Happy Spring everybody! Sure looks like it out there today! Spring is in the air...people seem more upbeat...girls are wearing less clothing...it's great! Not that we had much of a winter anyway this year, but it's still great to feel that rush of new life in the world...
So earlier I was listening to the Skeptic Tank podcast with Ari Shaffir and guest Duncan Trussell, discussing Buddhism primarily but more generally, life...Anyway one of the topics mentioned was something that I strongly endorse these days...something that's really helped me in the last several years...I have also been hearing it a lot out in the world lately and that made me want to pass it along! All I'm talking about is simply the idea that you should have obtainable goals and write them down!
Well that's sort of two things but both are super important. First - goals. One of the things I sometimes ask people is "What do you want out of life?" A large number of people don't actually know! Most will say something vague like "to be happy" or "to have a good life." "To be successful."
Great! But what does that MEAN to you? My good, happy and successful life is probably at least somewhat different than yours! What measures success? What's a good day? What makes you happy? Be more specific! Paraphrasing something brought up in the podcast, if your lifelong dream is to visit the Eiffel tower, you don't just start travelling vaguely in the direction of Europe...you make specific plans! You buy a ticket to Paris, you make reservations, you talk to travel experts, you make concrete, rational plans!
And yet, most people don't have anything near that specific and well thought out in regards to the shape of their whole life! For most of my time on Earth, my idea of life was completely vague and generalized, relying on chance and impulse alone to move forward or make any changes. That worked out so well for me that by the time I was 30, I was waking up depressed because I hadn't died in my sleep the way I was hoping to. Obviously I needed to re-evaluate my lifestyle...
Since those dark days, I started creating specific, obtainable goals to make myself happier or better in some way. I haven't always succeeded, but I've been making progress and now, at 35, I am the healthiest and the happiest I've ever been! Particularly in the last 2 years my life has really turned around for me, and I attribute this to having specific goals to achieve or work towards.
Oh and the thing that has helped me the most - WRITE DOWN YOUR GOALS!
If you're anything like me, thoughts flow through your mind like water flows over the falls, constant but ever fleeting! Thought is gone as quickly as it came, never to be seen again...maybe to be vaguely remembered at best. Writing down a thought is like scooping a bucket of water out of the river...you single it out from the whole and make it important and useful. Suddenly, you can quench thirst or extinguish flames!
You've given your thought power and made it memorable and important! If your thought was written down, it has the power to change things...even the world! The Bible, the Constitution, every book you've ever read, almost everything important or long lasting that anyone's ever done...all started with a thought that someone wrote down!
So here's what you do if you want to change your life:
1. Think of what you want out of life...your ideal situation. Be specific and get into the little details. Nothing is too small! Visualize!
2. Create small, manageable goals to get you closer to this ideal life you've imagined.
3. WRITE THEM DOWN.
4. Start working towards your goals, one at a time. Baby steps is fine...time is all any of us have! Don't set yourself up for failure..just work a little at a time to gradually make your ideas real!
Ain't nothing to it but to do it...
It may take years but trust me, it's worth it...set goals. Write them down! If one of your goals doesn't succeed, don't be discouraged. Remember: Failure is just training for success!! (Thanks Kevin Smith!)
Oh, and if you want to live the public life, you can do like I do and share your ideas and your goals..nothing like a little accountability to make you motivated...that's why I share all these ideas with you! You don't have to share what you've thought of with the whole internet though....even a couple of friends will do! Being accountable really does help though! You can do it! You can do ANYTHING you want to do...one little tiny step at a time!
Limitless undying love folks!
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