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Monday, November 7, 2016

What is your "Why"?

As many of you may know, I’ve had some struggles over the last 10 years or so. Well probably longer than that, but things went south when I lost my job at Qualcomm Inc. I’ve talked about my weight problem and my continued recovery from compulsive overeating. Yet a solution has presented itself.

Recently I started working on some stuff, and I had an epiphany. Now I’ve not had many of those. But this one came because of looking at my past and how I’d behaved in those times. Lets call it a review of things long gone. In my studies, I was asked what my “why” was. Why is it you want to change your life in this manner.

What if you knew why you did something? I’m not talking about bad habits here. I’m talking about the times you were successful at anything. What made that time, event or action different then all the other times that failed, maybe even at doing something you tried before?

Let’s take my 250-pound weight loss, yes I still have 250 or so to go, but I’m halfway there. Something I’d tried to do before but never had success for this long. I just took my 3rd year token, In 12 step parlance that means it has been 3 years since I have compulsively ate food. Something I’ve never done before. But have tried hundreds of times before. What changed?

How I thought about the weight loss.

I’ve always known that eating better would produce good results, but that had not helped. I know I was killing myself and my family was suffering due to my obesity. But that “fluffy emotional appeal” was not enough.

On October 22nd 2013, I found a why. Well started to anyway. When I stopped worrying about what I ate, and focused on why I ate, everything changed.

I dumped my “red food” list and forgot about my “banned food” list. I focused on what became my “Abstinence Statement” – To eat for the healthy purpose of nutrition. Whenever I saw anything I wanted to eat, I simply asked myself was it for nutrition or some other reason?

That simple shift has changed my relationship with food. I still get to eat whatever I want, I just don’t want the same things anymore.

What if I could apply this to other areas of my life?

What if the why for going to work was more than earning money?

Part of what drove this point home to me is this video I ran across. It's less than 4 minutes, done by a comedian named Michael Jr. Watch this video and then ask yourself some questions:


  1. Is what I’m doing right now my purpose?
  2. Could I get excited helping other achieve success?
  3. Is my happiness based on what I do and have or is it based on the why I do it?
In the video, Michael’s audience member sang 2 very different versions of the same song. One was accurate and well balanced, the second was full of his own soul.

Can we find our “own soul” in whatever we do?

I Can only speak for me when I say, the times I’ve been at my best, is when I had a purpose that inspired me. I lost my inspiration at Qualcomm Inc years ago, and my job performance showed it.

Now because I’ve learned to “question with boldness” everything, I’m going to school and opening a business. My journey could not be more exciting. Sure I have challenges, but it’s not what happens to me that matters, but what I do that sets me apart in the eyes of man and more importantly God.

Set yourself apart, find your why!

Gregor - Back from the brink! From there and back again. A spiritual Hobbits journey.

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