NFL teams score about 30 percent more points in the fourth quarter than in the first quarter. If you are a soccer fan, this shouldn’t surprise you. The success of the “two minute drill” is astonishing. With only 60 minutes left to play, I think a team should treat every second of the first two minutes of a match as sacredly as the last two. Of course, there are stamina issues in an NFL game to consider, but conceptually I stand my ground.
In our lives, very few of us have physical stamina issues to consider in order to achieve our dreams. However, why do many of us live life as if it were the first trimester instead of the fourth trimester?
I’ll get to that later.I’ll tackle that tomorrow.
Maybe next year, I’ll release it on my own.
I’m not ready for that yet.
Sounds familiar?
Living with the passion of the “fourth trimester” has nothing to do with age. I remind everyone that our time on Earth is limited, there is no tomorrow. Today is the only day that something can be achieved. Truly.
Here are seven ways to consider when transitioning from life in the first trimester to life in the fourth trimester.
1. Gratitude. Spend at least five minutes a day reviewing the things in your life that you are thankful for. Be sure to include “time” – Be grateful for the time you have been given and for the time that you have in front of you.
2. Don’t count sheep at night. Instead, repeat the word “now” fifty, yes, fifty times before going to sleep at night. In the morning, repeat the word “now” during your morning routine. Play with the word – now, now !, now? Now ?! but keep repeating it.
3. Move the needle. Suppose your progress towards achieving your dreams is being monitored on a meter. Are your actions moving the needle forward? Sometimes we delude ourselves that we are taking steps to achieve our dreams by keeping ourselves busy, but “busy” is not synonymous with “productive.” You need a litmus test: imagine you only have a month to achieve your dream, what would you be working on and what would you let go of?
4. Measure. Quantify an item that is critical to your success and then measure it, every day. Also, put your measurement on a chart in a place that is highly visible to you. The power of visually seeing progress or lack of progress towards your goal cannot be underestimated. If you think you have a dream that you would like to achieve that cannot be quantified, contact me. I’m sure I can help you disabuse him of that notion.
5. Peer pressure. Many people do not share their dreams because they fear that if they do not achieve them, they will seem foolish to those who know the dream. You will not lose. This is the fourth trimester, you need all the help you can get. Let the world know what you intend to achieve, or at least let some close friends know. There is indescribable power in this single act. You will find yourself shifting to life in the fourth quarter when your reputation is at risk. By writing this, I was motivated. “My dream is to become a New York Times best seller Author “. There … I said it. You can too.
6. Flip the script about your fears. Between you and your dream there is a substantial amount of fear around which there is no path. You will have to go through this fear head-on: fear of the unknown, fear of failure, fear of rejection, etc. There are no gaps. To make matters worse, with each passing day where you ignore or avoid these fears, they grow stronger. These fears have been haunting you for so long, isn’t it exhausting? It’s not boring? There is a lyric from a Ray LaMontagne song that my wife and I often refer to when our fears take over.
“Well I looked my demons in the eye
ugly naked my chest, He said “Do your best, destroy me.
You see, I’ve been to hell and I’ve been back so many times
I have to admit, you bore me a bit. “
7. Never wait for motivation. Motivation is a thief, a thief of time and opportunity. Promise to call soon. Promise to spend more time with you. Motivation comes through one path, and only one path: action. Action creates motivation. The great illusion is that motivation creates action. In the first trimester, we may believe this fallacy, but in the fourth trimester, it’s time to admit that motivation is a joke. Action creates motivation. Therefore, no matter how despondent you feel, if you want motivation to accompany you on your travels, you must act first. Action – now, now, now, now, now, now …