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What Makes a Good Journal? My thoughts.

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I was recently asked about what makes a good journal entry.

Here are my thoughts:

  1. Always include the date.
  2. Journal entries should be short.
  3. You should write frequently, routinely, and almost daily.
  4. Do NOT focus on spelling, grammar, or what others might think.
  5. Share your successes, failures, concerns, celebrations, defeats, dreams, goals, wishes, accomplishments, plans for world domination, and whatever else may be on your mind.
  6. If it is important enough to be written on any scrap of paper it is good enough for your journal
  7. Go ahead and Continue Reading…
Posted on January 2, 2012 In Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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Write it Down.

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Hand writing1

We write down the groceries we need, gifts to buy at the mall, doctors’ appointments, to-do lists, recipes, directions, car maintenance appointments,  and other things we deem important.

We compose emails, texts, Twitter posts, blogs, and we update our Facebook status with regularity.

Yet, most people choose not to write down their goals, their resolutions, or what they want to accomplish for the year, yet alone their life. They fail to design a plan, or even make a list of where they’d like to go, what they’d they like to have, who they’d like to help, or the person they’d like to become, and then they’re frequently disappointed when life doesn’t deliver their dreams and wishes.

Writing down our goals and resolutions matters. Follow the recipe to create the dish, arrive at the location, assemble the product, complete the course. It really is that simple.

Continue Reading…

Posted on January 1, 2012 In Productivity , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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How’s Your Bracket? Taking Time to Plan Your Life

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Filling out bracket e1300139814681How’s Your Bracket?

A lot of people will be evaluating their NCAA bracket results, if they haven’t done so already.

Sadly, it occurred to me that some people spend more time plotting and planning their basketball brackets than they do their day, their week, or even their life. I have friends and acquaintances that actually conduct research and some that fill out multiple brackets in hopes of creating a winner. Yet, some of these very same people just allow their day to happen. When bedtime rolls around, or the week ends, they are the first to wonder where their day or week went and why they accomplished so little.

A simple fact we all must learn early in life, is that planning is a always key factor in determining success and failure whether it be in sports or in life. We must invest in a plan to fully enjoy the benefits of a rewarding life.

I don’t believe in planning every minute of my life, but I do know the value of living each day with a plan and list of goals. We’re blessed with just twenty-four hours each day, it’s our responsibility to ourselves and our families to maximize each and every hour.

I’d like to share some thoughts and tools with you on how we can get the most out of each day, and ultimately our life:

1) Download Michael Hyatt’s free eBook Creating Your Personal Life Plan. Michael share’s his secrets to accomplishing so much. He is an extremely busy person, yet he finds time for others, his dreams, exercise, and so much more. He credits a lot of his success to his Life Plan. I recommend downloading his eBook.  It’s free, and I believe you will be very thankful you did. http://michaelhyatt.com/life-plan

2) Start a journal. If you follow my writings with any regularity you know the importance I place in keeping a journal. A life worth living is truly worth recording. I use my journal to record workouts, plan vacations, document success and failures, list the things I want to own, the books I want to write, and the pictures I want to draw. It’s my brain on paper. The keeper of my great ideas.

3) Use an index card to plan your day. Again, this is one of my favorite secrets. I use index cards to make my to-do list each and every day. I list the things that really matter and I focus on them until they are accomplished. It is that simple, and it works. People to call, my workout, time to write, and anything that needs to be done goes on the list. You must include the actions to your dreams. Want to write a novel? Put that on your list most days and it will get done.

4) Incorporate the use of a shared calendar. My wife and I use Apple’s MobileMe iCal syncing calendar to plan for our family. It’s great having everything on one calendar. You can do the same with Google Calendars and others. We can access our calendar from any computer, anywhere, including mobile devices, and that clunky computer in the hotel lobby. We know where we need to be and how we can help each other out.

5) Schedule your dreams. You will never find or make time. You either schedule it or you do not. You must learn to schedule and reserve time for what you really want in life. It’s great when spontaneous moments occur. I’m all for it, however, I can’t rely on them, so I plan too. I make sure my wife and I have dates on the calendar. Others appear, but we always have some scheduled.

6) Use technology; don’t let technology use you. If you have voicemail or answering machine then let it take your messages while you are spending time with your family. If you have a mobile phone, eliminate some of those emails while in the checkout line. These are great examples of using technology wisely. Sitting in front of computer mindlessly for hours at a time is an example of technology using you. Be a creator of content not just a consumer. I highly recommend online services like DropBox, Instapaper, Evernote, HootSuite, and others to help you manage your time better.

7) Use a timer. Yep, I’m serious. Use the timer on your phone or watch to set mini goals to get things done. Ten minutes can accomplish a lot. then move on.

Kelly is an inspirational speaker, author, and artist.

www.kellycroy.com

Click to email Kelly questions about presenting at your event!

1-800-831-4825

 

Kelly Croy is a chalk artist and professional speaker. He has entertained and amazed audiences across the nation including corporations, schools, churches, conferences, and anywhere people come together to be entertained and inspired. Please consider booking Kelly for your next event.

Posted on April 5, 2011 In Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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It’s Not Time for That… Yet.

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A good friend of mine is a successful writer and speaker. His books quite simply change lives. An aspiration for any writer. An aspiration for any speaker. An aspiration for any person.

Every now and then I contact my friend with an idea that I truly believe he must act on immediately. He casually responds nearly every time with, “Great idea, but it’s not time for that yet.”

Brilliance.

I’m blessed with Attention Deficit Disorder, better known to all as ADD. Blessed? Yes, because it is one of the muses that feeds me such creative, out-of-this-world ideas. I love it. One of the drawbacks, however, is of course the fact that I get so many ideas that I want to jump from project to project and then I don’t finish things. I never, ever, refer to my ADD as anything but a blessing.  I mean that. It’s as much a part of me as my blue eyes. In fact, I try not to refer to my ADD at all. (I love it so much I feel it’s like bragging about how much you can bench press. After all, I consider ADD one of my super powers.)

When all of these creative ideas start flooding my brain and pushing out the project that I really need to buckle-down on and finish, I just need to remind myself that it’s not time for that, yet. And I do. My brain starts  screaming, “Let’s do this!” I just say to myself, “It’s not time for that brain.” I take out my journal and I write down the amazing idea that just popped in there. I date it. Sometimes I even do a very quick sketch or two of what it’s suppose to look like or do. I give the idea a bold heading  so when I flip through my journal I see it.  Then I skip a line or two and write why I need to return to the project I interrupted and what it will mean to me and my family when I am finished.

It’s very important that you complete that last step. Once that new idea pops into your brain it steals some of the excitement and energy from the project you are working on. You have to invigorate that passion and energy into your project again. You will need to recapture that purpose and energy. Then immediately jump back into that project and make some real progress. Remind yourself of why you want to finish, what it will mean, and the date you want it completed. Being successful is not just knowing what to do, but knowing when to do it.

Here are the steps to take when your project gets interrupted by a new, wonderful idea:

  1. Remind yourself, “It’s not time for that, yet.”
  2. Take out your journal and write down your new idea quickly with a big, bold heading, and a quick sketch if needed.
  3. Reinvigorate your current project with a brief journal entry highlighting your passion, interest, and what it means to complete.
  4. Dive right back into the project you were working knowing the epiphany you just had is safely locked away and won’t be lost.
  5. Use visualization and self talk to restart the project and regain your energy and commitment.

Finish that project. Everyone loves and respects those who do what they say, and follow-through on their dreams and ideas.

Dream big, but finish!

Kelly Croy is a chalk artist and professional speaker. His presentations have entertained and amazed audiences across the nation including corporations, schools, churches, conferences, and wherever people come together to be entertained and improve their lives. Please consider booking Kelly for your next event.

Please visit Kelly’s website to book him  for your next event.

www.kellycroy.com

info@kellycroy.com

1-800-831-4825

Posted on February 26, 2011 In Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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Create a Monthly Billing Statement for Your Goals!

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My recent natural gas bill arrived. While bills are my least favorite piece of correspondence each month, I have to admit the helpfulness of the statement. It included a nice graph of my usage over the last year.  It let me know how much I have paid and what I owe. Interestingly enough, it even predicted my usage for the following month. Each statement serves as a reminder and holds us to a certain level of accountability of what we owe. It lets us know where we are.

Wouldn’t it be great if we received a similar billing statement each month for our goals?

Seriously! Most people never know where they are with the goals they wish to accomplish. It would be awesome to receive a statement each month telling us how much time we’ve put into our dream, what we owe, where we are at, and what we need to finally finish it.

Well, we can. My billing statement each month is in my journal. I choose the 28th of each month as the due date for my dream statements because I was born on the 28th of July and that’s easiest day for me to remember.  It’s like a private monthly celebration of my life and what I plan to do with it.

You can do the same.

You see, if we don’t review our life goals regularly we get behind, just like we would with a real bill. Unlike the natural gas company, we won’t receive any late notices, but what we owe starts piling up. (Most of the time to a level that makes it appear impossible to accomplish. That’s why people quit.)  Can you imagine how hard it would be if you tried to pay two months at a time, or your entire bill all at once? Ouch! The same is true of our goals and dreams.

Just like our billing statements from our utilities we need to make monthly contributions and track our progress.

So, bust out that journal daily or weekly if you can, but especially on the date of your birth each month. Create a reminder or alert on your phone or calendar if needed.

Write down the big three questions that will drive you toward success:

  1. What do I need to continue doing?
  2. What do I need to start doing?
  3. What do I need to stop doing?

Kelly Croy is a chalk artist and professional speaker. His presentations have entertained and amazed audiences across the nation including corporations, schools, churches, conferences, and wherever people come together to be entertained and improve their lives. Please consider booking Kelly for your next event.

Please visit Kelly’s website to book him  for your next event.

www.kellycroy.com

info@kellycroy.com

1-800-831-4825

Posted on February 24, 2011 In Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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How to Make 2011 the Greatest Year of Your Life!

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  1. Start a journal. Record your dreams, wishes, wants, success, failures, and anything and everything of importance.
  2. Set one physical goal for 2011. Sign-up for a 5k or some physical challenge for this year, and do it ASAP. Without an event, physical goals typically don’t happen.
  3. Set one financial goal for 2011. Contact your employer, bank, and/or credit union and divert a small % of your earnings to a vacation/Christmas fund. Don’t dream about a huge lump sum, set aside a little each week.
  4. Set one spiritual goal for 2011. Go on a retreat, set some scripture reading goal, etc.
  5. Make ‘reserving time’ a new habit. You will never FIND time, and you cannot MAKE time, but you can and should always reserve time for the people, activities, and dreams that are important to you. Get out your calendar and begin a lasting habit of reserving time for what’s important. Make certain that you reserve time for your family, and most importantly individual time for each member of your family.
  6. Buy some index cards and use them as your daily to-do list. You will accomplish all that you write down, and nothing that you don’t.
  7. Have lunch with TED once a week. If you are unfamiliar with TED (www.ted.com) you really should familiarize yourself with this incredible resource and have lunch in front of your computer with one of these super talks once a week. You will see amazing results.
  8. Apply the “Start-Stop-Continue” monthly plan to your life. Each month sit down with your journal and figure out what you need to start doing in your life, what you need to stop doing, and what you need to continue doing.  It’s short and effective.
  9. Find an Accountability Partner. Find someone in your life that you can share your dreams, achievements, and setbacks with periodically.  Find someone that will encourage and challenge you.
  10. Visualize Success. The glass is always half full, you’ll never be given more than you can handle, and what you think about truly matters. Apply it. Think about the great things you have already accomplished to leverage yourself toward the next level. Think about the gratitude for what you have, and how awesome it will be to help others when you summit the next challenge in this awesome adventure of life. Seeing it is step number one toward achieving it.
  11. Set the Timer for Ten Minutes.   Everyone wastes time. Learn to set an egg timer, an alarm on your phone or watch, the timer on the microwave, or whatever, for ten minutes. Do some laundry. Get off the computer.  Ten minutes is an incredibly powerful amount of time.
  12. Read. Read books that will change your life. Read for entertainment. Make a list of books you want to read or create a Wish List on Amazon. If you don’t know what to read email me and I’ll send you a great list. Read.
  13. Think BIG. Nuff said.
  14. Ask. Write letters, send emails, make phone calls, Tweet it, Facebook, or do it in person, but ask for the things you want in life.  If it doesn’t happen, you’re doing it wrong.  Learn to communicate better, more powerfully, authentically, emotionally, or honestly. People want to help others. Become a master of communication.

These are the 14 irrefutable laws to making this year the greatest year of your life. Follow them.  Good luck. Happy New Year!

Kelly Croy is an inspirational speaker and artist. Please visit www.kellycroy.com or call  1-800-831-4825  or email at info@kellycroy.com to book Kelly for your event. • Kelly’s  presentations have entertained and amazed audiences across the nation, anywhere people come together to be entertained and inspired. Please consider booking Kelly for your next event. info@kellycroy.com


Posted on December 27, 2010 In Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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Do You Make This Mistake With Your Goals?

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Do you only drive halfway to work, leave the car on the road, and walk the remainder of the way? Do you only pull your pants halfway up and decide that’s good enough?

If you are like me and millions of other Americans, you set some goals and resolutions for the year back in January. Well, it’s time for your six month check up. Yep, we’ve made it halfway. You haven’t stopped have you? Have you accomplished any of your goals? Are you closer to finishing them since January or are you farther away? Regardless of how you answer, you have lots of time to achieve some incredible accomplishments, and I’m here to help.

First, I’m hoping you set some goals.  I know people that argue the point, but I favor the wise saying, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”  And that’s how I look at resolutions and goals; they are a plan for your year. Let’s get our goals out in front of us and take a look at the person we want to become. Wiser? Healthier? Wealthier? The better-you isn’t that far away.

I wrote my goals down in my journal, so it’s easy for me to review them now.  If you didn’t write them down, well now is a great time to do it.  You can even set new ones. The year isn’t only half over, it also only half started too, depending on how you look at it. I have read about numerous studies showing the benefits of keeping written goals. I believe them because it has worked for me!

For the remaining six months we will need to review these goals more often. A minimum review would be monthly. (How can you tell if you’re making progress if there is no way to measure it? You can’t pull out your list next December 31 and see if you got lucky. Some people review them daily. Why? Because they really want results! Do you?)

Perhaps you started strong on your goals and ran out of interest or energy.  That’s why we need a plan.  Now is a great time to make adjustments and set new goals. Take a look at the next six months and plan accordingly.  Challenge yourself, but incrementally so you are rewarded when accomplishing chunks of your goals. Figure out who can help you and the resources you already have at your disposal. Break your goal down into chunks that are easier accomplished.

Why did you make these resolutions? Now is great time to recommit and invest in how you will feel accomplishing these goals and making progress toward them.  Get your emotions involved. Get fired up!

Don’t be a quitter! Last January I heard a radio commercial advertising for people to come to a bar and break their resolutions. Sad. Stick to it. When the ball drops next year, put a smug grin on your face knowing you did something with the past 365 days that wasn’t easy and made you a better person.

My super-quick plan for helping you “win” the second half of this year:

1) Get a journal! Not only do I want you to write down your goals, start dating it with actions you have actually taken towards them. This will also be where you create your plan. (e.g. July 7, 2010 ‘Today I ran around the block. Signed up for a 5k in October. Better get busy!”)

2) Have an accountability partner. Share your goals and dreams with others. You will be surprised who wants to help you and encourage you. It doesn’t have to be formal. Send them a text or post it on Facebook. (e.g. I wrote 400 words today of my novel. Keep me honest!)

3) Review your goals regularly and remind yourself why you want this! (Nuff’ said.)

I really want you to succeed. Leave a comment below with your goal and what you doing about it.  Good luck.

Kelly Croy is an inspirational speaker, author, and artist. Please visit his website to book Kelly for your next event. www.kellycroy.com or call  1-800-831-4825  or email at info@kellycroy.com •Kelly’s  presentations have entertained and amazed audiences across the nation including corporations, schools, churches, conferences, and numerous other venues where people come together to be entertained and improve their lives. Please consider booking Kelly for your next event.

Posted on July 7, 2010 In Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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