As someone who blogs regularly about balancing business travel with life, I read a lot of relevant self-help books. Every now and again, I find a book that I want to tell everyone about. Stop Saying You’re Fine: Discover a More Powerful You by Mel Robbins is one of those books (http://stopsayingyouarefine.com/books).
I was lucky enough to meet Mel this past spring when she spoke at the Spark & Hustle conference in Boston. Mel is a life coach, syndicated radio host and relationship expert who makes a living helping people get what they want in life. As a busy working parent, I often feel pulled in so many different directions that it can sometimes be hard to get out of my own way! There are goals I want to achieve on a professional level, and hobbies I’d like to pursue in my spare time. But what often happens is I put the needs of my clients or my family before my own. Then I convince myself inertia is perfectly fine.
According to Mel, if you’re feeling bored or dissatisfied with your life, you’re not alone. “The pace and uncertainty of modern life has left us all spinning,” she says. “How do you change your life, when you can barely survive your day?”
Mel uses several concrete examples to illustrate how we get in our own way. Take exercise for example. You want to start a new workout program, but on the first day of your proposed new routine, you hit the snooze button. You decide to start over the next day. The next day comes, and you’re too tired. Maybe you’ll try again next week…
Mel suggests that we all stop hitting the snooze button of life. In fact, she says, we parents can follow the lead of our children on this: “Kids don’t over think anything. They lean in.” She explains, “If we were to take that philosophy on as adults, and just pay attention to what interests us…that alone would change our lives.”
On your next business trip, instead of sleeping in, get up early and read this book. Or better yet, download the audio version and listen to it while you run on the treadmill. Maybe you’ll discover a more powerful you.
