Non-fiction readers

Tags

conversation, non-fiction, readers, time

I’ve noticed a direct correlation between my conversation and time reading. My conversation tends to be about ideas the more I read. My focus and conversation switch to events and people when I’m not I’m not in a good read.

I intuitively recognize a non-fiction reader almost the second we’re introduced. Ah yes, they’re talking about ideas, open to new perspectives, and exchange questions to understand a different opinions.

Context, context, context

Tags

context, weight room, word

• “You’re an animal”
• “You’re huge”
• “You’re gonna wreck someone”

In the weight room, this is common lingo, and desired. Word to the wise, don’t tell your girlfriend she’s “huge.”

It’s all about context, isn’t it? A word aptly spoken is like golden apples in a silver basket.

Exact Approximation

“The flight will be about 46 minutes from JFK to Rochester this evening,” the stewardess said.

About 46 minutes?

Sounds pretty exact to me.

We like referencing quarters when it comes to time, and tens when it comes to numbers.

We tend to set goals based on the friendly tens… 20 push-ups, 30 sit-ups, 40 new users this week, $1,000 more in revenue this month than last. My guess is we’re selecting numbers based on aesthetics, not strategic planning.

Be realistic, strategic and thoughtful about goals; 17 push-ups, 26 sit-ups, 33 new users this week, $844.32 more in revenue this month than last year.

Round UP

I received this email from a friend and thought it a perfect picture of corporate (balogna) America:

“This morning, despite my best efforts to leave early and beat the traffic of other mindless lemmings on their way to their 8 hour prisons, I arrived late to my cell. How late? Exactly 8 minutes late.Because of this 8 minute tardy, I must now stay a little longer in the day to make up the TIME. How much longer must I stay, you may ask? 15 minutes. “But you weren’t 15 minutes late. What gives?” Well you see, in the corporate environment, one of the big nonsensical thoughts is to work everything out into quarters. Seeing as how 8 minutes is just over the halfway point, it has been decided to round UP to the nearest quarter hour.(Note: rounding down never happens)

So back to the time issue…regardless of the fact that I accomplished all of todays critical TASKS in the first 20 minutes (or roughly,2/3rds of my commute time), I still must stay an extra 15 minutes to make up the TIME. Even if those 15 are spent goofing off, shuffling papers, sending “important” emails, or chatting with someone about their previous/upcoming weekend. Forget the fact that the work I’m getting paid 8 hours of my day to do is completed (and completed in 1/24th of the time), I still must be here, and be present, to prove I’m a good employee.”

The joys of corporate America.

Urgent or Important?

Manage your time or it will manage you!

Can you believe how many days go by with your highest priority being unfinished or even untouched?

There are some things on your to-do list that are urgent and others that are important. The urgent items find their way to the top of the list and if there is time left in the day, the important items get tackled too.

Are the “urgent” things really urgent? Are the “important” things really important?

Refine your dash by evaluating how you prioritize your time and effort.

168 hours a week

Do you love your occupation? Enough that you would do it for free?

I started thinking about this while watching the philharmonic chamber orchestra last night. The front row allowed me to see the expressions of the conductor. Make no mistake, he was working, however, he was so full of passion and delight I almost forgot it was his job.

That’s when it clicked. It wasn’t just a job for the conductor. It was his love, his passion, his joy, and it was also the avenue he chose to derive an income from.

Do something you love for a living. It’s painful to spend 168 hours a week doing something that doesn’t ignite your soul… we only get one life. Don’t waste it.

Tick Tock

This post is to honor a sweet friend who died this morning. Diagnosed with cancer six days ago, he breathed his last this morning.

Last breath. When will yours be?

Age brings a sense of awareness to our clock as it ticks closer to death. Age can’t escape the clock as the mirror reflects it. Youth can neglect this reality; something beautiful and dangerous.

Remember your clock. Hear it ticking. Make the moments count.

Living for the Weekend?

Ever notice that people frequently talk about the weekend they had or the one that’s upcoming? I’ve heard several people refer to the weekends as “real living” and down play the weekdays. Apparently Monday through Thursday they aren’t alive. Days of little or no value. Oh sure, they may not be as fun as the weekend due to occupational obligations, but they are still days of our lives. (not referring to any soaps here)

Mathematically speaking if a person lives to be 85 years old they have 31,025 days of life or 4,432 weeks. (approximately…I didn’t account for leap year) Let’s say this individual counts 4 days of their week as useless, counting only the weekend days as “real living.” This gives 633 weekends to accomplish their life purpose. Doesn’t seem like so much time does it?

Life is 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, 31,025 days a life. Have you used this one wisely? Don’t leave living to the weekends. This day counts as much as the others.