The "To Do" list - less is best.

Are you a "To Do" list maker?

I have been extremely good at making very long "To Do TODAY" lists. The problem is that more often than not - OK, OK, tell the truth - always, I can never finish the list.

Once I get started on a list, man, it just grows like it's on some form of super duper steroid. When the pen's in my hand it's just like automatic writing. Before I can wrest back any form of control the list is so long that I would really need a staff of at least 50 to get anywhere close to crossing off enough entries so that calling it a "today" list doesn't become some form of weird humor. Sometimes they could far more accurately be called "To Do This Decade" lists.

I have recently tried curbing my natural exuberance by deliberately limiting the size of any "To Do" list I persecute myself with.

While it is very healthy to want to accomplish lots each day it can also become a source of anxiety when we heap too much on our own plates. Thoughts of never being able to finish anything on time (overwhelmed) can also arise.

For what it's worth, the results of my recent efforts at cutting back on my list size have been very positive.

I'm now very proudly an "I always get my list done type guy". It's great to finish a list with time to spare.

Empower yourself - try cutting back on the demands you make of yourself - it's like a breath of fresh air! You are only you - not a staff of 50.

Innovate your life

The power of innovation is is what most people think that others have but not themselves. You may marvel at the creative process in action in others and wish that you could have it yourself. Wish no more. Everyone possesses an ability to be creative and hence innovative. You were born so.

You have the potential to be, do and have anything that you set your mind to. You may just be the only person holding you back.

You can no doubt remember how long it took to learn to ride a bicycle, learn a language at school, or perhaps learn to be an excellent car driver. It didn't happen overnight. Nothing ever does. And so it is with learning to be innovative and creative. It is an innate talent that needs to be woken from slumber. Some of what follows may help.

Steer your own ship - better put - steer your own ship using your own charts (goals and dreams). Listening to the well meaning advice of too many people often only leads to confusion. Trust yourself. If you have an original and great idea you'd like to follow through with, trying to explain it to others will not work. They will only want to brand it with their own ideas and interpretations (most of it negative!) and nine times out of ten they will never understand it anyway. Best to make your own mistakes or more likely your very own victories to cherish.

Spend time proudly on your ideas and creations. They're just as important to you and the world as anyone else's. Who knows what may come of it. You're great thing may revolutionise the world.

A great way to stimulate your thoughts and allow ideas to pop into your mind is to perform some type of exercise. Go for a walk. Go for a run. Ride a bike. Have a workout. whatever you do, do it alone, in peace and quiet. Give your subconscious a chance to do it's job. When your blood is flowing and your mind is quiet, it's ideas time.

Always keep a notepad and pen next to your bed. Doing this will allow you to record any ideas and thoughts that may come to you when you first awake. Some say that these thoughts are from contact with collective consciousness when your mind has achieved relaxation.

Be yourself. Find your own unique style. Be an individual. Don't be afraid to stand out. It's easy to pick out the color red in a sea of blue. But be honest about it - fakes are easy to pick. Find a personal style that is comfortable and comes naturally to you. Unique ideas more often than not come from unique individuals who are prepared to travel the road less travelled.

Waiting until everything is perfect before you start means you may never actually start. Tip: the time is never perfect to start new projects. Just get started and you will find that things will soon fall into place. The inspiration will come. To start writing I sit in front of my laptop and after a short while an idea for an article pops in. You are no different. Give yourself the opportunity. And you don't need the latest nick knack gadget to do a great job either. Many great books have been written on loose paper with a pencil entirely in longhand.

Passion breeds innovation. Do stuff you love and love the stuff you do. You can have all the talent in the world but if the flames of passion and hunger for what you do are long dead it's time to seek change. You'll soon get fed up seeing people with far less talent than you achieve far more. Find something you love and light a fire under yourself.

Relax. Ever tried talking gently in a crowded room. No one can hear you! With a still and quiet mind you can finally hear yourself think. Find time to get away and think. Make the room in your life for ideas of innovation to enter in. Be ready for them - don't forget that paper and pen.

Finally - you already have what it takes - everybody does - it's inside you - it's called heart.

"Just as energy is the basis of life itself, and ideas the source of innovation, so is innovation the vital spark of all human change, improvement and progress." - Ted Levitt

"Never before in history has innovation offered promise of so much to so many in so short a time." - Bill Gates

"The winner is the chef who takes the same ingredients as everyone else and produces the best results." - Edward de Bono

Thoughtful reading on innovation: "The Medici Effect" by Frans Johansson

A bit of a change of subject here. If you love your freedom or think you actually are free; a wake up call - everyone needs to see this: YouTube

Four stories for change.

"You are the way you are because that's the way you want to be. If you really wanted to be any different, you would be in the process of changing right now." - Fred Smith (1)

"The longer I live, The more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, gifted ability, or skill. It will make or break a company, a church, a home.

The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past, we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing that we can do is play on the one string that we have and this string is, attitude. I am convinced that life is ten percent what happens to me and ninety percent how I react to it. And so it is with you.....WE ARE IN CHARGE OF OUR ATTITUDES." - Charles Swindoll (2)

"It's amazing what happens when you recognize your good qualities, accept responsibility for your future, and take positive action to make that future even brighter." - Zig Ziglar (3)

"Whatever you're thinking about is literally like planning a future event. When you're worrying, you are planning. When you're appreciating you are planning.....What are you planning?" - Abraham-Hicks (4)

Life changing quotes from:

(1), (2), and (3) - from "Over the Top" by Zig Ziglar, pages 138, 113, and 155 respectively.

(4) - Abraham-Hicks Daily Quote of 10/28/2008.

It IS your life and you ARE in control. You are the master of your destiny - the Captain of your ship. Where you find yourself right now is the result of where you have been steering your personal ship for the last..........(insert your age) number of years.

If you don't like where your find yourself - change course for YOUR future.