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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.

Imperfect is perfect 🙌 (visual)

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I like the saying, “Imperfect is perfect”. Sometimes I switch it up to, “Perfect is boring.”

Music that is super-slick and produced starts to sound kind of the same.

As a person’s appearance approaches “perfect” (often with plastic surgery), they start to look the like everyone else who had that surgery.

That’s why I love this visual from Harsh Darji on Medium. All the circles are perfect but the same. The odd one on the end stands out. You could even say it’s outstanding. 👌

“When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.”

23 November 20232 December 2023 patmcgLeave a comment

Searching for some Thanksgiving inspiration, I came across this quote from Willie Nelson, who has been through a lot.

When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.
Willie Nelson

I like the idea that gratitude is not just a good idea but is also useful.

Yes, we should pause today, on Thanksgiving, (and heck, every day) to be grateful for the good things in our life. But even more than that, we should make something of it – make it useful.

Use your gratitude to show some love, some kindness, some appreciation to someone, to make the best of your situations and bring the best out of the people you know.

Funnily enough, I found a similar idea from from Neal A. Maxwell, a Mormon scholar and educator.

We should certainly count our blessings, but we should also make our blessings count.
Neal A. Maxwell

I don’t know much about the Mormon Church, but this dude seems bright and extremely accomplished across many areas, as well as being noted as a talented writer and speaker.

I’m going to file Mr. Maxwell away along with Timothy Leary as someone I wouldn’t naturally be drawn to but who seems to have some good ideas.

You

The trick to confidence

13 August 202320 August 2023 patmcg3 Comments

Confidence is one of those things that is easy to understand but hard to execute. But I just realized there’s a simple trick to it. All it takes is a little faith.

And believe me, this is hard-earned knowledge.

Confidence does not mean that you think you’re the best. It does not mean that whatever you’re doing will automatically succeed. And it has nothing to do with arrogance or self-delusion.

It has everything to do with letting go and having faith.

This attitude is more like a monk than a hyped-up cage fighter.

Do you have something interesting but kind of oddball to say? As long as you believe it, it’s within your values, and you’re prepared to back it up, then go for it. The backing it up takes some faith. ^ That faith is confidence.

The trick to confidence is the same as overcoming fear. You commit to it right now and don’t worry about what happens.

👉 You can’t be confident without being scared

Yeah, you may fall flat on your face or have no results whatsoever. Confidence says, “Don’t worry – do it anyways. See what happens.”

Knowing yourself, especially your purpose and your values, will help you act with more confidence because you have a solid footing to act from.

*Usual disclaimer for any “just go for it” advice: your actions should always fit within your personal values, ethical norms, and legal constraints. Don’t do dumb shit. 🤷🏻‍♂️😆

You

Super Summary: 10 ways to have a better conversation

20 May 202310 June 2023 patmcg1 Comment

Would you give 11 minutes of your life to learn how to have consistently better conversations forever after?

If so, here is a really useful talk by Celeste Headlee on the subject.

Okay, if you only have one minute, than here is the super-summary breakdown of the talk.

Be present – focus 100% on the conversation
Don’t pontificate – set yourself aside in the conversation. (Write a blog if you want to pontificate. 😆)
Use open-ended questions – let them pick their own words
Go with the flow
If you don’t know, so say
Don’t equate your experience with theirs
Don’t repeat yourself (don’t repeat yourself)
Stay out of too many details and facts
Listen to understand the other person
Be brief but cover the subject – like a miniskirt

Yes, she says not to pontificate in a conversation – if you want to pontificate, then write a blog instead. So here I am. 🤷🏻‍♂️

Category: You