Category: Investing In Yourself

An attitude of gratitude is something earned—not given.

Too many people wake up and submit to whatever mood their mind just so happens to be in and lazily and hastily deploy from that headspace for the entire rest of their day.

And what a waste on precious moments this can be.

Mindset investment, especially first thing in the morning, is one of the most crucial investments in your day.

Think about it.

Bad mood x All of the moments of your day = A ton of counterproductive, close-minded, lost opportunity minutes.

But, Bad mood x 20 Minutes of mindset investment = Better mood (maybe not great mood, but better for sure). And Better mood x All of the moments of your day = many more productive, open-minded, gained opportunity minutes.

See, you have to change your mind about not having 20 minutes in the morning for your mind.

When every other moment of your day depends on the mood / perception of your mind, you have to make up your mind that you can’t not have 20 minutes in the morning for your mind.

The entire rest of your day depends on it.

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P.s. Looking for mindset investment mood boosters? Here’s a great exercise; a great picture; a great story; a great daily mental-primer, and a great list.

I’m currently reading Siddhartha.

And according to my Goodreads profile (that I’ve been using to track my read and want to read books since December 2010), I read this book in March of 2015.

Yet, here I am, about halfway through Siddhartha with approximately 0% recollection of anything from what I’ve read so far. Like, nothing is ringing any bells. Not the plot; not the characters; not even the fact that it’s a fiction is something that I remember about it.

…This is the first time I can remember this ever happening.

I always remember at least something about a book I’ve read.

Part of me has been wondering if I even read it the first time around… As in, could I have just marked it as a book I read without actually having read it?

But, then there’s this detailed account of me having read it with page numbers completed and everything:

Can’t see the above image? Click here.

So, either I read it, but didn’t really read it (i.e. speed read or selected the wrong book on Goodreads). Or, I genuinely forgot everything I read from 2015.

Either way, the lesson is simple: don’t assume “read” as insight gained.

While the words in Siddhartha have remained unchanged, the mind through which those words are being absorbed, interpreted, and applied is completely different.

…And so will it be in another 9 years from now.

…And 9 days from now for that matter.

Don’t let “read” dissuade you from revisiting a book that’s calling to you.

Sometimes that “calling” is a nudge from a deeper understanding that extends far beyond your conscious thinking… and you just need to trust it.

We align ourselves with what serves us first, so we can best serve those who we most align with second.

This is the formula forward.

Many people try to reverse this formula and align themselves with what best serves others first and then only serve themselves with whatever time/energy is left over and after the fact.

The reason this strategy doesn’t work (maybe less optimally… maybe not at all) is because serving others is an infinite and endless loop.

You could very well give every ounce of time and energy you have to the people closest to you and still be met with this black hole of insatiable needs and desires.

Not only is this incredibly exhausting and demoralizing… but debilitating.

We must remember: so long as we’re willing to give time and energy, so too will others be willing to take.

Think about it. Time and energy are our life’s most precious resources. And whenever another person gives us some of theirs, not only is it an invaluable investment but an affirmation of worth of ours.

And while this sounds like a wonderful gift to give to those closest to us, it completely disregards the person who’s closest…

Yourself.

If you aren’t willing to invest any of your most precious resources into yourself, how can you expect your ability to serve to grow? This is no different than an investment account.

No continued investments? No continued growth. Plain and simple.

And the time to invest isn’t after all of your money has been spent. It’s first and foremost—automatically preferably—so that your growth is guaranteed irrespective of the “market conditions” of those whom you’re most aligned to serve.

I’ve been trying this new strategy where, every Sunday, I set aside a few hours to deep clean/revamp one specific room.

This week it was my work room.

Not only did I declutter my desk, throw away a ton of crap, rearrange the furniture/decor, and give everything a good wipe down… but, I also bought and installed this clean, 5-tier floating corner bookshelf.

Why? Because I like the way it looks plus it’ll give me more room to organize the crap I don’t want to throw away.

And here’s the thing… liking the way things look and feel in your environment improves the way you feel and look at things while in it.

The degree to which this is true varies person to person. Some people seem to be strongly affected by the environment’s look and feel and some seem to carry on irrespective of it.

But, in my observation, seemingly unaffected doesn’t mean unaffected.

In my own life, I’ll occasionally recognize a psychological weight that’s being held by a task I’m leaving undone. One I keep putting off, that I know I’m putting off, that requires a little more time than I usually have, which is the excuse I always use, that results in this drag that, when I notice it, definitely affects the way I feel.

And then there are times when I walk into a room—like my work room after my work on it—and instantly notice a lightness… an excitement… a sense of relief… which, I know continues even after I’ve become used to the changes.

This is all to say: take care of your environment and your environment will take care of you.

First, I make a small checkmark next to passages that resonate. This is the only kind of marking I use while reading.

Then, when finished, I re-read all of the checked passages and upload the best ones to MoveMe Quotes—my quote website that houses all of the best things I’ve read since October of 2010.

Finally, once I finish uploading all of the checked passages from the book, I create a list that presents all of them in both a coherent and personalized way. While making the lists, the first unique thing I do is organize quotes based on how they read—not based on page number. I try to present the ideas in a way that flows as one is read to the next… as though the quotes were being read as a book summary in their own right. Then, I add my own thoughts to the collection. I’ll write an introduction, provide necessary context, and connect resources at the end. Once it’s finished, I’ll snap a picture of me holding the book in front of my bookshelf and publish it for all to see—for free.

Why do all of this?

Sure it feels good to be the creator of a helpful resource. But, even more so, because it feels good to understand—to more deeply understand—the things I’ve read. And for each step that’s taken beyond reading, an invaluable layer of comprehension is added.

If you want to really get the full juice out of each book you read, one squeeze (from one read) isn’t enough. It’s the re-squeeze, the re-grip and re-squeeze again, capped off with a double-handed squeeze that makes the real difference.

Are you angry? Or are you overtired and just need a nap?

Are you anxious? Or are you pent up and just need to get some exercise?

Are you arrogant? Or are you distracted and just need to practice gratitude?

Are you sluggish? Or are you dehydrated and just need to drink more water?

Are you alone? Or are you expecting everybody else to take the initiative and haven’t sent out any invitations yourself or signed up for any new group activities?

Are you depressed? Or are you spending too much time on social media comparing yourself to others and just need to delete your accounts or have a screen fast?

It may not be as simple as that. But, in many cases—it is.

This is a reminder to stay on top of the basics.

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P.s. I also published: To My Daughter. [Excerpt]