(Pic courtesy of Richard Johnson)
"In prosperity, our friends know us; in adversity, we know our friends" —John Churton Collins.
“Every time you state what you want or believe, you’re the first to hear it. It’s a message to both you and others about what you think is possible. Don’t put a ceiling on yourself.” — Oprah Winfrey
“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.” — Anonymous.
“Pearls don’t lie on the seashore. If you want one, you must dive for it.” — Chinese Proverb.
“He who trims himself to suit other people will soon whittle himself away” —Anonymous.
"You will not fulfill your purpose in life without stepping outside your comfort zone." — Teronie J. Donaldson (yep, that's me - cool, right?)
Notes/Observations
For true happiness, look within yourself. It is difficult to be happy if you rely on outside sources. Each morning is a renewed power of choice. So every day I am lucky to be awake is another day to be happy despite external conditions.
Articles
Watched
An intimate look at the life of Grammy-winning rapper Dominique Armani Jones (aka Lil Baby) as he navigates his meteoric rise from the West Atlanta streets to the top of the Billboard charts with his roles as a devoted father, son, community philanthropist, and powerful voice in the fight for racial justice. Told through previously unseen footage and set to a soundtrack of his biggest hits.
You can watch it on amazon prime.
Drink Champs episode featuring Shaquille O'Neill. This was one of my favorite episodes Shaq is a great businessman and a good all-around person. I had fun watching this one.
Strategy
Train your mind
The Dalai Lama describes the untrained mind as a monkey jumping around in a tree, excited and unable to concentrate.
Buddhists counter this cerebral activity by training their minds or meditating. And while most people are unlikely to start their mornings at their local Zen Center, the Dalai Lama maintains that a peaceful, well-trained mind is essential for increasing the quality of thought and decreasing irrational impulses.
“The leader has to recognize when negative emotions like frustration, impatience, anger, lack of self-confidence, jealousy, greed start to influence his thought processes,” - The Dalai Lama.
“These negative thoughts and emotions can lead to wrong decisions and waste mental energy.”
Simple meditation techniques such as deep breaths, relaxing muscles, and controlled emotions might help even the busiest leaders keep composed at all times.
What are some ways in which you train your mind?
Book of the Week
“Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World” by Cal Newport takes the concept of minimalism and applies it to personal technology.
This book will teach readers how to live a focused and productive life in an overstimulated world.
The book is similar to Newport’s last book, “Deep Work,” but primarily focuses more on using smartphones, personal tech, and social media effectively.
Newport identifies the strategies that digital minimalists use for success.
Newport shows how digital minimalists can rethink their relationship to social media, rediscover the pleasures of the offline world, and reconnect with their inner selves through regular periods of solitude, which is an essential skill in an ever-evolving information world.
Also, pick up
100 Success and Opportunity Quotes For The Skilled Tradesman Kindle Edition - Pick up your copy now.
Question
How have you refocused lately?
Refocus
Set the alarm on your watch, phone, or computer to go off every hour during your workday.
When it rings, ask yourself if you spent your last hour productively.
This ritual will help catch you when you get off track.
How you spend your time can be compared to what you eat at a buffet. People often eat poorly at a buffet because what they want to eat at the moment is different than what they wished they'd have dined on at the end of the day. The same goes for "time" -- what you want to do at the moment is often different than what you wish you had accomplished at the end of the day.
Checking in every hour will help keep you on track.