On a Living Spree
Look at your calendar now. This is your “before” picture—what do you see? If it’s not full of valuable experiences, don’t expect them to appear out of thin air. You have to put them there. That’s what living intentionally is all about.
For example, in our Life Experiences Survey, thousands of people said that skydiving was one of the top three things they wanted to do in their lifetime. What’s interesting is that skydiving isn’t really very hard to do. Is it scary? Hell yeah. But it’s available in most places and only requires a few hours and a couple hundred dollars. Anyone can manage that, even if it takes a year to save up the money. But most people have it on their mental “someday” list, so they never bother to actually find out what it takes or make a plan to do it.
My work focuses heavily on your life, but in the end, it’s about way more. The richer you are in experiences, the more you have to give to others. The more joy, love, and wisdom you cultivate for yourself, the more you spread in the world. You become valuable to others when you share your experiences with them, thus creating opportunities for them to build their own experiential wealth.
When you’re gone, the only thing that remains behind is what you’ve given to others. That’s how you can live forever: through the impact you have on other people. In the end, serving others is the most powerful way to feel your life is well spent.
Because visualization can have a real impact on how you think and feel, it’s so important to visualize the future you want—especially if it feels distant or hard to reach. When you imagine it in great detail, you bring it closer in a very real way.
That said, fantasies of your desires aren’t much use unless they lead to action. Visualizing what you want gives you focus and clarity, but it also gives your brain a dopamine hit. That moment of pleasure can make you complacent, as if the fantasy itself is enough. Obviously, it’s not.
So, don’t just imagine the end goal—visualize the process to get there as well, including all the obstacles and failures you might experience along the way. Imagine what will happen if you don’t take action toward your dream, as I did when I thought about taking that boring job after getting laid off. That “negative” visualization is just as important as imagining success. In fact, it’s been shown that thinking about failure or inaction makes people twice as likely to achieve their goals.
Hilton and Huff present an anecdotal approach to increasing the real value of your life.
The authors commence their debut nonfiction collaboration with some of the stark questions every reader has likely asked at one point or another: “When was the last time you had a once-in-a-lifetime experience? What about just a memorable one? What about something you did for the first time? Was it months ago? Years?” Hilton and Huff provide context for these questions by pointing out that most people have experienced life-long conditioning on the subject of wealth, taught that a large reserve of currency is the bedrock of happiness. The authors seek to overturn this view, urging their readers to imagine their experiences are treasures and to take a “treasure map” approach to life, interrogating each decision with questions like “does it make you grow?” or “does it bring you joy?” rather than “does it make you money?”
When it comes to learning, Mahatma Gandhi put it best:
“Live as if you’ll die tomorrow, learn as if you were to live forever.”
In other words, cultivate a sense of urgency to pursue your desires and dreams now.
But—and this is important—don’t let that stop you from investing in your long-term growth.
When we’re young, we’re constantly learning.
Somewhere along the line, though, that growth starts to wane.
- The job market continues to boom, with millions of workers still leaving their jobs each month despite talk of a slowing economy and recession. Also booming, according to recent Gallup polling, worker disengagement and unhappiness.
- This is not just an HR issue but a bottom line one as well: business units with engaged workers have 23% higher profit, while employees who are not engaged cost the world $7.8 trillion in lost productivity, equal to 11% of global GDP.
- Sixty percent of people reported being emotionally detached at work and 19% as being miserable. Only 33% reported feeling engaged — and that is even lower than 2020.
So What Can I Help With?
Today is the National Park Services Birthday! One of my life goals is to go to ALL of them - so far, I'm at 27/63 (43%)! Who wants to come for the rest?
NPS was created on August 35, 1916 to "preserve unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and values of the National Park System for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations".
It's one of my favorite things about this country. All entrance fees are waved today! Get outside :)
I hear the term more and more these days, but think sometimes it gets confused with normal work stress, so some managers might just brush it off as being not serious.
While stress is a normal part of work, burnout is a more severe and prolonged condition that can have serious implications for both the individual and the organization. Recognizing the signs of burnout and taking steps to address and prevent it is crucial for promoting employee well-being and maintaining a healthy work environment.
Burnout in the workplace is a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion that results from prolonged or chronic job-related stress. It typically occurs when employees feel overwhelmed, emotionally drained, and unable to meet the demands of their job. Burnout is often characterized by a sense of disillusionment, reduced effectiveness, and a lack of motivation.
Characteristics of workplace burnout include:
6/7 World Wonders. ✔️🌏🇮🇳
Secondly I am proud of how no matter what, we have always had fun doing it. It has DEFINITELY not always been easy but it has been full of moments with the most hysterical laughter and joy I could’ve possibly imagined. Selling millions of products is cool, but enjoying the ride is FAR more important.
So, during the pandemic UCLA started a program called UCLAxOPEN that provides free classes to anyone in the world who wants to take them. I loved this immediately. I always have believed talent is evenly distributed, OPPORTUNITY is not. Free/low cost ACCESS to education/knowledge can truly change the world by giving people a more level playing field. A common saying I think about is "what if the cure for cancer is within someone who cannot afford education?" I believe we’re seeing just the very beginning of a shift in education on a major level and I’m excited to be a tiny tiny part of magnifying personal growth opportunities in LA and beyond through this historic organization. #knowledgeispower