Hi guys,
How did your week go? The recent Syria earthquake has given me a sense of gratefulness to be grateful for just being alive. Even when you don’t believe things will work out, I know that if you continue to work on it, you will reach somewhere. Don’t give up on your goals.
This upcoming week Issue 10 will also happen this week.
Goals without action are just dreams, and everyone can dream.
Let’s get on to this week’s 5 thoughts and ideas I came across.
We must be careful to not let others dictate our goals.
In the old days, the Stoic, Marcus, wrote in his private journal, Meditations, and talked about the quality presented in others whom he met along the way.
He wrote about the generosity, courage, and patience, of those he knew embodied these characteristics to remind himself of such qualities. He did so not to record all their stories or idolize them but for motivation.
Just like social media, we follow people we like and see them as our go-to people to learn things. We follow their routine and see them achieve their goals. We enjoy their content because they are informative, funny, and inspiring.
But consuming things and talking about them is not doing.
We must practice them. Apply that which is relevant to us.
Here are some examples.
Want courage? Instead of watching more stuff about being courageous or talking about them, take the next step to overcoming your fear even though how small it is.
Love watching people give away money? How about the start of being generous now? Join a volunteer group. Participate in events. Your voice matters. It’s not just about the money.
Want to be more patient? Don’t just watch, see which areas of life right now you can be more mindful with and start
We might not succeed but we might as well try.
Trying is better than not.
I tried to dabble in business so many times. I don’t know why but I keep coming back to try different things even after a full-time job. Maybe it was how I saw my mum owning her own business and being around people who also run their own businesses.
Trying is similar to putting yourself in a fighting arena, regardless of whether you’re winning or losing. In WWE, even if you lose or win, you still get paid for appearing.
There are people who are not willing to lose in every scenario so they don’t try. When you don’t try, you disregard the lessons you learn from both winning and losing. You don’t get the experience of being in the trenches and watching people fight it out. You get it in the arena.
The man in the arena is what matters. The man in the arena is the place where you build your ability and strength to succeed. You still get paid in experience.
We must be flexible in our systems.
While contemplating on my absence of post, I came across Riley’s post and it’s brilliant.
I wasn’t flexible in my schedule to post this week’s newsletter, and basically, everything else in my life made me miss this week's post.
I thought that I have to do something at the exact same time to cultivate a habit of doing but I then understood how life is never routine. In fact, setting yourself up for a strict habit might just be a disaster because life will throw you some roadblocks and you have to adapt to them.
By setting up a more flexible system around my schedule, I can better cope with last-minute changes.
Have you had systems in place that you tried to work on but failed?
Delay some gratification
The Stanford Marshmallow Experiment tested a young child's ability to delay gratification by giving them a marshmallow and letting them choose whether to eat it right away or wait a few minutes for a second marshmallow.
Those who waited tended to have better life outcomes than those who didn't.
In the modern world, instant gratification is becoming increasingly popular due to technology and social media, making it harder to delay gratification.
But it’s not too late. You can be self-conscious by delaying your instant gratification.
Here’s a simple example, how about when you board public transport, resist the urge to take out your phone for 5 minutes. Sit down and look around. Be in touch with what you’re experiencing. Enjoy the natural sounds.
See how that feels.
Sometimes you got to play the fool.
There is great power in giving yourself permission to express yourself, and sometimes become a fool, but not everyone thinks it is cool.
Those who are scared of becoming a fool think that they have to offer something of quality and good all the time, and that’s what Ethan Hawke said is the number one enemy and often the world is an unreliable critic.
To be creative is to heal with others. You have to learn to express yourself. To express yourself, you have to know yourself. To do that, you have to follow what you love.
Stop reading books you should read, read books you want to read.
That’s about it for this week's issue!
If you somehow manage to get to the bottom of this page, thank you so much. I enjoyed writing this newsletter as much as you enjoyed reading it. Here’s the share button to spread the love.
Stay tuned for a community area. I’m still working on the systems in place. It’s tough but I think once it comes out it will be all worth it!
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Till next time!