Man In Progress

photo credit: normanack

Okay, so it’s been over three weeks since I issued myself the challenge of losing 42 pounds in 21 weeks,  and I’ve lost a grand total of zero pounds.  I’ve been drinking two slimfast shakes a day, as planned, but what the purveyors of this product didn’t count on is that between shakes, before shakes, after shakes, and during shakes I’d also be consuming chips and dip, sandwiches with extra mayo, pop, brownies, girl scout cookies (I swear those peanut butter ones have crack in them), and other building blocks of a well-balanced diet.

Couple this with the fact that only two days ago I started walking on the treadmill, and the lack of results that I’ve achieved should not be astonishing.  So now the pressure’s on because I’m not moving back my goal of dropping 42 pounds by July 13.  Honestly, though, this is pretty typical behavior for me.  I’ve always had a tendency to put things off until the last minute, which makes the early stages quite fun and laid back but makes the latter stages a scrambling, nerve-racking, self-berating, and exhausting (though occasionally thrilling) sprint to the finish.  Yet another aspect of my personality that needs some work.  Maybe this will finally teach me the lesson, because now I have to lose 42 pounds in less than 18 weeks.

I’ll continue to drink two shakes a day, but they just aren’t enough to keep away the hunger pangs during the day, so I’m going to make a bigger effort to work some fresh fruit and vegetables into the mix whenever I need a snack.  The salt and sugar is killing me.  That, combined with walking 30 minutes a day on the treadmill will hopefully yield better results.

photo credit: Clive Arundell

In order to allow for the continual expansion of your mind, you must learn to set aside your need to always be right. Show me someone who thinks they know everything and I’ll show you someone who really knows next to nothing. How can one learn if one believes that there is nothing to be learned? How can a mind make new discoveries if it is content to merely defend what is already known?

The Most Arrogant Person You Know

Think about that person at your workplace or in your extended family who is extremely arrogant and obnoxious. This shouldn’t be hard. Hint: It’s the one who interrupts a lot and is always telling you what to do with your life. Now, you might respect this person. You might even love them. But do they strike you as very intelligent? Would you characterize them as wise? Do you seek them out for advice?

I’ve found that in most cases the greater one’s ego, the greater one’s ignorance. Ego can be an important agent in personal productivity, but ego gone wild will prohibit you from discovering a more truthful and meaningful life. It is only when you allow some humility to guide you that you can acknowledge your shortcomings, which then can lead to self-improvement and a more enlightened perspective of yourself and the world at large.

There Is No Greater Tragedy Than The Stunted Mind

It’s always a bit depressing to me when I see people who refuse to grow mentally and personally. If at 40 you have exactly the same opinions and thought processes as when you were 20, then I pity you, because you are wasting your mind. You are satisfied with a worldview that, at best needs tweaking, and at worst needs a total overhaul. I can’t think of a worse existence than to consciously refuse to meet that more aware version of yourself. I think of what I was like when I was 20 and I can’t imagine spending my whole life in that mindset. I’ve tried to challenge myself to consider different viewpoints and ways of thinking, and it has made a greater difference than I can even articulate.

Approach Your Life Like A Scientist

Look at your life like a scientist looks at his research. Have strong opinions that are based in logic and direct observation and testing, but be willing to accept that occasionally your theories will be wrong. Just as the scientist must be willing to change his mind when new evidence presents itself, so too must you have the courage to face and accept new and sometimes groundbreaking evidence which flies in the face of what you once thought true about life.

If you refuse to do this, if you refuse to accept that you might occasionally be wrong, you’re only cheating yourself in the long run. You’re like the scientists of centuries gone who refused to believe that the earth was round because it didn’t fit neatly into the worldview that they had spent a lifetime constructing for themselves. In the end the world left them behind, and now we amuse ourselves with their foolishness.

Stop wasting so much time defending your old ideas that everyone and their brother can now see are flawed, and instead get on with the work of incorporating new information into your life. You’ll gain a more fulfilling and stimulating existence, and the people closest to you will value your opinion more. The honest mind is more respected than the stubborn mind.

photo credit: radiospike photography

Today I voted to make Obama the Democratic nominee.  I’ve been watching this race closely for months, and I’m confident that he is better suited to tackle the job than either Clinton or McCain.  None of them is my “perfect candidate”, but I like the way he’s handled himself over the last few weeks and months.  He’s run a powerful, clean campaign, while Hillary’s has resembled chaos and indecision more than anything.  To me it’s a scathing indictment of her inability to lead, organize, or inspire.  Now if only we could get the rest of Cincinnati and Ohio to do the same!