It isn’t usually until retirement that people look closely at the direction of their life…
And realize, at the sunset of their life, that they’ve gone in a wrong direction (hopefully not).
When you flip that paradigm on its head and slowly inspect your direction now… you get to make the necessary adjustments that’ll minimize (or mitigate) the regret of later.
And you’ll be able to relax as you watch your sunset marvelously paint your life’s sky.
“Don’t let me forget this moment when I’m feeling bad again.”
This was said to me by one of my employees who was feeling… great.
She had been getting good sleep, hitting the gym and training martial arts regularly, was prioritizing healthy eating without meticulously tracking calories, and was avoiding the things that made her feel bad.
But, rather than me reminder her about this moment at some point in the future when her mood inevitably came down… why not have her reminder her?
In other words, how powerful might it be to have a video of you speaking to your future self saying everything you’d want them to know from this current great standpoint?
Or future you reading a letter from past you that’s written specifically to remind you of key thoughts/ practices to maintain during the inevitable hardships?
Maybe more powerful… what if you made a video or wrote a letter to a really great future version of you from when you’re in a really hard place? A reminder to not take it for granted and to really soak it all in…
I don’t think there’s anyone more convincing on the face of the earth than us speaking directly to ourselves.
Give this exercise a shot and maybe you’ll find out for yourself.
P.s. I finished uploaded my favorite quotes from Will by Will Smith. I captured 49 insights that moved me that I think will move you, too. Enjoy :)
We have to train ourselves to STOP looking at tasks as “easy” or “hard.”
Tasks should be seen as either “hard now” or “harder later.”
This forces us to bring a long-term perspective into our decision making process.
I.e. Rather than this short-cut, hack, trick, or time-spend being an “easy” choice to an alternative… we ask ourselves if we can prioritize doing the “hard” thing now so that we won’t have to do the “harder” alternative later.
Honestly answering this question is the *real* short-cut, hack, and trick.
The amount of pain we can withstand isn’t a matter of capability… it’s a matter of tolerance.
We’re capable of tolerating WAY more pain than we think.
And the benefit of pushing past that thinking limit (e.g. hard exercise) is that new tolerances are reached.
This isn’t about being self-destructive or self-harmful. This is about building mental strength and fortitude.
Because the pain will come.
And having an increased tolerance is like having an upgraded shield that’s ready to withstand more of whatever life decides to throw our way.
And upgraded shields against life are always a good idea.
P.s. I asked people to: Tell us a story of a time when they were the target of a random act of kindness. The answers will restore your faith in humanity. :)
When it comes to improving our lives, I think it’s safe to say that just about all of us have a catalogue of dormant ideas, insights, and strategies that would very well lead us to a better life if we applied them.
It’s like Anne Lamott said in her brilliant TED Talk: “Food—try to do a little better. I think you know what I mean.” (timestamp)
It’s not about knowing what to do.
The real game is in finding ways we can more consistently do what we already know.
Information gathering is okay—it can certainly help facilitate change.
But, don’t fool yourself—obsessing over information gathering is a distraction; it’s an excuse; it’s an avoidance.
And moreover, don’t undermine yourself when you feel like you’re “only” doing (or “only” committing to doing) a little something better.
Doing a little something better is precisely how any of us ever moves from okay to great.
Because life is a game of applying—and every little bit counts.
P.s. Here are 9 Small Changes That Have Had The Biggest Impact On My Health.
Hoping things will be better in the future is a great way to keep getting the same kind of results in the future.
If you want a better future, a great strategy to try is something new, intentional, and deliberate *today.*
P.s. It’s world cancer day. Here’s a cancer story that had a powerful impact on me.
Having a hard time building self-discipline?
Commit to building discipline first.
Join a class, enroll in a course, get a coach, etc., where you’re simply told what to do and you can focus on getting really damn good at doing what you’re told—regardless of how much you don’t want to do whatever that is (in a constructive, healthy, held-accountable way).
Do your research, of course, and don’t settle until you come to an arrangement that’s aligned with your personality type and preferences; one that’s with a person or a group you respect.
Once you do (and this is the key), make the conscious choice to replace the words that come from your ego with the words that come from this new source. In other words, don’t let your inner voice talk you out of doing what you’re told to do.
Because it’s that inner voice—your ego—that’s precisely the problem.
The path is this: discipline leads to self-discipline which leads to habits.
Flex the “do-it-even-when-you-don’t-want-to-do-it” muscle enough and eventually, it’ll be strong enough for you to flex on your own. Flex it on your own enough and eventually, it’ll become an automatic type of response that your ego slowly stops fighting you over.
This is the way.
P.s. Not sure where to start? Try enrolling in a local martial arts class. The discipline I build in martial arts became the foundation for all of the “automatic” type habits I have in my life.