Marcus Lopés

LGTBQIA2S+ Author, Blogger, Runner

goals

On Purpose

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what do you want to do

What do you want to do? It was a question that was asked a lot when I was growing, and a lot more so as I neared the end of high school. What would I do next? There were a lot of things that interested me—music, politics, cooking, policing (notice that writing didn’t make the list then)—yet I really had no clue what I wanted to do. But like my older sister, I’d follow ‘the plan’ and go to university because our parents never had that opportunity. So, for five years I went and wandered aimlessly through academia. [Read more…] about On Purpose

Never Say Never

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never say never

Never say never…

Throughout all the years I had been running, I’d said I’d never run a marathon. I’d completed a few half-marathons, but a full one? Nope, not for me. Then in 2019, I ran (and completed) the Toronto Waterfront Marathon.

In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, and terrified of catching the virus — and safe at home alone and locked down — I said I would never step foot in a gym again. Not even the one in my condo building. Then on Tuesday, 25 October 2022, there I was entering Barry’s on Richmond Street for my first HIIT class.

Although those are just two examples of me saying, “I’ll never do that,” it always seems to be at some point I end up eating crow. Never say never, right? [Read more…] about Never Say Never

The Creative ‘Balancing’ Act

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balance

We live in crazy times. Not necessarily crazy, but so much different from when I was a child. Technology has changed how we live and work. Politics are more divisive, and uglier, than I can remember. It is a me-first world, and trying to keep up can leave you exhausted. And through it all, we are trying to follow our own path, do what we love — be a beacon of hope in a world seemingly turning in on itself. To do that, I used to think that it was important to bring balance to our daily lives.

I was wrong. [Read more…] about The Creative ‘Balancing’ Act

The Scary Part of Goal Setting

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I’ve been consistent about setting goals and writing them down for the past three years, maybe a little longer. But there’s one thing I never did.⁠
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I never shared them.

Why?⁠

Because I was hanging on to limiting beliefs. Afraid that people would laugh at me. Mock me. Tell me I’m crazy.⁠
⁠
But at some point, you have to stop running from yourself. I had to stop running from myself.⁠
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If there’s one thing I took away from Gary John Bishop’s Unfu*k Yourself, it’s this: “I am not my thoughts; I am what I do.”⁠
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There are, for me, two parts to “I am what I do.” One, I am a writer. That is what I do. No other job in this world will give me the high or a stronger sense of purpose and self. Second, showing up every day to write, and to share it with the world is also what I do. If I don’t do any of those things, if I don’t take action, then there’s no possible way I can achieve my dreams.⁠
[Read more…] about The Scary Part of Goal Setting

7 Days of Bliss

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It’s like a magic pill. The moment I turn off social media, everything falls away. The overwhelm. The doubt. The fear of both success and failure. It’s the easiest way to get back to myself, to remind myself of what really matters. So, that’s what I did last week. I unplugged from social media, and that gave me seven days of bliss.

The ONE Thing

7 days of blissWhen life gets busy, and I feel overwhelmed, some of the things I love fall to the wayside. Like listening to podcasts. During my time away from social media, I downloaded a few episodes from the ‘Achieve Your Goals with Hal Elrod’ podcast. Elrod’s interview with Geoff Woods, the Vice-President of The ONE Thing, stopped me in my tracks. The conversation reminded me about all the ways I’ve gotten off track. And that to achieve my goals, I had to simply focus on one thing. My ONE thing. Writing. [Read more…] about 7 Days of Bliss