Masterful Mindsets

“Don’t call the world dirty because you forgot to clean your glasses.” ~ Aaron Hill

Last week, I shared how clarity and focus make everything in life easier — kind of like putting on your glasses after pretending you don’t need them (guilty!). But this week, I want to take that idea a little deeper.
Because sometimes, even when we do have our “glasses” on — even when we think we’re doing all the right things — life can still feel a little foggy.

When the Lens Is the Problem
Not long ago, I was trying to focus on a project, and everything felt… off. I had my glasses on, so I thought, What the heck? Maybe my eyesight was getting worse? Maybe I needed stronger lenses?
Then I took them off and realized the real issue — they were filthy. Covered in fingerprints, smudges, and life’s little muck. I laughed out loud because it was such a perfect metaphor. Once I cleaned them, everything came back into focus — crisp, clear, effortless again. And it hit me: the same thing happens in life.

When O...

“Focus. Otherwise, you will find life becomes a blur.” ~ Anonymous

If you wear glasses, you know how much easier life feels when you actually put them on. Suddenly, everything comes into focus, crisp, clear, effortless.

Life works the same way. When you have clarity and focus, everything becomes easier. You make better decisions, take more intentional actions, and start seeing progress that actually feels good.

But let’s be honest, it’s easy for life to get blurry. You’re busy. There’s a constant pull for your attention.

And before you know it, you’re looking back wondering where the last year (or ten) went.
So if your vision for your future feels foggy, it’s time to do what I finally had to do: put the glasses on.

The Clarity Confession
I’ll admit it — I fought the whole “needing glasses” thing longer than I care to admit. I’d squint, stretch my arm, adjust the lighting, blame the font size… you name it. Anything to avoid admitting that I couldn’t see clearly on my own. And every t...

  “Resolutions require only words. Results take actions.” ~ Tony Robbins

Every January, the air buzzes with talk about resolutions. You see it everywhere - people declaring bold new intentions to change their lives, only for that excitement to fade by mid-February.

Maybe you’ve even written a few resolutions yourself this year. And that’s great — truly. But before you set your heart on this being the year it finally sticks, let’s look at why most resolutions fizzle out… and what you can do differently to make this year your most successful yet.

Resolutions vs. Goals 
People often use these words interchangeably, but they’re not the same. Understanding the difference is the key to real, lasting change.

Resolutions tend to be:

• Broad and vague (“I want to get healthy.”)
• Open-ended, with no clear finish line.

Goals are:

• Specific and measurable (“I’ll lose 10 pounds in six weeks.”)
• Action-driven, with clear steps and a timeline.

See the distinction? Resolutions sound inspirin...

“Flourishing goes beyond happiness, or satisfaction with life. True, people who flourish are happy. But that’s not the half of it. Beyond feeling good, they’re also doing good-adding value to the world.” ~ Barbara Fredrickson

At the end of each year, I love to reflect on my life and journal on how well I feel I met my goals and how I’ve grown. One of my go-to exercises is to reflect on three questions that one of my mentors, Brendon Burchard always asks, "Did I Live? Did I Love? Did I Matter?"

But then, from there, I like to move from reflection of the past year to asking a few questions of myself in a future focused manner. And this is where I embraced the ideas from another mentor of mine, Brian Johnson.

Brian is the founder and CEO of Heroic Public Benefit Company and a role model in terms of how he lives his life. I’ve had the opportunity to spend time with Brian, his wife Alexandra, his right-hand man Michael, and many other amazing Heroic heroes in the past few years.

The...

When you choose joy, you feel good and
When you feel good, you do good and
When you do good it reminds others of
what joy feels like, and it just might inspire
them to do the same.

We are all in full holiday mode – no matter what holiday it is that you celebrate - so today I want to share with you how to have a happy holiday. And how to survive the holidays in a positive way using five high performance (holiday) tips to help you bring the joy into your own life and to others.

Clarity - Be clear about what is most important to you this holiday season. And set your intention for how you want to show up. (i.e. bringing happiness and joy to others, being charitable, kind, etc.) It’s easy to be stressed out, overwhelmed, grumpy or angry during the holidays. But make a choice to get clear about how you want your holidays to be and how you want to show up this holiday season and then remind yourself of the words/intentions you choose throughout the holiday season so that you are showing...

"The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is the energy you bring to every moment." ~ unknown

There are different types of energy that impact our lives, both individually and collectively. And in our fast-paced, demanding world, being able to maintain optimal levels of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual energy is not just a luxury; it's an absolute necessity.

So, this week, we’ll jump into the basics of each dimension and delve into a few ideas for how to amplify these energies so you can harness their collective power and propel yourself towards greater levels of performance and success.  

Physical Energy: Physical energy forms the foundation of our being, enabling us to tackle challenges and accomplish our goals. To reach peak performance, prioritize the following:

• Regular Exercise: Engaging in physical activity not only enhances stamina and strength but also boosts cognitive function and reduces stress.
• Restorative Sleep: Quality sleep revitalizes the bod
...

“There are hidden blessings in every struggle. Be grateful for every blessing both hidden and apparent.” ~unknown

Years ago, I was speaking to a fellow coach who believed that hardships and tragedy are things we should embrace and even love. Now I will admit that I completely balked at that idea. I mean seriously, “love tragedy”? Nope. After all, I’ve experienced a lot of hardship and loss in my life and have worked with clients throughout the years who have endured tremendous struggle and unthinkable tragedy so I was not convinced that any of those things were something we could love.

But what I do believe, is that although we might not be able to get to the point of loving what has happened, we can in fact look for the gift in those experiences and love those gifts. Because hidden in every experience we have – the good and the bad – there is a gift given to us. And if we can identify the gifts and be grateful for them, then we can turn them into empowerment for a better future.

Th...

“Another day, another blessing and another chance at life. Take nothing for granted and think of every breath as a gift.”  ~ unknown

As you know, if you’ve been following along the past few weeks, I’ve been focusing on Gratitude. Gratitude is a powerful thing. So much so that it can actually boost your happiness by up to 25%. So today, I want to explore the power of focusing on the gifts and blessings that we often overlook so that instead, we can make certain we take time regularly to look at them through the lens of gratitude.  

It can be easy to take people, experiences, and things in our lives for granted. But to practice gratitude from a higher level of consciousness, we must not take things “for granted” but rather see them “as granted”. This small shift in language creates a powerful shift in mindset and moves us from an attitude of entitlement to humility. And even if we don’t like to admit it, an underlying sense of entitlement is actually the #1 thing that gets in the w...

“Let us be thankful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.” ~Marcel Proust

If you live in the US, odds are you’re preparing for the Thanksgiving holiday tomorrow. Which can mean many different things for people. For some it’s no more than an excuse to eat and drink too much. Or a much-needed day off from work. But for most people, it’s a day to get together with family and friends to remember what we are most thankful for. And if you’re lucky, the two go together… the people you’re with are in fact what you are most thankful for. So, as we prepare for this day of thanksgiving… why not use this as a time for reflection and sharing with those we truly are grateful for.

Going back to the research I’ve been sharing with you over the last couple of weeks from Robert Emmons, who wrote the book Gratitude Works! I want to share another idea for how you can practice gratitude in a powerful way and in fact, share the gift of gratitude. ...

“It is not joy that makes us grateful; it is gratitude that makes us joyful.” ~David Steindl-Rast

Last week I gave you an interesting statistic on the power of gratitude… I shared that people who have a gratitude practice of writing down at least 5 things they are grateful for once a week can boost their happiness by as much as 25% in as little as 10 weeks. Which is a compelling statistic in and of itself. But today I want to share a few more facts with you about the power of gratitude. (Just in case a 25% increase in happiness isn’t enough to convince you that it’s worth it to have a gratitude practice.) 😉  

So Robert Emmons, who is one of the world’s leading researchers on the science of gratitude along with his colleague Mike McCollough were the first researchers to discover the profound benefits of gratitude through their studies.

What they found was that people who regularly cultivate gratitude “experience a multitude of psychological, physical, interpersonal, and spiritual...