Remember that old commercial for Aim toothpaste? It tasted good so kids might be brushing longer and, thereby, getting more fluoride onto those pearly whites.  

Last week, I went to the dentist for the first time in about 18 months. I finally had both dental insurance and a little cash flow flexibility to take care of things, but I dreaded what was coming: cavities. I am an obsessive brusher and flosser and always get an A+ for my home care. But, I have very soft teeth with little enamel left to protect them and this is what I’ve come to expect. Without having kept up my usual every-six-months maintenance schedule, I was lucky to get out with only need 5 small fillings, 3 to replace cracked old ones.

As I was lying in that dentist chair listening to French lessons and motivational speakers to drown out the noise of the drills, I thought about that word: maintenance. What if I had been more diligent with my maintenance program? Would I be here now for a two hour appointment? Probably not. But there were elements of my usual routine over which I had no control for a long period of time so now I was playing catch-up. And there is always a cost associated with playing catch-up.

So what about the areas that we do have in our control but we stop doing the little things every day, the maintenance things, to keep ourselves on track?

In his book The Compound Effect, Darren Hardy outlines how it is the daily, little, seemingly inconsequential things that determine our destination. It’s the simple things that are easy to do, but also easy to NOT do that will keep us on course or take us off course. And NOT doing the little things will have a consequence, a cost for us.

But it can be overwhelming and counter-productive to try to micromanage every detail of every activity as a preventative move. So I am not suggesting we think like that.

No, what I am suggesting is that we bear in mind that the things we let slide will eventually come calling for attention, and that might come at a time of real inconvenience. For example, that double bacon cheeseburger you eat today won’t necessarily ruin your health. But failing to balance it with proper nutrition and exercise later today could mean that 8 years from now you are undergoing bypass surgery.

I’ve got 5 easy tips to keep up our Life Maintenance.

1)    Give Thanks

 At the end of the day, before you fall asleep, try to write down 5 things you are grateful for that day. They don’t have to be profound. Maybe one of them is that your child didn’t miss the school bus. Whatever they are, this daily simple act of acknowledging gratitude can be a powerful maintenance tool in your life.

2)    Compliment Someone

A recent study of workplaces found that if the boss/manager gave out just one compliment per day to just one person in the office, that tiny act boosted morale for the entire office by over 40%. Think of the relationships in your life – spouse, children, siblings, parents, co-workers, neighbors, strangers you see on a regular basis. If you offered just one of those people a compliment each day, you will be greasing the maintenance wheels of all of the other relationships without feeling personally drained.

3)    Think Before Chewing

 One area where 90% of us let our maintenance slip is in our eating habits. I think the best thing we can do in this area is to simply get into the habit/routine of asking ourselves a question before we start to shovel food into our mouths. That question is, “How does this serve my body?” Conscious choices rather than hand-to-mouth motions are an easy maintenance plan that could save your life!

 4)    Be a Chipmunk

Did you know that chipmunks spend more than 90% of their waking hours hiding food but their memory lasts less than 3 minutes? They are instinctively putting away food as a protection against starvation. We need to be that way with our finances. Every day, transfer at least one dollar to your savings account and empty any loose change into a jar. These are tiny amounts that are insignificant in a moment, but will have a profound impact in guarding against costly consequences when you come up against a maintenance-related emergency. It doesn’t have to be much. After all, the chipmunk can only hold small bits of food in its paws but it never runs out when the winter comes.

5)    Dream a Little Dream

Your future needs maintenance as well. Spend a minute every day envisioning your future life. You have a big goal, maybe several big goals. But part of reaching them is to envision what achieving those goals will mean for you. Where will you be living? What is the temperature? What view is out your window? Your dream needs daily vision maintenance, not just a daily to-do list.

Thankfully, my obsession with brushing and flossing as daily maintenance did a decent job thwarting a bigger problem. They are two little things that are simple to do, but simple to forget. It’s the doing that saved me from catastrophe. And, yes, I did use Aim toothpaste.

QUESTION: Want to add a tip of your own? We’d all benefit from your wisdom! Please post it below in the comments.