Saturday, June 30, 2012

Quit the Bull@$#! 30 Day Challenge

WARNING: This is not a feel good motivation post. It contains explicit language and serious advice.

At the time of this post we are 7 months into the year. That's 181 days since you made that New Years Resolution. By the way, hows that going for you?

Let's cut to the chase, for the last 4344 hours you've been bullshitting. All the tough talk about changing things up and taking charge isn't fooling anyone.
Some of you have even have gone as far as to make you declarations public, not knowing this actually makes you less likely to follow through.


Keep it 100% with yourself. What you've been doing for the last 7 months isn't working.

Now is the time to quit the bullshit.  Let's try something different for a change.

Problem 1: “I have a degree I don’t use and work a job I hate but I heard unemployment for 20-somethings is like 40%, so I could be doing worse.”

Ummm no. Considering the number of resources you've been provided, you should be doing more.


Reality: You’ve been afforded more privileges and opportunity than any of your ancestors. You live in the safest period in the history of civilization. Never has there been so much information so readily available for FREE. You can sit in on lectures from Ivy League schools like Harvard, MIT, Stanford from the comfort of your couch. Not to mention technology has all but removed the six degrees of separation granting you access to great thinkers and trailblazers.

All this at your disposal and the cards stacked in your favor, yet last spring all I saw was this.
A bunch of hipsters with their student loan debt around their neck, complaining about how they were forced to be a philosophy major and take 6 years to complete their degree.

All this victimhood talk from the top 1% of the planet.

Let's be real with ourselves. A large part of our current circumstances are a direct reflection of our choices. Take the economy for an example, a thing that has never been in anyones control,  the economy has never been in your control, it is now blamed  as if its sole purpose is to benefit you.

This self defeating jump in logic neglects one of the key concepts in getting ahead. You must first plan like a successful person before you can begin to act like one. Deflecting blame onto something that has never been in your control, while ignoring the number of tools you have access to is ass backwards.

Part of planning is thinking ahead and strategizing. Put yourself on the stand and cross examine your most recent failures and successes. What could you do differently, what will you do next time.

So often blame is put on something else when we ourselves are at fault. Acknowledging and moving on from the conclusions reached through the self-examination will aide you tremendously in looking ahead and preparing for success.


Problem 2: "This is it! I'm for real this time, I'm gonna try it the exact same way but with like way more enthusiasm and motivation.

Word? Hit me when you see some results.

Reality: Quit being so damn mean! No, not in the traditional definition of the word mean  but in the mathematical sense. You're average. You're a regular dude, with average ambition and drive. Unfortunately you live in a society that values achivement (supposedly) and (symbols of) success. More about these in a future post.

Equally average are your peers. You all talk about average shit and get average results. Small victories make you feel good because you compare yourselves to the lowest common denominator.

Average people don't speak in specifics. They use words like "maybe", "probably" "sometime" and "usually" when describing their goals. It should come as no surprise that they only "sometime" get what they "usually" want but "probably" not. (See how  I did that?)

Solution: Develop a gameplan. Try hacking your habits by creating and tracking a productive one and breaking a non-productive one.

1. Download "Don't Break the Chain" on your iPhone or Android and plan for adopting a new productive habit like waking up 30 minutes earlier each day or spending time reading a book instead of surfing the web before bed.

2. Try breaking a non-productive habit while working on your new productive one. Doing both concurrently will yield superior results. Can you imagine having more time everyday to accomplish stuff that actually matters.

3. Track your progress with the productivity app "Don't Break the Chain" by marking off the days you complete. Try and go 30 days without missing a day. Repetition is the key to making a habit stick. Motivation will only get you so far. The goal is to effect behavioral change by implementing a system. The system will keep you honest when your motivation begins to wane.

3. Set reminders/alarms to keep you accountable and  specific checkpoints to track your progress.

DON'T tell everyone what you plan on doing. STFU and just do it. The proof is in the pudding, not your tweet or Instagram pictures.

The Final Step

You're probably feeling really motivated right now. Some of you may plan on starting the "Quit the Bullshit" 30 day challenge next week. If this is you, don't wait until the right day. Start shaking things up NOW.
Putting things off until the right time is procrastination. It makes you feel good for the moment but nothing beats finishing the real thing so start immediately.

Let's finish the year strong by destroying old ways of thinking and developing news of doing. Get to work!

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