Peaves make lousy pets.

Going around with a chip on your shoulder about what ticks you off is not a good way to present yourself.

Being upset only hurts you – literally.

Control the controllables and let the rest go – and be happy.

Say “YES!”

Someone says –  “Do you want to go to the climbing gym on Saturday?”

“Do you want to go the Lake and try out my electric surfboard?”

“My brother’s band is playing Saturday night.  Do you want to go?”

“Do you want tickets to the play?”

“Do you want to come to the public maker space lab at the University with me?”

“I can show you how to change your own brake pads if you want?”

“I can show you my garden. Would you like to see it?”

“Would you like to ride your bike 25 miles in the fundraiser?”

“Do you want to come to the shooting range?”

What is your most common answer?  Do you say “no” a lot?

No is dead.  There is nothing past no.

Yes can lead to a lot.  You can discover what you love.

You may be passionate about things but you don’t know because you never tried.

In 1998 my younger brother Rick asked me if I wanted to come to the sand pit and try his dirt bike.  I said yes.  The rest is history.  It totally changed my life.  

I could give lots of examples.  

Of course, not everything will ignite a life-changing path.  But it’s always interesting and you will learn something that will be useful, or lead to something or someone else.  

A life of adventure opens with lots of yeses.

Try it.

Say “YES!”

Don’t argue, talk.

Have a problem with someone?

If you argue you get resistance and get a negative reaction.

Now it is even more difficult, because you made the problem worse.

Drop the intensity.  Use your words.  Be nice and communicate.

It works so much better without the relationship hangover.

There are no side effects, only effects

Seth Godin said this and it struck me.

There are no side effects, only effects.

There is much discussion that can be had around this idea – with the environment, health, relationships…

I know if I do the work, don’t take shortcuts, be kind and valuable to people, eat and sleep well and exercise, good things will happen.

If I observe the effects, dismissing none as acceptable harmful “side effects”, and continue to make adjustments so I do not get unwanted results,  I will get better, and thus, my world will too.

What “side effects” have you experienced? 

Can you see they are not side effects, but direct effects?

Creation needs clarity.

Creation needs clarity. 

Clarity often comes after a crisis.

When a path or decision you thought was right turns out to be “clearly” a mistake, it creates clarity for what to do now.

Drop all the disappointment and negative emotion/ego from trying it wrong, and embrace the clarity it revealed.

In another example, sometimes I procrastinate because I am not clear in my mind on what/how/when to do a thing.

If I spend a bit of time thinking about it, maybe on paper, and get clear in my mind, it becomes easy and so much faster.

From the invisible, comes the visible.

Only the unqualified can become qualified

Everyone who is qualified to do something is only qualified because one day they acted without being qualified.

Everyone who is “experienced” was once inexperienced.

We learn fastest by doing.  For some things, we can only learn by doing. 

What do you want to be qualified and experienced at?

There is no perfect moment to begin.

You can.

Just do it.

Don’t wait on motivation

Top performers don’t wait for motivation. 

Motivation is fleeting.  You can’t just make it show up whenever you want.  And when it comes, it is often chased away when it touches the boundaries of your comfort zone, or when it feels the work is hard.

Instead, use self-discipline.  Predetermine what you will do today, tomorrow, this week, whenever, and stick to it with self-discipline.  

Now you don’t have to think about it.  The decision has been made. 

And you don’t lie to yourself.  You come through – every time.

Self-discipline is a habit.  Habits are made to make things easier – and they do.

When it’s time to perform, you’ve got this – it’s a habit forged from self-discipline when nobody was watching but you.

The key to accomplishing anything

You cannot control the outcome.  

You can only control effort, preparation, attitude, decisions, action – and what courage you bring to it all.

So do that.

Do it with discipline and be a master at it.

Results will come. 

You will get what you deserve.

You only see what you want to

The eyes can only see what you want them to see.

The ears can only hear what you want them to hear.

They are only instruments for the brain to take in information, but the brain screens that information and gives it meaning.

The brain sees what it already believes.

What do you want to see and hear?

Believe it and you will see it.

Keep your freedom.

We are free.

But some people freely choose their chains.

Discipline equals freedom.