Thought Lateral

Remember Confucius never said “An arrow can only strike the target if the target exists.” This is because I made up that sentence just now in order to illustrate the point of setting goals.

A goal, tangible or virtual, is a marker by which we can measure our efforts. No marker means there’s no way of knowing you’re reaching your goal. It’s the target on the shooting range, the bullseye on the dartboard, the lap time on the clock, the landing light on the runway, the point “B” on the Google map, the luggage carousel in the airport…err, well you get my drift. It’s the point that tells you you’ve hit the mark, acheived, or arrived at where you want to be in life.

We take many corrective steps to steer us towards the marker (the goal) till we eventually achieve it.

Want to be successful? Define what success means to you, write it down and set down your marker. Set your goal.

My current goal is 166 more edits away (sic.)

A simple fiddle of the knob, and you're in the future already!

T – 5:00 and counting….

I used to have a digital watch for a Digital age, and perceived them to be superior to analogue watches. Modern digital watches are for modern times – or so the reasoning went.

…T- 4:00…

However, such a view was short sighted as analogue systems have a  benefit I much underestimated .

…T- 3:00…

You can see the scale as a continuous range. For example, on a watch you can see the future time lying ahead of the minute hand, and the past that lays behind it.

…T – 2:00…

Using this advantage, I’ve set my analogue watch five minutes ahead of the actual time.

…T – 1:00…

This continually conditions the mind to see five minutes into the future. It helps re-align my present actions so I’m in the correct place, or have done what I need to, when the time arrives.

…0:00 Time out!

Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.

“What does every man wish he had more of, but never knows when he has it?” says the Riddle.

“Sleep” replies the Answer.

I’ve come to think that battles of  “Morning commute rush” and “Groggy afternoon malaise” are won the night before, particularly in the time I go to sleep. The earlier the bedtime, the less likely the following morning would seem like a rat race, or the afternoon turn into a sleep-deprived stupor.

It is said the sleep hours before midnight are worth double those after, and I’ve found this has some truth to it.

However, there is a counter force that resists earlier bedtimes. Long work hours means there’s no evening to be had. So watching a late movie tempts to improve the work-life balance. Thinking laterally though, the long work hours may be shortened if adequate sleep is obtained the night before – as the better productivity results.

So the more sleep, the more likely this vicious cycle will get a puncture.