Today I came back to my University where I thought I had become a man 10 years ago. Looking back, I had so much to learn. While I’m proud of how he became me, I’d like to sit him down and have a good long chat over a drink.
I’m not sure if he’d listen to me. He generally doesn’t like to listen to anyone. But now that I’ve been coaching for over a decade I’d like to think I’d know how to talk to him in a way that would make him want to listen. Fine, I’d just offer him a free dinner.
He’d probably want to know why I think I know anything that he doesn’t. He’s cheeky like that. So I’d feed him some freshly prepared appetisers of things I’ve done to let him chew on to see if he’s hungry for more:
- Yammy Noodles: Filming and Producing an internationally award winning documentary about Chinese in Africa.
- Petri Dish Bunnies: Starting 3 of my own companies – one I sold on, one accomplished its purpose and one is still running successfully, automated and expanding without me.
- Self-Serve Ice Cream: Learning from, training with and befriending some of the world’s foremost experts in living at our human potential.
- Detox Delight: Leading a team of world-class practitioners to create the first Holistic Medical Wellness Programs in China.
- Bombastic Basting: Learning to speak fluent Chinese and sharing my ideas with over 100 million people on Chinese TV, live streaming to over 100,000, presenting to over 10,000, training thousands and coaching hundreds 1 on 1.
- Kinder Surprise: Marrying the girl of my dreams, who delivered our two amazing baby boys.
- Unlimited Salmon Sashimi: Now doing what I love, getting paid to do it, with the freedom to travel when and where I want with my family. (That’s something I’m pretty sure he’d like to chew on some more!)
Assuming he now starts salivating on the edge of his seat pretending he missed lunch… and breakfast, asking for more yummy appetisers, I’d bring out the main course i’ve cooked up for him. Oh, and you’re welcome to join the feast:
1 – GTFO Pie
If you are not happy, Get The F**k Out. Your job, your relationship, your environment, none of them need be permanent. Allowing yourself to think they are is your self-made prison. There are more opportunities now than any other period in the history of the human race.
2 – Shoot the Donut
You can’t predict the future, but having clearly defined goals gives you direction. That direction will inevitably change as you learn more, but without it you’ll go around in circles.
3 – Yellow Ice Cone
Don’t worry about pissing people off. There will always be haters. If you are not pissing some people off, you are not being outrageous enough.
4 – Homesick Honeysuckle
Get as far away from home as possible. Physically and metaphorically. You can come back when you are independent and have found your own place in the world. You’ll also have real value to offer.
5 – Make Your Cake and Eat it
Follow meaning, not money.
6 – Sour Lollipop
Don’t ask for permission. Do what seems right to you as long as you feel you know what you are doing. If you don’t know what you are doing, ask for help rather than permission. If you ask for permission you are giving people an opportunity to stop you. Find ways to get people to support you instead.
7 – 123 Bite
If you are hesitating, go for it. You’ll learn more from your mistakes than your successes. Don’t try to avoid making mistakes. Instead get really good at bouncing back once you have made them.
8 – Follow the Licker
Love yourself first and fully. Give others an example to follow.
9 – How’s About Yumthing Else
Anything can be changed. Change is inevitable. Learn to be ready for it, use it, and love it.
10 – Pour It On
Trust people to act the way they have always acted. Be pleasantly surprised if they change not disappointed when they don’t. You can’t control their behavior or progress. But you can let them feel like they have the potential to improve. Find ways to inspire them to be better without being attached to an outcome.
11 – Bloody Diamond
Face your fears. They hold gems of wisdom.
12 – Banana Split
Take a moment to imagine the worst possible scenario. Now the best possible scenario. Do the potential benefits outweigh the risks? They usually do.
13 – Hot Socks
Invest in learning opportunities. Where do you stand to learn the most?
14 – Tots & Towers
Start lots of projects. Finish those that will give the most value to others.
15 – Make Your Cake & Sell it
Focus on creating, not consuming. You are not adding any value if you are buying. Find a way to give back. You have something that people would value. Find out how you can deliver that to as many people as possible.
16 – Hansel & Gretel
Always choose the option that will result in a better story. Write your life full of stories you’ll enjoy telling your grandkids.
17 – Homemade Pizza
Perfection is unattainable. Create a minimum viable product. Update as needed.
18 – Happy Meal
Listen to your negative emotions. Let them in. Accept them. Then reframe from a positive perspective. Don’t avoid or reject them, you’ll waste time and energy in the long run. And you’ll keep making the same mistakes. Your negative emotions hold valuable information, view them as a gift.
19 – Leaky Dumpling
Don’t waste your time fixing problems. Focus on your desired outcome. Work to make that a reality. The problems will usually disappear or fix themselves.
20 – Stuck in My Throat
Take responsibility for things that matter. It’s the only way to grow up.
21 – Pie in the Face
Learn to love rejection. It’s the fastest way to learn. Also, it doesn’t mean “no”, it just means “not right now.” Come back better.
22 – Mom’s Cooking
No-one is a better version of you. Find mentors for different aspects of your life, but don’t expect anyone to be perfect.
23 – Eat it or Leave it
Don’t try to please people, do what you think is right. The people that matter will support you. The people that don’t don’t matter.
24 – Fries Cost Extra
Don’t take authorities too seriously. They are just doing their job. Have compassion for their situation.
25 – Pepperoni Off the Pizza
Pushing yourself too far will overwhelm you and slow down your progress. Not pushing yourself far enough means learning will be slow. Find challenges in the sweet spot just outside your comfort zone.
26 – Curry Out the Other End
Worrying is useless, most worries never come to fruition, so why worry in the first place? If there’s an issue, deal with it, plan to deal with it later, or forget it. Always have fun what you are doing right now. Life’s too short for allowing yourself to live in anxiety of a potential future that will likely never become a reality.
27 – Eating Out of the Bowl, Watching the Pot
Appreciate what you have before looking for more. You won’t appreciate what you get if you don’t appreciate what you have.
28 – My Just Reward
Give yourself rewards for good behavior until it becomes a habit. Then find a new behavior to reward. You become your habits. Choose them intentionally.
29 – First Wings First
Do things in order of importance. Get your priorities sorted first. You’ll never get everything done. Best make sure at least you do the things that really matter.
30 – The “Finish and it’s Free” Challenge
Look forward to and embrace challenges. Challenge yourself constantly. Look for opportunities to be out of your comfort zone. Everyday.
31 – Loaded Egg Timer
The game of life tests you from start to finish. Your level of happiness indicates how you are dealing with life’s tests. Take control of your own happiness and win the game of life.
32 – Fondue Fountain
Start with a good idea. Trust yourself. Follow it through. It will turn out better than you could have imagined. But only if you don’t give up.
33 – Marshmallow on a Stick
If you do what is expected of you, the world stays the same. Ignore convention. Mould the world around you. The strongest opinions shape the world. The only people who change the world are the ones who are crazy enough to think they can. Be one of them.
34 – Popping Bubbles
Be decisive, cultivate a way of life that is fundamentally proactive. People who are reactionary live in other people’s worlds. Create your own world. Make it one you are proud to be a part of.
35 – Scary Spice
Action cures fear. And when it doesn’t, do it again and again until it does.
36 – Aromalicious
Surround yourself with positive people you can learn from. Model people you admire.
37- A Piece of My Pie
Your time is valuable, share it with those who deserve your attention. They are the people that will value it the most.
38 – Nodding Smiley Jello
Avoid arguments, show respect for people’s opinions. Ignore anything you don’t agree with. Open their mind by inspiring them with your perspective.
39 – Chopping Bored
Make a list of important skills you need to learn. Determine specific sub-skills you need to improve to get better at a each skill. Then set a plan and practice.
40 – Al Dente
Stretch yourself. If you are not making mistakes you are not trying hard enough.
41 – Couch Potato
You have all the experience and knowledge you need to be successful. Continue to develop knowledge and experience, but realize that it is action that creates success.
42 – Gingerbread Man
Be grateful for support, there is no such thing as a self made man. Give back when you can. The wheels turns and the more you give the more you get. Life just works like that.
43 – The Bowl is Greater than its Yummy Parts
Focus on your strengths. Develop partnerships with people who compliment your weaknesses.
44 – Tick Tock Cock
You have more than enough time. Just choose what you spend your time doing wisely.
45 – Bitter Kool Aid
Your kids will never get their childhood back. You can always make more money. How can you be an example you would like your kids to follow when they have kids?
46 – Waffling Myself
Get your problems at home sorted first. A strong family is a foundation for any external challenges. It’s also more important than anything else in your life. Keep that in mind when you find yourself avoiding those problems under the guise of being busy.
47 – Jelly Legs
Trust yourself to figure it out. It’s scary to do things you have never done before. Don’t try to figure out how to run before you can walk. Rather learn a bit. Take a step. Learn a bit more. Take another step. Keep it up. Soon you’ll be running.
48 – Sowing My Seeds
Never wait for other people to give you opportunities. Even if they have promised to do so. Go out and create the opportunities you want. If they do fulfill their promises then you just have more options.
49 – Shapeshifting Sour Cream
You don’t have to do anything, even if you say you will. Just be true to yourself. You are allowed change your mind.
50 – Elevated Monkey
You are a warm blooded mammal, a fully clothed monkey. It is not you who lives, but the universe who lives through you. Learn to listen to the universe through meditation. Live with a higher purpose.
I wonder what my self 10 years in the future would feed me today? I’ll let you know in 10 years when I’ve figured out the recipe.
Hey You – Awesome Human!
I write about how we can reach our potential through conscious evolution – personal, social and planetary – and share tips, techniques and technologies you can use to live from a better space, make humans a better race and make the world a better place.
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