One Small Day - Ultravox

'And live a life the way it's meant to be' - URE

Things will change when you change. Sounds kinda corny doesn’t it? But it’s true. You see, I believe folk expect the world around them to magically change for the better of its own doing - like some kind of magical lottery win where suddenly everything is perfect, all the planets are lined up and the hurty-pain of life disappears and forever.

‘Dream on’, I say as it will never happen - especially if YOU are not prepared to change.

How do YOU go about making the changes that will ease the pressure and lighten your load? Well that’s not so easy - and if it was, life would already be rosy wouldn’t it? If you are in a dark place right now and think that the world is against you, why not take a more pragmatic view of where you find yourself and how you are perceived as it’s easy to say that it’s not your fault and that you are a mere victim of circumstances. Are you blinkered like that?

Let’s break it into three parts. Honesty, De-Cluttering and Direction.

I mean, are you really being honest to yourself? Being self-critical at a time when others are criticizing you might be the last thing you want to take on-board but do the people you’ve surrounded yourself have a point when they highlight your failings. Do you still feel as driven in the career you once loved, since a fresh hierarchy has invaded your work-domain and dented your pride - maybe they have a point? They are probably being Honest. Everyone will say they want ‘Feedback’ but in reality, we all prefer ‘Praise’. I know it’s hard, been there - taken ‘Feedback’ on the chin – softened my message and got the T-Shirt. Take a long hard look, what do you really see?

Clutter. 

That’s what I see in other peoples’ worlds - and I see more worlds than most I believe. So much clutter in fact that it suffocates all the good that lies beneath. You see, we are a nation of hoarders both mental and physical. For instance, I’m just as bad as the next man as I’m not sure if I’ll ever wear my school cap I had when I was 11 again. It lives on in my wardrobe having escaped a trip to the tip on numerous occasions most recently when we moved.  It’s been there for shelf for 45 years’ hoping for an outing but in truth never will - it’s just baggage. Why do we hold onto so many things that are simply useless? Why do we hold onto so many thoughts that are just as useless? Take a trip to the tip - the Memory Tip. Get rid of things that just don’t matter anymore. Move on.

And only when you’ve been honest and de-cluttered, real changes - the changes you are so desperate to make, will start to happen. Success isn’t measured by possessions or wealth; it’s measured by happiness - becoming and being the person that you know is within you, surrounded by the people you really want to be with.

In my own experience, the journey was possibly the most enjoyable part of my life-change. De-cluttering the present and mapping out a fresh and brighter future is amazingly empowering. I felt euphoric and finally back in control of my own destiny. How are you on  Honesty, De-Cluttering and Direction right now? 

1,036 Marathons, 250 ULTRAS, 9 Guinness World Records, 15 Marathon des Sables