Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Being Grateful for the Little Things

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Appreciative, family, Friends, Grateful, health, Life, Little Things, pets, Tecumseh, Thankful

“When you rise in the morning, give thanks for the light, for your life, for your strength. Give thanks for your food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason to give thanks, the fault lies in yourself.” – Tecumseh

Read more at: BrainyQuote

I want to start today’s post with a “Thank You!” to my new followers this week. I appreciate you following my blog and hope my content helps or inspires you to do great things in your life. Today is Thankful Thursday and I want to talk about the things we take for granted in our lives.

Each morning I journal. The first thing I do is write in my dream journal, recording whatever I remember about the dreams I had the night before. The second thing I do is write in my gratitude and affirmations journal. The third thing I do is work through my morning pages to empty my mind and think about the day ahead. All these journals are important in different ways. The most important journal is my Gratitude and Affirmations Journal.

I am grateful for this life. I am grateful for God’s love. I am grateful for my family and friends. I am grateful for my pets. I am grateful for the little things. Little things, like a warm cup of coffee as I stare out my office window and look at the snow. A nice meal. A good book and a cup of tea. I am grateful for my health. I am grateful for the intellect I am blessed with. I am grateful for the insights that come into my mind.

The beauty of practicing gratefulness is the way it focuses my mind on the good rather than the bad. It is so easy to be unconscious. It is so easy to develop bad habits. It is so easy to blame everything outside of us for our problems. It is so easy to get upset and pissed off. I started my gratitude practice by writing three things I was grateful for. Initially, it was hard. It was hard because it takes a conscious effort. It requires you to act and recognize how great your life is.

Despite your current circumstances, you have lots to be grateful for. You are alive. This life is yours to live. Be grateful for what you have. Look at all the things that make your life great. Maybe it’s your warm bed. Maybe it is one of your friends. Maybe it is taking a hot bath or shower. Find things to be grateful for. You will notice a feeling enter you. This feeling will be one of comfort, joy, and contentment. It may take a while to recognize it because we are so focused on what’s wrong with our lives. Flip the switch. Look for what’s right. Focus on that.

Each of you who are reading this posting has things to be grateful for. What are they? When you think about them, how do you feel? Try this out for a month. Each morning take time to write three things you are grateful for. Constantly look for new things to express your thanks for. When you concentrate on what’s good, more things will rise to your attention. Before long you will have hundreds of things you are grateful for. This is one habit that can change your life. It will change your life because it will focus your attention on the good rather than the bad. It is a great way to live.

Well folks, that’s it for today. I hope each of you begins a daily gratitude practice. It will make a huge difference—promise.

Until next time…

Dave

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Daily Ramblings – Wisdom Wednesday – The Simple Things

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Peace, Reading, rituals, Simple Things, solitude, Tranquility, wisdom, Writing

“The simple things are also the most extraordinary things, and only the wise can see them.”―Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist

I took quite a few years to realize the wisdom Paulo Coelho refers to in this quote. Like, all young men, I sought fame, glory, and riches. I had a terrific military career in the Army, spanning 20 years. When I retired, I transitioned into technical recruiting, my second career. This career was very lucrative and set me up for an early retirement. Now I am pursuing a third career in writing, teaching, and writing programs for the web and mobile devices.

I enjoyed making a lot of money but discovered it was empty, at least for me. When my Dad’s illness kicked in, I returned home to help my folks. My days are simple, yet productive. I work through my daily routine, enjoy a few cups of coffee and good meals (I love to cook), and really enjoy the solitude and peacefulness that accompany my morning journaling. During the winter months it is even more special because the warmth of my coffee is a stark contrast to the cold on the other side of my living room window.

I used to use a desktop computer only for my work. Now I find my laptop to be a better companion. It allows me to enjoy different parts of my home as I work through my daily rituals. My core activities are exercise, meditation, journaling, working on my book projects, and working through various online courses, pursuing my varied areas of interest. I take my laptop everywhere, especially the coffee shops I enjoy going to.

My life is simple but rich. I take comfort in my routines and my little joys. I enjoy a warm cup of coffee in the morning. I enjoy the peace that accompanies my writing. I am engaged when I am learning new coding techniques and other topics. One of my greatest joys is relaxing while I read. Reading is a true joy, particularly when I am learning something new, or engrossed in a story.

When you slow down, you notice the little things that make life a grand experience. Petting the family dog, eating a meal with your family, conversations in the morning over coffee, looking at the snow, and enjoying those moments you realize how terrific life is. The simple things in life are the things that make life worth living.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Ted Talk Tuesday – Sounds that Hurt Us and Help Us

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Deafness, Earphones, Expansive Listening, Julian Treasure, Noise, silence, Sound, Soundscapes

Today’s Ted Talk is short. The presenter, Julian Treasure, talks about the sounds that hurt and heal. At the end he presents 7 things we can do to preserve our hearing and heal ourselves.

Until next time…

Dave

 

Daily Ramblings – Motivation Monday –

Tags

Content, Contributing, motivation, passion, Unique, Walt Disney, Writing

“I believe in being an innovator.” Walt Disney

Read more at: Brainy Quote

There is so much content available online and it continues to perpetuate itself. Making your own contributions online is daunting, particularly when you second-guess yourself. You ask yourself questions like: Who will find my work? Who will like my work? Am I good enough?

You are unique. You have a voice. This voice is different. There are people who want to hear your words. Get it out there.

I love blogging. I love writing. I blog and write because I have things to say. I like to put my “two cents” out there.

When Disney came on the scene, there was no such thing as a theme park or full-length animated film. He brought both ideas to the market. Today, millions of people flock to Disney’s theme parks and watch his movies. Mickey Mouse is an icon known across the globe.

You never know who will read your words. You never know who will enjoy them. Get them out there. Pursue your dreams. You’ll never know until you do it.

Some people don’t like to write. That’s ok. Pursue the things you love. Pursue your unique interests. We all have a place in this world. Your passions are where you need to focus your time and effort. There is a need for your unique contribution.

Every single person we consider great, started with an idea. Henry Ford’s idea was the automobile. Edison’s idea was the light bulb. Disney’s idea was creating products that allowed people to escape their normal lives and experience “The Happiest Place on Earth”. Disney sold happiness and wonder. Who wouldn’t want to buy that?

If you know where your passions lie, pursue them. Even if you only have time to dedicate an hour a day, use that hour to pursue that passion. You’ll feel more alive during that hour than the rest of your day.

If you want to make money pursuing your passion, research. You could write a book about your passion, write a blog about your passion, or even teach others about your passion by creating course content for YouTube or an online education hub like Udemy. There are people who have monetized their passions in the same way. Look around. You’ll find these people and learn how they did it.

My Week

I’ll be working on my 2^nd draft of my book. I’m doing a chapter a day. This week will be chapters 6-10. My daily exercise regimen is in the home because of the bad weather we are experiencing in Michigan. I’ll be getting back to the gym in March.

I’m reading 5 books. I enjoy reading multiple books at a time. I read one fiction book, a book on history, a religious book, a self-help book, and a book on philosophy. I use a service called Scribd. Scribd is a service that gives you access to books, magazines, audio books, and papers. It is a terrific service for the $8.99/month. I recommend this service if you read as much as I do.

I read digitally. It takes a while to get used to reading this way. My folks have had a real difficulty reading digitally. They still enjoy reading paper books. Print books take up too much space. Digital books allow me to get as many books as I want. They take up zero space, other than the digital space they consume on my phone or computer.

I hope all of you have a great week!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Spiritual Saturday – Doing Your Best

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Doing your Best, Effort, Harold Klemp, Love, Meaning, Purpose, wisdom

If you make a meal, put love into it instead of the frustrations of your day. Because whatever is put into the food is a reflection of what you have inside yourself, and it goes out to your family, it goes out to your friends. And it makes a very real difference.—Harold Klemp The Language of Soul

This quote advises us to put love into everything we do. Love builds. Love gives meaning.

I remember my first few years in the Army. I thought I had made a mistake, shortly after I arrived at my first duty station. I was going through the motions. I did what I had to do to avoid getting into trouble. I realized one night that this was not working for me. I put more of myself into the job. I read field manuals and regulations. I put extra effort into my uniform and appearance. I put in more time into exercise. My Army career changed for the better. Instead of biding my time, I embraced my career. This made all the difference.

Love what you do even if your current job is not a perfect one. You will find, like I did, that the more you put into the job, the more rewarding the job becomes. Your job will have more meaning. Love is active. Love is doing. Love requires you to give your best. What you give to the world returns to you.

Do the best you can in every situation. Take the time to do things right. Give everything your best effort. You will find what I have found—the more you give, the more you get.

I hope all of you have a wonderful Saturday.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Funny Friday

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Chuckle, Friday, Funny, Giggle, Henny Youngman, Laughter, Relaxation, Weekend

“Do you know what it means to come home at night to a woman who’ll give you a little love, a little affection, a little tenderness? It means you’re in the wrong house, that’s what it means.” ― Henny Youngman

Enjoy your Friday!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Dark Night of Soul – Finding Your Passion

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Dark Night of Soul, Enjoying Life, Opposites, Passions, Persistence, Programming, Seneca, Writing

“True happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future, not to amuse ourselves with either hopes or fears but to rest satisfied with what we have, which is sufficient, for he that is so wants nothing. The greatest blessings of mankind are within us and within our reach. A wise man is content with his lot, whatever it may be, without wishing for what he has not.” ― Seneca

I was reading something today about the “Dark night of Soul”. The dark night of soul is a time of despair. It is a time of emptiness, isolation, and depression. It is a time in our lives when we see no way out of our troubles. All of us experience this. Some never escape. Others come out of these times stronger. What a dark beginning to a blog posting right?

Without the dark times in our lives, we would not know what the good times are. We need opposites in our lives. Without the negative and positive aspects of life, our existence would be boring. When we experience a dark time in our lives, we appreciate the good times we experience even more. The fluctuation between good days and bad days keeps us on our toes. When we realize that both the good and bad times are necessary for our growth, we realize we can be grateful for both. During the bad times, we develop new coping skills. During the good times, we develop appreciation and gratitude.

Today, I am thankful for my new followers. My goal this year is to reach 1000 followers for Daily Ramblings. I hope that my content will attract new followers and keep them returning day after day. It is a tough order. There are so many other things for people to do. Blogging makes all of us better writers and more cognizant of what the readership wants to read about.

My book writing took a turn for the worse a week ago. I finished my rough draft in January and doubted my content. I did not know what to do next. Then I ran across another write on Facebook and got advice. They pointed me to a few writing tools. I purchased these tools and worked on my 2nd draft. I am grateful for this author’s advice. That advice and her words of encouragement got me back on track.

Writing a book is no easy task. It requires habitual attention and a process that helps the author move from one step of the writing to the next. Since this is my first book, there will be more situations like this. I will get stuck, I will find a solution, and then get moving again.

I am grateful for my persistence. I am grateful for my curiosity. I am grateful for my stubbornness. I am grateful for my desire to write. Like many things in my life, I fell into writing because of my love of writing earlier as a child. I didn’t realize how much I enjoyed this work until I picked it up again in retirement.

I have always wanted to do something for the sheer enjoyment of doing it. Writing is like that for me. Writing allows me to express myself. Writing allows me to clarify my thinking. Writing allows me to empty my mind and organize these thoughts into something cogent. I worked on my book a few days ago and thought about the process an artist goes through when they create a drawing. They sketch something out and then flesh out their drawing into a final product. Writers do the same thing. We start with a rough draft, dumping everything in our minds onto paper. We then flesh out our writing into a final draft. I enjoy these moments of clarity when things come together like this.

Programming is another passion I have recently rediscovered. I dabbled with programming in my college years. It exposed me to some web development, database development, other technical topics. Recently, I got an inner nudge to pick it up again. I found a website called www.codecademy.com. Codecademy offers various development paths to people who want to learn how to code. I did not know this site existed until I asked around. One of my developer friends recommended it and I have been on this site ever since.

Do you have a passion for something you have put aside? I encourage you to pick it up again. Writing and programming are my passions. It is a joy I experience every day. I am grateful for my writing and my ability to learn technical topics like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Writing and programming fulfill me. I hope you find where your passions lie and can pursue them too.

I hope all of you are having a terrific Thursday! Thank you to all new followers. I hope you find my content enjoyable and you return often.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Wisdom Wednesday – Discovering Latent Skills

Tags

Boredom, Building Skills, Creating Your Day, Habit Formation, Latent Skills, Research, rituals

“I’d rather regret the things I’ve done than regret the things I haven’t done.” – Lucille Ball

Read more at: Brainy Quotes

Boredom

This quote got me thinking about different times in my life. I recalled a time when my life was very predictable. I would get up, go to work, come home, drone out in front of my TV and go to bed. It was comfortable but boring.

Our brains automate everything. The brain doesn’t like change. The brain uses a lot of energy to alter the patterns or grooves it wires for itself. Each time you do something new, the brain creates a neural pathway to automate that action. If you perform this action over and over, the brain continues to reinforce that pathway until it becomes automatic. This process occurs over and over again subconsciously. The brain resists change because the creation and reinforcement of these neural pathways eats up a lot of the brain’s energy. Your brain is always trying to automate things to conserve energy. Our brains love being static. The less energy your brain uses the happier it is. Changing things is hard and requires consistency for the changes you make to take hold.

Change

If life bores you, you might explore for things you could do differently. Do you have any hobbies? Do you read? Do you do any writing? Do you exercise? Do you create any art? Do you play an instrument? These are things I questioned when I was exploring for something new in my life.

You are unique. You have more talent than you know. Each of us comes into this world with active talents and latent talents. Active talents are those talents we develop out of necessity. Latent talents are those we have but are unused or undiscovered. How do we find these talents if we do not know what they are? We can find our hidden talents by trying new things.

Discovering Latent Talents

My search started with the Internet. I wanted to know the things I could do to add spice to my life. I wanted to find things that other people were doing to add flavor and excitement into their lives. I wanted to find things to do that would assist me with generating an income I could earn on my own, without having to go to a company or work for another boss. I wanted more control over my life, and I wanted to be doing something that built a life with a solid foundation. A foundation that would fulfill me and provide me with an income.

Next, I wanted to find out what successful people were doing with their lives. What is Tim Ferris, Bill Gates, and other successful people doing? What was the template? To learn about these people, I read. I read articles about morning rituals, evening rituals, habits and their formation, planning and goal setting. I saw a pattern emerge. Successful people concentrated their efforts on those things that provide the greatest benefit to their lives.

I followed the advice these people were offering. This led to reading more books, chasing after meditation, writing, exercise, reading, and lifelong learning. I saw areas in my life that needed improvement and discovered things I would like to try. This led me to writing.

Writing was something I liked early in life but never really pursued. I used to be a huge Dungeons and Dragons fan. To run a game for my friends, I had to create entire worlds from scratch. I had to create characters, scenes, and dungeons, filled with monsters for my players to fight. I had to create plot lines that would react and evolve with my player’s actions. Then, I joined the Army and my childhood writing ceased.

Another area I discovered during my search for latent skills and change was computer programming. I love video games. I don’t play a lot. These games are very addictive and eat up a lot of time. I play them, however, and because I play them, I became interested in how they work. This led me to reading about programming, earning a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in IT, and dabbling in programming languages throughout. Again, I didn’t take these skills to the next level.

When I retired in 2016, I learned why people who retire get bored. They no longer have an organization giving them things to do. There is no structure in their lives, other than what they structure. I decided after a few months of piddling around that I needed a daily structure of doing things to build new skills and pursue paths towards residual income. I had to choose paths that would allow me to work, build content, and sell that content for the rest of my life. Writing and programming became my focus. These were two latent skills I uncovered by accident.

Building Skills

This is a wonderful time to be alive. Technology allows all of us to find information we seek. Technology has also altered the education landscape. To build my writing and my programming skills, I needed to find out who was teaching these things and work towards proficiency. I found multiple resources for writing and programming and have built in daily activities to achieve my goals. My goals are to build a large following for my blog and write books. I also want to build programs and applications that will serve people in ways unavailable to people now or improve on existing applications that are good but could be better.

Using all the knowledge I gained around goal setting, planning, habit formation, and daily rituals (collections of habits that are synergistic), I planned a daily regimen of writing, programming, reading, exercising, meditating, and learning. Applying what I learned has helped me plan a fulfilling day of activities that help me forge ahead toward my goals.

You Can Do It

Anyone can do what I’ve done. It really starts with the motivation to change your life. Are you bored like I was? Is something missing in your life? Get out there and look. Experiment with different areas you are interested in. You may find some hidden talents you never knew existed. Once you have clues that uncover one talent or another, get out there and find the resources you need to improve these skills. All that’s left is figuring out how to monetize these skills so you can continue to support yourself.

I hope each of you takes risks. I hope each of you pursues the things that interest you and excite you. I hope each of you attain your dreams. I hope you pursue all the things you want in this life and avoid the regret that accompanies a life of inaction, mediocrity, and fear. Take risks, explore, and try things out. You’ll never know what your life could truly be, if you don’t get out there and try.

Until next time…

Dave

 

Daily Ramblings – Ted Talk – Steven Pinker – The Surprising Decline in Violence

Tags

Empathy, Genocide, Life span, Mutual Benefits, Steven Pinker, Torture, Violence

Today’s Ted Talk is from Steven Pinker. He examines why a decline in violence has taken place over the last century and offers some explanations why we think it hasn’t.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Motivation Monday – Finding Your Dream Job

Tags

Focus, Investigate, Love the work, motivation, passion, Paying the price, Productivity, Resistance

“Lack of direction, not lack of time, is the problem. We all have twenty-four-hour days.”― Zig Ziglar

One of the biggest challenges in life is to figure out what we will do with our lives. I remember contemplating this question when I was about to finish high school. Many of my friends already knew what they would do. Not me. I did not understand what I wanted to do.

Looking back, I would have told myself to choose an area of interest and try it out. As I have matured, I realized that every profession requires a certain price to pay. If you choose a particular area, investigate this area by reading about the people that exist in that field and excel. Learn about what they have to do to be on top of their fields. When you see the price, they are paying you can decide about your willingness to pay the same price. You can do this over several career paths to find the role or roles you will pay the price for.

Once I discovered my desire to be a writer and pursue my dream of learning computer programming life smoothed out. I felt a congruence in my life I had not felt before. When I wake up in the morning, I have a sense of purpose. I know what I will do and I look forward to it.

Once you realize that you’ve made a good choice, you have no resistance to learning, or the work involved in your profession. Writing and programming are a joy. Each day I write, or work on a programming project, it feels like fun rather than work. This was the final confirmation for me. When I realized that my work was really more like play, my efforts in both areas took off.

Like the above quote suggests, focus is the way to productivity and achievement. When you observe people that love what they do for a living, you sense a joy of purpose. The work they do seems effortless. They will work harder than their peers. You can see the joy they experience when they do this work.  You can also see people who are in the wrong position. You see them procrastinate, complain, and do the bare minimum to earn their paycheck. There is no love or purpose behind their work.

This is the key difference between people who are engaged in meaningful work they love and people in the wrong role. Their passion overcomes the price they pay to be in that profession. This passion provides the drive to be the best in their field because it is not work to them. They embrace the training and outside learning the job requires. They work longer and harder. Their work is of a higher quality.

If you are in a position you consider work, maybe it’s time to look at other roles. Research. Investigate these fields. Find out what the top people in these fields do and the price they pay to be the best. If you believe you can pay the same price, try it out. You will never know until you do. The average worker spends roughly 75% of their time at work. Why not do something you love?

This week, I’ll continue my regimen of working on my book, working through my current programming project, reading the five books I’ve selected, and hitting my daily exercise routine. I’ll continue to journal and meditate. I’m making good progress across all areas. I hope each of you has a terrific day!

Until next time…

Dave