Sunday, May 15, 2016

What I've learned since moving to D.C. (some of which should be obvious): 0088

4351.  I (think I) have male “resting bitch face” (i.e., “R.B.F.”);
4352.  Why do I feel pissed (off) for being shamed (by a total stranger) into standing for the National Anthem?  (I think) it’s probably because (of insecurity that) I want people to think I’m a good person and her glaring disapproval made me feel otherwise.  (Deep down) I know I was wrong, I just didn’t like being called out on it;
4353.  Parents don’t like it when you talk about (sex) orgies on cruise ships when they’re sitting in the row in front of you with their kids at the circus;
4354.  Most dogs that behave badly have been conditioned to do so by ignorant or inconsistent owners;
4355.  In many ways, humans aren’t much different from pets.  People often behave the way they have been trained to behave.  For example, if a person gives his dog a treat when he pees on the carpet, the dog will keep peeing on the carpet.  The same is true for humans.  If the “nice guy” reinforces his partner’s undesirable behaviors, she will keep behaving in undesirable ways;
4356.  In dog obedience school, if you want an undesirable behavior to go away, you stop paying attention to it.  The same is true in relationships;
4357.  When applying for a job, your focus should be on the person or company that you want to start paying you.  More specifically: 1.  What basic qualifications is this employer looking for?  If I’m being honest with myself, do I meet these basic qualifications?; 2.  Why does this employer need someone in this position?; 3.  What problem(s) are they trying to solve with who they hire for this role?; and 4.  What specific qualities or experiences have I had that can solve the employer’s problem in a unique and effective way?  If you can answer these questions honestly, you will stop wasting your time applying for positions that are not a good fit.  Your résumé will jump out at the employer as someone who understands what they’re looking for;
4358.  If you can articulate someone’s problem better than they can, they will automatically assume you have the answer;
4359.  A lot of the time, an employer is ultimately trying to solve one of two problems when hiring: 1.  How does our company make more money?; or 2.  How does our company save more money?
4360.  Dr. John Gottman has spent decades studying interaction between couples.  He’s amassed so much data that he can sit down with any couple, and within a few minutes of watching them converse, predict with 94 percent accuracy which couples will later divorce.  He took his mathematical formulations even further to discover a magic ratio which he uses in his predictions.  He discovered that couples who maintain a ratio of five positive interactions to each negative interaction have relationships that last.  Marriages that fall below a five-to-one ratio usually fail;
4361.  If you were to reward your most important clients, what would you do?  How much effort would you be willing to put into it?  How about spending that time, energy and attention on your wife/marriage?
4362.  If you make sure to treat your spouse as good as or better than you treat your customers, it will be easier to maintain a healthy five-to-one ratio of positive and negative interactions.  And it will be easier to have a long, happy marriage;
4363.  Quality questions create a quality life.  Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers;
4364.  I think it’s true that everyone is perfect (the way they are) in that everyone has the ability (in themselves) to succeed and be an ideal version of themselves, but that doesn’t mean that they’re there yet and that it won’t take self-improvement, hard work and determination to get there;
4365.  Apparently, “Gigi” Hadid was born on April 23rd;
4366.  The choices we make today lead to the opportunities we have tomorrow;
4367.  Multiple new studies of consumer buying habits and behavior find that spending on yourself alone is seldom as satisfying over the long-term as sharing with others, and better still, giving selflessly;
4368.  Elizabeth Dunn and Michael Norton, authors of “Happy Money: The Science of Smarter Spending,” conducted one experiment in which they handed out Starbucks gift cards on a university campus.  Some students were instructed to buy treats for themselves.  Another group was asked to pass their gift cards on.  A third group was asked to purchase something for a stranger and to spend time with that stranger at Starbucks.  When Dunn and Norton followed up, they found the happiest gift card recipients were those students who treated a stranger and then shared in the experience;
4369.  Perhaps more relevant to all of us, Dunn and Norton report that consistently using available funds to purchase experiences, such as trips, concerts and special meals that are shared with family or friends, always produces longer-lasting satisfaction than buying material goods for ourselves alone.  An added benefit of such social spending is that it often draws us closer to those with whom we share the special experiences;
4370.  People who are grateful are likely to be happier, hopeful and energetic, and they possess positive emotions more frequently.  Individuals also tend to be more spiritual or religious, forgiving, empathetic and helpful, while being less depressed, envious or neurotic;
4371.  One simple way to cultivate gratitude is to literally count your blessings.  Keep a journal and regularly record whatever you are grateful for that day.  Be specific.  Listing “my friends, my school, my dog” day after day means that “gratitude fatigue” has set in.  Writing “my dog licked my face when I was sad” keeps it fresher.  The real benefit comes in changing how you experience the world.  Look for things to be grateful for and you’ll start seeing them everywhere;
4372.  Living wealthy can be achieved not by doing anything differently, but by simply appreciating what we already have;
4373.  Happiness must be in the journey if there’s even a chance for it to be in the destination;
4374.  Live deliberately and make good decisions today to unleash your happiness;
4375.  A number of traits to consciously look for when creating new romantic relationships (in no particular order): 1.  Passion; 2.  Integrity; 3.  Happiness; 4.  Intelligence; 5.  Sexual assertiveness; 6.  Financial responsibility; and 7.  Commitment to personal growth.  “Nice guys” have a strong tendency to try to do everything “right.”  This list isn’t meant as a magic formula.  There are no perfect people and no perfect relationships.  But by consciously looking for the traits listed above in a prospective partner, nice guys can save themselves a lot of grief and improve their chances of actually finding what they are looking for;
4376.  Women consistently say that even though they may be initially drawn to a “nice guy’s” pleasing demeanor, over time they find it difficult to get excited about having sex with him.  Often the partner feels defective, but it is really not her fault.  There is just very little about the nice guy persona to flip a switch or arouse a prospective partner.  Once again, by doing the opposite of what works, nice guys prevent themselves from getting the sex they want;
4377.  There’s not much nightlife in Havre de Grace, Maryland;
4378.  (I can say) I’ve met (former University of Virginia basketball player) Jason Clark (at Jamie & Ty’s wedding);
4379.  Life is not linear.  Neither should the pathways of getting started;
4380.  As recently as the 1970s, a teenager had a number of options after graduating from high school: get a good-paying job right away, enlist in the military, find an apprenticeship in a trade or go to college.  A teenager today really has only two of those options still available; the military or college.  Fewer than 1 percent of Americans serve in the military, so most go to college right after high school.  Many of them are simply not ready for college or need a break from the intensity of school;
4381.  The greatest damage rejection causes is usually self-inflicted.  Indeed, our natural response to being dumped by a dating partner or getting picked last for a team is not just to lick our wounds but to become intensely self-critical.  We call ourselves names, lament our shortcomings and feel disgusted with ourselves.  In other words, just when our self-esteem is hurting most, we go and damage it even further.  Doing so is emotionally unhealthy and psychologically self-destructive yet every single one of us has done it at one time or another;
4382.  Most rejections, whether romantic, professional, and even social, are due to “fit” and circumstance.  Going through an exhaustive search of your own deficiencies in an effort to understand why it didn’t “work out” is not only unnecessarily, but misleading;
4383.  When your self-esteem takes a hit it’s important to remind yourself of what you have to offer (as opposed to listing your shortcomings).  The best way to boost feelings of self-worth after a rejection is to affirm aspects of yourself you know are valuable.  Make a list of five qualities you have that are important or meaningful – things that make you a good relationship prospect (e.g., you are supportive or emotionally available), a good friend (e.g., you are loyal or a good listener) or a good employee (e.g., you are responsible or have a strong work ethic).  Then choose one of them and write a quick paragraph or two (write, don’t just do it in your head) about why the quality matters to others and how you would express it in the relevant situation.  Applying emotional first aid in this way will boost your self-esteem, reduce your emotional pain and build your confidence going forward;
4384.  As social animals, we need to feel wanted and valued by the various social groups with which we are affiliated.  Rejection destabilizes our need to belong, leaving us feeling unsettled and socially untethered.  Therefore, we need to remind ourselves that we’re appreciated and loved so we can feel more connected and grounded.  If your work colleagues didn’t invite you to lunch, grab a drink with members of your softball team instead.  If your kid gets rejected by a friend, make a plan for them to meet a different friend instead and as soon as possible.  And when a first date doesn’t return your texts, call your grandparents and remind yourself that your voice alone brings joy to others;
4385.  Emotion is created by motion;
4386.  Who you surround yourself with, who you associate to is who you will become;
4387.  The point in which change happens is a decision.  Every change in your life that you want will come from something simple, a decision;
4388.  Nothing in life has any meaning except the meaning you give it;
4389.  You can’t control all events, but you can always control what things mean.  When you control the meaning of something, you control the key and the secret to life itself at least the quality of life you want;
4390.  Massive action can be a cure-all when you know what you’re after and you know why you want it;
4391.  The number one fear people have is failure.  The reason is that if they feel that they fail, they won’t be loved.  They’ll be rejected.  They’ll be hurt.  They’ll be judged.  So what they’re really afraid is losing love.  And they think this failure will lead to that rejection or loss of love;
4392.  The truth of the matter is you can’t fail unless you don’t try.  If you try something and it doesn’t work, you just learn from it and it’ll make you better the next time you go about it;
4393.  Know what you’re getting;
4394.  You need to have sensory acuity.  Sensory acuity is the idea that you want to become acutely sensitive to whether what you’re doing is working or not;
4395.  Sensory acuity is really the measure of a person’s intelligence.
4396.  If you’ve tried everything, you’d have what you want;
4397.  Whatever you perceive, will be true for you;
4398.  The first belief you must have to have lasting change is that change is a “must” and not a “should;”
4399.  Should never happens.  “Should” you do when it’s convenient.  Should is not consistent;
4400.  It must change and I must change it.  I can change it;

No comments:

Post a Comment