If you are not willing to risk the unusual, you will have to settle for the ordinary.
– Jim Rohn
Tag: infodenbow
Its that time of year again. The 11th annual attempt at creating life-long habits for myself. I’ve discovered that because of the after the end-of-year holidays I am not mentally or physically capable of sticking with resolutions for the upcoming new year. I need a break so I take the whole month of January off to reflect and plan.
So the kickoff is today on 2/2! My resolutions, goals and life-changing habits are listed below. These are not to be confused with items on my “F*%k It List”. I will check in every month and then review my progress. Next check-in is on March 3 (3/3). After that will be 4/4, 5/5 and so on. Here we go!
Physical
The immediate goal is to drop 25 pounds quick. Besides the typical
motto of “Eat clean, train mean, get lean”, I’m throwing in some activities that should help.
-
Kickboxing/sparring with Tracy
- Dance lessons. Something fun like Swing? Sexy, like Bachata? We’ll figure it out.
- Disc Golf. Time to get back into it. Less expensive than golf and I don’t have to wear baggy, plaid pants.
- Yoga/Meditation. I had some moderate usage last year but not enough to form a habit. I did appreciate the quiet time to breathe, relax and focus on nothing.
Technical
- Learn Python. Only one tech goal this year because I get scattered and end up not learning anything. No more. Time to learn and apply data science and machine learning applications.
Artistical
- Sketch/Draw/Doodle. I bought an iPad and pencil last year and I want to be more creative.
- Learn Spanish with Tracy.
- Learn Chinese. For myself.
- Learn to play the ukulele. I grabbed one late last year but with the holidays in the way it took a back seat.
- DAM- Digital Asset Management, or, where the hell are my photos from that shoot last month?
- Write short stories. I have a ton of ideas for these.
- Write micro fiction. One hundred word stories.
- Work on that novel. Its been ten plus years and I still can’t get all of this out of my head.
- 52 week photo challenge. 52 weeks in a year = 52 photos
Financial
- Order a credit report and start settling some debts for less. 2017 was not a good year and it hurt me financially so I am slowly recovering. This year will be dedicated to resolving this and restoring my good name.
- Build credit with a secured credit card.
- Automate savings and track investments. Yes, there is an app for that and it is called Acorns.
- Cryptocurrency. This year I will dip a toe into these unknown waters. Bitcoin? Ethereum? Research is crucial here.
Knowing myself all too well, I may end up adding or subtracting this or that. Either way, I’ll check back in here on 3/3 for the first review of how I do!
If at first you don’t succeed give up immediately. Move on to something else until that becomes unbearable. Then circle back to the first problem. By now, your subconscious will have worked on it and you are ready to go.
I don’t know much but I do know…
- Tomorrow is never guaranteed.
- Make misteaks.
- Make more mistakes.
- Spontaneity.
- Alcohol will never love you back.
- Don’t gamble if you are pissed at losing $20.
- Put your phone away.
- Are people happy when you walk in or walk out?
- If you wear cologne, it should leave when you leave.
- Respect your parents.
- Always carry cash.
- How can you ever grow old and wise if you were never young and crazy?
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Never stay out after 2AM more than two nights in a row, unless it is
epic.
- Ignore the people who shout you down. They’re probably coming from the cheap seats.
- Don’t tell anyone that you hate working there. If you’re still there after three months, they’ll know you are ignorant for staying on.
- Life is stressful. Be kind to others.
- Drunk and funny guy isn’t funny anymore.
- Tip more when it is deserved.
- You don’t have to know everything, but you should understand a little about something.
- Don’t skimp on sunglasses.
- Learn how to play backgammon.
- Don’t stop dating your loved one.
- Your job does not define you.
- Nobody cares where you went to school.
- Never wear another man’s jersey.
- Have your drink order ready when the bartender asks.
- When a bartender buys you a round, tip double.
- Do meditation and sit-ups before you shower every morning.
- Replace socks and underwear every six months.
- Earn their trust by keeping their secret.
- Have at least one good joke ready to go.
- Eat brunch with friends.
- Act like you’ve been there before. Confidence.
- Don’t split a check.
- Never cancel plans by text.
- Nobody cares if you are offended.
- Use your camera more, not your phone.
- Know how to defend yourself.
- Don’t skimp on a razor.
- Always bring something to the party.
- Compare yourself to your past, not to others.
- Always have that go-to recipe.
- Get outdoors. Often.
- Eating out alone is great. Find a quiet place to think.
- Use your luggage.
- Use your passport.
- Of course you buy her dinner.
- Short and sweet is always the best.
- Know when you are wrong and admit it.
- Monotonous, isn’t it?
- Never be the first or the last one in the pool.
- Close friends over too many acquaintances.
- Order the salad instead of the fries.
- Share your dessert.
- Read more.
- You are still better off than most who have ever lived.
- Don’t be afraid to ask.
- Support artists by spending money on them.
- You don’t need that last glass. really.
- Open her door.
- Go sweat with someone.
- Buy local.
- Find a favorite jazz artist.
- Don’t stay angry.
“It is not that we have a short time to live, but that we waste a lot of it. Life is long enough, and a sufficiently generous amount has been given to us for the highest achievements if it were all well invested.”
– Seneca
The Best Knowledge Tools
I’m learning much more than anticipated when I am researching, preparing a novel and other short stories (still in progress). I have such an appreciation for those who are already published.
Something we readers take for granted is the research and preparation that goes into producing content we learn from (non fiction) and then enjoy (fiction). Reading a book is the ability to learn all of the insights and facts that an author has spent countless hours on. What takes them months or years only takes us a few hours!
This alone makes a book our best tool to acquire knowledge, years of knowledge at our fingertips. We owe it to ourselves to focus and apply what we are learning. Don’t just consume but to read for understanding and growth. I am slowly going through a book right now with pen and pencil in hand to highlight passages I want to follow up on or emphasize. I’m even having a one way conversation by asking the author questions that will probably never be answered by them.
When you think about all the hard work author’s put in to their writing it should make you appreciate it all the more. I know I do.
Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde? Bruce Banner or Hulk? Harvey Dent or Two-Face?
Or in my situation, the Free Spirit or the Recluse.
All of us have at least two distinctive personalities inside of us. Mine is the free spirit which thrives on new experiences, loathes routine, discipline and wants to learn new things for fear of growing stagnant.
The
recluse in me seeks the stability of a comfortable routine, finds that new experiences are tiring and doesn’t care about what is next.
The day after Christmas found me sending an email and then return a package. After that, I was lazy. Could care less abut anything else and it felt good to lay on the couch and watch a movie or read one of my new books. If I try that later today I would probably feel the walls closing in and have to get outdoors.
What to do? Should I find comfort on the familiar road or should I stray from the path and expand the horizon? Re-experience the reliable?
In the past I felt torn between the two. I am learning to come to terms and accept both characteristics.
2019 Reading Goals
Now that I have completed my reading goal of fifty books this year, I am already making plans on next year’s goals. It won’t be fifty. It may be less than half that, I am not sure. The reasons are many but it boils down to appreciating what I am reading. I want to read intently and purposefully. Fifty books was too fast and unproductive. I picked up a few kernels of knowledge but forgot the rest. Well not this next year. This next year:
- Read-It-Later I have some time off for a few weeks. Time to catch up on all those articles I’ve saved on Instapaper, Pocket, Feedly.
- Digital magazines My local library provides no-cost access to hundreds of titles. Time to take full advantage of them.
- Read my night stand stack I do not want to buy or borrow anymore books until I have exhausted my current supply. If someone gifts me a book, obviously that is different but I need to appreciate what I have first.
- Mix it up with both fiction and non. I want to be both informed and entertained.
- More physical less digital I’ve mentioned previously that I will be mentally dissecting these books. Mostly with books in hand, not on my devices.
If interested, you can follow me on Goodreads, a tool I will use to help manage my reading life.
GET OVER IT
When I am in a mood or uninspired, I know myself well enough on how to change improve it. These aren’t revelations, just simple reminders.
Thankfulness: You’ve had worse. Try recalling those worse moments and then remember that “this” isn’t that bad.
Meditation: I’ve discovered mindfulness and self-awareness by taking the time to stop and listen. Listen to what my mind and body are telling me. Beneficial for short fixes and long term habits.
Sleep: My sleep hours are all over the place and this needs to change. Finding a consistent sleep schedule is crucial.
Help Someone Else: It isn’t always about you. You can snap out of your funk by helping them get out of yours. Go do something for them or simply call/write to them and let them know you care and want to help.
Bite-sized: Your to-do list may be too big. That means it is overwhelming. This puts you into a funk. Shrink your tasks to something attainable which in turn, creates bite-sized wins to keep you going.
Change Something: You’re stuck in a rut. Get out of it by changing your routine. Eat something new, listen to a podcast instead of your same music playlist. Heck, even try silence. Walk around the grocery store a different path than the usual. With all these we might find something we haven’t discovered before and benefit.
Get Out: I am a big fan of wandering. Mindful walking with no destination. That’ll cure what ails you. Solvitur ambulando is Latin for “it is solved by walking.”
Get Active: Everyone knows that exercise improves anxiety, depression and brain power. Go workout already. Stretch yourself with yoga, take a hike or pump those pedals.
Socialize: Most of us can always rely on family, friends or a pet to spend some time with. They understand you and you can be yourself around them. We are in a connected, social world and yet we feel enclosed and funky. Take advantage of these resources.
All of these are beneficial when applied which means you’ll need to apply the maximum amount of will to get there. So even if you are wired, tired or uninspired this still depends on you to change the situation. After that, we’ll be back to normal. Whatever normal looks like.
Currently
Music: Classic big bands, swing and jazz. Re-discovered thanks to a local radio station and Spotify
Reading: Oath of Office, the next in Tom Clancy’s long running series
Podcast: Short Stuff. Bite-sized at 15 minutes or less of varying interests.
Food: Spicy chicken. Asian, American. It doesn’t matter
Drink: Bulleit bourbon. I strayed and came back
When and how does anyone make the time? The simple answer is deliberately. There are plenty of mind-numbing, time-wasting activities out there but who wouldn’t want to get something out of it?
One helpful tip is that “Airplane Mode” on your device works just as well
on the ground. That’ll help you with distraction-free reading.
I can say I have accomplished another one of my groundhog resolutions in finishing over 50 books this year. Next year I may limit to something much less and even more deliberate. I also want to invest in more physical books instead of digital copies.
Because another goal for next year is practicing marginalia, the art of marking up one’s book with notes in the margins. I consider it a dialogue with the author and would invest myself back into the book as opposed to reading it and moving on to the next one, learning almost nothing.
This, I think, will make for the best, distraction free and deliberate way to enjoy books.
