Looking At Options

When you have what seem like overwhelming odds, you need to start looking at options.  You can continue like you are.  "Do what you've done and you'll get what you got"  OR You can begin making small changes that create a slightly different situation. 

A slight change compounded over days and weeks adds up to a lot of change and often in a short period of time.

Sharon and I are actively seeking that change in our lives.

Here is a story I heard on a tape by Brian Tracey.

A pair of golfers were about to tee off and one said to the other, "Let's make this a little interesting.  Let's bet 10 cents a hole"  The other agreed.  The first said, let's make it a little more interesting, "Let's double that 10 cents on each hole".  The second golfer thought that sounded reasonable, even if he lost every hole, so he agreed.

This starts out fine.  10 cents, the 20.  40 cents then 80.  80 cent then $1.60.  At the nineth hole it is up to $51.20 and now the first golfer starts to get worried.  At the 13th hole it is up to $819.20 and at the 19th hole that simple 10 cent bet is $26214.40

Small changes compound over time can lead to major changes without even realizing they are happening.

We are currently looking for small changes on a daily basis that will add up over a fairly short period of time.  Small changes in attitude could mean in "19 holes" our depression will be behind us and we will have moved toward out $10,000 goal in 90 days. 

Reasons Why NOT

If you are not where you want to be, what are the reasons why not?  There are a lot of excuses that come to mind; no time, no money, no knowledge and so many more. 

Last night I may have discovered my "reason" for not reaching the levels of success I really desire, DEPRESSION. 

I do not feel depressed. I am not down all the time.  I do not feel despondent or suicidal.  Actually I consider myself a fairly positive person. However, I am tired all the time, but have no health problems.  I do not do anything, but I am capable.  I look at a 6000 square foot warehouse of stuff and cannot find anything to sell on Ebay. I am listless and unproductive.

My wife and I have a 1988 motorhome with a mechanical problem, so we have not been camping in almost a year.  Last night Sharon announced that we would miss an upcoming RV get together.  Someone sent her an email saying the let him know if he could help in any way. 

Sharon read me that email.  I felt teary.  Normally I'd say I was touched by their friendship, but this went beyond touched when tears rolled down my cheeks.

I do not cry over nothing.  I am not prone to overly emotional response to things that occur.  I felt down for about an hour or more.

After I got home I was thinking about my emotional response to a simple email.  It occurred to me that what I was displaying were symptoms of depression.  Other things in my life indicate possible depression.

This is an, "AH HA" moment.  Depression is a state of mind and like any state of mind can be changed.  I am not talking about someone who is severely depressed and needs medial or psychological help. I am talking about people like Sharon and I who normally function fairly well and suddenly do not seem to be doing so well.

What is the answer?  It is consciously deciding not to die a thousand deaths.  If you were to discover you were going to die and everyday you worried about death, you would die a thousand deaths before you actually died.  If you focused on life instead, you would only die once.  No, neither of us are dying.

The solution is to focus on things that are good about our situation instead of what is bad.  We tried that in the past, but not strongly enough. 

Our rental house is for sale and we will have to move.  Our landlord held an open house and we had strangers walking through our home.  Add that on top of our other life situations and it apparently became more than we could handle without some change of attitude.

As of today Sharon and I are concentrating on the good in our lives instead of the bad. We are standing taller and looking for positive answers where we did not see them yesterday. 

If we stay focused on living life to the fullest with what we have, I think we will be back on track toward our $10,000 in 90 Days Challenge.  More than that I think we will be on the way to getting our lives back. 

If life overwhelms you at times, remember that there are others who experience the same thing.  It is not what overwhelms us, but what  we do about it that matters. 

There was a time in my life when I would have given anything to be where I am today.  Years ago, I had a job I hated.  I never liked Monday, Hump Day (Wednesday) meant the week was half over and Friday was TGIF.  The weekends were never long enough.  I did not like my boss and dreamed of freedom.

Years ago I dreamed of having my own business and now I do.  Back then I would have given or given up anything to have my own warehouse full of junk to sell.  I have it today and am having difficulty with the concept.  

My problem is a problem of perception.  Although I consider myself a positive person, my glass was half empty.  If I will adjust my thinking just a little my glass will be half full again. 

Watch for changes in this blog in the days ahead.

Looking For Success

Sometimes I feel like I am looking for success in all of the wrong places.  My main source of income is Ebay, but I try to get internet marketing going and my Ebay sales suffer.

I have challenged myself to earn $10,000 in 90 days and it is not happening in the manner I had hoped.

The mysterious thing is that one week I earned $3300 over what I normally earn.  This past week I got $3000, but it was taken as a loan against my 2004 Nissan truck. 

The loan is because we are in a FOR SALE rental house and I need to move, but do not have the cash for a the first months rent plus and equal security deposit.  Cheap rentals in our area start at about $900, none less and that is for a place you may not want to live.  There are rare exceptions, but not often.

So far $6300 has come into my life that I did not expect.  It is not from where I wanted it to come from. I am attracting money, but not from internet marketing. 

Maybe this is a case of, "Be careful what you wish for because you may get it".  It takes a more precise plan than just wanting something. 

Including today I have 58 more days in my 90 day challenge.  I need to start averaging $180 a day more than I normal earn to meet this challenge.