"Having the ability to control yourself, not give in to everyday temptations and constant distractions that happen all around you. Knowing the importance of keeping good habits because they will shape the human you will be in the future. Being methodical and analytical in the way you do things. Not leaving everyday life to chance — chance meetings, shifts in schedules, obstacles that show up out of nowhere and that threaten to derail your day."
-- Nela Canovic
"It trains your brain to focus on positive things and makes you think of what you already have in your life as opposed to what you do not. It keeps you grounded in your personal life so you are less focused on what others are doing with theirs, which is a huge waste of time and won’t help you get any closer to your personal goals."
-- Nela Canovic
"I believe that setting goals is like creating the roadmap of your life. You start with a clean slate (or blank page) and then take the time to really think what you want to put on it. What matters to you? What would you consider to be a successful life? How would you feel if you accomplished goal X, Y, or Z? When you reach one goal, in which direction should you go to get closer to the next one? All of this is an exercise is self-discovery but also self-discipline, because setting goals will help you instill positive habits you will practice every day."
-- -- Nela Canovic
"In reality, our brain is capable of developing a growth mindset — believing that we can accomplish whatever we want to do as long as we continuously make an effort to practice, improve, and gain knowledge of a specific skill.
A big part of the growth mindset is learning something new and learning it in a different way from just reading a textbook in school. It can be finding out a small detail that made you curious. How did he do that? Is this possible? How can I find out how to do it too? When you’re curious, you want to learn new things all the time. it doesn’t matter if you’re 10, 45, or 85. It’s just a matter of what type of mindset you have."
-- Nela Canovic
"Being intentional means training your brain to get focused on what it needs to do as soon as you wake up. Here’s how I practice it. I start my day with this question: “What is the one thing I am committed to completing today?” This technique gets my brain to start evaluating the goals that are important to me right now and forces me to prioritize one goal that needs attention immediately. In addition, I give myself the time to think about what’s important in my life, instead of letting other people or situations dictate what I should or shouldn’t be doing.
How can you do this?
Put it in writing. Write it in big letters on a sheet of paper and hang it on your bedroom or bathroom wall. Read it out loud as you start your day, for example as you’re brushing your teeth or getting dressed. Come up with an answer on the spot and answer it out loud. Then follow up by taking action: focus your energy throughout the day to completing your one thing."
-- Nela Canovic
"Practicing self-discipline means that if you want to focus on priorities, you should work on them early. As early in the day as possible — in fact, start right after breakfast. Do that task that you’ve been putting off all week before lunchtime. Write up a plan for the school or work week ahead of time. Finish up doing homework or reviewing your exam questions that you’ve been procrastinating on for days because you’d rather do something more fun. The benefit? You gain a sense of accomplishment early that will make you feel better about the whole day."
-- Nela Canovic
