Put yourself at the centre of your success
I don’t get everything right (far from it) although I have a damn good try! When I was younger my mum used to say, “all you can do is try and do your best”. Sometimes I’ve looked back and wished she hadn’t let me off the hook so lightly. Maybe that’s because we weren’t an academically driven family. We were a bunch of creative souls. All that said, I have no regrets that my career has meandered, and I’ve picked up great new talents along the way, as well as fabulous people. I have much to be grateful for. OMG, that sounds a little pious.
Today I’m a little gloomy and wondering whether that’s due in part to a distinct lack of sunshine, the sad news of Dr. Michael Mosley’s demise or that so many people I know are meeting health challenges or job worries. This is absolutely the time for celebrating the good times and understanding what exactly I’m grateful for. Time to take my own advice, “draw a line, jump over it and look ahead”. But before I do, I just want to acknowledge that delightfully talented author and presenter who got us all thinking about our eating habits in a little more detail.
Not so long ago I found myself suggesting to a friend that the past 12 months had been pretty shabby for lots of different reasons. I suppose there was a certain reality that mum shuffled off last summer a day before her 90th birthday, although bereavement is tough. Taking 11 months to move into our tiny new house was tedious and selling our old house three times was a chore. Buyers loved it but couldn’t seem to hold on to their buyers! So thrilled to have finally made it and here’s to yet another blank canvass to work with. Now it’s time to sell mum’s apartment. Lots of different emotions although I didn’t live there.
On balance most of my recent challenges have been “first world” problems and I’m extremely grateful that I have freedom to act. I can work if I want to, and I can wander off to the south coast and breathe in the sea air. I can bake and I can potter in the garden, or I can get my act together and finish that book I keep writing in my head. So many opportunities and there for the taking.
Talking of opportunities, Mr. Watt and three others are challenging themselves (for charity) to 72 holes of continuous golf on midsummer’s day. What is it they say about, “mad dogs and Englishmen”? I can’t guarantee that I’ll be handing out the bacon rolls at 4:30 a.m. next Thursday, although I’ll definitely be there to welcome them back and celebrate their successes. Let’s hope it’s not too dark.
It was autumn 2022 when I tinkered with Dr. Mosley’s Fast 800 diet. For me, it was a tiny bit fiddley, and I never seemed to have all the right ingredients despite its accompanying shopping lists. Perhaps I was simply too mean to buy an entire packet for a single spoonful? That said, I’ve found a suitable alternative and dropped several dress sizes. It’s not been easy and there have been times when my resolve has weakened, yet I’ve continued. Maybe not as fast as I’d have liked originally, yet I’m only human after all (Rag’n’Bone Man).
Sometimes it feels like my life is consumed by food preparation and eating. Planning, shopping, cooking and washing up. Hardly surprising that Pret became so popular. Losing weight isn’t for wimps and like finding another job, it’s a full-time occupation. The most important help (whether you’re job hunting or hoping to lose weight) is the help that you can give yourself.
Whatever your personal goals right now, remember to:
Put yourself at the centre of your success
Celebrate the small incremental changes
Be kind to yourself and smile often
Keep the doubters at arm’s length
Recognise jealousy – “oh you’re fine as you are”
Ignore jealousy and ghosting
Keep going with your ambition
Ask for help when you need it
Whether you are hoping to find a new role, need help with achieving your goals or simply fancy a conversation, Let’s Chat
