Take on a 30-day challenge!

Ordinary things practiced consistently produce extraordinary results

Do you know that feeling of disappointment and guilt that comes from setting a goal and giving up on it after a couple of days or weeks? When you wanted to change but after some time you relapsed and failed? Sustaining motivation for a long-term goal is hard to achieve, and yet the best goals can usually only be accomplished in a few months or even years. 

However, instead of focusing on your final goal, focus on creating a sustainable habit that will lead and help you to achieve your goal. Focus on the process, focus on everyday action and develop new habits. 30-day challenge is great to get you into the habit of everyday practice. Ordinary things practiced consistently produce extraordinary results. So just keep doing them!

30-day challenge - how to do it

1. Set your task for the next 30 days. Think of something you want to do. 
2. Nothing too big or too complicated: start simple and take baby steps. Be specific. Know exactly what you want to do everyday during this challenge.
3. Make it a positive. If you want to change a negative habit (quit an addiction), then replace it with a positive action like e.g. “running for stress relief” etc. Otherwise you would be focusing on a negative. If you were about 'to do' not drinking and not smoking, then certainly drinking and smoking would be on your mind. To avoid this focus on a positive action. Formulate your task in a positive, affirmative way. This will help you to neutralise your urge. To put is simply, it is much easier to avoid doing something by doing something else. Be ready to put your new positive habit in action in situations, times and places you used to do otherwise. Plan how you are going to beat your urges. Formulate your task in a positive way.
4. Tell yourself you are going to do this for the next 30 days – without a fail. Commit yourself completely. No might, no should, no trying. Take it serious. Practice until you succeed. If you fail, do not beat yourself. Start a new 30-day challenge. Practice until you succeed.
5. Tell your friends and colleagues – this positive public pressure will be motivating. You can set up a reward after completing successfully every seven days’ period within first 30 days. Make sure these are good, motivating rewards, helping you to stay on the track.
6. Mark your progress. Use a log, diary or a chart to measure your success.
7. Always stay positive and remember – you can do this! 

You may use this method to develop a new habit and change your life. You can get healthier, more successful, you may learn foreign language, become a writer, save money, quit addiction, become more productive, and develop a new hobby. 

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Some ideas for 30-day challenge:

• Have a conversation with a stranger
• Ask somebody new for a date (unless your success ratio is below 3% you will get at least one date and maybe you will meet your future spouse)
• If you are in a relationship offer your partner a massage everyday (it will be 30) or agree with your partner to alternate (so each of you will get 15)
• Meditate
• Read something on a subject you are interested in
• Read a book for 30 minutes
• Take a long walk
• Exercise (or go to the gym)
• Write a page of your novel, blog, diary, or write a poem
• Take a picture (and post it on the Internet)
• Learn a new word everyday
• Juggle for 15 minutes
• Draw or paint something
• Go 30 days without TV (you need to come out with a set of positive tasks to fill your time)
• Eat healthy food everyday – including fresh fruits and vegetables (give up junk food)
• Learn a language (of course 30 days will be not enough to master a foreign language)
• Spend 30 minutes on learning something new
• Go out to different places everyday and do something fun
• Get up early
• Do something completely new (and write about it).
• You may also prepare a special program for yourself with different tasks for every day.

I assume you are about to start your 30-day challenge now and you will carry on for at least 30 days. You may take different approaches – depending what you want to do or what you want to achieve. 30-day challenge may be aimed at things like: health, fitness, relationships, your personal and professional life, creativity, developing a new hobby, starting doing something completely new, appreciating life more, helping your community, etc. 30-day challenge technique is perfect to improve and to develop a new habit. Ordinary things practiced consistently produce extraordinary results. Just keep doing it and enjoy the process.

Of course, after accomplishing your 30-day challenge you are free to go back to your old habits. Actually, this is a refreshing thought – you have to keep doing something just for 30 days and then you can quit. Keep clean your place for 30 days, and then you can slack off. Read for an hour a day for 30 days, and then go back to watching TV if you want. It is easier to keep going if you know that all you have to do is to accomplish your 30 days. By the way, this idea may help you to stay clean. Chances are that after 30 days you will feel strong enough to take another 30 days of challenge!

You can choose to do a simple activity, or you can choose a set of different tasks. You can create a program of activities – each different for each day. Remember to be specific. If this is reading or writing decide how long or how many pages you are going to read or write every day.

Ordinary things practiced consistently produce extraordinary results
Make them happen 

After 30 how you can not do 31 and set a new personal record?

 
Oh, and by the way, shower/bath/shave everyday.

 I know YOU don’t need this one, so please pass it along to someone who does.

 

MG

“Yes Man” and other ideas

 

 

Have you seen “Yes Man” (2008) comedy movie? The main character (starring Jim Carrey) promises to stop being a "No Man" and vows to answer "Yes!" to every opportunity, request or invitation that presents itself. This, as you may correctly expect, leads to many hilarious gags. The film is loosely based on a true story and 2005 book titled “Yes Man” written by British humorist Danny Wallace, who inspired by a phrase he had heard in a bus decides to take it as a challenge and say "yes" to everything for a year.  

Saying “yes” to everything was definitely funny in the movie but it may be quite dangerous in real life if people you bump into tend to be drug dealers and loan sharks. Instead of being compliant with everything why don’t to choose a proper challenge?  

Certain people took the idea to extreme and made it some sort of art and a way of life.  For example experimental journalist A.J. Jacobs spent a year trying to follow all the rules and guidelines he could find in the Bible and even wrote a book about it, titled: “The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to follow the Bible as Literally as Possible”. And I’m telling you, Paramount Picture is going to make a movie out of this, starring Brad Pitt, as it has been announced. 

In 2005 Jacobs outsourced his life – he hired personal assistants from India to live his life and doing things like answering his e-mails, reading his children good-night stories, and arguing with his wife! His other project involved a month of Radical Honesty (it was too difficult to go on for a year with that). An article he wrote about was titled: “I Think You’re Fat” –  and you get the idea. 

Jacobs spent also a year on reading Encyclopedia Britannica from A to Z – all 32 volumes and all four million words of it. He wrote about this experience in a book titled: “The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World”. It was said about that book: "The Know-It-All is a terrific book. It's a lot shorter than the encyclopedia, and funnier, and you'll remember more of it. Plus, if it falls off the shelf onto your head, you'll live."

And what would you say about a blogger, entrepreneur and achievement guru Timothy Ferris? Tim holds Guinness Book World Records’ record for the most consecutive tango spins in one minute; he became a national champion of Chinese kickboxing; within just one week he learned and performed Yabusame – Japanese art of horseback archery. Watch it in his show “Trial By Fire” which was aired on the History Channel in 2008; you may find it on the Internet. Tim Ferris is the author of “The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich”.  

MG

Influencing organisational culture through communication

Narrative trap

People and organisations often get trapped in their own narrative without realising it. It is also possible to be trapped by or to be subdued by others’ narrative. For example, when a team resist a new idea by claiming there has been too much work already, even if potentially it could lead to a better clarity and an improvement. That’s why it is doubtful that team will pursue some moves against their own interest and that’s why we need managers.

Organisational Culture

There is usually some kind of gap between culture declared and factual culture (or rather values). Slogans may be dangerous for an open and healthy culture, especially if there is a significant discrepancy. A slogan: ‘our team is the best and work to the best of their abilities’ may look well in a leaflet and even generally true but if abused may be resisted as propaganda, or may become a part of ritual language. It may be also used in an ideological manner and it may effectively be a communication and an improvement stopper.

Procedural tools

Something like over 90% mistakes and problems at work are caused by a bad organisation but naturally, managers have tendency to blame workers if something goes wrong.

Procedures are not just to meet existing polices and requirements. They can be used simply to focus staff’s attention, to form a new habit, or to achieve control or additional data. Procedures standardise work. They may also have some negative effects, if abused.  

Supporting information flow and proactivity through delegating tasks

Let’s suppose you have a team of workers. Some of them are more proactive, with more acute sense of duty, so they do not shy away from doing something on their own initiative. Sometimes they will notice something which was caused or unfinished by other; less proactive (or maybe just busy with other tasks) workers. They will inform you about a problem and they will raise issues. How will you delegate such a task? What is likely to happen if you keep delegating problems only to those who inform you? Well, those active and caring people may rethink their attitude. They may start to think it is not faire; they may dislike finishing after others, they may feel being punished for their proactivity. In effect information flow and proactive organisational culture may be affected, there will be more faults, more complains, etc. Other workers may even benefit from their negligence. It may promote a “don’t see don’t tell” approach.

MG

Miria is alive

I have an impression the storyline of manga “Claymore” went down in terms of quality in recent times. With a temporary dropout of the original hero, Clare, Norihiro Yagi created masses of new warriors and number ones we have never heard about. It still plays out somehow but obviously the author does not want to conclude the story yet. There have been some interesting developments and Miria survived after all but I am worried about possible ‘bleachisation’ of the story – when nobody dies and new superpowers pop out out of nowhere. Well, I may not know what I am talking about – I  don’t  really read (or watch) “Bleach”. Anyway, Miria is alive, Raki turned out to be a super hero and it seems main warriors don't die anymore. 

MG

How Yagi killed my favourite Claymores

Norihiro Yagi, the creator of the Claymore world, is known for killing off Claymore warriors. Sometimes it happens out of the blue – even to some awesome characters.  His latest victim was Miria aka Phantom Miria. Considering the fact she was regarded as a very intelligent and smart leader with a strong drive to topple the Organisation - in every aspect an awesome character (therefore her widespread popularity among Claymore fans) it is difficult to understand the latest and out of her character actions. After arriving to Rabona and defeating former number 2 Aghata, she divided her forces sending most of the Ghosts to their personal journeys. Finally she cut loyal to her Tabitha and attacked the Organisation all by herself. Although after deaths of Alicia and Beth she was not too far from succeeding in bringing the Organisation down, finally she lost by being confused and deceived by youki manipulation and memories of Hilda. Her almost certain death comes - although nothing can be certain with Yagi - as a rather wimpy kind of death, not enough epic for such a great character as Miria. Obviously Yagi tried to explore guilt, friendship and other emotions making Miria almost happy while dying.

Jean’s death was similar in that respect; it was in fact a sacrifice. Of course, she was mortally wounded but nevertheless her sacrifice saved Clare and helped her come back to normal. No surprise Clare is very sensitive about Jean.

Another likeable Claymore who died (among others) during the Northern Campaign was Flora. Beautiful, with her graceful personality and swordplay mastery, Flora had a great story potential and her sudden death was a real shock to many. Why she died? Maybe the ‘shock effect’ was not the only issue, maybe Yagi didn’t want to have another strong character too close to Miria. Or maybe she and her Windcutter technique were needed as another heritage for Clare? Yes, that’s probably the case.

Similarly was with Irene's death. Irene died (again almost certainly – and again nothing can be certain with Yagi) shortly after teaching Clare Quick Sword and offering Clare her arm (an interesting gift indeed). Irene’s arm and Quick Sword saved Clare’s ass many times.

And at last but not least, the greatest warrior of all times Teresa of the Faint Smile. Well, we can’t be really upset about Teresa’s death because her death was the foundation stone of the whole story, can we? But many Teresa’s worshippers still believe Yagi wil resurrect her somehow. Who knows, maybe he will.

“Machete” 2010

 

Rated A for Awesomeness in my notes, “Machete” makes a brilliant and highly watchable entertainment. Mark my words - this masterpiece will be remembered. Man, just take a look at these posters! And here straight away you may get confused. Steven Segal and Robert De Niro together? Jessica Alba and Michelle Rodriquez with Danny Trejo as the heroic and romantic lead Machete who gets all the women? Yes, it is hilarious. This movie is a good joke, yet some Americans don’t get it. The politically sensitive theme of Mexican immigration with illegals portrayed as good guys and Americans being bad must be the reason for such confusion. At the end of the day however, “Machete” makes safely and entirely meaningless entertainment full of purposefully over the top violence and gore. Anyone trying to take this movie seriously as a political statement or even as a serious action movie for that matter must have been depleted from sense of humour. The directors - Robert Rodriguez and Ethan Maniquis, have done a great job with total lack of  political correctness - not just about politics or religion - and so did the actors. It looks like they all had a lot of fun making this movie. Maybe ‘Machete don’t text’ but Danny Trejo as ex-federale chick magnet seeking for revenge with his stern face and ‘you fucked with the wrong Mexican’ attitude is frigging awesome.  Michelle Rodriguez as revolutionary Shé (another joke if you think Che Guevara) is incredibly hot and tough with her bra being a gun holster. Hot chick Jessica Alba plays a persistant U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who knows what the law says but does what is right. Oh, and by the way,  she practices martial arts by playing video games. Robert DeNiro as senator John McLaughlin (yes seriously) finds pleasure with videotaping himself during safari-like hunting down Mexicans crossing illegally the border. Cheech Marin as a rouge Padre is better with guns than with prayers. The scenes and scenery in the church belong to the best including lacking of any taste cross made from CCTV monitors. Lindsay Lohan's role as a slutty drug addict is a joke in itself. Then there is Steven Seagal as a powerful drug lord and Machete's main opponent in machete vs samurai sword duel. Now put all the above togheter and add a lot more - you gona to love this movie or you gonna to hate it. Violence, gore and nudity but surprisingly enough all of that feels good and is actually quite hilarious. It is the best movie of the seson and much better than "The Expendables" so I recommend to watch it. And I haven't even used the word "Mexploitaiton" in this review. Well, until now.