Tag: Leo Babauta

[Link]: Allowing Ourselves to Feel Joy

Leo Babauta has a suggestion I think we can all try.

Joy and wonder are two emotions we shut down, for so many reasons: it’s safe, it’s not allowed, we’re worried about ourselves, we’re stressed. But wouldn’t we like to live a life that has joy every day? That feels wonder at the incredibleness of this world and the richness of humanity?

 

 

[Link] Creating Impact When You’re Overwhelmed

When there are thousands of things to do, how can we make an impact? Any one of those things can feel meaningless, because they’ll barely move the needle. Sometimes the feeling is that we’re just spinning our wheels, or treading water, and not making any progress. And at the same time, so many things are coming at you.

Like nearly everyone else over the last few months, I’ve felt I’ve had more than my fair share of overwhelm.

I turn to reading in these moments. The Stoics or more contemporary philosophers (I doubt they will call themselves that, but whatever), they all offer help in their own way.

One of my regular reads is by Leo Babauta, whose writing I’ve long cherished, for its simplicity and yet profound applicability of ideas. These ideas aren’t new, for sure. But they’re timely. And that’s what matters. His recent post resonated strongly, reminding me of how to focus on what’s important.

 

[Link]: Stateless Protocols

Leo Babauta, again, continues with this incessantly great stream of ideas if you want to become effective at whatever it is you do. Extending the concept of stateless computing, he states 😀 in Stateless: 

you just do what’s in front of you right now, in the moment. If you’re creating art, you work with what’s in front of you on the canvas, in your heart and mind, and create the art right then. This doesn’t have to be about all art that came before it, and everything else you need to do. It’s just you and this canvas and paint, right now.

 

[Link]: How to do the think you’re avoiding

We often spend our days doing everything but the hard thing we don’t want to do. We’ll research something to death instead of actually just doing the thing. We’ll talk about it, read about it, buy all the equipment for it, but not actually do the thing. We’ll do our email, messages, small tasks, and check social media or the news — just real quick! — instead of doing the thing.

Why?

Leo Babauta has a few suggestions

The necessary art of subtraction [Article]

Leo Babuata asks what can you let go of in your present circumstances?

The tendency of our lives, businesses, art, is to keep adding: more furniture, clothes, gadgets, tasks, appointments, features to websites and apps, words to our writing.

I have a list of things I’d like to stop doing, and I keep adding to it 🙂

Self-discipline in 5 sentences [Article]

From Leo Babauta:

Have a powerful reason — when things get difficult, “because it sounds nice” or “to look good” aren’t going to cut it.

Start tiny, with a simple but unbreakable promise to yourself to do one small thing every single day.

Watch your urges, and learn not to act on childish whims.

Listen to your self-rationalizations, and don’t believe their lying ways.

Enjoy the habit, or you won’t stay with it longer than a week’s worth of sunrises.