So yeah, it's way too hot here to do anything productive. I mean, the motivation level is down to an all-time low. I shouldn't be surprised because it's always like this in the summer. And where I live, they don't use air conditioning in most rooms. They open windows. Windows with no screens in many cases, which means we get bugs flying around, too. Honestly, it's not all that bad compared to a lot of things. The problem, however, is that I'm like a Kana-bun (pronounced "ka-na boon"). A kanabun is a sort of beetle-like bug in Japan that usually lingers on the stone steps leading up to someone's apartment. If you see it in the morning, it might be in the very left corner of your step. Then if you see it in the evening, it might be in the left corner of your step. You read me? They don't do much. But all this sweating it up and doing nothing has led me to a question.
What if? What if we used every single minute of our waking hours doing something that has meaning to us. Something to improve our lives and the lives of others around us? A project. A personal assignment. A start-up? Making a video. Writing a song. Writing a book. Contacting publishing companies. Studying a language. Preparing for a test. Creating. Giving time for someone else. Working on an invention. Finding a cure. Finding a better way to do something. Learning online. Learning in a class. Teaching online. Sharing knowledge. Gaining knowledge. Asking other people's advice. Listening to wisdom from a grandparent. Documenting someone's life. Writing a biography. Helping out a charity. Cooking something. Discovering the most delicious cookie recipe.
What if, in the left-over ten minutes of our lunch break, we learned three or four new words in another language? We have the resources. We have the technology. Books. The internet. Classes. Word of mouth. A smart phone application. I wonder if it would bring us one step closer to a dream, or if it would breathe life into other people's dreams. Just to be that inspiration, that extreme guy or girl who is always doing something to better themselves, to challenge themselves. Most of us think this is a good idea...but we're tired.
We come home from the office, the field, classes, from shopping, and the words that come out of our mouths are usually "I'm beat!" or "That sure tired me out!" Then the heat hits us, or the cold hits us, or some bad news hits us, and we get knocked down completely. Well, some of us do. There is a crowd of people who do the opposite. A crowd I'd like to join. These are the ones who, after working a construction job for nine or ten or eleven hours come home and still say "It's time for a run" or "It's time to hit the gym." The ones who had to work until ten at night, but still go home and spend time with their kids or work on their novel or make a YouTube video that will make others laugh, or cry, or educate them in a particular skill. Use your imagination. Past and present, they are still in this same crowd. Thomas Edison. The Wright Brothers. Olympic athletes.
There are people who never get anywhere in life because they never move. There are other people who keep moving forward no matter how hard they get hit. Naturally there are also people who move too much and burn themselves out before accomplishing anything solid. It's obvious that we have got to find that balance.
"Could I be doing more?" This is one thing we've got to ask ourselves each day. And after that we have to ask ourselves "What could be the potential result if I DID do more?" From that assessment, we can move in the right direction. If my answer to the latter question is "I would probably feel dizzy because I haven't slept for 48 hours," then I obviously should rest for the sake of my health. On the other hand, if my answer is "I might help someone ease their pain" and "I might feel really satisfied with myself," then the next step should be as clear as the Alberta sky.
I have come across people who were depressed or going through something really heavy, but when they stopped to listen to me play my guitar in the train station, something changed. Those musical notes hit a nerve. The lyrics told them they're not alone in their experience and that there's another way to look at life. It would not have happened if I had not been there. Because I got out and played and sang instead of staying home on my couch (which is sometimes important, too, no doubt). I was there and impacted someone. Ironically, the next person who passed told me to shut up, but doing anything that's worth something does not come without a risk, a hurdle, a wall, an unexpected challenge. Well, that's another topic for another time.
In honesty, I am the person who prefers to sleep. I am the one who comes home saying I'm tired and that I need to rest. Not entirely lazy, but my threshold for work...needs more conditioning. This is why I have to ask myself those two questions.Of course we all have limits. However, most of us probably haven't reached them. We are not kana-bun.
I'm changing bands from THE SLEEPERS to THE MOVERS. Who wants to join my new band? I don't think I can do it by myself. But if you join me, we can rock.
Here is some advice from someone who moved and kept moving forward. Not exactly a perfect match for what I wrote, but in the name of balance, give it a listen and see how your thoughts are stirred:
What if? What if we used every single minute of our waking hours doing something that has meaning to us. Something to improve our lives and the lives of others around us? A project. A personal assignment. A start-up? Making a video. Writing a song. Writing a book. Contacting publishing companies. Studying a language. Preparing for a test. Creating. Giving time for someone else. Working on an invention. Finding a cure. Finding a better way to do something. Learning online. Learning in a class. Teaching online. Sharing knowledge. Gaining knowledge. Asking other people's advice. Listening to wisdom from a grandparent. Documenting someone's life. Writing a biography. Helping out a charity. Cooking something. Discovering the most delicious cookie recipe.
What if, in the left-over ten minutes of our lunch break, we learned three or four new words in another language? We have the resources. We have the technology. Books. The internet. Classes. Word of mouth. A smart phone application. I wonder if it would bring us one step closer to a dream, or if it would breathe life into other people's dreams. Just to be that inspiration, that extreme guy or girl who is always doing something to better themselves, to challenge themselves. Most of us think this is a good idea...but we're tired.
We come home from the office, the field, classes, from shopping, and the words that come out of our mouths are usually "I'm beat!" or "That sure tired me out!" Then the heat hits us, or the cold hits us, or some bad news hits us, and we get knocked down completely. Well, some of us do. There is a crowd of people who do the opposite. A crowd I'd like to join. These are the ones who, after working a construction job for nine or ten or eleven hours come home and still say "It's time for a run" or "It's time to hit the gym." The ones who had to work until ten at night, but still go home and spend time with their kids or work on their novel or make a YouTube video that will make others laugh, or cry, or educate them in a particular skill. Use your imagination. Past and present, they are still in this same crowd. Thomas Edison. The Wright Brothers. Olympic athletes.
There are people who never get anywhere in life because they never move. There are other people who keep moving forward no matter how hard they get hit. Naturally there are also people who move too much and burn themselves out before accomplishing anything solid. It's obvious that we have got to find that balance.
"Could I be doing more?" This is one thing we've got to ask ourselves each day. And after that we have to ask ourselves "What could be the potential result if I DID do more?" From that assessment, we can move in the right direction. If my answer to the latter question is "I would probably feel dizzy because I haven't slept for 48 hours," then I obviously should rest for the sake of my health. On the other hand, if my answer is "I might help someone ease their pain" and "I might feel really satisfied with myself," then the next step should be as clear as the Alberta sky.
I have come across people who were depressed or going through something really heavy, but when they stopped to listen to me play my guitar in the train station, something changed. Those musical notes hit a nerve. The lyrics told them they're not alone in their experience and that there's another way to look at life. It would not have happened if I had not been there. Because I got out and played and sang instead of staying home on my couch (which is sometimes important, too, no doubt). I was there and impacted someone. Ironically, the next person who passed told me to shut up, but doing anything that's worth something does not come without a risk, a hurdle, a wall, an unexpected challenge. Well, that's another topic for another time.
In honesty, I am the person who prefers to sleep. I am the one who comes home saying I'm tired and that I need to rest. Not entirely lazy, but my threshold for work...needs more conditioning. This is why I have to ask myself those two questions.Of course we all have limits. However, most of us probably haven't reached them. We are not kana-bun.
I'm changing bands from THE SLEEPERS to THE MOVERS. Who wants to join my new band? I don't think I can do it by myself. But if you join me, we can rock.
Here is some advice from someone who moved and kept moving forward. Not exactly a perfect match for what I wrote, but in the name of balance, give it a listen and see how your thoughts are stirred:
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