No one could have imagined the world-wide impact of COVID-19 just a short month ago. Today it dominates the headlines and has brought much of the world to a halt. It came out of nowhere to leave its mark on human history.
In these overwhelming times it is more important than ever to break big things down into smaller parts. Habit Powered Weight Loss references a commencement speech given by Sir William Osler at Yale in 1913.
Sir William Osler was a pioneer in the medical field and helped organize the famous Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He came over from England on a giant ocean liner to give his speech at Yale. Ocean liners of the day had several large compartments that made up their hulls. The idea was if one of them leaked then the air-tight doors between them would clamp shut, allowing the ship to stay afloat. Sir William Osler said that we should look at our lives the same way. We should shut off both the past and the future and focus on today. He called this living in day-tight compartments.
Many people have new responsibilities on their plates now. They might be learning to work from home, looking for new work or dealing with medical care for themselves or a loved one. It can be hard to know where to even begin with these things. But one technique that can help is breaking these tasks down into smaller components.
Remember, today you have to do today’s work, no more no less. And no matter how hard a day’s work is, you are up to the challenge! I’ve heard several people talk about strategies for going through difficult military training. Many of them tell themselves that there’s nothing that they will do on any one day that they can’t handle. Some break it down even further and just focus on making it to the next meal or event. Looking at the big picture can be overwhelming and take your focus away from what you need to be doing now.
Weight loss should be approached the same way. Focus on what you need to do today. Don’t dwell on the long road ahead or everything you have to do in the future. Habit Powered Weight Loss has people focus on 1 eating and 1 exercise behavior each day, that’s it. Anyone can manage that. It breaks everything down for you and tells you what you need to focus on. Think of it like having a baseball set up for you on a tee. You only need to focus on hitting it out of the park!
While life might seem like it’s at a standstill right now, it’s not. Time is still marching on. One day this global pandemic will be behind us. Will you look back and feel like you spent this time wisely? Will you have used it to better yourself and your future? Hopefully the answer is yes.
It is important to keep your focus narrow. Don’t worry about what the distant future may or may not bring. The future is written by what you do today anyway. Narrow your focus to what’s directly in front of you and use your efforts to win the day!
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