It’s likely that, somewhere in your home—maybe on a wall, maybe in a box in the attic—you have a certificate (or two, or three), showing that you gave up years of your freedom in return for A’s, B’s, or C’s. These certificates verify your ability to pass a number of tests. While important (and often quite costly!), these certificates are actually just a single entry point to get out in the world.
You may have heard Okinawa, Japan referred to as the Island of the Immortals. It is home to the highest concentration of centenarians in the world. Not only do their older citizens live longer, many of them are active and healthy well into their 90s and beyond—both quantity of years AND quality of life.
If you think of information in the Cloud as “Cloudlandia” and interacting with others in person as “Mainlandia,” then perhaps the absence of distractions that information and interpersonal communication provide would be “Mundania” – the home of the mundane. We may not spend much time there in our busy lives, but according to a Business Insider article, “6 Scientific Benefits of Being Bored,” it might be a good idea to take a trip to Mundania once in a while.
One hundred years ago, the famous inventor and businessman, Thomas Edison, would, at the end of the day, fall asleep in a big easy chair. On either side of the chair were two steel plates, placed on the floor. In each hand, Edison would hold a steel ball, letting his arms relax to the sides as he fell asleep. Of course, once he fell asleep, he’d lose his grip on the balls, they’d fall to the floor with a clang, and he’d wake up.
I really love that song, “Happy,” by Pharrell. It came out in 2013, and every time I hear that song, it really does make me happy. It’s got a great beat, it’s easy to get in to, and I just love the way it makes me feel. It reminds me of being happy all the time, not just when something like a song comes on or some other outside influence.
We’ve all had times where we’ve found ourselves overwhelmed by stress, uncertainty, and difficulties in life. During these times, our emotions tend to run wild and we lose our control over them. It’s not a good feeling and we tend to want to minimize the amount of time we experience this. So how do we bounce back from adversity and regain control of our emotions?
It’s not uncommon to find yourself on the receiving end of questions like, “Where were you born?” or “What’s your date of birth?” These are questions that, in today’s world, you need to be very careful about answering. And according to Frank Abagnale, if you’re on social media, you NEVER want to answer them.
What’s the common denominator of people who graduate from West Point, people who are high achievers in their fields, National Spelling Bee finalists, and teachers in some of the toughest schools? Why do some people reach their goals and succeed in their fields, while others fail?
When we think of Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, we think of the term “Renaissance man.” They were knowledgeable about a wide variety of things and remembered for their lasting contributions to the fields of art, science, architecture, and poetry. They were, in today’s terms, extremely successful generalists.
“Change is inevitable. Growth is optional.” That’s a quote from John C. Maxwell, author of the book The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. This quote brings to mind the philosophy of Stoicism, founded by Zeno of Citium in ancient Greece, and practiced by numerous leaders throughout history, including Marcus Aurelius, George Washington, and Thomas Jefferson.
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