Daily Ramblings – Funny Friday

Tags

Albert Einstein, failing, Falling, goofs, Improving, Learning, Mistakes, Programming

“Once you can accept the universe as matter expanding into nothing that is something, wearing stripes with plaid comes easy.” ­Albert Einstein

Only Albert could give us something to ponder while being funny. This brought up a point about the importance of giving yourself a break. You are human. You will make mistakes. You will goof up. You will fall.

Will your mistake end the world? Will your goof destroy your progress? No. You can fix mistakes and goofs. Just realize that making mistakes and goofs are all part of the learning process. Learn from your mistakes. Learn what didn’t work. Learn why it didn’t work.

After re-wiring my brain toward coding again, I realized how silly some mistakes are. Software development languages are quite unforgiving when you screw up syntax. They are also maddening when you think they should do something, and they do something else. Between syntax and logic errors, logic errors are the worst. But, like every other developer before me, there are little hacks to learn, little “tricks of the trade” that allow you to avoid plenty of errors or have a process for finding logic and syntax errors.

The same thing that a software engineer uses can be used in real life when looking at your other projects. Look at the big task, break it down into little tasks, and execute each little task. This is what a computer programmer does because a computer can only work through little tasks to accomplish bigger ones. You must build the code, so your computer knows the variables it will have access to, the functions it will execute, and told when to execute a function or line of code. All these little tasks build up to an end goal, like allowing a person to play a game, do a calculation, or learn if they had enough sleep last week.

We do the same thing when we are looking to accomplish something. We look at the goal. We visualize what the end-state of that goal’s accomplishment looks like. Then we begin breaking the goal down into actionable steps.

I’ve really enjoyed getting back into programming. I haven’t done it seriously since 2005, but it is all beginning to come back quickly. I like the way software engineering requires us to think about what we want to accomplish. Only then can we build code to help us fulfill our desired end.

When you make a mistake and get down on yourself, take some time to contemplate the bigger picture. Each mistake you make helps you move forward—you find out what NOT to do. Learn from these mistakes. They’ll make you stronger—better. I hope all of my readers in the US had a terrific Thanksgiving!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Wisdom Wednesdays

Tags

change, David Allen, habits, Improving, Paul Twitchell, Stephen Covey, Stephen Guise, Truth

“It is easy to hate, and it is difficult to love. This is how the whole scheme of things works. All good things are difficult to achieve, and bad things are very easy to get.” – Confucius

Read more at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/confucius_119273

Ever wonder why things that are bad for us are so easy to do and the things that are good for us are so hard to do? I have read a string of books by Stephen Guise and this is one thing that pervades his work. The bad things that are easy for us to do are there because they are easy and bring almost immediate rewards. Because they are easy and bring rewards each time, we do them, they become habits.

Conversely, the good things we want to do for ourselves are not so easy. They must be learned or practiced, which takes time. They also give us rewards but they are not instantaneous.

Bad habits like binge-watching television, eating junk food, or mindlessly surfing the Internet are all so easy to do and rewarding. We literally need zero effort to accomplish these things.

Good habits like reading every day, writing every day, exercising every day, or learning every day take work. They deliver tremendous benefits over the long-term but only if we make them habitual.

Our brains are wired to resist change. When you have a food manufacturer that offers a “healthy” option that takes 3 minutes in a microwave to prepare—beware. The rewards for this option are easy to cook and get into our bellies. The huge disadvantages are the chemical soup that is within each of these so-called, “healthy” meals, the overabundance of salt, sugar, and fat, and the preservatives, unnatural coloring, and processing that occurs that change whole foods into “Franken foods” (Stephen Guise uses this in a book I just finished about weight loss.)

If you are unsatisfied with your life, look at what you do every day. Are you on autopilot or are you making conscious choices about how you fill your day? Are you moving toward anything meaningful or are you just filling your day with meaningless activities?

I’m not trying to guilt you out. I am merely asking the question. If you are totally happy with your life as it is—don’t change it.

If you are unhappy with your life, take some time to contemplate what is missing. Take inventory of how you feel. Examine your emotional states. Are you bored? Are you stressed? Do you feel terrible and apt to get sick more than most people? Do you have back problems or issues with obesity? Are you depressed?

If any of these things sound like you and you’re tired of feeling or being this way, take some steps to make a change. You don’t have to strike out on some crazy crusade. Too big of a change will not work. You will try for a day or so and digress to your old patterns and behaviors. Make really small changes. Changes that don’t require too much willpower or motivation to accomplish.

If you’re wondering why I ask all these questions and tend to gravitate toward this subject matter on most of my postings, there is a reason. I used to be that guy. I could play video games for 24 hours a day. I could binge watch entire seasons of shows on Netflix, all while stuffing my face with absolute garbage. What was the result? A back surgery that put me down for 2 years, walking around with a back brace. Massive weight gains up to 247lbs before I put a stop to that. The loss of not one, but three separate marriages. I also filed for bankruptcy—twice!

I’m trying to provide advice to people who may be in the same situation as I was. It is a horrible place to be when you realize one morning that you can’t make yourself do what you know you should do. I was really in a very dark place.

How did I turn things around? I took some time to do some research. I began searching for information about how we form habits. I began looking for information about how to make changes. I began to examine the things other successful people were doing each day that made a difference in their lives.

My searches resulted in some books that I re-read every year. These books are here for you. Read these books and put the suggestions they offer to good use. These books changed my life for the better and will do the same for you—promise.

Booklist:

• Mini Habits by Stephen Guise
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey
• Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-free Productivity by David Allen
• The Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad by Paul Twitchell

These books helped me create a personal framework for self-improvement. They gave me categories of life to cultivate. They gave me a meaningful way to write down my goals, plan my weeks and days, and utilize an “outside brain” instead of depending on my own brain for everything. They taught me how to make very small changes that have a lasting and awesome impact. They opened my mind to wisdom, truth, and provided me with an architecture of what our existence is truly about.

My levels of self-discipline, motivation, and determination are on an entirely different plane. I found that our improvement never ceases. There will always be another plateau to reach, another level of proficiency to attain, a new area to explore. It all starts with very small steps.

If you are tired of the way things are in your life, take some time to read one of these books. I would recommend Stephen Guise’s book first. It is the easiest read and contains the means of starting your transformation with very little effort. His book is the one that jump-started my journey.

I wish you well.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

Changing, Colin Powell, Exercising, Hard Work, Improving, Learning, Success, Writing

“Success is the result of perfection, hard work, learning from failure, loyalty, and persistence.” – Colin Powell

Read more at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/colin_powell_386437?src=t_learning

I really enjoy learning new things and doing what I can to improve all areas of my life. I have learned over time that it’s the little things that lead to big things. A consistent effort in small chunks delivers huge results.

I run across people all the time that struggle with improving themselves. Once I begin asking questions it is easy to see why they struggle. They are not vested in change. They are unhappy with their personal circumstances but fail to act. Why? They want reality to change for them.

We cannot affect change outside of us. We must change ourselves to achieve different results. If you want to lose weight, eat right and eat less. If you want to get in shape and feel better, get consistent sleep, eat right, and exercise (cardio and strength). If you want to do something with yourself, take the time to brainstorm, formulate a plan, organize your time around that plan, and execute. This is the same thing you will read about in book after book after book.

If you want your life to change, you must change—that’s it. Nothing outside of you will bend or adjust to you. The outside reality is what it is. Accept it and live with it or change yourself and alter your circumstances.

Below are the things I’m doing to improve and change. I hope all of you have a great 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.

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 – This is a nice read. I don’t know if I’d buy the book by itself. It is the companion book for the Science of Success course below and it’s well worth it if you take the course in conjunction with it. It’ll run you around $5 for the Kindle version.

Classes:

Web Development Path – Codecademy – Currently learning HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.

Mindfulness Course – Coursera

Documentaries:

Inside the Free Masons – Netflix – Good documentary, but you’ll want to be interested in secret societies and such. It’s a very interesting documentary.

Movies:

Venom (Another Marvel Movie) – I saw this on my birthday. If you’re a Marvel Comics fan, this is a must see. Lots of action and terrific effects.

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.

Madam Secretary (Netflix) – I’m enjoying this one. I’m on the third season (there are four). Each season is about 20+ shows. If you like political dramas, you’ll like this one. Great cast and great writing.

Interesting Apps:

Codecademy – I’m currently pursuing a bucket list item and learning to code. I’m starting with HTML and having a great time so far. The first coding project is creating a blog from scratch—how ironic, right? The interface is awesome! You’ll need to be prepared to pay the $19.99/month to truly enjoy this one. The $19.99 version allows you to work on projects, take quizzes, and offers a whole bunch of bonus material not available in the free version.

Weight Watchers – I’m still on a quest to lose weight. After reading some research in an e-book published by Scientific American, this was one of the diet services that they believed were effective (mentioned in more than one of the enclosed articles). It runs $19.99/month and you are obligated to 3 months minimum (there is a penalty for quitting early). You can look up food, get your daily points (they use points for the types of food you eat), and have access to recipes, and all kinds of bonus content.

I truly wish the very best to all of your pursuits to improve and change for the better. Have a great, rest of the week!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Wisdom Wednesday – Love of Learning

Tags

Growth, Improving, Learning, Reading

“Few realize that a deep love for God also implies a love for learning.”

—Harold Klemp The Language of Soul

I love to learn. I take courses, talk with people, read lots of books and articles, and engage with life. There are so many free resources online, I have a hard time understanding why more people do not take advantage of them.

What is learning? Learning to me is literally gaining knowledge about something that you can apply in your life. If you are interested in photography, there is a wealth of free information online that can help you develop your eye for the perfect picture.

The same goes for writing, playing an instrument or even learning a new language. Each requires a certain discipline to learn, but there are so many ways to learn new things via books, via blogs, via YouTube, Coursera, Udemy, or even the Khan Academy.

I love learning more about writing, bodybuilding, nutrition, exercise, history, and other non-fiction topics. I’m also a huge fan of anything that can help me be more productive and achieve my goals.

Today, take this quote to heart and think about what it means to you.

Learning is one way to continually add to your current skillset. The more skills you have the more ability you have to help others and perhaps even earn more for yourself and your loved ones.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Striving

Tags

Exercise, Improving, Learning, Meditation, Reading, self-improvement, Striving, Studying, Writing

“It is never too late to be what you might have been.” George Eliot

Wow, what a great quote right? How many stories have been told through the ages of a life wasted? Wow, he or she could have been this, if only….?

When you wake up in the morning, do you realize that you are the best you’ve ever been, ever? It only gets better moving forward. I realize this may sound to be a little over the top from a positivity perspective, but why can’t it be like that? It can be.

One of the things I’ve discovered since beginning this blog and following others is that there are a lot of folks who are striving. Striving to improve. Striving to be better. Striving to heal. Striving to be heard. I really enjoy reading the thoughts of others and try to put myself in their position, really feeling where they are in life. But, living a life well-lived is about the striving, right? I think it is.

I am striving for many things. I want to become a writer. I want to tweak my prose so people will be drawn to my books, my blog, or whatever I create for a reader to consume. I want to be in the best shape of my life so my brain and body will serve me as long as humanly possible. I strive toward this goal with daily exercise, eating right, a daily dose of reading, learning, writing, and meditation. I want to be loved, so I strive to interact with people, cultivate new relationships by putting myself out there, and maintaining the relationships I have with my family and my friends by staying in touch and doing those little things that make my loved ones know they are my world and they can depend on me.

I strive for a great many things that pertain to my physical well-being, my financial well-being, my mental and intellectual well-being, my spiritual well-being, and my social well-being. This striving is what keeps me alive. I continuously look for ways to improve and get better, all while taking care of the most important person in my life—me. If I am not striving for that next goal, that next hilltop, that next landmark, then I am moving backward.

Don’t get me wrong. We all get sick. We all get old. We all get blind-sided by those things that we didn’t see coming, which put us into a temporary tailspin. What I’m talking about here is purposeful striving, continuing forward, regardless of what we get hit with or encounter.

This is where the quote above really hit me. I don’t want to be that person that looks back over their life regretting that I didn’t do something I could have done. I don’t want to be that person that cowered in fear and avoided something because it might be too hard or too scary to even try. I want to look back on my life and say, I did the very best I could with what I had and from where I started. Man, what a great ride this life has been.

We all come to this world with our own baggage and circumstances. Some are outright advantageous, while others are the exact opposite. If you are ever discouraged, look around the web for a bit or go to your local library. You’ll find a story about a person who had it rougher than you and excelled. You’ll also find a person who had everything and wasted their opportunity. A well-lived life is not all about the accolades and accomplishments. It is about the striving.

By the way, I chose the Ballerina picture, as a way of demonstrating striving in action (they work really hard to get good at this particular kind of dance).

Until next time…