Activation Energy - Keep It Simple

I like the simple life. By simple I mean uncomplicated. I like it when things work the way they should and I like my path unobstructed and unencumbered. For my business, I like my marketing to be 'set and forget'. I get deals for 3 months at a time or if I'm handing out flyers, you either take on or you don't. My door keys hang from a belt ring from my jeans on a snazzy looking climbing hook and there are only the three that I need. I hang the keys in the same place in the house and leave my sunglasses in a place of their own too. The nappies/diapers, cream and wipes are always kept in the same place and so are the kids. Ok, I'm kidding about that last part.


There's a reason for this and it's not laziness. Keeping things simple allows you to get more done. It frees up your time and your memory to concentrate on other accomplishments. Once a habit is formed (about 21-30 days), it stays with you. It requires little or no thought on your part to make it happen. This also the case with 'muscle memory' or arc reflex. Professional boxers and tennis players alike can perform feats that defy our belief system simple because they are constantly working scenarios that may occur and then coming up with the response. It becomes pretty much automatic. I studied Kenpo Karate myself for years and if someone were to come at me a certain way, before my brain has time to respond, hey presto, my body has already kicked in to action.

I digress slightly. I had the pleasure of hearing Prof. Shawn Achor, major exponent of positive psychology and personal development, speak on a couple of occasions, once in Rome, Italy and once in Kona, the big island of Hawaii. One of top things that I came away with was his story of learning to play the guitar. He noticed that there was a certain scenario in which he practiced more than others and that was when his guitar was in the cradle as opposed to when he had to get it out of the case (next to the cradle). The couple of seconds extra that it would have taken him to take his guitar out of the case tipped that decision.


It's called 'activation energy', the energy required by you to get a task done. To get up to go to the fridge to get ice-cream during a good movie, low energy require. To get up and put on a wash when a good movie is on, high energy required. But let's say, in some situation, you're watching television in the laundry room? Low energy require there, right?


So here's the thing, if you would like to start a new, good habit or skill, make it easy for yourself. If you'd like to eat healthier, fill your presses with the good stuff so it's to hand. If you'd like to be more fit, put your trainers near the couch... You get the picture. We all have high and low activation energy activities but we can tip the energy ratio in our favour by making it easier on ourselves.
 Don't struggle, keep it simple!


Good for a laugh and educational. Prof. Martin Seligman, 'father' of positive psychology.

http://www.ted.com/talks/martin_seligman_on_the_state_of_psychology.html

Let The Greatest Among You Serve

Yep, it's another quote from one of the earliest and voluminous personal development books, the Bible. Widely read and translated in to several languages, although I've never seen a copy with a big banner across it saying "Over 20 million copies sold!".

Is it possible to have a re-epiphany? You know, when this realisation hit's you out of the blue like the it's the first time but then you remember that it isn't? I had one recently. It came from litening to a friend of mine talk about the circumstances leading up to her current situation which finds her living in a beautiful 2 bed apartment on a Greek island for next-to-nothing. She's really loving life and her business is on fire. Deservedly so.

She was making the point that she had put others first for so long that she had lost track of what made her happy. She wasn't begrudging, it was an observation. So many of us do it, especially parents. I'm not saying neglect your kids, that's the extreme but I am saying look after yourself and don't forget to put yourself first.

My kids aren't really mine, I'm minding them for God for when they grow up to be their own person. So the onus is on me to be the best person that I can be becuase I would like the children to surpass me and my accomplishemnts. So if I set the bar high... you get the picture.

So where does that put me? Well if I'm going to lead by demonstartion I'm going to have to be the best me that I can be. And who wins ultimately by campaign for success? Well, everyone around me. A wise man was told me "The best way to help the poor is to not be one of them." I heard it but I didn't really understand until recently. If IAM poor how can I help other poor people? What resources do I have? And let me add this, there is no virtue in poverty. So let me put my goals first, let's have the bigger house, the newer, nicer and safer car and let's travel with our kids to broaden their minds. Let's be the best that we can be for glory of living.

"Did you have a good life when you died? Enough to base a movie on?" Jim Morrison.

Ego a go-go

Transcending the Levels of Consciousness is a book that's had a huge impact on my life. It has helped me so much on my journey through personal development. It has helped me to understand so much about myself, my interactions with others and the hidden determination of human behaviour. The paradox is that the more I learn, the less I care to remember.
The main stumbling block to happiness in many people's lives is their ego. The best way I can describe the ego in my own words is an identity and self of self that evolves through the years as we grow. It's triggered when we take offence or mis-interpret praise (it is the act or deed that is good, not the person). It rears it's head when we feel self-satisfied or prideful. It's the rage we feel when someone cuts us off in traffic or we feel like someone is treating us like an idiot. Am I making sense? lol
It's a fine line that takes practice because when you do a good deed that isn't self-serving, it is a great feeling. It takes practice. The ego is responsible for a lot of our sorrow, wars and strife. It's becuase of ego that Hitler felt he could take over the world, that Saddam felt he could not toppled and it's responsible for road rage. I casues anger when we don't get the attention that we look for. At the end of the day, I think Alfred Einstein said it best when he said "Try not to become a man of success but rather to become a man of value."