It’s the first lap in the pool. The first sentence you write. The first kiss. The first resume / cover letter you send. The first pedal on your bike.
You’ve done it all before. So it’s not really the first.
Maybe just the first in a while.
The first might not be pretty.
But you can’t make any progress without doing the first, first.
Right?
So, jump right in.
The great Mitch Hedberg had a joke about naming kitchen appliances.
When coming up with its title, just figure out what it does and then add “er” to the end.
A refrigerator. A toaster. A blender.
The same goes for your job title.
What’s yours?
A lawyer. A retailer. A jeweler. A founder. A web entrepreneur. A firefighter.
All great job titles.
What about the job titles that don’t necessarily denote compensation?
A leader. A mother. A father. A mentor. A dog lover.
THOSE are the important jobs titles — the ones that get carved into your tombstone.
So…
What’s your job title?
What’s your method to measure success?
Do you count your sales? Or view your web traffic? Or admire your Facebook fans / Twitter followers / Pinterest re-pins, etc.?
Or…
Do you look at individuals whom you’ve helped? Or compare yourself to your (past) self? Or review your commitment to your promise statement?
No, it’s not necessarily an “either or” situation.
But when you make it one, and choose the right measures, life and work get a whole lot sweeter.
What does summer mean to you?
All that stuff is awesome.
And easy!
Just don’t forget about the hard part about summertime — remembering to drink enough water.
Gotta love that the HARD part of summertime is actually incredibly easy.
I just sold my 3rd Generation iPad.
Why?
Several reasons.
Here are 7 reason to consider selling your 3rd generation ipad:
If you answered “no” to any of those questions consider selling your iPad.
If, however, you’re a traveling consultant, presumably using a PC for your work, I highly getting an iPad. It saved me from going insane while traveling.
But if you already have an iPhone and MacBook, why do you still have an iPad?
Take your money and get a Kindle Paper White.
That’s what I just did.
And I’m still up $200.
Here’s my packing approach for my next move.
It’s before I get boxes. Before I hire movers. Even before I start to purge (my favorite!)
First thing I’m going to do: Make a list.
It’s the list of what I want in my new place.
Because if I can’t think of it off the top of my head and can’t envision a spot for it, then it’s not getting moved. It’s getting sold, donated or trashed.
Such a better approach than, “Do I need this?”
Right?
Lot to do today?
So much to do that you might not have time to be on Gmail or check Facebook or read Twitter?
If yes, then good for you.
If no, then you need to get yourself more busy.
What’s the one thing that, if taken away, would give you the most stress. Being without it might even kill you.
It turns out that taking a moment to appreciate this thing has the opposite effect. It reduces stress and makes you feel alive.
Yup.
You guessed it.
Now you try.
Just breathe.
Locked out of your office? Never mind the 100 things you needed to get done this morning.
Laundry machine broken? Forget the six loads of laundry you needed to do before vacation.
Flight delayed? So much for the five important meetings you accepted.
Now what?
You do the bare minimum to get by.
Write a couple emails offline, and then mess around on Twitter. Plan the one vital load of laundry, and then catch up on sleep. Make one call, and then start an episode of TV you just downloaded.
Unexpected delays suck on the surface.
But when you view them as surprise slow-downs, it’s amazing how great they can be.
That might not be the best question.
How about asking, “Why did I get started?”
Remember why you started.
It may very well help you appreciate your current position.
“I’m started doing this because I love…”