Here’s To The Dreamers

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“Do not go gentle into that good night…”

Some time in between facing a challenging time at my paythebills job, watching episodes of the Korean drama, “Shut Up and Let’s Go,” and reading Inheritance, I had one of those moments, an epiphany I guess, about my long term goals and what I really wanted out of my life, and why I’ve been struggling recently to do anything about them even though I knew what I needed to do to accomplish my goals.

It’s silly to even think about it because my issue was so obvious: fear. There were different flavors and rationalizations, but it all boiled down to fear. Paralyzing, life-ignoring, shield-myself-from-pain-and-disappointment, fear.

Well, enough of that. Issues of failing or succeeding, which by the way, are arbitrary measures, were never present in my goal-setting in the first place. I chose my goals simply because they made me happy, and regardless of any other external factor, I’d be doing them anyway (the only difference is now I have deadlines).

Also, it’s no surprise to me that experiencing other dreamers daring to live their dreams gave me the epiphany (read: punch in the face) that I needed to push on. No one accomplishes much by wallowing.

“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes… the ones who see things differently — they’re not fond of rules… You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can’t do is ignore them because they change things… they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.”

Steve Jobs

SciFridays: Mining Minerals from Seawater

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[If the video doesn't play, click HERE to view the video from TED.com]

“Damian Palin is developing a way to use bacteria to biologically “mine” minerals from water — specifically, out of the brine left over from the desalinization process.”–from his profile on TED.com

In this short and sweet video, engineer Damian Palin invites us to “imagine a mining industry in a way that one hasn’t existed before. Imagine a mining industry that doesn’t mean defiling the Earth.” His work is based in Singapore, a country with no natural resources, where land is at a premium, and water itself is a scarce resource. No wonder they are a leader in desalination technologies (seawater reverse osmosis where seawater is forced through a membrane filter creating pure water–with brine as a waste by product).

However, the brine by-product of the desalination process is currently just being dumped back out to sea, and is detrimental to the local environment. So Palin proposes that he can use bacteria to mine minerals such as calcium, potassium, and magnesium out of the brine, basically creating a mineral mine for Singapore.

I’m intrigued by the innovation of out of the box thinkers like Palin, especially knowing that conservation and sustainability are the driving force behind his research. He says in one of the comments: “Be assured that I believe in the power and beauty of Nature and that the processes I am experimenting with are bioinspired and so should integrate harmoniously with natural processes.”

I think that his thoughts embrace the principle of “Think Global, Act Local,” and hope his research is as successful and sustainable as he imagines it could be.

How about you? Any thoughts?

The Kindness Project: Don’t Talk About It, BE About It

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{About the Kindness Project–Too often kindness is relegated to a random act performed only when we’re feeling good.  But an even greater kindness (to ourselves and others) occurs when we reach out even when we aren’t feeling entirely whole . It’s not easy, and no one is perfect. But we’ve decided it’s not impossible to brighten the world one smile, one kind word, one blog post at a time. To that end, a few of us writers have established The Kindness Project, starting with a series of inspirational posts.}

I am happily introvert. But, sometimes, I’m so comfortable being inside my head that I forget that I need to actually say stuff OUT LOUD in order for others to know what I’m thinking or feeling.

When I do try to express gratitude or some other positive affirmation, it comes out all goofy, like my mouth is falling down the stairs. I envy my friends who have the gift of being able to say the right word at just the right moment to spread warm fuzzies. I emulate these friends as best as possible, but I nevertheless feel so clumsy.

Anyway, because I know I can be socially awkward, I’m always on the look out for cool gifts or cards to show others I care or at least that I’m thinking of them. Not to pimp Pinterest, but I’m eternally grateful for all you crafty peeps who pin neat card templates or gift ideas. (And, being able to connect with someone via a gift is kind of a gift for me, too, because it makes me feel like I was able “to say” the right thing at just the right time.)

Well, on my search for creative giving, I was inspired by Brandi L. Bates who creates what she calls “Blessing Bags” and keeps these on hand to give to those in need.

“Blessing Bags – keep a couple in the car so when you see someone who is struggling (ie begging) you can give them a little something. Acts of Kindness. Don’t talk about, BE about it.” from Brandi’s facebook page

Sometimes I feel guilty because I am unable to give to someone who is in desperate need. (A double whammy! Not only did I not say the right thing, but I couldn’t do anything about it either!) But, with a few of these bags prepared beforehand, I at least have something available to share, and spread some kindness.

PS, don’t you think this Postcard Pillow is an amazingly thoughtful and unique way to “send a hug”? It’s like a 3D way of sending an “xoxo” text to someone living far away!

Thank you for stopping by, and I hope you were inspired as I was to spread kindness wherever you go. :D

Please be sure to check out other blogs posting for The Kindness Project today:

Alina Klein                             Katharine Owens
Andrea Hannah                      Len Lambert
Barbara Watson                     Liza Kane
Carolina Valdez Miller            Lola Sharp
Christa Desir                          Lindsay Scott
Claire Hennessy                     Matthew MacNish (available Jul16)
Elana Johnson                        Michele Shaw
Elizabeth Davis                      Sarah Fine
Elizabeth Poole                      Sara Larson
Erica Chapman                      Sara McClung
Jessica Corra                         Sophia Chang
Leigh Moore                          Tracey Neithercott

The Importance of Setting Small Goals to Achieve Your Big Picture Dreams

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I stumbled across THIS ARTICLE over the weekend, and it reminded me first of all that I am halfway through the year, and second of all, that even though I’ve made progress on my various goals, I’m nowhere near “halfway” in achieving most of them. In fact, in some goals *coughcoughstrengthtrainingcough* I’ve not made any progress since the beginning of the year. Nothing. To me, that’s kind of sad.

Thirdly, the article reminded me of the importance of focusing on simple and specific goals, a principle I’ve embraced since I started this blog.

When I reflected over my goals this year, I saw that most of my goals were written for my BIG, LONG-TERM life goals. You know, like ‘Finish my novel’ or ‘Work out regularly.’ My goals broke all the tenets of what a SMART goal is supposed to be. Most of them weren’t even written down–rookie mistake!

And, aside from a general action plan floating in my head of cobbled together things that worked for me in the past that I was absolutely positive I could and would follow (snort), I neglected to have any small goals that would help strengthen my belief that I AM a consistent goal-achiever. I’m not talking about breaking down my big goals into manageable smaller steps. I mean, having small goals.

For example, I usually have a goal to read a set amount of books per month, or clean out my closets to see what I can upcycle/donate ,or travel to a specific destination just to take random pictures like this one:

(If you’re wondering, that’s me at Four Corners, UT being in four states at the same time. I know, I’m cheesy, but that’s my cross to bear.) All that to say, over the last few years, having small goals and accomplishing them empowered me to tackle my bigger goals. Heck, most of the time they gave me the energy I needed to continue on to whatever specified finish line I drew for myself, mainly because I used those goals as my reward.

The ARTICLE said it best: “The purpose of these smaller goals is not to get you closer to your goal, but to develop the skill of belief.  The belief that you can accomplish goals – not steps.” I’d forgotten the importance of building momentum, of being able to claim daily, weekly, monthly ‘wins’. For a while, my various goals interconnected in a constant flow. Now, I just feel stalled and oddly exhausted (probably because I’ve been neglecting my strength training), barely sputtering ahead no matter how excited I am about my goals. Thank goodness that my paythebills job has a built-in daily ‘win’ system, whether in achieving sales goals or recruiting a set amount of people or teaching something new to my team. Otherwise, I’d probably be in a pretty dark pit of despair and self-loathing by now. I took for granted my nerdy need to constantly earn gold stars.

So, knowing this, I’ll be rewriting my BIG goals into smaller and manageable steps with a realistic FINISH time, and have a few small goals that I can count as wins. Some of those goals include:

  • Reclaim my writing office by sorting through the storage boxes I moved in there. Evaluate if I even need those things. Donate what I don’t need.
  • Create a writing nook–assemble the table that’s been in my garage for 3 years.
  • Make my own GIANT chalkboard. (I’ll probably do something like THIS).
  • Go to the local farmer’s market this weekend for produce versus the grocery store.
  • Do this twice a week:
  • You get the idea…

No matter how much I think I have myself and my habits figured out, I still need to take conscious, deliberate steps toward my goals, even if my goal is to maintain a good behavior (like consistent training and healthy eating). I accomplished so many goals over the last two years, and muscled through a lot of mental obstacles to get to where I am now. I don’t want to get too comfortable and revert to my old way of negative, defeatist thinking.

Success feeds success, and these small daily wins gave me the insight I needed to continue dreaming. I won’t stop now.

How about you? Have you felt empowered to dream bigger after achieving small goals? Where are you at in your BIG goals?

The Kindness Project: The Web As Random Acts of Kindness

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{About the Kindness Project–Too often kindness is relegated to a random act performed only when we’re feeling good.  But an even greater kindness (to ourselves and others) occurs when we reach out even when we aren’t feeling entirely whole . It’s not easy, and no one is perfect. But we’ve decided it’s not impossible to brighten the world one smile, one kind word, one blog post at a time. To that end, a few of us writers have established The Kindness Project, starting with a series of inspirational posts.}

(If for some reason this player doesn’t play, please click HERE. Also, there is an interactive transcript there so you can skim if you’d rather not watch the 20-minute video.)

I believe this talk by Jonathan Zittrain is a bit poorly titled because the examples he gives throughout don’t reflect random acts, but deliberate acts of kindness by people who don’t profit from being kind, to people who aren’t in a position to pay them back for their kindness.

I love the parallels that Zittrain drew between the architecture of the Internet and how it can impact the real world. He goes into a little bit of technical detail, but basically he concludes that the internet “is a system that relies on kindness and trust, which also makes it very delicate and vulnerable.“

He uses various examples, including Wikipedia and blogging, but a recurring theme in all of them is that normal, everyday users take it upon themselves to ensure that their piece of the web is problem-free. It’s this thin geeky line that keeps it going. Not because it’s a job, not because it’s a career, but because it’s a calling. It’s something they feel impelled to do because they care about it.

My favorite specific example is about the Star Wars Kid, the poor teenager who filmed himself with a golf ball retriever, acting as if it were a light saber. As you can possibly imagine, this video was ridiculously embarrassing for him, and even though several media outlets give his real name, Wikipedia eventually decided – not unanimously by any means – not to include his real name, despite the fact that nearly all media reports did. They just didn’t think it was the right thing to do. It was an act of kindness. And to this day, the page for Star Wars Kid has a warning right at the top that says you are not to put his real name on the page. If you do, it will be removed immediately, removed by people who may have disagreed with the original decision, but respect the outcome and work to make it stay because they believe in something bigger than their own opinion.

Wikipedia merely reflects what engineer Hans Monderman discovered in the Netherlands, that sometimes if you remove some of the external rules and signs and everything else, you can actually end up with a safer environment in which people can function, and one in which they are more human with each other. They’re realizing that they have to take responsibility for what they do.

And, isn’t that what ‘kindness’ is all about? Not the idea of any kind of transaction, like something for something (payback), or even something for nothing (which can lend itself to bitterness), but just a way to show our humanity.

Let me know what you think in the comments below, and be sure to check out other blogs posting for The Kindness Project today:

Sophia Chang
Erica Chapman
Jessica Corra
Elizabeth Davis
Christa Desir
Sarah Fine
Claire Hennessy
Elana Johnson
Amie Kaufman
Alina Klein
Sara Larson
Matthew MacNish
Sara McClung
Leigh Moore
Tracey Neithercott
Katharine Owen
Elizabeth Poole
Lola Sharp
Michele Shaw
Meagan Spooner
Carolina Valdez Miller

Share The Love

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Cover of "Jake Ransom and the Skull King'...

Cover of Jake Ransom and the Skull King’s Shadow

I’ve never written one of those ‘When I Grow Up…’ essays in school. I wouldn’t really know what I’d have said anyway if I did. A ballerina perhaps. I really enjoyed dancing, and I liked my tutus. Or, more likely, something practical, like a doctor.

But, since I’m thinking about it now, I’ve decided that when I grow up, I want to be like James Rollins. Not only is he a great author (his books will keep you up all night long), but also an inspirational speaker, and overall, really cool guy.

Until a few years ago, I’ve never really given much thought to my occupation because I kinda figured, ‘well, work is work, as long as I can pay my bills and fund my likes-to-travel lifestyle, I’ll be OK.’ I never seriously considered that writing and authoring books could be considered a viable “work goal.” It was always relegated to that strange, amorphous “wouldn’t it be nice” dream. Enter 2010, and the birth of this blog, and well, I realized dreams can become realities.

So why James Rollins, and not, say JK Rowling? Though Rowling’s rise to authorhood is inspiring indeed, I simply identify more with Rollins’s route. I’ve had the privilege of hearing James Rollins speak as the keynote speaker for this year’s DFW Writer’s Conference, and many of his life milestones resonated with me.

Even though he was a successful veterinarian, he still wanted to be an author. (And no, not the All Creature Great and Small, kind. More like the adventure-thriller kind.) He also thought that was a “wouldn’t it be nice…” goal until he got a wake up call from one of those motivational, live-the-life-you-dream kind of speakers. Rollins actually only listened to the first portion of that talk, but it was the most important part–write down your goals, and everyday, do something that will bring you one step closer to that goal.

Rollins wrote down his goal. Dedicated a portion of every day (even during a 12-14 hour work day) toward that goal. And with a little luck and a LOT of hard work and persistence (read: stubbornness), he became a best-selling author across multiple genres (aside from thrillers, he writes the Jake Ransom series for children, and he writes fantasy as James Clemens). Speaking of Jake Ransom…

Because James Rollins has become a role model for me, and because I think everyone needs a Rollins book in their personal library anyway, I’ll be giving away a signed copy of the first book of his children’s series, Jake Ransom and the Skull King’s Shadow to a random commenter who comments between now and next Monday, June 18, 11:59PM EST. Just let me know you’re interested and please leave your email!

This giveaway is now closed. Congrats DB Smyth! Random.org chose you! ^_^

So, now you know my new author role model, and kinda what I want to do with my life…what did YOU want to be when you grow up? Or, whose career path resonates with you the most?