Hey
there! Well, here I am saying one thing and doing another. I promised more blog
posts and we’re half-way through 2018 and I’m already up to #2. Woo Hoo!!
Procrastination
is one of my biggest enemies. Habits die hard, and for me this is probably the worst.
It’s not that I don’t have great intentions, it’s that I don’t intend to do it
right now. OK, well…I’ll work on fixing that. Later, perhaps.
So, Miss
Debbie and I were talking about how we might contribute to our new community and
as we looked around we saw a need for basic life skills. You know, cooking, cleaning, applying for a
job, being nice to your neighbors, changing a tire, balancing a checkbook, maintaining
positive relationships, not ending up in prison…the sort of thing every Mom and
Dad worries about.
Look
at us…married for 40+ years, a 30-year military career, four kids of our own.
Why can’t we help folks that need to learn a few basics about life, right? We’ve
been there, done that, and got lots of t-shirts.
After a little research on-line, I found a Master’s Certificate
Program on Life Coaching through Grand Canyon University (GCU)…the Lopes, with
a campus in the Phoenix metro area. They have an on-line program so no
classroom commutes. I still have some VA education benefits left to use
and, BAMM…just like that, I’m a student again. And to top it off…PURPLE
is their color, and so is mine!
I’ve completed
about 75% of the course now with one class to go. Yay, me! I’ve learned some pretty valuable things
about how to give people a hand up instead of just a hand out. With the help of
a generous fellow student, I started a business called “Bisbee
Life Coach”, designed to help anyone who has the motivation to better
their life by utilizing three principles that I put together.
FOCUS – focus on creating a road map that
you can use to reach your goals in life.
SUCCEED – reach the destination that you’ve
always wanted to, but never had been able to achieve, and celebrate your success.
As a first-step, we started teaching Basic Life Skills using a workbook written by Nancy Harper as our guide. It’s called, “Life Skills Essential for Personal Growth on the Ever Changing Road of Life”. I found the subject matter to be pertinent and presented simply. In June we started our first-ever Basic Life Skills class with four students.
As a first-step, we started teaching Basic Life Skills using a workbook written by Nancy Harper as our guide. It’s called, “Life Skills Essential for Personal Growth on the Ever Changing Road of Life”. I found the subject matter to be pertinent and presented simply. In June we started our first-ever Basic Life Skills class with four students.
So
far, so good…but I’m quickly discovering the first real battle is finding folks
who not only NEED this information, but who are COMMITTED to actually doing
something on their own behalf. As I talk with various people around town, it
becomes apparent that there is a certain lack of motivation. Seems that many
say they want to improve their lives, but just aren’t willing to do what it
takes to change their behavior to do so. It’s a real quandary.
This
quote may or may not have been said by Einstein, but the point is nonetheless
true. I’ll use myself as an example. Remember that problem I have with
procrastination? Well, occasionally it gets me into trouble. I know I’ve got to
get a paper done for my school by midnight. In fact, I’ve known about it for a
week. And yet here I am once again, an hour before midnight, working feverishly
to get that paper done and submitted before the deadline. I’ve done it my whole
adult life. In fact, I likely learned it as a kid in grade school. It’s INSANE!
The
results are always the same…adrenaline rush, fatigue, sweaty palms, stress, and
promises to myself that it’ll never happen again. Personally, I blame the
instructors for my problem (shifting blame). I often do some of my best work
when under the gun. I rationalize my procrastination because I “always get a
good grade” in the end.
But
that’s what we all do when it comes to making changes in our lives. We fall
back on our old routines. We stay in our comfort zone. We don’t rock the boat.
If it works, don’t fix it. But if we’re honest with ourselves (and too often we
aren’t) we need to admit that although old habits die hard, new habits can take
us to new heights of success.
Now I’m starting to sound like some of my professors, so I’ll
quit now. I hope that you, like me, will be able to make improvements to your behavior
that will make a positive change in your day-to-day life. I’m still a work in
progress…so don’t give up on me yet.
Find
me on Facebook by searching for Bisbee Life Coach,
or on the web at www.bisbeelifecoach.com
Cheers!
- Papa Chief
