Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Grateful for my Teachers

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Books, Colleagues, Friends, leaders, Life, mentors, Parents, Professors, Teachers

All of us have had teachers in one shape or form that contributed to who we are today. I’ve had some great ones. I had great teachers in grade school. I had terrific professors in my undergraduate and graduate studies. The best teachers I’ve had were my parents, my leaders in the military, and life itself.

My parents taught me how to treat family, how to be a man, and how to treat a woman. My teachers gave me insights into the topics I was studying that you could not get from a book. They demonstrated how the book knowledge could be applied to the “real world”.

My military leaders taught me what service was about. They taught me how to take care of my equipment, learn my job, and lead others. They also taught me things that couldn’t be measured—things like honor, discipline, keeping your word, and being honest, even when things get screwed up.

One group I didn’t mention are the group of teachers I have not met. These are the authors of all the books I’ve read to date. Teachers like Covey, Allen, Guise, Twain, Einstein, Hawking, Aristotle, Nietzsche, Tolstoy, Tolkien, and so many others.

All of us have had great teachers in our lives. Life is the final one. Life tends to blindside us. We learn from the cuts and bruises life dishes out. We learn things like being thrifty, planning, always striving for something better, but the most important lesson of all—we learn to treat other people with decency and respect.

I love learning. I love learning from the greats. Whether it is a book, a quote, a video, or in-person advice, our teachers have helped us achieve what we are achieving today. Today, I am grateful for every one of my teachers. I would not be where I am today without them.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Grateful for Mini-Habits

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Books, Change the rules, doing something is better than doing nothing, Life Changing, mini-habits, Stephen Guise

Featured Image Credit: Mini Habits Book Cover (Stephen Guise)

Welcome to another Thankful Thursday. Today, I wanted to express my gratitude for the concept of Mini-Habits, introduced by Stephen Guise, a few years ago. It is such a novel idea, and it took me by surprise. You see, I had a hell of a time getting done what I wanted to get done. I just couldn’t get anything started or accomplished. Then came this book, Mini Habits.

After reading about his one-pushup a day beginning, I knew this was the right thing for me. The freedom to do some minimal thing that would allow me to check something off of my daily to-do list was shocking. I began to see the wisdom in this as I looked at my own inability to do anything I wanted to do.

So, I gave it a shot. And you know, it worked. I don’t recommend this book to everyone. I only recommend it to people who are stuck, or who know what they want to do, but just can’t seem to get started. This is all I needed. Just a little momentum.

So, today I am grateful for Mini Habits and the changes it has brought to my life. If you are stuck like I was, here’s a link to Stephen’s book: Mini Habits. It’ll set you back about $6 dollars US for the Kindle version. Trust me. It is worth every penny.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Grateful for Reading

Tags

Adventures, Books, Expanding Your Mind, ideas, Learning, Libraries, Places, Reading, Romance

A study at the Pew Research Center posits that 27% of America did not read a single book in the last year. That’s a pretty astounding number when you take into account the amount of free books online, online resources provided by local libraries, and available for free at your local library. Enough of my lecturing.

I’m grateful for reading and my ability to read. I love books. I love learning. I love nonfiction and history more than I do fiction, but I still love a great fiction story, particularly science fiction. I love reading stories of exploring other planets, space battles, laser gun fights, you name it.

Photo by James Wheeler on Pexels.com

No entertainment is so cheap as reading, nor any pleasure so lasting. Mary Wortley Montagu.

When I read a book, I’m taken away. I experience the history, the adventure, the drama. It is hard to describe the feeling you get when a great book carries you away. You lose track of time.

So, thank you, to every author that has taken me to a new place. Thanks to the historians that taught me something about a civilization, a war, that told me how we looked at our world 100 years ago, 300 years ago, 500 years ago.

Photo by James Wheeler on Pexels.com

If you don’t read, give it a whirl. Find a topic or type of story you like. Do you like being scared? Pick up a thriller. Do you like to read about love? Find a romance novel. Do you like history and a good story? Pick up a historical fiction book. There are so many choices and so many books available. You don’t need any money. Go to your local library. Heck, reach out to your grandparents. If they are still alive, I bet they have a lot of books to lend you.

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

If you don’t have the time to read, you don’t have the time or the tools to write. Stephen King

In closing, I love to read and grateful for the ability to read. It teaches me; it engages me; it opens my mind to other ideas, times, and places. Pick up a book and read it. You will be different when you’re done.

Until next time…

Dave

 

Daily Ramblings – Wisdom Wednesday – Books

Tags

Adventure, Books, Excitement, Fiction, habits, Learning, Non-Fiction, Reading, Tomes, wisdom

For those of you that follow this blog, you know my love of reading. This week, because of my low energy (I’m still sick), I want to talk about why I love reading and why I set reading goals every year.

I have never been a big fan of fiction books.. I love a good story, but I love learning more. I’m constantly seeking new information with the hope of just finding one or more things I can do or use to make my life easier and more productive. Some books I read are philosophical, while others are more about hard science like physics, astronomy, or history. I also enjoy reading biographies. It is fascinating to see how others overcome great obstacles and win.

Whenever I get sick, I try to determine why or what I do that caused me to get sick. Colds and flus are just a nuisance. During the holidays I eat everything. I eat cakes, cookies, chocolate, junk food, you name it. When we have family visiting, you can also kick the sleep schedule, workout routine, and all the rest to the curb. Yeah, that’s why I’m sick. But there’s a silver lining. My sickness caused me to watch a few films and purchase a book about whole-food, plant-based diets. It really got me thinking, and I will make my transition to this lifestyle in February. I’m reading the Forks over Knives book now and will put that up in a review once I’m done. The book just makes great sense.

I also read a lot of books simultaneously. For example, I am reading 8 non-fiction books now and one fiction book. This is normally the ratio of non-fiction to fiction I read throughout the year. Of the 73 books I read last year, only 12 books were fiction books.

I enjoy reading books because you learn from other people. The people that take time to write a book about a particular topic are normally folks who have dedicated their lives to a specific area. They know the topic inside and out. They also know the pitfalls of trying to adopt the ideas in their book. I never try to adopt everything an author recommends. I look for one or two items that make sense regarding my life. For example, the very first thing I adopted out of the book: Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-free productivity, by David Allen was his 2-minute rule. This rule recommends that if we run across anything in our life that takes less than two minutes to complete, you do it–right now and be done with it. This was life-changing for me.

When I read The 7 habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen Covey, I learned about the 7th habit labeled “Sharpening the Saw”. Again, this was life-changing. Sharpening the Saw is about improving those things in your life that have the greatest impact on everything else, like physical exercise, reading broadly, and planning.

Finally, when I read Mini Habits, by Stephen Guise, the one thing I grasped from my first reading was building habits by establishing extremely small thresholds for each habit I wanted to adopt. Who can’t do one push-up a day? Another huge game changer.

My life improved by reading these books. Each day I look for more of these game changers. One little tweak to my daily life that can bring huge benefits.

If you are not a huge fan of reading, I challenge you to fix that–NOW! We can all learn so much from those that have struggled with the same things we do and have found solutions to these problems. All it takes is a few bucks and your time. Start small. Dedicate 10 minutes of your day to read a few pages (say 5 or 10). It doesn’t matter the amount you read, just make it a daily habit. Before long you’ll be knocking out a lot of books and will reap the benefits of doing so. Think about it. If you could learn one thing you could add to your life that would change it dramatically, wouldn’t that 10 minutes a day be worth it? I think so.

Well, that’s it for today. I’m heading back to my herbal tea and a nap, so I can be done with this stupid cold. Have a great day folks!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

Books, Consistency, improvement, Learning, Movies, Small wins, Success, Tamara Taylor

“As long as you keep going, you’ll keep getting better. And as you get better, you gain more confidence. That alone is success.” – Tamara Taylor

Read more at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/tamara_taylor_884736?src=t_success

All of us start out in different places. This is what makes us human. You may a great artist; I may be a great speaker. The key is to recognize where you are starting from, set your sights on getting beyond your current talents to improve them.

Some advocate that we concentrate on our strengths and forget our weaknesses. I’m old school. Why should I fix what isn’t broken? Why should I neglect the parts of my make up that are not as strong as the others? I know what my weaknesses are, and I want to bring them up a bit, so they are no longer weaknesses.

Deciding is the key. Decide what you want. Decide what you want to work on. Decide on where you want to go and be. Then, formulate a plan, break it down into easy steps, and start working on each step daily. You’ll get where you want to go in no time.

Here’s what I’ve done this week:

Exercise Program:

Jim Stoppani’s Shortcut to Size – (www.bodybuilding.com) – I’ve done this workout before and returning to it because it is just a good all-around weight routine. It’s 8 weeks in length, a 4-day split with 3 rest/cardio days mixed in.

Books:

Armor, Steakley – Recommended by an Army Buddy. A terrific book so far.

The Shariyat Ki Sugmad, Paul Twitchell – This is my bible. I finished it and will re-read again. This book is a permanent fixture on my reading list.

Classes:

De-mystifying Mindfulness Course – Coursera – I’ve completed all the coursework so far and waiting until Nov 4, 2018, for the course to continue. One drawback of Coursera is the scheduling. Udemy allows you to buy the whole course, complete the whole course on your schedule and provide a certificate at the end.

Documentaries:

Movies:

Fun:

Ozark – Netflix – Season 2!

House of Cards – Netflix – Final Season. This was ok, but they ran out of gas. There were a lot of loose ends in the series and well, that’s all I got. I’d stick with the first few seasons and bail after that. Kevin Spacey made the show. After his trouble in the media and the law, the show would not survive.

Interesting Apps:

I hope all of you are having a terrific week! See you tomorrow for Funny Friday!!

Until next time…

Dave

 

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

Books, Coursera, Learning, Movies, Netflix, Reading, self-improvement, Writing

Photo and Quote: www.brainyquote.com

We are either growing or shrinking. Our brain is a muscle, just like those we use to move about. Learning new things, reading, writing, and building your skill set all contribute to your ability to think, reason, and analyze. Learning is an entertaining, challenging, and rewarding activity.

I cannot stress how important learning is to each of us.

What should you learn? That’s up to you. What interests you? What skills could benefit you in your job, your overall career, your life? Pick something. Explore it. Learn something.

I make it a daily practice to learn something new each day. Whether it’s a piece of trivia or a deep topic like terrorism, philosophy, politics, or mathematics, they are all topics to learn about. Maybe you want to learn a new language, learn how to take better photos with your phone, or even learn how to program with HTML. Regardless of the topic or skill you pursue, all will benefit you. They will exercise your brain, they will keep you engaged, they will push your limits of capability.

Read daily. Write daily. Learn something new daily. Here’s what I’m up to this week:

Books:

Armor, Steakley – Recommended by an Army Buddy. A terrific book so far.

Ethics, Aristotle – Almost done with this one.

The Shariyat Ki Sugmad, Paul Twitchell – This is my bible. I finished it and will re-read again. This book is a permanent fixture on my reading list.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe – Still plugging away on this one. I’ve put it on hold, not because it is a bad book but due to the nonfiction reading, I’m taking on (I love nonfiction books more than fiction).

The Science of Success: What Researchers Know That You Should Know, Paula Caproni. I just started this book in conjunction with the author’s course on Coursera.

Classes:

The Science of Success: What Researchers Know That You Should Know, Paula Caproni, University of Michigan, Coursera. – I started week 1 yesterday. A buddy of mine recommended this one and I’m glad he did. This is a good course so far.

Documentaries:

Movies:

Venom (Another Marvel Movie) is scheduled to come out on the 5^th. I cannot wait. This one looks terrific!

Fun:

Ozark – Netflix (in the cue) – Re-watching Season 1 to remind me what’s going on. I’ll kick into Season 2 when I’m back on track with this one.

Jack Ryan – Amazon Prime – This was ok but not as good as the hype that was advertising since earlier this year. Watch at your own risk. The story is entertaining but nothing to call home about.

The Newsroom – Wow! This was a terrific show. I highly recommend it. The writer for this show also was the writer for the West Wing. Great show.

Interesting Apps:

Calm – This is a meditation app and is awesome. It is a little pricey. It’s 59.99/year. I really enjoy the app. I began using it again to bolster my meditation practice. I dropped meditating for a bit and found my stress levels increased and focus waned. I use this app twice a day and love it.

Until next time…

Dave

Reference

Anthony J. D’Angelo Quotes. (n.d.). BrainyQuote.com. Retrieved October 4, 2018, from BrainyQuote.com Website: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/anthony_j_dangelo_153989

Daily Ramblings – Wisdom Wednesday

Tags

Anton Chekhov, Application, Blogs, Books, Learning, online courses, Practice

Anton Chekhov was a Russian playwright and the author of numerous short stories (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anton_Chekhov). Today’s Wisdom Wednesday addresses the importance of applying what we learn.

With the huge amount of information available to us in books, the web, radio, and television, it is easy to become overwhelmed. When you take a look at the number of available, free online courses that information overload becomes even greater. When you begin looking for something to learn, your search could be motivated by a need to know something or to learn how to do something.

How do we internalize new bits of knowledge? We read about it, we take notes, we study the material. If we have enough information to use, we stop gathering information. If we do not have enough information or have other questions, we continue our quest.

It is easy to be sucked into “useless” learning. It can be entertaining to learn about a really obtuse topic that you will never apply but it should not be habitual. Who has that kind of time? Instead, we should focus on learning something that we can use. Perhaps you want to learn how to market your skills. Perhaps you want to learn how to write non-fiction or fiction. Perhaps you’d like to be a better public speaker.

Chekhov’s point is to apply what you learn. I like Merriam Webster’s word of the day. I want to grow my vocabulary and this is a great way to do it. I listen to the word’s pronunciation, I learn about the word’s origins, and I listen to the announcer’s use of the word in a sentence. Then I use that word for the day. This is a simple example of applying what we learn.

There is some learning that cannot be applied directly. I am currently reading Aristotle’s ethics. I cannot apply this information directly but I can use it when I am thinking or tackling an issue that I am struggling with. Learning about history is another example of this kind of learning. We read history to learn about what our predecessors did. How did they handle the problems of the day? How did they deal with reality? How did they tackle the challenges that faced them?

Next month I begin my year-long adventure into character building. I’m going to use the same model that Benjamin Franklin used to work on his character. He simply listed out the characteristics he wanted to achieve as a person and then he worked on one of these each month. After the first month, he would begin working on the first and the second characteristic. As he moved into the third month, he would be working on character trait one, two, and three. This continued until he had built all of the character traits he wanted to. This is an example of using previous knowledge and applying it to one’s own life.

Take a few moments today and figure out what you would like to learn. Begin researching all of the sources of information that apply to your topic of interest. Once you have isolated a few sources (online course, book, etc.) you can begin learning this new skill. Once you have tackled some of the content, try applying what you know to your day-to-day life. You’ll be amazed by the results and how quickly you assimilate this information.

I hope each of you is having a terrific week so far. As always, feel free to comment and pass along my blog to others in your network.

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

Apps, Benjamin Franklin, Books, Courses, Movies, Series, Thinking Thursday

Retrieved from: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/benjamin_franklin_141119?src=t_knowledge

I enjoy learning. I put a lot of time and effort into growing my knowledge, honing my skill set, and just picking up interesting pieces of information. If you’ve been reading these Thinking Thursday quotes it is all about what I am reading, watching, and the online courses I am taking. I’ve also begun adding some of the apps I use or try with recommendations if one of my readers is interested.

My words try to motivate. I like to teach others and pass along some of the things I’ve tried out that have proven to be effective. I hope you enjoy the exercise suggestions, different techniques for dieting, the book and class recommendations, along with the various movies/series I am watching. I want everyone to know that I am not an affiliate of any website, product, or service. I recommend what I try out and have used for the benefit of my readers only. I may opt to pursue affiliation in the future but for now, these recommendations are simply that.

I also want to take a few moments to thank all of the new readers that have begun following Daily Ramblings. If anyone has suggestions or recommended changes that you believe would make Daily Ramblings better, feel free. I can’t make any promises but will give every suggestion that is offered serious consideration.

Here’s my progress on key reading, learning, and entertainment activities for this week:

Books:

Ethics, Aristotle

The Shariyat Ki Sugmad, Paul Twitchell

Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe

Classes:

Western Heritage, Hillsdale College

Mini-Habits Course, Udemy – Great Course! I highly recommend it. I have read the book, so the course was sort of a refresher. The instructor is interesting and provides a lot of good examples on how to implement his strategies.

Designing Your Own Weight Loss Plan – Case Western University – Coursera – I do not recommend this course. It is outdated, and the instructor is very dull. If you are interested in this topic area I would recommend searching for another course. I could not get through it.

Documentaries:

Movies:

Black Panther – Netflix: I’m a huge Marvel fan and this one doesn’t disappoint. My sister was lukewarm about it but I liked it.

Fun:

The West Wing (Currently on Netflix)

Ozark – Netflix (in the cue)

Jack Ryan – Amazon Prime (in the cue)

U.S. Open Tennis (when I have time to catch a good set here and there) – I enjoyed this. The finals were exciting to watch and so was some of the match play I got a chance to see.

Interesting Apps:

I just discovered Curious.com. It has mini-courses, daily words, daily poems, interesting articles, daily content-specific podcast content, and puzzles like crosswords, up and down words, and many others. It’ll run you $9.99/month or an annual fee (can’t remember the price), but this is worth it. I have been playing with this for a week and really like it.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Ted Talk Tuesday!

Tags

Books, Communicating, Connecting, Entertained, History, Language, Learning, Lisa Bu, Reading, Time period

I have always been an avid reader. I tend to read many books at once because I like to learn new things but also like a good story. Reading can do a lot of things for you. It can improve your vocabulary. It can open your mind to new ideas. It can also help you connect with an author from a time period long gone. When I read a book from an author who has passed away I try to envision what it was like to be alive when they wrote the book. I look at the differences in language. I look at what was going on in the world when they wrote the book.

If you have never performed this exercise, try it out. It can be very informative and provides a greater backdrop to why an author wrote the book, what the language was like, and so many other aspects. Uncle Tom’s Cabin is a book I’m reading now. It was written at a time when slavery was commonplace in the United States.

This book was written around 1851. The civil war would not begin for another 10 years. Many believe that her work, along with the many works provided by other abolitionists helped provide the moral framework and impetus to end slavery in the United States.

The next time you read a book, look at the publication date. Go to your library or do an online search of things that happened in that year. You’ll be amazed at what you find and this exercise will make reading your book so much more meaningful.

I hope you enjoy this short Ted Talk on reading books. It is inspiring, funny, and provides numerous reasons for sitting down and reading a good book.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

Amazon, Books, Diet, Exercise, Netflix, Plato, Reading, Writing

“Thinking: the talking of the soul with itself.” – Plato

Read more at https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/thinking

I’ve really begun to enjoy my reading sessions each day. Sometimes I pick out a string of books that are just not that great, but the last few months I’ve been getting my hands on some terrific ones—books you look forward to reading each day. Have you ever read a book that you enjoyed so much that you took your time reading it to expand the time you could enjoy it? That’s what it has been like with the books I’ve been reading. Kobo and Uncle Tom’s Cabin are two books that I’m enjoying tremendously.

I just started the Mindshift course a while ago. It is a lot of fun. The teachers are the same as my previous course – Learning how to Learn. This course is about different techniques for learning new things, like a language or picking up a skill you do not have any experience with. It is terrific!

One of the things I’ve learned about low-carb diets is my energy level. It is easier to do endurance work, but lifting weights is much tougher than it was when I was eating a decent amount of carbs. I have been getting comments about my trimming down, which always feels good. I’ve adjusted my workout routine to every other day to adjust to this diet. This is a temporary adjustment, but one that should expedite my body’s adaptation to this new eating pattern.

I hope everyone is having a great week so far. Feel free to comment below with any of the things you are doing well, any goals you have set or accomplished, and even course or book recommendations. I’m always on the lookout for the next great online course or book.

Books:

The Shariyat Ki Sugmad, Paul Twitchell

Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe

The Spiritual Exercises of ECK, Harold Klemp – Just finished this book yesterday. Boy, what a collection of exercises that can help solve some of life’s little challenges.

Kobo: A Story of the Russo-Japanese War, Herbert Strang

The Thirty Years’ War 1618 – 1648, Samuel Rawson Gardner – Religious differences and intolerance, coupled with greed and vanity and you get 30 years of conflict along with the civilian suffering that followed. Very interesting read if you would like to learn about the 30 years’ war.

Classes:

Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles to Learning and Discover Your Hidden Potential

Public Policy, Hillsdale College

Mini-Habits Course, Udemy

Documentaries:

I’m a Killer (Netflix)

Movies:

Ready Player One (Amazon Prime) – I haven’t watched this yet. My sister recommended it and it is on my hit list.

Fun:

The West Wing (Currently on Netflix)

Keep pushing, only today and tomorrow before the weekend!!

Until next time…

Dave