If you could make three changes, what would they be?

What are the first things that come to mind when I ask the question “If you could change three things in your life, what would they be?”

Mine are: meditate daily, run two times a week (in addition to what I’m already doing), declutter.

Next question is: “Why aren’t you doing these three things already?

The number one answer has to be because these things (whatever they are for you) aren’t really a priority in your life.  Whatever you are currently doing with that time you’re placing more value on than actually making these changes, whether consciously or unconsciously.  In most cases we’d answer the above question by saying “I don’t have the time”.  What we really mean is “I have other things I view as more important”.

The older I get the more I realize that I need to start controlling the minutes of my life, policing them with more care.  I’m not someone who really beats myself up over spending time watching TV or using Facebook at all, I really enjoy both of those activities a lot.  There’s something to be said for just kicking back and relaxing online or by watching TV, movies, gaming, whatever it is for you.  But the idea that I don’t have time to meditate daily when I spend two hours online and/or watching TV, well… I did have the time.  I just didn’t use it.

I spoke a while back about trying to write ten minutes a day, which I’ve so far been sporadic on at best.  I’ve been tracking that, as well as other daily goals (meditate daily, listen to one ‘feel good’ song, get eight hours of sleep, etc) at www.tdp.me , which I really enjoy.  At least it has me think once or twice a day about maybe doing the things I’ve listed as important to me.

Which leads me to today… I’ve got my writing in for today.  I plan on meditating today.  How would my life change if I really looked at how I spend my time and listened to my own inner voice regarding what’s really important, then made changes accordingly?  Too often we go on autopilot and let the only moments we have, which is now, get eaten by activities that don’t serve us.  I do think we need time for mindless entertainment – internet and TV are two of my biggies – but, how much time?  What if we just took an hour a day to focus on something else we truly wished we had the time for?  Or thirty minutes?  It could transform our lives in ways we’d never know… unless we actually did them.

So, I’ll ask you again: “Why aren’t you doing these things already?”

Ten Minutes a Day

Last year I was able to do some amazing things.  I went to a Wayne Dyer seminar in Maui, complete with a whale watching tour.  At that seminar he mentioned a writer’s workshop to be held later in the year in Denver that I also attended.  I started, for a brief while, to see and feel myself as a writer.  I had 16 chapter “preview” copies of my book made up.  I started to believe I could get it done, and I felt that my writing was improving.

The Denver workshop was in April.  The last time I wrote anything was September 15^th… over six months ago.  Six months without writing anything.  I have many excuses, #1 being the NFL Football season.  It takes time to run four fantasy football teams, you know!  But it runs deeper than that.  My confidence level is pretty low when it comes to writing, which leads to procrastination.  Any time you do anything artistic and share it with the public you open yourself up to scrutiny and become vulnerable.  Making music, painting, taking photos, writing… once you throw it out there it opens you up for critique.  And I can be my own worst critic.  Sometimes doing nothing just seems easier and a body at rest tends to stay there.

I recently read an article called “The Seinfeld Strategy” by James Clear.  Mainly it caught my eye because of the Seinfeld reference, but I loved the advice held within.  Write every day, don’t be attached to the results.  Make an X on your calendar every day you write and don’t break the chain.

Right after reading that article, I read the book “I was blind but now I see” by James Altucher.  In it, he talks about setting small daily goals in four categories: emotional, mental, physical & spiritual.  He mentions the website www.TDP.me to track it daily, very similar to “The Seinfeld Strategy”.

“Writing a book” can seem like an insurmountable task.  “Write ten minutes a day” doesn’t seem that hard.  The trick is to make your goals doable.  “Work out two hours every day” might scare you into inaction & burnout, whereas “do twenty pushups a day” wouldn’t.  And once you get started you’ll often do more.  Set tasks that you feel you can realistically accomplish.

So I’m starting a new chain today – the “write ten minutes a day” chain.  I’m planning on posting whatever I write every day as well, good or bad.  The more I write, the better I’ll get.  I learned music and finance by studying, practicing, meeting with others and keeping with it over a period of years because I felt called to do it.  Now I feel pretty confident in both those areas, but there were certainly moments of self doubt at first.  The same thing will happen here.  Eventually, writing will become a habit. Unless the writing is pertinent on this blog I will be posting the daily ten minutes here: www.TheDailyTen.net

I welcome your thoughts…