a year of Wooden: week 22

Posted on June 2, 2014 by dallaswoodburn

A new week means a new year of Wooden challenge! Since we are now into the month of June {can you believe it??} we are on to a new focus for this challenge, which also comes from Coach Wooden’s 7 Point Creed: Give thanks for your blessings every day.

January: Drink deeply from good books.
February: Make friendship a fine art.
March: Help others.
April: Build a shelter against a rainy day (financially).
May: Be true to yourself.
June: Give thanks for your blessings every day.

But before we move onto June, a quick moment of reflection on last week’s question, relating to May’s challenge to “Be true to yourself.” If you were to reach back and give advice to your 10-year-old self, what would you say? Looking into the future, what advice do you think your 90-year-old self might give your current self?

For advice I would give to my 10-year-old self, I wrote: Hold onto your curiosity, creativity, passion and kindness — they are your greatest gifts. Also, don’t feel self-conscious about your nose. It is perfect exactly as it is.

If my 90-year-old self were to give advice to my current self, it might be something like this: Don’t doubt yourself. Don’t worry about the opinions and criticisms of other people. Savor the small moments. Cherish the relationships you are blessed with. Time with the people you love is infinitely important than the work you get done: always remember that.

For the month of June, we’ll be working on cultivating gratitude. This week’s challenge is to start a gratitude jar or gratitude journal: every night before you go to bed, write down at least one good thing that happened that day, something or someone you are grateful for. {Here’s a post I wrote earlier this year about starting a gratitude jar.}

Hope you are having a masterpiece Monday! And a very special welcome home to my brother — can’t wait to see you Wednesday, buddy!

a year of Wooden: week 20

Posted on May 20, 2014 by dallaswoodburn

Hi, friends! I’m a day late with this post because yesterday turned into a catch-up day after my whirlwind weekend! But I’m back now for this week’s year of Wooden challenge.

On a personal note, please send your thoughts and prayers for my brother and his MBA classmates who are in Bangkok on a school trip … Thailand has just enacted martial law and while Greg and his group are safe, as his protective older sister I can’t help but worry a little. Thanks in advance for your good thoughts!

January: Drink deeply from good books.
February: Make friendship a fine art.
March: Help others.
April: Build a shelter against a rainy day (financially).
May: Be true to yourself.

For the month of May, we’ll be focusing on the very first item of Coach Wooden’s 7-Point Creed: “Be true to yourself.” Each week, I’ll be posting a question for you to reflect on, perhaps through journaling or meditation. The goal is that by the end of May, you’ll have a clear idea of what it means to be your happiest, most authentic self so that you can work on being true to that self.

Last week, the question to reflect upon was: What in your life makes you feel drained, overwhelmed or fearful?

I journaled about my tendency to sometimes overcommit myself, which can make me feel exhausted and overwhelmed. I’m slowly learning {and re-learning, and re-learning!} that when I hold myself back from trying to do “all the things” and instead commit only to activities and endeavors that I feel excited and passionate about, then it works out best for everyone involved. Instead of overextending myself, I have more energy to devote to these things that I DO care the most about. I’m also learning that, as much as I love feeling busy and productive, I need to give myself days to relax and recharge too. {Tim Kreider wrote a fantastic essay for The New York Times on this topic: “The Busy Trap.”}

This week, here is your question to consider: What in your life makes you feel most alive, vibrant, connected and strong?

a year of Wooden: week 19

Posted on May 12, 2014 by dallaswoodburn

Hi, everyone, and happy Monday! I hope you had a wonderful Mother’s Day weekend. Tomorrow I’ll share some photos from my lovely weekend at home, but today it’s time for this week’s year of Wooden challenge.

January: Drink deeply from good books.
February: Make friendship a fine art.
March: Help others.
April: Build a shelter against a rainy day (financially).
May: Be true to yourself.

Last week, the question to reflect upon was: If you won a zillion dollars and no longer had to work for money, how would you spend your time?

I would spend my time visiting and laughing with the people who matter most to me; traveling across the U.S. and around the world; writing pieces I’m passionate about without worrying about anyone reading {or not reading} them; volunteering for social justice causes; teaching; reading; going to plays; planting a huge organic garden; cooking and baking. I feel incredibly lucky that, even though I haven’t won a zillion-dollar lottery and do need to work for money, my life includes pretty much all these things that I love and my job is something I would do for free because it fulfills and nourishes me.

This week, here is your question to consider: What in your life makes you feel drained, overwhelmed or fearful?

a year of Wooden: week 18

Posted on May 5, 2014 by dallaswoodburn

Hi, everyone, and welcome to all the new subscribers! Thanks to all of you for spreading the word about my blog … it means so much to me that you let me be a part of your life. Thanks for reading!

Monday means it’s time for this week’s year of Wooden challenge. Today we’re introducing a new challenge for the month of May: Be true to yourself.

January: Drink deeply from good books.
February: Make friendship a fine art.
March: Help others.
April: Build a shelter against a rainy day (financially).
May: Be true to yourself.

This week, here is your question to consider: If you won a zillion dollars and no longer had to work for money, how would you spend your time?

a year of Wooden: week 17

Posted on April 28, 2014 by dallaswoodburn

Hi, friends! Happy Monday! Time for this week’s year of Wooden challenge, wrapping up our last week of April before we transition into May…

January: Drink deeply from good books.
February: Make friendship a fine art.
March: Help others.
April: Build a shelter against a rainy day (financially).

Last week, the challenge was to make a small change of habit that results in more money in your savings account. When I was working as a graduate student teacher at Purdue, my paycheck was deposited into my checking account automatically each month, and I began immediately transferring a couple hundred dollars into my savings account. And as a result, my savings grew steadily each month.

Now that I’ve graduated and stopped working at Purdue, I’m working as a freelance writer and editor and don’t have a paycheck automatically deposited into my checking account each month. So for this week’s challenge, I’ve made a small change of habit of depositing a quarter of the checks I receive into my savings account instead of my checking account.

For this final week of April, the challenge is to make a financial goal that you want to accomplish this year and an action plan to achieve it. My goal is to put $1,000 into my Roth IRA by the end of the year, which means I need to save $20 a week, or about $85 a month.

I’ll leave you with this quote from Coach Wooden that always inspires me:

Question of the day:

What is a financial goal you have for this year?
What steps might you implement to achieve this goal?

a year of Wooden: week 16

Posted on April 25, 2014 by dallaswoodburn

Hi, friends! I just got back from a lovely trip up the California coast to Mendocino {pictures & highlights coming tomorrow!} … we unexpectedly did not have cell phone or Internet service, so I was unable to post this week’s year of Wooden challenge until now. I guess it is more of a weekend year of Wooden challenge at this point. Thanks for being patient with me!

January: Drink deeply from good books.
February: Make friendship a fine art.
March: Help others.
April: Build a shelter against a rainy day.

This metaphorical shelter includes family, friends, good work, faith — but, since we will focus on these elements in other months, right now we are focusing on the financial interpretation.

Last week, the challenge was to take one of your weekly discretionary purchases and drop the money into your spare-change jar. Instead of going to Starbucks for an afternoon pick-me-up, I brewed some black tea at home and sipped it out in the sunshine. In Mendocino, we packed brown-bag lunches a couple days and enjoyed picnic meals out on the hiking trail and at a rest stop along the highway instead of eating out in a restaurant every day.

This weekend, the challenge is to make a small change of habit that results in more money in your savings account. For example, when I was working as a graduate student teacher at Purdue, my paycheck was deposited into my checking account automatically each month. I found the more money that was in my checking account, the more money I was likely to spend. So I began immediately transferring a couple hundred dollars into my savings account, knowing that I could always transfer it back to my checking account if I needed it to pay bills. But, guess what? I never even missed it. And as a result, my savings grew steadily each month.

Another small habit might be related to the “cash back” incentives of many credit cards. Instead of using rewards points to purchase gift cards or material items, you might think about using your rewards points to deposit cash back into your savings account. I started doing this towards the end of last year and am on track to put about $200 of “free money” into my savings account this year.

Before I go, thanks to blog reader Tracy for telling me about financial guru Dave Ramsey — I love this quote of his:

Questions of the day:

What are your current savings habits?
What small changes could you make to ensure more money ends up in your savings account at the end of the month or year?

a year of Wooden: week 15

Posted on April 14, 2014 by dallaswoodburn

Hi, everyone! Monday means it’s time for this week’s year of Wooden challenge!

January: Drink deeply from good books.
February: Make friendship a fine art.
March: Help others.
April: Build a shelter against a rainy day.

This metaphorical shelter includes family, friends, good work, faith — but, since we will focus on these elements in other months, right now we are focusing on the financial interpretation.

Last week, the challenge was to keep track of where you spend your money — even small amounts. Not counting staple items like groceries and drugstore purchases, I tend to spend my discretionary money at Starbucks, bookstores, the movie theater, and going out to lunch at places like Panera.

This week, the challenge is to take just ONE of your weekly discretionary purchases and drop the money into your spare-change jar instead. For example, maybe I’ll swap one of my Starbucks chai lattes for a mug of home-brewed green tea on my own back porch. Or instead of meeting up with a friend for lunch at a restaurant, maybe we can meet up for something free like a walk outside in this beautiful weather.

Having a savings safety net is so important, and these little actions can really add up! I’m inspired by these words from Coach Wooden:

Questions of the day:

Where do you tend to spend your discretionary money?
What small change are you going to make this week to drop a little extra money into your spare change jar?
Have you ever had the experience of not taking the time to do something right the first time, and having to go back and do it over?

a year of Wooden: week 7

Posted on February 18, 2014 by dallaswoodburn

Happy Tuesday, everyone! Hope you’re easing back into the workweek all right after the long weekend. Here is an inspiring piece about random acts of kindness that will make you smile {credit goes to my amazing brother for sharing this with me!}: http://thoughtcatalog.com/brianna-wiest/2014/02/25-random-acts-of-kindness-we-should-all-be-doing-more-often/

And now, it’s time for the next installment of a year of Wooden!

This year I am doing “a year of Wooden” following the teachings of Coach John Wooden, and in particular his 7-Point Creed.

January: Drink deeply from good books.
February: Make friendship a fine art.

Last week, the challenge was to send valentines to your friends. I mailed valentines to a dozen or so of my friends and family, and I received some sweet cards and text messages in return, and even some beautiful flowers!

This week, reach out and do a favor for a friend. Examples: bring a sick or stressed friend dinner, run an errand for a friend, drop by a friend’s office with coffee, pick up something for a friend at the store. Sometimes the most meaningful acts of kindness are those done without asking!

Have a masterpiece week!

Questions of the evening:

How do you get back into the swing of things after a long weekend?
What was a nice favor a friend has done for you?

Day-By-Day Masterpiece

Tag Archives: year of Wooden

a year of Wooden: week 22

a year of Wooden: week 20

a year of Wooden: week 19

a year of Wooden: week 18

a year of Wooden: week 17

Question of the day:

a year of Wooden: week 16

Questions of the day:

a year of Wooden: week 15

Questions of the day:

a year of Wooden: week 7

Questions of the evening: