Procrastination

I am certain that if an award was ever handed out for the Queen of Procrastination, I would win, hands down. Granted, it goes without saying that a group of procrastinators most likely wouldn't get it together to actually present such an award...or at the very least, the 2018 win would be handed out sometime in 2020 or so.

All joking aside, why is I can find a million things to do to take me away from what I need to do. It's not that what I need to do is that hard. Or painful. Doesn't cost me anything...if anything, it'll earn me money but still I digress. I putter...decide at that specific moment to reorganize my already messy table, to neater messy piles. I decide I need to get my tax stuff together. Don't have the tax documents yet, but now at least I'm ready to fill in the blanks when I do!

Heck, as you can see by the last post, I even found other things to do whenever I thought about updating the blog! I win, I tell you...I win.

 What have I been doing for the past two months? Well, Christmas came and went, as did New Years. Hope it was great for everyone. Really quiet for me, but that's all right too. New Years was spent with friends after the Resolution Run. It was cold AF this year, so I hung around inside and helped out where I could. Then off to the Barley Mill for half price wine (SCORE!!) and chicken wings, and ringing in another year.

January flew by and here we are at February already. Where does the time go? Oh yeah, I was probably finding something else to do!

I believe the only way to prevent further procrastinating is, to quote Nike, JUST DO IT. Pick up that pen, make that phone call, hit send on the email...whatever it takes. 

Heading to Vegas in a month, for our West Conference. Excited, as I'm heading down and meeting up with a great group of friends, but I'm also dreading it, as I haven't rank advanced as I had planned (stupid procrast...hell, I don't even want to spell the word anymore!), and the finances are a little stretched this year. But got a good deal on airfare, and we'll bunk like we're 16 again in the rooms, and it's a fast trip. In and out in 3 days. But lots to learn, so can't wait. Also enjoying a party the first night with Phyllis, the lovely lady that invented our product. She has used the product on one hand only for the past 15+ years, and having seen the hands up close, it's amazing. While Phyllis is in her 70s, her one hand looks half that age. Joined in the #handsupchallenge myself, and I can already see a difference in colour and tone between the two, and it's only been a week or so. Can't wait to see (and share) the difference at the end of the month.

What I really need to do is break free of the employee mindset, where I look for the instructions if you will, of what to do, what is expected, when to do it, etc. Or, if that seems too frightening, then maybe I need to become my own manager, and tell myself what to do, where to do it, when, etc. I already have many voices in my head...what's one more?

Sorry for the ramble, but I am happy I posted tonight. I won't make any radical promises, but I am aiming for this to be a regular thing going forward. 

Thank you for reading.

Much gratitude,

Carol

Looking forward

It doesn't matter where you go or what you do, goal setting seems to be a key part of everything. From small goals of not buying a bag of cookies when you run into the store for that carton of milk, or when you do find the cookies have somehow made their way into your home, setting the goal of not eating them all in one sitting. Taking a 15 minute break in between mindless chewing counts, right??

That being said, goals are important. Otherwise, how on earth do you know when you're done. Or why you're even completing said task in the first place. For example...why on earth would anyone run for 6+ hours, straight, if there wasn't some sort of sick, twisted goal of being able to say "I ran a marathon". Thought the once was bad enough, but I kept tweaking my goal, as in "I will run a marathon faster, or I will qualify for Boston". I did run a couple faster...I ran quite a few slower, and with several, I seemed content to meet my initial time of 6:28 and change. But I could say I did it, right? And mark that goal with a triumphant strike of my imaginary sharpie! Never did manage a Boston-qualifying time, not even if I add many years to the age category (crap) and now that I no longer run, that goal is moot.


CrossFit is a great place for goal setting and crushing them. First unassisted pull-up...lifting PRs set and knocked down, only to be reset and refocused. The mystical double-under. Although some days that last one seems as attainable as a BQ time!

But is it enough to merely set a goal? Say it out loud or write it down? After all, if it's written down, it must be true, right?? At what point does a goal have to turn into a plan. What comes first?? The Plan or the Goal? Can you have one without the other?? I can say I wanted a BQ time every day. Some days I'm pretty sure that's what I did. But what did I do to achieve that goal? How did I break it down, so that I could meet my target? Did I make a SMART goal? In hindsight, no. It may have been specific and measurable, but honestly was it attainable for the type of runner I was at the time? I was not fast...ever. Still haven't managed to break a 30-minute 5k, which makes a sub-4 hour marathon quite daunting. And last I checked, Boston does not allow roller-skates on the course. Oop...new goal...learn how to skate! So not very realistic, and I never said when I was going to reach this goal. Having no timeline to stick to...well, that always made it easy to say "next race". In 2013, when my body proclaimed in no uncertain terms that it was done with running, so went my Boston dreams. I can still go and cheer on other runners of course, but deep down, I will always carry a twinge of regret for what might have been.

Back to reality...we had a great get-together with the team this afternoon, to discuss goal setting and what we want from 2018. Where do I see myself and my business next year, which is only 29 sleeps away! We didn't really get into specifics there, but it is something I need to nail down over the next few weeks. And I think that's the key to goal-setting. It's not enough to say what you want...you have to follow that up with how. In addition to it being Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Timely, having a plan of tasks, or even sub-goals is helpful in goal-setting.

While I kick around the details, here's some snippets: I will read at least one of the many personal growth books I have piled on the table. They are not being absorbed via osmosis, sadly, so have scheduled reading time every evening (which may also help with my personal sleep goal, as it'll be part of my nightly wind-down). Breaking the goal into smaller chunks helps in so many ways. First, it doesn't seem so daunting. After all, saying I will rank to Platinum is scary, especially if I don't make that goal. But what will happen if I fail? Will the world stop turning on it's axis? Will the sun cease to rise in the east? I don't think so, but I will be disappointed in myself.

Goal # 1, schedule my reading time, and pick the first book. I am just finishing up Bad-A$$ (kind of stuck in the final money chapters...who knew?!), but really want to get into the High Performance Habits, after hearing Brendon Buchard speak at GoPro Mastery. I will finish this one by the end of December.

Goal # 2: go through my back-office (online) and clean up the clutter. I need a clear vision of my tree, and where to focus. I want to WILL earn a steady income from this business, and it's not going to happen if I just think happy thoughts about it. I've got to put some motion in my emotion (thank you Tony Robbins!).

Goal # 3: morning meditation. I've been watching/listening to Dr. Joe Dispenza Breaking the Habit of being yourself every day, and realize that I am in a serious rut. Same old, day in and day out. Time to shake things up. Now, since I also admit to having the attention span of a gnat, I will start small, aiming for a 2-5 minute introspective to start my day.

I still have plenty of work to do here, breaking down the larger 2018 goal of rank advancement. And come up with a few for my personal life, such as the elusive double-under, and my Weight Watchers target. But it's getting late, and sitting here typing is not helping me wind-down and prepare for sleep. I'll leave you with this.

Thank you for reading.

Much love,
Carol

The 1st week of rest of my life

It's been quite a week. Returning from Las Vegas on Sunday with heading pounding, over-loaded with information, ideas and inspiration - and a cold virus, as it would turn out - I knew I wanted to look at my network marketing business - heck, my LIFE - through different eyes. The GoPro Marketing Mastery event was mind-numbing, as I struggled to keep up with my own frantic notes, leaping about in frenzied enthusiasm, laughing, crying, yelling and dancing around to the Pitbull concert that happened on the last night. So much fun, I can't wait to do it all again next year. To quote Eric Worre, "say yes, tell the world and figure it out".

Let me back up a little. As mentioned last week, I ventured into the network marketing in the fall last year. I did the "home business/direct sales" before, and despite quitting it 5 years ago after failing forward year after year (and I still have product lying around - see below), I was intrigued by this company, its product and format, mainly because I didn't need to carry inventory. I don't have to schlep product to and from home parties, and I don't have meet minimum sales targets. Not to say that I don't like what I used to sell, because I still do. My pantry is also full of everything I love to use daily. This is just what I had on hand for demonstrations, customer one-off orders, product changes, etc. It was EVERYWHERE.

Fast forward 5 years, and I think I've definitely grown as a person and am looking at this industry differently now. But I still may not have fully "bought-in" at the beginning. I've read the books, I go to the team events and weekly Zooms, and yet I struggled. The odd customer purchase here or there, but I had yet to really build my team. I watch others do it, seemingly with ease, and I was still here, stuck at Go.

I do have 54 years of my parents drilling the employee mindset into me, as most my age do. Get a good job, do a good job, retire from that job and die happy. But that whole world is changing, and it's not quite that cut and dry anymore. Companies come and go at an alarming rate. Industries that don't evolve cease to exist. Technology moves faster than most of us can keep up. Hell, Sears, the store that practically invented "online shopping" with their Wish Book have closed, citing online shopping as the reason. Ironic. I know more people that have changed jobs/companies/education, not because they wanted to, but because the change was forced upon them. I still flashback to the utter shock of having the rug pulled out from under me last spring. The lure of a steady, consistent pay-cheque, benefits and pension is that fat, juicy worm on the hook most of us bite at desperately. But is that our reality these days? Most get hired as contract, so that corporations can avoid the high benefit/pension costs associated with salaried staff. Loyalty from either employee or employer is low (not to be confused with engagement) - it's rare to hear of anyone who has worked for only one employer from start to finish. Heck, you get excited when people hit the 5 year mark, rather than 20, 30 or God forbid, 40 years of the past.

So how is Network Marketing different? Tapping into the entrepreneurial spirit that lurks in us all (who hasn't had the lemonade stand, or charged for a magic show in the backyard?), and using the technology that scares most brick and mortar industries, it gives those ready for a change the opportunity to drive that change. Residual income replaces pensions, and while there are no benefits per say, the desire of a high enough income that those costs don't matter. Loyalty can still up in the air, as many change companies or focus, but I learned earlier this year that my team have my back and believe in me, even when I don't. We are, after all, pulling in the same direction. There isn't that nagging feeling of someone out for your job or promotion. We celebrate each other victories and help out when we struggle.

{the Canadian team representing in Vegas}

It may have been the cold virus, or the glow of three days of laughing, crying, screaming, laughing even harder, and more "ah-ha" moments then I can count, but I feel like I came back a different person. I'm no longer shy about saying I'm a network marketer. For the first time, I had more customer sales than ever. I still have a lot of work to do, but it's not work that I'm really that afraid of anymore.

{face of determination}

My goal for this week: review my notes from Vegas, start one of the many books I have stacked up (maybe Beach Monday, by Jordan Adler, who also spoke at GoPro) and continue to build my business. I want to be Platinum ranked by conference in March, and also have a good amount of funds in the bank by then to have some fun. I vowed I'd ride the Freemont Street zipline then, and I'd also like to get some new clothes for the spring and summer months.

It's been busy week, with another fun-filled day of training yesterday and cheering on all the fitness at the Battle at the Barracks today. No volunteering this time around, just went to watch. And it was fun! I've made soup for the week and oatmeal with PB and banana, so meals are also ready to roll. I like being able to grab and go in the morning. Makes changing someone's life for the better that much easier when I don't have to worry about what to eat!!

Much love and thanks for reading,

Carol

New beginnings...a year later

Hi...my name is Carol and I'm a horrible blogger. Maybe I'm not so bad at the actual story or typing part, but I certainly lack in consistency. I'm aiming to change that here and now.

So what has changed, besides the blog name? Which by the way, if you were looking for Go Lift Something Heavy and you couldn't find the post from January 2016, I'm sorry to disappoint you but it was time for a refresh. So much has happened in my world since then, personally and professionally, it was time. I still love CrossFit with all my heart (I have the callouses to prove it), still go to Weight Watchers weekly and still live my cats in my little house...wait, what's changed exactly?!

The biggest jolt to my world came April 2016. I was at work at 7 am like normal but by 8:30 I was back home, on my couch, clutching the white envelope that held my past/future and wondered what the eff just happened?! I didn't work oil and gas for this very reason. Hell, I avoided oil and gas for this very reason, and yet, after 16 years, Shaw laid me off. Told me I was a good employee but my job was redundant (all I heard was I was redundant) and to have a nice life. Took a while to recover from that.

After enjoying the summer off of work (my garden looked great, for once), first time in almost 40 years.

I soon realized the money was quickly running out and I needed a job. Truth be told, job-hunting was something I haven't really done since I was 16. I worked for Scotiabank for 18 years, starting a posting I got through my Mom, who also worked there. Left them to go work with a friend, who knew her small company was hiring. Left that job when the company was threatening to close and found the Shaw job through a coworker connection. This was a whole new world and it scared the crap out of me!! Trouble with job-hunting in Calgary last year was it wasn't just you and handful of people applying for jobs...it was you and 10,000+ applying for those jobs. Every job. And I really don't know what I know, you know?! I mean to say, I really don't have a formal education. Yes, I went to college and I have a diploma from 1984 in an industry I have yet to work a full day in (Public Relations). No letters of the alphabet follow my name, and everything I learned I learned by doing it. I'm also in my fifties - that whole 'old dog, new tricks' comes to mind. I was not feeling great, but luckily the "who you know" factor came into play, and I am back working with the gentleman who originally hired me at Shaw. Back in the banking industry, behind the scenes this time and learning that a few things have changed over the past 20 years. Smaller and Alberta only, but with an amazing culture and atmosphere. Makes going to work every day fun again.

Needless to say 2016 was not my favourite year. Family strife intensified to the point of breaking, I lost my beloved Simon, my last connection to Mom and Dad, and I was out of work for most of the year.

But there were happy times as well. Another glorious 5 days at Assiniboine Lodge, the most beautiful spot on earth, spent with a lovely group of ladies hiking, drinking wine and laughing ourselves silly.

I continue to make small gains at CrossFit, but the double-under and pull-up continue to elude me. There's many more moves on the goat list, but small victories, right?

I also rescued a giant orange fluffball named Kosmo. Funny how the power of social media works. There I was, sitting on the couch planning my day, when his face popped up on the Twitter feed, from the Calgary Humane Society. "Kosmo has been here for 6 months and would love a fur-ever home"...damn it, they had me at that face! I literally put down my phone, picked up my purse and cat carrier, drove straight there and within an hour, had him home. Sadly he and Maggie don't quite get along (I think it's his size that frightens her) but I have high hopes that I'll walk in one day to find the two of them cuddled up together. Maybe.

One of the biggest changes in 2016 though was joining up with an amazing group of people, taking control of my future. I don't ever want to be in the position of no job/no income again, so I have entered the world of network marketing. I've done the direct sales/home party business before, but this one is so very different. From the organization through every rank, I've met wonderful, uplifting people and made some amazing friends. We support each other, and have an absolute blast along the way. I've been to Houston, and just returned from a weekend in Vegas with these crazies, and am in awe of all of them. Building my team, and plotting my course. I said yes, and I AM a force to be reckoned with.

Can't believe 2018 is only 40 days away. FORTY!! What fabulous plans do you have for the rest of 2017?

Thank you for your time, much love.
Carol

PRs, RX, meal prep and time travel

Where on earth did the past 3 weeks go? So much for being more consistent with blogging, right? I was also posting a gratitude daily on Facebook, but that has also fallen to the side.  So just what have I been doing with my days?

I started a journal, but not one in the traditional sense. Every time I've tried in the past, I write a few pages and then nothing. My OCD tendencies demand a new book every time I try, so there's always a pile of partially completed journals lying around, and no real thoughts written down. So I was intrigued when I found this one.

The Five-Minute journal - write down 3 things you are grateful for first thing in the day, 3 things that will make the day great and a daily affirmation.  Then, before you go to bed, you jot down 3 amazing things that happened during the day, and one thing that maybe you would have liked to have gone better.  Grand total = 5 minutes.  So far, I've completed it every day...starting a good habit.

I've also been pretty consistent with the walking to/from work, only jumping in a car2go a couple of times. And same with crossfit. I've managing about 5 times a week right now, and even though I look at some of the workouts with dread, I go anyway. Well, unless it involves skipping...then I tend to be a bit more choosy.  My ankle hates me after all that jumping around, and I still can't do a double-under to save my life! I suppose if I practiced more...sigh...guess no more cherry-picking over those days, huh?

This was a great week, as I PRd twice (personal record), and RXd (completed as prescribed) another. The first PR was the snatch, a move I struggle with, so I was doubly proud of the 57.5#. Especially since I almost didn't go, as I really don't like this move. I pull too much and bend my arms too soon, but practice makes perfect, right? The other was a dead-lift, which is a move I actually enjoy. My ultimate goal is body weight, so the goal is to drop that, while raising the weights lifting and meet in the middle. In the meantime, I'll take the 165# - there was jumping around and ringing of PR bells! Lots of sweating as well, as the metcon (cardio) portions of the WODs have been killer.

After crossfit yesterday morning, I went to the grocery store and stocked up for my week. I may need to sell a kidney if I insist on eating cauliflower! But today has been spent prepping meals, and planning, laundry, washing dishes and getting ready for the week ahead. After a full day, I have salmon, chicken, roasted butternut squash, cauliflower rice, Asian chicken and beef "chili" and home-made almond butter. There are now 4 lunches, 6 evening meals, snacks and fruit ready for my week. My fridge looks very stocked and ready to roll.

Time to empty the dryer and clean up the dishes remaining in the sink. I'm going into this next week with clean sinks, counter-tops and clothes. That should leave the evenings for crossfit, catching up on some reading and early to bed. No muss, no fuss!

There isn't anything more to say...

With gratitude,
Carol

The first Monday of the new year, EVER

It's always interesting how busy everything gets, that first Monday of the new year. The office was crowded and loud, after a week of skeleton staff. The cafeteria line up was longer at the microwaves than it was at the grills and I even had company on my walk in at 6:30 this morning. The kicker was crossfit - it was PACKED. I had decided earlier today to commit myself to the full week, so I reserved my space at 5 pm every night. I'm guessing it'll be like this for the next few weeks.

I started this week ready to roll. Yesterday was spent in the kitchen, roasting a half a salmon, mixed vegetables (cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, zucchini and carrots) as well as making a pork stew in the slow cooker.  I have 4 containers ready, as well as two portions of the pork.  Tonight, the chicken I bought went in the oven, and is also ready for a quick grab and go meal.  I think that is the key...when I get home from working out, all hangry, the last thing I want to do is start cooking supper. Two minutes to heat up and I'm eating. That makes for a happy Carol.

Crossfit was fun, given my leg was still crabby from the New Years shenanigans. Didn't help that I have a blister from my walk to work this morning, so that was changing my gait and causing more aches and pain. But crossfit beckoned, so off I went. Power cleans - I am getting better at those, but I still pull too much with my arms and don't trust my hips enough. I did manage to lift 90#, but failed on the 92.5#. Next time!  The metcon (cardio) portion was fast and furious. In 8 minutes do as many rounds as possible, with each round consisting of 6 clean & jerks (weight from the floor to your shoulders, and then jerk it over head), 9 chest to bar pull-ups (yup, exactly as it sounds) and 12 box jumps. The prescribed weight was 95# for women, but since I just failed at less than that, it was time to modify. I tried 65# but decided to work on form, so dropped to 55#.  Ring rows replaced the C2B that I can't do (yet) and my "box" was 10" of stacked weight plates.  Managed 2 full rounds, and almost completed round 3...damn, 8 minutes is FAST.

Home, ate, cooked the chicken, did my plank challenge and attempted some pull-ups. Time to update here, and then wash my face, floss and to bed nice and early. Mr. Fitbit likes to remind me that I average 4.5 hours a night, so something else I need to work on. Trying to set some good habits, so the next 21 days are key.

Happy Monday, everyone.

With gratitude,
Carol

Hello Blog? It's me...Carol...long time, no type.

Where have I been for the past 17 months...SEVENTEEN MONTHS!!  I could say I was on an island counting endangered fish, or off in the far north living with wolves, but it would all be lies. Truth is I got in trouble for blogging at lunch (pushed the envelope a bit there, I suppose) and as a result, I reacted as I usually do, blow it completely out of proportion and ran away. Far away. Technically, I didn't actually leave, but I did drop a lot of my routine. Last year was the year of the struggle: I struggled with the fallout of Mom passing, the resulting family strife, settling into being a home-owner, usual weight BS and work that wasn't as easy as it used to be. It was not a good place to be and I needed to work my way out of it, on my own.

Fast forward a few months and suddenly I'm starting to feel like myself again. Work seems to be clicking again, home life is the usual but I like that. Sadly I lost one of my fur-babies over the summer, so it's just me, Maggie May and Simon.  Although I do keep looking at kijiji at cute little kittens...I want one of every colour and shape, which is dangerous.  Three is the Crazy Lady starter kit...more than that? Well, you know how that goes.

I still love Crossfit, although a bout of shingles in the spring (OMG, the commercials are right!  Get the shot!!!) and my other leg acting very arthritic for awhile has me kind of back at the beginning. Still can't do a lot of the moves, but I am determined to succeed. I have an amazing set of coaches, including Miss Emily Abbott (8th at the Games, on Team Canada at the Invitational), so I know one day I'll figure this all out. The weight loss journey has also been a little bumpy, but I am committed to that as well. I know that as long as I heft around the extra 60 pounds, the harder it will be for me to conquer a pull-up or handstand.

So, I thought it would be timely to revisit the blog. Get reacquainted with the blogs I followed before, and maybe find some ones to inspire me to continue to the light.  Post about my goats (crossfit goals), food and life again.  Get the jumble of words out of my brain and onto the page. "Better out than in, I always say" to quote Shrek!

It is the 3rd day of 2016, and to date I have committed to Whole30 for the month, posting a daily happening that I am grateful for, meditating and fitness. I've also started a 30 day squat, push-up, plank and pull-up challenge. Since the 1st, I've done 165 squats, 70 seconds of plank, 15 push-ups from the knees (goal is toes by the end of the month) and 5 jumping pull-ups with my freshly installed pull-up bar. I'm still a WW member, but I do need to sit down and really look at the new program and commit. I will say, I do like the Oprah ad, and feel quite inspired by her. This could will be my year.

Off to the kitchen to prep for the week...salmon in the oven, pork and sweet potato/butternut squash in the slow cooker, and a variety of vegetables chopped up and ready to roast. I purchased containers from Amazon, and find as long as I have dinner ready to grab and go (and that goes for breakfast and lunch), I make much better choices. And I throw out less, meaning less wasted food and money. This is also the year I get control of my finances.

My vision board:

So, hello to anyone reading. I hope we can reconnect and take this journey together.

With gratitude,
Carol