Morgan Freeman is my Life Coach
This post begins with some words of wisdom from Morgan Freeman
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OYeaLGRfug
Which of these statements rings more true?
You are what you do.
Or...
You do what you are.
At first glance they may seem the same.
Not so fast…
Admittedlythere is a bit of hair splitting going on here.
That said, as Morgan Freeman points out in the video clip "You’d be amazed at how the small, neglected things become the most important.
Let’s start with what you do.
What do you do?
I coach people, blog, write songs, give concerts, travel, help companies create collaborative strategies, speak at conferences, exercise, cook, fly fish, surf the internet, waste time on social media, talk to strangers, pursue Christ, battle the culture of evangelicalism, long for rich community, isolate, work on my relationships, visit my mother less than I should, snow blow, track calories, forget to track calories, go to bed too late, read the first three or four chapters of books, leave my clothes on the floor, I hang my clothes up, I hunt for clean socks, I wear dirty socks…
That’s what I do…
What do you do?
Want to take a break and make a list?
K… i will wait.
(Sits at cafe, wondering if you stopped to list or if you are plowing through and wondering why you do what you do and fights the temptation to write “welcome back” as the next line because if you didn’t list it will seem cheesy and predictable)
Welcome back!
Your list covers a spectrum.
Some of the things on your list make you proud and happy...
Some of the things on your list embarrass you…
Some things on your list need to go…
Some need to stay.
Some need to increase.
Some you will never talk about.
If Morgan Freeman is correct, some of those things chose you.
If Morgan Freeman is correct, you chose some of those things.
Purpose? Calling? The “gift” you were given? The thing you chose to “get good at”?
What on your list falls into that category?
What other activities are fighting against that category?
I have a “request”…
I’d like you to pick three areas that fall in the "purpose, calling, gift, good at” category and make a commitment for the week.
I will ______ three times this week. (for each of the three items)
That’s nine action items.
For the other list what three things could you eliminate for one week?
I know its tough… duh…
In the end I think its both.
We do what we are in that i believe we all have an innate gift we have been given.
We are what we we choose to do in that if you want to be a painter and you watch TV instead of painting then you are a TV watcher.
I know… I have excuses too...
I totally get it…
Now on to the action.
- Schedule it. Get out your planner and set aside time ahead of time. Hold that appointment as sacred and resist the temptation to cancel it for one of the million reasons you can come up with.
- Be specific. Saying “I want to paint more” is not as powerful as saying “I will paint two paintings this week”.
- Know that its not all or nothing. If you miss the mark, don’t give up the ship. Starting small gives you the most room for growth.
- As always, do the work and surrender the outcome. You can’t know where your work will lead so keep both eyes on what you are doing and don’t let may or may not happen factor in.
Jim Trick works one on one as a certified life and professional coach over the phone and Skype, with people all over the world. If you are ready to schedule your sample session or have any questions just call: 978.994.0431 or email thatlifenow@gmail.com for more information.