Author Archives: Steven

One Hundred Ways to Change Your Life

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Make big plans.  Take big risks.  Question the status quo.  Understand that safety is an illusion.  Push beyond what you think you’re capable of.  Work hard.  Persevere.    Move with a sense of urgency.  Be purposeful in your actions.  Connect with people who can help you.  Build a support network.  Never give up.  Sacrifice.  Ignore trivial bullshit.  Ignore drama.  Learn to say no.  Say yes more often.  Put yourself in uncomfortable situations.  Challenge yourself.  Don’t be afraid to fail.  Persist.  Breathe.  Be grateful for life and everything you have.  Don’t worry about what’s missing.  Appreciate what is.

If you hate something, change it.  If it’s broken, fix it.  If it’s unnecessary, get rid of it.  Find what’s holding you back and remove it from your life.  Find opportunities to make your life meaningful.  Volunteer.  Donate blood.  Reach out to a friend and repair wounded relationships.  Forgive someone.  Give money to the homeless without concern of them using it to buy booze.  Hug someone.  Smile at a stranger.  Hold open the door for a pretty girl.  Tell your son that you love him, even if he wrinkles his nose at you.

Take a class for the sake of learning.  Struggle through a challenging book.  Learn something new each day.  Teach someone how to do something.  Buy lunch for the next person in line.  Tell them to Pay it Forward.  Take off your shoes and walk through the grass.  Smell the air.  Watch a squirrel collect nuts.  Fly a kite.  Take a walk.  Spend a few moments listening to nothing.  Turn off your cell phone.  Buy a plane ticket to a place you’ve never heard of.  Love.  Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today.

Bake cookies.  Take a bubble bath in the dark.  Relax.  Enjoy the moment.  Lose track of time.  Forget about tomorrow.  Stop living in the past.  Accept things as they are.  Give up control.  Commit to something.  Back out of something else.  Make a promise.  Tell someone a secret but don’t expect them to keep it.  Share a painful story with someone you love.  Don’t tell lies.  Always be honest.  Live life by your own standards of success.  Follow your morals.  Do what you think is right.  Laugh.

Dress sexy for your man.  Be her knight in shining armor.  Light candles.  Cook a meal together.  Snuggle.  Watch a lame 80’s movie.  Kiss passionately.  Write love letters to each other.  Remind yourself why you fell in love in the first place.  Tickle each other’s feet.  Give her a massage.

Get healthy.  Try yoga.  Sign up to participate in a 5k.  Participate!  Stop drinking soda.  Become a Vegan.  Do a hundred push-ups.  Exercise for half an hour each day.  Dance.  Listen to the birds chirping.  Feel the warmth of the sun on your face.  Pet a stranger’s dog.  Live!

The possibilities of your life are limited by your own imagination.  Dream big, achieve big.  Think small and flounder in mediocrity.

How to Give Your Life Meaning

26 October 2010

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A few weeks ago I wrote an article called Kim Kardashian’s Ass because I was frustrated with the lack of concern in our society for anything that doesn’t have boobs or isn’t Justin Bieber.  Now “Kim Kardashian Ass” has become the top Google Search people are using to find my blog.  I hope they read the article.

When I look at the people around me, I see, in Thoreau’s words, “a mass of men lead[ing] lives of quiet desperation,” each of us concerned exclusively on our own prerogatives.  We’re absorbed in a life of inflated importance; a life in which we’re the only person that matters.  We never stop to question the way things are, what we’re doing or how our actions might affect someone else or future generations.  “Fuck everyone else.”

I wonder what my generation is going to be remembered for.  What will our legacy be?

We must overcome the notion that we must be regular.  It robs you of the chance to be extraordinary and leads you to the mediocre. ~ Uta Hagen

Our lives revolve around keeping our 500 Facebook friends in the loop with our clever status updates: “Hey baby. Wanna come over to MySpace and Twitter my Yahoo ’til I Google all over your Facebook?”   We’ve got better things to worry about than our soldiers on the other side of the planet who are dying in the dirt for cheap oil.  More important things like  The Biggest Loser and Dog the Bounty Hunter.  You know…reality.

If you’re searching for a way to bring meaning to your life, find ways of giving yourself to others.  Until you share your energy with the rest of the world, your existence is irrelevant and of little consequence to anyone else.  You must become part of something bigger than yourself; something that benefits other people, other places and future generations.

Wouldn’t you rather your life be an inspiration which motivates people to do something great with their own lives than to exist for no other reason than your own benefit?

…the World Needs You!

18 October 2010

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Often I’ll hear someone talking about how they wish they could solve the many problems in this world.  Their concerns sound genuine and heartfelt; “It’s so terrible what’s happening in Africa!  Those poor children, I wish there was something I could do.”

They wish there was something they could do, but…

…the money, the time, my family…job, house, school.  It isn’t our fault we can’t save the world…just look at our list of responsibilities!  They’re the reason!!!   We scroll through the archive in our mind, finding countless reasons why we can’t, each a reminder that we have other priorities and obligations that need to be met.  We convince ourselves that it just isn’t possible to escape the commitments.  It doesn’t take long before we’re using our excuses as a waiver of liability. 

Even though we want to help, somehow we’re comforted in knowing that we can’t.  It was a nice thought, anyway.

Have you ever thought to ask yourself whether or not that long list of “responsibilities” isn’t really just a fairy tale?  A bunch of lies that you tell yourself so you’ll never need to deviate from the routine or step outside your comfort zone?  Let me ask you this: if you’re afraid to expand your horizons and challenge yourself to move beyond your comfort zone, are you really living…or simply existing?

When I hear people trying to justify why they can’t [whatever], I think about the people who can, who are and who did.  What if Martin Luther King, Jr had said “I have a dream, but…”, or if Gandhi never was the change he wished to see in the world?  What if all the people who ever changed the world, hadn’t?

All around us are everyday people doing extraordinary things.  Maybe you’ve heard of Albert Lexie, or maybe you haven’t.  He earns $10 an hour shining shoes.  Since 1982, Albert has donated all of his tip money to the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburg…more than $150,000.  Albert is only one example of countless people across the world whose actions could inspire a nation.  Each day people are being the change.  They, too, have a dream…

How would your life change if you were to quit making excuses?

Instead of just wishing there was something you could do to help the people of the world, without any excuses holding you back you are free to dig wells in Africa so the people can have access to clean drinking water.  If Africa isn’t your thing, you can volunteer at a soup kitchen in your own city and help feed the hungry.  Get involved!  Don’t waste another moment wishing you could help.

It’s time to quit making excuses, not only for yourself but for the world.  We need you!