Tag Archives: 500WED

The Morning Routine

I’m in awe of people who get a lot done.

Folks like Tim Ferriss, Cal Newport, and Barack Obama. People whose schedules I know are crazy busy, but still they manage to pump out project after project, or take on seemingly herculean tasks — like running The United States of America (while somehow still managing to follow the ins and outs of the college basketball season? I have no idea has he does it!)

We all have the same amount of time in a day, yet some people seem capable of squeezing every last ounce of productivity out of their 24 hours. Which is why I’m intrigued by the concept of “the morning routine.” Continue reading

Knee Injury Case Update: One Year Later

A year ago today I published two blog posts that had a profound impact on my life.

In Part 1 I described the chronic knee condition I suffered that had me recovering on crutches for 7+ months, nearly half of which kept me in my apartment on glorified bed rest. I detailed the chronological list of events that led me to that state, and the specific cocktail of remedies that helped me get better.

Part 2 was all about my reflections, and how going through the injury-recovery process affected me. The chronic case of synovitis and patello-femoral pain I suffered was only one part of the journey. What started as a physical symptom ballooned into a mind/body condition that required some deep internal exploration to dig my way out.

Hitting the publish button on these posts was therapeutic. I needed to get my story out into the world for myself as much as to share them with other people. There was so much pent up rage, frustration, anger, joy, and triumph that I had to document it all in one place.

So much has happened since then. I’ve been amazed at the reaction these posts received from friends, family, and acquaintances. People who had no idea what I was going through reached out with offers of support and encouragement. Others resonated with the core messages, revealing their own stories of struggle and ultimate triumph.

And yet others have reached out asking me for help. These are folks who are still in the thick of it, still struggling through some mysterious, chronic ailment or injury, wondering if, when, and how they will recover.  Continue reading

Why Write?

pencil and paper

Why take on the challenge of writing 500 words every day for a month?

What do I hope to accomplish?

What’s my over-arching theme?

The truth is, I’m not really sure. When I started this challenge there was nothing specific I wanted to write about, or a project I had lined up to finish. The only tangible goals I hoped to accomplish were becoming a better writer, and writing more frequently.

There were two main factors driving these desires.  Continue reading

Commitment

commitment

Is commitment really a choice we make?

I’m not sure it is.

The way I see it, we’re all committed to something. The main difference is the degree to which our commitment lies outside our personal comfort zone. The farther away from familiar territory we get, the more conscious we become of our commitments. By definition, we almost have to be consciously aware of these commitments. Doing anything outside of our comfort zone on a regular basis takes effort, and effort is something we can’t help but be mindful of. Continue reading