You're Not Stuck

✨ In this episode, You’re not Stuck—you’re in a habit you forgot you built.

One bad moment can ruin your day, but one habit can change your life. In this episode of On the Fly, discover how small, daily actions can rewire your mindset, replace negativity with possibilities, and even lift the people around you.

Your 7-day challenge starts now.

You’re Not Stuck—You’re Just in a Habit.

Yes, a single bad moment, a rough headline, or a tense conversation can throw off your entire day. Before you know it, your thoughts are spinning in a hamster wheel of frustration and negativity.

Here’s the reality: you don’t have to stay on that wheel. The secret isn’t a lightning bolt of motivation—it’s something quieter but far more powerful: habit.

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.” – Aristotle.

Mindset doesn’t change through grand gestures—it changes through small, repeatable actions.

Your brain is constantly building pathways—tiny roads that become freeways the more you travel them. Keep focusing on what’s wrong, and you’ll pave a superhighway to frustration. But start focusing on what’s right? You’re building a whole new road.

For me, that “new superhighway” began with a simple ritual: every morning, I’d find one inspiring quote or idea. At first, it was just my personal "Thought for the Day." Over time, that habit became this podcast, On the Fly.

The purpose is still the same—give you (and me) something positive to anchor the day.

Ditch the Excuse-ology

Every day, we get to choose:

You can be an “Excuse-ologist”—an expert at talking yourself out of change.
Or take one small action that nudges your mind in a better direction.

This isn’t about pretending life is perfect. It’s about training your mind to look for possibilities and hope, even when things get messy.

“We become what we think about—but the thinking is up to us.” – Earl Nightingale.

Your 7-Day Challenge – Right now, you have more power to spread positivity than any generation before us. Yes, social media can be a mess—but it can also be a megaphone for encouragement. Let’s use it for good.

So, here’s your challenge:

For the next seven days, each morning, find one positive quote, one uplifting thought, or one beautiful image that sparks something in you.

Then—share it with one person. A friend. A coworker. A family member. Someone who might need it more than they’ll admit.

After a week, notice the shift—not just in your mindset, but maybe in theirs too. Then come back to On the Fly and tell me what happened.

Today’s starting thought:

“He has not learned the first lesson of life who does not every day surmount a fear.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Let’s build that habit—together.

I'm Patrick Ball. Stay curious, ask questions. See you next time.

Comments

Anonymous said…

You’re a positive influencer

August 16, 2025 at 7:36 AM

The Compass of Cuba: Mom

🎄 Preview of this week's On the Fly blog: A Holiday Tribute to Mom. As the holidays hustle with pixels and beeps, the world scrolls along in a smartphone-y sleep. I log off for a moment—just one little minute— To breathe in the past and to sit myself in it. My mind doesn’t wander to faraway places, Or trips full of tickets and new airport faces. Instead, it drifts backward, as memories do, to Cuba, Illinois, where the best moments grew. To a home full of warmth, in the wintry Midwest, Where my mother—dear “Marcie”—put love to the test. With a smile that could melt the most frigid of dawns, and hugs that hung on you like shivering fawns. She came from La Rochelle in France, brave and bright, Across oceans and war shadows, into new light. A town full of strangers soon felt like her own, And her courage built up the foundation of home. “Oh yes, we know Marcie!” the locals would say— “It's Doc Ball’s French lady! She brightens the day!” She cleaned, and she cooked, and sh...

Feeling Human Again

In this episode, The Unexpected Thankfulness of Feeling Human Again I’ll be honest with you: My triumphant return from France was not the glamorous homecoming I had imagined. No graceful glide back into routine. No cinematic jet-setter moment where I lift my suitcase off the carousel and wink at life like we’re old pals. Instead? I came home and immediately launched into a two-week performance piece titled The Great American Couch Collapse. My days blurred together in a haze of soup, hot tea, tissues, and desperate negotiations with the universe for just one nostril—one!—to function properly. The living room sofa became my emotional support furniture. And any creative idea that dared tiptoe into my congested brain was gently shown the exit with a firm but courteous, “Not today, friend. Try again later.” When life hits the pause button like that—when you’re exhausted, sick, and mentally unplugged—how do you find your spark again? Somehow, today, I felt it. A tiny shift. A clearing of th...

Believing Is Seeing

🎄 In this episode, Believing Is Seeing . . . It's December, we bustle, we wrap, and we dash. We sort life into boxes— myths here, to-dos in a stash. We whisper of Santa (adult code: “Not Real”), but hold on one minute—let’s rethink this whole deal. For the stories we cherish, the movies we stream, hold more truth in their sparkle than we grown-ups may deem. So hop in this sleigh and hold on real tight— We’re chasing down Santa by the glow of his light! Scott Calvin once landed in the North Pole’s cold air, with elves, cocoa, and snow everywhere. He squinted and frowned—“This just cannot be so!” (Like thinking tangled lights will detangle if we blow .) Then Judy the Elf gave a cocoa so steaming, and said something simple . . . yet surprisingly gleaming: Seeing’s not believing—no, that’s not the key. "Believing is seeing!" Just trust, and you’ll see!” Kids don’t need a map or a satellite screen to know Santa’s workshop is her...

Stamps and Snow

In this episode, Stamps and Snow . . . You don’t usually walk into the local Post Office expecting a time warp . . . but here we are. All we wanted were stamps for this year's Christmas cards— yes, the old-fashioned paper ones that require licking, sticking, and hoping the Postal Service is feeling ambitious this week. But holiday errands have a talent for slowing you down, almost like the universe whispering, “Relax. You’re not getting out of this line any faster anyway.” So we waited. And while we waited, we talked (Are you surprised?). Because the Post Office is one of the few places where people still look up from their phones long enough to talk . . . Maybe it's because they're holding packages. It’s the modern town square: part civic duty, part free entertainment, part sociology experiment. The discussion began with holiday specials streaming on Netflix, Paramount+, and other services during this time of year. One gentleman who has lived in Vista since 1958 told us,...

On The Fly

Search This Blog