We basked in Thanksgiving this week….sans pecan pie, which was sad, but good for our calorie intake….and it was wonderful to not be at work and to spend some time giving thanks for different circumstances and experiences.

This week we pondered Andrew Carnegie’s words as we look ahead to 2021. He said:

“If you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates your energy and inspires your hopes.”

Well said Andy! We decided this could be a great litmus test for what is worthy of focusing on in 2021. We are excited to ‘go again’ with new goals that raise our ambition! Bring it on!

Have a delightful week!

It’s Thanksgiving week and we all have a lot to be grateful for.

G.K. Chesterton said some wise words; I don’t know who Chesterton is but his words sound smart and a little cheesy. “I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought; and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.” Kellie just googled him and Chesty, as we like to call him, is known as the Prince of Paradox….so, I guess we can trust him...maybe.

One thing we are grateful for this year is our podcast. It really has helped us to have a sense of normalcy during an ‘interesting’ year. Jim Rohn talks about why we set goals:

The ultimate reason for setting goals is to entice you to become the person it takes to achieve them.

Happy Thanksgiving, and if you have pecan pie, invite Kellie over.

As we are wrapping up this year, it's caused us to reflect on what success really is. Success isn't just about accomplishment. Life isn't just about a checklist of checking things off, but it is about the people around us. The whole reason we have been accountable weekly with a podcast is that we knew that one day we would figure out this goal thing, and we wanted a record of how we did it to help other people accomplish their goals. We thought we would be goal Allstars at the end of the year, and yet after 49 weeks, I realize I still have a lot to learn.

Our quote for the week comes from the dating guru Matthew Hussey. I have had this pinned on my cork board all year to remind me of the high-value lifestyle that I want to create.

"Create a high-value lifestyle that will draw men (people) to you and satisfy you with or without your man (career, possessions, relationships)."

XOXO - Meredith

Today is daylight savings and we are, although we are thankful for another hour to sleep. However, a funny idea going around is that none of us need an extra hour of 2020. Amen to that! This week was rough for me. The cold front made me abandon all hope at continuing a morning routine. It just felt too hard to get out of my warm bed. But my laziness scared me; I have worked too hard to give up at the end. The good news is that Kellie and I dragged ourselves to the gym on Saturday, so now we will be better prepared for our power gym sessions in the afternoon starting tomorrow. We had extra motivation because we need to counteract the vast quantity of red robin fries we consumed Friday night.

“There is a window that exists between the moment you have an instinct to change and your mind killing it. It’s a five second window. And it exists for everyone.” - Mel Robbins

Today is daylight savings and we are, although we are thankful for another hour to sleep. However, a funny idea going around is that none of us need an extra hour of 2020. Amen to that! This week was rough for me. The cold front made me abandon all hope at continuing a morning routine. It just felt too hard to get out of my warm bed. But my laziness scared me; I have worked too hard to give up at the end. The good news is that Kellie and I dragged ourselves to the gym on Saturday, so now we will be better prepared for our power gym sessions in the afternoon starting tomorrow. We had extra motivation because we need to counteract the vast quantity of red robin fries we consumed Friday night.

“There is a window that exists between the moment you have an instinct to change and your mind killing it. It’s a five second window. And it exists for everyone.” - Mel Robbins

Today is the first snowfall which marks that winter is coming. Steph is mourning the loss of summer and is brainstorming ways to beat the winter blues. She really should just move to a warmer climate in the winter. Kellie plans to hunker down for the winter and get all her meals from DoorDash. That will contradict with the great strides she made in not purchasing from Amazon or food delivery services, but desperate times call for desperate measures. She should probably just join Steph in that warmer climate. But as for Ginger Cat here, I am a winter baby. I have a fireplace and am just waiting for snowshoes to go on sale at Costco so I’m all set. I just got Lasik so I am able to see the snow more clearly.

Today we are talking about hope. This quote by Dieter F. Uchtdorf talks about how hope sustains us through despair:

“Hope sustains us through despair. If only we could glimpse for a moment what the Lord has in store for us, not only in the next life but in this one as well. our hope would be UNSHAKEABLE and despair could never overcome us.”

Goals give me hope. Steph talked about how she needs to have hope in dating so that she doesn't feel despair. Kellie says amen to that. Whatever it is you are struggling with, remember if your hope is unshakeable, despair won’t overcome you.

Today we have a quick phone call to catch up on our goals. I killed it this week by reorganizing my closet. Meredith was quite successful in cutting out the curse words. Steph made an appointment with the dentist and doctor. Look at all of us doing hard things. Today's inspiration comes from Stephen Kellogg.

"The moment you put a deadline on your dream, it becomes a goal." - Stephen Kellogg.

I realized that standup has just been this dream, but it became a goal when I put a deadline on it. Steph shared how podcasting was just a dream until she started scheduling interviews, and with each interview, she forced herself to learn more and more about podcasting.

Well, that's all for today. I hope you all get out there and crush your goals.

We are recording late Sunday night. I’m tired and ready for bed. Kellie rocked her goals this week, but Amazon may not be too happy because they lost one of their loyal customers. Meredith also was terrific with her plans and is super peppy and excited tonight. I, unfortunately, am still a pansy and have not called the dentist. Our inspiration for this week comes from Hal Elrod.

“You are where you are because of who you were, but where you go depends entirely on who you choose to be.” - Hal Elrod

This has been a great week. We have been up to our ears in achieving our goals, or not achieving goals. Steph needed a little more nudging to call the dentist. Kellie killed it not shopping on Amazon and drinking her water. I did some soul searching on how I want my morning routine to look. We talked about how you know enough to get you going. You don’t need to be a professional to achieve your goals. Here’s a quote I like that illustrates this:

“Never be afraid to try something new… An amateur built the ark that lasted forty days and forty nights; professionals built the titanic that sank.”

Steph shared a story about her running coach who planned their own ultra marathon. This was their first ultramarathon and had never planned a full race before. But they gathered their family and friends and made a route. They weren’t professional Ultramarathoners but they crossed the finish line at mile 100. With some good planning and a big dream we can make it to our goals.

Today we talked about how things have been going and where we are going with our lives. We discussed what our goals were at the beginning of the year and what we want to do for the next ten weeks. Steph is nearing the finish line with her 20 hikes by October, Kellie doesn’t want to cook anymore, and Meredith is still making it up as she goes along. We have learned that it is easier to set weekly goals when we have an overall game plan. After discussing what goals we want to work toward, we should have smooth sailing the rest of the year! Kellie shared Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and how in 2020 people aren’t able to have their basic needs met. It’s ok when we have to slow down from plowing forward in order to make sure our basic needs are taken care of. Be patient with yourself, get your needs in order and carry on!

“What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.” Zig Ziglar

P.S.And remember all you Aussies, watch out for those Magpies. They will poke your eye out.