work

Write Now, Fish Later

mikemjensen Fishing, goals, Life's Truths, Writing Tags: , , , , Leave a comment

Hey Kids,

Today would’ve been a lovely day to go fishing. It rained all day yesterday and this morning we woke to blue skies and sunshine. Of course if I had been going fishing, I would’ve been gone long before the sunshine ever showed up.

I had thought seriously about breaking out the kayak. This past week I had received some new lures in the mail and I’ve been hankering to give them a spin. I watched the YouTube videos on their use, the strategy, and the secret methods. Yes the sunny Sunday was to be my fishing extravaganza.

But there’s this thing about working.whining

I know the day job is Monday through Friday. So the weekends are for fun, right? Except when you have decided to write yourself out of the miserable existence that is working for other people.

So I passed on the angling and took to the writing. Good progress was made and the sun streaked across the sky and back into the western horizon. Day over.

Work is the name of the game. Without it nothing happens; with it, anything can.

There’ll be other days to fish. With any luck, they’ll be during the week between Mondays and Fridays.

 

Post 3-085

Frenchly Done

mikemjensen goals, Life's Truths Tags: , , , , Leave a comment

Hey Kids,

Potential is a French word that means that you’re not worth anything yet.

Motivation is also a French word. It means you haven’t done anything yet.

To reach your potential, skip the motivation and go straight to another French word: Faire.

Faire means to do; to work. Do that and make potential irrelevant.

Some might say life isn’t fair and you get what you get.

I say “faire” makes it right and for all the others, well, c’est la vie.

 

Post 3-079

The Mountain does Yield

mikemjensen Life's Truths Tags: , , , Leave a comment

Hey Kids,

If you hold a rock in your hand and blow against it, nothing happens.

Or so it seems.

Something does happen, dust is vacated.img_20161014_145743244_hdr

More dust is generated by the surface of the rock being exposed to yet more gusts.

Another pulse of breath, and that dust is gone.

From attempt to attempt, the naked eye sees nothing.

Yet from attempt to attempt, the rock yields to the movement of air.

Effort does not go without effect. Work does not go without results.

Maybe not seen on a daily basis, the long term results cannot be denied.

 

Post 3-030

Thank You from the Future

mikemjensen Life's Truths Tags: , , , , 2 Comments

Hey Kids,

“Do something today that your future self will thank you for.”

I’ve heard this before. This particular quote is from Gary Vaynerchuk. I dig that guy. If you’re an entrepreneur in any degree, I recommend getting to know Gary Vee.hustle

Anyway, I had heard him say this quote before and thought it good then but it didn’t hit home as deep as I thought. I never acted on it. At least not specifically.

I heard it again yesterday.

I kept hearing it in my head throughout the day.

I had started work early, so I decided to leave early.

I headed home and fired up the laptop and got some work done for me.

Today, a new tone has been set. It felt good to have started a project and now I need only to continue. I got up early this morning and worked some more. Good stuff, productive stuff. Winning stuff.

My future self is so pleased with yesterday’s self.

It all worked as promised.

Try it.

 

Post #371

It’s On You

mikemjensen Life's Truths Tags: , , , , Leave a comment

Hey Kids,

It’s on you.

They’re your dreams. No one really cares, at least not enough to do the actual work it takes for them to come true. They shouldn’t. They have their own. Want your dreams to be realized? It’s on you.

Some people will encourage you; the people who really care about you. They’ll hope you succeed. They’ll want you to succeed. They’ll do what they can, when they can. You can count on their support but they can’t do the work for you. It’s on you.

Some people will listen to you. They’re all talk. They’ll wish you well but give no allowance or you to succeed. In fact, they can hinder you. They’ll never consider the time you need to work essential and will interrupt at their convenience. They might ask for credentials of progress, asking for statistics, especially when the progress is obviously slow and painful. Statistics is for comparing. The work is not statistics. Dreams are not made by comparing. These people can’t help you but. It’s on you.

Some people will root against you. Some will be open about it, most are not. They will tell you discouraging information, tell you how hard your dreams are to accomplish. They’ll try to tell you it’s OK to quit, at least you tried. Screw ‘em. You need to avoid these people. Even if they’re family. You don’t need them. You don’t want them. And by all means, don’t listen to them. But still, It’s on you.

Dream. Dream big. No reason to keep it small. Dream for the stars.

Now, do the work.

It’s on you.

 

Day 120