By Doug Strickel
Have you ever made the comment that “everything seems to be spinning out of control”? Well, if you have, you are in the majority. All of us experience periods or seasons where so much of life appears to be out of our control. If we were honest, we would acknowledge that most of life is outside of our control.
We can’t control the weather and that impacts so much of the things we like to do as well as temperament for many of us. We can’t control what other people do, say, or the choices they make. We can’t control how our favorite sports team plays on a given day.
Unplanned car repairs, home repairs, or other financial burdens pop up when we least need them. Regardless of how diligent we are in taking care of ourselves, health issues can impact us. We suffer the loss of loved ones, friends move to other communities, and our loved ones don’t always do what’s best.
Let’s face it, circumstances change unexpectedly, we face uncertainty every day, and things don’t always go as planned. We elect people to public office only to be disappointed. We invest in others, and they let us down. We join an organization, and they eventually do something we don’t think is best.
To be honest, we are not in control of much of life. That statement is troubling for many. However, we were never intended to be in control. I recall Jesus saying, “Do not be anxious about tomorrow”. We are anxious because we aren’t in control.
Not being in control does not mean we live out of control!
If we invested all the time, energy, and passion focusing on what we can control rather than what we can’t control, we would experience a much better quality of life.
Consider this process for what I refer to as having a PLUS DAY leading to being a PLUS PERSON.
- Clarify your identity: Who are you? Just what do you want to be known for? What elements of life do you want to live out every day because that’s your identity? For me, it’s three things: Follower of Jesus, Coach, Athlete
- Purpose: Purposely live out that identity each day as you pursue your purpose in life. Here’s what you control. You control your attitude, your mindset, and your response to the day. For me, I seek to intentionally live out those three aspects of my identity each day regardless of what else happens.
- PLUS DAY: A PLUS DAY is any day that you live out your identity regardless of what else happens that day. For me, any day that I seek to know our Savior, impact the life of others, and train/eat well is a PLUS DAY for me. I may have had a flat tire, been rejected twenty times on business proposals, and dealt with a host of unplanned negative things, but I lived out my identity that day.
- PLUS PEOPLE: A PLUS PERSON is one that has a positive mindset and is a PLUS to everything and everyone that they encounter. Organizations are all better when a PLUS PERSON joins. Individuals are better when they spend time with PLUS PEOPLE.
We don’t control much of life, but we can control purpose, identity, and how we approach living out those elements each day. If we could be more intentional in seeking purpose and living out our identity, our perspective toward those things outside our control would change, and we would experience more peace, fulfillment, and joy. Anxiety, worry, and stress would diminish with this change in perspective.
You may not be in control, but you don’t have to live out of control!
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