The here and now is all we have and if we play it right it’s all we need. So said Ann Richards. I agree. The most important moment is the present moment. But how to live that?

Many of us live out our lives with one eye on the past, a past that’s already gone – and the other on the future, that’s not here yet. Choosing to live in the past or in the future steals your todays and robs you of living to the fullest.

Living in the present, takes work, time and humility. If you are new to this philosophy, here are just five of many practices to get you started:

1. Live more simply. Cut back on what you don’t want and what you don’t really need. Live as lean as you can. Don’t let all the things overtake you. They are just ‘stuff.’
2. Stay in control of your attitude. Strive to stay positive in spite of all you hear and observe. It is easier to give in to societal convention and cynicism, but don’t. Nothing of any real, lasting value has ever been produced by a cynic.
3. Be more compassionate and considerate of others. Start today, right now. You’ll be amazed at what flows back to you when you do.
4. Make a conscious effort to fully appreciate the ‘little things,’ the sights, sounds and smells, and the various emotions you feel and encounter each day.
5. Love your work. If you don’t or can’t, resolve to appreciate the good things about it. Then get involved with something outside of work that feeds your soul and gladdens your heart.

Live forward. Never look back. No one knows what the future holds so give each day your best shot. When you have gone as far as you can go, you’ll know what to do next.

It’s not whether you win or lose but how you play the game.

Want to step up your dream or, perhaps, imagine a new one? Questions? Text/call me 416.450.8867 or email drew@drewsimmie.com. Follow me on. Twitter

Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage considering your own imperfections but instantly set about remedying them – everyday begin the task anew. Saint Francis de Sales.

Patience is a virtue. With few exceptions there are no overnight successes. Nothing is as straight forward and easy as it seems. Building any kind of enterprise or building a life, for that matter, takes courage, commitment and unending faith in YOU.

1. Be clear about what you want.
2. Be clear about why you want to do it.
3. Be clear about who you are.
4. Be clear about what’s making you hesitate.
5. Be clear about the value you bring.

How many boxes did you check off?

Want to step up your dream or, perhaps, imagine a new one? Questions? Text/call me 416.450.8867 or email drew@drewsimmie.com. Follow me on. Twitter

 It takes a long time to become young. Pablo Picasso.

Designing a unique, successful lifestyle – however you define success – doesn’t happen overnight.

And it isn’t easy, however much we wish it were.

There are very few Mozarts. Most of us have to work at it everyday. It’s a process. Two steps forward. One step back. Repeat.

The recipe for success is filled with a long list of ingredients including our knowledge, skills and personal values.  Chief among the latter are courage, a positive, open attitude, an unfailing belief in yourself and a hopeful outlook.

All absolutely necessary today in our  digital age. Many people can actually start to feel old when they hit 40. But that doesn’t have to be. There is much, much more past 40.

It’s all about your attitude and how you feel,

As the old song goes, ” You can go to extremes with impossible schemes, you can laugh when your dreams fall apart at the seems… and life gets more exciting with each passing day, and love is either in your heart or on it’s way. Don’t you know that it’s worth every treasure on earth to be young at heart.” From Young At Heart, written by Johnny Richards.

A youthful outlook and a can-do spirit…… and staying young at heart. That’s the ticket.

So here’s a question for you:

How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you were?

Hmmm….

Want to step up your dream or, perhaps, imagine a new one? Questions? Text/call me 416.450.8867 or email drew@drewsimmie.com. Follow me on. Twitter

Throw your dreams into space like a kite, and you do not know what it will bring back; a new life, a new friend, a new love, a new country. Anais Nin.

Artistry isn’t just confined to the world of the arts and music.

There is artistry in business, too. especially in today’s constantly changing, fast shifting, technology-driven market place.

There’s the art of the deal, putting people and resources together. There’s art in product design, in the creation of a best-selling app or a new service. There’s art in being able to read a market, to know when to get in and when to get out.

Creativity lies within the person who is willing to take a risk when others wouldn’t; someone who sees innovative solutions to existing problems. Someone who envisages a product or service the world hasn’t yet realized it can’t live without. Someone who through their actions improves people’s lives.

If there’s an artist in you, just waiting to get out… let it soar today!

Want to step up your dream or, perhaps, imagine a new one? Questions? Text/call me 416.450.8867 or email drew@drewsimmie.com. Follow me on. Twitter

The Zen Master poured his visitor’s teacup full and then kept on pouring.

The visitor watched until he could no longer restrain himself.

“It’s overfull,” he exclaimed. “No more will go in.”

“Like this cup,” the Zen Master replied, “you are full of your own opinions and assumptions. How can you learn your truth until you first empty your cup?”

Every epiphany has a common point. Regardless of the specific event or whatever triggers the enquiry, something happens that awakens our consciousness or reminds us that we have drifting.

In our heart of hearts, we know that we have to stop and take stock. It can be any number of events and there is no particular age when it happens.

Perhaps, it’s getting caught in a company restructuring. Maybe it’s the loss of someone you loved dearly, through death or divorce. Perhaps it’s a financial failure or an unexpected, life-threatening illness. For some it is the ticking of the clock.

Then again, maybe it’s none of the above; it’s just a deep-in-your-soul feeling that you’re off the track and it’s time to get real.

One day, whatever it is, you realize that you are all caught up in a life that is no longer yours. You started out with your own dreams and plans, and dutifully followed suit, but along the way, someone or something hijacked them.

It’s at this point when you begin the long, slow process of growing into fuller maturity and becoming more human. For whatever reason, experience, education and observation begin to converge and life suddenly starts coming together in a manner it never had before.

Until you reach this point, the surface questions are no more than idle chatter cluttering up your mind. Life’s daily routines and the idleness of the media seem to take on an unwarranted importance that only serve to further distract you from what you think is truly important.

Everything looks all right, but it feels all wrong.

Do I have this right, you wonder? Could someone have switch the script when I wasn’t watching?

If this resonating, the Zen Master may have had it right. There’s a good chance that your cup, too, is running over the brim and a rethink is in order.

Life is moving at lightening speed. Change is rampant. It’s giving many pause to stop and take a look at themselves and at what they’re doing. More to the point, why?

Could a personal reinvention be on order, or at the very least, a new challenge?

None of us are who we were when we first started out. We reinvented ourselves many times along the way and every time took on a new challenge.

Perhaps, it’s time again. By stretching the limits of what you have allowed yourself to do in the past, you were able to do more than you ever thought possible.

Maybe you have have been thinking about a new business, moving to a new city, going back to school, or making other changes in your business or personal life.

You only get one life. Resolve today, right now, that you are going to do what you have to do to live it on your terms and, in the process, honour your heart.

Want to step up your dream or, perhaps, imagine a new one? Questions? Text/call me 416.450.8867 or email drew@drewsimmie.com. Follow me on. Twitter