Your Best You

Off Topic
81

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:

[quote]Chushin wrote:

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:

[quote]rrjc5488 wrote:

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:
I’m interested in self improvement of all types. I’ll check out the book you mentioned to Cush about visualization for sure. Do you have anything that you’ve read regarding managing people?[/quote]

What exactly do you mean “managing people”?

Like specific to business, or in general? Just trying to get an idea, because the book Mastery that I recommended to Cortes has a brilliant chapter about social intelligence and human nature and the like. The same author, Robert Greene, also has a book called The 48 Laws of Power and The Art of Seduction, that I’m assuming deals with human nature. I actually read The Art of Seduction quickly before the semester started and I’m going to reread it as well as read the 48 Laws. He’s a great author and makes everything incredibly interesting.

Depending on what you meant by managing people, they might be of interest to you.[/quote]

I’m speaking specific of business, but really, the same skills are useful in many different scenarios, so the books you mentioned may be helpful as well. I’ll check them out, thanks (but not the art of seduction one, haha).
[/quote]
Already got that one down, eh?[/quote]

How do you think I landed my wife? [/quote]

82

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:

[quote]Cortes wrote:

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:

[quote]Cortes wrote:

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:

[quote]Cortes wrote:
Another bit of advice that many of the readers of this site who have managed to transform their bodies or lives will probably already know, intuitively, at least:

All lasting change starts at the finish.

Meaning: You need to know exactly what it is you want, down to the tiniest detail, before you can expect to have it. This is particularly true when attempting to circumvent our lumbering, evolutionarily programmed animal instincts and inclinations. So, for example, if you are obese, but you want to get down to single digit body fat, you MUST program your MIND to believe that you no longer look, feel, walk, move, talk, eat, drink, act, or think like an obese person, but like a healthy, good looking, confident, strong, organized, motivated, lean, driven bad-ass; with single-digit body fat being the necessary and inescapable result of being that person in the first place.

Every single failed endeavor fails due to faulty planning. Every one.

Want to be lean? You need to stop seeing yourself as a fat-ass. Will-power is dictated by self-talk and self-image. Strangely, once you start planning what you will look like, how you will get there, what you will feel like, what benefits you will enjoy from all of the positive changes you’ve made, and deeply, viscerally imagining this often enough that you override your present “fat-ass” programming, something magical occurs. Suddenly, the need for “will-power” all but disappears. As the programming you’ve done before hand takes over, you stop desiring what is detrimental to your goals, and start desiring, spontaneously and unconsciously, that which leads you to become that person.

Want to move up in your company? Same formula.

Want to get rich? Same formula.

Want to learn a new set of skills? Same formula.

So many of our endeavors end up failing not because we were too weak to stick with them, but because we simply did not have a clear, detailed, picture of the final result in our mind. We program ourselves to be exactly what we always have been, and then throw our hands up in the air when we get the same result we’ve always gotten.

So the next time you make a goal for yourself, before you ever start, remember:

All lasting change starts at the finish.

Oh. And if you can’t be bothered to form your goals on paper in as much detail as you have spent forming them in your mind, you probably don’t really want the thing that badly. You must, must write your goals down.

[/quote]

I think we read a lot of the same types of books…have any suggestions?[/quote]

It depends upon your needs. I’m at Operating Thetan Level 3, performing Solo Audits upon myself in order to rid myself of effects of drugs taken in past lives. You?

(^_~)

Seriously, though, I wouldn’t know where to start without know where you’re at or what you’re looking for. What is your area of interest?
[/quote]

I’m interested in self improvement of all types. I’ll check out the book you mentioned to Cush about visualization for sure. Do you have anything that you’ve read regarding managing people?

I’m a pretty even tempered guy and always fall back on the apology strategy you mentioned, people really get taken back when you change the dynamic of a conversation like that. One of the better books I’ve read on that topic is called Crucial Conversations by Kerry Patterson. [/quote]

Thanks for the suggestion, that book looks great.

For my own suggestion to you, it’s not a book, but a multimedia seminar series (mainly audio).

Brian Tracy’s Effective Manager series is just jam-packed with immediately applicaple, extremely effective ideas, many of which, if I hadn’t heard, I “needed” to hear again. This series has been a massive source of knowledge and improvement to me with my business recently, particularly as I enter a new period of growth (which sounds great, but can actually be the worst thing that happens to a business that is not prepared to handle it). It is expensive, but the titles are broken up to make them affordable separately, and I firmly believe that any one idea from any one of the titles, properly applied, will serve to pay for the investment many times over. I cannot recommend this highly enough. Even someone at the lowest position in his company, with no one to manage, will realize that there is no such thing as having a “boss” (your only boss is yourself, everyone else is just people you interact with and negotiate with, to varying degrees) and can use the ideas in this series to position himself as too valuable to remain where he is. Really good stuff.

http://www.nightingale.com/Auth_About~Author~Brian_Tracy.aspx
[/quote]

It looks interesting and I could probably use something a bit more constructive for my car rides…but I’m a bit confused. I don’t see his Effective Manager series on the link? Or are the totality of the products from the link commonly referred to as his Effective Manager series?

Edit - found it on his website…wow that is expensive. I’m going to check out some of his other work first, it looks like his work runs the gamut on self improvement. I’ve watched some of his youtube videos in the past, I don’t think I’ve ever read anything he’s done. [/quote]

Sorry, for some reason the link I sent went to another area of the site. Here is one of the sets, you can just type in “Brian Tracy Effective Manager” for the other titles.

There are a number of sets containing a DVD, 2 CDs and a workbook that are around $100 each. I am not talking about the nearly $800 DVD set on his website.

I particularly like these two sets:

http://www.nightingale.com/prod_detail~product~Effective_Manager_Creative_Brian_Tracy.aspx

http://www.nightingale.com/prod_detail~product~Effective_Manager_Leadership_Brian_Tracy.aspx

83

[quote]Cortes wrote:

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:

[quote]Cortes wrote:

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:

[quote]Cortes wrote:

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:

[quote]Cortes wrote:
Another bit of advice that many of the readers of this site who have managed to transform their bodies or lives will probably already know, intuitively, at least:

All lasting change starts at the finish.

Meaning: You need to know exactly what it is you want, down to the tiniest detail, before you can expect to have it. This is particularly true when attempting to circumvent our lumbering, evolutionarily programmed animal instincts and inclinations. So, for example, if you are obese, but you want to get down to single digit body fat, you MUST program your MIND to believe that you no longer look, feel, walk, move, talk, eat, drink, act, or think like an obese person, but like a healthy, good looking, confident, strong, organized, motivated, lean, driven bad-ass; with single-digit body fat being the necessary and inescapable result of being that person in the first place.

Every single failed endeavor fails due to faulty planning. Every one.

Want to be lean? You need to stop seeing yourself as a fat-ass. Will-power is dictated by self-talk and self-image. Strangely, once you start planning what you will look like, how you will get there, what you will feel like, what benefits you will enjoy from all of the positive changes you’ve made, and deeply, viscerally imagining this often enough that you override your present “fat-ass” programming, something magical occurs. Suddenly, the need for “will-power” all but disappears. As the programming you’ve done before hand takes over, you stop desiring what is detrimental to your goals, and start desiring, spontaneously and unconsciously, that which leads you to become that person.

Want to move up in your company? Same formula.

Want to get rich? Same formula.

Want to learn a new set of skills? Same formula.

So many of our endeavors end up failing not because we were too weak to stick with them, but because we simply did not have a clear, detailed, picture of the final result in our mind. We program ourselves to be exactly what we always have been, and then throw our hands up in the air when we get the same result we’ve always gotten.

So the next time you make a goal for yourself, before you ever start, remember:

All lasting change starts at the finish.

Oh. And if you can’t be bothered to form your goals on paper in as much detail as you have spent forming them in your mind, you probably don’t really want the thing that badly. You must, must write your goals down.

[/quote]

I think we read a lot of the same types of books…have any suggestions?[/quote]

It depends upon your needs. I’m at Operating Thetan Level 3, performing Solo Audits upon myself in order to rid myself of effects of drugs taken in past lives. You?

(^_~)

Seriously, though, I wouldn’t know where to start without know where you’re at or what you’re looking for. What is your area of interest?
[/quote]

I’m interested in self improvement of all types. I’ll check out the book you mentioned to Cush about visualization for sure. Do you have anything that you’ve read regarding managing people?

I’m a pretty even tempered guy and always fall back on the apology strategy you mentioned, people really get taken back when you change the dynamic of a conversation like that. One of the better books I’ve read on that topic is called Crucial Conversations by Kerry Patterson. [/quote]

Thanks for the suggestion, that book looks great.

For my own suggestion to you, it’s not a book, but a multimedia seminar series (mainly audio).

Brian Tracy’s Effective Manager series is just jam-packed with immediately applicaple, extremely effective ideas, many of which, if I hadn’t heard, I “needed” to hear again. This series has been a massive source of knowledge and improvement to me with my business recently, particularly as I enter a new period of growth (which sounds great, but can actually be the worst thing that happens to a business that is not prepared to handle it). It is expensive, but the titles are broken up to make them affordable separately, and I firmly believe that any one idea from any one of the titles, properly applied, will serve to pay for the investment many times over. I cannot recommend this highly enough. Even someone at the lowest position in his company, with no one to manage, will realize that there is no such thing as having a “boss” (your only boss is yourself, everyone else is just people you interact with and negotiate with, to varying degrees) and can use the ideas in this series to position himself as too valuable to remain where he is. Really good stuff.

http://www.nightingale.com/Auth_About~Author~Brian_Tracy.aspx
[/quote]

It looks interesting and I could probably use something a bit more constructive for my car rides…but I’m a bit confused. I don’t see his Effective Manager series on the link? Or are the totality of the products from the link commonly referred to as his Effective Manager series?

Edit - found it on his website…wow that is expensive. I’m going to check out some of his other work first, it looks like his work runs the gamut on self improvement. I’ve watched some of his youtube videos in the past, I don’t think I’ve ever read anything he’s done. [/quote]

Sorry, for some reason the link I sent went to another area of the site. Here is one of the sets, you can just type in “Brian Tracy Effective Manager” for the other titles.

There are a number of sets containing a DVD, 2 CDs and a workbook that are around $100 each. I am not talking about the nearly $800 DVD set on his website.

I particularly like these two sets:

http://www.nightingale.com/prod_detail~product~Effective_Manager_Creative_Brian_Tracy.aspx

http://www.nightingale.com/prod_detail~product~Effective_Manager_Leadership_Brian_Tracy.aspx

[/quote]

Thanks, that gives me a place to start without the $800 investment. :slight_smile:

84

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:

[quote]rrjc5488 wrote:

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:
I’m interested in self improvement of all types. I’ll check out the book you mentioned to Cush about visualization for sure. Do you have anything that you’ve read regarding managing people?[/quote]

What exactly do you mean “managing people”?

Like specific to business, or in general? Just trying to get an idea, because the book Mastery that I recommended to Cortes has a brilliant chapter about social intelligence and human nature and the like. The same author, Robert Greene, also has a book called The 48 Laws of Power and The Art of Seduction, that I’m assuming deals with human nature. I actually read The Art of Seduction quickly before the semester started and I’m going to reread it as well as read the 48 Laws. He’s a great author and makes everything incredibly interesting.

Depending on what you meant by managing people, they might be of interest to you.[/quote]

I’m speaking specific of business, but really, the same skills are useful in many different scenarios, so the books you mentioned may be helpful as well. I’ll check them out, thanks (but not the art of seduction one, haha).
[/quote]

Haha! To clarify, it’s not a PUA book, but rather a human relations book. I just feel like the word “seduction” automatically triggers the PUA notion, but really he talks about a lot of things, such as how presidents seduce a nation and things like that.

The main idea of the book is: Everyone is missing something in theie life, so if you can figure out what they’re missing and fill that void, they’ll love you forever.

It’s a very interesting book. That said, if you still don’t wanna read it, don’t haha, just wanted to make sure you knew you weren’t picking up some doofey PUA book lol.

85

This.
Thread.
Delivers.

Great stuff. I’m stealing that mantra.

86

[quote]rrjc5488 wrote:

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:

[quote]rrjc5488 wrote:

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:
I’m interested in self improvement of all types. I’ll check out the book you mentioned to Cush about visualization for sure. Do you have anything that you’ve read regarding managing people?[/quote]

What exactly do you mean “managing people”?

Like specific to business, or in general? Just trying to get an idea, because the book Mastery that I recommended to Cortes has a brilliant chapter about social intelligence and human nature and the like. The same author, Robert Greene, also has a book called The 48 Laws of Power and The Art of Seduction, that I’m assuming deals with human nature. I actually read The Art of Seduction quickly before the semester started and I’m going to reread it as well as read the 48 Laws. He’s a great author and makes everything incredibly interesting.

Depending on what you meant by managing people, they might be of interest to you.[/quote]

I’m speaking specific of business, but really, the same skills are useful in many different scenarios, so the books you mentioned may be helpful as well. I’ll check them out, thanks (but not the art of seduction one, haha).
[/quote]

Haha! To clarify, it’s not a PUA book, but rather a human relations book. I just feel like the word “seduction” automatically triggers the PUA notion, but really he talks about a lot of things, such as how presidents seduce a nation and things like that.

The main idea of the book is: Everyone is missing something in theie life, so if you can figure out what they’re missing and fill that void, they’ll love you forever.

It’s a very interesting book. That said, if you still don’t wanna read it, don’t haha, just wanted to make sure you knew you weren’t picking up some doofey PUA book lol.[/quote]

I got the book and I’ve only had a chance to take a glance at it but it looks like it definitely could be something. Even a chapter about the ramifications of using the techniques.

87

I try to leave every human interaction better than I found it. That’s my goal. And I’m wildly unsuccessful. But it is something I strive for. So if I see the grocery clerk is exhausted, I find some way to compliment her. Some way to pick up her spirits. You get the idea. It’s really empowering to be able to take negativity and swallow it and put out positive energy. Difficult but very empowering.

88

[quote]kpsnap wrote:
I try to leave every human interaction better than I found it. That’s my goal. And I’m wildly unsuccessful. But it is something I strive for. So if I see the grocery clerk is exhausted, I find some way to compliment her. Some way to pick up her spirits. You get the idea. It’s really empowering to be able to take negativity and swallow it and put out positive energy. Difficult but very empowering.[/quote]

This is awesome.

I, too, am unsuccessful at it. There are times I KNOW I could change a persons day with just a simple compliment, but still can’t find the… it… it takes to do so!

Conversational/interpersonal skills is an area I’m working on, as well, so I think with time, dishing out these compliments to random strangers will become easier and more natural, but at the moment, it’s still hard sometimes.

Has there been anything in particular you’ve noticed about the times you WERE successful in brightening a strangers day? The only things I’ve noticed that seem to help me compliment strangers are:

If I’m outdoors, particularly on a sunny day.
If I’m dressed well. (not even dressed up, but even a particular pair of jeans and a t-shirt that I wear well will help my confidence in speaking to strangers.)
When I take L-theanine. It’s a nootropic amino acid that is pretty much cloud-fuckin’-nine in a pill! lol. Cheap, too!

89

Great thread. My list, off the top off my head:

  1. Meditate every morning. Began this a year ago and don’t know why I didn’t get into it earlier. It’s been amazing in grounding me, calming my overthinking mind, and teaching me to live in every moment.

  2. Take a multi, fish oils, Vitamin D, Zinc, a B complex and occasionally C.

  3. Drink 2.5 litres water daily. And take the time to sip my water, not chug it down.

  4. Go for a 20 minute relaxing walk 3-5 times a week. This is outside of my regular training. Another thing that grounds me, and has carry over effects to so many other areas of my life.

  5. Try to be in bed by 10.30pm. If I have a lot of stuff on, I just wake up earlier to do it rather than going to bed later (not always possible). Oh yeah, recently started wearing ear plugs - I don’t live in a noisy area, but still the improvement in the quality of my sleep has been notable.

  6. Eating a shit ton of veggies.

  7. Stretching. Not only after exercise but I also do a handful of quick stretches after meditating. Great way to feel physically good and wake your body up in the morning.

  8. Read at least 30-60 min every day. Another tough one for me as my job involves a lot of reading. I try to do this before bed.

  9. Cold showers. Only recently got into these for their restorative effects, but I’m becoming a believer. Easily the most difficult of any item on this list though!!! Only works if the water is nut-numbing cold and you hang in there for a full 5-7 minutes. (Basically, the blood rushes to skin first, then to your internal organs to ensure they are kept adequately warm - effectively an internal massage that is incredibly healing. Great for adrenals/T levels.)

  10. No caffeine. That is - no coffee, Coke etc. Used to love both and didn’t think they had an effect on me. Decided to give them up for a month ‘just to see what happened’ and never went back. Body took a hit for a while as I coped with withdrawal, but my alertness, calmness and recovery from training have never been better.

90

[quote]justrob wrote:

  1. Cold showers. Only recently got into these for their restorative effects, but I’m becoming a believer. Easily the most difficult of any item on this list though!!! Only works if the water is nut-numbing cold and you hang in there for a full 5-7 minutes. (Basically, the blood rushes to skin first, then to your internal organs to ensure they are kept adequately warm - effectively an internal massage that is incredibly healing. Great for adrenals/T levels.)
    [/quote]

def going to try this

[quote]
10. No caffeine. That is - no coffee, Coke etc. Used to love both and didn’t think they had an effect on me. Decided to give them up for a month ‘just to see what happened’ and never went back. Body took a hit for a while as I coped with withdrawal, but my alertness, calmness and recovery from training have never been better. [/quote]

aint no fucking way i will attempt this

91

[quote]Edgy wrote:

[quote]justrob wrote:

  1. Cold showers. Only recently got into these for their restorative effects, but I’m becoming a believer. Easily the most difficult of any item on this list though!!! Only works if the water is nut-numbing cold and you hang in there for a full 5-7 minutes. (Basically, the blood rushes to skin first, then to your internal organs to ensure they are kept adequately warm - effectively an internal massage that is incredibly healing. Great for adrenals/T levels.)
    [/quote]

def going to try this

Haha, Edgy, I was thinking exactly this!

92

[quote]Cortes wrote:

[quote]Edgy wrote:

[quote]justrob wrote:

  1. Cold showers. Only recently got into these for their restorative effects, but I’m becoming a believer. Easily the most difficult of any item on this list though!!! Only works if the water is nut-numbing cold and you hang in there for a full 5-7 minutes. (Basically, the blood rushes to skin first, then to your internal organs to ensure they are kept adequately warm - effectively an internal massage that is incredibly healing. Great for adrenals/T levels.)
    [/quote]

def going to try this

Haha, Edgy, I was thinking exactly this![/quote]

+3

93

640×960 34.9 KB

[quote]Gambit_Lost wrote:

[quote]Cortes wrote:

[quote]Edgy wrote:

[quote]justrob wrote:

  1. Cold showers. Only recently got into these for their restorative effects, but I’m becoming a believer. Easily the most difficult of any item on this list though!!! Only works if the water is nut-numbing cold and you hang in there for a full 5-7 minutes. (Basically, the blood rushes to skin first, then to your internal organs to ensure they are kept adequately warm - effectively an internal massage that is incredibly healing. Great for adrenals/T levels.)
    [/quote]

def going to try this

Haha, Edgy, I was thinking exactly this![/quote]

+3
[/quote]

LOL! x4.

In fact, this is the picture I posted as my FB status this morning with the caption “monday morning.”

94

[quote]justrob wrote:
Great thread. My list, off the top off my head:

  1. Meditate every morning. Began this a year ago and don’t know why I didn’t get into it earlier. It’s been amazing in grounding me, calming my overthinking mind, and teaching me to live in every moment.

  2. Take a multi, fish oils, Vitamin D, Zinc, a B complex and occasionally C.

  3. Drink 2.5 litres water daily. And take the time to sip my water, not chug it down.

  4. Go for a 20 minute relaxing walk 3-5 times a week. This is outside of my regular training. Another thing that grounds me, and has carry over effects to so many other areas of my life.

  5. Try to be in bed by 10.30pm. If I have a lot of stuff on, I just wake up earlier to do it rather than going to bed later (not always possible). Oh yeah, recently started wearing ear plugs - I don’t live in a noisy area, but still the improvement in the quality of my sleep has been notable.

  6. Eating a shit ton of veggies.

  7. Stretching. Not only after exercise but I also do a handful of quick stretches after meditating. Great way to feel physically good and wake your body up in the morning.

  8. Read at least 30-60 min every day. Another tough one for me as my job involves a lot of reading. I try to do this before bed.

  9. Cold showers. Only recently got into these for their restorative effects, but I’m becoming a believer. Easily the most difficult of any item on this list though!!! Only works if the water is nut-numbing cold and you hang in there for a full 5-7 minutes. (Basically, the blood rushes to skin first, then to your internal organs to ensure they are kept adequately warm - effectively an internal massage that is incredibly healing. Great for adrenals/T levels.)

  10. No caffeine. That is - no coffee, Coke etc. Used to love both and didn’t think they had an effect on me. Decided to give them up for a month ‘just to see what happened’ and never went back. Body took a hit for a while as I coped with withdrawal, but my alertness, calmness and recovery from training have never been better. [/quote]

This is a great list…I like how you T-Nationed it up with saying a “shit ton” of veggies!

95

[quote]rrjc5488 wrote:

[quote]Gambit_Lost wrote:

[quote]Cortes wrote:

[quote]Edgy wrote:

[quote]justrob wrote:

  1. Cold showers. Only recently got into these for their restorative effects, but I’m becoming a believer. Easily the most difficult of any item on this list though!!! Only works if the water is nut-numbing cold and you hang in there for a full 5-7 minutes. (Basically, the blood rushes to skin first, then to your internal organs to ensure they are kept adequately warm - effectively an internal massage that is incredibly healing. Great for adrenals/T levels.)
    [/quote]

def going to try this

Haha, Edgy, I was thinking exactly this![/quote]

+3
[/quote]

LOL! x4.

In fact, this is the picture I posted as my FB status this morning with the caption “monday morning.”
[/quote]

I tried cutting it out for a couple of months and all that happened was decreased productivity and motivation. I need my coffee and spike! Need it I tell you! YOU DON’T TELL ME WHEN I’VE HAD ENOUGH I TELL YOU! [ehh hemm cough] What I was saying is that I’m in no way dependent on caffeine :slight_smile:

96

I would have to say that the idea of coffee being bad is outdated.

I mean saying your levels of calmness and so forth are chaanged is very subjective. I mean green te is good for you, but so many people think it does more than it does just because of the mystique of the Orient and the idea that green tea is something Buddhist monks drink so they start to say they feel calmer and and all that.

97

48 laws of power is good, if you’re busy theres a mini-version too I think. Certainly worth checking out