I’ve been realizing that living in a digital age ran by social media has correlated with a decline of independent thought. We consistently quote songs and excerpt literature that has either moved us or interpreted a feeling we couldn’t express ourselves. In turn, its perceived as justified only because its taken from a source that is either popular, or at least accessible, to the general public to be validated credible. Ralph Waldo Emerson, one of my favorite writers, said, “I hate quotations. Tell me what you know.” I’m not boycotting being inspired by others, but more so- Rather than fit our lives into someone else’s recycled perceptions – “Oh wow those words of (insert quote here) really represent me ,” Why not challenge ourselves to–be–the inspiration that represents ourselves? Can we connect with each other through our own creative, independent thought? I feel we all have ideas that are just as inspiring, moving, and -real- as that of anyone else, regardless of how many people hear it. You just have to take the step forward and let it be heard. So I’ve decided to start a collection of my own “isms,” the things I’ve come to learn, live, and stand by throughout the years.
motivation
All posts tagged motivation
I’ve been realizing that living in a digital age ran by social media has correlated with a decline of independent thought. We consistently quote songs and excerpt literature that has either moved us or interpreted a feeling we couldn’t express ourselves. In turn, its perceived as justified only because its taken from a source that is either popular, or at least accessible, to the general public to be validated credible. Ralph Waldo Emerson, one of my favorite writers, said, “I hate quotations. Tell me what you know.” I’m not boycotting being inspired by others, but more so- Rather than fit our lives into someone else’s recycled perceptions – “Oh wow those words of (insert quote here) really represent me ,” Why not challenge ourselves to–be–the inspiration that represents ourselves? Can we connect with each other through our own creative, independent thought? I feel we all have ideas that are just as inspiring, moving, and -real- as that of anyone else, regardless of how many people hear it. You just have to take the step forward and let it be heard. So I’ve decided to start a collection of my own “isms,” the things I’ve come to learn, live, and stand by throughout the years.
We all have ideas. It may be an idea to improve the world around you or an idea to improve your own well being. Ideas are the inspiration which occurs when you’re engaged with life and you take the time to process what goes on around you and apply it to your own ideals and ways of being. “Aha!” moments which create visions of how life could be if we only acted on our urge to create change and possibly do something better. Be someone better. Create something greater.
Next time you have an idea, write it down. Whether it’s an idea for a work of art… an idea to improve something at work… an idea to be more healthy… an idea to connect with an old friend…an idea to start something you’ve never done before… Make it real. Make a commitment to it. Own it. It’s yours. Share it with someone so they can give you feedback through another perspective and hold you accountable for not letting this great piece of you go to waste. Plant the seed, make it grow, watch it evolve. Above all, don’t put it on the back burner and justify all the reasons why you shouldn’t do it which can only add another item to the long list of “What If?”s in your life. Don’t set yourself up with a self-fulfilling prophecy that you don’t have time, might fail or that you’re incapable. Stop playing small. We all have the power to create the change we want to see in the world around us or within ourselves and once we own up to that and take responsibility for the effect of our actions or even lack of action, we will have more appreciation for our ideas and have the audacity to share them with the world. For an amazing and life-changing idea without effort and execution is only time wasted hopelessly daydreaming.
For the time being, until i can figure out a way to categorize and collect these “random isms,” they will be categorized under “What I know”
It’s 2:30 in the morning and I’m walking to my car after a nice birthday celebration and this is what I come back to. The front passenger side window smashed and shards of glass covering the inside of my car. But not just my car, the whole row of cars down the block.
And it’s not even my car. It’s a rental. My truck is sitting in a shop after being in an accident (one out of my own control) just a few days before. The same truck that was also broken into last fall. Talk about bad luck. Maybe someone is hinting to me the benefits of public transportation.
But here’s what’s most interesting about this incident; The very reason I’ve taken the time to write about it. You see, I haven’t had a lot of free time lately to do any personal writing due to consistent news coverage with the NATO summit and everything else going on in my life, but sometimes you have to take a moment to reflect on the certain things you experience within yourself when life throws you curveballs and you see for whatever reason you adjust, adapt, and change. Simply put:
My reaction last year the first time this happened:
“What the $*(@#(&$))#*@! “
As I cursed up a storm at the top of my lungs, blood boiling, looking to get back at whoever smashed my window, stole my ipod, and would then force me to pay for the broken window. I even irrationally got into a confrontation with some guy in the middle of the street that told me to “quiet down.”
But…my reaction this time around:
“Well, what are you going to do? At least its not too cold out.”
I just couldn’t help but laugh at the situation. Maybe it was the de ja vu that made me recall how angry I was last year, and realizing that negativity doesn’t provide progress. I don’t know, but something just clicked. For whatever reason, regardless of how life changes–and I could definitely say life is very much different than that of last year– it doesn’t excuse you from the inevitable bullshit you come face to face with. Even if, as in my case, when it’s the same exact identical bullshit, a new chapter in your life no longer presents the same exact person.
Maybe there’s nothing too profound about getting your window broken and I’m thinking too deep on the subject. But I kind of compare it to the struggles we face in many aspects of our everyday lives, right? We get our windows–our hearts–our confidence–our personal pride– broken all the time. Not only in love and romantic relationships, but in our personal goals for accomplishment and everything else in between.
But it’s not about the material things in your life that can be broken or stolen from you. Everything can be replaced. It’s not about how much everything costs, or trying to do something about the people in this world who thrive upon looking out for their own best interests and add misfortune into the lives of others. It’s about appreciating the things no one can break or take from your posession. No matter how many times someone or some type of bad luck comes into your life and starts smashing up everything.
It’s about sticking to your original plans and sweeping the glass off the seat for your passenger and welcoming the breeze as you can’t do anything but smile and eventually forget why the window is down in the first place, because no one should ever stop you from enjoying yourself and doing what you want to do with who you want to be with. It’s about sharing old traditions with new friends of your late night eating spots, laughing while sharing stories between one another, because nothing and no one should stop you from appreciating the value in the relationships you make with others. It’s about the 5 a.m. drive home with one of your closest friends as the sun rises and you both joke that you’ve both seen the same sunrise together plenty of times before –(you’re just missing a window this time)– because one bad incident is overshadowed by the plenty of great memories you’ve had along the way.
We, as people, will experience a lot of broken windows in the inevitable ups and downs of life. Death, loss, stress, heartbreak… literally getting your window broken… but sometimes you just have to realize you can’t do anything about what you can’t control nor feel the need to understand the reasons for the unexplainable actions of others. I think the greater satisfaction and lessons learned in the end will be found when you were able to maintain positivity and appreciate the worth of what really matters. It’s not about the car. It’s the people in the car with you, the places you’ve been and the destinations you’re heading.
So clean up the glass and fix the window already. We got places to be.
You can also view the published version of this article (note: more pictures shown in this post)
The right person at the right time
Life lessons in leadership from City Year Chicago.
It’s 7:15 a.m. and the sun is rising on Kelvyn Park High School in Chicago’s Hermosa community. The hallways are quiet and empty, but in room 132 the City Year team is meeting for their morning-ritual readiness check. All 10 members standing in a circle, they inspect their uniforms—khaki pants with red and white tops displaying their City Year patch—and end by reciting the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
“A heart full of grace, my mind up to pace,” they all said in unison. “And a soul generated by love.”
This is the motto of City Year, a nation-wide nonprofit organization immersing highly trained individuals ranging from 17 to 24-years-old within high-need public schools in order to combat the nation’s present drop out crisis where over 1 million students drop out of school every year. The program focuses on three areas: attendance, behavior, and course performance. According to a study by Johns Hopkins University, targeting these areas as early as sixth grade can enhance a student’s chance of graduating and continuing on to college.
After school sessions at Homework Hub
Right as the students walk into school, the corps members are outside the main entrance, greeting them with high fives, wishing them good luck and reciting motivational chants. Right at the start of the day, they foster a supportive and encouraging climate that makes students want to come back the day after.
“The greatest success happens when a student feels an adult cares about them,” said Kelvyn Park Assistant Principal Carol Garai.
“City Year creates a type of positive energy felt throughout the whole building.”
Carol Garai, assistant principal and educational motivator.
One year ago, positive energy was one of many things lacking at Kelvyn Park, along with the schools ability to adhere to federal performance and attendance standards placing the school under academic probation. Many students were failing in their classes or not even showing up for school.
“There’s a lot of cultural reasons such as single parent homes and children having children,” Garai said, adding that 95 percent of the student body is under the federal lunch program. “It’s likely many students are working full time jobs to put food on the table and school is seen as less of a priority.”
The City Year team at work.
Garai believes in encouraging youth with the benefits of a higher education, which in turn, can break the socially repetitive cycle when no one in the family has ever attended college. But Kelvyn Park’s tight budget limited it from the resources required to initiate such change. After a 2-year application process consisting of demographic and neighborhood problem reports, in 2011 Kelvyn Park received a federal education grant giving it the means of implementing new practices such as City Year.
“Working with students who come from difficult situations makes you realize the disparity of education,” team leader Carina Gonzalez said. “The system expects them to adhere to certain standards and go back to lives that aren’t conducive to that type of learning.”
Working along side teachers, corps members promote constructive learning environments by actively assisting students in the classroom, holding individual sessions with students throughout the day and hosting tutoring sessions after school.
“You make an impact just by relating to them, listening and being yourself ” she said. “It’s a great feeling.”
City Year team leader Carina Gonzalez
Working with Gonzalez is Alex Mclaughlin, DePaul’s former 3-year Lacrosse captain before graduating in 2011. McLaughlin is one of fourteen City Year members that are DePaul alumni, placing DePaul among the top universities across the country with graduates working in City Year.
“It comes from DePaul’s Vincentian model of Leadership,” she said, referring to DePaul’s ongoing mission to reach out to underserved populations. “DePaul wants its students to be active within the community.”
A psychology major with a concentration in human services, DePaul both required and provided an internship McLaughlin with an education-focused non-profit, inspiring her to apply for City Year shortly after Graduating. After experiencing first hand why 40 to 60 percent of freshman don’t graduate from urban public schools servicing low-income communities, after City Year she wants to continue working towards a solution.
“Working in this type of setting makes me want to become a social worker,” she said. “I’d rather have a job where I get something out of it by working in the community.”
DePaul Alumni Alex McLaughlin
Assistant principal Garai explained the effect City Year has on the student body is incomparable. In one year attendance rates are up and students voluntarily attend tutoring sessions as they become more actively engaged in their academics.
“They’re young, motivated and able to relate to students on a level better than any teacher can.” Garis said. “The students look up to them and are inspired to stay in school.”
City Year daily evening meeting
In a society where every 26 seconds a student gives up on school, instilling change in an environment where it’s needed most is not the easiest job. The days are long, the stress can be overwhelming, and the result of your work is sometimes hard to see when new obstacles are constantly arising. Overall improvement may not happen over night, but the City Year team is still hopeful their efforts at Kelvyn Park are creating a lasting impact.
“You’re not always going to get the reaction you want,” team leader Gonzalez said. “But there are times when you just get through to them…the smallest shift in behavior or attitude…even when you’re not expecting it.”
It’s 4:30 p.m. and the after-school tutoring session is coming to a close. As the City year team is saying goodbye to their students before heading into their evening meeting, a student says bye to corps member Lara Mbayed and begins walking towards the exit.
He stops and turns around. “Oh yeah, I’m getting a ‘B’ in that class now,” he said. “I raised it from a D.”
“That’s awesome!” said Mbayed. “Keep it up.”
“Yeah,” the student said, turning back down the hallway. “Just thought I would let you know.”
“Give a year. Change the world.”
City Year member Laura Mbayed
City Year member Gabriel Crockett
Spring is here, and it’s usually the time of the year people really start searching for motivation to hit the gym, join a fun-run, or just start finding ways to go through their days a little bit healthier. I hurt my back over the winter snowboarding, and I’ve spent the last few months rehabbing it, taking it pretty easy in the gym. Now just recently fully recovered, I really want to continue with the goals I have for this year and start training for some specific events I have in mind. So I decided to revive one of the first few posts I wrote when I started this blog, “One more rep.” It all pretty much still stands true, a few edits here and there, some typos… but I don’t think I could really say how I feel about about the interdependency of fitness and life-enjoyment any better. I needed a good reminder, anyways. I can’t preach what I don’t practice.
This is for anyone who ever ignored the snooze button to beat the morning heat of the open road. For the last available bike at spin class, and the open bench press on chest day. For the painful stitch in your side, the calluses on your hands…. for the “good sore.” For the towel you lay on the treadmill display so you have no idea how long you’ve ran, and for the moment you lift it off to see the extra 10 minutes you’ve never had in you before. To the new years resolutioners and their commitment which allows them to proudly separate themselves from the incoming pack the following January. For those who put in work in the gym to be stronger on the court, and the distant sight of the finish line at your very first 5K. Your sun salutation. This is for the 5 lb plate you added to the stack when you can finally declare you raised your max… and for eventually hitting it twice.
I don’t write this because I hold any expert knowledge in the area of physical fitness. I do a lot of reading, and ask a lot of questions, but I still don’t know much. Nor do I believe myself to be in any type of peak physical condition so that I should hold myself as an example to anyone else. I write this because I, like yourself, know what it means to take the step forward dedicated to be stronger, run faster, jump higher, feel healthier, and live better. I write this with hope that, there is at least one person who can relate when I say I understand what it feels to anxiously watch the clock pass, waiting until my daily obligations are fulfilled in order to get to the gym, and the way the mind makes you perceive yourself to becoming weaker just because your hectic schedule doesn’t allow you to go to the gym for three days. Similar to so many others, physical training– just like writing– has become over the years an outlet from external stressors, broken relationships, and demanding obligations; a form of therapy that has taught me much discipline in other aspects of my life along with valuable lessons I continue to learn.
I write this with nostalgic remembrance to the people I have crossed paths with in every weight room I’ve set foot in, taking the time to assist me and provide advice when asked. I hope that one day i can attain such in-depth knowledge so that I may justifiably provide it to others. I write this in dedication to my friends; who constantly tell me stories of their own training, their own accomplishments… for their dedication is my inspiration. For just as a spotter is there mentally as he is there physically, and how the presence of a running partner psychologically pushes you harder, these people in my life have constantly served as a mental spot to me.. in– as well as out– of the gym.
The gym.
I consider the environment of the gym to be analagous to life itself… it’s facilities and resources- equally accessible to its patrons. Much like life, every individual is there for their own reasons, with their own goals, drives, their own ways of handling that same reality. There’s a thriving sense of community with a unique culture based on respect for one another just for being there in the first place. The gym is one of the few places where your achievements are not belittled–nor is your individuality judged– by the color of your skin, your age, sexual orientation, or how much money you make. It’s where language barriers are easily hurdled by understanding the universal gesture of- “Hey, would you mind giving me a spot?”
When I joined the military at 18 years old, I was 155 pounds, and barely spent any time in a weight room. A deployment to Kirkuk Air Base in Iraq would transition “barely spent any time” to “spending every available moment” in the gym. There’s very few things that pass the time sufficiently enough without losing your sanity, and the gym became a place to spend many nights relieving my mind from the stress of being away from the people closest to me, and from all you could imagine which accompanies the time being down range. Any military member who has spent time overseas can understand the commitment for self improvement and the psychological benefits of physical training. Initially, I could barely press anything over a hundred pounds. But from that point on, just as a runner craves the endorphins released during “the high,” I became physically and emotionally dependent to the weight room; a palce that even for just a brief moment of the day, became a type of sanctuary away from the pressures of life.
So, I began doing a lot of research, asked a lot of advice, and observed. I believe my experiences are not much different than many others…I too have asked the age old question- “How do you burn fat and build muscle?” That of which the answer entails the complexity of conflicting requirements. I have also wondered what a complex carbohydrate was, what are good supplements, imagined – only imagined- what it would be like to juice, learned the hard way by injury the fundamental need of good form, and my favorite-… the aromatic consequence of not immediately washing a shaker cup.
The body.
It’s quite amazing what the human body is capable of. In an ever changing world that continues to place a rising value on the development of technology, I believe technology only supplies a restricited, artificial model that ignores how we can truly act, interact, and create in our environment. So, in the hypothetical sense that if all technology comes to an end, we are only left with the bare essentials; That being our bodies and natural ability. “Natural ability” not referring to the intrinsic characteristics brought by heredity, but more so our bodies ability to “perform in nature.”
There’s a world out there just waiting for us to step away from our daily routines, so that we may experience all that it has to offer. So we hike, surf, explore, skate, rock climb, scuba dive… and simply “play”. Physical training allows us to develop our level of physicality so that we can optimally work and “play” in whatever way that caters to our individual needs of excitement and pleasure.
Yet, As some of us may strive for goals that are in part focused on the aesthetics of physique, I believe that we should first begin by being content and happy with our bodies, and strive not for visual improvement for the pleasure of others, but improvement of overall health and ability for the sake of ourselves. And only ourselves. Superficial change should not be a sole purpose, but only a result, dependent when you commit yourself to a regimen. Because when all we focus on is how we look, we will only be discouraged by the lack of expected results, rather than encouraged by the small continual goals we achieve by persistance. And always enjoying ourselves. Enjoyment allows freedom. Freedom is peace.
On Eating.
At the present moment, although I used to, I don’t count carbs, ensure a specific level of caloric intake, keep attention to detail my sugars, sodium, fats, etc. More so, my eating habits can best be explained by an analogy I once heard. The things you consume is like fuel for a car. The better the fuel, the better your motor performs. The more fuel you put in it, the longer you drive. But when you use bad fuel, and although the motor is still able to run, the waste that doesnt get processed compiles up and reduces the motor’s efficiency. That being said, in relationship to the body and eating, and motor and fuel, The stronger the motor works, the more fuel it burns.”Strength of the motor” not being the actual level of strength, but the level of exertion relative to your body.
So you HAVE to push yourself past your comfort zone in order to produce results. If you stay in one comfort zone, regardless of your level of strength, your body becomes complacent and having to work less, burning less. Because “A v 12 engine will burn more fuel than a 2 cylinder Daewoo when both are working at their peak, but yet- A v12 engine going 5 mph will burn less fuel than a 3 cylinder Daewoo redlining at well, 50?” It’s still redlining regardless.
I’ve experimented with dieting and eating plans, but I don’t have the discipline; and I highly respect anyone who does. I love food. I eat a slice of pizza if its there, and enjoy a nice cold beer when the occasion presents itself. Matter of fact, I actually wrote part of this post while indulging in a plate of “554.”(above) BBQ pork over rice, for those of you who are not Chicago natives or have never experienced the pleasure of Seven Treasures in Chinatown. Seriously. But I pay for it in the gym.
On Motivation.
Today, most of my motivation does not derive from observing the people putting up extraordinary amounts of weight, nor is it the centerfold poster of Arnold Schwarzenegger in his prime during the 70′s I used to carry around in my military duffel when I was 19. My motivation comes from the people who choose to use there bodies to there highest potential, not taking for granted the opportunity to learn more about themselves through physical experience, never settling for failure in the face of a challenge.
Much like a particular man I consider to be a regular at the gym I presently go to; he’s no older than 40, and he has lived the majority of his life in a wheel chair due to his legs having never developed past the size of a 12 year old. But he’s still in the gym, sweating it out like everyone else, being grateful for what he is still capable of despite a handicap. That alone speaks volumes of character; his refusal to be restricted due to lacking the standard physicality completely undermines any perceived standard of what it takes to live happily active. He’s the epitome of how the only limitations are those we set for ourselves and no one else can ever determine what we are not able to do. So If he’s in the gym, I have no reason not to be. For that very reason, I’ll still be at the ripe old age of 70, still in the gym with a sweatband and an oversized T-shirt saying, “#1 Gramps.”
I can only hope for whoever takes the chance to read this, there is at least one person who can relate to my experiences and shares my mentality towards physical training. Ive come to realize there’s a defining moment that occurs precisely at the end of a run when you finally catch your breath; the moment when a mental “click” occurs that tells you that you can still keep going, or the moment approaching the brink of muscle failure while lifting, and you contemplate either racking the weight or pushing out one more. And that same moment happens at the end of an long day when you consider taking a day off from your workout schedule, or considering not losing the hour of sleep when the alarm goes off in the morning telling you to head to yoga class. At this precise moment, the mind balances out numerous factors, assessing the body, manifesting excuses, inclined to put it off for another day. So I can only hope, how others have motivated me throughout the years, this post will motivate them when this precise moment occurs; that at least one person will dig deep to push themselves past the limits, proudly experiencing how personal satisfaction outweighs succumbing to whatever excuses there are to not put forth the effort. And that’s not just in training, that applies to life itself. When we are constantly underestimated by others, what good is it to underestimate ourselves? So when the option is presented to either stop or keep going, (or to even go at all), see what happens when you choose the latter and tell yourself that it’s just a little time out of the day… just a few laps in the pool… just an hour of yoga… Just a bit longer… Just a bit farther…. Just five pounds more… Just one more set…
…Just one more rep.
You might surprise yourself.
The bucket list. The list of the things we set ourselves out to accomplish in this world before we pass on to the next. I’ve had numerous conversations with different people about the things they want to do before they die. Sky dive. See the wonders of the world. Backpack Europe. Read every book on Oprah’s reading list. Although I’ve heard some frequently common items on “the list,” I’ve also been fortunate enough to hear extraordinary desires that really reflect one’s innate passions and individuality. Adopt a child. Build a house. Open a restaurant. Be famous. Just a bit of insight into my own: Write a book and get published. Compose a song. Buy a one way plane ticket somewhere without any plan of when to return home. Start a family. Watch it grow.
But why do we make this list of things we need to do before we “kick the bucket?” What is it about that one specific moment in time where everything seems to stand still and nothing else matters in the world accept the satisfaction you stand face to face with the challenge and nothing feels more exhilirating than knowing to yourself and nobody else that you have succeeded? What is it about these expereinces that cause childish grins on our faces as we declare, “Cross– that– off the list!”
Whatever the actual reason may be, I believe there is a common fear that resides in the back of our minds that makes us fear the possibility we will one day come to a point in our lives and realize we wasted our time doing nothing, never finding our true selves. That’s the reason we decide to jump out of planes and travel to the far ends of the earth. It is why we do whatever we can in order to be able to successfully raise children and have a family. It is why we feel the way we do when we run marathons and create works of art, indulging every moment of our achievements. We take in as much as we can out of life, putting forth our best efforts towards desciphering the true meaning behind the event in hope that it will lead us to some greater understanding of our place in the world.
We are not defined by our moments, it is we- who define the moment.
We search for inspiration to one day wake up from our dreams and turn the thigns we want to do with our lives into a reality. Abraham Lincoln once said, “In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.” What value is found being blessed with a long life if we didn’t take the initiative to live it to it’s full potential? We need to not only acknowledge the expereince itself, but also be cognizant of how it has changed us in its own way. When recalling on our memories we feel happiness knowing that at one point in our lifes we were able to persevere through our struggles and overcome the obstacles that test our physical and mental abilities. Time is limited. We must set ourselves out to experience that change for ourselves, keeping an open mind towards the things we cannot control in order to have the clarity to understand what the change we find in ourselves.
So, what’s on your list?
