Following Through ~ By Michael Mahoney
As I write this column, the snow remains thick on the ground, and we seem to have come to terms with the winter blanket and its temporary disruption to our lives, and however disruptive it may be at the moment, in time it will melt away to nothing more than a memory. Personally I will remember the cold snap for quite a few reasons. One of the most memorable was watching young children and early teens lying in the snow waving their arms up and down leaving ‘snow angel’ impressions.
On my regular morning walks, I saw the works of numerous young hands making snowmen, many of which I expect to see for some time after most of the snow has vanished. I will remember the wonderful clear blue morning sky with multiple shades of blue stretching from horizon to horizon. Also the haw frost contribution to the snow giving it a greater sparkle in the early morning sunshine. These and many other memories I will cherish. I will choose not to recall the untreated roads and footpaths or the few maniac drivers who presumably forgot the freezing conditions outside once they were warm and comfortable in their cars. Good memories indeed. For some if not many readers, their New Year resolutions may well be memories too. I wonder how many people made them and simply failed in keeping them. Statistics show many people will have failed by the end of January, but why?
I have my own theories. Let us take dieting for example. The word dieting is synonymous with denial. Who wants to be denied the things we crave or desire? The vast majority of people who want to lose weight and use the word diet, when they mean weight loss will fail, because our association with the word diet is negative. Regular readers will be aware of my thoughts on the power of words and thought patterns, and how we need to harness positive association with words to be successful.
One of the things we need to be successful is the follow through. We have to follow through on the thought, action or belief to make it happen. If we decide to lose weight, stop smoking, learn to drive, build a business, get a new job, or go for an interview, these and literally everything else needs the follow through to be achieved. If the idea was good enough to begin an action follow it through or else be prepared to fail, it’s that simple. If you don’t know how to do what you want, find someone who can help you. Remember that fear is temporary, but regret is forever. New changes might seem fearful initially, but we can very soon become familiar with new thoughts, feelings and situations.
If you want to change and do something new, different, and better or more rewarding we have to recognise the importance of the follow through. And that means, once you have made your decision, do something about it. If you want to stop smoking or lose weight, make the appointment, if you want that new job or promotion, send in the application form. Not following through on your ideas and decisions is self sabotaging and that might be something worth remembering. A whole new positive perspective filled with hope and new beginnings can be yours simply by following through.
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