by | Life Application
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photo credit: mafleen (creative commons)
It’s been a crazy, great, overwhelming, hard, energetic, exciting, tiresome, eventful year. I think that about covers it.
Since revamping the blog in 2011, I’ve gained more readers and shared more of my life than ever. I wouldn’t take a second of it back.
Thank you for your support.
I plan to continue with five posts per week, continuing to be as transparent as possible, and growing with you. I have lots up my sleeve for 2012.
With that said, I want to share with you the Top Five Posts of 2011:
by | Life Application
This year I embarked on a journey with my new friend and blogger Alece from Grit and Glory. The journey was to find that one word that I wanted to focus on for 2011. That one word that I would live by.
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My word was truth.
I’m sure I could have done better, but I’m pretty happy with the way I lived out that one word.
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by | Life Application
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photo credit: amal (creative commons)
It has been a great year at Lead. Love. Laugh. I can’t believe it’s coming to an end!
This is the first year I have committed to blogging five times per week and I’m so thrilled I did.
I started blogging in 2006 on MySpace, believe it or not, and now, here I am at Lead. Love. Laugh. With the gazillion (slight exaggeration) blogs out there, I want to do everything I need to in order to provide real-life inspiration, tips on leadership, laughter, and more for you.
I want to make sure I’m going in the right direction.
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by | Life Application
What do you love to do?
What is that one thing that fires you up?
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photo credit: redcargurl (creative commons)
It’s that one thing that ignites a smile in your heart. It’s that something you know you were meant to do.
What’s keeping you from DOING it?
I’m a writer. Do I have a published book? No. Does most of the world know who I am or what I write about? No.
But guess what?
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by | Life Application
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photo credit: mike baird (creative commons)
From Sundi Jo: This is a guest post by Spencer McDonald. Spencer lives in Snohomish, Washington. He is a writer, speaker, facilitator, and coach. Spencer helps others visioneer a life that matters. You can also find him on Twitter.
On my way home today I passed seven dudes in orange vests picking up litter along side the highway. In one hand, a garbage sack and the other, a poker to collect all that litter.
As I drove on I wondered about that litter. I wondered who tossed it and why? Did they care at all about our environment?
Then it hit me… forget about the litter on that highway. That was easy to remedy. What about the litter inside our mind left there by careless others over our lifetime? You know who they were. They were our parents, our teachers, our friends, our co-workers, and maybe even church friends. And these are the pieces of litter they tossed into our mind.
The first piece was “No.” It was meant be something that keeps us in check and wound up limiting our thinking.
Next, many pieces of “Stop it” were discarded. This litter was meant to control our mind.
In school our teachers littered. They tossed out “Don’t.” As in don’t do that, instead do this. They meant well and wound up programming us to avoid things, which turned into raging fear.
When we came home from school and had a dream of using our talent to make our way in the world more litter was left. That piece of litter was “You can’t.” It was a protection device that zapped our happiness over a lifetime.
As matching piece of litter, “Get a job” made way into our mind and tarnished more beauty. “Get a job” stole our hopes and dreams. “Get a job” robbed our talents. “Get a job” was the stinkiest of the litter left behind.
I challenge you to take a walk through your mind. See all that litter (garbage). Choose to eliminate the litter that is holding you back from greatness. Do it because you are powerful beyond belief if only you will believe it.
Begin by identifying the litter. Name it. Call it out.
Next, find resources to help you get it cleaned up. This might be good friends, uplifting books or blogs, motivational speakers, and personal coaches.
Finally, use anchors to keep the litter out of your mind. These anchors are things like pictures of what you want, positive affirmations you read daily, prayer or mediation, and accountability partners.
Do these things and you will regain a spotless mind and life that is on fire with happiness and success.
Question: What other little have you had to work to get rid of? Comment below…
by | Life Application
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photo credit: xotoko (creative commons)
I still have friends that don’t understand what social media is. “It’s just a fad.” “I don’t want to twitter a tweet.” I’m not about to let people see my life on Facebook.” “I don’t have time to blog.”
I get that it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. If you don’t want your family photographs on Facebook, no big deal. What bothers me though, is when others put social media down as a “stupid waste of time.” It’s not the opinion that bothers me, it’s the attitude behind it.
Social media has made a tremendous impact, both positive and negative. It’s not going anywhere soon. There may be negative aspects of the social media world, but isn’t there in everything we do?
For me, there has been more positive than negative. It’s helped me to create a platform with my writing. It is a ministry for me to reach out to many people at once that I may never get the chance to do otherwise. Sure, my life is pretty much an open book, but you know what? (more…)