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Black & White vs. Gray

10/28/2020

Are things always black ⚫ and white ⚪?

I grew up in the United States, where I have observed that being decisive and having a strong opinion on issues are two very valued traits.

But is there any room for gray 🌫️?

Living and working in Japan exposed me to an environment where I found being decisive and strongly opinionated to be counterproductive. It appeared that in Japan, people tend to express themselves in a less rigid manner.

Do we always need to classify ourselves, and/or identify so strongly with just one side of an issue?

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The Power And Importance Of Habits

10/21/2020

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I have been quite inspired by the book I am reading at present, Atomic Habits by James Clear.

I didn't realize the power that lies within habits and the compound effect that occurs when they link together. James is helping me to realize that in order to be the best version of myself, I must have the proper system in place -- a system of small, yet powerful habits that link together to produce astronomical effects.

And those astronomical gains don't come overnight. They take time. In fact, they take more time than we believe they will or should. And it is in this period of time, The Plateau of Latent Potential as James calls it, where many people give up. Because they don't see the results they desire and are expecting to see.

However, it is crucial that we maintain our good habits, and that we realize that although it may take longer than desired for us to see the fruits of our labor, we must not give up! Once the gains begin to come, they are highly likely to come on strong because they will be linked to, and the compound interest of, a powerful system of effective habits that are set up to support ongoing success.

What habits do you have in place? Are they setting you up to fail or to succeed?

Thank you James Clear for providing breakthrough ideas on habits. I am grateful to learn, and have the opportunity to share your sage advice with the world.

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Sleep And Why It Matters

10/14/2020

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We live in a day and age where there is so much to do. We are busier than ever. And our sleep often suffers because of it.

But does it have to? Can we make adjustments to our schedules to plan for a good night's rest?

Sleep is often overlooked, but it shouldn't be. The benefits of getting quality sleep are tremendous:

- we feel less stressed
- we are less irritable
- we are able to focus better
- we are less tired throughout the day
- our body has time to rest, recover and heal -- this is essential in getting the maximum benefit out of workouts

And those are just a few of the many benefits associated with getting good sleep.

So let's make time in our schedules to sleep. And let's make time in our schedules to sleep well.

Are you sleeping well?

I want to thank Shawn Stevenson for writing the book Sleep Smarter. Through it, I absorbed a lot of useful information and learned just how important sleep really is. That information, originally written by Shawn, served as the impetus for this blog post. He deserves credit for this post, not me :)

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Communication 101

10/7/2020

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I am constantly working on refining my communication skills. I believe that asking ourselves the following questions can improve our communication with others:

What are we communicating?
- When we communicate, we should know what point we are trying to get across to our audience.

Why are we communicating?
- Are we aiming at humoring our audience by telling a funny story? Are we attempting to persuade someone to do something?

Who is our audience?
- Are they a group of doctors? Is it a family member? A friend? Three local politicians?

What are their expectations?
- What are they expecting to learn, hear, or gain?

How are we communicating?
- In person? Through a screen? By speech? Through text message? Via email?

When we can answer the above questions confidently and with certainty, our communication with the outside world will become clearer.

Thank you Trey Gowdy, for presenting these ideas in your book, Doesn't Hurt To Ask: Using the Power of Questions to Communicate, Connect, and Persuade.

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The Value In Other Opinions

10/1/2020

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Opinions different than my own. I used to shy away. Rebel against them. Get mad and agitated at them. Why? Because they may go against my beliefs, and I used to feel as though they were a personal attack on me.

But they're not. And they're not a personal attack on my beliefs either. They just represent another viewpoint. Another vantage point. Another perspective. And by evaluating another way to think or another approach, we challenge ourselves to think in new ways and we become wiser.

So let's welcome other opinions. We don't necessarily need to change ours, but let's keep an open mind.

There is a book called Doesn't Hurt to Ask by Trey Gowdy. In it, Gowdy discusses the art of persuasion. His career spans across politics and law, two fields that previously I had little to no interest in. His approach to persuasion is very logic-based and fact-focused, an approach that I have not traditionally used throughout my life.

That would explain why, years ago I would never have picked this book up (had it been published at the time). But, today is a different story.

Did I agree with every aspect of Gowdy's approach to persuasion? No. Did I resonate completely with his style? No. Could I find value in what he was saying? YES. Did I learn new things? YES. Did it cause me to re-evaluate my own approach? YES.

Is it therefore valuable to approach the world with open ears and open eyes, and to learn about and consider new ideas? ABSOLUTELY.

Do you seek out opinions that differ from your own?

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Black & White vs. Gray

The Power And Importance Of Habits

Sleep And Why It Matters

Communication 101

The Value In Other Opinions

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