Narrow the focus and help yourself understand
what does or does not serve and nourish your soul.

I have a quick four question survey I ask audiences to complete for me.  It asks them to consider what we did during the workshop and rate it on a scale of 1 through 4. Rather than the generic 1 = poor and 4 = awesome, I give them a little guidance:

1: This program needs life support.

2: This program needs to hit the reset button.

3: This program energizes me!

4: This program inspires me to act!

Consider the same four-point rubric to give yourself feedback about your goals progress.

Goal setting requires vision and planning. Goal achieving requires a lot work.

At times we can get discouraged on the journey. On occasion, we might feel lost by the various challenges in front of us, not really sure what we need to do next or where to focus our energies.  We can get lost in a mantra like “just do it” while we do not know exactly what that looks like. We may have lost the passion we had at the beginning of the goal setting process.

Think of one significant goal you have at this point in time. More than likely it falls into one of the Six Fs: Family, friends, fitness, finances, function, or faith.  Once you have the goal in mind, apply the above rubric to it on a broad scale.

Six Fs (Steve Piscitelli)

Example 1. Review your fitness routine at the gym. Let’s say you rate your daily workout with a “2”   (needs to hit the reset button). Now drill down for insights.  What in particular do you need to shake up? Is it your cardio exercise? Have you plateaued on the cross trainer and need more of a challenge? Same question for your resistance training.  Or perhaps you need a few sessions with a trainer. In this manner you don’t walk away from the entire fitness program. Rather you refocus your energies on those pieces that no longer serve or nourish you.

Example 2.  Consider what you do for a living—for your calling, your purpose, or your function.  Whether you report to an office each day or participate in the gig economy, survey what you do.  Does what you do inspire you to get up out of bed each day and act?  Or would you rather hide under the bed sheets? If you score yourself a “1” does that reflect how you feel about the entirety of what you do each day? Is there any part of your workday that earns a “3” or a “4”?

Narrow the focus, once again, to help yourself understand what does or does not serve and nourish your soul.

Video recommendation for the week:

I asked my students, “Are you building a transcript or building a life?” Same for our callings, “Are we building a resume or a life?” One path can stifle us. The other inspires us to act.  While this short clip speaks about students, the premise holds as well for life success and meaning in general.  How do you stay in tune? How and when do you hit the reset button?

Make it an inspiring week and H.T.R.B. as needed.

For information about and to order my book, Stories about Teaching, Learning, and Resilience: No Need to be an Island, click here.  A number of colleges and one state-wide agency have adopted it for training and coaching purposes. Contact me if you and your team are interested in doing the same.

My podcasts: The Growth and Resilience Network® (http://stevepiscitelli.com/media-broadcast/podcast).

My programs and webinars: website  (http://stevepiscitelli.com/programs/what-i-do) and (http://stevepiscitelli.com/programs/webinars).

Pearson Education publishes my student textbooks for life success—Choices for College Success (3^rd edition) and Study Skills: Do I Really Need This Stuff? (3^rd edition).

(c) 2018. Steve Piscitelli. All rights reserved.