When Good Goals Go Bad
14 Jul 2010 1 Comment
Richard Wiseman’s self-help debunking 59 seconds methodically reviews some of the biggest shams in the industry before laying out what actually works for improvement. I have written on Wiseman before and even committed myself to his luck school, which produced some amazing results. (Wiseman argues that we bring our own luck into being by cognitively priming ourselves to look for opportunity). As with Luck Factor, 59 seconds packs a lot of step-by-step, how-to exercises into an incredibly informed book and also like Luck Factor – it works!
One of the things I was surprised to see evidence against was visualization. I have had success visualizing in the past, but his argument was sound. Research demonstrates that visualization can actually prevent you from realizing your goals because it undermines the likelihood of taking the actions necessary to accomplish them.
In other words, picturing where on the bookshelf your bestseller might appear, really seeing it there—the binding, the byline, the cover art—doesn’t get a lot of writing done.
His solution: a step-by-step plan to bring your goals to fruition.
Introspective Retrospective January 2010
04 Feb 2010 1 Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: 100 days, Change, Chris Guillebeau, four characteristics of a lucky person, Luck Factor, Richard Wiseman, Tai Chi, Taoist, writing
As we get our February on, I thought it might be worthwhile to take a very brief stroll down memory lane. A thorough investigation of the past helps us prepare for the future and an entry on the subject helps me organize my thoughts, so here we go.
Today marks the 39 hash mark toward 100 days of Qi Kung. I have been practicing with erratic irregularity for about five years, so setting my sites on actually getting a consecutive practice down is a big deal for me. On Nov 8, after over a decade of smoking, I finally kicked the habit for good. It served me as a coping strategy for a very long time, so the adjustment to not relying on that crutch has been considerable. Serious Qi work has helped.
Luck Lessons: I started reading Richard Wiseman’s Luck Factor (download a .pdf of an abridged version here) which explores how cognitive practices can influence good fortune in your life. Far from waxing new age-y, Wiseman is a psychologist who backs his arguments with empirical evidence. My reading of it really regards “luck” as more a metaphor than actually bringing— what is by definition—a supernatural force to bear on your day-to-day. I’d also contend that a lot of the thinking Wiseman advances is Taoist in nature, which I will elaborate on in later posts. Feel free to download the .pdf and participate in this journey, I’d love to get your feedback on some of the forthcoming lessons shared here.
Think Fast, it’s coming. Influenced & inspired by Art of Non-Conformity, I am writing an e-book manifesto in collaboration with the talented staff at RMK Photography. I’ll keep you all posted on the project as we move further along. You can get a sneak peak checking out my five part series on Overcomplification, which outlines some of the basic ideas.
I also want to share some great finds I’ve had this month, namely:
Art of Conformity: Chris G writes a thought-provoking, globe-trotting, engaging & inspiring blog on changing the world.
Rambling Taoist: I came across this site looking for like minded, Tao-oriented folks. Trey, at Rambling Taoist, has been posting his interpretations of the classic Wen-Tzu, which I have found interesting & insightful.
Smile, it’s free
31 Jan 2010 Leave a Comment
in Taoist Practice Tags: 100 days, Adam-O, Caine from Kung Fu, Change, Chi Lel, four characteristics of a lucky person, Harvard study, Inattentional blindness, Luck Factor, meditation, Qi Kung, Richard Wiseman, smile, Taoist
Adam-O is a Caine-from-Kung-Fu-kind-of-guy. He practices Kung Fu. He wears Shaolin robes. He travels small-town-to-small-town solving small town problems (see: The Incredible Hulk, The Fugitive, & The A-Team for more examples). When he occasionally appears back on the grid, he is always dropping knowledge. As I approach my 35th day of consecutive Qi Kung practice, I have begun to work in some of Adam-O’s suggestions into my practice. I am introducing a regular feature here that disseminates the pearls of wisdom Adam-O occasionally drops on me…. Here we go, Grasshoppers!
Smile. Adam-O suggested that I work a smile into my Qi Kung practice. This seems simple on the surface, but the fact is while you’re concentrating on the movements of practice, it is difficult to crack a grin through a furrowed brow of concentration. Doing so allows you to have fun while practicing, instead of wasting energy trying to get every motion right.
While it might sound like some useless hippy garbage, the fact is a smile lowers the Cortisol levels (the “stress” hormone) in your blood stream, it actually normalizes blood pressure, and amazingly it also boosts your immune system increasing antibodies.
I have also begun to translate this into my day-to-day as well. Smiling outside practice can change your outlook and the outlook of those around you. In fact, a Harvard / University of California study measured how social networks were connected with reported happiness. The study showed happiness is contagious, spreading among groups of people. Five thousand people with a more than 50,000 connection network of family, friends, co-workers and others were evaluated (read more here).
Richard Wiseman, author of the Luck Factor, points out that it may also change your fortune (read more here or download a .pdf copy here). In his psychological investigation into luck, he interviewed numerous self-proclaimed lucky & unlucky individuals and had a team of researchers review the videos on mute recording hand gestures and body language, he found:
The differences between the lucky and unlucky people were dramatic. The lucky people smiled twice as much as unlucky people and engaged in far more eye contact.
If you smile watching the clip below, remember that it may be adding years to your life, quality to those years, and helping spread joy to family & friends!
