I am a raccoon femur, a boab tree leaf and an ant

Well, not really, but just a guess.  

The elements that make up our bodies have been other things (maybe even another person) in the past and will be other things in the future.

We are all connected in this and other ways.  We are part of a bigger thing going on here, and we only have this chance to play a part.

The trophy is only meaningful the day you get it

We are goal-seeking organisms.  We want things.  We think the thing we want will make us happy.  But most often, when we get it, the thing makes us happy for a day or so, and then the effect wears off.  

It turns out that the pursuit of things and the anticipation of reward, not the reward itself is what motivates us and makes us happy.

“The journey is better than the Inn”

What quest are you on?

We don't want to lose out more than we want to win

People, including you and me, are wired such that we care more about not losing than we do about winning.  We disproportionately care more about losses than gains.

We are more worried about losing our place in line than finding no line at all.

We are more worried about losing a little game than winning a bigger one.

So, we play not to lose in the game we are in, rather than moving to a different game that will be much better for us.

How are you doing (have you done) that?

Believing in others beliefs

There are many different cultures and beliefs here on planet earth.  The ones we believe in or live by are likely the ones that the people around us did when we were growing up.  

I have talked about large groups of people believing in something that just isn’t so – the “madness of crowds” – and I am part of one of those crowds.  We all are. 

The world is flat, a man can’t fly, phones need cords, and people should be like this or that…

Questioning models of thought honestly without the heavy influence of the myriad of biases and beliefs we all picked up along the way is the basis of real problem-solving and breakthroughs.

DWYSYWD

If you want people to trust you, believe you when you say things, and consider you valuable – 

Do What You Say You Would Do.

The flip side is to not say things in the moment that you aren’t willing to follow through on, no matter how long it takes; to be thoughtful when you speak.

When people know they can count on you, everything changes.

This too, shall pass.

It is said an Eastern monarch once charged his wise men to invent him a sentence, to be ever in view, and which should be true and appropriate in all times and situations. They presented him the words: “And this, too, shall pass away.” How much it expresses! How chastening in the hour of pride! How consoling in the depths of affliction!’

Spaced Repetition

When we hear, see, or read something good, which we should be doing every day, we must recognize we will forget it.  That is why I capture the valuable idea in a hardcover spiral bound (lay flat) journal.  It can’t get away.  Then I can read it later.

Spaced repetition is the best way to learn.  Being exposed once isn’t going to stick.

In many ways, that’s what Think Daily is about.  You’ve probably been exposed to most of the ideas in Think Daily before, but seeing them again, at a different time, cements them in.

Spaced repetition.

Free People Live Longer

An experiment was done with elderly people in nursing homes.  Half of them were told they had control over their schedules, and the other half were told that their schedules would be set for them.  The group who had control lived longer.

Let’s stay free, and be in control of our own lives.

It's a sin to quit

Etymologically the word “sin” means to essentially “miss the mark”, as an archer who misses their target.

If you miss, take another shot!

Feed the positive

Negativity destroys performance.  

You will never outperform your own beliefs and expectations.

Feed the positive.