For the month of May, I decided to commit to publishing a blog post every day. The stipulation was that if I did not publish a post, I would not eat until I did. Today is the last day of my successful endeavor. I was able to hold true to my word for the entire month. There were definitely hours of hunger where procrastination seemed like the only thing that was on my plate. But each day the publish button got pressed before the food went in. Below are some reflections on the experiment and things to consider moving forward.
Stakes matter! – There were definitely times during the month that I would not have published a post under normal circumstances. In the past, I’ve averaged about five posts per month. I would only post when I felt “inspired”. Even though I forced myself to go back to the keyboard every day, there was always something there to put out because there had to be.
Rules need to fit the actual outcome you want – For this experiment, I wanted to get my production up for sure. The rules definitely did that but… If I were to set up rules for posting a certain level of quality more often, I’d amend the rules in order to focus more on quality rather than quantity. Such as I would require myself to write a blog post every day before eating but the publishing would be done more sparsely. That way there is more of an editing process.
What’s your word worth? – Holding one’s self accountable is difficult. Some people have trouble keeping their word when it is only them who knows. They need an accountability partner or some other form of public pressure. The key is to know who you are rather than assuming that what works for others will work for you. I make deals like this with myself often, the other running one is about my consumption of iced tea. If you need that extra push of being accountable to others, don’t worry about it. The tools that work in the real world are the ones that matter, not the ones that work in our imagination.
Going the distance – As with any other endeavor, it’s best to sign up for a game that you have a marginal chance of winning. As a first time experiment, a year would have been an overwhelming amount of time. I’m not even sure that I would have made it a month if the length was a year. It would have been too much too soon. Now that I know that I can make a month, if it fit in with my life goals, setting a six month challenge for myself would be reasonable. There’s no reason to set impossible goals for yourself just to impress people. Your results are more important than your intentions.
Results – By writing every day, I was able to beat my average reads for the past year by 400% and the last day of May is not quite over yet. Now I recognize that I raised my posting by 600% but I can definitely say that there was a positive impact. My international numbers went up in certain areas. I also had more “LIKE” and subscribes in the past month than any prior. Also the number of old posts that were viewed by new readers was impressive. So overall, I am chalking this experience up as a success. I’m going to take portions of it and continue using them to improve my blog output. However next month, I think I’m going to move my focus to my exercise routine and see what improvement I can make there.
Thanks for following!
Pete
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In the 1970’s Philippe Petit walked a high wire strung between the Twin Towers in New York City. It was an amazing feat that was a result of a slow but steady progression of skill and daring over years. The film “Man On Wire” is a great documentary about the planning and execution of his walk. A slight warning that if you are afraid of heights, you may feel uneasy. Even though you are safe from any imminent danger, you may feel dizzy or tingly based on the images. I cannot imagine how Philippe Petit felt during the walk, over one thousand feet in the air without a net! Sure, he had years of experience and successful walks but the scale of this endeavor dwarfed everything else. It is easy to look at Philippe and say that he is special, talented or even crazy. Closer to the truth is probably that he was passionate about pursuing something to an extreme level. The use of a net negates the entire reason that he was walking in the first place. Under no circumstances and am I suggesting that a tight rope walk from dizzying height should be be in anyone’s future (I’m one of those people who tingles just seeing the photos). I am suggesting that the intersection of passion and stakes is a place of power. It’s someplace that we need to become more comfortable going to.
I was raised in the Catholic faith but have some major misgivings about the history and present of the religion. Regardless of those feelings there are certain things that stick out from my childhood experiences of religion. One phrase that always stuck out for some reason was part of the act of contrition. When repenting for sins, the prayer asked for forgiveness “for what I have done and what I have left undone.” The second part is what always hit me. That I was not only responsible for seeking forgiveness for the actions that I had committed but also the ones that I had omitted as well.
Today my son’s game had an extremely good referee group. The center referee and his two linesmen called the game very well. Despite the fact that they did a great job and got the majority of the calls right (even the ones that went against my son’s team), there were still complaints from parents. Which made me wonder if people really have any idea what makes for a good referee or if they just want calls to go in their team’s favor? Here are some thoughts to consider.
I am your new coach. That’s a role that I take very seriously. It’s a mixture of teacher, mentor, psychologist, personal trainer, confidant and many other jobs that coalesce into a position of great possible influence. The word possible is in there because people are put into roles like this every day but just because someone leads does not mean that anyone will follow. A position of power does not make someone a leader. Leaders must be willing to go first. My hope is that I am able to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that I am.
You are the ancestor of survivors! Cavemen and women who braved the bitter cold, extreme heat and dangerous predators just to continue the species. Their successors improved hunting and developed farming in order to make survival more probable. Eventually they were succeeded by people who developed technological advances that gave us every advantage and the ability to bend many of the laws of nature to our will. This is your lineage!
This is your one and only opportunity at TODAY! Yes tomorrow is right around the corner but there is no guarantee that the same situations, circumstances or people will be available. Whether you are truly in a once in a lifetime situation or simply building the inertia that will be necessary to get you over the mountain that your climbing; TODAY CANNOT BE DISCOUNTED! So give it the attention and forethought that an opportunity like this deserves. If you treat today like every other day, then that is exactly what it will be. However if you treat it like the unique opportunity that it is, you’re more likely squeeze all of the juice out of it. So ask yourself the following questions:
In the modern world, there is a certain leaning toward being self-centered. The pervasiveness of selfies in the social media world sends the message, “Look at me, I’m special.” While I truly feel it is important for people to believe in themselves, things that go too far to one extreme tend to become their opposite. Too much of a lifesaving drug becomes poison. Too much focus on weight loss becomes anorexia. Too much focus on the self becomes narcissism. The key to balance is a counterweight. Brian McBride seemed to have that balance figured out perfectly.
Huryk Unlimited 