William “Bud” Hart, of Haverhill, shares “Success Principles”—ideas for living a greater, better and more accomplished life, and building habits that stick. He also coaches clients to incorporate strategies for boosting their mental and physical performance during everyday living.
This week I was waiting in line at the bank when I was approached by someone who reads my articles regularly. They noted that they had not read a new article for a couple of weeks. It was reminder (I did not need) that sitting down and writing a new piece was proving to be a bit more challenging than I imagined it would be after a brief lay off. I responded with a smile that I was working on getting back on track and into a regular writing routine now that Christmas and New Years are over. Their response struck me, “So you are taking your own advice?”
I think we have all experienced it. We are watching a television show, a movie, listening the radio and doing routine everyday tasks (like banking) when someone says something simple, but perceptive. And with that there comes a moment of realization where what they say is advice that we can apply to ourselves. This moment in the bank was one of these times for me. I was not listening to or taking my own advice.
Unless this is your first time reading one of my articles (in which case, thanks for reading), you know that I like telling stories about success principles and writing about real life examples of individuals who have done whatever it takes to realize their dreams. I really enjoy putting together articles that can inspire and motivate people to stay on track and make their dreams come true. Helping people succeed is kind of a big thing with me.
But, do I actually take my own advice? Do I follow and put the examples I write about into my own every day actions? Truthfully and sadly I have to say the answer is a work in progress. As much as I like writing about people putting themselves out there, overcoming fear, being willing to make mistakes, relentlessly pursuing what they want and finding great success, I think I do it, in large part, because I have trouble making myself do every single one of these things and trust that doing so will make any difference.
If I’ve learned anything about advice over the years it is this, taking advice isn’t easy, even when it is my own and even when it is clearly in my own best interest. I know, this sounds like some of my coaching, pie in the sky jargon, but pausing just long enough to realize we should be doing something (like sitting down and writing just anything to start), advice that we would give others to do is a serious step forward. And this is what I realized at the bank when I heard “So you are taking your own advice?”
We all have a steady reliable source of inner wisdom and guidance to follow when it comes to finding the path and creating and living the life we want. An inner voice giving unfailing direction to uncover the most important path of all, the one that is right and meant for us. Sometimes we just need a reminder (like I got at the bank) to listen to our own advice.
This may not be one of my better topics for an article, but it has accomplished several things. It gave a reason to sit down and write. It got me to think about and follow advice I would give anyone else needing a little boost to start or restarted creating their dream life. And it gave me a thought to leave with you to ponder for yourself when you may be having trouble staying on track. Words attributed to Buddha, “There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting.”
William “Bud” Hart is a certified “Mindset” Coach, Accountability Partner and Business Consultant. Visit Hart Group, www.hartgroupma.com for more on coaching.