A Positive Music Artist?

I was reading a blog post by Andy Andrews a few weeks back where he encouraged readers to highlight and celebrate artists that are talented and doing positive things instead of giving further attention to the Beibers and Mileys out there just don't need anymore attention.  So here's my contribution:

Greg Lynas

Most people don't know him.  He's not a big name...yet.  Maybe someday.  But he has an amazing voice and is a great guy.  He's a youth pastor.  In North Dakota.  (Anyone thinking Danny Gokey here?)

Greg writes original songs which is super fun and cool, in itself, but he actually writes them for his beautiful wife and their 3 amazing boys.  And he's just a fun guy to hang around.  Probably most guys that choose to hang around teenagers for a living are going to be fun--or fail at their job.  But Greg really is fun and cool and a God loving, real kind of person.  You might just pop over to his facebook page and check him out.  Then you can say, I liked that guy on facebook before he was a super star.  How cool is that?

Who do you know that actually deserves to be bigger than Miley and Justin?  Comment below and be sure to include a website or facebook link so the rest of us can check them out, too.

As always, if you like my expressions featured in my graphics, click on them to go directly to my website.  Have a beautiful day!

Stop Wishing & Start Doing

Stop wishing and start doing.  It's really a pretty simple concept.  You can think about things you want to do, whether it be painting your bedroom, acquiring new skills for your job, learning a new hobby, or going to lunch with a friend.  It doesn't matter what the thing is, it won't get done until you go beyond "just wishing" and do it.

Maybe this relates back to my series on self-discipline from a few weeks ago, but I just have to say that it drives me bonkers when people want to do something, but then never follow through and do it. It creates this "thing" just hanging out there.  Yuck.  That's not a happy feeling.

Sometimes, though, it is beyond our control.  For example, my black belt test in karate.  I've been studying karate for a little over 6 years now.  I've been prepping for this particular test for about a year and a half now.  In that year and a half, my test has been pushed back at least 4 or 5 times...ick. It kind of became this thing hanging out there, like I mentioned before.  We'd pick a date.  I'd study and practice, and study and practice some more.  The date would approach.  I'd come up to about a week or two before, and then my instructors would tell me that I wasn't ready...again...and again...and again.  I began to wonder if it would ever be my time.  It was a bad feeling, but reassuring at the same time.  They don't want me to fail.  I honestly believe that.  Imagine my surprise when my professor finally told me that I'm ready to test--this week.  This Saturday, April 18th, 2015, I will be testing for my black belt.

This is not some flippant, you've been here long enough and tried really hard so you can have a belt kind of test.  This is a yes, I've worked really hard, and I've got my butt off the bench and done the work, but there is no guarantee that I will pass this thing kind of test.  There is no wishing about this.  It's all doing...and a lot of praying.

What's your doing kind of thing?  What are you making happen?  I'd love to hear about it below, so leave a comment or two.  Remember, your "do" doesn't have to be a huge, physical test.  It might be calling a friend you haven't talked to in 6 months.  It could be painting a picture.  It can be anything.  Stop wishing & start doing.

Remember that all the graphics of quotes that you see in my blog are available for purchase just by clicking on the picture and it will take you right to my website where you can have it drop shipped directly to you (in the U.S. and Canada).  Thank you!

P.S.  And a great big happy birthday to my baby girl who turns 10 today!!!!  She thinks it's pretty fun to get a shout out on her mommy's blog.:)

8 Fantastic Books for Personal & Career Growth

I love reading.  I honestly can't get enough time to read.  I always have at least a couple books I'm reading and often recommend them to others.  Today I want to share some of my favorites and why I liked them.  Here goes...

The Traveler's Gift by Andy Andrews. Fantastic and solid life lessons packaged in an easy to read and reread story.  My kids liked this, too.  It was fun to meet people from history.  I'm not saying anymore.  I don't want to spoil it for you.

Start by Jon Acuff.  How to punch fear in the face.  What's not to love about that? Jon's writing style is fun and straight forward.

Quitter by Jon Acuff.  Making the leap from day job to dream job.  Hello?  We all want that, right?  Quitter includes practical, solid tips and real life experiences.

Business Secrets from the Bible by Rabbi Daniel Lapin. Amazing book.  Fascinating examples of business and personal keys to everyday human transactions.  Whether you believe in  God or not, there is a ton to learn in this book.  (I must confess that I definitely recommend believing in God...that while eternity thing, and all.)

The Go-Getter by Peter Bernard Kyne.  A classic.  It's the story that tells you how to be one.  Simple, but simple doesn't mean easy.  Be a blue vaser.

How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie.  Every one needs to read this one.  People skills 101.  It's a simple concept, but so many people do not do it well.  It takes a lot of practice...myself included!

Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell.  Fascinating!  This book is not about any one thing.  In fact, Gladwell covers a huge range of topics from hush puppy shoes to smoking in teens, but he artfully ties it all together to make a fascinating read that can be applied to several areas of life.

The Bible by human hands inspired by the Holy Spirit.  Beautiful Instructions Before Leaving Earth.  God's word to us. Shows us His character and love, as well as providing encouragement, teaching, and direction.

These are just a few of my favorite books.  I didn't even go into fiction favorites.  We'll save that for another time.  Here's my disclaimer: I am being paid as an affiliate a very small percentage from these links. But more than anything, I just wanted to share some of my book happiness.  I would LOVE to hear some of your favorite books.  Please comment below and be sure to say why you like them.

Perfecting Perfectionism

I want to be perfect.  There. I've said it.  It's out in the open.  Unfortunately, I'm so very far from perfect.  I do have strengths, but that doesn't mean perfection.  

As I head into my black belt test next week, I keep wanting to put it off again, and again, and maybe one more time because I want it to be perfect.  I don't just want it to be perfect because it's taken me so long to get here.  I want it to be perfect because I am reflecting my school and my Professor and instructors that have poured hundreds of hours into me.  I want them to look good through my efforts. I want their time to have not been wasted.  I know that it hasn't been wasted.  I've learned so much new information.  I've learned so much about myself that it could never be called a waste.  It's just that there is a little, lying voice that tries to fool me with untruths. 

"You're not good enough, Jennille."

"You're not strong enough, Jennille."

"Why aren't you done by now?  What's wrong with you?"

"You started this too late in life." You get the point.

Take every thought captive.  That's what God's word tells us in 2 Corinthians 10:5 .  Let's call these lies what they are: bold faced deception from the enemy to try and trip us up from what we are supposed to be doing.  Perfection isn't possible.  It just isn't.  Excellence, on the other hand...that is something we can strive for every day.

My challenge to you (and myself) is to quit trying to perfect perfectionism.  There comes a point when it turns into procrastinating perfectionism.  Then it's no longer a noble goal, it's just a time waster.  It's time to start.  It's time to finish.  It's time to go live.  We already talked about this.  Give yourself grace, remember?  Ninety percent perfect and shared with the world is better than 100% perfect and kept to yourself. (I can't take credit for that one.  That's Jon Acuff, again. I like how that guy thinks.)

So the gauntlet is thrown down.  Let go of perfectionism that is impossible.  Live with excellence.  Mess up.  Move on.  That's life. Enjoy it.

What are you trying to do perfectly?  Comment below.

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Why Blog?

People blog for all different reasons.  Some blog to share recipes or cleaning tips.  Some blog to share fun family stories with extended family.  Some blog to give their opinion about __________.  That's the beauty of the internet.  People can say whatever it is they want to say. That's also the terrible, dark side of the internet...People can say whatever it is they want to say.

So why am I here on blogger?  I'm here because I want to be.  If you've been following my blog for any length of time, you know that I study karate.  As part of my preparation for my black belt test (which is less than two weeks away....again), I had to write a 50 page (minimum) paper. It took me about 11 months to complete it, but it ended up at 55 pages in length.  The funny part is that when I started, I had absolutely no idea what I would write about--especially for 50 pages.  By the end of the paper, I could have kept writing for another 20 pages.  I had forgotten I like to write.  In his book, Quitter, Jon Acuff talks about finding your hustle, your dream, that thing you are meant to do.  It is often a RE-discovering of something we already knew and love or loved. Writing is one of those things for me.  I am under no illusions that I am an award winning, poetic, inspirational writer.  However, I can string the words together with a certain amount of clarity and cohesiveness to get my point across.  I enjoy writing, so I write.

My other goal in writing this blog is to expand my business platform.  My business is Jen's Walls Talk.  That encompasses my Color Consulting, as well as, Inspiration Consulting using my vinyl expressions from my Uppercase Living business, and some faux painting thrown in there, too for an extra measure of fun.  I want you to know a bit about this person coming into your home.  I want you to see the potential in my vinyl expressions and maybe see if they speak to you as they speak to me.  Yes, you always have the opportunity to click on the pictures to go buy them for your home.  This is a business after all, and I'll not apologize for that.  I don't think that's necessary.  It's still a free country and a free enterprise system, last time I checked.

I just want you to know why I'm here.  I enjoy being here and want you to know a bit about who I am.  Maybe you might just happen to learn something along the way.

Enjoy!  Do you blog, too? I'd love to hear your blog "why" and feel free to share your address.  Comment below.

What Is Brave?

Bravery is not the absence of fear.  It's being scared and doing it anyway.  It's that simple.

Tonight was talent show night at my kids' school.  My 9-year-old daughter decided she wanted to sing a song with a friend.  And so she did.  As most schools do, I'm sure, they had a practice run in front of the whole school before the big show at night in front of the parents.  Actually, there were maybe 75-100 parents.  The entire school watched them perform their acts for the first time on the stage.  Let me rephrase that.  Twenty-five kids volunteered to get on stage in front of ALL their peers and perform a song, dance, magic show, play an instrument, or do a comedy act that could have the potential to go very wrong for any number of reasons.  Let me tell you, these kids were amazing!  They weren't perfect or professional performers, but they all rocked it.  None of them even appeared to have been coerced.  Seriously.  It was so cool to watch.  The kids were creative and original...and brave.  So brave.

I don't know all the kids, but I know a lot of them.  Some of them I've known since they were tiny munchkins that would barely say two words to me standing 3 feet in front of me, let alone a crowd of peers (aka potential hecklers).  Now they are 8, 9, 10, 11-year-olds putting themselves out there in this big world for all to see.  What kind of world changers will these kids be?  No one knows for sure, but I believe they've made the first step in the right direction.  Now let's follow their example and not be afraid of what our contemporaries might say when we say we have a dream.  Be bold.  Be scared...and do it anyway.  Be brave, friends.

How will you be brave today?  Comment below.

Seeing Is Believing

It's a weird and wonderful thing, this mind of ours.  I don't claim to be any sort of brain or cognitive expert, but I do have one (that might be up for debate in some circles, but this is my blog, so I get to make my own assertions).  I would even venture to say that I use it on occasion, too.  It's no secret that I am preparing for my upcoming black belt test in my karate studies.  It's a very challenging task, both physically, and mentally.  The physical part is hard--not just hard, but grueling, exhausting, and daunting.  The mental aspect is even harder.  The mental part fuels the gumption to push through the physical parts, to not give up, to keep going, to finish and finish well.

But there is another side to the mental aspect of my karate studies.  It's not just the test of character. It's more basic than that.  The test is also a test of knowledge and memory and recall.  There will be approximately 150 techniques that I will need to be able to demonstrate proficiency and the ability to explain what it is I'm doing and what I'm doing to my attacker.  Sure, no biggie...  In addition to the techniques I have several Katas.  Simply put, a Kata is a series of techniques strung together to be aesthetically pleasing.  They should be fluid and graceful, almost a dance of sorts, with the added feature of being fierce and intimidating at the same time.  That sounds really cool, right?  I think so, but sounding cool and executing cool are two entirely different things.  

To combat my lack of grace, and my sometimes spotty memory, I've been practicing my Katas in my head.

I don't just sit there and run over the list of moves in my mind.  I recorded my voice reading through each of my katas, then I sit on the couch and see myself making each little movement as I hear my voice say it on the recording.  I'll even listen to it as I'm driving sometimes.  It's really not the same as reading through it a million times.  When I just read it, I see the moves, but I'm not really focused on the minute details.  When I sit still, close my eyes, and go through each move, I honestly believe that it ingrains it into my memory more than actually doing the moves.  I'm totally serious.  I know some of you reading this think I'm full of bologna, but this has been my honest to goodness experience.  In fact, tonight as I practiced one particularly challenging (to me) kata in class, it was the best that I have ever done it.  It wasn't just in my mind.  One of my fellow martial artists commented to me that it was "the best he's ever seen me do that kata, and keep doing whatever it is" I'm doing to study.  I'm not saying it was perfect, but it has come a long way in the last couple weeks, and the only thing I've done to practice is the practice in my head.

All this is just food for thought.  It started years ago with reading an old book called Psycho-cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz.  You can still get it on Amazon, I'm sure.  It's worth the read.

I'd love to hear different techniques or mental exercises that you have tried to improve physical performance.  Please comment below.