I have been working through my goal list for the last several days. I have most everything squared away that I want to do for the next 100 days. I have one thing left to finish out: my creative project list.

I have a list as long as my arm of things that I want to do. Some ideas are better than others, but it is a list full of cool stuff. There are podcasts to host, books to write, songs to be sung, etc. but what makes it on the list for the first part of this year?

1. I am working on training material for public speaking. I will share more here as it develops, but I have an outline together. I am excited about this one.

2. I want to do voiceover work. I have been told for a lot of years that I have a great voice, and it is time to put that to the test.

3. I have ideas for a couple of different podcasts. I have some planning to do for these, but will record my first one soon.

I have a ton of other ideas as well. I am eager to see where 2023 can go with a little focused attention.

As we come out of the Christmas holiday, the New Year is now upon us. There are no more excuses. There is no more binging on sweets. It is time to get back into the routine and start crushing goals.

I have made a discovery. I need routine much more than I ever thought I did. I can hear my younger self now. He is mortified. He can shut up.

I just finished day 2 of my next round of 100 Days Strong. Things are starting to feel normal again. I got my walk and my yoga in today. I stayed within my calorie limits. I can sense normalcy. It feels strange and awesome at the same time.

Why does it feel strange? I have finally had a breakthrough and am no longer stuck in the same place I was. Why you ask? There have been a couple of things that have stopped me from getting to this point over the years:

1. I have had a difficult relationship with food over the years. I understand what it feels like to not have a lot. Due to this, I made a point of eating more than I needed many times because I didn’t want to miss out. Call it insecurity, but food was safety in some ways.

2. I have also spent time not being honest with the guy in the mirror. I have known I needed to lose weight for some time, but always told myself it wasn’t as bad as it appeared. I wasn’t in that bad of shape was I? The truth? It was worse than it appeared. I was too heavy. Too inactive. Too lazy. It was not only affecting me, but my family as well.

It was beyond time to change. I had to do it. For me. For my family. That is why I stepped up to the challenge in September. That is why I stuck to my goals for 100 Days Strong. That is also why I did not allow myself more than a week or two before starting again.

I can’t undo the past. I can make better, more honest decisions going forward. Here is to 2023 and getting it done.

#100DaysStrong

It is the start of the new year. Another awesome holiday season has passed by and it is now time to get back into accomplishment mode.

I’m going to be honest, I have a love-hate relationship with December. I love getting to see family and I absolutely love Christmas. However, the Temptations that are brought in with the holidays are not as much fun.

I have taken a minor setback with my weight loss goal, but it is a new year. It is a new opportunity to do good. It is a new opportunity to achieve.

Much like last time, I have compiled a list of things I intend to do daily for the next 100 days. Here they are in no specific order:

1. Progress photo/weight check

2. 100 oz of water per day

3. Follow my eating plan

4. Follow my exercise plan

5. Read 1 chapter daily

6. Create daily (blogging, other projects)

7. Encourage others daily

8. Express gratitude daily

Only two items have changed from my original list. Instead of writing daily, I will take time every day to work on creative projects. I plan to blog three times per week. The other days I will spend time working my creative project list. I will share that here as I go.

I added an item as well. I was challenged in church this morning on a sermon about gratitude. The speaker stated that daily gratitude can provide amazing personal and spiritual benefits. I am going to add this to my daily routine.

Day one is now complete. On to day 2.

Have you ever stared in the mirror and not recognized the person staring back? Has time gone by so quickly that you blink and it seems a dozen years have passed? If you answered yes to either one of those questions, I understand how you feel.

I have been trying to process what I want my next set of goals to look like. What do I want to accomplish in 2023? So, I have been taking to myself in the mirror. The face I see is older than I feel. Where has the time gone?

Don’t misunderstand me. I like the guy in the mirror very much. He is an older and wiser version than I had in the past. He is more driven and sure of himself. He is also more…what is the word I am looking for? Different. He is different than I expected him to be.

When I was young I wanted to sing and write music. That was my plan for the future. So, I practiced and got better and got a full scholarship to sing in college. I was young and creative. I was carefree and arrogant. I knew the future would work out. I had no idea how, but I had faith that it would.

During the second semester of my Sophomore year I began to grow discontent. I didn’t like who I was becoming. I felt like I was floating through life and didn’t have a clear focus.

That all changed the summer after my Sophomore year. I started a wonderful relationship with an awesome woman. God put her in my life at the perfect time. It didn’t take me long to shift gears and ask for her hand in marriage. She said yes in September of 1998 and we married the following January. We will celebrate anniversary number 24 in a couple of weeks.

Becoming her husband helped focus me. Having a partner does that. I still had dreams, but I also had real world things that needed to be done. It took some years of struggle, but I figured out what I was good at. I have been working to get better at it ever since.

I am not the same man I was 24 years ago. I thank God for that quite often. I have grown and matured. But, I am still not done. I want to keep the evolution going. I must continue to grow and improve.

I may not recognize the guy in the mirror all the time, but I sure like him. It is time to keep moving forward and see what he does next.

That is it. That’s the post. I feel so very thankful.