it. When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever; in its place is something that you have left behind...let it be something good." - Author Unknown
"Time is an equal opportunity employer. Each human being has exactly the same number of hours and minutes every day. Rich people can't buy more hours. Scientists can't invent new minutes. And you can't save time to spend it on another day. Even so, time is amazingly fair and forgiving. No matter how much time you've wasted in the past, you still have an entire tomorrow." - Denis Waitely
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 NIV
"Today remind yourself that nothing is too good to be true. Your great hopes can be realized. Your most wonderful dreams can come true. All that you really need, you can have. An incredible goodness is operating on your behalf. If you are living a paltry life, resolve to stop it today. Expect great things to happen. Confidently receive God's abundant blessings. Do not think of lack. Instead think prosperity, abundance, the best of everything. God wants to give you, his child, every good thing. Don't hinder his generosity." - Norman Vincent Peale
"Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending." - Carl Bard
FIRE! Make 2012 your year! Start today to make whatever small changes are necessary to start the momentum rolling in the right direction for your future success. You are in control, and YOU can do it!
Be Excellent!
Lori
AIM… Each one of us is looking at 2012 with different eyes, a different attitude and different hopes. Instead of preaching to the choir, I’m simply going to give you a healthy dose of motivation and inspiration. Embrace it!!
"This is the beginning of a new day. You have been given this day to use as you will. You can waste it or use it for good. What you do today is important because you are exchanging a day of your life for it. When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever; in its place is something that you have left behind...let it be something good." - Author Unknown
"Time is an equal opportunity employer. Each human being has exactly the same number of hours and minutes every day. Rich people can't buy more hours. Scientists can't invent new minutes. And you can't save time to spend it on another day. Even so, time is amazingly fair and forgiving. No matter how much time you've wasted in the past, you still have an entire tomorrow." - Denis Waitely
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 NIV
"Today remind yourself that nothing is too good to be true. Your great hopes can be realized. Your most wonderful dreams can come true. All that you really need, you can have. An incredible goodness is operating on your behalf. If you are living a paltry life, resolve to stop it today. Expect great things to happen. Confidently receive God's abundant blessings. Do not think of lack. Instead think prosperity, abundance, the best of everything. God wants to give you, his child, every good thing. Don't hinder his generosity." - Norman Vincent Peale
"Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending." - Carl Bard
FIRE! Make 2012 your year! Start today to make whatever small changes are necessary to start the momentum rolling in the right direction for your future success. You are in control, and YOU can do it!
Be Excellent!
Lori
December 31, 2011
Out With The Old, In With The New
READY… “An optimist stays up until midnight to see the New Year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the Old Year leaves.” ~ Bill Vaughan
AIM… Yep, I’m guilty. I got caught up in the Christmas chaos and craziness and then the Christmas let down and reality check. However, I’m giddy with anticipation about what the new year will bring.
As you look back at 2011, don’t dwell on the things you didn’t accomplish or the negative bummers you experienced. Instead, feel blessed by all the amazing things you were able to do and the positive steps forward you were able to take. 2011 is simply going to be a springboard of momentum into an incredible 2012. Happy New Year, Friends!
FIRE! Tonight or tomorrow, jot down a few of the blessings you experienced in 2011. Yay you! Then, flip the page over and make a list of a few of the things you’d like to see happen in 2012. What a fun way to anticipate the fresh start of a new year!
Be Excellent!
Lori
AIM… Yep, I’m guilty. I got caught up in the Christmas chaos and craziness and then the Christmas let down and reality check. However, I’m giddy with anticipation about what the new year will bring.
As you look back at 2011, don’t dwell on the things you didn’t accomplish or the negative bummers you experienced. Instead, feel blessed by all the amazing things you were able to do and the positive steps forward you were able to take. 2011 is simply going to be a springboard of momentum into an incredible 2012. Happy New Year, Friends!
FIRE! Tonight or tomorrow, jot down a few of the blessings you experienced in 2011. Yay you! Then, flip the page over and make a list of a few of the things you’d like to see happen in 2012. What a fun way to anticipate the fresh start of a new year!
Be Excellent!
Lori
December 14, 2011
It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year
READY… Cousin Eddie: “You surprised to see us, Clark?” Clark Griswold: “Oh, Eddie... If I woke up tomorrow with my head sewn to the carpet, I wouldn't be more surprised than I am now.” ~ National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation
AIM… Relatives…you can’t live with ‘em, you can’t live without ‘em. The holidays seem to bring out the best in all of us, including our families, making it truly the most wonderful time of the year. (Yes, sarcasm is detected in that sentence.) Could it be the lack of sunshine? Or is it the stress of shopping for the perfect gift? Nope. I believe it’s simply personality genetics and the fact that most people become a product of their environment. Therefore, when you attempt to gather a variety of different people, especially those who don’t normally spend time together, in the same room for any length of time, there’s bound to be drama, activities, and conversations that will leave you scratching your head for days. Why not? It’s the holidays!
I know my family has always gotten along pretty well during the holidays. Yes, we have our share of interesting characters, just like every other family does. However, I’ve heard lots of horror stories in recent weeks about the complete and utter dysfunction that rears its ugly head when families gather for the holidays. I think the best depiction of holidays gone wild is the movie National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. Even if you don’t have a cousin Eddie or an Aunt Bethany in the family, you KNOW you can relate to a hilarious and often uncomfortable situation you’ve encountered with another relative during the holidays one year or another.
This year, despite the dysfunction we will all experience celebrating our holidays, make an attempt to see through the outer shell of your cousin Eddie. Perhaps, he or she just needs to feel loved! If you want to give the best gifts of all this year, be generous with the gifts of patience, tolerance, acceptance and unconditional love. Perfect holidays really don’t happen, but imperfect holidays often times make some of the most wonderful memories.
FIRE! In order to prepare your heart and mind to accept the dysfunction of family gatherings this holiday season, watch National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation with your family. You’ll all enjoy some great laughs, realize that your family might actually be somewhat normal compared to the Griswolds and soon those uncomfortable moments will be forgotten.
Be Excellent!
Lori
AIM… Relatives…you can’t live with ‘em, you can’t live without ‘em. The holidays seem to bring out the best in all of us, including our families, making it truly the most wonderful time of the year. (Yes, sarcasm is detected in that sentence.) Could it be the lack of sunshine? Or is it the stress of shopping for the perfect gift? Nope. I believe it’s simply personality genetics and the fact that most people become a product of their environment. Therefore, when you attempt to gather a variety of different people, especially those who don’t normally spend time together, in the same room for any length of time, there’s bound to be drama, activities, and conversations that will leave you scratching your head for days. Why not? It’s the holidays!
I know my family has always gotten along pretty well during the holidays. Yes, we have our share of interesting characters, just like every other family does. However, I’ve heard lots of horror stories in recent weeks about the complete and utter dysfunction that rears its ugly head when families gather for the holidays. I think the best depiction of holidays gone wild is the movie National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. Even if you don’t have a cousin Eddie or an Aunt Bethany in the family, you KNOW you can relate to a hilarious and often uncomfortable situation you’ve encountered with another relative during the holidays one year or another.
This year, despite the dysfunction we will all experience celebrating our holidays, make an attempt to see through the outer shell of your cousin Eddie. Perhaps, he or she just needs to feel loved! If you want to give the best gifts of all this year, be generous with the gifts of patience, tolerance, acceptance and unconditional love. Perfect holidays really don’t happen, but imperfect holidays often times make some of the most wonderful memories.
FIRE! In order to prepare your heart and mind to accept the dysfunction of family gatherings this holiday season, watch National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation with your family. You’ll all enjoy some great laughs, realize that your family might actually be somewhat normal compared to the Griswolds and soon those uncomfortable moments will be forgotten.
Be Excellent!
Lori
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