Similar Posts

  • |

    #182 Uncertain future visions

    I can say I want to run a marathon, write a book, or have a successful career – which doesn’t mean I’ll actually end up running a marathon, writing a book, or having a successful career.

    But if I’m serious about it, it does mean I’ll take daily steps towards that goal – daily actions that will change my identity.

    Can I live with the present-day implications of my uncertain future visions?

    If I don’t know yet if I’ll ever write the book – will these daily actions still be fulfilling to me?

    Will they make me happier?

    Will I be happy with the person I become by taking such daily actions?

    Do these daily actions contribute to a fulfilling emotional, mental, physical, and social life?

    If not, am I willing to make emotional, mental, physical, or social sacrifices?

    This is a choice everyone makes for themselves.

    But I don’t want to make my present day miserable for an uncertain vision of the future I don’t even know will happen.

  • |

    #166 It’s not about goals, it’s about the questions they raise

    “If successful and unsuccessful people share the same goals, then the goal cannot be what differentiates the winners from the losers.”

    https://jamesclear.com/goals-systems

    It’s not about having goals. It’s about the follow-up questions goals raise.

    “Will pursuing this goal be good for me? Physically, emotionally, mentally, and financially?”

    “Is there any part of myself, my environment, and the people I care about that will suffer if I pursue this goal?”

    “Who will I have become when I have achieved this goal?”

    “Who do I need to be today to achieve this goal?”

    “Which actions can I take today that bring me closer to achieving a goal?”

    Repeated actions will overrule your thoughts. Repeated actions will change your identity. Better choose your goals and your actions intentionally.

  • #20 I’ve never tried that before, so…

    In the series of unlikely life advice: a quote ascribed to Astrid Lindgren’s legendary character Pippi Longstocking.

    I have never tried that before, so I think I should definitely be able to do that.

    https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/6773397-i-have-never-tried-that-before-so-i-think-i

    Only after reading this quote I realized how often we all hold the opposite belief: I have never tried that before, so I think I am not (and will never be) able to do that.

    What a sad and disempowering belief.

    Which begs the question…

    Where are you disqualifying yourself before even trying it out first?

    What would life be like if your default belief is that things you haven’t tried before are possible for you?

    How would that change your decisions?

    How much fear and frustration would you leave behind?

    Might be worth journaling about.

  • |

    #267 Why intensity fades and consistency leads to change

    When you write 50 pages a day, only to be forced to recover for a month.

    When you start running 5 miles a day without any preparation, only to end up injured.

    When you start studying a language for 5 hours a day, only to give up after a week.

    When you fly so close to the sun, your wings melt.

    When intensity and excitement radiate too brightly, and the reality of life suddenly slaps you in the face.

    That’s when you start appreciating the slow, steady flame of consistency that burns long and becomes brighter over time.

    And that’s when you’ll see lasting change.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *