Reinventing Yourself

Congratulations to the Canadian Men’s and Women’s hockey team for their gold medals in the 2014 Winter Olympics that ended in Sochi, Russia on Sunday.

On Saturday I joined over 200 hundred walkers, runners and volunteers for Regeneration Outreach Community of Brampton’s Coldest Night of the Year Campaign. My goal for the campaign was to raise $2,000 for the benefit of the homeless as well as to help build awareness of the issue of homelessness in our communities. Thanks to my friends, I collected $150.00. In the process I have walked and ran more than 50K for the month of February. Saturday night I walked approximately 15K. I never spent the night outdoors.

Over the past two to three weeks I have used my blogs and other social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Linkedin and Slideshare to speak about the issue of homelessness. I still believe that a night outdoors is perhaps one of best strategy to build awareness on the issue of homelessness in the Greater Toronto Area. I am going to take some time to re-think how and when I spend a night outdoors in solidarity of the homeless. This is a commitment I want to keep and one I truly need you encouragement and support to accomplish. This is not a dream I can accomplish alone. I need you!

Today I want to share my thoughts about reinventing yourself.

Last Thursday I had an awesome time presenting two workshops to the staff of TD’s Global Anti-Money Laundering Group – Testing. One of the presentations was on Bitcoin and its implications for regulations. Since then I have being thinking how can we reinvent ourselves? Bitcoin as you may know is a virtual currency being used by people on the Internet. Bitcoin is a relatively recent innovation. In 1998, Wei Dai first described on the cypherpunks mailing list, the idea of a new form of money that uses cryptography to control its creation and transactions, rather than a central authority. Later In 2009, Satoshi Nakamoto published the first Bitcoin specification and proof of concept in a cryptography mailing list. It is perhaps the novelty of Bitcoin that got me thinking about how we can reinvent ourselves. How can you reinvent yourself? How can you be as new?

I have reinvented myself several times to forge a new path for myself. Each time that I reinvent myself, I take control of future. I am usually very deliberate and I reinvent myself with foresight. Here are 5 steps to reinvent yourself:

Ask yourself: “what changes do you want to make in your life?”

In order to reinvent yourself, you need to take a moment to reflect on the changes you want to make in your life. This will help you to create a vision for your future. Why do you want to reinvent yourself? List the things you want to change. Document the big changes you want to make. For me I want to help bring awareness to the homeless in the Greater Toronto Area. To reinvent yourself, you need to examine the changes you want to make and create a vision. This will help you make your future come alive.

Create a plan for making the changes you identified

Remember a vision without a plan is a dream. Once you have identified the changes you want to make in your life, you should create a plan with specific goals and activities that will give you a new future. Your plan will be a part of your commitment to reinventing yourself. You plan will help you break your goals into workable tasks. You should also surround yourself with visual reminders of the reinvented life you would like to create.  What do you need to do to reinvent yourself?

Share your plans to reinvent yourself with others

I was speaking to my friend Mike few days ago and he was telling me about his new job. He was so excited I could not help but feeling happy for him. I am usually inspired when others share with me the great things that are happening in their lives. The same is true for you. As you are reinventing yourself, share your plans with others. Ask your loved ones, coworkers, or any other people in your life for their support during this period of adjustment. Explain to them why these changes are important to you. I use my blog and other forms of social media to share my plans. My wife, Michelle, is my greatest critic and supporter. She keeps me transparent and accountable. For example, Saturday evening as I was heading out for my walk/run she said you better have dinner since you are sleeping outdoors. She knew I was serious about sleeping outdoors but she could not see my inner fears. As you are inventing yourself, share your plan with others let them know you are serious and they will help to keep you transparent and accountable.

Visit your vision every day

When you are reinventing yourself you should visit your vision every day. Each morning I start my day by looking out the window of my kitchen towards the sun in the east. Even on gloomy winter days I look towards the sun in the east. As you are reinventing yourself, you should always look at your vision and your path towards your future. The sun in the east is a point of reference for me just as your vision is the compass pointed to your reinvented life. Even in the midst of any resistance or struggles you may encounter on your path you should always visit your mission. Ask yourself, “What can I do in this moment to keep moving forward?”

One of the things I did this month to accomplish my walk/run for the homeless was no matter how I felt lonely, self-critical, tired, lazy, or disappointed I still went for my walk/run. I did it because I wanted to maintain my momentum. Even when you do not feel energetic or hopeful you have to push ahead. Yes, I admitted I allowed my fear to stop me from spending the nights outdoors. However, I acted on my fear of the cold and went walking/running and for me as small as it may seem it took courage. Remember true courage is not about not feeling fear but it is about feeling fear and acting anyway. Visit you vision daily and choose courage instead of letting your fear choose your future for you.

Stay motivated and inspired

A key success factor in reinventing yourself is staying motivated and inspired. You have to maintain a positive outlook on life and remain motivated throughout your journey to reinvent yourself. You have to be mentally strong. Avoid naysayers as they can suck your energy away. Surround yourself with images that remind you of your vision for your future. Keep a scorecard of your progress. It will help you to feel a sense of accomplishing and boost your confidence.

Remember reinvention never stops. To reinvent yourself, you have to start from scratch. You have to always be in motion and moving forward.

How will you reinvent yourself?

Mark McKenzie is a leading Subject Matter Expert in financial services regulation and supervision as well as a professional motivational speaker, corporate trainer and youth mentor.  He can be contacted by email mastbmckenzie@gmail.com or by telephone 647-406-4622. Read my blog http://mastbmckenzie.blogspot.ca/ and always write me a comment and share. Follow me on Twitter @mackynacky. Connect with me on www.youtube.com, Google+, Facebook and Linkedin.