"No Motivation", by Michael Kofuzi

 

A question I frequently get is "how do I stay motivated? When it’s cold out or when it’s dark. Don’t I ever just want to stay inside and skip my run?"

And the answer is of course I do. I’m only human. And yet, I still find a way to get out there and go for a run.

So how do I do it? The answer is that, long ago, I realized that motivation is unnecessary. Motivation is fickle. Motivation is fleeting. What you really want is momentum. That feeling you have when you’ve got a run streak going and you don’t want to break that streak. That’s momentum. It’s the inertia of you, set in motion. And a body in motion wants to stay in motion.

So get out there. Run. And keep showing up. The run might be terrible, but that’s the thing about running. Even a terrible run is worth something. Because even a terrible run keeps your momentum going. If you’re going to wait for a day when you’re feeling motivated, the only thing you’ll ever accomplish is waiting. So run when it’s dark. Run when it’s cold. Go. No more excuses. No more waiting.

And next time, when you don’t feel motivated to run. You can tell yourself. I don’t need motivation. I’ve been here before. The dark isn’t so dark. The cold isn’t so cold. I have built a habit. This is who I am. This is what I do. I have momentum.

... AND EXACTLY THE SAME APPLIES TO STUDYING!

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

Make your bed!

It's the little things in life that matter.

If you don't start the day making your bed, you've just started the day with an excuse. You'll then justify reasons to avoid anything after that.

If you can't do the little things right, you will never do the big things right.

Every morning in basic SEAL training, my instructors, who at the time were all Vietnam veterans, would show up in my barracks room and the first thing they would inspect was your bed. If you did it right, the corners would be square, the covers pulled tight, the pillow centered just under the headboard and the extra blanket folded neatly at the foot of the rack.

It was a simple task — mundane at best. But every morning we were required to make our bed to perfection. It seemed a little ridiculous at the time, particularly in light of the fact that were aspiring to be real warriors, tough battle-hardened SEALs, but the wisdom of this simple act has been proven to me many times over.

If you make your bed every morning you will have accomplished the first task of the day. It will give you a small sense of pride, and it will encourage you to do another task and another and another. By the end of the day, that one task completed will have turned into many tasks completed. Making your bed will also reinforce the fact that little things in life matter. If you can't do the little things right, you will never do the big things right.

And, if by chance you have a miserable day, you will come home to a bed that is made — that you made — and a made bed gives you encouragement that tomorrow will be better.

If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed.

Click here to see the full video of Admiral William H. McRaven 2014

commencement speech at The University of Texas

And here to read the full transcript

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

"Fear of falling", by Michael Kofuzi

 

There comes a point in adulthood where we develop a fear of falling. It is perhaps related to a fear of failure. But the fear of falling is much more debilitating. We worry about getting hurt. We worry about looking foolish. For fear of developing a blister later maybe, we stay on the high and dry ground. For fear of looking foolish in the water, we relegate ourselves to the sidelines of a pool deck.

But we all have to start somewhere. And how you look when you start something new, that is exactly how it’s supposed to look. It’s not supposed to be pretty. And that is the point. You’re learning. And that’s an incredible thing. The older we get, the less grace we give ourselves to figure things out as we go. We instantly look to find a coach, review film, and regression analyze the heck out of every minute of our new endeavors.

And in the process, we lose sight of the beauty of trying something new. We suck the fun right out of it. We have forgotten how amazing it is to try something we’ve never done before. We have forgotten the intoxicating mystery of new adventure.

So no matter how old you are, I say, try something new. Fall on your face. Look foolish in front of your kids, and in front of your friends, and in front of complete strangers. And have the best summer of your life!

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only

What's up in the night sky for February 2020?

February 2020: Skywatching tips from NASA

Looking for astronomy highlights for February 2020? This month is the best time of the year to try to view Mercury, soon after sunset; Mars disappears behind the Moon on Feb. 18; and the bright red star on Orion’s shoulder, Betelgeuse, has been acting weird. (Or has it?) 

Additional information about topics covered in this episode of What's Up, along with still images from the video, and the video transcript, are available at https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/whats-up-skywatching-tips-from-nasa/

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

GREETINGS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

As we have learnt. there are so many ways to greet people around the world. Unfortunately, not every culture has a word for “Hello” or “Hi” or do they wave their hand to greet people.

Have a look at verbal and non-verbal greetings from different cultures or countries.

So wherever you travel, be advised to at least learn how to greet the locals, following their cultural protocol.

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

"Miles" Joan Benoit Samuelson

40 years later, Joan Benoit Samuelson is still running after those same crazy dreams:

This is where 150,000 miles will get you: out here in the middle of nowhere. It's quiet out here, just birds and nature and your thoughts... thoughts about what got you here in the first place, every mile that led you here.
And with every tick of the odometer, you're reminded that miles can either do one of two things: they can either break you down, or... they can make your stronger.

150,000 miles and still running.

It's only crazy until you do it.

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

Alternative Math - Short Film

A well meaning Maths teacher finds herself trumped by a post-fact America.

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

Strength. No weakness!

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

The Privilege Walk

The typical classroom version of this activity involves between 10-40 participants. Throughout the privilege walk, some statements are read by the facilitator and the participants are asked to take a step forward or backward based on their responses. This activity forces participants to confront the ways in which society privileges some individuals over others. It is designed to get participants to reflect on the different areas in their lives where they have privilege as well as the areas where they don't.

(Full video transcription at the end of this post)

Inauguration Day letter Obama left for Trump

During his final moments in the Oval Office, President Barack Obama folded into thirds a handwritten letter to Donald Trump, slid it into an envelope, and in neat capital letters addressed it to "Mr. President."

Dear Mr. President -

Congratulations on a remarkable run. Millions have placed their hopes in you, and all of us, regardless of party, should hope for expanded prosperity and security during your tenure.

This is a unique office, without a clear blueprint for success, so I don't know that any advice from me will be particularly helpful. Still, let me offer a few reflections from the past 8 years.

First, we've both been blessed, in different ways, with great good fortune. Not everyone is so lucky. It's up to us to do everything we can (to) build more ladders of success for every child and family that's willing to work hard.

Second, American leadership in this world really is indispensable. It's up to us, through action and example, to sustain the international order that's expanded steadily since the end of the Cold War, and upon which our own wealth and safety depend.

Third, we are just temporary occupants of this office. That makes us guardians of those democratic institutions and traditions -- like rule of law, separation of powers, equal protection and civil liberties -- that our forebears fought and bled for. Regardless of the push and pull of daily politics, it's up to us to leave those instruments of our democracy at least as strong as we found them.

And finally, take time, in the rush of events and responsibilities, for friends and family. They'll get you through the inevitable rough patches.

Michelle and I wish you and Melania the very best as you embark on this great adventure, and know that we stand ready to help in any ways which we can.

Good luck and Godspeed,

BO

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

English: A Stress-Timed Language - American Pronunciation

(Reblogged from Rachel's English)

English is a Stress-Timed language. That means you need contrast between stressed and unstressed syllables—unstressed words may reduce, and will be low in pitch and flatter in shape. In other words, you DON'T pronounce every word fully and clearly!!

VIDEO TRANSCRIPTION:

In this American English pronunciation video, we're going to go over why some words sound different when they're said on their own than they do when they're said as part of a sentence, like 'for', 'fer'. 

A lot of people think, when they're studying a language and they're new to it, that they need to pronounce each word fully and clearly in order to be well-understood. But in English that's actually not the case. English is a stress-timed language. That means some syllables will be longer, and some will be shorter. Many languages, however, are syllable-timed, which means each syllable has the same length. Examples of syllable-timed languages: French, Spanish, Cantonese. So, when an American hears a sentence of English, with each syllable having the same length, it takes just a little bit longer to get the meaning. This is because we are used to stressed syllables, syllables that will pop out of the line because they're longer and they have more shape. Our ears, our brains, go straight to those words. Those are the content words. When all syllables are the same length, then there's no way for the ear to know which words are the most important.