I read an article recently about the things you have to let go of to be happy. At first I thought, well duh, letting go of regret would make you happier! Tell me something more obvious, why don't you?
If it were so easy to let go of things--regrets, trying to impress people, living your life by someone else's standards--I'm sure there would be a lot more happy people in this world. I wish the article had said more about how to do. I'm not exactly the Dalai Lama here.
This week is a big one for me. The last week (and projects) of my first year of grad school. I know I'm supposed to be freaking out, staying up all night cramming, eating my weight in greasy foods (ok, I might be doing this last part), all I can think of is. Well. Nothing, really.
I know that these projects are going to get done. I know that I'm going to take my final. And I know that by next Thursday, I'm going to be done with the first year of grad school.
But more than that, I feel different now. I signed up for a fitness boot camp, and I know I'm going to work hard at it this summer. I've accepted what causes my stress and that it's temporary. I've accepted that I'm never going to be a size 2 (this one was difficult). I've accepted that whatever happens, happens.
So maybe the trick isn't letting go, it's just accepting things for what they are and knowing that there are ways to improve the things you don't like.
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Friday, April 20, 2012
On Motivation...
Why is it when you age, your motivation starts to lag until it becomes nonexistent? When I was an undergrad, it was like I had all the energy in the world and never felt like I was too stressed to fit it all in.
A few things are different now, though.
1) Social Life. Things are different when you're in a new-ish city where you can't just walk places anymore. Events, seeing friends, trips all become these big events where you have to plan parking, mass transit, how you're going to get home alone... Also, you're much more limited in meeting people. It's not as easy to just show up at a club or sport.
2) Limited Activities. Gone are the spur-of-the-moment trips down the Juniata in a kayak or up Mt. Nittany. You can't drive over to Bald Eagle lake, or spend a day walking the rail trail. Forget a leisurely stroll around an empty campus. My neighborhood becomes pretty sketchy at points, and there's basically never any parking anywhere you want to go. Getting anywhere takes forever because there is always traffic at every point in the day.
3) Different Expectations. So you're getting older. Priorities change. You can't afford to spend three hours every day in the gym anymore because you have work. OK, and you work weird hours, so now you have to find time do get homework done. In addition, you no longer have that weekly reason to be in good shape or on top of work. I can't remember the last time I went out dancing. It was such a common occurrence in college, I spent all week working out for that one night.
I guess what it all comes down to is that you have to remember that when your life changes, as you age, your motivation become different too. So I don't go dancing anymore. And I have crazy hard classes I constantly have nightmares about. Why can't I have the same motivation I did when I was 20?
Summer is right around the corner and now more than ever I'm ready to reclaim my life. Find my new motivation. I'll let you know how that goes...
1) Social Life. Things are different when you're in a new-ish city where you can't just walk places anymore. Events, seeing friends, trips all become these big events where you have to plan parking, mass transit, how you're going to get home alone... Also, you're much more limited in meeting people. It's not as easy to just show up at a club or sport.
2) Limited Activities. Gone are the spur-of-the-moment trips down the Juniata in a kayak or up Mt. Nittany. You can't drive over to Bald Eagle lake, or spend a day walking the rail trail. Forget a leisurely stroll around an empty campus. My neighborhood becomes pretty sketchy at points, and there's basically never any parking anywhere you want to go. Getting anywhere takes forever because there is always traffic at every point in the day.
3) Different Expectations. So you're getting older. Priorities change. You can't afford to spend three hours every day in the gym anymore because you have work. OK, and you work weird hours, so now you have to find time do get homework done. In addition, you no longer have that weekly reason to be in good shape or on top of work. I can't remember the last time I went out dancing. It was such a common occurrence in college, I spent all week working out for that one night.
I guess what it all comes down to is that you have to remember that when your life changes, as you age, your motivation become different too. So I don't go dancing anymore. And I have crazy hard classes I constantly have nightmares about. Why can't I have the same motivation I did when I was 20?
Summer is right around the corner and now more than ever I'm ready to reclaim my life. Find my new motivation. I'll let you know how that goes...
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
I've Been On Hiatus!
Sometimes fitting in the blog time gets difficult, which is why I've been gone for over a month...
And it's fantastic timing because I've been reassessing my goals and where I am in relation to them. Answer: FAR. But that's ok because the other thing I've been discovering is that I don't need to run towards the finish line. It's not how fast you get there, after all, it's what you learned on the journey there.
And my journey is definitely one of ups and downs. Like most other people in search of happiness, I'm completely self-handicapping. This notion is when you purposefully sabotage yourself so that you get exactly what you expect... there's no variability. I'm guilty of looking for excuses to keep myself from venturing out: it's a fat day, I'm too tired, I don't know if I'll like being around __ for more than ten minutes. We all do it.
There are three weeks of classes left. I'm going to get organized, motivated, and in three weeks I'm going to be prepared to be living so far out of my comfort zone, I'm going to forget what it feels like to hide in it.
And it's fantastic timing because I've been reassessing my goals and where I am in relation to them. Answer: FAR. But that's ok because the other thing I've been discovering is that I don't need to run towards the finish line. It's not how fast you get there, after all, it's what you learned on the journey there.
And my journey is definitely one of ups and downs. Like most other people in search of happiness, I'm completely self-handicapping. This notion is when you purposefully sabotage yourself so that you get exactly what you expect... there's no variability. I'm guilty of looking for excuses to keep myself from venturing out: it's a fat day, I'm too tired, I don't know if I'll like being around __ for more than ten minutes. We all do it.
There are three weeks of classes left. I'm going to get organized, motivated, and in three weeks I'm going to be prepared to be living so far out of my comfort zone, I'm going to forget what it feels like to hide in it.
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