Category: Living Well

Prove It

Published on April 4, 2024

Never let a day go by without having taken at least one step towards self-actualization and your greater goals.

One step forward, every day, should be the strategy; the mantra; the resolution.

It’s that one deliberate action taken today, done with that greater future in mind that proves you’re serious about the realization of those goals.

And it’s the consistency of choosing to do it every day that proves you’re ready to take on the full scope of what those goals will demand.

Because visions of a greater future minus seriousness only leaves a person unable (unready) to handle the demands of what that greater future will require.

…Which isn’t to say your greater future will be demanding and burdensome… it’s merely to say your greater future will demand the greatest from you / of you.

…Demanding and burdensome is what happens when you step into that vision before you’re ready and able and you’re left scrambling trying to be someone you’re not (yet) and attempting to solve problems you’re not evolved / qualified enough (yet) to solve.

But, when you are at your greatest, your life’s greatest challenges become the usual; the norm; the expectation; the task that’s equal to your ability; the challenge that’s equal to your strength.

…And what better place to be than actively solving the greatest (most exciting) problems your current self only has the ability to visualize?

P.s. Don’t have a clear picture of where you want to go in life? My guide can help. 30% off for a limited time.

What’s New?

Published on March 31, 2024

When you see people you haven’t seen in a long time, a commonly asked question is, “What’s new?”

And if you can’t think of a single thing to say…

It might be a sign that you’re too set in your ways.

Because while routine is excellent for getting tasks done consistently and efficiently…

If the byproduct of your routine extended out over a “long time” is nothing new…

You might not be aligned with a routine that’s leading to growth.

…What you might actually be aligned with is a rut that’s keeping you distracted and comfy.

P.s. In case you missed it, you can read the best of what I posted to MoveMe Quotes last week, here.

Family Traditions

Published on March 30, 2024

For the past several years, my grandma, mom, and I would drive 6ish hours to my aunt’s house for Easter weekend.

It was a nice little family tradition that gave us long car rides to chat the deeper than usual chat and catch up with my aunt and her family who we only ever saw that weekend-ish.

We would watch movies, get live piano and violin concerts in her living room, play board games, tour the local book shops, airplay photo albums on their giant TV recapping the highlight moments of our year, take long walks, explore local parks, and of course eat fantastic meals.

Earlier this year, my aunt and her family decided to move across the country and so our little family tradition unfortunately ended.

This is a reminder that at some point, your family tradition(s) as you know it/them—will end. And to go into family tradition weekends with as much presence and warmth as you can.

This isn’t to say that they can’t/won’t change for the better… it’s merely to say don’t take them for granted. Change is always, inevitably, on the horizon.

Completion Clarity

Published on March 27, 2024

Don’t measure your motivation levels before you do the thing… your mind will be consumed and distorted with lies.

Think about all the things you say to yourself before you have to workout, or meditate, or read that book, or start that project, or do deep stretching… It’s probably something along the lines of:

“You’ve been so good lately… you deserve a day off.”
“You’re so busy today… better to skip and get back to it tomorrow.”
“You didn’t really sleep that well… today should be a rest day instead of that other day.”

It’s almost as though that little devil on your shoulder gets the megaphone and tries to spread misinformation and lies to distract or dissuade you from doing the tasks that’ll put you temporarily outside of your comfort zone.

…Contrast this with what’s going on in your head after you complete the task. It’s probably something along the lines of:

“That was so good. I deserved that.”
“So glad I didn’t skip. That was amazing.”
“I feel so much better now that I’ve got that behind me.”

…There’s a whole lot less mental chatter and whole lot more clarity.

THIS is when you should measure your motivation levels towards the thing. If you’re still resentful, upset, and/or frustrated about the self-improvement tasks after you’ve finished it, then, yes, I’d say it’s time to reflect and make some changes.

But, don’t make a decision about something that’s long-term good for you without completion clarity.

Let Each Blink Remind You

Published on March 24, 2024

One of my staff members won sparring grand champion at a regional martial arts tournament this weekend.

…And another one of my staff members got into a car accident and totaled his car (he’s okay fortunately).

I read a status saying, “I am whole. I am a woman I am proud of. I stay true to myself. I am in love with life again, excited for the future and I find so much beauty in just the simple day to day or the smallest gestures. I live a way higher quality of life and offer love with no expectations because I know how it feels to hurt.”

And another one saying, “I’m making dumb, embarrassing mistakes, I can’t think or function and I’m in a constant state of panic and anxiety yet somehow could stay in bed the rest of my life. I don’t need or want pity or sorry’s, just please bear with me. And don’t ask me if I’m ok, because I’m not.”

A friend of mine just had a baby this weekend and said, “We are so in love and our family is complete.”

…And another friend who was pregnant just recently found out she has terminal cancer, had to terminate the pregnancy, and was given 10 months – 10 years to live.

This is your updated reminder that life is short.

That when life is good—cherish it with all of your being. Because things can go bad in the blink of an eye. And it would be so unfortunate to open your eyes from that blink, only to look back and see how much good you didn’t really cherish. Let each blink remind you.

Going All-In On Experiential Learning

Published on March 24, 2024

I’ve never attended a single organized basketball practice.

All I’ve ever done is play pick-up games and practiced on my own based on what I could come up with from previous game experiences.

Contrast this with those who only attend organized basketball practices and sit the bench for games or rarely ever play games and I’d say the former leads to faster learning than the latter.

…Which isn’t to say organized practices aren’t important.

It’s merely to say that when given the choice between play and learn from experience or practice until you feel ready to play… the former wins in what you can learn given equal time.

…Which is the case for how it works in life too, isn’t it?

Spend too much time planning and you’ll miss the crucial experiences that’ll lead to expedited growth. Things like failing, losing, messing up, missing, fouling, and so on… things that’ll lead to potent emotional experiences that’ll intensify the training and follow-up gaming.

Practicing is safe. There’s much less on the line. Which means there’s proportionally much less emotional energy being invested into the work.

Again, this isn’t to say ignore organized practice. Because the ultimate is the happy balance of the both. But, err too far on the side of caution when it comes to experiential learning and you’ll miss out on so much that you could potentially stand to gain.

Inner Work Prompt: What have you been spending a lot of time planning? Could you stand to learn more, faster by just doing instead?

Why I Don’t Have A Case On My Phone (For Now)

Published on March 19, 2024

I’ve been using my phone without a case for the past few days.

While this might sound dumb to some, and while this isn’t something I’d exactly recommend doing, the reason is two fold:

1. It reminds me to be careful. Modern day phones are ex-pen-sive. And even just one drop could result in an expensive repair. Which I’m hyper aware of. Which I’ve realized is a hack opportunity into my own mind—because I can’t help but slow down when I grab my phone and am increasingly sensitive to where I put it when I’m not using it. Think surgeon picking up and putting down tools at the operating table. That’s me with my phone these past few days.

2. Being “full-of-care” is being simultaneously full of presence. I don’t think you can separate the one from the other. And presence is the antidote to the modern day drug that is distraction. Which, of course, is the drug that comes pouring out through our screens in unrelenting quantities. So by triggering “presence” whenever I reach for my phone, it’s almost as if I’m taking a shot of the antidote before exposing myself to the coinciding drug.

Like I said, this probably sounds dumb to some of you. And if you’re the clumsy type, I certainly wouldn’t recommend doing this.

But, maybe there’s another way you can encase your phone with a sort of “presence antidote” that can give you a similar sort of shot to help you combat the unrelenting distractions that are bound to eat up every bit of your time they can manage as soon as you unlock that screen.

Something worth carefully thinking about at least…