Today is Jan 7th… And by the end of the day, 2% of this year will be over!

So let me ask you this… Have you made 2% progress on your annual goals yet?

It’s totally fine if you haven’t (some of my goals I haven’t even thought about yet – and won’t for a few weeks), and goal progress is are rarely linear.

But the reason I like reminding myself of time % gone, is to push myself to at least start. Even if it’s the tiniest baby step.

Usually the first step is the hardest (mentally), but the easiest (physically). Make a phone call. Send an email. Research something. Make a list of actions. These are all very simple 5-10 minute activities that can be done anytime.

Why not do one today?

A friend snapped this in the middle of nowhereville, Colorado. 🙂

“Just because everyone around you is winning, that doesn’t mean that you are losing”

People are making a ton of money investing right now. They are killing it in their careers. They’re happy and thriving. There are countless world issues going on, yet everywhere I look, people seem to be doing really well. I’m confused.

Sometimes I look at everyone else winning and think, “why am I not winning like that? I must be losing”.

Then I slap myself, and repeat these reminders:

• Comparison is the thief of joy. Stop. it. now.
• When you look at others, you’re comparing your inside (feelings) to their outside (appearance). It’s not a fair comparison, because it’s not the complete story.
• Other people’s path has nothing to do with your path. Focussing on YOUR strengths and bettering yourself should be your focus.
• If you really think about it, you probably are winning. Roof over head ✅ food on table ✅ people that care about you ✅.

So keep in mind…

“Just because everyone around you is winning, that doesn’t mean that you are losing”

From the archives, a young Joel, circa 1988. He is winning for sure.

“Silence isn’t empty. It’s actually FULL of answers”

Take a few moments today to explore the silence.

Practice stillness and find quietude.

It’s a really cool way to start the weekend 😎.

Have a good one,
Joel

*Pic taken at sunrise yesterday in Coorong, South Australia

“Your life is made of two dates and a dash… Make the most of the dash”

Happy Sunday dudes!

How are you going to make the most of your dash today?

I’m gonna read, go surfing, explore some sea caves, eat good food, laugh with my wife, fly a kite, play games, give my friend a gift and smile the entire day. 🙂

It’s a great day, to have a great day. Enjoy every second while it’s here!
– Joel 🙂

These archways are made naturally, just big enough for people to walk through. So cool! People also call them hobbit holes. Kevin Smith took this pic in Blowing Rock Nature Preserve, in Jupiter, FL. 

“Monday’s are a drag with my City job. But it doesn’t take long to get a smile on my face. This picture is from a nice neighborhood in Gilbert, AZ. I drive a street sweeper and I see a lot of cool stuff. In front of this particular house there is always sidewalk writing. I snapped this today. Always look forward to driving past it too see what’s new.”

I got this note from a reader last Monday.

A few reminders for y’all…

1) Keep your head up, and look for the beauty in life. You miss these awesome cheer-up signs if your head is down looking at your phone all day.

2) The tiny little things you do can mean SO MUCH to others. Keep creating, dressing up, and making the world a more beautiful place.

Have a great day!!
Joel

“Imagine living in the center of a large apple orchard.

Each day you have to venture into the orchard and collect a large basket of apples.

The first few times it doesn’t matter where you decide the visit. All parts of the orchard have apples and you can find them wherever you go.

But, as time goes on, it becomes more and more difficult to find apples in the same places you’ve already visited before. And the more you return to the same locations, the harder it becomes to find apples there.

But if you decide to always to go parts of the orchard that you’ve never been to before, your chances of finding apples is greatly increased.

It is exactly the same with luck in life.

It’s easy to exhaust the opportunities in your life. Keep talking to the same people in the same way. Keep taking the same route to and from work. Keep going to the same places on holiday.

But, new and random experiences introduce the potential for new opportunities. It’s like visiting new parts of the orchard. Suddenly you’re surrounded by hundreds of apples!”

*****

This is a snippet from a book I’m reading, The Luck Factor. (<— affiliate link!)

So tell me… which *new* place in the orchard are you gonna visit today?

Happy apple hunting,
Joel

*Feature pic by chris robert on Unsplash

Nobody is perfect. Everyone has flaws.

Flaws are what make us unique. And uniqueness is what makes us stand out.

People are awesome because of their flaws, which is called being “flawsome”!

A few reminders for today:

• You are flawsome. Perfectly imperfect for your current position in life.
• Your uniqueness is needed in this world. Don’t ruin it by trying to be “normal”.
• It’s good to work on your flaws and improve yourself… But don’t for one second get down on yourself or think you’re not good enough to do something. You’re better than you think you are.

Have a wicked Wednesday!
– Joel

Winter in Los Angeles!

Came across a cool saying the other day…

“whatever you’re not changing, you’re choosing.”

I think we all get stuck in situations we don’t like in life. We outgrow the places we live, grow tired of the jobs we work, maybe our friends situation needs repairing…

But if we don’t make changes to improve our lives, we are consciously deciding not to improve our lives.

Lifestyle design works both ways. You can build a good life, or not build a good life. Either way, you are choosing to do it.

Happy Thursday! Build a great day today!

*Feature pic by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash

What’s the point of being a happy, centered, confident, smart, outgoing, bright shining star if you don’t share it and lift up others?

To do today: Share your brightness with others.

“We’re not in this world to shine, but rather to illuminate others’ path.”

Happy Friday, y’all! Make it a great day!

Joel

Wine + Dinner = WINNER. Believe it or not, my wife and I filled up this entire wine rack with various fancy wines for under ~$4 per bottle 🙂 If you know what credit card hacking is, and want to try it with wine, hit me up and I’ll tell you about my scheme 🙂 

Time to change it up!

“If you want a life you’ve never lived, you need to do things you’ve never done” – Jen Sincero

Today:

• Do something different
• Wear something different
• Try something you’re afraid of
• Turn off your phone for a few hours
• Try a new style of workout

Breaking the routine once and a while helps you grow. Try it and see what happens 😉

Happy Saturday! Enjoy every second!
– Joel

Sometimes when Cooper sleeps he looks like a kangaroo! 

“You can’t pour from an empty cup.”

Reminder for today: Do some activities that help fill back up your cup.

• get enough sleep ✅
• exercise ✅
• relax & quiet time ✅
• read, listen to music ✅
• appreciate, count blessings ✅
• spend time outside ✅
• love your partner 😘 ✅

Keeping your cup filled let’s you be the best you.

Happy Sunday!
– Joel

“Just a rock. Actually it’s more than a rock.  It was formed by the waves and currents for at least a century. When I saw this I was thinking, if something this amazing can take this long to be created… We can be patient for the life we want to create over time.” – Kevin Smith

“Grit is perseverance for very long term goals.

Grit is sticking with your future, day-in, day-out.

Not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years…

And working really hard to make that future a reality.

Grit is living life like it’s a marathon, not a sprint.”

– Angela Duckworth.

*******

Happy Tuesday my friends! Keep going, and going, and going and….

🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️

Pic by Isaac Wendland on Unsplash

Today is a big day.

Keep these in mind:

– Look for the good in things. Negative thoughts have no place in your brain!

– Social media is a great for sporadic updates. But try not to live your day according to everyone else’s feelings.

– Focus on what’s in your control, vs. out of your control. Your work, your health, your fitness, your happiness. 🙂

Happy Wednesday, my friends. Almost over the hump!
– Joel

*Feature pic by Pâmela Lima on Unsplash

Good morning happy people!

Get ready, because the best part of your day is right in front of you.

Lace up, slap on a smile, do your hair toss and get ready to crush it. The awesome stuff begins as soon as you say decide it does.

Make it a good one,
– Joel

Wife got a telescope for Christmas! Snapped this pic of the moon last night

“Friday.

The golden child of the weekdays.

The superhero of the workweek.

The welcome wagon to the weekend.”

Think; Friday is my day. And nothing’s gonna bring me down today.

Woot woot! Have a wicked day my dudes!
– Joel

From the archives, 2013. There was a period where Coops’ ears grew faster than the rest of his body.

Kevin Hart said on a podcast recently…

“I was married to my career and dating my family… (this was before breaking his back in a car accident)

…but when you’re laying in the hospital, none of the stuff you “think” are valuable are in the room”.

A good reminder to take a quick moment today and check in on your values.

We only get one life. Don’t blow it.

Happy Sunday 😀

Mum spotted a few roos on her hike this weekend in Cleland, SA.

Say this out loud to yourself…

“I don’t get up for work. I get up for ME.”

Although work is a big part of your week, it doesn’t control each day. You’re in control of your life, your time, your happiness, your reasons, etc.

Keep reminding yourself of your reasons for getting up in the morning. You get to decide what is at the forefront.

Have a great day, doing what you do best! Happy Monday!
– Joel

**Feature pic by engin akyurt on Unsplash

It was England, 1784… a guy named Thomas Orford was just strolling along, minding his business…

When he heard someone yell out, “Oi mate! Would you mind helping me carry some clothes and stuff into this house? In return I’ll give you a pint of beer!”

Thomas accepted, and helped the guy.

But, suddenly Tom found himself in handcuffs. 🙁 It turns out the clothes were stolen, and Thomas got framed as a thief with stolen goods in his possession!

Later at the Old Bailey Courthouse, poor old Thomas told the judge his story, but nobody believed him. And he got sentenced to “transportation” for a 7 year sentence.

That’s how Thomas Orford ended up on the First Fleet of ships, along side 774 other convicted criminals. They were exiled from England in 1787, sent on a risky 9 month sea trip to a remote island country, now called Australia. 🇦🇺

******

Today is Australia Day! Woohoo!

If you know any Aussies, shoot them a message and buy them a beer!

🇦🇺 Happy Australia day! 🇦🇺
– Joel

PS. last year’s Aussie Fun Facts here if you’re interested! 🙂

Sadly, i’m not drinking alcohol right now. So I’m brewing up a delicious batch of hibiscus tea!

*feature photo by Srikant Sahoo!

Last week I was walking the dog.

I was holding his leash with one hand, and had a piping hot coffee in the other. I also somehow was holding my phone, some letters, headphones and a face mask. Hands completely full.

All was going well until Cooper stopped and did a big poop. Then I had to figure out how to pick up the poop with my hands already full…

The ground was too wet and dirty to put anything down, and I didn’t have any pockets… So I decided to try and squat as low as I could (right next to the poop) and use my upper legs as a table to rest everything on and free my hands up.

I carefully balanced my coffee, phone, the letters and such on my legs and sat as still as possible while I slowly reached for a poop bag. It was like a sidewalk balancing act. Quite impressive, actually.

But then suddenly Cooper saw a squirrel. He yanked his leash, threw me off balance and everything came tumbling down. Coffee mug landed in the poop, spilt coffee all over my crotch, phone and letters into the wet grass, etc…

******

Anyway, this reminded me of a common mistake I make at work… I tackle 5-6 seemingly small tasks all at the same time, then add one more, then another. Eventually, my attention is so scattered I screw everything up.

Multi-tasking is a bad habit. It usually makes you less productive.

So, keep this in mind as you go about your business today. Stay focused on one thing at a time, or you might end up with a big poopy mess on your hands.

– Joel  📱 💩 ✉️ ☕️ 😳

Past stories…

I am an idiot #1 🤷‍♂️

I am an idiot #2 🤦‍♂️

I am an idiot #3 🙋‍♂️

I am an idiot #4 🙅‍♂️

**Feature pic by Matthew LeJune