TODAY IS THE DAY

“Be not afraid of going slowly; Be only afraid of standing still” – Ancient Chinese Proverb

Stop procrastinating on your dreams of who you want to be and where you want to go. The key is being the person you want to be tomorrow by starting small positive habits TODAY. It may take you 10 years to build your small business in a way you find sustainable – that allows you to honor time with your family and personal boundaries – and that is ok. Today you took one small step toward that goal and that is amazing. Every day one small step compounds on the next and in 10 years you are where everyone else wants to be. One pushup, one smile, one less rushed moment replaced by one mindful minute. You do not need to transform overnight but you do need to take the next step, however small, to get there. Everything you need is already inside of you. Your potential lies in the one moment where you decide to do vs not to do. It is simple but not easy. It doesn’t matter if that is getting out of bed a minute early, turning off the tv before the next episode, taking a deep breath instead of ruminating, or opening your computer to write one sentence of your passion project. You can choose to be whomever you want and your power lies in every moment.

Is there something in this world that makes you feel defeated or burns a fire inside of you? Inevitably in life, you will come across a situation that makes you angry or uncomfortable. What do you do about it? The way you respond is what separates the successful people from the other 99% that will ruminate, complain, or allow themselves to wallow in their discomfort. Take action – turn your pain points into promise points.

If someones dismisses you and makes you feel small. Don’t let them control the way you feel. Feel the pain and make a promise that YOU will never treat anyone in that way and to go further, you will make sure to speak up when you see this happening to someone else. If you are having a bad day at work, it is important to identify why and make sure that day is one you learn from. Make a promise to craft your schedule or change your attitude to ensure it never happens again. Turn a pain point into a promise point. If you are down on yourself because you just can’t stand the way you feel in your own body or you said no yet again to an event because of your weight, appearance, or general health. Feel the pain of missing out on life and make a promise to yourself to change. If you are feeling the pressure of working too hard and never seeing your family. Or perhaps not working hard enough and letting down the people who rely on you. Don’t let the weight of this crush you – turn your pain into the impetus to change your situation and create a new life that nurtures balance. Let your pain be constructive and fuel a promise of change for better days.

Personally, my pain point at work is feeling I do not have enough time to give the best of myself to my patients and clients. It is no one’s fault – an unintended consequence of a small pool of veterinarians and an increase in pet adoption and an increasing awareness of the importance of care for these members of our family. Feeling the pain of the situation validates that I still care. I care about every client and every patient that needs my help. I feel the pain of this difficult situation and know I can’t inherently change the reality of it – there are just not enough veterinarians to see all of the pets that need care right now. Does that mean I give up? No, it means I make a promise point that holds true to my own values – to slow down, to recognize when someone really needs me, and listen. To take the time I need to build relationships and trust so I can give the best care I am capable of. Some people may need to wait longer and some may get angry that they can not be fit in for non-emergent reasons. I will accept this because I’ve made that promise to the client and patient in front of me to be fully present in that moment. I know this is what I need to do to remain fulfilled as a veterinarian. The days I could not hold true to this were my pain points.

Do you have a pain point? Write down what circumstance made or makes you feel bad and why. This is your pain point and it can be absolutely anything big or small. Now, write down your promise point and more specifically write about the person you need to be to accomplish your promise to yourself or to others. I suggest doing this every time something makes you feel sad, angry, depressed, or defeated. These moments are where your growth occurs. Turning pain points into promise points, gradually transforms bad days into good days, and slowly gives you a slight edge in life toward happiness, success, goal accomplishment, and developing your personal integrity. Today is the day – what gives you pain and what new promises are out there waiting to be harnessed toward building your better future?