Today is my half birthday. Today I am 60 and a half years old. Today I am half done with the commitment to my year of writing every day about being 60 years old.
We all have good ideas.The challenge is making them happen.
Ben Wicks, the British-born Canadian cartoonist, illustrator, journalist and author said: “In golf as in life, it’s the follow through that makes the difference.”
Oh, how true that is.
Several years ago I heard from a medical professional that occasionally in the inner city emergency rooms, they see people come in with ear pain from bugs (icky cockroaches) finding their way into their ears during sleep. Oh my goodness. As I write this, I am gagging.
I had the idea to create a solution for this. I even wanted one for myself, just in case. Once in a while we get a less than pretty critter inside our house. And it only takes one. Lord help me.
The thought ran through my mind to describe my idea on this blog post. I even gave my idea a catchy name. I started typing about it but then my (somewhat) good sense kicked in. Hey, do I want to give away my great idea and have someone else execute it and make millions of dollars, and oh yeah, help keep bugs out of ears, too? I think not.
If my great idea only stays in my head (no pun intended), then it will die there. As Mr. Wicks stated, the follow through is what makes all the difference.
I am full of catchy phrases and clever thoughts and good ideas, but my follow through is not always quite as good. And to that point, neither is my golf swing.
When you begin to get older, you realize that no one is going to do it for you. You face the truth that if an idea or goal is inside of you, that YOU have to take steps to make that happen.
That almost always comes down to one ugly word: Discipline.
Discipline is defined as: The practice of training to obey rules or a code of behavior. Order maintained by training and control. A regimen that develops or improves a skill.
Yep, that about sums it up. Those words aptly describe the reason most of us do not do what we want/need to do ~ rules, a code of behavior, order, training. We bristle against those words.
However, we do love a few of the words in the definition: develops or improves a skill.
Now we are getting to the good stuff.
I want to develop or improve a skill. I want to develop or improve quite a few skills. Don’t you? Who would possibly answer no to that question?
I have a little bucket list for sure. But for now, I am going to discipline (ugly word) myself in order to develop or improve a skill (pretty words).
Happy Half Birthday to me and to my quest for blogging!