You need a habit of encouragement to create a default response of hope and positivity even when the clouds show up. Encouragement can be tough to find some days, even for a natural-born hopesmith. The more encouragement is practiced, the easier and more natural it becomes. I avoided cleaning when I was in school. As...

We encourage the whole being when we invest in more than words, more than activities, and more than thoughts. Whole being encouragement encompasses a balance in all that we are for all that we are. We need encouragement that covers our whole selves to live our best lives. We think about encouraging the heart or...

The power of encouragement changes the world – sometimes in little bits and sometimes in such monumental ways that it literally shifts the course of history. Teachers are little bits of encouragement that change the world. Leaders with a world stage (like Winston Churchill) create monumental shifts. And often it’s the little bits that make...

Knowing the basics of encouragement allows you to set a firm foundation for living your encouraged life. Encouragement defeats the darkness and creates the way for hope to take root. With encouragement, you can. Without encouragement, it all becomes a struggle. I’ve always been an encourager. I often joke about how when I was born,...

You have to demand your will take action when you’re tangled in the “do not go” moments. We’ve all been there – or at least I hope I’m not the only one. Picture this . . .  You’ve just walked past the dirty dishes again. Yes, those same ones you’ve walked past so many times...

Direct your focus to get results that lift you into your BIG DREAMS. All the doing in the world won’t get you there unless the actions are aimed at the target. When I was learning to throw, my dad encouraged me to point where I wanted the ball to go as I was releasing the...

Setting Your Intentional Action Mantra You need an intentional action mantra to help keep driving you forward when you really want to stop or maybe just take a break. You need an intentional action mantra to remind you to get going again after you’ve fallen down or run right off the rails. You need an...

You have to define your success to live your BIG DREAMS. If you don’t take the time to define your success then you give the world permission to define it for you – and you DON’T want the world defining anything for you. We’ve been discussing the radical and intentional life the last couple of...

Listen to the #GrowingHOPE podcast by scrolling to the bottom of the page and clicking the play button, or watch on YouTube through the link below. Episode 087 – What Matters Most What matters most to you will be what you invest in more than other opportunities. It can’t be what THEY want. It can’t...

Listen to the #GrowingHOPE podcast by scrolling to the bottom of the page and clicking the play button, or watch on YouTube through the link below. Episode 086 – What Stops Radical and Intentional If we are going to live radical and intentional lives – and that is what we are called to live –...