This sounds a lot easier than it is with our daily routines of work and family duties. It is all too easy to go through the daily mundane tasks we all share and decide by days end that you have had a productive day. In fact I was just discussing this with my wife. Should we be striving to find a way to be able to outsource these tasks or should we embrace them for the purpose they serve?
What do I mean by this? Are we mentoring our kids to be responsible stewards of all that they get or will have in the future? We all should appreciate everything we are blessed with and take care to look after those things. This is just common sense, right? I do appreciate the fact that my children will know how to cook, look after their pets, sew, do their own laundry and mow the grass, just to name a few activities. These are essential life skills so that they will be able to function in life.
What about activities that really produce change that we want in our lives? Can we exchange some of the mundane responsibilities for more of the purpose filled activities that
make life exciting and challenging? I am working on this. You see I am the personality type that finds it easy to get into a daily routine, focus on the task at hand and then repeat. This is a blessing and a curse. It can also make a person seem one dimensional really quickly. It also stops anyone from really knowing who we are and what matters to us.
I have the ability to see things through but also the stubborness to keep at it when it is not working. It is the definition of insanity 'where you do the same thing over and over and expect a different result'. Unfortuntely, my wife has seen me do this first hand and felt the failure in this along with me. "If only I work harder, longer, better.... I know things will change for the positive"... if only this were true.
Ever heard the phrase "work smarter, not harder"? This is essential if we do not want to get sucked in to the thought process that we just need to put in more time.
I am at the point where I want to maximize my time in all aspects of life.
Produce while you are at work, use every minute to it's max but know when to shift gears and focus on other aspects of what makes life so exciting! Do not define yourself by what you do but by who you truly are and what you want to become. That sounds pretty cool doesn't it?
How do we do this? How do we make extra hours in our day in a day that has a finite amount of time? I am willing to bet that we have all asked ourselves this at one time or another. The first step is to organize and prioritize your days. Include activities that are in line with your purpose, your goals. Include fun activities that are good for your soul. Pretty soon when you hit the pillow at night you have had a very satisfying day. One filled with our daily 'have to' activities but most importantly life fulfilling activities like donating time to the betterment of others, your family and keeping relationships alive and well.
Include activities that improve your health, physically and mentally and spiritually so that we get recharged and fired up!
If we do not have a plan full of small action steps this is overwhelming. I know this first hand. I am not a planner. I have to become one! My family and friends will attest to this. I can easily fool myself into believing I have had a productive day if I go to work, make some money and tuck my kids into bed at night. Don't get me wrong, I know that individually these things are a blessing in their own right. I just want more. I believe many people do too.
The first step is realizing that life is more than the mundane and being willing to give yourself a chance to benefit from all life has to offer. Embrace organization, get prioritized, begin activities that will allow you to truly become a mentor to others. Life if full of endless opportunities if we decide to open the door ourselves and not wait for someone to come knocking first!
Join me now in this adventure!!
As a former professional athlete, Paul Krake’s focus is to develop potential through Cultivate, a coaching group. He lives in Boise Idaho with his wife and four children.




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