This is my 50th blog post! It’s taken me a few years to get to this point, but consistency over time always leads to great outcomes. Thanks to those of you who have been along for the journey since the very beginning!
In challenges times, we still can have great outcomes. We get them when we pay attention to consistent positive thougths and actions.
I am NOT a positive person by nature. I go negative naturally, and have had to do a LOT of personal and mental work to get to a point where I deal in the empowered positive. What I mean by that is that I tend to acknowledge situations as a realist. There was an immense amount of denial about this virus crippling our world initially. I didn’t downplay it. I acklowedged it early, got sad, and then hit my wall where I had to make a decision: I was either going to go into a silent slide and be years behind my competition when “things get back to normal”, or I was going to get empowered, decide on positive solutions I could implement, and keep moving.
I was empowered by my realization that I could be positive about the things I could control.
People are anxious. And they are letting their and other’s anxiety determine their activity. Are you one of them? I was, until I decided I wouldn’t be anymore. You may think you can afford to wait things out, but don’t fall for it. Don’t go down the silent slide.
The silent slide is when we don’t acknowledge the silent loss of good habits, and mindlessly engage in bad ones. We lose all momentum when action stops. Wait and see is not a life or business plan. We see everyone else doing it, and think it’s okay. It’s not okay.
I thought of this concept after seeing a “funny” video on Facebook a friend shared. This man was walking through his neighborhood on garbage day, and he was showing how many glass bottles his neighbors had gone through since the previous garbage day. Everyone thought it was funny how much more people were drinking. I laughed. And then I thought about my drinking.
I’m not an addiction expert. I do not have a drinking problem, but I was drinking more. When this situation first starting blowing up, I looked at my husband and said, “When can the kids go to bed so we can drink and watch Tiger King on Netflix?” What?!!? I usually have 3 drinks a week. (I used to be able to handle alcohol before kids but now two White Claws leave me hung over. Super annoying.) And then I realized I was going to go down a silent slide. I give myself a three-drink limit for the whole work week, and that helps me put a limit on what I’m consuming.
Americans have DOUBLED their budget for alcohol since Covid-19. We are becoming a society of alcoholics and no one notices because “everyone else is doing it.” How can you be at your best when you’re drinking and hung over? What happens to your immune system when you aren’t exercising and eating right? What happens to YOU when you silently slide into bad habits and don’t even see it?
There is a silent slide for many things: drinking, weight gain, exercise, victimhood, loss of momentum due to anxiety.
Take a look at the areas of your life that have changed. Decide whether you’re okay with it. There is probably a reason and an excuse as to why you’ve gone down the silent slide, and I’m not saying its not valid. But it’s still an excuse.
It’s time to go look at your goals. Remind yourself Why you want them. Look for other ways to achieve them. Acknowledge habits that help and habits that hinder them.
If you need help figuring out what you really want and how to create a plan to achieve them, you can check out my book Beyond the Board: How to Achieve Your Vision Board Goals in a Fulfilling and Sustainable Way, or join our Facebook group. It’s time to skill up, level up, and take back control.
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