My Reality Check Bounced! - Jason Ryan Dorsey [62]
Step 3: When you see where your time is going, pay attention to your less-rewarding, time-consuming habits. Trade these unfulfilling habits for something more meaningful. Even setting aside thirty minutes for running on Wednesdays instead of working late or going to happy hour will make you feel more in control.
Step 4: Set aside some “me time” every day—even if it’s just twenty minutes. Me time gives you the space each day to get refocused on your own well-being. Me time allows you to appreciate and build on the success you create. Me time keeps you centered on what makes your life special.
Step 5: Take a vacation every year. This should be the first thing you write on every calendar you buy. Having a vacation planned gives you something to look forward to during your most stressful times. It also ensures you take a much needed break from rushing around every year.
Step 6: Set aside thirty minutes, three times a week to focus on building your real-world education. Only thirty minutes, three times a week leads to seventy-five or more hours of time you have dedicated to personal growth annually. These thirty-minute blocks are perfect for exploring opportunities, reading an exciting book, or meeting with your mentor. Control your schedule, and you will succeed right on time!
BUT…OF COURSE
After reading this laundry list of excuses, it’s obvious you can find something or someone to blame for whatever is not going right in your life. However, hiding behind excuses only makes your situation worse. Excuses give away your power to choose a wise response to your situation that ultimately moves you forward. Excuses keep you from solving your problems and growing stronger in the process. When you finally choose to let go of your excuses, you free yourself to grab on to your dreams.
Sean proves this perfectly. He could have used his osteogenesis imperfecta as an excuse to be bitter, depressed, and play it safe. Instead, he uses his physical condition to spread his powerful message, “Life is full of pain. Suffering is optional. Excuses only extend your suffering.”
Life will not always be fair, but you control how you deal with it. Choose not to make excuses, and instead, use your power to create solutions that move you ahead!
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INSTANT MESSAGE
You can create excuses or you can create solutions, but not both at the same time.
Several excuses that erode your potential are mental self-sabotage.
When you let go of your excuses, they can no longer hold you back!
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BOUNCED: I would like to succeed, but…
CASHED: I will succeed—no ifs, ands, or buts about it.
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ONLINE: Watch Sean talk about dealing with excuses at
www.myrealitycheckbounced.com/book
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9
THE FEAR FACTOR
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You cannot outrun your fears. To demolish them you must run through them.
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REALITY-CHECK MOMENT—
I WANT TO MAKE A BIG CHANGE, BUT I’M SCARED OF THE CONSEQUENCES.
In Chapter 2, I talked about settling for safe. This decision to avoid big risks in the real world is a major reason many twentysomethings choose relationships, careers, lifestyles, and goals that are ultimately not that satisfying. These people are afraid of failure or afraid of rejection or afraid of the unknown, so they choose the path of least resistance and hope for the best. Unfortunately, the playing-it-safe path is often paved with boredom and tedium, and from the get-go you know in your heart it will never truly satisfy, but you do it anyway. Are you on a safe but unfulfilling path like this or are you bravely pursuing your dreams in spite of your fears?
Stephen is a prime example of someone who settled for safe. His career started off like a rocket. He graduated from a prestigious university, became a budding