Pixabay – Walk Into the Future

Why I continue to blog

Blog

“Blogging is like work, but without coworkers thwarting you at every turn”.

(Scott Adams)

I never imagined three years ago I would still be blogging about my life, thoughts, and adventures.

The need for me to document things via the Walk into the Future blog continues to grow as my views and voice get stronger daily. COVID-19 slowed down the adventures, but I still write to share my ideas with my followers and the occasional new reader around the world. I also write as a form of therapy for me to release energy into the world—sounds poetic, huh?

It still amazes me when I see a reader from France, India or Spain checking out one of my articles. Never thought my idea for this blog would travel so well but travel it does.

I make a point to write about things that speak directly to me and adventures I have decided to tackle. Some of my best content comes from friends and family who send me topics they would like to read about. This process is exciting to me because I get to conduct research to bring the topic to my followers. It is a bit more complicated than just hearing a topic and then I sit down and write. There are times when the words just flow for me but other times, I must come back to a potential topics multiple times just to get it production ready. I do not think I have ever experienced writer’s block but there are days where writing just does not flow for me. I find I just need to clear my mind and let my fingers do the walking—that is an old telephone book reference! 😊

I have had a few articles I wrote but never published on the Walk into the Future blog. Never thought I would have canned articles but not share them on the blog. This does not happen too often but the articles I hold back do not fit what I want the blog to represent. Yes, this is my blog, but it is also open access and I owe it to myself and my readers to put my best work forward daily.

2020 saw so much turmoil in America and the way black people are treated caused a lot of frustration for me. My ability to channel these frustrations provided some of my best work (my opinion) but needed to ensure my words match the intended purpose. I revisit the articles I put on ice to see if I can salvage them, but they remain on ice—I am sure I will share directly with my tree branches but some of these will never be blog worthy (Seinfeld reference).

I find joy in putting words down to see if I can develop into something others would want to read. The challenge to keep generating articles is with me daily. I find inspiration to write in multiple settings but me sitting down on my laptop and just hammering out content is the norm for me now. COVID-19 took away my coffee shop vibes, so I sit at my dining room table with my laptop, beer, and Bob Marley music as I lay down these tracks.

Plan to keep writing as long as it is fun to me and people continue to read what I am laying down.

My hope is to get back to a certain level of travel again so I can write about my exploits in exotic locales. Negril, Jamaica is my first stop once it is safe to head back down.

So, I have listed some reasons why I continue to blog. Why do YOU continue to read? I welcome your thoughts!

Irie!

“The currency of blogging is authenticity and trust”.

(Jason Calacanis)

Transition towards the future!

(Image by Volker Sachse from Pixabay)

“Light precedes every transition. Whether at the end of a tunnel, through a crack in the door or the flash of an idea, it is always there, heralding a new beginning”.

(Teresa Tsalaky)

I spend a large amount of time generating lists in my daily Walk into the Future. This is not a new phenomenon because I find my lists help keep me focused and moving forward in multiple areas. I track everything: daily activities, weekly to-do lists, yearly goals, every gym workout, every mile I run and how fast I ran them. Small correction, I do not track what I eat—may need to add this process since I have decided to eat better in 2020—we will see! Guess a grocery list would help with this, huh? 😊

Decided to discuss my list making process because a tree branch wanted me to write an article about what the transition from my previous work life to my current Walk into the Future journey looks like. His interest was more in understanding the transition because a lot of people talk about making a change but never really discuss what happens during the transition.

Of course, my transition started with a list. I sat on a beach on 4/14/18 and created a PRO/CON list to give me a visual of why/if I wanted to Walk into the Future. Did a complete assessment and put items under the PRO (stay) or CON (walk) column to give me something measurable. The list was heavily populated on the CON side so my decision to Walk into the Future was easy to make and backed by data. I will not dive into what was on the list but wanted to share there was a process involved to help with this decision.

“Transitions in life can offer opportunities for discovery”.

(Robbie Shell)

Throwback article on moving forward:

https://walkintothefuture.blog/2019/10/17/dont-fear-the-unknown-life-moves-forward

I am sure there are books and additional articles written by others who have transitioned from one work environment to another. This process is unique to everyone who decides to Walk into the Future—I will share things unique to me and my current Walk into the Future.

Humility

Being humble signals a willingness to learn and continue to grow. I have never professed I know everything, so I continue to be a lifelong learner. I read, network and ask questions when I do not understand something. Humility can speed up the transition process by seeking others to help along the way. Therefore, I never turn down meetings, speaking engagements or random conversations—I am learning as I go, and everyone can be a good source of information for me. I have maintained relationships with mentors and expanded my mentor pool to ensure I’m continuing to learn and grow.

Patience

How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time! This is an old leadership axiom to get people to focus on the process and not get overwhelmed with the perceived end results. Most things in life are a process and can be overcome with a patient approach. I have had to display a high level of patience during my Walk into the Future because not everyone I encounter is trying to get to the exact place I am. They may not even know how to help me get where I am headed and may need to refer me to someone else. I have learned the art of the follow-up call/email very well during this period! 😊 Remember, one bite at a time.

Sense of Humor

Laughter is a great way to release endorphins and makes you feel good. Laughter is also needed in this process because I do not take everything so seriously. Life is stressful enough without us adding more to it. I make a point to laugh, tell jokes and enjoy life to the max. I smile when I pitch a proposal to organizations for speaking engagements and I smile when organizations so no thank you. I generate a big old grin when I book a gig—it feels good! The key I believe is not to get too high or low during this process—laughing daily helps with this. I make a point to smile, laugh and enjoy myself when presenting to others—believe people relate to others who smile.

Confidence

Spend any amount of time with me and you will understand I do not lack confidence. This really helped when making the decision to Walk into the Future. It also leads to the ability to keep moving forward even when things do not go my way. I have heard the word NO more times than YES during this process but cannot let that distract me from my mission to make a difference daily. My lists mentioned earlier help as well because they allow me to check things off—never discount the importance of checking things off a list—it shows progress! I view life as a journey and confidence helps every step of the way. Positive self-talk is an outstanding way to get and maintain your confidence levels.

Mental and Physical outlets

My blog articles cover a lot of topics as I continue my Walk into the Future. I purposely seek out activities to enhance my mental and physical well being daily. My daily workouts, running program and yoga practice are designed to boost my physical fitness and allow me to generate endorphins. Never discount the impact physical activity provides to daily life.

I am an avid reader, so bookstore and library visits are a regular part of my program. I gravitate to blogs, online articles and LinkedIn to ensure I continue to learn new things. My book topics range from self-help, psychology, poetry and autobiographies. I do not venture into fiction much—John Sanford is the only fiction author I read on a regular basis. Discovered him by accident over 20 years ago while stationed on Okinawa, Japan. Been reading his work ever since.

I maintain a journal which helps me process my thoughts and aspirations. This is a weekly process for me or anytime I am at the beach. Lastly, the Walk into the Future blog provides an outstanding mental outlet vehicle for me. Get to write and test out ideas here right in front of YOU! 😊

So, there you have it. This is still an active transition for me as I explore new ideas, topics, interests and partnerships. This journey will continue, and I am sure there will be pivots needed but the smile on my face will not go away.

Enjoy your transition as you walk with me!

How can you make the transitions needed for your journey? Who can you partner with to enhance the transition period? Thanks!

“Life is a transition”.

(Lailah Gifty Akita)

My favorite thing about me!

Mirror

(Image by Alexas_Fotos from Pixabay)

“On the highest throne in the world, we still sit only on our own bottom”.

(Michel de Montaigne)

My efforts to create content for the Walk into the Future blog finds me conducting research in multiple locations. I’m an avid reader so of course books, online articles and other blogs catch my attention daily. The goal is to generate fresh content others would be willing to read and share with their network. Always seeking additional content ideas as I Walk into the Future.

Came across an interesting guide during my research phase called 365 Days of Writing Prompts which was created by the Word Press editors to prompt bloggers with inspiration to write every day. Some of the prompts are an attempt to give bloggers a vault of topics which hopefully leads to finished articles.

I incorporate daily thoughts, conversations and events into Walk into the Future blog posts so most of the Word Press prompts are just things for me to view—not looking to write without a real purpose since this would not help promote my why on the blog.

Found a few of the Word Press prompts interesting enough to put aside to see if I could develop a future blog post. The following prompt is my first post using the Word Press guide:

Toot your horn: Most of us are excellent at being self-deprecating and are not so good at the opposite. Tell us your favorite thing about yourself.

Perseverance is defined as persistence in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success (Dictionary.com).

I’ve talked about superpowers and leveraging my why to make a positive difference in the world. My favorite thing about myself at this point in my Walk into the Future is my perseverance.

My goal is to tackle each day with positive energy as I continue to move forward in the world. Would like to say things always go my way but that’s not true or a realistic outcome. I continue to persevere even when things don’t follow the plan; my positive energy mantra allows me to quickly regroup, make new plans (pivot) and then move forward.

The Walk into the Future title was selected for the blog because it gives me purpose and enhances how I interact with others daily.

Perseverance in my daily Walk into the Future allows me to continue to focus on how my words, thoughts, actions and why lead to small wins daily. The win could simply be a comment from one of my tree branches, family or blog followers, but it provides the positive energy to strive to do more in this world.

So, there it is, perseverance is my favorite thing about myself! Will continue to work on projects and topics to incorporate my why to see where this journey leads. Always striving for positive energy and outcomes in everything I touch—Irie mindset daily!

What is your favorite thing about yourself? How do you display your favorite thing to others? Thanks for walking with me!

“A true genius admits he/she knows nothing”.

(Albert Einstein)

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