You

Be a (good) shark 🦈

This Medium post lists some great ways to make your life easier: Focus on next steps. Be present. Say no a lot. Focus on one thing.

One really surprised me, though: speed up.

I was going to add a point about slowing down but then decided to mix things up a bit and go the other way.

Alex Mathers

I second that idea. 👍

“Speeding up” is what I like to think of as relaxed focus. Just keep moving forward; the motion keeps your momentum up and keeps your thoughts and actions fresh and relevant. No more paralysis of analysis.

Get moving. Prioritise a kind of fluid, calm urgency in your life.

Now, Ted Lasso said “Be a goldfish“, but I’m going to say “Be a shark.”

A quick drawing of a shark moving quickly.

Okay, a shark is a deadly predator. Don’t do that; set that aside for a minute.

The best quality about sharks is that they understand relaxed focus. A shark is always moving purposefully, but it’s never in a hurry.  A shark don’t stop or wallow or get bored or frustrated.  A shark is always going somewhere and always has a plan. A shark’s movement seems to feed its energy rather than expend it.

So in life, be a shark. Keep moving purposefully and own your little neck of the ocean.

See also

“Creativity is not a talent. It is a way of operating.”

“How can a guy think and hit at the same time?”

Drawings

Shark variations

I wanted to do a shark as my next little drawing challenge.

I used an ellipse tool and a ruler with dark black ink for the basic shape, then added some watercolor for an intentional contrast in style and color. I played around with a few background layers; I think I like the medium-blue one best.

This sketch took about 10 minutes on my iPad as a little break after shopping at a Whole Foods, at which point I was happy with it, so I stopped.

It is a perfect shark drawing? No. Did I have fun doing it? yes.

General

Hey, this blog has a new name

In case you noticed this blog has a new name and logo, and you thought “this blog got hacked,” fret not. The new name, Mental Break Town, is on purpose.

“But that’s exactly what a hacker would say!” you protest.

Okay, okay, in that case, if I start trying to sell you fake Rolexes, phish you, or spread hate speech, then you’ll know I got hacked. 😉

But why the name change?

Well, patmcg.com was basically just my name, and the blog needed a new name that isn’t about me. It’s about stuff I’m interested in, and hopefully stuff you’re interested in.

Also, this a just a blog and not a company, so I dropped the .com in favor of .blog.

So, I thought of a new name, and luckily the domain name was available. Done. ✔️