There is nothing wrong with planning your day, or your week... as a matter of fact - I encourage you to do that because that way you are setting goals for yourself and having goals to achieve is always a good thing.

The only thing is, we so often tend to step in the trap of not living in the moment... being so focused on reaching that goal, getting to the next place... doing the next thing... worrying about what to do next, that we forget to appreciate the moment... the moment that is now.

But that is not the only distraction... we have many other distractions like the television, the newspaper... magazines... these distract us from stopping and smelling the roses.

I'll give you an example of what I mean...

I was in the gym tonight... and as I think I might have mentioned before, the gym is right in the front of the ship.... the view from there is spectacular... we are at sea so we are surrounded by the ocean.

But tonight I was in the gym at the right time to witness a most spectacular sunset. I couldn't help, I had to just stop what I was doing for a moment and watch the sun go down....

There were some clouds in the sky and the colors in the sky varied from deep reds and oranges to bright purples and soft pinks as the big red sun set on the horizon. The reflection on the water made a clear trail from where I was standing and the water was so calm it looked almost like I could walk on it and follow that trail all the way to the end of the earth.

I felt a smile on my face and gratitude in my heart.

This is the actual sunset...
I had my camera with me in the gym that day

Today my dad said something to me that sparked a thought I want to share with you.

I was telling him how I have found this new role model and how I am working towards having a body just like hers.  She is a fitness model and has a phenomenally hot, toned body.  She is the new picture on my fridge.

Anyway, so my dad said to me: "but my darling, you shouldn't be competing."  He was exactly right.  But the thing is, I am not competing with her, I am simply using her as a role model, setting a goal for myself.

See, there is a difference.  Firstly, I could never directly compete with this girl as she is probably at least 10 years younger than I am, and my body is different from hers... I will never look exactly as she does.

But what I can do, is strive towards being leaner and more toned like she is.

So this is my point.  You are unique... you should never directly compare yourself to someone else and think that you can achieve exactly the same results.  But what you can do, is use that person as a role model... as a way to set a goal for your self... someone that inspires you.

And this does not only go for weight loss or getting the body you want.  This is true for most things in life.  There are all kinds of very successful people in the world at all kinds of different skill sets... you might admire someone who is a very successful business leader or a top athlete.

What ever it is that you are interested in achieving, it is a great thing to find a role model - someone that inspires you and encourages you to be better.

Of course there are certain situations in life where we do compete... maybe in sport, or athletics, or chess or on the debate team... yes, we do engage in competition and we can strive towards being as good or better than someone else, but we can never aim to be exactly like someone else.

Because as much as I would like to have a body like this girl... our proportions are not the same, and we are not the same age and we do not have the same body types or even the same metabolisms.

But having her picture on my fridge or my desktop is what inspires me to go to the gym and work even so much harder and eat so much healthier.

So yes... there is a big difference between competing and setting goals... finding a role model and striving to be more like that person.

So don't feel like you should directly compare yourself to anyone... but rather find that person that inspires you to set a higher goal for yourself and gives you the drive to reach it! Someone who encourages you to reach for more...

Kind Regards

Vanessa Bader   

P.S. In both my Pizzazz Factor and my Hot Burning Body Systems I encourage you to develop self-confidence and a healthy self-image so you can be the best YOU!

(Thank you daddy for always giving your solid and sound advice! You and mom are always right!)