Terri King Speaks

Ever put things off? You know what I’m talking about, PROCRASTINATION!

It’s a sneaky thief. Maybe you’re asking yourself, “ What does it really cost? Is it really that big of a deal?”

Oh yea. It’s the culprit of lost opportunity, missed chances, stress and anxiety.

Here’s one example that puts a monetary value on it:

I had an opportunity to buy a house in Woodfin in 2005.
My client would sell it to me for $65,000.
I had put off settling some personal matters that prevented me from being able to move on the deal.
I had to let it go.
The house sold for $104,000 a week after it was listed.
It has a great rental history and is worth about $140,000 now.
I lost $75,000 in equity and $18,000 in rental income, for a grand total of: $93,000 conservatively.

I wish I didn’t have more of these beautiful examples but I do.

The moral of the story: Don’t put it off. Get on it and get it done.

Terri King

You know those moments when you know you’ve said the wrong thing as soon as it comes out of your mouth. Yea, me too. No matter how hard you try, you just can’t pull the words back into your mouth. I’ve had more than one incident of that lately.

My recent blundering around has led me to thinking about damage control once the foot is in the mouth.

Here goes:

You could laugh light-heartedly giving the impression you meant to say that but it was all in good humor. With this one, you’re hoping the recipient actually finds some humor in your blunder. It’s an option in most situations except maybe at a funeral, where you might be better off with your foot in your mouth than a smile on your face.

You could straightway acknowledge that you should not have said that and you didn’t mean it that way at all. This one seems to lead to more awkwardness but there may be a time when you just have to bear down and do what you gotta do. Fess up and take your punishment. Use of this approach is best, I think, when you have stepped in it with a close friend or family member. They’re more likely to forgive you anyway.

You could ignore it altogether if there’s any chance the person didn’t hear you well or there are other immediate distractions to divert you, the conversation or the other person. This one seems to be the riskiest approach and could be perceived and a serious inconsideration if the disenfranchised person actually did hear your blunder. You’re bound to get tagged as insensitive if that happens. Be careful with this one. It’s best used at loud parties.

I welcome any other damage control ideas you may have. Lord knows this week I need them.

Terri King

If you recall, 9 weeks ago I posted a blog about my niece joining the Army.

Well, she just graduated from boot camp.

We went to Ft Leonard Wood, Missouri for the event. There were hundreds of them there and most of them just 19 or 20 years old. BABIES!!

The thing I keep thinking is these kids are going to be the ones fighting for our country in this very unsettled world we are living in.

Their chances of seeing wartime duty is very good.

Today, I just ask you to pray for the men and women in uniform and their families.

I fear the uncertain days ahead will leave more of them paying the ultimate price for freedom.

God Bless America.

Terri King

Life is noisy. The phone’s ringing, the baby’s crying, the TV’s blaring, the dog’s barking. You name it, right?

Often, I think, we go day after day without a moment of meaningful silence.

Okay, you say, what’s the big deal?

Well, it’s only in quiet time that we are able to visit with ourselves intimately.

It’s a time for healing, a time for calming, and a time for searching.

Time well spent.

3 Things to do to create quiet:

1. Turn off the TV/Radio ( This mas feel uncomfortable at first, stay with it.)

2. Pick a place you like to relax in.

3. Set a definite time period aside for quietness. (Try 5 minutes to start.)

I’m gonna hush now so you can be quiet.

Terri King

I was having a meaningful conversation with a friend today.

We laughed, we cried and before we knew it nearly 2 hours had passed.

A piece of the conversation was about following your heart.

You really can’t go wrong when you do what you know is right for you.

Whatever the consequences, it will be worth being true to yourself and understanding to others.

If you are facing a situation and wondering what to do, do the thing you know is right and the rest really will work itself out.

A heart-felt talk with a good friend is the stuff that great days are made of.

Terri King

Special thanks to Brandi Henson for her contributions to this posting.

Got problems? Sure. We all do.

What we don’t seem to have enough of sometimes are solutions, right?

When you’ve exhausted every logical answer, perhaps a look around might pay off.

Solutions can be found in the most unrelated places to the problem.

It has been said that Henry Ford got the idea for the first assembly line construction of a car from a slaughter house.

3 exercises that might generate a creative solution:

1. Go ahead and explore a subject you’ve always wanted to know more about but couldn’t come up with a good reason to spend the time on it.

2. Choose a successful person you have an interest in. Learn something of their challenges and how they surmounted them.

3. Pick up a magazine you wouldn’t normally read and thumb through it. Observe the articles. What are they writing about? Observe the advertisements. What are they selling?

The idea is to walk far enough away from the trees that you might be able to look back and see the forest.

Happy hunting.

Terri King

While spending a long weekend on the beach, I was watching a family of 5 when it became clear they had lost one of their children.

The mother was screaming hysterically what sounded like, “Byron, Byron!”

Some people around her including myself went over and asked, “What’s he wearing?” She replied through her bursting tears, “ blue shorts with orange frogs, he’s carrying a yellow bucket and a blue shovel, he’s 3 and he can’t swim!”

As the lifeguard came to handle the situation, we set out in all directions combing the beach looking for a lost little boy.

We had gone nearly ½ mile up the shoreline when I began to think he couldn’t have come this far. And then I saw a lifeguard coming holding the hand of a crying child wearing, guess what?

I was never so happy to see blue shorts, orange frogs, a yellow bucket and blue shovel in my life.

I said, “Do you have our lost boy?” See the minute I got involved he was my child too.

He said yes. I rubbed his little blonde head and tried to comfort him by saying, “all right, your mom is waiting for you, good job.”

At that moment, and every time I have thought about it since, I am unable to hold back the tears.

The loss of something so absolutely irreplaceable is devastating. Equally as emotional is the joy of finding it again.

Love on your people today.

Terri King

In the course of one day, we have an overwhelming list of responsibilities and obligations that we have taken upon our shoulders.

Our lives are moving at such high rates of speed we’re often plagued with obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and the like.

The truth is, without you your day stops in its tracks.

If you don’t take care of yourself all your plans and promises will be for naught.

Here’s 3 basic things we can do to nurture good health:

1.Feed your mind the right stuff: Read something positive each night before bed and each morning before you begin your day.

2.Feed your body the right stuff: You know what to do. Keep the junk to a minimum.

3.Move with purpose: Make everywhere you go a deliberate action. It will increase the calories burned, strengthen core muscles, and cause people to see you as a person who knows what they want and where they are going.

I have 3 friends battling cancer right now.

Every healthy day is priceless. Let’s don’t waste it.

Terri King

Every successful journey that arrives at its proper destination at the appointed time starts with a plan.

Life is our ultimate journey. What’s the plan?

Take out a piece of paper, decide what you want out of your experience of life, and write it down.

A life plan isn’t a static plan. It can and should shift and move as you go along.

You might find this exercise exciting and fun. I know I always do.

I’m modifying and rewriting mine right now.

I know what you’re thinking: “Terri, what’s with all this plan, plan, plan, you’re always talking up?”

It’s one thing I do that helps me keep my emotions on an even keel especially when times are rough.

And most of all, it puts you in the driver seat of life and builds self-confidence.

You know, confidence is…… sexy!!

You’re all beautiful people.

Terri King

I know we all have so much going on in our personal lives, but this is worth taking time to consider.

Maybe you heard, one June 2, 2008 Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, while making a speech said this about YOUR country:

“ Today, the time for the fall of the satanic power of the United States has come and the countdown to the annihilation of the emperor of power and wealth has started.”

What countdown? What annihilation?

Whether you are Democrat or Republican and regardless of your religious beliefs, we are all Americans and I’m sure we would all prefer to continue to enjoy our free lives as we know them.

This is one world and we are in it.

Please be vigilant.

You can make a difference.

Terri King