Think About It Archives - Page 60 of 61

The Finish Line

Posted on February 2, 2020

Where is the finish line? For many things, it’s hard to tell where the finish line is. If you were running in an athletics event on a track, you would know where the finish line was. This is important. Knowing where you must push hard to, before you can rest, is usually critical in getting the best result.

In athletics, I was taught to run through the finish line. It was suggested that I run an extra meter or two so I didn’t let up at the line and allow someone to pass me by a nose.

Life’s like this too. You should make sure you know where the finish line is: precisely. Then you need to go really hard at it and run through it.

Without a finish line, you could find yourself going around and around (like on a track) and not ever feeling finished. This can become disheartening.

With a finish line, you know exactly what you need to cover (100m, 200m, 3,000m, etc.). Like in athletics, you should be clear with your activity and what you must complete to cross the finish line.

When you cross the finish line, celebrate!

Life is a series of 100 meter sprints which, when combined, are the distance of a marathon (or ultra marathon). Remember to celebrate completing each one, not just the very last one.

Action Progress Think About It

Start Me Up

Posted on February 1, 2020

The first step often can feel like a giant leap for mankind: Too big. Getting started can be such a challenge. And yet, it is instrumental in getting to the second step and then ultimately success.

There are different ways to get started. You can countdown if you are NASA or Mel Robbins – 5, 4, 3, 2, 1… You can put it in your calendar and block a specific time on an exact date. This is described as the Seven Day Success Cycle in my video “ETRR 13” on the Videos page of this blog site. There are other ways too.

Whichever method you use to get started, remember that your environment should help support you. If you go for a run in the morning, make sure your clothes are out and ready and your shoes are at the door before you go to bed. Any other items you need for the run should also be set out neatly the night before. Set up your environment for absolute success while the intentions are high. Do not wait to see how you feel in the morning, you’ll rarely feel like it.

Once you’ve taken that first step, be sure to celebrate. This is the hardest step so it deserves the most celebrating. Every time you start something new or start on the next step, give yourself a well-deserved pat on the back. Well done.

Now Get Started! With a little momentum you’ll start to feel unstoppable: Like a rolling stone.

Observe Think About It

Sample Size Of One

Posted on January 29, 2020

There is incredible power in one data point.

One data point can shift people’s views, swing elections, give great hope, inspire, raise spirits, destroy ambition and generally mess with your mind.

I am sure many of us will have come across the sample size of one in every day use. “My friend said she knows him and that he’s a bit of a psycho. She wouldn’t date him.” This one data point could steer you clear of your soulmate. Or maybe you’ve heard something like, “My brother went and he said it was fantastic. You’ve got to go!”. Or perhaps even, “The man said he knew someone that tried that once and it didn’t turn out very well”.

In these scenarios, a person has referenced only one opinion and yet it can create quite an impression. This is exacerbated when the sample size of one is an extreme example, either good or bad.

Very often the sample size of one is based on unsubstantiated claims, with no context and you are unable to assess the source’s bias. However, despite these limitations we can see people frequently use just one data point to their advantage.

It’s fascinating to watch yourself, or others, get convinced in a conversation or while consuming media. Listen to people use it to strengthen their argument. Many of us will have done this frequently over the years.

Seven billion-ish people on the planet and we can use one data point to sway a position. It may not be right or wrong, but it is fascinating. And powerful.

Reframe your thoughts Think About It

200 Years Ago

Posted on January 27, 2020

History repeats itself. Or, more accurately, as Bon Jovi sang, in his 1980’s mega hit, Wanted Dead Or Alive, “It’s all the same, only the names will change”.

People, things, events, activities and outcomes, tend to be very similar to those in the last 200 to 2,000 years. We still eat, communicate and travel, though maybe we’ve swapped hunting for grocery stores, telegraphs for mobiles and horses for aeroplanes. It’s all the same thing, just faster, better, shinier – but you still get the same outcome.

I have to look back about 200 years, at least, to remind myself of a truer sense of the basics of life: how things were without the modern world overlaid on it.

If you only looked back 50 years, you’d still think Final Salary Pensions were the norm and home ownership should be in the region of 70%, etc. You could fool yourself into thinking that things are getting worse or that this new generation is missing out on all the great things that the last one had.

The reality is though, that the last several decades have dramatically skewed many people’s view of the world and what expectations people might or should have. Now if you want to suffer the deep challenges of the Expectation versus Reality Gap, go right ahead and think about life based on recent history.

However, if you want to overcome this ER Gap trap that can lead you into darkness and a depressive state, then I highly recommend thinking about things through a 200 – 500 year lens to remind you how far things have actually progressed. And yet, it’s all the same.

Action Think About It

Actions Speak Louder Than Words

Posted on January 26, 2020

“As I grow older, I pay less attention to what men say. I just watch what they do.”

– Andrew Carnegie

I love this quote. It is such a useful thought. It is a great way to understand people’s intent, sincerity and desire.

Replace “men” with “people” and it’s even better.

Property Reframe your thoughts Think About It

Property Perspectives

Posted on January 24, 2020

How do you decide what is most accurate? There are so many different views on property. This is mostly because there are so many different people with different experiences. People, generally, will find what they are looking for. If they don’t like renting, or landlords, or banks, they will find ideas and data to back up their perspective. And if a person likes investing, DIY or moving around a lot, they will find data and ideas that will support those perspectives.

However, let’s ignore, for the moment, all of the opinions about property that are being expressed these days, based on the current situation. Remember to take things back 200 or even 500 years ago to get some real perspective. 500 years ago, people used houses as shelter, to protect themselves from the elements.

I would imagine most people, save for the hardened cynics, would agree housing is better now than it was 500 years ago. Electricity, heating systems, indoor plumbing, fresh running water, television and wi-Fi to name just a few modern miracles.

Preferences for owning your own property or renting one, is based on emotion and your desires in your imagined perfect world. But when it comes down to the very basic idea of having shelter from the wind, the rain and the cold, you probably wouldn’t care too much about the mechanism for having access to that property.

Have a look at this video put out by The Economist a couple of days ago. Try to watch it unemotionally. There are quite a few comments and points that could be debated. See if you can challenge your own perspectives and see the other points raised.

Think about the points you have been programmed to agree or disagree with. Think through the alternate view and try to own that view, if just for a minute.

Action Think About It

Horse to Water

Posted on January 23, 2020

“You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him* drink.”

I love this proverb. I simply say “Horse to water” as I don’t think people need to hear the whole thing anymore. People quickly grasp what you are saying. (And it eliminates the whole gender issue that way, so double bonus.)

It’s amazing how many people are swimming in water (i.e. lots of opportunities), but they won’t commit to a drink (i.e. they don’t act on them).

We live in the most amazing period of time in all of history. The most opportunities for the greatest amount of people, with the least friction and fewest obstacles to get in the way.

99% of the obstacles people see are just mirages in their mind. Focus on the opportunities and those mirages will disappear.

I wish you could all see the opportunities before your eyes. Focus more attention on coming up with the Results! Not reasons.

The next time someone gives you a valid piece of advice, or suggestion, think about it. Go for it.

Don’t be that thirsty horse. ?

(*this is the original quote. Sub in “her” if that makes it better for you)

Reframe your thoughts Think About It

I Am Ready

Posted on January 19, 2020

Even when I’m not ready, these three little words, said out loud, whether softly to myself or announced with meaning, make me feel more ready than I would be.

Much has been written about the power of I Am. It has incredible power: Like a fundamental key to our natural programming.

When you say those two words, be careful which words you add after them.

For now though, get yourself in the right mindset. Start saying to yourself, “I am ready”. You’ll be surprised at how much sooner you will be ready.

Let the (mind) games begin!

Financial Think About It

Investment Returns v Time

Posted on January 18, 2020

I find it fascinating that there are so many different ways to calculate financial returns. Some people look at returns differently.

From gross yield to infinite returns, IRR, ROCE, ROE, ROI etc.

ROI, or Return On Investment, comes up often, especially in property conversations, which is something we spend a fair bit of time having.

But very few people discuss ROTI, or Return On Time Invested.

You might consider time when you start a new job and wonder, is this worth my time. Your salary and benefits would be your return on your time invested at a job. Though, if you were told the job would be 35 hours a week and you regularly work 70 hours, your ROTI would be half what you thought it would be.

If you are an entrepreneur, your ROTI can be a little discouraging in the first couple of years as you might work very long hours while planting the seeds for your business, and not getting much back in return.

As you don’t know how much time you’ll have in this life, before it’s all over, and you can’t get any more of it, you are best to allocate or spend every minute wisely.

By the way, your returns don’t have to be measured strictly in financial terms when measuring ROTI. The returns you get might be the joy of spending great moments with your family, spouse, kids, parents, friends, etc.

So when you consider your financial return on investment, also consider your ROTI. What you may have to give up in time, to achieve certain returns, may not make the investment worthwhile.

Reframe your thoughts Think About It

You Always Have A Choice

Posted on January 17, 2020

No matter what the situation, you always have a choice. Now the best choice, from your perspective, may be obvious, or the idea of one of the choices may be revolting or incomprehensible, but it doesn’t mean you don’t have a choice. It simply means you have a preference for one of the options and are not interested in the other option.

Sometimes we hear the words, “I don’t have a choice”, or, “I didn’t have a choice”. It may feel, or seem, like our choices are limited to one, but it isn’t actually true. It’s just a story you tell yourself, and others, to try to rationalise or justify your decision and action.

For people who don’t like to take personal responsibility, who are often looking for someone else to blame, these kind of comments are perfect. They feel they can be absolved, as they didn’t have a choice. “The devil made me do it”, is a classic excuse to try to escape personal responsibility.

If you find yourself challenging the above idea, that we always have a choice, you may find success, and joy, are more elusive than you had hoped.