1. Don’t think about how long its going to take to get there. Just consistently do a bunch of small steps and make the daily routine steps better than the last time you did them even if its just hanging a broom neatly vs just throwing it in a closet. It is that one degree of change until you’ve suddenly come full circle.
2. I got a calendar and learned how to use it. It’s obvious for an organized person how to use a calendar, but I wasn’t one of those. Had notes, appointments, to do lists, etc strewn all over my desk, in my bag, in my head (of course those where the ones I forgot instantly).
Now I have a calendar. It goes where I go. It is the one place where I write down all my shit and I check it twice a day, first in the morning and then when I finish up work for the day.
Changed my life.
3. BE FUCKING BRUTALLY HONEST WITH YOURSELF..
like:
ego me: “you should be a doctor or lawyer”
rational me: Nope – while you’d like the “stature”, you’d eventually hate the day-to-day work because you really enjoy your time off and, lets face it, are a little lazy.
4. If it takes less than five minutes, do it now. Nothing else has ever helped me more. I used to even pay bills and rent late and wasted a ton of money on late fees.
5. Sleeping solid 8 hours every night.
6. Not only is it OK to half ass something, don’t beat yourself over quarter, eighth, or sixteenth assing something. We’re all pushed into adulthood with this idea that we have to be machines that churn out quality stuff 24/7. Have a daunting sink full of dishes? Wash one spoon. Next time you go in, wash one plate. Next time, a cup. Clear one square foot of a cluttered room or one corner of a cluttered table. Set a timer and work on that project for five minutes. Not up for a full exercise? Walk up and down the block or circle your house. Stand in the yard or on the stoop for five minutes. It’s enough for today. Don’t spend time beating yourself up over not being able to do everything at once because it will keep you from doing anything at all.
7. Realizing that the goalposts keep moving and there’s no end state— it’d be pretty terrible if one day there was nothing else to improve.
8. Keep making choices that fit you, not choices you see everybody else make. I live in a walkable town, so I gave up my car. I hate being interrupted or bothered, so I don’t have a cell phone. I don’t get that excited over owning things, so long ago I chose a career that pays a lot less but is a lot more satisfying. Today I get in a ton of walking, I never “scroll through my feed,” and I love my job. All the decisions looked weird when I made them, but the benefits accumulated with every passing year, and today I’m in late middle age and very happy with my life.
9. Don’t give up. Failure happens. Embrace it.
I am sick of people that say “I can’t get a job because I’m not good an interviews” so they won’t even try to attend the interview, yet somehow they expect to get a better job.
I am fed up of men that say “all girls are bitches because they don’t like me” but they have never approached a new woman.
I am sick of people that say “I can’t lift heavy weights because I’m too weak” or “I can’t learn new things because I’m too dumb”.
Yes you might not be as good as other people. There is someone stronger. Someone faster. Someone more attractive. Someone smarter. Someone more confident.
All that really matters is that you are better than you were yesterday.
Progress happens over time, it’s not instant, but all these little things add up. And when that test comes you take it and you do it. If you don’t pass it, you learn where you went wrong, and you do it again.
The only person standing between you and where you want to get to, is yourself.
10. Don’t be around people who are incapable of having their shit together.
They’ll encourage you to not have yours together because it makes them feel better or just because they need someone to prop them up.
Put that energy into bettering yourself. Don’t be anyone’s crutch.
11. Do it anyway.
Are you scared to apply for that awesome job because you’re worried that you won’t be hired? Do it anyway.
Are you afraid to ask out that cute girl because she might reject you? Do it anyway.
Are you afraid to confront a friend who doesn’t treat you the way you want to be treated? Do it anyway.
Are you afraid to try a new hobby because you’re worried that you might not be good at it? Do it anyway.
Successful people have just as many fears as unsuccessful people. What sets successful people apart is that they face their fears, recognize where they’re coming from, and make a conscious choice to pursue their goals despite those fears. Or, they “do it anyway.”
12. Don’t act like a victim. I don’t care if you are a victim of something, you don’t have to revel in your victim-hood. The power to change circumstance in in your hands. You can learn form mistakes and better yourself. There is no room for victim-hood. For example If you are complaining about not having money, get another job. Yes the system may not be fair, sure you may have not a lot of free time, but you have the power of choice, use it.
13. Everyone struggles. ‘Having it together’ doesn’t means you don’t struggle, it means you fine healthy ways to deal with and learn from them.
14. Learn from your mistakes, and don’t repeat them.