Short notes worth sharing
Random ideas and musings from my notes app.
I LOVE my notes app! It helps me make sense of my mind, declutter and organize my thoughts, and create space for fresh ideas. A simple “brain download” (aka writing things down) frees up my brain space for more complex and creative cognitive tasks. Plus, I live in fear that I’ll lose that million-dollar idea when it shows up unexpectedly.
My notes app holds the inner workings of my mind: random ideas, lists, reminders, more ideas, insights, daydreams, responses to something I listen to, aspirational projects, and yes, some more ideas… You get the point.
I often “jot” down snippets I want to expand into a longer post, but honestly, some of these are sufficient as they are. Here are some of them.
You’re most powerful when you’re satisfied. When we’re desperate, we are in the most disempowered position—in the state of lack and never enoughness. We are most likely to settle, to accept crumbs. But when we’re content and fulfilled, we are mentally free from incessant wanting, needing, and striving. When our cup is full we’re free to play, create, support others, and do things that matter.
Failing more often is a good thing. If we always feel competent and comfortable, it’s because we’re just doing the same thing we already know how to do. But when we start pushing the boundaries of our comfort and knowledge, we will start feeling discomfort and inadequacy. The more new things we try and the fuller a life we live, the more often we will live on the edge of “failing.”
Raise your standards and ask for what you want. This is my mantra for this year. It doesn’t have to be a specific ask from someone else (although it could be!), but it can include asking more of yourself. Raising your standards doesn’t mean simply wanting a better treatment from others, but rather, expecting more from yourself. For example—being a better steward of your time and resources. If you want more, then you have to stop selling yourself short and accepting less.
What we consume matters. So much of the information today is fed to us without our choosing. And if we’re not choosing what we’re consuming, thinking, and believing—someone is choosing for us. We should care about what we give our attention to and we should choose carefully what we allow into our mind because, whether we’re aware of it or not, it dramatically impacts what values we pursue and how we live our lives.
The only way to get anything done is to get started. Making the transition from thinking to doing is often the hardest part. The trick to getting started is not to overthink it. Do a thorough brain download, then pick one thing from your list and begin. It’s the only way to initiate movement and create momentum!
We are shaped by the things we do most of the time. Stop fretting over things that don’t perfectly fit into your goals because what you do once in a while won’t have a major influence on your life. It’s the seemingly minor, boring, daily, things that end up shaping what our life is about. Things that we consistently do is what makes the greatest difference.
Hopping on trends is the death of an original idea. Currently I’m abstaining from mindless Instagram scrolling (it’s a process lol), but when I’m on there, I can’t help but notice that most content “creators” are doing the same thing. It’s one recycled idea after another. My point is, is this really creativity if we’re just copying the same thing everyone else is doing? Turn inwards, come up with your own ideas, follow your impulse.
We don’t change when we decide to change. Real, sustainable change comes from a fundamental shift in beliefs, which leads to change in behavior. But ultimately, just declaring that we want to change is not enough because our brains will always try to default to old habits that are easy and comfortable. Meeting old triggers with new behaviors is what change looks like in action.
Listen to inconvenient truths. Choose change without crisis. Sometimes we ignore that voice that is nudging us gently towards change until it creates a crisis and forces us to act. To not wait for a crisis means listening to inconvenient truths that we would rather ignore. Self-honesty might be hard because it demands different choices, but the painful part is only temporary.