There is a theory that the saying "kicking the bucket" comes from the ages when people were hung as punishment for a crime. I hope no further description is needed. I heard this known saying a long while ago, and didn't realize at the time how much the bucket thing makes sense.
Describing life as a bucket ties in well to how people look at each other. In a previous jaunt of words, I mentioned that some people that you talk to take more emotional energy than others. My theory is that there are two types of personalities: fillers and drainers. Cue the bucket concept. Everyone knows a drainer. A negative Nancy. A person that requires more patience. Someone that when you are finished talking to them, you feel a little more exhausted, or drained.
But my personal favorites are fillers. The type of person that spreads inspiration and motivation just by conversing. They give energy instead of taking it. I think we all should strive to be one. I know a few and it's great to have them in my bucket so to speak. Now, while we all have the decision to either be a filler or a drainer, the more important decision is how many fillers or drainers you have in your life. To do that you may have to make a judgement call.
I find the word "judging" in the english language has gotten a bad rap. It's not necessarily a negative thing to judge a person or idea as long as your judgement is based on fact and not opinion. However, I believe it is negative to wrongfully judge something. It's human nature to judge, it is how we develop who we are and the people within our posse. I like to pick my amigos based on factual observations. Like something someone did or said. And comparing those observations to my personal moral standards, I decide if you are legit.
One of the better analogies I like to use, is comparing people's lifestyle to the stock exchange. If you're being sketch, your stock is going down. If you don't bathe properly, your stock is going down. If you like Toby Keith, your stock is going down. If you're a drainer, your stock is going down. Oppositely, the easier you are to do business with on a daily basis the more your stock is going to rise.
Dovetailing into this concept, there are many different ways to evalutate or judge a person. In fact, how you hold a candle to someone is a great evaluation of your own moral standards. And the people that surround you on a day to day basis, are a reflection on how high or low those standards are.
This episode has two concepts to choose from. One about who you call your people: Are you filling or draining your bucket? And one about your own persona: Is your stock rising or falling? Fill your bucket and increase the value of your stock. Yep.
New in my life: The other day before I went into a farm supply store, I decided to throw on my camoflauge hat. Ya' know, to blend a bit. I'd like to think I wear many different hats quite well. And I mean that in all facets of that saying.
Keep Smilin'
JM
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010
Throwing With Your Left Hand
A certain study says that 70% to 90% of the world is right handed. Noted. I personally think left handed people are smarter. That last comment has nothing to do with this blog. I'll get to the hand thing in a sec.
Now I truly feel that doing things that make you nervous will make you a better, more rounded person. Definitely, you should still stick with your best assets and do what comes naturally to you, but there are always unforseen benefits in actions that get you out of your comfort zone.
Take for example when you see (or saw depending on your marital status) an attractive human being of the opposite sex. Is it nerve racking to go talk to them? Yes. Does it show confidence? Yes. Is confidence in moderation a good quality? Si. Bueno. I bet Christopher Columbus was a little nervous about floating west, but I think that one worked out for us.....
(Huge side note, I think that when Christopher Columbus intially found land is kind of how dating works. I mean he came upon a nice island, current day Bahamas, and that must have been very comfortable. Beach side view, no neighbors, plentiful resources...etc. He could have settled and lived very happily there. But he didn't. He knew there was something much better out there that would one day be called Merica. Don't settle for your first decent island just because it's comfortable, go a little futher west. Hah. Thats ridiculous.)
Simply what I am suggesting is to challenge yourself to do something a little positively awkward this week. Maybe it's going up to that good lookin' lassie at the coffee shop or maybe simply starting a new healthy habit in your life. Either way, a little personal growth never hurt anyone. Sure it will be a little uncomfortable, but so was the first time you threw a ball. And remember how the more you practiced throwing, the more of a great thing it was? This new found nervousness can be like learning to throw with your left hand (blog title anyone?) Boom.
New in my life: Only boring people get bored. Ambition + friends + hobbies = speed of your lifestyle. If someone ever says they are bored, I know they are lacking in 1 of those 3 areas. If you have enough friends, you'll always have something to do or somewhere to go. If you don't have any friends, you can be really good at scrapbooking or collecting coins (both avid hobbies of mine). But if you have zero ambition, there is a higher likelihood you don't have friends or hobbies. You're bored.
Keep Smilin'
JM
Now I truly feel that doing things that make you nervous will make you a better, more rounded person. Definitely, you should still stick with your best assets and do what comes naturally to you, but there are always unforseen benefits in actions that get you out of your comfort zone.
Take for example when you see (or saw depending on your marital status) an attractive human being of the opposite sex. Is it nerve racking to go talk to them? Yes. Does it show confidence? Yes. Is confidence in moderation a good quality? Si. Bueno. I bet Christopher Columbus was a little nervous about floating west, but I think that one worked out for us.....
(Huge side note, I think that when Christopher Columbus intially found land is kind of how dating works. I mean he came upon a nice island, current day Bahamas, and that must have been very comfortable. Beach side view, no neighbors, plentiful resources...etc. He could have settled and lived very happily there. But he didn't. He knew there was something much better out there that would one day be called Merica. Don't settle for your first decent island just because it's comfortable, go a little futher west. Hah. Thats ridiculous.)
Simply what I am suggesting is to challenge yourself to do something a little positively awkward this week. Maybe it's going up to that good lookin' lassie at the coffee shop or maybe simply starting a new healthy habit in your life. Either way, a little personal growth never hurt anyone. Sure it will be a little uncomfortable, but so was the first time you threw a ball. And remember how the more you practiced throwing, the more of a great thing it was? This new found nervousness can be like learning to throw with your left hand (blog title anyone?) Boom.
New in my life: Only boring people get bored. Ambition + friends + hobbies = speed of your lifestyle. If someone ever says they are bored, I know they are lacking in 1 of those 3 areas. If you have enough friends, you'll always have something to do or somewhere to go. If you don't have any friends, you can be really good at scrapbooking or collecting coins (both avid hobbies of mine). But if you have zero ambition, there is a higher likelihood you don't have friends or hobbies. You're bored.
Keep Smilin'
JM
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
How Do You Eat an Elephant?
Now I constantly wonder what blogs are for. Truth is, blogs are like guns. You can use them for leisure or for purpose. Some people use them to share news, opinions, perspectives or just completely random information. I'd like to think this is a hybrid of all those things.
Self awareness is a key component of social acceptance. So really, you have to be cool in your owns eyes before other people will consider you legit. I'm not talking about popularity here. That was a great thing to focus on in high school. The social acceptance I refer to is simple functionality around other primates. A fortune cookie I got the other day said "Be yourself and you will always be in fashion." I thought it was pretty good for a ten cent Asian wafer.
I get the whole vegitarian thing. I know some cattle and poultry companies aren't nice to their product. That lack of personal attention to each animal comes from mass production of our Big Macs and Chicken McNuggets. Other options? Each of us raising our own livestock? Hmmmm.... I personally have don't have enough room for a large bodied animal in my condo. Now I don't eat fast food often but when Hardees brings me my 1/3 lb. thickbuger, I'm not only a fan of America's burger efficiency, I straight up condone it.
Some women get offended when people say "that's woman's work". Not really sure why. I would never get offended if you told me to go change my oil or clean out the gutters or lift a heavy object. Personally, I love man's work. Bring it.
I asked a friend to come with me to a show. They said "sure". Now to me that didn't come across as a positive or negative response. Do you really want to go? I mean, I'll take a 'maybe' over 'sure' anyday. The word sure is a forced yes or a delightful way of saying no. Nothing against the word, just don't include it in your conversations with Joseph Andrew Mosley the First.
More and more I've been thinking the words "everything in moderation" are words to live by. Thats right, I'm talking to you alcoholics, foodoholics, pornaholics, facebook-oholics, people who wear too much cologne-oholics.....
I love the new locator app on Facebook where it lets people know your current location via cell phone. If there was any great time to be a stalker this is it. I suppose the status updates, current city, twitter pics, pictures from last years springbreak, interests and where you work aren't detailed enough. I'm not dogging the application, I'm just saying if you use it on a constant basis you should also include what time you usually shower and which room you sleep in. Too much? Just saying, there are some creepers out there. Buckle up.
New in my life: I've never had a bad piece of pizza and I've only met two cats that I actually like. Dogs rule.
Keep Smilin'
JM
Self awareness is a key component of social acceptance. So really, you have to be cool in your owns eyes before other people will consider you legit. I'm not talking about popularity here. That was a great thing to focus on in high school. The social acceptance I refer to is simple functionality around other primates. A fortune cookie I got the other day said "Be yourself and you will always be in fashion." I thought it was pretty good for a ten cent Asian wafer.
I get the whole vegitarian thing. I know some cattle and poultry companies aren't nice to their product. That lack of personal attention to each animal comes from mass production of our Big Macs and Chicken McNuggets. Other options? Each of us raising our own livestock? Hmmmm.... I personally have don't have enough room for a large bodied animal in my condo. Now I don't eat fast food often but when Hardees brings me my 1/3 lb. thickbuger, I'm not only a fan of America's burger efficiency, I straight up condone it.
Some women get offended when people say "that's woman's work". Not really sure why. I would never get offended if you told me to go change my oil or clean out the gutters or lift a heavy object. Personally, I love man's work. Bring it.
I asked a friend to come with me to a show. They said "sure". Now to me that didn't come across as a positive or negative response. Do you really want to go? I mean, I'll take a 'maybe' over 'sure' anyday. The word sure is a forced yes or a delightful way of saying no. Nothing against the word, just don't include it in your conversations with Joseph Andrew Mosley the First.
More and more I've been thinking the words "everything in moderation" are words to live by. Thats right, I'm talking to you alcoholics, foodoholics, pornaholics, facebook-oholics, people who wear too much cologne-oholics.....
I love the new locator app on Facebook where it lets people know your current location via cell phone. If there was any great time to be a stalker this is it. I suppose the status updates, current city, twitter pics, pictures from last years springbreak, interests and where you work aren't detailed enough. I'm not dogging the application, I'm just saying if you use it on a constant basis you should also include what time you usually shower and which room you sleep in. Too much? Just saying, there are some creepers out there. Buckle up.
New in my life: I've never had a bad piece of pizza and I've only met two cats that I actually like. Dogs rule.
Keep Smilin'
JM
Thursday, August 19, 2010
King Henry's Roladex
It's not what you know but who you know. But sometimes what know is the reason you know the people you do.
In medieval times, noblety would travel from their castles to far off lands to expand their realm of power. A king or prince would go to talk business with another country or dynasty in order to gain lands, rights or simply build rapport. I think sometimes this is one of the reasons people join dating websites. Hold on, it'll make sense in a sec.
Now don't read this negatively, there is nothing wrong with dating websites. They serve their purpose quite well. Sometimes though, one of the reasons people join them is because they just don't have many opportunities in their schedule to meet new people. They get up, go to work, see the same 32 people they see everyday. Weekends they might hit up the local redbox and spice up their life by making a potato casserole. Not alot of social interaction. Thats fine. Thats why Match.com can afford to waste money on TV commercials. What I'm saying is that these types of people are not going out to expand their lands as much as they should.
To un-fog this thought, what King Henry was doing by traveling to meet other leaders is he was simply expanding his sphere of influence. And that is something we all have. About the time when I discovered deodorant and I hit my growth spurt was when I started to develop my sphere of influence. (Anyone who has ever made fun of me, gets the growth spurt joke) This makes sense for most people, because in our teens when we starting to figure who we are going to be, we also figure out who we want and don't want to associate ourselves with. Now even I hung out with the freaks at table 9 at some point in my life. I think that's just part of the process when developing your set of friends. Or maybe I'm still a freak at table 9. Which I'm cool with too. And typically, as we physically and socially grow, so does our sphere of influence.
And as youre sphere of influence grows so too do your opportunities.
The opportunities I'm talking about could be occupational, social or romantical. But with a larger sphere of influence comes a larger database of contacts. And with more contacts, comes more opportunity. I read a study the other day that said a majority of people found their current job through a loose contact. Someone they kind of know. Makes sense. The beauty of it is that we have complete control of how big our sphere of influence is. Depending on the personality type, it could be the size of a jelly bean or more comparable to the arctic circle.
Another great thing is we don't have to ride in a wagon for a week to find opportunity. We've become much more socially efficient. So whether it's Match.com, or a book club, or church or your local watering hole; make a friend.... expand your lands. Who knows, it could be your next job. You don't necessarily have to be popular to have a great sphere of influence.
New in my life: As a toddler all I needed was my tricycle and my driveway. Then as a kid, my bike and my gravel road became my life support. Sequentially, at 16 a little blue pick up truck was my new found source of entertainment. And now at 24 I find only aviation can keep me satisfied. I feel I have peaked on my mode of transportation curve. At this rate, I don't even know what's next.
Keep smilin'
JM
In medieval times, noblety would travel from their castles to far off lands to expand their realm of power. A king or prince would go to talk business with another country or dynasty in order to gain lands, rights or simply build rapport. I think sometimes this is one of the reasons people join dating websites. Hold on, it'll make sense in a sec.
Now don't read this negatively, there is nothing wrong with dating websites. They serve their purpose quite well. Sometimes though, one of the reasons people join them is because they just don't have many opportunities in their schedule to meet new people. They get up, go to work, see the same 32 people they see everyday. Weekends they might hit up the local redbox and spice up their life by making a potato casserole. Not alot of social interaction. Thats fine. Thats why Match.com can afford to waste money on TV commercials. What I'm saying is that these types of people are not going out to expand their lands as much as they should.
To un-fog this thought, what King Henry was doing by traveling to meet other leaders is he was simply expanding his sphere of influence. And that is something we all have. About the time when I discovered deodorant and I hit my growth spurt was when I started to develop my sphere of influence. (Anyone who has ever made fun of me, gets the growth spurt joke) This makes sense for most people, because in our teens when we starting to figure who we are going to be, we also figure out who we want and don't want to associate ourselves with. Now even I hung out with the freaks at table 9 at some point in my life. I think that's just part of the process when developing your set of friends. Or maybe I'm still a freak at table 9. Which I'm cool with too. And typically, as we physically and socially grow, so does our sphere of influence.
And as youre sphere of influence grows so too do your opportunities.
The opportunities I'm talking about could be occupational, social or romantical. But with a larger sphere of influence comes a larger database of contacts. And with more contacts, comes more opportunity. I read a study the other day that said a majority of people found their current job through a loose contact. Someone they kind of know. Makes sense. The beauty of it is that we have complete control of how big our sphere of influence is. Depending on the personality type, it could be the size of a jelly bean or more comparable to the arctic circle.
Another great thing is we don't have to ride in a wagon for a week to find opportunity. We've become much more socially efficient. So whether it's Match.com, or a book club, or church or your local watering hole; make a friend.... expand your lands. Who knows, it could be your next job. You don't necessarily have to be popular to have a great sphere of influence.
New in my life: As a toddler all I needed was my tricycle and my driveway. Then as a kid, my bike and my gravel road became my life support. Sequentially, at 16 a little blue pick up truck was my new found source of entertainment. And now at 24 I find only aviation can keep me satisfied. I feel I have peaked on my mode of transportation curve. At this rate, I don't even know what's next.
Keep smilin'
JM
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Perspective. Reflection. And A Stress Free Life.
"Sorry for cussin' atchu." I turned around, smiled and merely said "You're alright." Did I mean it? Kinda.
I was standing in a checkout line, and a woman with a P.H.D. in shopping from Wal-Mart was voicing her mind behind me about how the cashier closed the lane where she had been waiting in line. She apologized for cussing so that I could hear (see conversation above). Attitude is a direct reflection of perspective. Or in some cases, a lack of perspective.
Did Ms. Rolling Back Prices have a personal vendetta against the cashier? No, she just lacked the ability to step in other people's shoes. Everytime I encounter irrationality or conflict, (which is another blog in itself) I love to step back and disect why it's happening. From the irritated shoppers perspective, I thought "Maybe she forgot to tivo the season finale of COPS and really needs to get home." Made me laugh. From the cashiers shoes, her shift had probably been over for a half hour and Wally world wasn't paying her to make sure every last customer was served. Made me empathize. Neither circumstance may have been right but it helped me approach the situation with a slower heart rate.
Another great example of this is when I am driving to work in traffic and someone is driving aggresively around me, I think: "They must really have to pee." or "They must really love their job." Haha. That's ridiculous.
I don't like being around people who complain. What's funny is most of the people who do the complaining will say the same thing. Why do they do it? They lack the solution gene. When I feel the need to complain, I change my situation in one way or another. Grab the bull by the horns so to speak. But seriously. That happened. Call it empathy, perspective or just an understanding viewpoint.... it makes life easier and keeps everything on the sunny side.
Another thing that keeps me high on life is I have developed an anti-stress policy. This cross references well with alot of my previous groups of words. But when something starts to flirt with stressing me out, I just avoid, eliminate and cut it out of my life. So whether it is that person that requires more patience (an RMP as I like to say) or trying to figure out the opposite sex or just making life too complicated all together; I crop the stress out of my life as much as possible. It makes breathing air a little simpler.
Unrelated but funny, being around people who commercially make music I have realized that 90% of them were not in band throughout school. So thinking, why do parents get their kids into playing a clarinet? To socially stunt them throughout their education? To help them avoid developing athletically competitive habits? Anyone who was/is in band that is offended, shoot me straight here.
Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. But next time before you react, stop and take ten seconds to try on the other person's shoes. Literally and figuratively. Serious though, this little concept will help you develop your own anti-stress policy. Life is all about having a good perspective.
New in my life: I love going to the dentist, and lakes.
Keep smilin'
JM
I was standing in a checkout line, and a woman with a P.H.D. in shopping from Wal-Mart was voicing her mind behind me about how the cashier closed the lane where she had been waiting in line. She apologized for cussing so that I could hear (see conversation above). Attitude is a direct reflection of perspective. Or in some cases, a lack of perspective.
Did Ms. Rolling Back Prices have a personal vendetta against the cashier? No, she just lacked the ability to step in other people's shoes. Everytime I encounter irrationality or conflict, (which is another blog in itself) I love to step back and disect why it's happening. From the irritated shoppers perspective, I thought "Maybe she forgot to tivo the season finale of COPS and really needs to get home." Made me laugh. From the cashiers shoes, her shift had probably been over for a half hour and Wally world wasn't paying her to make sure every last customer was served. Made me empathize. Neither circumstance may have been right but it helped me approach the situation with a slower heart rate.
Another great example of this is when I am driving to work in traffic and someone is driving aggresively around me, I think: "They must really have to pee." or "They must really love their job." Haha. That's ridiculous.
I don't like being around people who complain. What's funny is most of the people who do the complaining will say the same thing. Why do they do it? They lack the solution gene. When I feel the need to complain, I change my situation in one way or another. Grab the bull by the horns so to speak. But seriously. That happened. Call it empathy, perspective or just an understanding viewpoint.... it makes life easier and keeps everything on the sunny side.
Another thing that keeps me high on life is I have developed an anti-stress policy. This cross references well with alot of my previous groups of words. But when something starts to flirt with stressing me out, I just avoid, eliminate and cut it out of my life. So whether it is that person that requires more patience (an RMP as I like to say) or trying to figure out the opposite sex or just making life too complicated all together; I crop the stress out of my life as much as possible. It makes breathing air a little simpler.
Unrelated but funny, being around people who commercially make music I have realized that 90% of them were not in band throughout school. So thinking, why do parents get their kids into playing a clarinet? To socially stunt them throughout their education? To help them avoid developing athletically competitive habits? Anyone who was/is in band that is offended, shoot me straight here.
Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. But next time before you react, stop and take ten seconds to try on the other person's shoes. Literally and figuratively. Serious though, this little concept will help you develop your own anti-stress policy. Life is all about having a good perspective.
New in my life: I love going to the dentist, and lakes.
Keep smilin'
JM
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