I Stayed HAPPY ALL DAY, despite the Puke!

In my video update of week 2’s proceedings, I talked about the recognition that I was starting my day off right with my meditation, vision board, affirmation statement, reading, and exercise but was finding it difficult to stay positive throughout the day.  I kept finding myself down, frustrated, and feeding my mind the slow doses of negative self talk poison. 

I didn't know what to do to keep my mind as positive and invigorated in the evening as I had in the morning, especially since every night I face my dreaded “Grumpy Gills” activity of putting my children to bed!  
Bedtime is misery time because I’m tired and my kids are tired, which causes them to be hyper.  Hyper children equates to kids that have a difficult time listening and staying on task.  At the end of a full day my patience is as thin and strained as a trip wire on a land mine!

Being tired is when I tend to get down on myself anyway.  This is why getting to bed on time is so important!  Getting to bed early has become my nemesis, and although I am doing better I am still not getting to bed by my goal of 11pm.  Getting to bed late and waking up early wears me down.  My mind becomes weak and susceptible to focusing on negative, unable to sway it to focus on my potential and the good things that happen every day.

So, how do I stay positive all day???

I didn't know until this week!  I decided to experiment and find out if I could make some minor adjustments to make a big difference.  My day is busy enough, I didn’t see how I could make more time, but I could use my available time more effectively. 

So I did!  I made a few minor adjustments that dramatically improved my mood and attitude throughout each day.  
My week started with difficulty sticking to my schedule and obstinate children, a Thursday of trying to fix plugged plumbing at the bathroom sink, and a Friday night of my little girl puking!  To be honest and fair, I was not in a good mood when my little girl woke up crying, not telling me why she was crying for 10 minutes, then proceeding to upchuck her dinner all over the floor.  I wasn't cheerful and happy as I scooped up chunks of lunch and dinner and mopped the floor and sink!  I may have used other words besides awesome, happy, and cool during the first and second puking episodes in the late night hours!  However, by the time I went to bed I was not upset, and I woke up with energy and excitement for the day.  That type of incident normally would have created a storm cloud over my head, socked in for at least a few hours the following day. 

Now being at the end of the week I have a much more positive attitude and happier countenance.  The cool thing was that I felt like I learned more and had more ideas come to me!  By staying upbeat it seemed to keep the heavy door to my subconscious slightly cracked to inspiration! 

Below is what I did each day this week.  I thank God for the inspiration and direction he gave me that proved to be so beneficial...

A couple lessons learned: 

• When I am tired or upset I try and escape it by watching a movie or mindless activities online.  This is a temporary fix that does nothing to solve the problem.  I learned this week that when those emotions arise I had an elimination of negative emotions by studying uplifting and educational material, by either reading or watching a video.  
• I also learned that talking and reaching out to others has a powerful effect in helping me to be grateful and happy, versus sitting by myself in a wallow of self misery.  Being with Happy and Motivated people will do nothing but good for me!

Monday:

            I spent the evening with my wife and kids singing songs, playing games, and having a spiritual discussion.  Monday night is our family night, but rather than just go through the motions I tried to play with the kids more and enjoy it when they are silly.  Once they were in bed, my 10-11pm study time was spent listening to an audio cd on using a vision board and reading the fantastic book “The Alchemist”.

Tuesday:

            I took a picture of my vision board and placed it as my background on my phone.  Every time I looked at my phone I was reminded of my goals and what I needed to stay focused on. I didn't realize how often I looked at my phone…it’s a lot of reminders through the day.  After work I was able to go visit a friend who was having some serious struggles, then I followed it up by talking with another friend about this topic of Thinking Big and achieving my goals.  I was so motivated and psyched by the time I went to bed Tuesday night I could hardly sleep!

Wednesday:

            I spent a brain busting half hour talking with my business mentor, Jay!  He motivated me and gave me some great ideas for business and how to be successful in that realm.  He then gave a link to Darren Hardy’s website where I signed up for daily mentorship.  The first text was an amazing story about Steven Spielberg’s success which you can listen to here http://www.darrendaily.com/be-foolish/.  I would encourage everyone to sign up for Darren Daily, which you can do here for free http://www.darrendaily.com/

Thursday:

            I took my little girl on a daddy daughter date, an idea I have been trying to establish but haven’t consistently performed.  It was simple, but we had a great time and some yummy food!  I also tried to keep my focus on others by taking a condolence card to a friend who just lost his mother, and finished the evening by making a little more time to reading “The Alchemist”.

Friday:

            In the evening I listened to 3 different TED talks!  You can select a video or choose a topic and time duration, which is what I did.  Here is the link for where you can choose the type of talk you want to listen to and time frame https://www.ted.com/surpriseme or just by topic https://www.ted.com/topics

This Easter Weekend I will finish it all up by celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.  I will do that by watching the General Conference from the LDS church www.lds.org, and spending time with family!  Only because of Jesus Christ is all opportunity and the goodness of my life possible.  I am grateful for such wonderful knowledge!