Be grateful for the things you are given. Be proud of the things you have earned. Never stop giving and never stop working towards your goals.
Simply put there are two categories of things in life. When someone gives you something be appreciative. Let them feel good about giving it. In turn you will have to continue to earn their admiration. Really all gifts must be earned in some manner for them to truly have meaning. Christmas is a great holiday. Everyone loves giving and receiving presents. But most of the things we give are simply used up and cast aside.
I am not sure what I want to do with my life. I think that is okay. I'm going to continue trying things and figuring it out. What I know is that I am grateful for the opportunities I have been given and I am proud of the strides I have made as a person. I have learned a lot about myself while working in a hospital. It requires a great amount of patience to attend to sick people. I think it is a constant lesson. Put yourself in the bed. How would you treat the people who are helping to mend your wounds? I hope I would be as courteous as I should. Despite any condition I might be in.
Gratitude is becoming a lost facet of our society. A lot of us have developed the deserve mentality. You don't deserve shit that you have not earned. Anything you are given you better be damned willing to reciprocate or pass it on in order to earn that gift. All of this has been said before and it will be said again. It is important for ME to say it in order to fully digest what it means.
Thanks mom and dad. Thanks brothers. Thanks anyone that ever gave me a kind word to boost my confidence. I am grateful for you.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
You Can't Plan It All Out
Life is not lifting weights. You can't plan out where you'll be in 20 years. You can set expectations and goals but life is a journey that deserves some improvisation. I know that I have been trying to find my magic bullet in life for a while. I know there are things that I have wanted to pursue that I thought would make me happy. The fact of the matter is that you can't MAKE yourself happy. You have to be happy. It is a mindset. It is an attitude.
The title of this blog is really the only staple of a well lived life. You have to just continue getting better. There is no one way to do this and in the end there are infinite ways to go about getting better. The only thing you can do is get better at the things you want to get better at. Whether it be lifting weights, being a good parent, doing your job better, etc. It doesn't matter. Gratification comes from seeing the gains we make and rewarding ourselves for the triumphs.
Self reflection is a vital part of getting better. In order to improve you must find deficiencies and that requires looking deep down. Still, you can't sit around. Life is about doing. Action is necessity. Thinking about what you want to do is a zero sum game. Just go and let the chips fall where they may. In the end all you can control is yourself and when your goals and your actions align good things will follow.
The title of this blog is really the only staple of a well lived life. You have to just continue getting better. There is no one way to do this and in the end there are infinite ways to go about getting better. The only thing you can do is get better at the things you want to get better at. Whether it be lifting weights, being a good parent, doing your job better, etc. It doesn't matter. Gratification comes from seeing the gains we make and rewarding ourselves for the triumphs.
Self reflection is a vital part of getting better. In order to improve you must find deficiencies and that requires looking deep down. Still, you can't sit around. Life is about doing. Action is necessity. Thinking about what you want to do is a zero sum game. Just go and let the chips fall where they may. In the end all you can control is yourself and when your goals and your actions align good things will follow.
Thursday, June 20, 2013
Practice Makes Perfect
The old adage that practice makes perfect is a true statement. There is a point where I think diminishing returns start to effect results. I have been studying for my MCAT for a while now, and to say I am ready to be done with it is an understatement. Am I "ready" for the test. No way. I think the point of this type of test is to make you feel uncomfortable. Do I know a lot of material? Yes. Will I be able to express what I know? Hopefully.
In a lot of ways the test depends on me, but in a few ways I am at the will of the test writer. I won't remember everything. Things can be confusing in a test like the MCAT and the layout and phrasing of the passages can stifle even really intelligent people. I know that while taking practice tests I still find myself lost in other thoughts even while reading a passage. This is something I need to address before the test, but I also know that the legitimate test will serve to focus me because it will be "THE TEST". The one that makes or breaks me. Still, this is an area where I think I could have been more focused and practiced like I want to play.
My pursuit of the M.D. has allowed me to learn a great deal, but now that I am reconsidering the whole venture I have become a little lest focused on performing well on the MCAT. I know that I have done a lot to prepare and my hope is that it pays off. I still want to live up to my own expectations when I take the test anything less than my best effort is a disappointment.
With around 11 days left until the test I can say that I will just continue to review and try to bring up my weaknesses. I can't do anything but continue to work. My practice exams are just that. The real thing is a matter of putting all the pieces together. We shall see how it all goes down.
In a lot of ways the test depends on me, but in a few ways I am at the will of the test writer. I won't remember everything. Things can be confusing in a test like the MCAT and the layout and phrasing of the passages can stifle even really intelligent people. I know that while taking practice tests I still find myself lost in other thoughts even while reading a passage. This is something I need to address before the test, but I also know that the legitimate test will serve to focus me because it will be "THE TEST". The one that makes or breaks me. Still, this is an area where I think I could have been more focused and practiced like I want to play.
My pursuit of the M.D. has allowed me to learn a great deal, but now that I am reconsidering the whole venture I have become a little lest focused on performing well on the MCAT. I know that I have done a lot to prepare and my hope is that it pays off. I still want to live up to my own expectations when I take the test anything less than my best effort is a disappointment.
With around 11 days left until the test I can say that I will just continue to review and try to bring up my weaknesses. I can't do anything but continue to work. My practice exams are just that. The real thing is a matter of putting all the pieces together. We shall see how it all goes down.
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
Grass is Always Greener
I know that I have this problem. I want what I can't have and I love to compare myself to others. Simply stated this is a counterproductive trait. The people who get things done in life do so by looking to improve themselves and don't worry about what someone else is doing. They know that the only way for them to get to where they want to be is to focus on what they need to accomplish to be better tomorrow.
The grass is always going to be greener. Someone is always going to be stronger than you, better looking,(that one hurts real bad), have more money, drive a fancier car, etc. etc. It doesn't matter. You are not them and they are not you. The most important thing anyone can do is try to improve themselves. In the end the only one who really has any control over self improvement is the one doing the self improving. So by that logic all that matters is our own attitude.
I honestly don't know how to fully get over my grass is always greener complex. The best answer may be to just focus on doing what I have to do to get better and be happy with my accomplishments. For all I know there has never been an exact copy of me before and there will never be another again. So my accomplishments are unique to me and I should be thankful to have achieved them. It is easy to get bogged down in life's hardships, but in the end my hardships are not all that difficult. I don't have cancer. I don't have to walk 6 miles to a well to get clean water. I don't have problems at all.
Lesson: Whenever you think you have it rough and you want to be in someone else's shoes just think about the person who would kill to be in yours.
Life is not about wanting to be someone else. It is about maximizing our own potential. So just get better.
The grass is always going to be greener. Someone is always going to be stronger than you, better looking,(that one hurts real bad), have more money, drive a fancier car, etc. etc. It doesn't matter. You are not them and they are not you. The most important thing anyone can do is try to improve themselves. In the end the only one who really has any control over self improvement is the one doing the self improving. So by that logic all that matters is our own attitude.
I honestly don't know how to fully get over my grass is always greener complex. The best answer may be to just focus on doing what I have to do to get better and be happy with my accomplishments. For all I know there has never been an exact copy of me before and there will never be another again. So my accomplishments are unique to me and I should be thankful to have achieved them. It is easy to get bogged down in life's hardships, but in the end my hardships are not all that difficult. I don't have cancer. I don't have to walk 6 miles to a well to get clean water. I don't have problems at all.
Lesson: Whenever you think you have it rough and you want to be in someone else's shoes just think about the person who would kill to be in yours.
Life is not about wanting to be someone else. It is about maximizing our own potential. So just get better.
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