This might be a shorter newsletter, as the point I want to make is pretty easy to explain, and pretty easy to understand.
I am pretty sure all of us can relate to it.
But as always…
It is not just about UNDERSTANDING something; it is about DOING something with that something you are now aware of.
So here it is.
A key to happiness.
A key to making it through a tough or shitty day.
A key to making it though a batch, or bunch, of shitty days.
Yep.
It is check-in time.
And what a great time of the year to be doing it.
When you make a course correction at the start of the year, it can mean you are in an entirely new place, space and version of yourself, by the end of the year.
High ROI!!
Apparently prior preparation and planning prevents piss-poor performance, so let’s see if we can take some relatively easy steps NOW, to create an even better experience over the course of this year.
The area we are going to target is “HABITS“.
And what better way to start off this inner reflection, than with a quote by James Clear, the author of Atomic Habits.
“New goals don’t deliver new results. New lifestyles do. And a lifestyle is a process, not an outcome. For this reason, all of your energy should go into building better HABITS, not chasing better results.”
He’s talking my lingo.
The importance of creating a ‘lifestyle’, and that lifestyle being created, and greatly influenced by, the HABITS we adopt in our lives.
Firstly, Happy New Year!!
And welcome to whatever day you are at of the 366 we are gifted with this year.
After looking to the PAST for the top things I learned in 2023 (my last post of 2023), I am now switching to looking into the FUTURE and setting my intention and attention on what I think will be serve me (and you) in the year ahead.
So let’s jump straight in and see what we can do to help us THRIVE even more this year!
I am writing this in December, as we come towards the end of the year.
Staring down the barrel of 2024.
December is definitely a time to reflect on the year coming to a close.
Plus is a time to curiously contemplate what your Goals for 2024 might be.
I was talking with a client the other day about the degree of global disruption there is currently; economically, politically and with numerous wars/major conflicts (something like 20 worldwide).
All of these things, shocking as they are, pull our attention, energy and emotions towards them.
In metaphysical terms, and even in quantum physics, it is clear that where attention goes, energy flows.
So one of our greatest challenges is where we put our attention.
What are we creating in our life, as a result of where we are placing our attention?
Are we creating the future we wish to experience?
I believe one of my principle ‘reasons for being’ on the planet is to help others.
And the thing I think most helps others is them having more ENERGY.
If we have more energy, then we have more capacity to do awesome stuff.
And to create awesome stuff.
And to be awesome human beings.
So I am fascinated with, and seriously committed to figuring out: HOW CAN WE HAVE (EVEN) MORE ENERGY?
Plus how can we best use it once we have powered up.
Today I will focus on the generation of energy, and then in another article I will talk about the (best) utilization of our energy.
There are 2 principle ways to have the most energy, as I see it.
Let’s start with the first.
Yes; we will be discussing all of those topics.
As they weave together.
Regardless of whether you are a ‘dog person’ or not, I am sure you will get where I am coming from, and take something of value from this conversation.
Over the last bunch of weeks I have had some really tough decisions to make in relationship to dogs, which have not been easy.
Time to really practice what I teach.
All of which I have written about over this year and are in my latest book (18 Ways We Make Life Way Harder Than It Needs To Be) and YES, that is a ridiculously blatant plug for my new book, but I am okay with that as I know it will serve you well.
Now let’s jump straight into the life of Carl Massy story time…
Relationships have a pretty big impact on the quality of our lives.
I suspect you might agree with me on that one.
And a relationship, which is healthy and harmonious, is a beautiful soothing balm for our mental health.
It seems when the relationships in our lives are going well, life is SO much easier.
Alternatively, when they are a bit wobbly, life can sort of suck.
One of my favourite strategies still remains knowing The 5 Love Languages and APPLYING the strategy in your relationships, but I want to share another with you.
This was reiterated with me the other day in a coaching session.
My client is great at dealing with stuff in his professional life, but a bit wobbly at times when it comes to relationships (aren’t we all).
And in this case, there is a good reason why…
Today we are going to talk about fuel.
Fuel for you, so you get stuff done; the stuff which is best for you in the short and long term, and that contributes to the quality and enjoyment of your life.
We are going to talk about the fuel source called WILLPOWER.
We make life a lot harder when we don’t understand the limitations of willpower.
And what might be a better (less HARD inducing) choice.
Here is the thing.
And where it gets a bit paradoxical.
We may need to use willpower in order to get to the place where we can use another more effective and efficient fuel source.
That fuel source is HABIT.
Well habit isn’t actually a source of fuel, it is more a system which is more efficient in its energy consumption.
Willpower burns fuel (energy) quickly.
Habit burns fuel (energy) more efficiently.
So if you utilize HABIT more, and WILLPOWER less, you will have MORE ENERGY available to direct into your life desires, or have more redundancy for life’s inevitable curve balls.
Essentially life is WAY harder if we don’t have any energy left over for the unplanned, unforeseen and unexpected
Bugger!
ANOTHER EFFECTIVE WAY TO DEAL WITH GREATER LEVELS OF OVERWHELM.
In the past I have spoken about different ways to deal with stress and OVERWHELM.
And I am sure it (overwhelm) is a topic you can also relate to.
It is not whether we will experience overwhelm or not.
It is about ‘when’, and then HOW WE DEAL WITH IT.
That is where I will take you.
I am personally feeling overwhelmed about now.
But it is not the minor daily stuff, but the “WTF do I do next?!” sort of stuff.
My Morning Rituals and Weekly Meeting with Me Inc do a great job most of the time, but if stuff builds up, or there are new factors, our ability to cope can reach overflow.
That is what today’s strategy is dealing with.
For me, the overwhelm is the result of: selling our house, building a new house (in a foreign country), doing the money juggling act, managing my current coaching clients (and new clients), helping my first-time authors finish their books, getting coaching programs organised for 2024 (because this year is whizzing by), plus finishing my book and associated parts, then publishing and launching it on 20 November. And a couple of weeks ago I made the decision to have our sausage dog of 16-years put down.
So a bunch of stuff going on, but maybe the book launch is the thing that is probably pushing me over the line, since it is a significant project.
So what to do????
Essentially I need to figure some shit out.
Organise the jigsaw pieces.
But how best to do that…??
You know I am a fan of wisdom.
I am also a fan of discernment, critical-thinking and sensing what is ‘self-evident’.
Having read a book recently that was a deep-dive into the differences between the right and left hemispheres, it is pretty clear that our education systems and societal systems in general favour a left-brain bias (and worldview).
This means being taught what to think (by people supposedly smarter than us) and not being taught ‘how to think.’
Wisdom is about knowing how to think and then applying that knowledge in a conscious way.
And it turns out that the right brain is best for discerning BS, so stretching our minds a little more is definitely in our favour.
Mindfulness practices like meditation help develop the right hemisphere, by expanding our consciousness, and dropping into the interconnection of everything.
Everything is connected (as quantum physics agrees with).
Whereas the left hemisphere is about reductionism, fixation, inflexibility, judgement and making stuff up.
So, having said that, and having created some context for what I want to support you with (becoming wiser) let me get back the topic of “What’s for breakfast?”