Three Awesome Articles From This Week

I’m gonna break from Free Write Friday this week and go a different route. I realized there’s a lot of content I share on social media that people don’t see because…well, they busy and sh*t. So some of the stuff I read during the week and normally share on Twitter or Facebook, I’ll also be sharing here so it doesn’t get lost in the sauce.

Over the past few days in particular, I’ve come some great articles that I wanted to highlight for you. If you’re about what I’m about — which I’m guessing you are if you’re reading this — then you’ll take something valuable from each of these. If you read them already, hey, it doesn’t hurt to skim through a second time. That’s how we retain the good stuff!

On Dealing With Disappointment by Afrobella

In this great read, Afrobella shares four lessons learned on how to deal with disappointment. This one in particular jumped out at me:

Lesson number TWO – don’t share what might happen. Share what HAS happened. So many times I see folks tweet about a phone call they got, or an e mail promising an amazing possiblity. As much as you may want to shout it from the rooftops… trust me when I tell you, it’s probably best to keep your cards close to your chest until the thing’s actually HAPPENING. I learned this the hard way in 2007, when I did my first interview for a major magazine. I told my family and friends back home and word spread and everyone was excited for me….and then that feature never ran. Being asked about that wasn’t fun when I returned. That taught me to protect my possibilities.

I’ve had offers for incredible opportunities come my way throughout my career. Like, crazy stuff. If I told you about some of them, you might not even believe me. I’m talking trips around the world, television appearances, up close access to celebrities, hosting events in amazing locations – crazy crazy stuff that I’ve wanted to shout from the mountain tops as soon as I got the word. I generally don’t talk about this stuff because it isn’t my style, but also, I’ve learned through painful experience that these things don’t always come to fruition. In my experience, it’s best to share these things with no more than five people — and four of those are in my immediate family. And when the awesome thing has happened and I can post pictures and write about what’s happened, I shout it from the rooftops then and bask in the glory.

I’m so guilty of this. Sometimes I take speaking stuff into existence too far and show cards when I don’t even got the best hand. Then I end up getting the “whatever happened with” questions..and they suck. They really do. Another work in progress for me moving forward. Anyway…

5 Ways to Stay Happy No Matter What Happens via Pick the Brain

Pick the Brain is one of my favorite sites for motivation and inspiration. I’m sure they’ll make this list again in the near future, as they have a bunch of writers contributing great articles. Here’s a snippet from this one that I found simple and on point:

1. Stop Chasing and Start Living

Many people feel they need something – more money, new clothes, better relationships – to make them happy. They think: “If only I had that other thing, I would be complete”. Instead of enjoying life, they chase a vague idea of happiness.

But even when you get everything that’s supposed to make you happy, life will have ups and downs. Today your car breaks down; tomorrow you pull your calf muscle. If you look hard enough, you’ll always find reasons to be miserable.

So stop chasing; start living. Wanting more is fine, but don’t forget to relax and enjoy life for what it is – in the present.

Making comparisons to other people threatens the state of your happiness. That’s when a lot of us start chasing and stop living. I’ll have to talk more about this in a future post.

How I Used My Day Job to Fund My Freedom Business via Illuminated Mind

I loved this read because with every day that goes by, I find myself thinking more and more about quitting my day job (a good gig all things considered) and focusing on my passions. This article puts things in perspective and adds a positive spin to working by day to prepare for what you love at night. I mean that in the cleanest way possible.

When I was working at my day job, I would often commiserate and complain about how much I loathed it and dreamed of the day when I could finally say goodbye to it for good. Even though I was doing work that I kind of enjoyed, there were many things that frustrated me immensely.

Just to name a few…

• I didn’t like being told what to do (I think all entrepreneurs have some amount of control issues).
• I didn’t like being constrained to a schedule not determined by me.
• I didn’t particularly enjoy working with some of the people at my job. (Okay, some of them I couldn’t stand.)

But guess what? Complaining about those things only made me more attached to what I didn’t want. The more I brooded about my predicament, the harder it was for me create what I really wanted: working for myself and being in control of how I spent my time.

There’s a lot more win in that article. Make sure you check it out if you’re tired of going to the plantation.

Hopefully you find these helpful in some way. Have a great weekend. I’ll catch you next week.