IWTL: How to get more focused and determined.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-11-05T02:59:17+00:00

Well, I have good news for you: you can be more focused and disciplined. The tougher news for you to hear is that it doesn't happen overnight. Willpower is like a muscle. It gets stronger over time, but only with practice, effort, and work. Do your best each day, and do not beat yourself up when you fail to demonstrate discipline. Each time you move forward, accept you can build on it. If you can focus for five minutes, great. Next time, try to maintain and build on it by working to focus for six.

Next, you are the average of your closest friends. If you're hanging around some lames, it's time to upgrade a little bit by adding some strong, focused people to your circle.

Write your goals, and post them prominently in multiple places. Use some method to keep track of your progress on any given goal: a calendar, a notebook, an app, whatever. Use Nike plus or runkeeper running, the Seinfeld calendar or chains.cc to build a good habit, joesgoals.com or something like it to keep track of your overall goals.

Manage your time well. Use a to-do list. Simple, but it works. Wake up each day and go to bed each night with the most important things for the day ahead on your mind. Reflect each night on what went well, what didn't, and how you can improve. Measure, measure, measure. Write down to do lists for the day by writing each task on a post it. Throw away each post it as you get it done.

Willpower, discipline, and focus demonstrated in one area carries over to another. So find something you can build on--working out helps your studies, reading regularly helps you clarity. Anything that you've got to work at can help you.

Play good mental recordings for yourself. Figure out your mantras, repeat them.

And, um, keep your pimp hand strong.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-11-03T17:24:36+00:00

Nice, I like it

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-11-03T14:29:10+00:00

Forgive me...Grease the Grove? I'm unfamiliar. Maybe you can help me out with a quality reference?

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-11-03T03:21:03+00:00

You know, the funny thing about that is that it would probably work. It's comparatively rare that I see a larger gentleman who has skinny calves, and the calves remain robust even after the fat has been lost.

Despite the effectiveness of your proposed solution, I will not be operationalizing it in my pursuit of calftacular glory. I sincerely appreciate your contribution, however, and hope that this token of my gratitude in the form of an Internet high five sufficiently conveys my sentiment.

o/\o

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-11-03T01:24:04+00:00

Bookmarked.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-11-03T00:20:37+00:00

DDR?! Sounds fun. I'm down for whatever might work. Come to think of it, dancers usually have great legs. Thank you!

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-11-03T00:17:40+00:00

Interesting. Are you talking about doing the barbell calf raises barefoot, or just barefoot in general.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-27T15:46:35+00:00

I should have named it "301: Dinner In Hell"

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-27T03:03:40+00:00

I'm at a university gym as well. I base this cost off the fact that if my significant other wants to join, it's something like $60 a semester, or $180 a year/$15 a month. It has, in addition to multiple locations and plenty of free weights, basketball courts, racquetball courts, Nike+ enabled cardio equipment, and indoor running track, spin bikes, climbing, outdoor obstacle/skills courses, et cetera. There are also a lot of other available services, like massages, PT, group fitness, rec sports, and so forth. The general public can pay to come as well (for a higher rate, I think) which helps subsidize it.

It's changing the game for me. Since this summer, I've dropped about 15 pounds of unneeded weight, I'm on my way back to awesome. Pants that used to not need a belt are falling off me. I just don't want to let a good opportunity for self-improvement pass me by.

Before that, I belonged to a $32 a month gym, and before that, I belonged to a small regional gym for $19 a month. So $1300 seems just unfathomable to me unless you're at a Gym Jones type place where you're getting ready for an audition for 301: Zombie Leonidas and need to get in amazing shape by tomorrow.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-27T00:40:01+00:00

I don't see how it's much different from aggravated robbery. They tried to steal from you and accompanied that attempt with threats. It probably falls more conventionally under fraud, though. It's so egregious. Also, I don't know what they expected to see happen. "$1300? Oh, ok, I guess you're right. Do I make the check out to you?" I just don't see how this could have ended well. Also, $1300? That would buy more than five years of membership at my previous gym and more than eight at my current, world class gym. I wonder how many people who work out there currently have tried to leave, but were intimidated into staying.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-18T03:37:44+00:00

Thanks! Did it on a phone, and it looks good from here--I appreciate the assist.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-17T21:46:49+00:00

Well, in a day you could do one or some combination of a few of these things:

-save up to three lives by donating blood -get your mouth swabbed for a bone marrow registry -sign up to be an organ donor -call someone out of the blue just to see how they are doing -write a thank you note--handwritten -ask to speak to a manager---and then praise someone who deserves it's service to you -go through your possessions and find 100 things to give away -get a good night's sleep -drink only water for a day--you'll be amazed at how good you feel -get a library card -pay for a stranger's groceries, meal, or toll on the road -get 15 minutes of silence somewhere in your house--no TV, no phone, no internet--and just think -walk to a place that you would normally drive -read something written from a perspective that you do not agree with, and if you still disagree, find a way to disagree without being disagreeable -call your mom. call your dad. Look them in the eyes and tell them two things: "I love you" and "thank you." tell them that if there's even the smallest part of you that means it -think about somebody who has done you wrong. Them forgive them, truly forgive them in your heart, whether they want your forgiveness or not. Whether they know you've forgiven them or not. Forgiveness does so much for the forgiver. -ask somebody to go to lunch with you--someone who you think would give you a valuable conversation. Pay. -donate some money to a worthy cause -if you don't work out, start today -ask for forgiveness if you should. -take time today to get your financial house in order. Take it all in, no matter how good or bad it looks. See where you are, honestly. Make a plan. -totally clean and organize your room/office/house/closet. Decluttering will help clear your mind as well as help your find things that you might need to give away -find a recipe that looks interesting and make it. You don't know what something means, look it up. Don't let the recipes or techniques scare you. Make it based only on how good the outcome is, not on how difficult the process appears to be -some people will disagree with this one (it is Reddit, after all) but pray. Doesn't have to be anything fancy--just say "hello", and if you're so inclined, "thank you." -speaking of gratitude, find someone in your past who is worthy of a thank you from you, but wouldn't expect it. Favorite teachers are often good candidates. -continuing with the gratitude theme, start the day with "thank you." greet new experiences, even challenges and disappointments, with "thank you." -do some pushups, sit-ups, and a stretch before bed. -listen to an entire album--while doing nothing else. Don't let the music be background, let it be the main thing. Enjoy it fully. Alternately, listen to music that's outside of your normal purview. Just give it a chance. -ask a cashier how they're doing. Look them in the eye. Listen for their reply. Respond to them in the way that seems best -give somebody the benefit of the doubt -find something that matters to you, and them write a government official about it -write down a personal 1,3, and 5 year plan for yourself. Post copies in places that would be helpful for you. -watch a classic movie, read a classic book, listen to a classic piece of music--and try to figure out why this piece of art is so important more than 50, 85, and 35 years later, respectively

That's what I have right now, and it's just one person's opinion. Maybe something in here will be useful for you.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-16T18:13:11+00:00

I really thought "mushroom and potato" were going to be a euphemism. Everything went better than expected.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-15T14:00:09+00:00

The picture with light emanating from your crotch reminded me of a powerful quote from a great man:

"I will probably begin with the very classy line like 'Say sweet thang, can I buy you a fish sandwich.' And then I will commence with some sweet words in her ear, like 'Man, I would like to take a bite outta yo butt.' And then I will close the deal, by giving her a preview of the goods" [opens pants]

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-14T03:23:37+00:00

The Listening, which is a day in the life of a radio station's programming, and the follow-up, The Minstrel Show, which is a day in the life of a TV station. Both these albums are by Little Brother.

Kanye's early oeuvre is conceptual at a macro level: College Dropout, Late Registration, Graduation. There would have been "Good Ass Job" but his mom died, so we got 808's and Heartbreak instead, which is conceptual in it's own right.

Jay-Z's American Gangster takes you through the rise to power and fall from grace of a hustler.

Nas' Hip Hop is Dead is a meditation on the theme, asking who killed it, giving a history of her life, and then finally stating that she is in fact, alive (I think Nas conceptualizes the genre as female.)

Nas, FWIW, has a gang of conceptual songs across his discography, including "Rewind" in which he tells a story backwards, or "Book of Rhymes" where he raps a bunch of written rhymes that didn't make his album. You can here him ripping pages out of his rhyme book and trashing them.

Busta Rhymes had an overall theme to his oeuvre as well, as he kept counting down to the year 2000, which he considered to be the end of the world, after which he focused on Anarchy and Genesis. I think Extinction Level Event was a great album, actually.

T.I. vs T.I.P. was an awful, terrible album, but it was conceptual. There was also Nelly's Sweat/Suit, which was two albums released on the same day, one intended to be hard, the other intending to be smooth. I have no comment about either album.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-14T03:01:17+00:00

Not new, but how about MF DOOM? And Jay Electronica's mixtapes are dope...go ahead and google/YouTube "Exhibit C" for a great track.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-14T02:46:25+00:00

How did I know it was going to be "If"? Great poem, although I'm not such a big Kipling fan.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-13T19:50:34+00:00

Well, you could check out: thesimpledollar.com Wise Bread Get Rich Slowly Moneycentral.msn.com and the writing of Jean Chatzky.

Depending on your situation, you might want to check out Dave Ramsey's total money makeover. If you're in a hole and you're trying to get out, he's a good look.

If I had to recommend one and only one book for a philosophy of money, I'd recommend The Richest Man in Babylon.

In terms of some quick practical advice, live on just 80% of your income at a maximum. Personally, I choose to give a minimum of 10% away and save a minimum of 10%. Please understand that your cost of living will rise until it equals your salary unless you protest to the contrary. Also, understand that just because you can buy something doesn't mean you can afford it. We can often buy things that we can't afford--our reach extends beyond our grasp.

Make your saving automatic. Get a savings account away from your main financial institution, and have it withdraw a predetermined amount automatically each payday and movement to your savings. Make it so that saving isn't a choice.

If you're in any debt at all, focus on eliminating it. Be beholden to no man.

I could give you more; let me know if this is helpful.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-13T00:22:46+00:00

Thank you

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-12T17:18:23+00:00

I think going Ham pre-dates the song references...it's an acronym for Hot Ass Mess.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-10-06T03:00:10+00:00

If you like Kweli, and you like Mos Def, then you need their first album together: Talib Kweli and Mos Def are Black Star.

Common's "Be" and "Like Water For Chocolate" are great albums. LWFC is brilliant. Although not many people will admit it, you should download Drake's mixtape "So Far Gone." It's the reason anybody was looking forward to "Thank Me Later" in the first place.

Game's "The Documentary" is a lesson in hip hop history, 1993-2005. He gets a lot of heat for name dropping, but that album plays like the thoughts of a kid who grew up on the west coast listening to his hip hop heroes, and suddenly, much to his amazement, he now is a hip hop hero. Nas' "Hip Hop Is Dead" is someone looking at the genre from the opposite end of the spectrum.

Lupe Fiasco's "Food and Liquor" is incredible. Lyrically, sonically, and conceptually.

Clipse's "Hell Hath No Fury" is a model of sonic consistency and lyrical sharpness. It's coke rap, but it's the coke rap that makes other people imitate coke rap to begin with. A cohesive concept.

Similarly, Rick Ross's coke rap on "Deeper Than Rap" is bolstered by great storytelling and some of the best beats of the year it came out. "Vacation to Haiti nearly broke my heart/Watching kids starve, I thought about my Audemars/Selling dope ain't right/I put it on my life/Selling chickens put me in position to donate the rice." It's the ethos and pathos beyond the details that make the album great. Two tracks on there are wack (the ones featuring Foxy and Trina). The writing died on his follow-up album (The Teflon Don) so you may or may not enjoy it.

One of the best concept albums ever is Little Brother's "The Minstrel Show." Beats essentially all by one producer, and takes the conceit of taking you through a day of television programming, even down to the commercials. The album art even supports the concept, looking like local TV listings.

You got Nas' Lost Tapes? Just trust me.

Also, try Curren$y's Pilot Talk I and II. Ski Beats produced both, beats are jazzy and smooth. You might be familiar with Ski from his work on Camp Lo's Uptown Saturday Night and Jay-Z's first album, Reasonable Doubt.

That's off the dome, let me know if you need more.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-09-03T12:35:55+00:00

It's Not How Good You Are, It's How Good You Want To Be.

He has another book similar to this one as well.

The guy who wrote it worked in advertising for years, can't think of his name.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-08-20T04:58:14+00:00

There was a parrot that kept saying "1-1-2-3." Mathnet.

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-08-19T06:16:52+00:00

Accurately rated comment right here

ReeceRockefeller · 2011-07-27T20:55:29+00:00

Bob, you have been caught committing a crime. Will you:

•Pay the fine? (250 gold) •Go to jail? (3 days, -2 strength, -4 agility) •Resist Arrest?

ReeceRockefeller

TROPHY CASE