Practice makes.....

How would you finish this sentence: Practice makes ______?  

Practice makes perfect is the most common ending to that sentence.  

Less popular, but no less true sentences would be:

Practice can make you better (or not).

Practice makes you crazy.

Practice makes you want to quit/give up.

Practice is necessary.

By now we’ve all heard the study that it takes about 10,000 hours of practice to master a skill.  Think Tiger Woods and golf, Bill Gates and computer programming.  You get the picture.  When you are really motivated to do something, or when it is something that really interests you, practicing is a challenge and a joy to do.  You want to get better so you practice and practice some more.  You see the results and any little improvement serves as motivation to keep going, doing and pushing forward.

But what about the things that don’t come so easily?  Practice in those cases feels like a chore, something you HAVE to do even though you don’t enjoy it very much.

My son loves baseball.  I joke with friends that if I had the energy he would practice with me nonstop all day long.  It is his passion, he loves it and practicing baseball is something he enjoys very much.  Whether it’s a dropped fly ball or a swing and a miss, he is self-motivated to try it again and again (and again) until he gets it right.  It is not work for him; it is pure enjoyment.  On the other hand, reading is not something he particularly likes.  First of all, it requires sitting still for a period of time, something that is not easy for an active eight year old.  Second, it’s just not something that he truly enjoys (which is especially hard for me to relate to as a lifelong book lover). So for all of these reasons, he’s not super excited to sit down and read for his nightly homework assignment.  I’ve started to relate reading to practicing – having to sound out a word is no different than dropping a pop fly.  Just because you drop it doesn’t mean you quit playing forever.  No, you figure out what you did wrong and try to do it better the next time.

As adults it gets easier to avoid the things that require practice.  If you are not good at something or not interested in getting better, you just don’t do it.  But if we are all honest with ourselves, we would realize that practice is on-going and never ending.  There is always something that we must practice – it may be a physical task related to your job, or exercise, or diet.  Or it may even be interpersonal practice – figuring out how to get along with a co-worker or resolve a misunderstanding with a friend.  Or it may just be being a parent – we’re all just practicing aren’t we?  You practice handling a situation with your kids in the best way you know possible in that moment.  If it doesn’t work out, then you learn from it and use it to guide you the next time.

What I know now is that the old saying is wrong, practice never makes perfect.  Practice often makes you better, but there’s no guarantee.  (Ever tried to play golf?)   Practice certainly helps us learn, improve and know more for next time.  The only thing that is for sure is that practice is never over.   

Journal on this: What practice have you been avoiding?

Heart-FULLy Yours,    

Kacey

Hello

Last night as I was driving from work to get the kids I started thinking about what we would do when we got home.  After a long week, I wanted us to all spend time together, but selfishly I also wanted to relax.  I knew they would be tired too and it was possible they would want to do their own thing.  It reminded me of when they were babies I was so excited to see them I’d practically run out of work.  When I finally made it to the daycare their face would light up.  They were as happy to see me as I was to see them.  I remember the feeling vividly.    

How you greet someone sets the tone for everything that comes next.  Feelings are contagious.  Greet someone with joy and excitement and they’ll likely rise to meet your excitement.  On the other hand, if you are quiet or tired the other person will instantly ask “What’s wrong?”.  They’ll automatically abandon the feelings they were having to meet you at your level.  Hello is such a simple word but depending on our inflection, volume and tone, it can take on so much more.   

How we greet each other can have a big impact on our relationships.  Our current feelings (aka energy) directly impact the other person.  Often we allow these feelings to be driven by instinct.  If you are trying to make a good impression with a boss, teacher or new friend, you automatically rise to the occasion with a positive and enthusiastic greeting.  In relationships where you are more comfortable (spouse, parent, old friend), our instinct may default to letting our tiredness show through.  Our greetings in these situations are unfiltered and often a reflection of our exact emotion in that moment (which is not always a good thing). 

What would happen if we paid more attention to the way we said “Hello”?   

Journal on this: Think about the different ways you greet people throughout the day - how does your greeting change?  How do others greet you?  How do those greetings make you feel?  Is there a relationship (romantic, friend, family, work, etc.) that would benefit if you changed up your greeting?

Heart-FULLy Yours,    

Kacey

p.s. How does your energy impact your everyday relationships?  In our next Journal 2 Joy workshop, “Relationships: It’s all about YOU!”, we’ll dig deeper into this very topic!  I hope you’ll join us Sunday, February 28^th as we talk about the role we play in ALL our relationships, not just romantic relationships, but family, work and friendships too.  R.S.V.P. today, visit http://www.balancedheartcoaching.com/journal-2-joy.html for all the details. 

8 is Great!

8 is Great

you couldn’t hardly wait

for this day to come

when we will celebrate 8!

You’re not a baby any more,

you’re big and strong.

You’ve got enough energy

to last you the whole day long.

You’ve gotten too big

to cuddle up every morn

but you still wake up and stretch

just like the day you were born.   

8 is great,

there’s so much you can do

hit a baseball, run a race

build a city or two. 

You’re our little home body,

you love to spend time with family and friends.

You’re a supportive teammate

and remember to be thankful when the day ends.

You’re considerate and nice,

always willing to lend a hand.

You’re sensitive to other’s feelings

helping them out any way you can.

8 is great

but it might start to get a little tough

learning you can’t win them all

and other grown up kind of stuff.

School’s getting a little harder

it’s not so easy breezy any more,

but now is when it gets interesting

there is so much more for you to explore.

It’s hard to understand why

people laugh and call names

but dad and I are always here

to talk about it and not find blame.

8 is great

there is so much more to come

but today we’ll enjoy this moment

and how blessed we are to have you Son.

Journal on this: What are your favorite moments right now with your child?  What funny things do they do or say?  How are you alike?  How are you different?  It’s easy to think you will remember all of the important moments, but as the years go by, those moments start to slip away.  Take a minute today to jot down what’s important today.  In eight years (or eighteen) you’ll be happy that you did.

Heart-FULLy Yours,    

Kacey