“There is no failure, only feedback.”
This is one of the presuppositions of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and it’s become a favorite of mine since I first heard it. While the overall claims behind the practice are sometimes a little far fetched, there are a great number of great pieces of common sense wisdom. My experience has showed me that this is one of the most important.
Filed under Philosophy, Planning and Productivity
When’s the last time you took some time for yourself? Hell, when’s the last time you got a good night’s sleep?
In December 2009, Science Magazine had an article about this, where it cited a study by two researchers from the Harvard Business School that showed that taking time off increased productivity, communication, job satisfaction, and a number of other benefits.
Who doesn’t want to be part of the debt-free club? Not owing anything to anyone is a dream for most Americans. I’m going to bust my ass to make it my reality. It’s something I’ve been working on for a while now, chipping away at slowly but surely.
Filed under Lifestyle, Starting Points
I stopped making New Year’s Resolutions a long time ago because I realized that the whole practice has a massive fundamental flaw that creates a huge barrier to making them happen.
That flaw is that you’re giving yourself an excuse to procrastinate. There isn’t anything magical about January 1 and so there is no logical reason to put off doing what you can start doing now. If you want to lose weight, learn Mandarin, or train for a 5K, there’s no reason you can’t immediately start eating better, enroll in a class, or get out on the road and run.
Filed under Lifestyle, Planning and Productivity
Every day, we all try to handle a lot of different things while trying to get them all done. A lot of that time is spent on one thing at the expense of the others. Personally, I really like doing what I can to keep a personal balance between all the things that are important in my world. It helps me maintain a feeling of fulfillment.
Filed under Lifestyle, Philosophy, Planning and Productivity
I began a 12 day vacation on Thursday. I left Indianapolis at about 930a ET and headed toward Chicago to spend the first four nights with Seven and her parents. She had been telling me for a while about a special surprise she had lined up for me that required me to dress well. Now I spent a fair bit of money a while back on a good suit, then followed that with some custom tailoring to get it just right. I don’t get a chance to suit up very often so it’s always appreciated when I do.
Why do you get out of bed and go to work in the morning?
All motivating factors boil down to one of two things. You’re either moving toward something or moving away from something. Turning it back to the first question I posed, there are two basic answers. You get up and go to work because you want to build your future and buy cool stuff. The alternative is that you go to work because you don’t want to be fired and/or homeless.
Filed under Philosophy, Planning and Productivity
I’ve been an enthusiastic hockey fan for many years. I never played on any organized team and I never really watched as a kid growing up in Connecticut. I think it was when I was about 16 that I started watching and really found myself being drawn to the Detroit Red Wings. At that point, I was living in Indiana which isn’t exactly known for being hockey-centric. I have no ties to the city of Detroit; the Red Wings just sort of became my team for reasons no one’s really sure of.
Filed under Starting Points, Travel
Pardon me while I get meta. Since I’m planning to accomplish a whole bunch of things, I realized that The List is, itself, a goal. Kind of, anyway. It stands to reason that I should think back on some of the cool things I’ve already done and build off that momentum.
Filed under Starting Points
Why are people so amazed when I tell them I’m working to lose weight during “the holidays”? Between the end of October and the middle of January, in America, there are two to four actual holidays, depending on your traditions. For some reason, people have come to believe that this is a ten week period of spending too much, being lazy, and eating terribly.
Filed under Philosophy, Planning and Productivity
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