#i won’t lie they are enjoyable. but they are also potato chips

[laurelnose]

if u ever hear a little voice in your head telling u to reread the silmarillion. that’s the devil talking

[petork]

Trying to eat healthy so spent like - ok I don’t wanna say how much but it was a lot - on a Sainsbury’s order with a shit ton of healthy stuff. Yoghurt, strawberries, raspberries, nectarines, granola, sultana bran, dried fruit, fish, whole meal bread, pop chips, broccoli and cauliflower etc. Just loads of different stuff because my corona overeating has led to an increase in appetite so it’s like. I’m going to eat every 2 seconds anyway, so I need to phase out the junk and replace it with a variety of healthy stuff that is at least somewhat enjoyable.

Also my mum got me an air fryer to support me on my Health Journey because she’s lost a ton of weight during rona (bitch) and she has one. So now I’m an Air Fryer Person. I tried to make potato wedges the first time but loaded it up too much so they were uncooked, but I cooked salmon tonight and it was 👌. And I made chicken salad to go with it rather than mashed potato. It sounds like I’m bragging and I kinda am! But I’m trying to focus on the positives because I won’t lie, I have spent at least the last five years cultivating an unhealthy dependency on junk food. So this is going to be hard for me. And I need to celebrate the good things I think.

[funkyrbsongs]

Human Mind

The human mind wonderful. It’s also a good liar and an "excuse machine" that frequently tries to convince us NOT to take actions we know are good for us. This ultimately prevents many positive changes from taking place in our lives.

But why? Why does the mind lie to us and make irrational excuses?

Because the mind wants comfort, that’s why! It’s afraid of discomfort, pressure and change. The mind is used to its comfort zone, and anytime we try to stretch that zone too far, for too long, the mind tries desperately to get back to ground zero at any cost… including sacrificing our long-term health, happiness and success.

So let’s expose three of the mind’s most regretful lies and excuses once and for all – Marc and I have literally seen these specific lies and excuses plaguing hundreds of our course students over the past decade:

1. "They can do it, but that doesn’t apply to me because they have it better than me." – Just because someone else can, doesn’t mean you can, right? You look for reasons they can do it but you can’t – maybe he’s an internet entrepreneur or freelance writer because he has no kids. Maybe she’s way fitter than I am, so she can run a marathon. Maybe she doesn’t have all the work and family obligations I have, or has a supportive spouse, or doesn’t have bad knees. OK, fine, it’s easy to find excuses: but look at all the other people who have considerable obstacles too who’ve done it. Marc and I have a family, and have dealt with significant loss in our lives, and still managed to succeed on many fronts. And just as we’ve turned things around for ourselves, we know hundreds of other people who’ve done the same. Through a decade of coaching our students, we’ve witnessed people reinventing themselves at all ages – 48-year olds starting families, 57-year-olds graduating from college for the first time, 71-year-olds starting successful businesses, and so forth. And stories abound of people with disabilities or illnesses who overcame their obstacles to achieve great things. Your obstacles can be overcome. (covered in the "Getting Out of Your Own Way" lesson of the "Getting Back to Happy Course")

2. "Life is meant to be easier and enjoyed more." – Sure, I agree that life should be enjoyed (as many of us do) but the problem is that the idea that life should ALWAYS be easy and enjoyable is used to justify all kinds of lazy behavior. Might as well sit on the couch and scarf down those potato chips, because hey, life is meant to be enjoyed, right? Nope. You can do without junk food and still enjoy life. You can exercise and enjoy it. You can give up a lot of comfort in your life and not lose a thing. In fact, the path of least resistance is often the path of least reward. You need to do hard things. There are no shortcuts to any place worth going. As Einstein once said, “Genius is 1% talent and 99% hard work.” You must run to be a runner. You must write to be a writer. You must actively work on a business venture to learn how to run a successful business. There is no substitute for doing the work. So meditate on this every day: “I will do the work. It won’t be easy. It will be worth it!” (covered in the "Increasing Your Willpower" lesson of the "Getting Back to Happy Course")

3. "I can do it later." – Sure, you can always do it later… but your later self will feel the same exact way. Think about it: Why should your later self be more disciplined than your present self? In fact, because you’re allowing yourself to slack off now, you’re building a habit of procrastination and actually making it less likely that your later self will be more disciplined. So today, stop making excuses for why you can’t get it done and start focusing on all the reasons why you must make it happen. Stop talking about what you have done or what you are going to do. Just do it and let your actions speak for themselves. Most great things in life don’t happen by chance, they happen by choice. You never know what’s possible until you risk finding out. In the end, there is only one thing that makes your dreams and goals completely impossible to achieve: Your lack of action today.