You are lazy. When it comes to getting work done or watching your favorite TV show…you watch your favorite show. You have had a long day, don’t you deserve to relax a little? You know you should be getting something else productive done, but you push aside those feelings in favor of becoming a vegetable in front of a lit screen that projects pictures you have already seen a thousand times. That’s right…it is a re-run of a show that aired 5 years ago, but you still can’t seem to turn it off and do something that actually might make your life better.
I Strive To Become The Man In My Dog's Eyes
October 1, 2009 By Leave a Comment
In life, there are millions of things a day trying to throw us off track. If we really take the time to look, at every corner there are temptations to go astray and give into things that – in the end – are not good for us or the people around us.
This can be simple things like procrastination to one of the 7 deadly sins, so how do we go throughout life making each day better than the last in our quest to be happier, healthier and richer (not just monetarily)?
I Strive To Become The Man In My Dog’s Eyes
Every day, I come home to two happy faces that can make any rough day great. I can be cussing up a storm walking through the garage, but it seems to all be ok once I open the door and there are two Boxers begging for attention (so exciting that their entire rear end is wagging with their tails). Dogs do not see your flaws or have any really sense of time. They live in the moment and remember you as the best thing ever as you make voices and sounds you wouldn’t ever do in public. You are their owner and you are the one that scratches that favorite spot behind their ear, so you are perfect in every way. You make them happy no matter what as you are the purest form of companionship and good in their lives.
I Am Nothing But A Big Geek
August 28, 2009 By 9 Comments
OK! I admit it! I am nothing but a big geek, nerd or whatever other term you use to describe the socially inept. No…the picture to the right is not me, but that is what I feel like on the inside.
My clothes don’t match.
I stare at my iPhone 3GS constantly.
My laptop goes with me everywhere.
Terms like RAM, GHZ, and Front Side Bus get me excited.
I’m an economics major and my wife is an engineer.
I’d rather stare at a computer screen than hit a late night club.
I have been Apple Computer obsessed since the days of the Apple Classic and have never personally owned a Windows based machine.
I will pick restaurants that have free wifi over food quality.
I even know every word to “Ice Ice Baby”.
I talk server talk with the owner of my hosting company (sorry Alex…you are a big geek too!)
I have hours of conversation surrounding Ruby On Rails and WordPress with a best friend that I haven’t actually met in person (another big geek…Justin Shattuck)
What can I say…it is who I am. I’ve come to grips with it. The only real thing that I use as a disguise is a set of contacts and a wife that makes sure that I don’t look like an idiot in public.
Chances are…if you are reading this post or playing on the internet through blogs and other social media…you can at least relate a little bit or you are ready to get into a geek war over who has it the worst.
Luckily, the past couple of days are going to really satisfy my inner geek syndrome. Yesterday night, Apple released the new Facebook 3.0 app for the iPhone (it is a killer upgrade by the way) and right now I am awaiting delivery of my new copy of Snow Leopard (the latest Mac operating system upgrade for those of you not in the know). So…as you can probably tell, my inner geek is all primed and ready for some computer/smart phone testing. Stayed tuned and I’ll spread the sickness by “reviewing” these upgrades soon.
How To Stop Arguing With Yourself – Conquering the Internal Debate
August 13, 2009 By Leave a Comment
Do you ever feel like you are having an internal conversation with yourself that is going nowhere? There is a decision to be made and there is no sense of a resolution in sight as you continually weigh both sides of the issue and argue with yourself in search of an answer. You are in a clone meeting as you battle back and forth with your own thoughts in search of that one answer that is going to solve your needs. Many times, we spend far too much time trying to argue with ourselves and less time trying things out and just seeing what happens!
Resolution Through Action
The situation above is best described as getting stuck. You are getting stuck in your own thoughts instead of getting out of your head and into action. How many great ideas in this world have gotten railroaded thanks to the internal debate that never ended? How many times have you just let things go because you could not make up your mind? What if every great thinker decided that it was just easier to give up during the thought process rather than work it out and test ideas?
You need to ask yourself those questions while you continually think of ideas that need to be put into action. Every minute of every day your mind is working at something. Most of these thoughts end up being fleeting mind wanders or grocery lists, but every now and then we have that glimpse of a great idea that could become a reality. As we continually weigh out the good and bad of our great idea, we are wasting time that could be put into action do due lack of confidence in our abilities or the idea.
Action is the only way you will stop your internal debate and find the answers you are looking for. This testing is essential as you continue to mold your ideas into something that works. As much as we all wish that the perfect formula for success would fall upon our craniums like a beam of light from the sky…that is not reality and that is not going to happen. We have to turn our thoughts and ideas into action and real steps that are taken in the real world outside of the electric firings that equal thoughts in our heads.
It is Time to Get Unstuck
It is time. It is time to get those ideas in your head and covert them into action and testing. Your idea might fail miserably, but at least you tried and learned something for the next round. Not every idea is going to be a massive success that throws you into the life you always dreamed of. It is work, but by taking your thoughts and converting them into action…you are taking one more step towards your dream that most people in this world never take. I am sure that there is at least one person in your life that is full of the best ideas on the planet (that they tell everyone on a regular basis), but their place in society never changes because they do more talking than action. You are going to be different. You are going to take those thoughts and ideas and convert them into action that will see a result.
It is easy to talk about how great you think something is in your head…it is a much different animal to convert the thoughts into action and see the results. You can’t be afraid to fail…and you also can’t be afraid to succeed. Get out of the clone meeting and try something new…
Clone Meeting image by choking sun
How much time do you waste on unproductive activities?
July 29, 2009 By 3 Comments
As we look into our daily lives, we need to ask ourselves how much time we actually spend being completely unproductive. This is a question that I answer just as bad as you probably do. Are you sitting in front of you computer screen right now with Facebook, a favorite forum and a funny video from a friend all open at once? Do you have thousands of posts and hours logged in on that favorite forum while updating your Facebook status 12 times a day? Let me guess…some worthless TV show is on in the background as you wonder if your favorite dancer is going to make it through the next stage of “Do You Think You Can Dance” (don’t lie…if you are a guy you know your wife/girlfriend/hopefully something soon makes you watch it too!). You continually go through worthless activity motions as the back of your head screams at you to stop what you are doing and start being productive. Instead, laziness sets in and we put off that activity until a later time that never comes…
Throughout our daily lives, we use the excuse that we have been so busy today to condone lazy behavior that takes away from our goal. Now…I am not saying that we are going to be productive 100% of the day and every minute not moving forward is taking a step backward. That kind of mentality runs you into complete burnout and frustration. What I am saying is that we spend an incredible amount of time on activities that add little to no value to our lives because they are easy and mindless. We sit in front of a computer screen and browse for hours on end…we watch TV and movies until our eyes are popping out of our heads…we go through other activites during the day where we consciously think to ourselves…”I really should be doing (insert productive activity here) right now…not this…”
My Challenge to Myself and to You
Here is my challenge to you (and myself). As you go through the next 2 weeks, listen to that voice in your head that can think of something productive over something lazy. Make a solid effort to be more productive in your daily life to achieve the goals you have set but never obtained. By being more productive, you should be happier and more stress free as you go to bed at night with the knowledge that you made this day on this Earth more fulfilling.
Some tips to help you out…
- Plan Your Downtime – Everyone needs a break, so plan periods of time to relax and let your mind wonder off into whatever magical land you want it to. By scheduling this time (and sticking to that schedule), you will not get burned out or find yourself using more relax time than anticipated.
- Make Lists – I hate making lists as much as everyone, but they are extremely efficient when it comes to getting tasks done in an organized manner. When you make your list, prioritize activities with levels of importance. This will help you realize what you need to get done right away and what you can do if you get done early.
- Mentally Prepare Yourself – If you are not on board mentally with being more productive during this period of time, it is not going to happen. You need to change your mindset and prepare for a different way of thinking to help get you through the learning curve.
The goal during this two weeks of mass productivity is to change your lifestyle. Once you get used to being productive, it will become easier with time and by the end…you will have transformed yourself from a lazy media absorber to a productive human being with realized goals. We all want the positive aspects that come to our lives by being more productive, but it is up to us to get off our asses and actually do it.
Time image by Midnight-digital
I am GPS stupid – Don't ask for directions
June 19, 2009 By 3 Comments
I had a friend ask me a question the other day that should have had an easy answer.
Which way did you come to get here?
It took me a second and then I realized…I had no clue how I got to where I was standing. About 3 years ago, I received my first GPS unit as a Christmas present. Ever since then, getting from point A to point B has been as easy as hitting a couple of buttons. Now…it sounds crazy…but I am really GPS stupid. After using a GPS unit for 3 years straight, I no longer have any clue where I am going. What used to be simple questions about street names, what is located at the next turn or how to get to a restaurant are now difficult feats of mind dumping as I attempt to figure out where my mindless driving was. [Read more...]
The Hangover – Movie – Get Ready To Laugh Your Ass Off
June 13, 2009 By 2 Comments
So my wife and I had a difficult week…and we needed something to laugh at on a rainy Saturday night. We went on a date night and saw the movie “The Hangover”. Not knowing what to expect (other than the rave reviews I was hearing from others), we went to see “The Hangover” ready for a laugh.
It is not very often that I laugh this hard at a movie. The Hangover was seriously hilarious. It was not stupid Will Farrel humor…it was actual comedy that made me laugh my ass off throughout the entire film. I do not think there was a 5 min span throughout the entire movie that I didn’t laugh hard enough to make my face hurt.
You were not just waiting for the next one liner to hit that you can repeat over and over again to your friends for the next year…it was histarical throughout as you went on the journey with these guys to figure out what the hell happened the night before. Ed Helms (The Office) is absolutely classic.
I won’t ruin the movie for you by saying anymore…so go see it. Here is one of the trailers…
So who else is in my top 5?
In no particular order…
- Old School
- Caddy Shack
- Boondock Saints – Yes…you are reading it right
- and the last one always flops around with my mood at the time…
My Whiteboard – The Key To Blogging Organization
June 10, 2009 By 1 Comment
I am a very visual learning by nature, so when it comes to organization…I have to find a way that appeals to my eyes as much as my brain. Typically, I go with the out of sight = out of mind theory for desk organization (don’t look inside my drawers), but when it comes to organizing thoughts and ideas for my blogs, I need to have everything right in front of me ready to go.
I have tried just about every technological advancement known to man in my quest to keep thoughts organized, but when it boils down to it…all of my fantastic, mind blowing, life altering ideas come straight off the whiteboard in my office. My Blackberry’s of old, my current iPhone and even Google Docs can not keep up with the productivity that my faithful whiteboard possesses.
After my failed attempts at keeping my random snippets of blog and eBook ideas in my head, I realized that I needed one central location to write everything down. The whiteboard turned out to be the tool that I needed the most. Not only can you erase items that are completed, but you can formulate complete projects easily and efficiently. Even with all of the incredible technology that we have today…I still go back to my trusty, handwritten whiteboard list to really put the hammer down on getting things accomplished. I can always tell if I haven’t had my whiteboard time as thoughts and weeks go somewhat randomly down the world wide web path.
Everyone has their own way of doing things, but…for me…I need it directly in front of my eyes.
Does this post have a point?
Absolutely! As your blogging and business building progresses, you are going to have multiple projects that are all flooding your brain at once. You are going to wake up in the morning, hit the shower and then BAM! A new thought is going to enter your brain and you need to get that down in some form of thought organization. As much as we try to tell ourselves that we will remember this fantastic idea later…we aren’t. Other things during the day are going to get in the way and you are going to forget that new idea that was going to set the world on fire.
You need to find a way that works for you when it comes to thought/idea management. If I am on the road, I go to the iPhone that keeps half my life in it, but as soon as I get back to my house…the thought hits the whiteboard. Finding your own system of thought management will keep those fantastic ideas that you get throughout the day fresh and it will free up your mind to come up with more that will grow your income and your business. Nothing is more frustrating than trying to remember that thought that came to you in traffic yesterday, so get it out of your head and into some sort of list.
Happy Hallmark Holiday
February 14, 2009 By 1 Comment
Can I say out loud that I hate Valentine’s Day? It’s true, and it all stems from my huge dislike of being told what to do and when to do it. Why should the retail world tell me when to be a nice guy? On top of that…they want to over charge me and tell every other guy in the world to do the exact same thing on the exact same day! It sounds kind of crazy when you really sit down and think about it. I sat my wife down one time while we were dating and threw a proposition at her.
Which would you like better?
Would you rather me get you flowers and take you out to dinner on an assigned day of the year?
or…
Would it be better if it happened randomly on say…March 3rd and you had no clue?
Any woman with a mind would say that they like the surprise better than the assigned day. Add to that…things are cheaper, flowers are easy to find and you get the satisfaction of the surprise! It is really a win/win for everyone involved. Maybe I am over speaking here a little bit and some guys actually need a day like Valentine’s Day. They need a day they are told to be a decent human being. I don’t know…but I can tell you I am sick of fabricated, retail holidays where I am told I have to do something. Does it really come from the heart if you are told you have to? I don’t think it does…
What others are saying…