Take Advantage of a Rolling Start: 3 Mindset Shifts to Crush Your New Year's Resolutions

Now, this doesn't mean that we shy away from the real talk.

No, not a chance.

Matter of fact, we explore all aspects of life.

From the good, the bad, and the ugly.

But all of that is done with one purpose.

One purpose.

To inspire you to never give up on life.

Even when it may seem like life has given up on you.

Now I get it, life is hard.

But starting today, you've got grit, grace, and inspiration.

What's happening and welcome back to Grit, Grace, and Inspiration.

My name is Kevin Lowe, your host, and you are tuning in to episode 144.

Today's episode is all about giving you a head start on the new year.

Because if you're listening to this at the time of its release, you will know that we are in December and all eyes are set on the year to come.

Now, I want to use an analogy, and coming from the perspective of a guy who is completely blind and certainly does not drive, that of course being me, it might seem a little bit strange, but I just want you to go with it.

And what I'm talking about is the analogy of sitting at a traffic light.

If you're anything like I was when I could drive, which, if you're new around here, I didn't become blind till I was 17.

So I got to start driving when I was 15 with my learner's permit.

16 meant I was wide open on the road by myself.

And that was in either my big Ford F-150 4x4 truck, or when it was broke down, it was getting to spoil myself by driving my mom's fast little Ford Mustang.

And during those years of driving, I knew that when you're sitting at a traffic light, you treat that like you are in the seat of a drag racer.

Your eyes are kept on the traffic light, waiting for it to switch from red to green.

You're not there to dilly-dally.

No.

When that light hits green, you put the pedal to the metal and you take off.

That's how you're supposed to treat it.

At least that's how I think you're supposed to treat it.

But how many times are you in that situation where you're feeling good?

You're got a hand on that steering wheel, other hand on the shifter, ready to just take off.

And yet, light turns green, and somebody in the lane next to you goes blowing by you like you're standing still.

Why is that?

How is that?

Well, because their lane didn't have traffic in it.

And they had the advantage of a rolling start.

And a rolling start is what I'm talking to you about today.

Because I want to give you the advantage of a rolling start heading into 2023.

For my people who aren't big car fans, who don't treat a traffic light as the starting line of a drag race, let me explain a little bit.

A rolling start is when you're coming up to that traffic light and there are no cars in front of you, and you're slowing down because the light's red.

But then before you come to a complete stop, the light turns green and you get right back on the gas.

That's a rolling start.

You're gonna beat the car who's dead stopped every single time because you have the advantage of momentum.

You are carrying that momentum with you.

And I believe that we can apply that same concept to our own personal lives.

We have January 1st looming ahead.

That's the starting line, the start of a new year, the start of new opportunities.

And what I want to do is I want to give you a rolling start into January 1st.

Because if you wait to adopt new habits, wait to start thinking about your goals until January 1st, well, that's like you stuck at the red light waiting on it to turn green.

When instead we can give you the momentum of a rolling start so that you already are one step ahead of the rest, which is only going to mean that you have the advantage going into the new year.

Now, one thing that I want you to understand, listening to the rest of this episode, is we are not going to talk about new year's resolutions.

We're not talking about goal setting.

We're not talking about any of those actionable items that most people focus on going into a new year.

Instead, we're getting a little bit deeper because I want to get your mind in the right place.

We're focusing today on the mindset needed to give you that unfair advantage that the rest of the people aren't going to have when the clock strikes midnight on January 1st.

So inside of today's episode, we are talking about three specific mindset shifts that I want you to start adopting right now.

Because this is your opportunity to get that head start by taking what I'm about to say to heart and making these changes in your life, in your mind, and giving yourself a shortcut to making all those dreams and goals for 2023 a fighting chance.

My first mindset shift that I want you to start adopting is I want you to start serving greater, bigger, and more compassionately than you ever have before.

People in this ever-changing world, they need a deeper, better version of you than they've ever seen before.

Because the truth is, is that the world we live in today is crazy.

It's uncertain.

And to be honest, at times it's downright scary.

And so I believe that in order for us to truly make it in this life, especially in hard times, we have to do it together.

And by doing it together, we need to be sure that we are giving it our best shot, not just for us, but for those around us.

Because as they say, a rising tide lifts all boats.

And I want you to go into the new year already serving people more, thinking about people in bigger ways, being more compassionate to other people.

Because again, I want you to be that rising tide that helps to lift all of those around you.

So think about it like this.

The next time you're at the store, I want you to say hello.

I want you to smile to somebody who you've never even met before.

Lend a helping hand.

Give somebody a boost.

Help them out.

And ultimately, that's going to go ahead and help you by getting your mind in the right space.

My second mindset shift, I want you to start being brave, bold, and courageous.

What I'm talking about is I'm talking about the dreams that you have, the ideas that you have for your future.

And here's the truth of the matter.

The worst thing that we can do when we have a dream is to share it with other people.

Because the truth is, is that those other people don't have the same dream as you.

They don't see life the same as you do.

We are all unique.

And that's where I want you to stop waiting on permission for others to start chasing your dreams.

They are your dreams for a reason.

And for that, I want you to be bold enough to stand up for what you want, what you dream about.

It's your chance, your opportunity to make those dreams come true.

So be bold, be courageous and chase after them.

If you're somebody who wears eyeglasses, you know that you can't just put on a friend's pair of eyeglasses and be okay.

No, each set of eyeglasses are specific to that person.

And that's because that's their vision.

You can't see their vision, and neither can they see yours.

Think of it like that.

So if you want to share your vision with others, that's fine.

But I want you to be bold enough, courageous enough, and brave enough to realize that they may not understand.

They may not get it.

They may not see your same vision.

And that's okay.

But don't let that discourage you from what you want out of life, what you want the next year to be.

My third and final mindset shift that's going to give you the head start into 2023.

I want you to start focusing more on solutions.

Blaming others is probably the worst thing we can ever do for our own mindset.

So I want you to stop blaming people or even yourself for problems.

Instead, I want you to think of solutions and solutions only.

If your life isn't where you want it to be, don't blame somebody else.

Look back at yourself.

When things go wrong, don't look for somebody to blame.

Just figure out how to fix it.

When you're at the breakfast table and the bottle of milk spills, don't immediately jump to who did it?

Whose fault is it?

Jump up, grab some paper towels, and clean up the milk.

Look for solutions.

Stop looking for the problems.

And if you can start adopting that mindset, then when things do go sideways, well, you're already in the right headspace.

Because you're not looking at them from a negative, you're focusing on the positive.

You're focusing on a solution to the problem, not the problem itself.

Because that is so vital in life.

Because the truth is it's life.

And that means things are going to go wrong.

That means plans are going to get screwed up.

But what separates the person who succeeds from the person who fails is the person who succeeds focuses on the solutions rather than the problem.

And that's it.

Those are the three mindset shifts I want you to start adopting right now.

The new year is closing in, and I want you to be ready to tackle it, to tackle those goals, to crush those new year's resolutions, because you've already got your head in the right space, and you are ready to take on this day, of course, with this very podcast, Grit, Grace, and Inspiration.

Enjoy the day every day.

And until next week, start thinking: how can I live more boldly?

How can I serve better?

And what problems can I start solving?

With that said, my name is Kevin Lowe, your host, and this is Grit Grace and Inspiration.

Hey, real quick before you go, I have one last thought to leave you with.

I of course hope that you've enjoyed today's episode, but more importantly, I want to remind you that I never want you to listen to an episode of this podcast to hear something that I have to say or that my guest has to share and think, wow, I wish I could be like them.

I wish I could overcome my own challenges and do the great things that they are doing, but I just can't.

Well, friend, that's where you're wrong.

You are capable.

You are able.

And you darn sure are deserving of having all that you can imagine in this life.

There's nothing special about me or any guests I have on this podcast.

We are all just normal people trying to make it in this life.

And so I encourage you to take a look at yourself in the mirror and remind yourself that you know what?

I can do it too.

Now, of course, if you would like help along that way, reach out to me.

Whether that's as a listener of this podcast, a friend, or if you'd like to work with me as a coach.

My contact information is inside of every episode's show notes, just like this one.

So go down, check out my contact information, and reach out to me today.

With that said, I encourage you to take on the day every day with grit, grace, and inspiration.