08 | 🗺 Journey before destination
Yo team,
Good weather is around the corner and so is another email. Don't forget to subscribe!
🤩 Enjoy the journey
I finally finished Happy by Derren Brown this week. I've been looking forward to finishing it, like I would with any book, as it means I can move onto the next one (and my list is growing).
It's probably the best book I've read so far - a big claim - and it's a shame it's over.
What's interesting, is that this way of looking at things happens in all parts of my life. Focusing on the destination (finishing a book, arriving in Cornwall after a 5 hour drive), not the journey (the book itself, the enjoyable drive).
With a goal oriented focus, you can never really be that happy. You achieve a goal, but you always make more in its place.
This email is a good example - I don't have a goal of X emails in 2021.
Instead, my aims of writing this email are to improve my writing, learn about cool things, and think about them out loud. I also want to connect with people that have similar views and interests. This is journey focused.
If I don't enjoy writing the email, I doubt I'd write one every week, so it's important that I enjoy the process.
📍 Creating change: journey before destination
Our naturally big focus on a goal - losing weight, learning a new skill - is likely the reason why we often don't succeed.
Losing X% body fat, or being able to play Oasis, are both great things - and would hopefully bring a lot of joy.
However, they are destination focused. There's not enough attention on enjoying and making the most of healthy eating and exercise, or the development of dexterity and ability as you learn the guitar.
If you don't like exercising or eating healthily, you aren't going to lose weight. So, focusing on the process - and this doesn't necessarily mean enjoying - is key.
Easier said than done, of course. Starting new habits/processes (daily yoga, 3x exercise per week etc) is always difficult.
Which is why it's important to figure out how to enjoy the process! And that's another problem for another day.
Thanks! 😎
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How am I 1% better this week? 📈
I had a difficult conversation that went very well and will hopefully bring about some great changes in the near future!
This Week’s Recommendation 🔝
📺 - Manctopia: Billion Pound Property Boom
Currently onto episode 4/4 - fascinating look at the development of Manchester from 3 key viewpoints: the homeless, the soon to be homeless, and the developers. It makes me bloody miss Manchester as well (especially as it looks like I’ll be priced out pretty soon!)
This Week I’m: ⬇️
Reading 📚 - What if? - Randall Munroe - A former NASA engineer answering loads of weird and wonderful questions such as What if the Earth suddenly stopped spinning?
Listening to 🎧 - There's No Other Way - Blur
Visiting 🏴 - Newquay as we speak!
Working on 📽 - A similar video to last week's email, hopefully I'll share it this week
Looking forward to - This guy: ☀️
This Week’s Quote 💬
Look at what takes up your time and see what is worth doing and what is not. Think about what provides enjoyment, connectivity, a sense of fulfilment, and what, when you look back, will have been a waste of time or stifled you.
— Happy - Derren Brown
I've quoted this book a lot in my emails over the past month. It really is brilliant and I think it came at a good time.
This Week’s Video 📺
There we have it!
Looking forward to catching up next week.
In the meantime, find me on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube, and have a look at what I’m reading on Goodreads. Ciao!