living beyond the ordinary

“Ordinary people believe only in the possible. Extraordinary people visualize not what is possible or probable, but rather what is impossible. And by visualizing the impossible, they begin to see it as possible”
― Cherie Carter-Scott

What kind of life are you living right now?   Is it the kind of life you really want or are you looking for something that would make your life more than just ordinary, plain, a dull grey rather than a life that is wonder filled, exciting and full of color.

Which column of words below describes your life?

Ordinary	Extraordinary
Comfortable	Uncomfortable
Reactive	Proactive
Fearful	Fearless
The easy way	the right way
Self-centered	Other-centered
Risk adverse	Risk tolerant
What’s in it for me	We all win
Closed Minded	Open Minded
Resigned	Engaged
Victim	Creator
Stingy	Generous
Judgmental	Acceptance
Waiting	Acting

What are you intentionally doing to make your life better?

What are you taking charge of?   What will it take so that you can start living an extraordinary life?

Step outside of your comfort zone and explore living  with feeling, with zest, with abundance, with a sense of being alive and with a sense of excitement.  Think about where you are right now and where you could be, what is it that you really want?  Set the intention and take action today.

support or challenge

“If you are facing a new challenge or being asked to do something that you have never done before don’t be afraid to step out. You have more capability than you think you do but you will never see it unless you place a demand on yourself for more.”   Joyce Meyer

Are you being challenged at work and in life?   What are you challenged by?   Now, by challenge think about in the sense of growth and learning rather than hardship and stress.

Leaders create challenging environments for followers.   The provide roles or opportunities that challenge the skills, intelligence and strengths of their followers.   You may have seen that in some aspect of your life where you were given challenges that forced you to grow, what was that like?

Some people who act as leaders provide too much challenge and that challenge is in the form of intimidation, too many rules and threats.   These types of leaders are often unaware of their behaviors and the impact they are having on their followers.

“We live by encouragement and die without it — slowly, sadly, and angrily.”
― Celeste Holm

Leaders also provide support, the kind that is encouraging and motivating as that fuels accomplishment.   Do you remember a time when someone supported your dreams and desires and encouraged you to seek after your dreams?   A leader will recognize your strengths and challenge you to fully realize them.

The danger for a leader though is not to provide so much support that there is no challenge or no opportunity to grow.   To much support and result in laziness or complacency.

The leader is seeking to understand how great a challenge and how much support each of their followers needs and creates a vision that empowers the followers to achieve great things.

When was the last time you felt supported and challenged in your endeavors?