2019: Your Best Year Ever!

Dear Why Team Member,
I hope this week’s message finds you well and enjoying the Holiday Season.

​2019: Your Best Year Ever!
 
Even if you think 2018 was your Best Year Ever, don’t stop here, sad is the person who doesn’t stay excited about what life will bring: opportunities to learn, experience and grow.

Why will 2019 be Your Best Year Ever? 

Maybe reading posts like this conveys your desire to go higher. Ben Franklin said, “pour your purse into yourself, it’s the best investment you can make”. The Why Team is dedicated to the effort of pouring thought and insight into ourselves to live more exciting and meaningful lives.
 
Since the New Year is just around the corner - let’s examine a couple of tools for an optimal start to 2019:
 
Tool #1:
The Power of Commitment and Collaboration (Together We Are Better)
 
Put it on the calendar! Commit!
Research shows that a written goal will most likely come to fruition compared to a merely spoken goal, especially if it’s written repeatedly. Saying “I don’t have enough time” is a cop-out. Why? Because everyone has precisely the same amount of time as everyone else: 24 hours in a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.
We have the power of choice to schedule our time in alignment with our values. If you have given your schedule to someone else or, have made time commitments that no longer align with your values, consider taking back that loss of control over your life and scheduling those things you have been dreaming of doing for years. Consider your bucket list, if you have one, and all those times you said, “maybe one day”. 2019 has that “one day” within it. Put that dream in the calendar and watch how all else moves aside to bring it to fruition.
 
Why have so many stopped making New Year’s Resolutions? Because it hurts when we quit on a resolution.
Consider what may have been missing: Collaboration?!!
New Year’s Resolutions without accountability can lead to a lack of discipline. So, no matter what it may be that you aspire to achieve in 2019, consider the power of entering into an accountability relationship with someone else; especially with a professional who is in the business of assisting others beyond their limiting habits. Merely stating, for example, “this year I will begin working out regularly” is significantly different than saying “this year I have an appointment twice a week, in my calendar, with a personal trainer”.
Walk your talk more than ever in 2019. Take action! Commit to dates in your calendar and partner with another to make your dreams come true.
 
Tool #2:
Improve the Fuel
 
My good friend and coach, Dr. Roger Hall, is an excellent example of someone who through regular visits has assisted me in countless ways. I have often shared in these posts insights I have received from him over the years. He once told me, and I paraphrase, that when it comes to effectively addressing our personal challenges and achieving transformations, what proceeds the benefits of psychology is the condition of our chemistry.
Just recently I received one of the most important book recommendations of my life; Why? Because it addresses our fuel.
 
We know that thinking in new ways can open us up to new and exciting ways to live more abundantly for ourselves and for others; but it stands to reason that our capacity to think and even to form new and more empowering pathways in our brain, depends upon the foods we consume. To have your best year ever - consider more than ever - the fuel on which you live.

What is the quality of your fuel?
 
There is absolutely no doubt that those who Live Best: Fuel Best.
The performance of the finest race cars in the world depend highly on the quality of their fuel and consistent maintenance. For years I have often described specific ideas and insights as ROCKET FUEL. It’s why I so love to learn and to share that which has significantly propelled my life. So, as we all arrive on the doorstep of a New Year, our Best Year Ever, here is my #1 book recommendation to improve the quality of our fuel:
“Genius Foods” by Max Lugavere.

Psychology works on our engine, but our chemistry is the fuel our engine needs to function. The higher the quality of fuel, the higher our capacity to function and improve.
 
Elevating the quality of our sleep, diet and exercise are foundational to having our best year ever. I will address additional tools for improving Sleep & Exercise in separate posts, but for the Diet piece, I cannot recommend enough the book “Genius Foods” which is all about literally feeding your brain what will help it to function best, while also reaping the benefits of a better night’s sleep and improved body composition.
 
Einstein said we cannot solve our problems with the same thinking that caused them. Maybe it’s just that much harder to think differently on the same old fuel that makes up our chemistry. The old adage that we are what we eat stands to reason. Why not a more actionable version: Improve who you are by improving what you eat. Every positive incremental change is an incremental improvement.
 
Change your fuel, change your life!
 
Consume fuels that best feed your fire. Kick off your Best Year Ever by considering more the food you eat.
Add more intentionally the Genius Foods to your diet. Consider just listening to the Audible version of the book read by the author himself. You’ll be glad you did.
 
As you consider your highest aspirations in the New Year ahead, ignite the Rocket Fuel that comes from Committing, Collaborating and Consuming.
 
Make it a great week of planning for the Best Year of Your Life!
​

Steve Luckenbach