Every Single Minute

BY JAMIE FLINCHBAUGH 6 MINUTE READ There are always plenty of problems to be solved. Just open your email inbox and surely there will be something in there that isn’t quite right and requires intervention. You certainly don’t have time or capacity to solve them all, and so you must prioritize. The two most common decision criteria used for prioritizing this list of problems are the noise about it (as in “the squeaky wheel gets the grease”) and the magnitude of the problem. The squeaky-wheel criterion is certainly flawed, but often is based on some fundamental merit. To some degree, you could argue that this is crowd-sourcing the prioritization. While this method will certainly sometimes get it wrong, it won’t always get it wrong. Prioritizing problem solving based on magnitude, however, is inherently flawed as a primary criterion. Just as importantly, the blindness with which this filter controls us is dangerous, because we operate as if no one could or should push back on the deci...

  Winter is the coldest season of the year between autumn and spring . The name comes from an old Germanic word meaning “ time of water “ referring to rain and snow in middle and high altitudes. In temperate weather countries there is a bit of anguish as the ice and snow creates a menace and a lot of time is expended in adding salt and melting it or in clearing the pathway of the garage. A lot of writing by famous playwrights including the Bard of Avon have dedicated their compositions to winter. Here in India the Nobel Laureate Tagore has also dedicated many of his compositions to winter .  In India winter is very severe in the Himalayas especially in the states of Uttarakhand , Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh where snowfall enmeshes the roads in a white blanket.  In the state of Bengal through which runs the Tropic of Cancer winter is considered fun times . The Himalayas which border North Bengal are a treat to watch  from the hill station of Darjeeling....

  Marcus Aurelius often reminded himself of the power he was granted by nature—the power to choose his actions and craft his own character. He said people can’t admire you for what’s been granted to you by nature, but there are many other qualities to cultivate. “So display those virtues which are wholly in your own power—integrity, dignity, hard work, self-denial, contentment, frugality, kindness, independence, simplicity, discretion, magnanimity.” Recovering addicts cannot change the abuse suffered in childhood, or maybe even before they were born. They cannot undo the choices they have made in the past; they cannot unsnort the coke, un drink the booze, or un swallow the pills. They cannot undo the pain they have caused for themselves and others. But they can accept the past and try to change the now and the future by focusing on the choices they’re making right now. And we can do the same by focusing on what we control—namely the choices we make every day—and taking ...

  Wisdom is about understanding how to act and feel appropriately. Wisdom includes excellent deliberation, healthy judgment, perspective, and good sense. It opposes the vice of folly or thoughtlessness. Justice is about knowing how to act and feel well in our relationships with others. Justice includes good-heartedness, integrity, public service, and fairness. It opposes the vice of wrongdoing or injustice. Courage is about knowing how to act and feel correctly when facing fearful situations. Courage includes bravery, perseverance, honesty, and confidence. It opposes the vice of cowardice. Self-Discipline (or temperance) is about knowing how to act and feel right, despite emotions such as strong desire, inner resistance, or lust. Self-discipline includes orderliness, self-control, forgiveness, and humility. It opposes the vice of excess. Attention (literally): If we want to be the best we can be in eveiy situation, if we want to live with arete, then we need to be aware of our ...

  There is a lot to be learnt from Nature. The fiery rays of the sun and its consistency and discipline , teaches us to be powerful and straight in our dealings. The calmness of the moon helps us to remain calm and soothing in our approach. Even after the moon becomes a new moon and vanishes, it rises from the ashes and grows gradually to become a full moon again. A lesson here is not to get cowed down by repeated defeats as you can rise all over again. Now think of the exuberance and enthusiasm of a river. It rushes down the mountain top at full steam and steadily cuts through valleys and plains to finally mingle with the ocean.At no stage does it distinguish between living beings and allows all to dip into the same and offer their prayers and homages without becoming complacent. Along the way its waters are used for irrigation and navigation and it allows selfless service without anything in return. Nature is beautiful in its own way. Be it the clouds setting in ...

 https://www.artofmanliness.com/character/behavior/are-you-disciplined-or-just-self-disciplined/?utm_source=pocket-newtab-intl-en   in: Behavior , Character Brett & Kate McKay • November 2, 2021   Have you been waking up early, writing in your journal, meditating, exercising, drinking eight glasses of water a day, and planning your week religiously for months and months, but aren’t seeing any real progress in your life? What gives?  Since we were little kids, haven’t we been told that if we exercise discipline, we’ll be a success? Problem is, discipline is not the same thing as self-discipline , and you’ve only been exercising the latter.  The Difference Between Discipline and Self-Discipline In his book, The Attributes , retired Navy SEAL Rich Diviney makes a deft, useful distinction between discipline and self-discipline. For Rich, self-discipline is all about, well, the self . It’s about managing your emotions, resisting temptations, forcing y...

 https://www.fastcompany.com/90688894/yes-you-can-only-work-5-hours-and-call-it-a-day-heres-how-to-make-it-productive?utm_source=pocket-newtab-intl-en   Something’s very wrong with the traditional nine-to-five: it doesn’t work. Scandinavian countries dominate the  World Happiness Report —Norway being the  third most productive country in the world  and Helsinki winning the title of  the best city for work-life balance . And their standard working week is less than 40 hours long. They work a whopping  359 hours less  than Americans every year. How I began working five-hour workdays (by accident) When I quit my job in the great resignation of 2020 to become a freelance writer, I was determined to continue working eight-hour days. I was a “real” full-time writer, after all, and I needed to prove it by working just like everyone else works. That is until I couldn’t. advertisement I contracted COVID-19 in May 2021. After coming back to work in Jun...