Life Tips for Fire Cats 1 - Reproducible Results

Now, you might think that I shouldn't really be writing life tips as my life is obviously a complete shambles. What you've got to remember however is that I've been through the blender a few times and I'm still rocking so why not share some of things that got me where I am in one piece.

My first tip might seem obvious but it wasn't that way for me for a long long time. My personality is such that I'm always seeking silver bullets and big bangs. I want my life to change overnight and I'm perfectly willing to expend colossal amounts of energy to make the happen.

I've written about this before but there are no over-night solutions. Your life is a long term problem and needs long term solutions. That evening you spend two hours pumping iron in the Gym until you almost pass out is all well and good but it's actually completely worthless if you don't keep it up over a period of a few months. The fact that you'll now associate exercise with almost dying is not going to help you stick to that regimen.

Take my writing for example, for the longest time I got things done piece meal. Very occasionally I'd hammer out a few hundred words while sitting on my couch before being distracted by some electronic device in my living room. So, while I might get a lot done now and again it was impossible to find a rhythm. It was very nearly a pointless endeavour.

Now I go down to star bucks and achieve repeatable results. I've found something that's reproducible and that's golden. I go down there with the knowledge that something will get written every time.

My other example is boot camp, I used to be a long time member of various gyms and the pattern I outlined above would always occur. I'd follow an initial burst of energy by falling off almost entirely and slumping into terrible patterns, eating and otherwise. Boot Camp is only twice a week and is right after work. I get reproducible results, even if I am terrible at it.

They're obviously my personal experiences but I think it's an important way to adapt your thinking if you are in any way like me. I naturally seek out things that I feel I can't do and try to prove myself, that's very important too but it must be hedged against predictable and reliable results from some other aspects in your life.

Like I say to my protégés at work. First get something that works, then we can focus purely on making it beautiful.