Many times people start something to only stop and think that they failed.  This way of thinking can hurt your potential for doing something great in the future.  When living a healthy and active life, one must live in the present and reach for the future.  It does not benefit anyone to live in the past.

In the movie “The Lion King” Pumba tells us that we need to “put our behind in our past” which Timon translates to “Put your past behind you”.   You cannot let past failures determine your future successes. Just because “XYZ” diet did not work for you in the past does not set you to fail in a new attempt.  You have to learn why it did not work and avoid those pitfalls in moving forward. This will allow you succeed in your new effort.  One cannot dwell on what did not work, instead we must focus on what does work and surround ourselves with those things.  Are your friends the boys on Pleasure Island from Pinocchio who sabotage your efforts, or are your friends a positive influence like Pumba and Timon who will help you on your path to become the “King” your are destined to be?  If you are new to losing weight or making a change, find someone who will help you stay accountable.  Maybe it is joining Weight Watchers.  Find some friends within the Neurotic Disney Community who want the same thing.  Maybe you can find some friends on Twitter or Facebook to keep you accountable.  Try out the Zero2Hero plan on the Disney Driven Life.   The point is if you are going to make changes, you need people in the front row who are going to cheer you on, the people that are going jeer you and work against you need to be at the back of your auditorium.

When making any type of change, it takes time for the habit to form.  You may not like getting up every morning to run, but keep at it.  5 years ago when I was training to run my first half-marathon I had to change my schedule to get up at 5 AM to run before work.  I did not like it at first, but I stuck with it.  By the time my last 3 weeks of training rolled around, I would wake up just a few minutes before my alarm would go off.   My body got used to getting up and running and set its own internal alarm clock.

Nothing is going to be easy at first, but do not get discouraged.  I know that it is easy to get down when you don’t immediately see the results that you want.  Disneyland was a failure at first.  It had numerous obstacles to overcome.  Walt learned from this and turned Disneyland and Walt Disney World into premiere attractions.  What would have happened if Walt had the internal dialogue that said, “Disneyland was a failure; I should not try to build a park in Florida”?  One of my favorite quotes is from marathon runner and US Bronze medalist Deanna Kastor. She said,  “The moments that challenge us the most define us.”  When you are down and things are not the way you want them, that is the moment to say, “I determine my own success.  I am in control of what I do.”  Seize the opportunity, and go for it.

Contributed by: Thom W. (NDD#145). 

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