Happy Holidays and Random Fillers

First off let me say Happy Holidays from The Oergel's. I hope that you are doing everything you can to get the most out of your life. I personally have been blessed beyond belief with mostly everything in the picture above. These four individuals are the sole purpose of me wanting to be a better person everyday and constantly striving to improve myself through individual interaction, self study and personal development.

I know everyone is busy with their holiday schedule but I thought I would share with you 5 random blog fillers. They are quick and to the point but strong enough to push you to the next level.

1. Selflessness - This time of year seems to really push people to think outside themselves. We buy gifts for others, donate more to charities, embrace families that are in need of help, spend more time with family and friends and so on....well my question is why can't you carry this trend throughout the year. I know plenty of people (my wife included) that never think of themselves first. Their first thought is always to take care of others. I am not saying they don't take time for themselves but these people understand the dynamic of the small things in life that if done help people constantly.

2. Accountability - During a recent morning reflection I thought about the concept of a mentor. While I have had some amazing people in my life look out for me and help me along I have never had someone that I called a mentor. That being said even though I am almost 40 there is never a its to late point in our life's. I proceeded to set up a lunch with a man I respect more than he will ever know to simply ask him if he would mentor me. The problem at the end of the day I couldn't figure out what the hell he would mentor me in. So he and I flipped around the title and make it more of an accountability partnership. Someone to help keep you on track when life tries and bring you down and you may not have the energy to respond. Many people also use accountability in their marriage, exercise routine, professional setting, etc. End goal is to have someone around who helps build you up and not break you down.

3. Goal Setting  -  I think this topic is one that has lost its meaning overtime. The word goal is constantly thrown out into the world and when we hear it we get excited for a millisecond then the excitement wanes either when you get overwhelmed and give up or don't know how to structure a goal. I personally use about 30 minutes every Sunday to not only plan out the weeks goals but also to make sure that I have been following the path to completing my larger goals. The weekly/daily goals are the foundation for my larger goals. These are the most crucial ones needed to make sure that I am on track. This is also where most people get lost. They say they want to accomplish X but never revisit their path to make sure they are doing the necessary leg work. The last thing with goal setting is I challenge you to think big and go for the big goals. Goals that are large and initially make us uncomfortable are some of the most rewarding goals you will accomplish. They will teach you more about yourself and what your made of and constantly improve your confidence in yourself and those that support you.

4. Double Sided Match - Most of us get extremely busy in life and are constantly burning the match at both ends. Whether its lack of sleep, poor nutrition, excuses for exercising, stress of a job, faulty self improvement or not listening to your spouse once the match burns up and goes out you will be in a personal state that is hard to come out of. So why not invest the time in yourself. Learn what strategies work for you. Take the time to learn how simple changes in diet, 20 minutes of exercise and listening to your spouse can boost productivity in your life. We are blessed with a very technological world now and the ease of information at our hands is incredible. I have recently been listening to some of the smartest people in the world on podcasts during all of my long runs. The wealth of information to improve oneself is inspiring. So I challenge you to go be inspired and take care of yourself so you can help take care of those around you.

5. Daily Rituals - Some of the most successful, brilliant, creative minds of our time all have one thing in common from my readings. They all had daily rituals for success. Most of them started with a 30-60 minute ritual every single morning. Whether it was meditation, self improvement, exercise, certain nutritional movement patterns or just simply being present in time they all woke up every single day and went through their routine without out much thought to what was next. This allowed them structure to start their day. A time to build upon and reflect about where they have come and where they are going. An ability to be calm instead of waking up late, running frantic getting ready, eating a terrible breakfast and showing up to their first task unprepared these individuals where already a step above the rest. Over the past year I myself have set in motion the first 60 minutes of my day which starts at 5AM 7 days a week and allows me to always know my next move.


Hope some of you can take pieces of these fillers and apply them to your life. I also challenge you to put your goals out into the world for other people to see which allows them a sense of accountability.

Make It Count!!!

Also thanks to everyone who has donated to my Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation Ironman project. I am grateful for your time and donation. For everyone interested in donating you can find the link at the top of the blog and remember every penny helps.

Interactions

Hard to believe how fast this year has come and gone. I hope that deep down you were able to make the most out of 2014. Did you accomplish the goals you had in place for the year? Where you able to invest the time in yourself to make YOU a better person? Did you overcome obstacles because you were resilient in your drive to succeed? My hope and prayer is that you can answer yes to these questions and many more like them.

Now if you are still plugging away at goals and still trying to dig deep and Make It Count then keep on truckin and don't give up. Life is more than just a day, week, month or yearly goal set in place on January 1st. Life is a constant, changing, evolving creature that requires you to always be present and to always adapt to change. Individual and family goals should require not only present time consciousness but a target of 10-20-30 and beyond years. What you build now will make who you are down the line. I can also say that with 21 days left in the month that its not to late to create new goals for 2014 if that is something you are interested in.

One goal I have for you is to make every interaction you have with someone a memorable one. Each and everyday make sure that each time you come into contact with an individual that you take whatever time needed to invest in them. The reason I bring this up and why I think it is so important is you never know what stage of life that person is in. Yeah the holidays are great at rising peoples spirits with hope and love but at the same time it can be a very stressful sad period for someone who has lost everything they own or maybe lost a loved one this year. Unfortunately these individuals don't wear a description on their sleeve saying I am having a hard time so its imperative that every time you interact with someone you make sure that they go away feeling like they are the most important person in the world.

Perfect example of this is yesterday while my little lady and I were Christmas shopping we came across an older lady who seemed confused and mumbling words under her breath. I decided it was my duty to make sure she was ok so I asked if there was anything I could do to help. She stated that her husband of 60 years passed away this fall and ever since she feels lost and almost like each day has no meaning. I proceeded to talk with her for a few minutes all the while trying to make her feel like she mattered still. Well a few minutes turned into what felt like hours and soon enough she walked away head held high with a huge smile on her face stating how happy she was to have crossed paths with me and how excited she was to be spending time with her childrens families who she feels she shut out since her husband died.

The biggest ingredient into interactions is to first listen. The people that are having a hard time and need a little extra will give it away immediately. Listening is not as easy as it sounds also. Think about your last interaction. Did you truly open yourself up and listen to every word or did you start to formulate a response in your head while they were still speaking? Most people follow this trend of only listening half way while at the same time thinking of what they are going to say next.

The second ingredient for a successful interaction I believe was ingrained in me growing up in the midwest and also living in Texas for awhile. That ingredient is to SLOW DOWN and not rush the process. Living on the east coast now I understand most people are busy and as a result are in an extreme hurry to get everywhere in record speed (or if you are sitting on the highway your not getting anywhere with our traffic). Well take this as a warning to slow down a few gears and enjoy life. You will get more out of life, you will enjoy the opportunities that come your way more and you will have the opportunity to affect more people's life in a positive manner than if you sped by them with blinders.

The photo at the top is of course me and one of my beautiful ladies. While I know exactly what she and my other daughters are going through in life at this point I still try and wake up each day and make each interaction with them incredible. I made a promise to myself a long time ago that when I had kids I would go out of my way to be an amazing father and always be there for them. I believe positive interactions with them now will help mold them into remarkable adults later in life.

As always I don't have all the answers I am just trying to take what I have learned in life and sharing it with you. Remember to Make It Count!!!

Thanks to everyone who has donated to my Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation event. No donation is to small and every penny I am grateful for as it goes to an amazing cause.