Are you happy the way you spend your time?

The day I discovered how to focus on what is relevant my life changed. I used to waste a great deal of time on the ‘hope’ that what I am doing will bring me some sort of investment in return on my time spent on a certain project, book, or person.

Now I am acutely aware of what I am doing, and by simply reminding myself by asking why I am doing what I am doing I am able to sharpen my focus and attend to things that matter.

“Patience is a virtue” we always hear this saying and yes, it holds value. Good things come to those who wait. However, I would like to point out that if you are not doing the right things then waiting will simply prolong the inevitable, and that is not getting to your intended result.

My girlfriend was reading a book and she was about 1/3 of the way through her book. Nothing that was interesting to her was happening, in fact she hated the book so far. What would you do at this point?

Would you put the book down and start a new one? Or keep investing time into it?

You always have a choice in whatever it is your doing.

I am not here to criticize anyone or tell anyone how to do things. I will state however, that the investment you have previously made does not matter to your future investments.

Let me explain and give a few examples to help you understand further what I am saying here.

Your past has an influence over your decisions.

In a good way this shapes us to be safer. In a bad way this shapes us to be safer. In the Eureka Factor, John Kounios and Mark Beeman explain that children are much more creative because their past doesn't hinder their thinking. They can think outside the box because they don’t realize there is a box.

In Robert Cialdini’s Influence at work he states that you should ask yourself “will you make the same decision if you can go back in time?”

What these professionals are saying is that we are focused on the past and that the future is not dependent on what has happened in the past. The best we can do is let go of the past yet, and this is important, to learn from our past.

I know by trying to explain why the past hold’s no merit in your future I have made it even more confusing. So I will give you examples now in hopes that it will make more sense for you.

When you place a bet at the casino, your previous bet does not matter, it will not predict your next outcome.

Here is an example that phycologists have used to explain this theory.

When you spend 20$ on a ticket to a show and you lose that ticket. Does that show cost you 20$ or does it cost you 40$ when you buy the next ticket?

Let me spoil this one for you while you make an assumption here. The ticket still costs you 20$.

Many people get this wrong, this is because we rely on the notion that what we have done in the past is somehow related to what is going to happen in the future.

Going back to my girlfriend and her book.

If she continues to read her book and then at the end finds out that the book sucked she would be a lot more disappointed because of the time that went into reading that book. Now if she stopped reading it at the 1/3 where she realized that she is not into it, her investment would have been shortened and she could spend more time reading something she is into.

She should not see it as what she has done, instead look past that, no pun intended, and see the outcome for what it is.

We get so hung up on what we have done and we don’t quit. Yet sometimes quitting is the “right” thing to do. Notice how I didn’t say the “only” thing to do.

We always have a choice. Sometimes that choice is very clear, most times it is very muddied because of our past investment.

It is hard letting go especially when you have put so much time and effort into whatever it is your doing. If you have gone to university for 4 years and then realize that the program you have taken was not the one you are interested in what do you do?

Please do not continue your career only to be miserable in life.

Letting go can feel not only rejuvenating but also energizing and stimulating to do something that you love.

I once read from Ryan Holiday that he worked on a chapter of his book for a long period of time. One day he got to his computer and all that work was lost. Not getting upset at the fact that the chapter that he worked on was lost he instead embraced it and after rewriting the chapter he actually gained more insight and felt that he did a better job the second time around.

The point I am making here is that understand and be aware of your initial investment but don’t let that predicate your investment into the future. Stay in the present and see things for what they are not what they were.

Thank you for coming down this far. Sorry I have been absent on you. I know my daily routine has fallen short, however I will get back on track. To be continued….

Image copyright by languageexpress.co.th

How giving back is being selfish for all the right reasons

Giving is rewarding.

We are told to give and to expect nothing in return. However, I want to debunk this statement. We don’t expect anything in return however, we get lot’s in return. How can this be?

I am selfish and so are you, even if you don’t like to admit to it. We are selfish because for every action there is a reaction. Everything you do will have a consequence whether it is good or bad it depends on your actions and how the person responds to those actions.

You can read all the posts I wrote about giving HERE to get a better understanding behind the giving principles.

I write about giving because I feel giving is a natural process in which everyone benefits, I will get to that in a minute, as well I strongly believe that without giving there is no community, there is no higher purpose, there is only me not we.

Winston Churchill famously quoted “We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.”

We love people that give, people that share. We love their generosity and their compassion.  People that give leave legacy’s behind. Maybe that’s why I love giving so much?

Think about all the famous people that are recorded in our history books: Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela, Nikola Tesla. Even the people that are alive today such as: Bill Gates, Richard Branson, Tony Robins, they all give not because they can but because “it is the right thing to do.”

Why is it the right thing to do? Because we are nothing without our communities. Build a business and who will you sell your stuff to? Yourself?

“When you do the right thing, the right things happen.” Gary Vaynerchuck

Just before I continue I want to briefly touch on Tesla and his contribution. Not everyone gives money, in fact the ones that we remember the most are the ones that change our lives directly and indirectly. Tesla designed the Wardenclyffe Tower that would transmit wireless electricity for free for the worlds industries.

However, J Pierpont Morgan was his financier and commented “If anyone can draw on the power, where do we put the meter?” So he withdrew his funds and the tower would never be completed.

The point here is Tesla’s intentions were to give. Give people a means to live better lives.

This inspired a Kickstarter campaign to build a Tesla museum in commemoration for Tesla’s contribution and his forgotten history. Unfortunately, it did not become successful only raising 45,000$ however, the Indiegogo campaign was very successful exceeding their initial goal raising over 1.3$ million with 33,000 people who believe in this cause.

Likeminded individuals coming together to give back to a cause greater than oneself.

Without losing your attention I will explain to you why giving is a selfish act through some personal examples.

A conversation with my friend who is a firefighter here in Vancouver B.C. will give you an insight on the point I am trying to make.

Come find the rest of the post by clicking on this sentence HERE

Have you had a break from technology?

This post is a bi-product of what I like to call a Technology Sabbatical. We are familiar with Sabbaticals, and if we aren't it basically means you are taking some time apart from whatever you decide.

Wikipedia explains it as a day of rest and worship. While I wasn't worshipping anything, I was
resting from the constant use of technology.

Why would I take a sabbatical from technology when life is suppose to be so much easier with it?

I wrote this post with pen and paper, it is an unusual occurrence and will take x2 as long to write since I will need to transcribe everything onto a 'word' document so I can share my experience with you.

What is technology? My definition: anything that needs power to operate. The oxford dictionary: The application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes especially in an industry; Machinery and equipment developed from the application of scientific knowledge.

Machines:

Internet, phone, T.V., kindle, Ipod (audiobooks), car, electric toothbrush, Air conditioner, microwave, toaster, let's sum it up, kitchen appliances, lights, emails, elevator etc.

We have become so dependent on technology, separating from technology becomes a real challenge especially if you aren't prepared to do so. Imagine an electrical wave hits the city and our electrical grid goes down and everything that's is battery powered becomes useless. How would we live?

We are innovative beings by nature, we have survived for millions of years according to scientist that have gathered data from fossil forms. Professors Trevors and Saier have concluded in their academic article that we are now in an era of a technological civilization.

We use technology to improve our lives although that same technology has limitations and can create new destructive problems to our environment such as pollution.

Today I am using a lot more sticky notes for things to do when the Sabbath is over. How unsettling is this? Am I making my life more complicated/busy with the use of technology when it is suppose to be doing the opposite? More things to do?

Creating a mere to do list or work related business I suppose is something to take into consideration here and we wont get into it in this post.

We take a break from technology when we go camping in the woods away from any reception area, so not your typical camp grounds that probably have free WiFi. The true test is when you are surrounded by technology and it is right there by the palm of your hand to avoid using it all together, when the beeps, tweets and rings go off.

Resistance.

Does it make me feel good resisting? At the moment when the beeps go of, no. In the back of my mind I keep thinking what if it is someone important? Or something that cannot wait? The good news is the novelty wears off. You forget about your notifications as soon as you are focused on a task.

The Attention Economy.

We hear this all the time. Do we understand what attention economy is? Mark Manson, Gary Vaynerchuck and many others who are great at keeping our attention explain it well, "we are living in times where we have so much information and our attention is becoming far more scarce than any other resource in the developed world."

"When you earn someone's attention and keep it you have won."

My beliefs and the way to get creative about them:

"No internet, surfing or finding new material."- no distractions, reinvent the material you already possess.

"No emails, phone, communication or engagement."-They can wait. Technology serves me, I am not a servant to technology. If it was dire they can reach out to me through other means, by getting creative.

"No T.V., Kindle, Ipod, learning anything new."- Time to review what I have already learned. This is a part of my routine, only I get to spend more time to do so today. Review is important because retaining things that are important and useful without repetition becomes extremely difficult.

Things you have already learned can bring new insights in upon deliberately reviewing them, you will see things you have missed or have forgotten.

"Am I going to go hungry without a microwave, oven, stove, or fridge?"- I have a confession to make. I used the fridge, I couldn't resist, and eventually I will need to start turning on lights or I can light candles. However, all the other gadgets I can do without. Sorry no gourmet meals today.

"No car, electric tooth brush, work?"- Living downtown is great because it is very public transit friendly and I get around on my bike everywhere. I used my toothbrush the old fashioned way.

You want to become creative? Eliminate something that you use all the time or do something the opposite of what you normally do, your creativity is bound to kick into high gear to create a solution to your circumstance.

On a side note my next goal is a no talking sabbatical, that should be an interesting one, get the note pad and sharpie ready.

Where would I need to go if I don't have anyone to communicate with? Not many people love to do the "pop by" which I think will be a topic for another time to understand the why.

"No work?"-Did you catch that in my previous paragraph? There is always work. I am working on organizing, accounting and rereading my client files. There is enough work for me to do for a few weeks without the use of technology.

So how does technology effect society?

Read the rest here, I talk about the benefits and the other sabbaticals I have done