Tommy Franklin: The Right Attitude to Life

Over the Christmas and New Year holiday period I spent a fair bit of my time in Sydney, hanging out with some family members. It was a fun, relaxing, and immensely enjoyable time and I came home feeling very happy and positive from the experience. That's what happens when you spend time with quality people. But I'm not writing about that today. This article is about a guy my brother told me to check out on youtube. A guy who has seen a lot bad stuff and had a lot of negativity in his life. A guy who was heavily addicted to drugs and alcohol, and was spiralling out of control until he nearly died when he was run down by a car. This article is about Tommy Franklin.

Tommy Franklin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFM4FhAJRYE

Tommy Franklin. The man who just pops in his iPod and busts out dance moves in public, grooving his way through the streets and making people smile. He doesn't care what others think about him - he just loves to dance and express himself. It makes him happy so he does it.

I recommended that everyone watches the Tommy Franklin Story (video below). You will be amazed. He is a calm, well spoken, lovely man who is just doing what makes him happy. He's not crazy - he's just likes to dance and smile and is not afraid to show it.

The Tommy Franklin Story

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPj9aVBdCmA

We could all take a leaf out of Tommy's book and start thinking less about how others see us and more about finding and doing what actually makes us happy.

Image courtesy of TommyFranklin.net

A Good Year Ahead (and a crazy year behind)

It was a crazy, hectic, and tiring last 6 months of 2011 but I feel like it was meant to happen that way. It saw some pretty significant positive changes in my life but also contained a few cycles of negativity that were quite testing. But, I've battled through and I'm back in 2012 ready for what seems like a good year ahead.

Last 6 Months

So what happened over the last 6 months? Why was I so absent on my own site? I'm glad you asked...

I got Married

Yes ladies I'm sorry to say that I am now officially off the market. In August, Sophie and I got married and it was a wonderful day. We loved every minute of it (even though it poured with rain) and it was amazing to be surrounded by all our family and friends when celebrating the occasion.

Of course an awesome wedding is not complete without an awesome honeymoon so we took off for several weeks and spent the time relaxing at by the pool/beach/bar at a Thailand resort. Money well spent and we came back feeling quite good.

I hated my Job

After such a happy and wonderful time with the wedding and honeymoon I came crashing back to reality when I went back to work and realised exactly how much I hated it. It was depressing and I quickly became very negative about it. Sadly I let this negativity infect other aspects of my life. Bad Zac!

Also as the year went on I realised that I wasn't going to achieve my goal of not needing a job for 2012. Realising that I had to continue working for a little while longer was saddening but at least it made me take action and change something...

I got a new Job

What's the next best thing to not having to work? Having an enjoyable job!

I was beginning to think that finding and enjoyable job might be liking trying to find the pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. A fun story but total rubbish.

But I'm happy to have been proven wrong. I've managed to land myself a job which is interesting, mentally challenging and stimulating, and is placed within a great team full of friendly people.

Of course that means I've spent the last few months learning lots of new things and working hard which has meant my other projects (including this site) have taken a back seat. But something had to give.

2012: The Year Ahead

So after a good break over the festive season I am back and raring to go in 2012. I have this buzz about life at the moment and I just feel like 2012 is going to be a very good (and very big) year for me. Here are some of the reasons why:

My Job

As I mentioned above, my job is a very positive part of my life right now. Not only is it a great job for me right now but it also has loads of potential for my future.

I've got a manager who is committed to helping me grow into more senior roles, I'm working in a boom industry, and I'm at the bleeding edge of implementing new tools and process. All up this year is going to provide a great platform for me to go places. And quickly.

My Trading/Betting

2011 saw a lot of my spare time dedicated to projects related to sports betting and trading. While I only made a small amount of money for the year I learned lots and I feel better off for the experience. I am hoping to draw on this over the next 12 months and increase my profit level significantly.

My Body

After several weeks of eating and drinking like a modern day human over the festive season I felt disgusting. And motivated. Motivated to get back onto Paleo - eating, drinking, and thinking live a caveman - and I'm already loving it! Of course, I already knew how good being paleo felt.

I've also diagnosed a weakness in my shoulder/back area that was causing tightness and also contributing to poor form (and thus undue soreness) in the gym. So I'm onto a rigorous daily routine of stretching and light exercises to increase my overall flexibility but also get some of my under-used muscles up to the required level.

By the time I'm finished with this I will be lean, flexible, strong, and pain-free. That makes me very happy!

My Wife

Last, but certainly not least, I am looking forward to spending some good positive time with my wife. We're focusing this year on doing more activities, experiencing new things, and going to see new places together.

We're committed to being aware of the other person (their thoughts and feelings in particular) and also ensuring that we demonstrate our love for each other often.

This is what I am looking forward to the most - a wonderful year with my wonderful wife!

I hope your 2012 is looking as good as mine.

A Caveman Wouldn't Eat That! (or "Paleo Haters")

Doing something different to what society considers normal is often met with scorn, laughter or criticism. And if you're really lucky, sometimes you get all three at once. And if you're a fan of the paleo diet than you're probably getting this often from all the paleo-haters out there.

My favourite hater comment: "A caveman wouldn't eat that"

I'm not naive about the paleo diet. I know it's not everyone's cup of tea and I believe that it's the kind of drastic lifestyle change that people need to discover for themselves - I don't try to convert others to my way of thinking. I do it for me and not them.

So whenever I am asked about it I simply state "I'm eating like a caveman - lots of meats, vegetables, fruit and nuts" and leave it at that unless someone demonstrates enough interest to show they wont be a complete jackass about it.

But the paleo-haters don't return the favour. They don't choose to keep their ideas and opinions to themselves but instead choose to argue with me every step of the way, resulting in my now favourite hater-comment:

A caveman wouldn't eat that!

There are many subtle variations of this comment but the concept is the same. It is often dripping with amusement with an undercurrent of gloating, as they take pride in pointing out what they believe are contradictions in my eating habits.

I always feel like responding with "Yeah stupid me, the caveman probably didn't have that. I've just been waiting for someone to pull me up on a technicality because I'm not enjoying feeling great, looking great, and being super healthy. Can I share your stupidly mega-upsized Big Mac, fries and coke? Maybe we can also share the subsequent heart attack too?"

Paleo is making the best choice from what's available

But I'm too nice to do that. I feel like it's my place to choose the be the bigger person (figuratively) and let them know that while paleo does have guidelines around what should and shouldn't be eaten, the basis of the entire thing is about making the best choice from whatever is available.

Sure a caveman may not have had much bacon and certainly didn't have access to too many espresso bars but is that really a big problem? I haven't been able to successfully kill my own woolly mammoth yet, nor have I been able to locate a naturally occurring coffee plant near my house so forgive me for combining the best of both worlds and eating a paleo(ish) diet with the aid of modern convenience. But that is exactly what this paleo diet is about.

If we (the paleo-lovers) actually tried to replicate our ancestral diet to the letter than it would be very difficult to achieve, simply because certain foods are no longer available in the quantities that would be needed. But what we can do is take the concepts of the paleo diet (and the valuable lessons learned about what is actually good and bad for our bodies) and use that to make the best choice in a modern world. That is what being paleo is about.

Example of making the best choice

I took my wife out to dinner at a nice restaurant on the weekend and while I am pretty confident that my cavemen ancestors didn't eat Confit duck a? l’orange & sweet potato, I am also supremely confident that I chose the the best option for me and my body.

PS: I'm also sure cavemen didn't have access to espresso martinis and I don't care. I am in love with them. :)

So what brilliantly flawed arguments have you other paleo friends endured? I'd love to hear about them so feel free to share your horror stories.

Spam, Comments and Forums

Spammers on the internet are indiscriminate. They target everyone. I've been getting more and more spam comments each day, and the sheer number I have to delete is getting overwhelming. It's very frustrating and led me to decide that I need to cut out the comments.

Then: My idealistic view of comments

The purpose of this website is to push the boundaries of social "norms" and challenge people (including myself) to think differently about their lives and encourage more thinking outside the box.

As such I thought it was important that all articles be open to comments. I wanted audience participation and while I have received some quite brilliant comments, most of my comment-handling time is wasted on deleting spam.

I wanted this website to be a two way communication - a place where like-minded people could challenge each other and engage in stimulating conversation - but my dreams are being dashed by an influx of comments recommending cheap website hosting, Russian brides, or Viagra, and sometimes all three!

Now: Less comments

The result is that I have decided to close comments on articles after 14 days. That allows just enough time for readers with fresh ideas to respond but will hopefully limit the amount of spam I have to manage.

But I still want to hear from you if you have something to say to me. Remember there are other ways to contact me (email, twitter etc) so don't hesitate to start a conversation with me there.

The future: A forum?

As I keep writing here, and as my reader base grows I will flirt with implementing some other features that would provide a more interactive experience. Ideally I am thinking a self-moderated forum would be perfect - a place where positive people discuss new concepts and challenge each other to achieve more but we will see. I think it's a bit early for that right now.

Of course I am open to other ideas too, so once if you've got something good on your mind leave a comment (in the next 14 days!) or contact me.

Now that my inbox will be (hopefully) less spam-riddled I can get back into writing. :)

Image: Patchareeya99

A Longer Than Expected Break

I'm back. I've been back for a few weeks now, but my holiday was enlightening and thought-provoking so I've been taking a longer break from writing here while I collect my thoughts and determine what it is that I want from my life. Sounds deep hey?

Holiday-stimulated ideas

There is only so much relaxing one can do, and especially so for someone like me - someone with an active mind who is always seeking a new challenge. It turns out my relaxation amount was about 5-7 days of sleep-ins, buffet breakfasts, and cocktails by the pool.

In the second week of my holiday my brain kicked in again and I began contemplating where my life was going and what I wanted to be doing. As our brains will try to answer any question put to it I managed to come up with a lot of ideas.

Some of these ideas were brilliant, and some not so good. Some were easy to do, some much harder. And some were that crazy that they made me wonder if I may be from another planet.

I managed to short-list these ideas (and cull the ones that could have me locked up in mental asylum) to a refined list of possible projects that I can immediately begin work on. Here is that list, in no particular order:

• Writing my novel (the same idea I've been refining for nearly 10 years now)
• Releasing some cool iPhone/iPad games
• Starting a sports analysis website
• Selling myself as an expert management consultant
• Writing an e-book based on this site

What to do?

I believe I will tackle most, if not all, of these ideas over the next 12 months. They represent the things I enjoy most, the things I excel at, and the things that have the potential for good financial return and thus allow me to achieve my lifestyle freedom goal and ultimately work on more of these kind of projects.

Wedding Time! Back in 4 Weeks

Apparently planning a wedding is way more time consuming than I thought it would be. As such I haven't really had much time to do anything for this site. And I don't foresee being able to contribute more whilst lounging on the beach on my honeymoon so I think it's best if I give my 4 weeks notice. I will be back, raring to go, and hopefully tanned in 4 weeks. In the mean time if you have any ideas or any specific topics you think I should write about then please email me.

Thanks and I will see you again in 4 weeks!

What's Your Personality Type?

Over the past few years, and particularly the last 6 months, I have been doing a fair bit of in-depth thinking about psychology. I've experienced a lot of personal development (or "spiritual growth") and I've discovered many things about myself that I wasn't previously aware of. Good news so far, but it got me wondering as to whether I have changed as result of this introspection or whether I have essentially stayed the same person but am just more aware of what that actually means.

I decided to revisit the Myers-Briggs Personality Test to answer this question.

Myers-Briggs

I have previously done the Myers-Briggs Personality Test twice in my life. It is a very interesting test but I distinctly remember having troubles picking one or other in certain circumstances.

In the first test I ended being almost borderline for the 4 categories. Basically I sat on the fence.

In the second test I had just begun down the self development path so I was becoming more self aware (I sound like a robot from a sci-fi movie) and thus could answer the questions better. I still had some troubles and still ended up borderline on a few aspects but the overall result was ENTP, and everyone seemed to agree it sounded like me.

It's been three years (or more) and I've spent a lot of that time in deep analysis of myself. I feel like a very different person but has my personality changed? Or do I just "get" myself more?

Drumroll please….my current personality type is: ENTP!

So on the surface it looks as if I haven't changed and I guess in terms of the overall picture that is true. I am still an ENTP but I am much happier with that classification now. I think I have strengthened myself in those areas in which I used to be borderline - this time I found it much easier to answer the questions and pick which type summed me up - so if anything I've just become a more definite ENTP.

For those interested in finding their own personality type, or those who are wondering what the hell these letters mean, then check out this pretty handy chart.

Remember kids, its not an exact science, but it is very interesting.

So what is your personality type?

Finishing What You Start

I love starting a new project. There is something special about that energetic buzz that occurs at the beginning of each new project. It is a wonderful time filled with positive energy, happiness, and excitement. The same can be said when you finish a project too - it is a magnificent feeling to see something through to completion, where you can stand back and admire your own work and feel proud of your achievement.

Unfortunately actually finishing a project is a hard thing to do.

I know this because I am fantastic at starting new projects and making quick progress. I get motivated and the work flows easily and the project runs smoothly. At least it does at the start anyway.

I believe most things in life, including projects, follow the Pareto principle (aka the 80-20 rule). It is a basic data modelling formula which says that 80% of whatever your are measuring normally comes from only 20% of the sample population.

This rings true for most projects across all aspects of our lives. We can complete 80% of a project with as little as 20% of the total effort. This is the early stage of the project where everything progresses beautifully, but there will come a point where the ratio inverts. You will reach a time where the remaining 20% of effort will take you 80% of the total project time and it is during this time that motivation drops, progress is stagnated, and you run the risk of not finishing the project at all.

I've met this barrier many times in my life so I know how tough it can be to push through it. I've also failed to, or chosen not to, push through it many times too so I also know how unsatisfying it feels to leave a project unfinished. But recently I've developed a few questions that I use to help me stay on track and complete my projects.

Is/Was It Worth Starting In The First Place?

Sometimes your idea is actually not that good to begin with. Before starting a new project, or when struggling to maintain motivation, you need to reassess the original idea. Is it actually a good idea? Is it something is actually worth spending time on? Is it worth it?

You might realise that your original idea, which you thought was the best thing since sliced bread, is actually not so good. That's ok, because I'm going to let you in on a secret - you don't have to finish every project you start.

Is It Worth Finishing?

Re-read that last sentence. You honestly don't have to finish every single project you start. In fact I will go as far as to say that if you did so you would be wasting your time.

You're not perfect and every idea you have is not a great one. Some ideas you have are rubbish. Some of these rubbish ideas you will actually have to start working on first before you realise they are rubbish, but when you do make that realisation any more work on the project becomes wasted time.

Some ideas are not worth finishing, no matter how far you've progressed. You could be 95% complete before you realise it, but once you do it is time to let it go and move on to the next project.

How Will You Know When You Are Finished?

It may sound like a dumb question, but too many people start a pet project with nothing but a wafty idea of whatever they are trying to achieve. Naughty!

When you start something you need to make sure you understand exactly what "finished" is. Even if you have future ideas, or phases, for your project it is best to view them as separate projects with separate time frames. Each part needs a definitive milestone which signals that the project is over, otherwise it will end up feeling like one never-ending project and that can be a huge drain on motivation.

Every project needs to have a clear finish and it needs to be quantifiable. That way when you reach the end you will be 100% sure the project is finished and you can start celebrating!

Celebrate The Finish

Every project must have a celebration at the finish. The celebration is the absolute final task in the project. Without a celebration the project is never actually finished.

The celebration should be fun and relaxing with a focus on enjoying the success of finishing a project. If it was a big project then make the celebration big too. This is why smart companies have launch parties when they release a new product - it is a tangible end to finish the project, it gives employees the opportunities to appreciate some recognition for their hard work, and it also promotes the business.

The same thing happens for any personal project you do. Just finished a big renovation? Host a party with your friends to celebrate! Been working long hours at home to start your business? Take the family out somewhere special when you finish. Whatever the project is it will need a celebration when it's finished. Enjoy it.

Looking Forward

Once you finish a project (don't forget the celebration) then it is an ideal time to use your recent experiences to look toward the future. Think about the good and bad of the last project, whether it was actually worth it, and identify what you will do better in the future. Don't spend too long at this stage though because you're next successful project is waiting for you.

Good luck!

Image: winnond

Start Being Awesome

Today I have a cold. I am sitting here in front of the computer feeling sick, wallowing in self pity, and watching the pile of used snotty tissues steadily building around me. Gross huh? But this little cold has also reminded me that sometimes it is too easy for us to get caught up in feeling sorry for ourselves and being negative. It is too easy to play the life isn't fair card and sook in the corner about what is going on.

Just because it's easy to do doesn't make it right to do it though.

I could sit here feeling sorry for myself and my runny nose. I could mope about and pretend as if somehow this cold is a sign of the world "picking on me" and I could whinge about it to everyone I see, telling them of how things just go against me.

Or I could take a lesson from How I met Your Mother character Barney Stinson:

Whenever I start feeling sick, I just stop being sick and be awesome instead.

That is the perfect example of how to use a positive attitude to turn a bad situation around. Being sick already sucks so why make it worse by being a negative nancy? It's a terrible waste of time and effort. Try being happy and positive instead. Try being awesome, even if you have to pretend at first.

This is exactly what Barney does in that same episode when asked if he is sick:

I'm fine. My nose is just overflowing with awesome and I had to get some of it out.

I love it!

That is the exact opposite of what most people do when they are sick. Everyone likes to complain and feel sorry for themselves when they are sick but what does that really achieve? Is being a pain-in-the-arse, negative, so-and-so achieving anything other than annoying everyone else around you?

Positivity Breeds Positivity

This doesn't just apply to being sick either - it applies to EVERYTHING in our lives.

Ever noticed when you start having a "bad day" that things just seem to get worse? You might sleep through your alarm and miss your train, so you rush to work but then you realise you've got the wrong pants on and you left your wallet at home which makes you angry, and then while you're trying to think of an excuse to avoid that annoying meeting you've got later on you stub your toe outside and spill your coffee all over yourself. It makes you feel like screaming about how bad your day is.

I've got some bad news for you. You created that bad day. It is entirely your fault that you had such a bad day.

Many people will disagree and try to lay the blame somewhere else, but the reality is that any emotional judgment of your day is 100% in your control. You control how you see and interpret the world. If you train your brain to only see a set of negative experiences than that is exactly what you will see. You will only notice the bad stuff while all the good stuff just flies by unnoticed.

The flip side is that if you choose to start with a positive attitude, and start being awesome, then you will start having more of the good days. Those days where everything just feels right. Those days where you are happy, excited, and energetic. Those days where you cannot help but smile when something bad happens because everything else is just so damn good!

Eventually those bad things just wont happen as often. Your positive attitude will draw in more positive actions. You will attract people, situations, and events that mirror your attitude. Your life will be filled with so much positivity that those "bad" things will just be minuscule blemishes on an otherwise wonderful life.

You control your attitude. You determine whether you see things as good or bad, happy or sad, positive or negative. You have the power to make your life better by simply changing your attitude.

Start being awesome. Image: photostock

6 Month Site Stats

6 Months ago I started this website with the goal of writing high quality content that would challenge myself and my readers and encourage positive personal development. Overall I feel that I have been at least partially successful. I know for sure that I have grown significantly during this time (mentally, not physically...I've actually shrunk physically ;)) and I have received several positive comments an emails from readers which help to motivate me.

The 6 month milestone is huge for me because it means that this site has become an ingrained part of my life. It is my first real attempt at a blog-type website and there was always a possibility that I would not be able to maintain the time, effort, and focus needed to maintain this kind of site. Now that I am here I don't think I will ever stop.

Enough chat, it's time to satisfy my nerdy math side and look at the stats!

The Site Stats - Overall

These are the entire stats for the lifetime of the site. After I will include stats for the last 3 months and compare them to the first 3 months to see how the numbers have changed.

• Total Visits: 4183
• Unique Visitors: 3461
• Page Views: 7596
• Total Subscribers: 15
• Traffic Split: Search Engines = 64% , Referring Sites, =22% , Direct = 14%
• Most Viewed Article: Paleo Diet - 30 Day Review

Those stats are looking pretty good. I noticed a pretty good spike when I was blogging about the Paleo Lifestyle and that shows because even though my 30 day review of the Paleo Diet is only a few moths old it is my most read article.

I guess that means I should write more paleo articles.

The Site Stats - Last 3 Months

Here are the stats for just the last 3 months, compared to those of my first 3 month review. Things are looking good.

• Total Visits: 3513 (up 2862 or 439%)
• Unique Visitors: 2997 (up 2534 or 547%)
• Page Views: 5884 (up 4223 or 254%)
• Total Subscribers: 15 (up 14 or 1400%)
• Traffic Split: Search Engines = 68% (up 22%) , Referring Sites, =20% (down 13%) , Direct = 12% (down 9%)
• Most Viewed Article: Paleo Diet - 30 Day Review

I am pretty happy with that. Everything is moving in the right direction which is very motivating, and even though I have been so busy with my software development business and planning a wedding that I have not been able to write as much as I wanted I am still getting positive gains in my traffic.

The Future

So what is in store for the future? Hopefully the next time I am writing about my site stats I am delivering the same positive message of continued traffic growth! Traffic is king on the internet and is the key determinant of success for most sites. Fingers crossed mine keeps growing.

I still have many more articles to write so I don't fear running out of content anytime soon. In fact for every article I write it feels like I come up with another 3 ideas.

The biggest challenge will be my upcoming wedding and honeymoon. I don't want to disappear for a month right in the middle of my crucial site growing stage so I am going to be busily writing a few articles ahead of time that I can roll out while I am relaxing on my honeymoon without anyone noticing I am gone.

I've got some great ideas for that, including a long series of posts on relationships, so keep an eye out for that.

Stay tuned.