Plato once described Thinking this way: “Thinking: the talking of the soul with itself.”

Henry Ford had this to say about it:

“Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is probably the reason why so few engage in it.”

I recently saw a poll of the most favorite Winnie The Pooh quotes of all time. The one I was looking to write about today was, indeed, in the Top 10:

“Think, think, think.”

Do you think? Really think? On purpose? By yourself? With absolutely no distractions? Or do merely just go through life on Autopilot, telling yourself that you really are thinking all the time?

Years ago a mentor of mine discussed this subject. After hearing his talk – and then spending some time alone THINKING about it – I realized that I had been kidding myself. I had been just going through the motions most days, doing the tasks that I had to do every day:

Get up to a screaming alarm clock.
Get ready for work.
Eat.
Drive to work.
Work.
Eat.
Work some more.
Drive home from work.
Eat.
Watch TV.
Go to bed.
Repeat.

Sound familiar?

Where in that list did I sit down, by myself, without distractions, and just THINK?

Nowhere.

Here is my question for you today:

Where is THINK in your list of daily activities?

If you are like most people (and like I was), you are probably saying, “It is not on my list.” That’s OK. What matters is that you have realized it. As you have probably heard, the first step to fixing a problem is admitting that you have one.

Now what?

Well, you could choose to move on with the rest of your Autopilot life, or…

…you could DECIDE TODAY to change that.

When I started to put THINK in my calendar at a specific time, I started doing it. Over time, I found my rhythm. What worked best for me was to get up a little earlier (before anyone else in my home was up). I left our pet in his crate. I went to the same place each time, and had in front of me a notepad and pen. I would write my biggest goal on the top of the page. Then, I would sit there and just…

…THINK.

It is amazing what came to my mind. Some days there was very little that I wrote down. Some days there was a lot. Some days, though the list was short of what I wrote, the quality was large. Many times these thoughts that came to mind – when acted upon – became some of the biggest reasons why my family relationships improved, my business grew, and/or my health improved. Regardless of the result, I started feeling a LOT better about where I was heading in life (in all areas) because I was taking the time to sit down and THINK about it.

So now you have a choice. Change nothing, and nothing will change, or decide today to…

…Think, think, think.

I think you will make a wise decision.