Do You Have Hope?

This message is especially dedicated to someone special, who used my “three frogs on a log” riddle and took action in her own life…she committed herself to exercising and changing her life for the better…Dottie Cook, this one’s for you.

“Men and women are limited not by the place of their birth, not by the color of their skin, but by the size of their hope.” – John Johnson

Do you have hope? The belief that there is someone great inside you? I do. I think that you can become anything and anyone you want to as long as you have the will to do it and the belief that it will happen. Honestly, I believe change is easy, but maintenance of change is difficult. Anyone can say they will start working out as their New Year’s Resolution. That’s why I see all these new faces in the gym in January. But guess what? They’re all gone by February and then I just go back to seeing the regulars. They say you need to do something for 21 days in a row to make it a habit. If you want to quit smoking, do it for 21 days, if you want to go on a diet, do it for 21 days. But you need to BELIEVE you are making a lifestyle change. Part of the problem is that throughout life, people are told all the things they CAN’T do. Nobody knows you well enough to tell you what you CAN’T do. You don’t need to be great to start, but you need to start to be great.

If you want to become a great athlete, train like the pros for 21 days. You should take at least one day off per week, though to prevent over training and injuries. If you want to become a great student, study smart for 21 days. You should take at least one day off per week, though to prevent over training and injuring your brain.

There are many people out there who have given up on attaining greatness. This is what Dr. Martin Seligman, father of positive psychology calls, “learned hopelessness.” This basically happens when several negative events happen to someone and it gets into their subconscious minds and they give up hope. This could be over the course of months or even years. The truth of the matter is that is a conditioned response. It isn’t reality. Well, it is that person’s reality. But they can change it instantly.

If you are an athlete and you played several games that nothing went your way, you might think that you are getting worse, or you can’t buy a win or maybe you should start playing hopscotch. You can’t deny your feelings, but you can understand that this is a “learned” condition and you can change it. You can change it by changing how you act, or your physiology. You can change it by focusing on your technique and strategy. Act and think like a champion for 21 days and guess what? You are on your way to becoming a champion.

Did you know? In 1990, the best selling shirt in Japan was “We’re number 1!” and that same year, the best selling shirt in the US was “Underachiever-and proud of it!”

Homework: Think about something in your life that you have been conditioned to thinking that there is no hope. It could be something great or small. I challenge you to recondition yourself for the next 21 days and I guarantee your life won’t be the same.