Change What You Can
proactivity
Nat’s Final Rule
“Make positive effort for the good.”
Natalie Goldberg (quoting her Zen master)
Get up out of bed.
Brush your teeth.
Pick up the pen and start writing.
Pleasure is Overrated
“Happiness is not pleasure (which is so quick and short). Happiness is the joy you feel moving towards your potential. Joy is something you can feel even when life is not pleasurable.”
Shawn Achor
Focus on Gratitude
“When you’re grateful, you can’t be angry.
When you’re grateful, you can’t be worried.
Anger and fear are what screw people up most…in their relationships and in their business.”
Tony Robbins
Tired of Starting Over?
Today’s motto (for me) is “just do it.”
I’m in the middle of the National Board of Certification process and one requirement is to take two 15-minute videos of myself teaching and to analyze them. In order to do this, I must view the videos. Repeatedly.
Ugh.
I do not like to hear myself – alone see myself – on screen.
At last, I did it. And you know what? It wasn’t terrible.
So, today, I encourage you to “just do it.” If it needs to be done, but you dread it, know that it’s OK.
If you need a more aggressive motivational message, watch Shia below:
Antidote to Complaining
I do like Under Armour’s motto.
No News is Good News
I’ve avoided watching/listening to news for two weeks now. I didn’t realize how frequently I was checking it and how awful it made me feel.
Since I’ve stopped checking in with CNN, NPR, Fox News, etc., I have:
- read a book (my cousin’s (!) – Beloved Sa Mi)
- made major headway with my second children’s book
- voted early in the general election for Mesa, AZ
- completed the pre-candidacy phase of the National Board Certification for Teaching program
Most importantly, I’ve felt clearer and more centered.
If the news is getting you down, why not cut it out of your life?
Habits Are Automatic Practice
I LOVE This…
One order of large fries with a side of Asian representation, please. Over the weekend, 21-year-old college student Jevh Maravilla noticed a lack of representation in the posters at his local McDonald’s. He then decided to take the matter into his own hands. Maravilla and friends took to creating a fake (yet incredibly professional-looking) McDonald’s advertisement featuring themselves, and get this: the faux poster went unnoticed for 51 days.”
From Hello Giggles
True Productivity
Stay curious. Ask yourself, “What would happen if I dipped the whole side of the brush, for example…”
While experimenting with my own brushes and hearing her words, I thought of how critical it is to stay curious in life. It’s so easy (and debilitating) to allow things and people to get “old” on you.
We complain that we’re bored, but maybe WE have become boring.
Stay curious.
Ask yourself, “What if…” (and act on that question!) at least once a day.
Kismet 
