Health is so much more than healthcare. Good mental health requires that I actively practice care procedures from meditation to medication. Weight control means that I need to be aware of what I am eating.  Great cardio means that I must do something every day to raise my heart rate. My flossing and brushing improves my oral health. When I use sun protection helps reduce skin problems. My health is partially (mostly) my responsibility. I can’t delegate to a system or professionals full responsibility for my well being. I am involved and when I don’t accept responsibility there are consequences.

I don’t always practice what I preach and can find myself skipping the sun screen or not going for a run but I need to accept the consequences for inaction too. In my seventh decade (now 60 years old) I am more curious about how I can improve and maintain my body functions and reduce damaging activities than I was in my indestructible 20s, 30s, and 40s. The curiousity has sent me searching for better practices and better self monitoring of things like blood pressure and calorie intake. Technology has helped measure and record sleep and activity levels and offers advise when these are out of parameters. I am more aware of aches and pains and don’t always ‘play through’ them. Taking a day off from exercise to recover is actually good for your body (it turns out).

I am not a health professional, who knows and understands the human body but as I observe and pay attention I am becoming way better at understanding my human body.

Make Today Remarkable, by taking care of yourself,

B

Look around, observe, be open. There are specific people in your life that need you, today. Be sure to honour them.

This week has been filled with great opportunities to be of service to those near me and folks that I don’t know. I am sure that I have missed more chances to add value to someone’s moment than those I acted on but by being aware and willing I have acted to assist a few each day. Nothing that took much time or effort; a quick encouraging email, a five minute phone call, a conversation before a meeting, a smile on a hiking trail, an agreement to pick up some pieces, a prayer, sharing a link that I found interesting, …

Be a giver today. Take on the responsibility for those you encounter and act to make their day better however you can. Simple acts, thoughtful words, extending yourself will change the moment for someone. How can you spend your day, in a better way? Add value and be of service – you will be better for it.

Make Today Remarkable, for someone else,

B

“Visualize your goals as the items being hung on your individual clothes line.”

Somethings  should be easy to recognize because they are so apparent (at least in hindsight).

I have often wondered why I so easily move from one task to another, one location to another, on idea to another while people I love and admire seem stuck. I read the word inertia in a paragraph and while that isn’t likely the difference, I was sent looking for the opposite of inertia.  Words like ambition, enterprise, go, hustle, initiative; assiduity,assiduousness, diligence, perseverance; animation, briskness, energy,exuberance, jazziness, liveliness, lustiness, pep, peppiness, robustness,sprightliness, vibrancy, vigor, vim, vitality, vivacity show up in a Merriam Webster search for antonym of inertia. Fanciful and flattering descriptions and adjectives may be the reason this approach resonated with me. Jazziness: marked by unrestraint, animation, or flashiness may be the most apt for what I was looking for. I anticipate the next step, await the next idea, and appreciate continuous momentum. My  impatient imperfectionism may be the cause or result of this approach – not sure.

I definitely feel anxiety if we have been visiting at a friends too long (my time frame) and ready myself to leave. I actively seek new stimulus when reading, conversing, discussing and use provocation and encouragement to ensure that change is afoot. I can have a tendency (that I am tempering) to look for and seek the next shiny thing.

I am sure that there are more tendencies around shifting from one activity, idea, habit, practice, conversation but I wonder where you are at ease. Do you feel comfortable moving to the next thing or are you at ease settling in for a longer haul?

Make Today Remarkable, by observing yourself,

B

Simple, relational, physical and fun – a remarkable way to spend the weekend, to set up a remarkable week. I am not sure if it is the chicken or the egg. Does a great week lead to a great weekend or visa-versa?

I had a great run in the forest to kick off Saturday morning and a hike to round out the day. Some yard work, bird watching and reading in between still left some time to enjoy the people that I was around. Laughter, learning, competition (boccee ball), and simply meals were enjoyed with a recognition of their importance.

I think we can be filled with joy and satisfaction if we set ourselves the goal to be filled with joy and satisfaction and when we veer from the course, bring ourselves back to the path.

My sore knee could have easily sidetracked a run and hike. The grass cutting, roof repair could have been drudgery with the wrong attitude. Even the raucous call from the blue jay could have  been annoying and I might have chosen to hear the neighbour’s conversation as disturbing rather than entertaining. If the information I learned about stink bugs (there were a lot of them) hadn’t been so interesting, it might have been disgusting.

Choosing satisfaction on the weekend has set me up for anticipation and excitement on Monday morning and if I stay on the path all week, I can’t imagine what Saturday might bring.

I am a 60 year old father and grandfather. I have been married for nearly 40 years and am living in Calgary, Alberta. I coach and consult and it says ‘Provocateur’ on my business card.

I am a writer and a runner who loves southern California especially the weather in Oceanside where you can be on a paddle board or kayak every day. The Rockies are part of my life and the sight of them can stir my heart.

I read voraciously if not carefully. I take the words through my eyes into my ears into my head so I guess my tendency is towards auditory learning. I spell badly. I remember weird ‘Jeopardy’ stuff. I read a range of magazines and newspapers and my Netflix viewing is similar.

I am a follower of God in the way of Jesus, a recovering fundamentalist whose theology is now very liberal and affirming. I have preached 4 times in the last year and tell pointed stories for impact.

I am happy, confused, challenged, in love, curious, optimistic, philosophical, opinionated, brave, trusting, and impatient.

In those 5 general categories, how do you describe yourself?

Make Today Remarkable, by telling someone (us) about you,

B

I  had a number of clients this week, express a sadness and sense of helplessness. They couldn’t put their finger on why – or they couldn’t initially. They are happy in their jobs, relationships and have relatively good health. Still there is a disillusionment, angst, or uneasiness lurking.

Usually the source of these feelings can be identified and a plan created to help overcome the triggers. This week it wasn’t that simple. They were all putting themselves in unhealthy, unproductive places (physically) and their surroundings were sapping their energy and optimism.

We feel differently, act differently and are different based on how we are being impacted by the activities, people and stress around us. If I need to drive in heavy traffic to get to an appointment, I can begin to sense this change after only 5 minutes. By 30 minutes, I am tense, upset and under the wrong circumstances, angry. In this case I can’t remove myself from the circumstances but I can change the immediate reaction and mitigate the longer term stress. I can change the environment in my car and in my head with (for me) a good book on tape or if someone is with me a great conversation. When I am aware that I am facing an issue or observe myself reacting to my surroundings, I can take some action to modify my space and my reaction. It begins with a willingness to be mindful of where and who you are around and how and why you are feeling any negative emotions.

My clients will still find themselves in anxious and unpleasant situations but are now better equipped to begin dealing with how they react and shifting the locus to something else. Coaching can help identify these negative sources and help create coping mechanisms to improve the immediate environment and mitigate longer lasting impacts.

Make Today Remarkable, by being mindful of your surroundings,

B

Are you picking your battles or fighting every skirmish? Life is better when we. Learn which hills are worth dying on. The fact that I have used three clichés already speaks to how often we need to be reminded that ” not everything is important enough to require a fight”.

I don’t know what criteria you use to decide but I do have a couple people in my life that seem to think everything is meant to be a battle. There is only one way to do something and it is their way and they are ready to make a stink if you don’t fall into their line. It is exhausting being around them and must be exhausting being them.

I much prefer to be around people who stand their ground on the important stuff and don’t even need to relent on the small stuff because they don’t take a rigid position.

Parents either learn this lesson and likely have happier children and a happier life or they don’t and … well you can guess what I think happens. If your toddler wants to sleep in his Superman costume maybe you should ask yourself ” what difference does it make?’. Just because you wouldn’t wear the green tights with the purple skirt doesn’t mean it isn’t perfect for your 6 year old daughter. (side note: as a grandparent, the stuff that I dug my heels in as a parent seem funny now).

When you realize that you don’t have a dog in this fight (maybe no one does) it is liberating and energizing. It allows you to replenish your tank for the stuff that really, really does make a difference.

Make Today Remarkable, by picking the right fight,

B

Our lives aren’t really supposed to be clear sailing, even when we are doing all the right things for all the right reasons. There needs to be some tension in our lives  so we know we are alive.

Some obstacles creep up on as and others jump right out of the woods. Either way they are chances to seek assistance from colleagues, friends, family or a complete stranger. An opportunity to request more information, draw from someone else’s experience, to learn something new and show a bit of humility.

Obstacles are also opportunities to test your mettle and your commitment. Are you strong enough to find a way around the barrier? If not, why not? Are you clever enough to see a better perspective and take a small/large detour? Do you believe in the idea/action enough to be tested by a struggle?

Embrace obstacles and allow any tension they create to permeate you and your work space. Acknowledge the struggle to yourself and others.  When you overcome the barrier, record the actions you took so you can share the experience with others. Observe your new surroundings and be aware that the fair weather you are in is likely very temporary. There is another small storm or a becalmed moment ahead waiting to be celebrated and concurred.

Make Today Remarkable, by taking up a challenge,

B

The only people who can change the world are the people who want to. ~ Hugh MacLeod

Seems ridiculously simple and after a moment amazingly logical. It doesn’t mean that those who simply want to change the world will take action and have persistence to keep moving change forward. But it does mean that if you don’t want to change the world, you won’t. If you are satisfied with how the world; how we take care of each other and how we care for the planet then you won’t be a change agent.

If you aren’t happy with how we distribute resources, care for the most vulnerable, seem to be at war with each other all the time, seem to be destroying our habitat and that of others, or feel pain for the less fortunate – you now know the first step.

I think the second step is equally simple and difficult. Believe that you can.