Do Stories of Olympic Triumph Help Motivate You?
Ahhh the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Canada. A great time to cheer on our countries athletes and watch the best in the world excel in their sports. Those of us who are now glued to the television are enjoying hours and hours of thought provoking stories, and phenomenal demonstrations of athletic performance.
So far the Olympics have been met with both tragedy and success! Is there a sport that I don’t like to watch? Not yet…Most of the winter sports have me sitting on the edge of my chair and seem to be for speed demons!
Last night the commentators were quick to point out that Winter Olympians are a fearless bunch, and I have to agree.
Here’s a quote from American Todd Lodwick on his comparison of real-life to ski jumping.
“The best way I can describe it is to go up onto the thirtieth floor of any building, and then get in the car and drive that car off the top roof, and then land safely. That is pretty much what it is.”
So I’ve got to ask…
- Would you willingly volunteer to take a wild ride like this? And not just once…but over and over again until you’re confident, in control, and know that 99% of the time you’re going to land safely!
- Would you even consider jumping if you had the slightest thought that you might fail?
- Does this sound like FUN to you?
These great athletes from all over the world have spent endless hours practicing their sports, paying attention to diet, nutrition, cross-training, injury-prevention (or rehabilitation) and many have still had to work, take care of their families, and handle other responsibilities.
And they are now reaping the benefits of their dedicated efforts by being the best in their sports and selected to represent their country in the Olympics! Way to go – I’m proud to cheer you on!
If these athletes can juggle life with Olympic training to achieve success in their sports, perhaps those of us with regular lives can also strike a balance to achieve success, whether it’s for fitness, business, or other endeavors. The drive, determination, and motivation that these athletes share definitely lights a fire of inspiration under me to make better choices and continue striving for success until I reach my own “Olympic-sized” dreams.
Do the stories of Olympic athletes help to motivate you? I’d love to hear what’s helped inspire you to stay focused on achieving your dreams.
Tips for Using Your Bucket List: Be Happy, Reduce Stress, & Enjoy Life!
Can you think of all the times in your life that you’ve said, “Oh, I really want to try that!” or “I hope someday that I get to do __________.” But then life get’s busy, you’re schedule is home-to-work, work-to-home, and all of the things you want to see, or do, seem to get pushed to the far depths of your brain and seem to be forgotten.
What’s on Your Bucket List?
I’m going to encourage you to stop what you’re doing right now, and get out a piece of paper, open a word document on your computer, or click open the notepad on your phone and start jotting down anything and everything that comes to your brain that sounds fun, exciting, and needs to be on your bucket list for dreams and goals that you’d like to make happen before you actually “kick the bucket!”
Here are some things that your bucket list might include: 
- Health and fitness goals
- Places to go
- Things to see
- People to meet
- Stuff you want – house, car, jewelry, new bike…
- Wild Adventure – skydiving, bungee jumping, African safari, heli-skiing, climbing Mt. Everest…
- Talents to develop – art, dance, fly tying, knitting, singing….
It really doesn’t matter how far-fetched or crazy the things you write down are – just do it!
Not too long ago I found a list that I’d made more than 10 years ago. When I started looking at the things on my list – I realized that many of them had been achieved! And some of them were way out there and at the time I didn’t really believe I could ever make them happen. (But I wrote them down anyway!) And several of the big ones for me actually happened all in the same week!
Here’s the point…writing things down on your bucket list is the first step in making them become a reality! Set your intention and then have fun making your dreams come true.
There might be some things you can start taking active steps to make happen today. Other things on your list, might manifest with the help of a friend, or will come to happen down the road – But it’s actually great to keep this list in front of you, or at least put your list in a safe spot where you can find it and pull it out every so often to see what you’ve accomplished so you can say – “Wow! I’m so happy that I’ve gotten to do _____________!”
Chances are once you start paying attention to the things you really want to enjoy and achieve – you’ll find your stress level will go down, and personal happiness level will increase. You can be confident that you’re not just in a home to work, work to home rut, but are taking daily action steps to really enjoy life!
Fill your Bucket with fun and crazy things to do, and then enjoy emptying it one fantastic experience at a time!
