Cathy Stucker - The Idea Lady

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The Secrets to Creating Good Habits

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Have you ever driven a familiar route, arrived at your destination, and realized you do not remember how you got there? You had driven that way so many times, you were not even consciously aware of making turns, stopping at traffic signals (At least I hope you stopped at traffic signals!) and making the hundreds of tiny decisions you make as you drive.

Driving that same route again and again had become a habit. Habits cause us to do things without even thinking about how we do them or even if we should be doing them in the first place. They are like a magnetic force that’s constantly pulling us toward doing the same things over and over again. And once we do those things over and over again over a period of months and years, that magnet pulls stronger and stronger.

A habit can be a good thing. There are likely things you do every day that are great for your health, family, and business. You do these things without really thinking about them. However, there are other things that aren’t so great for your health, family, and business. These things consistently lead to bad results and you may not be sure how to stop them. In fact, you may not even be aware that you do them. [Read more…]

How to Write Every Day

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write-everydayWrite more and you will become a better writer, more proficient and more productive. But the benefits of writing every day go beyond honing your writing skills.

I know that I think better, and I function better, when I write regularly.

Writing clarifies my thinking. Taking the random bits that are floating around my head and putting them on the page is incredibly helpful.

When you write a lot, you have to come up with ideas to write about. That causes you to pay more attention to what is happening around you. Suddenly, everything you see, hear and experience becomes something you can write about.

Writing every day creates discipline. Doing anything every day will cause you to become more disciplined, but writing is especially powerful.

There are lots of ways to get in the writing habit. Here are some things that work for me, and that might work for you, too.
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Up or Down?

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This week’s Monday Morning Message from Wm. H. Danforth, founder of Ralston Purina:
What is the Monday Morning Message?

Ever since the day we were born influences, forces, habits, have been fastening half hitches on us and tugging at our lives. Some pull up, some down. Some tug stronger with the years, others weaker. Sometimes we call upon the sturdy lifting fellows to pull us up, only to find the lowering habits holding us back.

You, yourself, know better than anyone else what habits are holding you down. How about cutting loose from one of those down-pulling imps today?

For instance, talking behind people’s backs may be a bad habit you have. Determine that all this week you will not say a single thing behind anybody’s back that you would not say to his face. You will be surprised how many times you will have to leave things unsaid. You will be still more surprised how much stronger the lifting forces will tug when they see one enemy tumbling. They’ll lift you twice as high.

Which down-pulling imp will you cut loose? Which friendly virtue will you strive for?

Wouldn’t it be worth while to give five minutes uninterrupted thought to this message and then ACT?

Do you do things that make you feel bad about yourself afterward? That might be gossiping, overeating, cursing, losing your temper and snapping at your spouse or your kids or anything that makes you feel unhappy or angry.

When you realize that you have a habit like that, make a choice not to do it again.