It is human to wrestle with these things.  I have learned that to do so in a vacuum is not as productive as doing so with people who trust and believe in you!

I have a lot of experience, if you use a portion of a pile of years like the one I have learning new things, building relationships, and paying attention while doing so, you will gather a certain amount of expertise and definitely build opinions.  As my wife will attest, I have a head full of useless information that is occasionally useful if you can find an application for it.

What I have learned to do at my advanced age is to step more boldly, what I need to learn at times is to continue preparing and sometimes, step more quickly!

All of us fail to reach our potantial at times for lack of the singular task of developing a plan and setting goals!

You can’t hit tomorrow the goals you don’t set today!  Zig Ziglar gave the analogy one time that he could outshoot the world’s greatest archer.  All he had to do is blindfold the archer and spin him around a few times so he had no idea where he was aiming!  Can you imagine the world’s best basketball team running onto the court only to find that someone removed the goals?

I have discovered that we are all programmed to the American ideal to some extent and automatically do a bunch of things we’re “supposed to do”.  I didn’t have some master plan to be married by 25 and buy a house and raise 2 kids.  I mean I had a general idea that I should, but it was kind of wired in.  I wouldn’t trade my family for anything, but many of us our living by rules we didn’t sign up for sometimes to the detriment of the plan God has for us.

How many guidance counselors in HS ask you what you want to do?  Very few.  Mostly they test you to see what career you would best be suited for.  this idea is very new and very old.

It looks so bizare to some people to see someone doing full time music ministry, but not to see a career musician.  We know many people who own their own businesses and know about guys like Bill Gates and Steve Jobs.  Keith Mohr is that kind of person, right?  He surely didn’t get Indieheaven from a guidance counselor, right?

If we didn’t build unusual debt, and make ourselves slaves of the weekly paycheck, we could still work hard at what we dream of doing and feed our families.  It is not built on either convenience or someone’s Normal ideal of what “normal people do” for a living.

So  I don’t know where that came from except to say that I am trying to be very honest about that conversation and thinking while planning better while listening to God, reducing debt that chain’s me to a certain reality, and working on the next set of skills that will propel me to where God would have me be both happy and effective in my life.

So this week, Eric Copeland of Creative Soul Records put a request on the Indieheaven Network for songs for an artist.  He wants one entry, fitting a particular criteria.  Entries will be accepted till Jan 31, 2008.  I have written a lot of songs, and even a few good ones, but can I write one that would catch the interest of one of the best indie producers in Nashville?

As I’ve been examining the various hats I wear, I noticed I’ve missed one hat lately; my songwriting hat!  I have a couple of songs I’ve been simmering, one of which has been developing nicely, but it’s been awhile since I wrote a song for a request.

So even if I write a song or three that may not interest Eric at all, I would be exploring a gift that I enjoy persuing.  Part of this discerning process is to honestly embrace the gifts I enjoy improving, and abandoning the activities that are not really in line with my unravelling purpose.

So, if just for the exercise, I will work on a new song, just to challenge my writing and work on something i enjoy!  I recently asked my younger daughter(she’s 11) what she thinks I’m good at…  I gave her no context and we weren’t even discussing music.  She said, “Well, … you’re a good songwriter…” Hmmmm

Ask me how I am doing with my 30 minutes of extra effort….

Terrible.  I get an F-. 

Failing is a wonderful thing.  It makes us do one of two things.  We either quit, or we learn.  Quitting is good if we are not giving up.  Learning is good, for it is necessary to get better.

So I’m not quitting… How could I?  Prayer, Exercise, Practice?  All essential to the current mission.  So what did you learn Dorothy? (There’s no place like Home, there’s no place like  …*)

The answer dawned on me as I struggled with the question, “Why was it so easy to do this stuff 15 years ago, but feels impossible now?”  Many people jump to the easy answer….. “It’s because you’re older!”  I wasn’t buying it.  Not one bit.  Something is different and I was determined to sort it out.  I know that most efforts, resolutions and new courses in life require two main ingredients; A strong desire and persistence.

The thing many people would add to that is will power.  OK, when was the last time you gave something up and rationalized it right back into your life?  I don’t care if it was smoking, drinking, weight loss, or a bad boyfriend, at some point you caved in and there you were, right back to or even worse than when you started because when your will power let go, the floodgates of want came with it!

So what is the missing piece?  Environment.  If the environment you have built, prepared, or ignored does not lend itself to supporting the activity, inconvenience will kill any persistence you may have!  Why is it so easy to watch TV, but not to pack your lunch everyday?  Well you set up the couch or recliner to aim at the TV and put a remote control right in front of you to make viewing not only easy, but enjoyable!  We don’t even really have commercial breaks to let us get up to go to the bathroom or throw in a load of laundry.  We are programmed and have built the environment to not only easily do, but enjoy watching TV.

After 3 faithful days of praying and playing guitar, and 3 days of still not knowing which exercise I could seriously add for 10 minutes a day, I watched my plan fade.  I couldn’t leave my guitar in the Living room, and I couldn’t find an ideal time to pray in a place where I have privacy.

The space I had built for music and alone time and planning was over-run with clutter.  Sure I use most of that stuff, don’t I?  Nope, just years of piles and no time to organize, or even the resolve to throw/give away or recycle stuff I will never use or read!

So, my action plan, which started over Christmas break was the rapid cleaning of my office space/sound room and closet of my studio.  Suddenly with the exit of clutter and the knowledge that I can find things faster, comes the idea that I can re-invent the environments I used to have, that allowed me to faithfully do the daily habits and rituals that are necessary to being healthy, productive, and on track as I continue refining my focus.  True quadrant 2 activities!  Now I’m getting on the right track!

Stay tuned, Another blog coming on clutter and our addiction to acquiring and keeping STUFF!