Sunday, March 17, 2013

Be You!

At the end of the day, do not allow anyone else's insecurities or selfishness, or any environment , to prevent you from being the maximized you. We all have gifts and talents. Do not allow yourself to settle for unproductivity because there is no opportunity to express yourself.

I have said this before. If there is no road to express yourself, you must create an avenue that you can use your gifts. Do not wait on that special moment to be recognized. Create moments that your gifts will be revealed.

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

I win when I lose.

One of my girlfriends, her name is Monique, is super intelligent!! She and I play several word game through our smartphone apps. I always lose big time on all of the word games, but I always choose to rematch her after every defeat. I  have found myself wondering if she thinks im crazy or if I'm that little annoying sister that can't get enough!
 
As I am thinking, I'm not even sure if I expect to win the game! The benefit I'm getting out of playing her each time is obtaining greater confidence as I am trying my best. Even more, I am watching the choices of words that she uses and her strategy in winning.
 
In life, I am learning to focus not just on completion in achievement, but I am learning with each play to be a better player, to be a wiser player, and to study my opponent and their successes. If we focus on winning as a sign or badge of honor, we miss the true lesson and victory.
 
Now, I look forward to playing games with Monique! I look forward to what she is going to teach me about herself, and most importantly about myself! I don't ignore or prolong the game! I don't choose easier components so that I can feel good about myself and self inflate my ego!
 
In reflection, I realize that I even refer other people to play her! I want them to be iron sharpened by iron as well! At some point, we must grow from avoiding challenges to facing them in confidence! Will you be able to get to the point that you welcome challenges? Or that you are not intimidated by a challenge or do not become weary with anticipatory grief when a challenge is on the horizon?
 
Actually, I have several word games going on with her at different times. We must embrace challenges, so that we becomes opponents. Thank You Monique for being a friend that is not afraid to challenge me and allows me to continue to grow!

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

You are so unique

You are so unique

When you stop to look at each stone, each shell, each miscellaneous item (even the trash), what a collection this becomes! Never discount who you are, never minimize who you will be come. Always keep in mind the bigger picture. Zooming in sometimes magnifies what you're looking at. Your uniqueness  is needed in the world!

Finding humor in your resilience.

True story.

My alarm clock goes off, for the first time, at 530 in the morning. A second goes off again at 540 (and a third at 6) in the morning, in the event I have snoozed through those 10 minutes. This morning I decided 2 we tack the hook on my favorite pair of black pants at 5:55 in the morning after my shower. The entire time I am humming gratitudes. First time being thankful that with my naked eye, I can see how to thread a needle. I recall my mother, who is a master seamstress, how she has to use her glasses now at the age of 59 to see the eye of the needle. Also the thought that she sometimes use this gadget to thread the needle for her came to mind. In that moment as I begin to place the hook and I realize that I am grateful to have been exposed to the strategies and skills that my mother hands taught me. I am also grateful for taking home economic classes in middle and high school. I continue to thread this item onto my pants. I do the top holes. I go to finish the top 2 holes I realize that I did not knot the threads together to keep them from unraveling. (Stay with me on this). I make a few attempts to try to tie the small pieces of thread with my bare fingers and am not able to do so. I decide to move on to the bottom 2 holes. I thread those to completion, and then I remember from my last experience that I am to tie a knot with the threads while the needle is still attached to the thread, not after I cut it like I did before. Done! I am proud of myself. I decide that I will come back later and finish the knot on the top 2 holes. I go to fasten my pants and I realize that I have attached the hook for my pants backwards. It is now 615 in the morning. At this moment, I burst out into laughter and go and wake my husband up to tell him what I have done. Of course, he looks at me it says "okay Shauna" and rolls back over. I tell myself "it's okay, he will laugh when he wakes up". I want back into a bathroom, look in the mirror, shook me head in laughter, cut the threads holding the hook to my pants and started over.

I learned so many lessons in that first 30 minutes of my day . I learned that we must act on our desires while the desire is at its height! Catch the wave and learn your cycles. I learned that there will be times were I will laugh at myself and others may not appreciate the humor in the situation . I learned that my pants fit differently now, because I have allowed myself to wear these pants for almost 2 years in dysfunction. Now that there has been a change, I wonder did I gain weight? Did I do something wrong? They were more comfortable when they were incomplete. I learned that I could have given up and various stages. I was reminded that this is a very simple task that I have known how to do since I was a small child. Each time I missed that tiny little hole to thread the hook or each time that needle pricked my finger, and even went through my skin a couple of times, I could have given up. I definitely could have given up over the disappointment of me missing knotting two threads or me realizing that I applied it backwards.

At the final moment, when I was a fastening my pants, when I completed the second time, I realize that I had missed a third hole that needed to be threaded to the pants that would hold the hook into place. That feeling of giving up, accepting the work that I had already put into this simple task, justifying the work that I had already done and leaving it without completing it, had begun to take over me. But the inner me said FINISH IT!

Today, I pray that the inner you is louder than the weary you, doubting you, limited feeling you. Today may you finish it!

Friday, March 1, 2013

Lead On

 ‎7 Ways Leaders Waste Time: #2: Refusing to delegate. If you make every decision, it's a matter of time before you're completely overwhelmed". Pastor Lance Watson
 
My response:
They must also recognize that lack of trust is the main issue. "if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself" was probably originally said by someone who didnt know how to delegate responsibly. just a thought.