Over the past several months, I’ve been working hard to grow and improve this blog through things like guest posting, networking, and providing great content. But I’ve also been working hard on improving myself. Below are 5 things I’ve been doing that not only have led to a better me but to a better blog.
Decluttering
One of my main goals for 2011 was to declutter my life by getting rid of one thing every day. I actually started a new daily blog to document my efforts and to hold myself accountable. To date I’ve gone well beyond my thing-a-day goal and have gotten rid of several hundred items. In the process, I’ve also made over $1000.
And you know what? It’s been freaking awesome. I love getting rid of stuff. It’s almost like a game; I want to see how much junk I can get rid of and how much money I can make off of it.
But it’s also been beneficial to my blogging. I’m less distracted by the clutter around me. I feel more at ease knowing that my crap isn’t taking over my life, and that feeling of ease makes it easier to focus on what I need to get done.
And speaking of things that need to get done… No, the infographics course is not ready yet.
Reading more
I’ve always loved reading and am an avid reader, but I’ve been reading even more lately. Spurred on by the decluttering purges of my library (aside from just wanting to learn about all this cool new stuff that I’ve been wanting to learn about for ages), I’ve been furiously reading lots of books so that I can get rid of them with a clear conscious.
Paul took the words right out of my mouth when he wrote his great guest post about how to never run out of things to blog about. He also talks about how reading more makes you a better writer. I agree with both of these things wholeheartedly. I won’t go into much more detail except to say that reading more hasn’t just given me ideas of things to blog about, but has also given me ideas of how to improve my blog and ideas for new products and services I could offer in the future.
Reading faster
A couple years ago I asked for a book on speed reading for Christmas. One of my wonderful sisters ended up giving me Breakthrough Rapid Reading. I’m still working my way through the book, but I have started reading faster already. It’s pretty awesome.
I spend many, many hours on my computer every day doing blogging-related stuff, and the fact that I can shave time off simply by reading faster is amazing. I can get more blogging-related stuff done or spend more time doing other things. Hah. Just kidding, I don’t do anything else except blog. << Not true. But kinda true.
Being more active
I’m generally an extremely active person. As a lot of you know, I’m an avid rock climber. Now, I live in the mountains and we get a lot of snow in the winter. Snow + rock climbing = not so fun. So I’m not as physically active in the winter as I am the rest of the year.
This winter was worse than most. I usually supplement my rock climbing deficiency with a healthy diet of ice climbing, skiing, mountain biking (in the desert a few hours away), and mountaineering. But this winter was very heavy on the blogging and much lighter on the physical exertion of any kind other than moving the mouse around or typing. Thankfully, all terrible things must come to an end and winter is slowly ebbing its way out of the Rockies. I’ve been hiking and climbing more often now and I feel SO much better, mentally and physically.
More specifically, I feel healthier, happier, more focused, and more energized. For the past several months, my efforts to focus hard on blogging have often been hijacked by the desire to get outside. Now that it’s getting warmer and less snowy, I can finally act on that. As a result, I’m able to focus better on blogging when I’m supposed to be blogging. My brain doesn’t wander nearly as much, and it doesn’t take me as long to complete the blogging tasks that I need to do.
Eating healthier
Finally, I’ve been trying to eat better. This is one of the most difficult things that I struggle with. The problem is that I *hate* spending time cooking or preparing food. Instead of spending one hour cooking food, I’d rather spend that same hour eating a pizza while watching an episode or two of one of my beloved reality TV shows.
So I don’t cook. But this means that I end up eating a ton of crap food. Crappy food + Tristan = Crappy Tristan. I’m more tired than I should be and I don’t feel like working when I’m that tired.
Over the past few months, I’ve been trying to eat better. Emphasis on the trying part. Sometimes I do really well, but other times I fail miserably. Last week, for example, I ate fast food every day. Sunday came around and I had a massive headache and a raging stomach ache. On top of that, I just felt 100% disgusting.
But other times I do quite well. This week has been one of those times. I’ve been eating more fruits and vegetables and trying to limit the horrible food when I do go out to eat. The difference is huge and definitely noticeable. Instead of wanting to curl up in a ball in the corner and cry myself to sleep, I actually feel like doing something.
In short, when I feel good and healthy I have the energy to get a lot done. Boo ya.
Final words
It comes down to this: A successful blogger needs to put his/her heart and soul into his/her blog. So if your heart and soul are healthy and happy, your blog will likewise be healthier.
- Have you noticed a correlation between a better you and a better blog?
- What things are you currently doing now that will lead to a better you and a better blog?
- What would you like to do in the near future that will make you a better person and might lead to a better blog?
{ 76 comments… read them below or add one }
I think you’re def onto something. I find that I am what I blog. And I blog what I am. So lately, most of my posts have been Triberr related because my life revolves around it these days.
So I think you’re def right. You blog what you are.
Yeah buddy. I’ve been climbing a lot more recently and feel the urge to throw climbing metaphors in to whatever I write. I’m keeping it in check a bit but they’ll make their way into my stuff sooner or later.
Thanks Dino. Hope Arizona’s treating you well, buddy.
Another incredible post Tristan. you’ve made some great points. Just Retweeted and voted it on Blokube. Anyways, Thanks for sharing this great stuff dude.
~Dev
Awesome Devesh, glad you liked the post! Thanks for the shares, and thanks as always for stopping by. I really do appreciate it.
Like Dino said, you’re onto something.
I notice that, generally, when I’m a bit annoyed I write way more cynical style posts where as when I’m in a good mood I’m able to write in a lighter mood – well, duhhh.
I’ve also been much more active on Skype and AIM lately, talking with friends, which has given me a ton of really great ideas and inspiration to dive back into my work.
Finally, I’ve also been trying to cook more since I have additional time on my hands. Experimenting with a lot of rice-based dishes so I’m getting quite good at that haha. Oh, and making espressos!
Thats cool, Murray. I am definitely not a Skype or AIM kind of person. I either like to be talking to people in person or through email. But I have been doing Skype a *bit* more (read: I talk with people when they say they want my Skype name and they want to talk to me).
And man, major props to you for trying to cook more. I really need to do that. Let me know if you come across any particularly awesome, cheap, and easy recipes :)
Ahhh, Tristan – good to see you writing a great personal development post! You’re right, looking after YOU is so important in enabling you to meet your goals, whether they be blogging or that of another enterprise.
Keep up the ‘better eating’ habits. Cooking can be time consuming, but here’s one quick and nutritious suggestion – why not make yourself some veggie soup and freeze it? Add some yummy wholegrain bread rolls and you’ve got yourself a meal!
I love it! Just thought I’d share….
Cheers,
Mon
Thanks, Mon! I don’t write too many personal development posts here, but I figured that since I can tie this one into blogging, why not?
Good call with making a big batch of soup and freezing it. That’s a great idea! But then… I still have to make the soup in the first place. Bah :)
Thanks for the kind words, Mon!
I think every person is not fully equipped with everything, you need to work out to be a perfect or nice person. First step you should do to find out your weak points and try to improve them. As mentioned in post reading slow is often take much time and by reading fast you can utilize those extra time in other things.
I agree, Sam. Becoming the kind of person you want to be doesn’t come overnight, and nobody’s perfect. And everyone who appears to be perfect has worked on it for a long time.
Thanks for taking the time to comment!
I echo the sentiments of everyone else when they say you’re onto something. You are what you eat, and your work is what you are.
I never became fully aware of my body and how I felt until last year when I was active daily, and following a somewhat strict paleo diet. When I cheated, I was fully aware. Still am. Eating pizza makes me feel like crap. Eating ice cream gives me major stomach cramps.
I could comment on everything else, but wanted to say that cooking doesn’t have to be that difficult. Once you learn some of the basics, you can create incredible meals that will blow people away. Try this sometime this week: chicken breasts with olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic salt to taste. 400F for an hour. Cut up potatoes, an onion, carrots. Throw them in a pan, roll them in olive oil, salt, pepper, and a touch of garlic, throw them in with the chicken with 30 mins left. Add in some minute rice towards the end and you have a simple, easy, tasty meal. Stir fries are easy, too, and you can mix up the veggies and meats involved.
Somewhat related, watched 127 Hours last night and thought of you since you’re an avid climber and in (if I remember) Utah. Can’t imagine myself doing something like that after watching that movie.
James, that chicken recipe sounds pretty freaking delicious. I’m definitely going to have to try that one. Thanks a ton for that.
I know what you mean about being aware of your body. Sometimes I can almost feel my body crying when I down the pizza and ice cream…
I still haven’t seen 127 Hours. It’s in my Netflix queue, though. And yep, I’m a climber in Utah. I can’t imagine having to cut my own arm off… I honestly don’t think I’d be able to do. I think I’d start and then just cry until I died… Crazy stuff. That guy was kind of an idiot, but major props to him for being able to do something so unthinkable.
hi Tristan! it’s great to read about how you’re doing and how much effort you’re putting towards being a better you. all the best of luck. thanks for sharing. c”,)
No problem, Ao. Thanks for stopping by and commenting!
It takes me about five hours to prepare a main dish. That includes time to, at and from the market. That main dish serves four people for three separate meals. So I only COOK about three times/week. Unless I make a desert for the week. And if that happens, it happens Saturday morning. Aside from the main dish, I might throw together a salad or vegetables in 15 minutes before a meal.
When you eat out all the time (been there and done that), you just aren’t putting much good into you. Not to mention that you throw your money away on calories as opposed to healthy-healing food. Worse, productivity and performance hits the bottom of the barrel, every time.
Hence, my cooking time is not time lost in the kitchen. It’s actually provides a performance gain.
Some of the most talented and capable people I know are huge under-performers because they don’t eat well.
Five hours? Wow! Yeah, I really, really don’t want to spend that much time getting ready to eat. But it’s not bad when you think about the fact that it feeds a few people a few times.
You make a really good point about time spent in the kitchen not being time lost, though. That’s something I really need to get into my head more. The problem is that I’m pretty short-sighted…
Thanks for the tips and inspiration, Stan!
Hi Tristan,
It was nice reading your post. Eating healthy is necessary for every work you do. Staying active will definitely give a boost in writing a good blog.
Awesome, Shree. Glad you liked the post, and thanks so much for taking the time to comment!
Well the principles you describe really are not about blogging, they are good for every job.
They say “mens sana in corpore sano”, and that’s very true, also, sleeping enough is the #1 trick to feel better in the morning. Seems kinda obvious, but often it isn’t, and there’s no fixed number (5, 6, 7, 8 hours), you have to find one that’s good for you.
It’s funny that you mentioned getting enough sleep, Gabriele. Normally I do well with getting enough sleep. I did just come across an interesting tool, though. It’s at http://sleepyti.me/ . You tell it when you want to wake up and it tells you when to go to sleep in order to have a round number of sleep cycles or something. Anyway, I thought it was pretty cool.
Thanks Gabrielle!
re “Have you noticed a correlation between a better you and a better blog?” -
really glad you did this general topic, it’s been super important for my quality of life…
a “better me” =’s better everything
seriously, improving my life (or at least the effort ;-) ), whether via meditation, exercise, mindfulness, better eating, has spread into everything in my life –
lack of fitness and wellness (being cluttered, out of breath, nutritionally deficient, etc) is, well…the saying is “healthy” then wealthy then wise ;-)
oh, one last thing, for me anyways, it’s become apparent this’ll be a life long process – the journey’s the goal as they say
thanks!
Adan, I like how you mentioned that this is a lifelong process. That’s something that I often forget about. I’m a very impatient person and don’t like waiting at all. So thanks for that reminder!
I really appreciate you stopping by and taking the time to comment, Adan. It’s always a pleasure to see your great comments.
Tristan,
You’ve nailed an important principle here because “A better you equals a better”…..fill in the blank.
Everything improves when we improve ourselves…right?
And dude, I can so relate to you on the food thing! Sometimes I think Taco Bell is a major food group and I always pay the price.
Awesome post man!
“Sometimes I think Taco Bell is a major food group.” Oh man. Can I ever relate to that! Hahaha. Awesome…
Thanks Jason!
Tristan – I think a better “you” makes a better life in general. So I certainly think that it’ll make a better blog.
Curious, where do you live? I ask because I live in Denver, right next to the Rocky Mountains. I know a lot people who Rock Climb. Me, no interest at all. Looks cool. As much rock climbing I’ve done is runt he bleachers at Red Rocks (if you’re not from CO, that makes no sense!)
A lot of things that I do sparks an idea for my blog…weather it be working out, reading, driving or playing with the kids. There’s a lesson everywhere. Capturing those lessons is what usually drives my content.
Thanks for sharing this “personal” post. I haven’t been over to Decluttering in a while. Time to check it out again.
PEACE
Hey JK,
I’m in Highlands Ranch, CO. And I’ve run the bleachers at Red Rocks too! :)
Peggy
Well ain’t it a small world Peggy! I’m in Highlands Ranch often – my dad lives there. And I’ll out there much more often come this fall (my wife loves Ikea)! You’re the first local blogger than I’ve met. Nice to meet you!
I’m over by ThunderRidge High School. Too funny!
I’ve never been to Ikea but I’m looking forward to the experience. That place is going to be huge!
Peggy
Jk, I live on the other side of the Rockies near Salt Lake City. A buddy of mine has an internship in Boulder for the summer and I’m really excited to visit him and get my climb on there!
And yeah, decluttering is coming along nicely. I don’t try to promote the blog or anything; that’s not the purpose of that blog. For me it’s just the best way to hold myself accountable. I know that if I have to report on something every day, there’s a higher likelihood that I’ll actually do it.
Thanks as always for the great comment, Jk! You’re the man.
Hi Tristan,
I think it’s wonderful you’ve spent time thinking about you and what makes a better you. I’ve been so impressed with your Declutterings journey, as well as your blogging journey, of course!
I do exercise, but other than skiing it’s been inside at the gym all winter. I want and need to get outside in nature because that’s where I “fill up my tank” and get new energy and perspective on life and business. Nature makes me a better me.
So what are you currently reading that we should read too?
Peggy
Eating right is my struggle. I do better if I pre-prepare, like cooking a batch of soup like Mon says or grilling up extra chicken breasts so I can have them for lunch for a few days. I also like to do up a big batch of turkey chili. But the thing is… I work hard at the computer and ignore my hunger until I can’t stand it, then open the fridge and start eating. Not good.
Congrats on learning to read faster. It makes all the difference, doesn’t it? I learned a bit from a book back in junior high but I’m not sure if I read fast because of that or because I love to read and read a lot.
“Nature makes me a better me.” YES. I couldn’t agree more. That’s why I love living where I do (and I’m sure it’s the same for you). I was looking on Google Maps the other day and saw that I live about 3000 feet from the mountains. How cool is that?!
What am I reading that you should too? Not much, to be honest. The Art of Non-Conformity is the last book I read that I’d whole-heartedly recommend. I loved that book. I’ve found that it’s getting harder and harder for me to find books that really inspire and/or instruct me. Like I just finished reading a book called The Red Rubber Ball at Work. It talks about how play can make your life and work better. It was an interesting read and was entertaining, but it wasn’t really life-changing. I gave it away as soon as I read it.
And other than that, I’ve been reading books about climbing or travel. Right now I’m reading the first-person account of the first solo ascent of Mt. Everest. Fun!
And wow, you perfectly described me with this: “But the thing is… I work hard at the computer and ignore my hunger until I can’t stand it, then open the fridge and start eating.” I couldn’t have described myself better.
Thanks for the great comment, Peggy!
Tristan,
Are you one of those ice climbers I see at Bridal Veil. It looks like fun.
There is a saying from ACourse In Miracles that this reminded me of. “You Teach What You Are.”
It has been easy for me to sit down to the computer and not get much else done. But that did not work well. For my New Years Resolution I put my own personal purpose first. It has made all the difference in the world.
I am the opposite of you when it comes to cooking. I love to cook. It is also something I can do every day for my husband. To stay healthy I am a fresh cook. We eat mostly from our farm.
Winter gets me too. I am not as active as I would like to be. So glad Spring is here.
Yep, that’s me on Bridalveil :)
It’s all too easy for me, too, to just sit down and waste hours and hours at the computer. Story of my life. I’m getting better at it, but there’s still soooo much I can do to make it better.
Every winter that I’m in Utah (this is my… 4th? 5th?) seems a little longer. I don’t know if I can handle another one!
Thanks for the great comment, Sheila. I really appreciate it!
I’m also decluttering and it feels good. One big box in the hall waiting to donate but we also have some items we want to sell on Craigslist. Are you selling locally or ebay or what? I’m ready to get rid of a ton of stuff and I know once it’s out of here I will feel much better.
And since I have a healthy living/weight loss/fitness blog where I share my journey yes I feel that I take better care of myself since accountability is a big part of my blog and Facebook page. As for you and healthy eating, start the day off with a healthy breakfast if you’re not already and you’ll find that alone will give you a boost. Oh yea and drink more water!
In the future, we definitely want to travel more and I think that alone will make me a better blogger as I’ll experience a lot more than I do now.
Yeah, I absolutely love decluttering. It’s been great.
I sell on a variety of sites. Sometimes eBay, sometimes Craigslist, sometimes on niche forums online, sometimes on Amazon. It just depends on the thing.
I do drink a lot of water already, but I like the idea of eating a good breakfast.
Thanks Angie!
Hi Tristan,
“Crappy food + Tristan = Crappy Tristan.” – Haha, funny!
I loved reading about your goals and ambitions, and I know you’ll get there eventually if you just keep putting your best foot forward. I’m so happy that your decluttering blog is working out for you. I’ve been wanting to get rid of 90% of my stuff and live a more simple life as well. You’re a huge motivation in this area, and I guess what’s holding me back is the time it would take to put everything for sale and wait for takers; plus, I’ve never sold a thing on eBay before. But I’ll take your advice and just DO it. I’m sure I’ll be a lot happier in the end (and more clutter-free!).
And I’ve also been reading more. You see, I have a serious book collecting habit; I’ll randomly go on Amazon and buy a bunch of business and writing books with high rankings – then these books will sit on my library shelves and collect dust for months. But lately I’ve been trying to go through them all, one by one, and slowly they’re getting read.
I’ve also been trying to get up-to-date with my blog feeds, so I’ve been massively reading tons of blog posts over the last week or so. And since doing this, I really noticed that I have TONS upon TONS of new blog post, product, and business ideas at the end of the day. I have a binder where I keep all of my ideas (I’m also into mind mapping), and I’ve noticed that my pages have begun to fill up pretty quick. It’s crazy what a little reading can do to boost the mind, especially creativity.
Now that you mention it, I’m going to check out this Breakthrough Rapid Reading book. I’ve always wanted to read faster (I’m a super slow reader, at least I think so), but I’ve just never found a reliable source to learn how. This might be the ticket I need!
As for eating healthily – I totally see what you mean. I don’t want to spend the extra hour or two it takes to cook healthy meals either (I’d rather just pop things in the microwave and be done with it), and I’m also a terrible cook. But, at the same time, I do want to improve my cooking, and the best way to do that is to practice (did I tell you that I burnt eggs once?). I’ve also been exercising a great deal more, and that has done wonders to how energized I feel throughout the day.
Interesting read, and I hope you achieve all of your goals!
By the way, how fast can you type per minute? o.O Random, I know. ;)
Christina
Christina, the whole decluttering process has been absolutely amazing. I’ve sold some stuff on eBay, but I’ve sold a ton of books and other stuff on Amazon, a lot of stuff on Craigslist and another local online classifieds site, plus some niche forums for specialized stuff. But yeah, you should definitely do
And wow, your story about buying business and writing books on Amazon could exactly be my story. I bought two more books over the weekend…
You know what? I actually JUST subscribing to RSS feeds. Just as in… last night. Before I’d just regularly go to the blogs I wanted to read. But that got to be too much of a hassle. I’m still going to try to keep it to a minimum, though. If there’s too much stuff I just won’t read anything, you know?
Yeah, you should definitely get a good speed reading book. The one I mention in this post is the only one I’ve tried, but it’s been good so far.
How fast can I type… Uh… No idea. Pretty fast? Why?
Thanks for the uber awesome comment, Christina!
I totally agree with you! I always try my best to focus on personal development to improve the value of myself. And this will help me to build a better blog.
Awesome Pumama, I’m glad you agree. Thanks so much for taking the time to comment,and be sure to come back again soon :)
Tristan, these are all excellent tips for improving productivity, health, and happiness.
I’ll just focus on one of your tips: speed reading. I also got Breakthrough Rapid Reading about three years ago. I spent several hours with it, including doing the exercises, and I more than doubled my reading speed.
Those few hours I spent have paid off a hundred-fold in saved time.
Sweeeeet. Like I said, I haven’t gone too far into the book, but I have noticed a difference. I’m glad you liked it, too. It’ll be interesting to see how much I improve by the end…
Thanks John!
Tristan:
One takeaway from reading this blog, I need to get back to learning to speed read too. I did not see a need for it before Social Media. Now, I find myself researching and reading all the time. I am the world’s slowest reader. Really I am. I stopped reading articles with my wife sitting next to me reading the same one. Why? She is on column 3 with me still on column 1…and waiting on me to flip the page! I remember what I read well, that is not the problem. I just need to learn how to read faster! So that is one of my 2011 goals. Thanks for that.
Awesome, David. Reading faster was one of my 2011 goals, too. I think some sort of book or course on speed reading is a good investment that will save you many, many, many hours in the long run. The book I mention in this post is a good one and gets good reviews from others, but it’s the only one I’ve used on the subject. So far, so good.
Thanks David!
I love that you put Decluttering first! For me, I can’t even get started if my work space isn’t clean. The same in life. I try to keep thing organized, everything has it’s place. When things get hectic I breathe and re-group. Great Post.
Yeah Chelsea, decluttering definitely deserved to be first. It really has changed my life and my mindset. I love it. It’s almost a game now, with me trying to see how much stuff I can get rid of how and much money I can make in the process :)
Thanks Chelsea!
Really, really enjoyed this post Tristan. It’s funny how everything we do– mental, physical, spiritual– affects our body and mind, and thus the things we write/blog about.
I would think that climbing like you do has to be incredibly inspiring and refreshing. Personally, I don’t have the guts like you do to do that but a good ‘ol hike up a steep trail is adequate for my needs ;-)
Looking forward to seeing how your blog reacts to the spring and your ability to ‘get away’.
Best,
Marcus
Oh man… I could write an entire ebook about the great things that climbing does for me. Inspiring? Yes. Challenging? Yes. Fulfilling? Yes. Exciting? Yes. All that and much, much more.
And though I’ll be getting away more, it shouldn’t affect Blog too much. I dunno… We’ll see, I guess :)
Thanks Marcus!
Hey Tristan,
Of course, by improving yourself you will improve everything that you do. Sometimes, lessons we learn in a certain field help us later on in a totally unexpected ways.
Someone told me once that sculpting classes helped him in writing. He always left a mess in the workshop so his teacher scolded him to clean up after himself. After that, this person has applied this principle in everything that he does and he said that this has made him a better writer.
By the way, I’m talking about someone who’s had about 7 or 8 books published.
All the best, Cosmin.
Wow, that’s a great story, Cosmin! Thanks a bunch for sharing.
I hope you had a great weekend and that this next week is a good one for you :)
have you tried listening to podcast as an alternative to reading, helps speed up the learning curve!
Yep, I listen to a ton of podcasts, too. I love podcasts and they’re great, but proper audiobooks are too expensive. And I just like sitting in my chair and reading, you know?
Hey Tristan,
I agree with you viewpoints on being a better blogger. It is always necessary to read, watch your health and Be organized. Eating fresh new vegetables and fruits (daily) will help your body to supply your brain with fresh new supply of oxygen (Eating veggies and fruits will provide you with fresher and newer oxygen). And by providing fresher Oxygen to our brain, we are enriching its capabilities, we will think better, we will blog better.
Reading also plays an important role in blogging. Reading more and faster is really important because it will help you to add more knowledge to your blogging skill. But, I think we should be careful on reading faster (we need to absorb the information). It is also important to keep your body active with daily exercise.
Anyway, thank you for sharing your knowledge about better blogging,
Jeevan Jacob John
Eating more fruits and veggies is something I definitely need to do more. I’ve been getting better, but there’s still lots of room for improvement.
And I agree that reading faster is useful to a point. You still need to make sure you’re understanding and digesting what you read.
Thanks Jeevan!
Hi Tristan,
A good blogger is necessary for a successful good blog so there is harmony between blog and blogger.
I have done and continuously doing many things to implant good habits in myself.
Awesome Nazim, I’m glad you agree. Thanks so much for taking the time to comment!
Glad you’re doing well, Tristan! As some one who blogs about self improvement techniques, I find that as I work consistently on myself through learning and action, the more qualified I am to write helpful posts and the more post ideas I come up with. This makes my personal development a total win-win. Spot on post, brother …
Best,
Scott
“This makes my personal development a total win-win.” That’s a great point, Scott! Personal development is something I work on a lot but don’t blog about too much. I’d like to start a lifestyle design/personal development blog, but I’m going to hold off for a while. In the mean time, maybe I’ll just get it out of my system by writing a bunch of guest posts on personal development blogs… Hmmm…
Thanks Scott!
Well then, “in the meantime” if you’d like to scratch that itch you have an open invitation to guest post on my blog, my friend! Let me know …
Best,
Scott
Tristan, aloha. Great insights, Tristan. As most any personal development teacher will tell you, decluttering is “huge.” Years ago, I decided I would not buy any new clothes or shoes unless I took out something from my closet. When you know you have to get rid of something in order to buy something, it makes you take a long hard look at what you are thinking of buying. When I first started, it was easy. Now, because I have been doing this for so long, I really think about it.
Most professional writers will take you they read many books in order to create one of their own. The more you read, the more ideas flow to you.
In terms of Crappy food + Tristan = Crappy Tristan, I believe that is the reason for the saying “you are what you eat.” Since you don’t like to cook, why don’t you either outsource it and have meals prepared for you a week at a time so all you have to do is heat or keep a supply of great quality protein bars on hand (high protein–low fat & sugar). You can then munch on those while you are watching your favorite programs.
In terms of making me a better blogger, I find that the more different types of blogs I read, the better I understand blogging with the result that I blog better.
Recently I have incorporated some of the exercises from The 4 Hour Body into my exercise routine and I love the way they are making me feel. I truly appreciate the Minimum Effective Dose approach of Tim Ferriss.
Wishing you a weekend of spectacular climbs. Aloha. Janet
Decluttering has been one of the greatest things I’ve ever done. I absolutely love it and will keep doing it until… well, until I feel like stopping, I guess!
I started reading The 4 Hour Body and stopped about a third of the way through. It was just too much for me. It’s still sitting on my shelf and I’ll got back to it at some point… I like the idea of having someone make me one big batch of meals once a week… I wonder how much that would cost. Meh. I live in a college town and couple probably find someone to do it cheap enough. Good idea, Janet :)
Thanks for the great tips and the comment!
T-Hiz,
It’s crazy how every single one of your blog posts help me in such a positive way. You rock man.
When you wrote about the healthy food you try to eat and how good you feel afterward, I always wonder why it’s so hard to just keep eating healthy food. I go through the same kind of thing. I know certain things will make me happy if I do them, but a lot of the time I end up doing something else that ends up not being worth the effort. It’s the whole instant pleasure factor. Eating unhealthy food is just easier. Making good food, like you said, takes work. You actually have to cook. I’m gonna get nerdy on you here: but it would be so nice to have those things in Star Trek where you just talk to a box and all of a sudden you have a full meal in your hands. Those guys know how to get it done.
Anyways, I’m rambling. Can I look at that speed reading book some time?
Thanks Russ. I really appreciate that. I know, I don’t know what the deal is with me and food… I think it just comes down to the fact that it’s a lot easier and cheaper to eat crappy food. And that’s a powerful combination, you know? But I could definitely go for a magic Star Trek food box. Mmmmm…
And yep, you can look at that speedreading books whenevs.
I also love to read. It’s interesting what books will inspire or motivate you to do. I recently finished a book on birding and thought to myself that I really would like to see a bird (in it’s natural habitat) that belongs to a vanishing or endangered species. My wife kiddingly she suggested the Kakapo (a flightless parrot that lives on an island near New Zealand). However the thought fascinates me and I’m seriously looking into the logistics as to whether this is doable. To me, reading has to be a primary component of any serious personal growth or self improvement effort.
Riley
That’s awesome, Riley! Kakapos are really neat; I think that’s a great choice :) That really is the perfect example, though, of how amazing books can be. They take us to places and let us experience things that we’d never even know existed otherwise.
I hope the trip to New Zealand works out for you. That really would be an incredible trip. Thanks for the great comment!
I totally agree! When I feel bad I can’t write well. but when I feel great, I can write none stop!
Yep, it’s funny how that works, isn’t it?
Thanks Dennis!
Hi Tristan .. what you say is what you get! I totally agree – when I eat badly .. I feel awful – fortunately it doesn’t happen too often .. but I do need to get out and about – so am grateful the weather has warmed up a little and the days are now longer .. our summer time starts tomorrow. If we’re organised decluttered etc .. and our normal life is up to date, then we have time, patience and a clear head to do what needs to be done – blogging, exercising, eating properly .. etc
We all need to be reminded that we can improve our lives – and of course we’re helping ourselves for the future too .. cheers Hilary
Hilary, yeah I’m definitely loving the warmer weather too!
I hope your summer is going well so far, and that it turns out to be a great one for you :) Thanks Hilary!
Hi Tristan, Great blog: informative and inspirational. You seem to be active in so many positive ways, yet you strive to improve more. Way to go!
I agree with Gregory, perhaps you should not try to read faster, but try audiobooks. They don’t make clutter and you could listen to them while you cook your healthy meals. Just a thought.
So glad I found this great blog!
Carolyn, thanks so much for stopping by! I’m thrilled that you like me blog. I work hard on it and it’s my baby, so that’s great to hear.
My big problem with audiobooks is that they’re expensive. I’d much rather get a book for $4 on Amazon and deal with getting rid of it when I’m done than paying $11 for an audiobook. Now I HAVE listened to several free audibooks from http://librivox.org/ , but obviously not all of the books I want are available there.
Thanks so much for commenting, and be sure to stop by every Monday and Thursday when I’ve got new posts here :)
Got the same problems with food… Sometimes I’m all salad and I feel great and sometimes I’m all pork and I feel great just while eating it and then I feel bad… :-)
Yup, the warm season is here so this means more time outdoors. That definitely helps doing a better work with blogging. Plus I get to cycle everywhere I go – Sweet!
I do declutterings as well but most of the stuff I give away for free on a website called “FreeThings” (in Romania only). I love having less stuff around me and I gotta thank you for the inspiration! :-)
Cheers, Tristan!
I have a bad habit of gathering things i don’t use anymore, thinking i might need them in the future. Once every 2-3 years when i manage to build my courage up i throw them all away.
Than i feel lonely because the room looks really empty :))
“A successful blogger needs to put his/her heart and soul into his/her blog. So if your heart and soul are healthy and happy, your blog will likewise be healthier.”
- Blogging is not solely about earning money thru your blogs. You need to invest first on it before you can see any positive result. Once all are set, everything will come just as expected especially if you already build that commitment on blogging wherein you started to blog in a much organized manner.
I also struggle with eating proper foods. A trick you can try is after you eat a meal you know you should not do some physical activity after you eat the meal for 20 minutes and then again two hours after the meal. If you are to busy combine the exercise with something else you need to do or even do it while you are watching tv ie…( walk in place, jog in place, sit-ups or push-ups) it has worked for me. Good Luck to you!
I agree with you wholeheartedly here, Tristan. The great late Jim Rohn used to say that every discipline affects all of the other ones in our lives. It’s not surprising to find that improvement in your non-blogging disciplines have led to an improvement in your blogging.
The speed reading idea has always intrigued me. I’ll have to check out your link. It’ll be interesting to follow your progress with it. I hope you’ll keep us posted.
These are great tips, I have two more:
1. Firstly, to remember to be positive and be an Owner of your thoughts and not a victim. Understand the difference between “react” and “respond”, the difference is vast and they are only close together in the dictionary.
2. Also make sure that you get plenty of sleep. It is now time for bed in Doha, Qatar so I will be practicing what I preach. Goodnight!!!