Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm

"Enthusiasm is one of the most powerful engines of success. When you do a thing, do it with all of your might. Put your whole soul into it. Stamp it with your personality. Be active, be energetic & faithful, and you will accomplish your object. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

Today I've been finding inspiration in a lot of places. This summer was supposed to be my best summer yet...my finest athletic achievements were supposed to be realized...but obstacles have been put in my way. I've been humbled and I've learned A LOT. Mostly about who I am as a person and what I can achieve once I start letting the universe work for me....instead of me fighting it and trying to puch up hill against things that weren't meant to be.
If there is one piece of advice I could give to everyone...it would be to READ. Learn more, earn more. Reading about other people's lives and experiences has opened up my eyes to a whole world of possibilities.
You should always focus on your Core Genuis. The one thing you love to do and do so well that you hardly feel like charging people for it. Then focus on it. Think about how many people go through life doing a job (or anything!) that they are okay at or even bad at....don't fight against your natural talents! When you express your passion & enthusiam, you will become a magnet to others who want to be near your high energy- they will want to work with you, & support your dreams/goals.  "The biggest mistake people make in life is not trying to make a living at doing what they enjoy the most." -Maloclm S. Forbes

If you are not skilled enough to to do the work you love, make time to educate yourself until you are! Start now- there are things you can do to start down that path. Start reading, practicing, spending time with people who already do what you would like to. Passion makes you days fly by- it makes life easier. Don't you want to wake up & love going into work? Don't you want to live your days with enthusiasm?

Think about this- What would you achieve if you developed just 4 new, good habits a year? That's one habit every quarter. In 5 years, you would have 20 successful habits under your belt- how far would that propel you forward? Think about 4 habits you would like to work on- meditating, flossing your teeth, writing thank you notes, writing down your goals, Drink more water?
It's the small changes that add up to the BIGGEST differences! My point being- you don't have to decide that you are making changes in your life and bite off more than you can chew. Start in small managable steps and over time you will see the rewards of your consistancty. Don't decide you are going to start working out and then injure yourself trying to run a 5k. Start by walking after lunch and work your way up.

With all of that being said...the reason I've been thinking about this is because I haven't been looking forward to my workouts like I was before. I've been on this hellbender path to try to tackle Insanity. Insanity is pretty amazing and intense and holy crap there is no way you will not have results after doing it...but I've realized that I miss Tony Horton. I miss P90X, I miss that type of workout. And instead of fighting it, I think I am going to go back to the type of training & workouts that I ENJOY. Yes, I'll do an Insanity workout here and there...but if you want results...you have to do the workout you love.  Just saying this has taken a HUGE weight off of me. Thanks Farah for your support & guidance!
It's the same with eating well. If someone told me that I had to eat fish....I would probably puke lol But I would completly shut down and probably start eating pizza, cake and snickers becaues I was frustrated.
Bottom line- you have to find things that work for YOU. That is why there are so many different workout programs, types of food, jobs, clothes, hairstyles and everything else in the world.
Not everything is going to be loved by everyone and instead of fighting it and forcing yourself to conform to what you THINK you should be doing....follow your heart...be true to YOU and the rest will fall into place.

Follow your heart