As a kid I never grew up being very physically active. I did some little league sports, I liked gym class, but it wasn’t something that ever became a consistent part of my life. My free time was typically spend in front of computers, videogames, and eating fast food.

Meanwhile, other classmates were much more health conscious: they went to the gym everyday, participated on the high school football team, organized softball games over the summer, and lived in households that encouraged eating vegetables and drinking protein shakes.

These different lifestyles represent two different cultures. One where health awareness is a prevalent theme, and the other where it is largely absent. We all experience these cultures to different degrees.

But our culture is not chained to our childhood and family. We have the ability to change our routines even as adults. We start by becoming more aware of our habits, and then we begin to make small adjustments as we find healthier alternatives. At first we may just do 10 push-ups every morning, then we might add an evening walk after dinner. For breakfast, we begin to substitute bacon for a fruit salad, and at night we limit our TV snack to only one scoop of ice cream instead of two. Every change is a step in the right direction, and each one builds on the momentum from the last.

If you have a problem keeping commitments, just start by doing whatever is most convenient. Something is always better than nothing, and if you keep building little habits then it will add up over time. Remember, you are trying to make changes that will persist for a lifetime, not simply spend the 3 months before summer trying to pump up (and then losing those gains come next winter). If the culture isn’t there, if you aren’t planning for something permanent, any progress you make will be temporary at best.

The hardest part about changing your culture is making those first few steps. You need to get in the habit of changing habits, and once you have ingrained that into your mind you will be open to change when it presents itself. These things begin to have a snowball effect, and one day you will look back and wonder how you ever went from “couch potato” to “health guru.” It began with that first sit-up.

There are a lot of effective ways to build up your culture. You could make friends who encourage these new habits, find exercises you enjoy, or keep a diary to keep track of your progress. One of my most popular articles is Fifty Ways to Stay Committed, which suggests these techniques as well as many others that will help you instill change. It is probably worth skimming through.

I also recommend Routines vs. Rituals, which drives home the point that a ritual is an action with meaning and purpose, while a routine is heartless and treated like a chore. If your fitness regimen becomes a chore, you’ve already lost the battle. There is no culture there – no drive, no passion, and no commitment. Basically, it won’t last.

I encourage people to become engaged in their health, to be internally motivated to maintaining a healthy and fit body, and not reactive to the external and often superficial pressures placed on us by society. This is how you build authenticity that lasts.

While I haven’t recommended any particular exercises, diets, or work-out schedules, my point of this post was to stress the importance of building your own rituals and culture. If you are someone who has been a health nut for awhile, then you are probably already familiar with some ways you have developed these things unconsciously. If you are someone who is just beginning to develop a new culture of fitness, then I hope you have learned why they are so important.

I will touch on some more concrete examples and strategies in upcoming posts. For now, I just want others to get the attitude right.

It has now been a good 5 months since I’ve last written about goal-making (see 1, 2). To be honest, the delay is probably due to my own sense of limbo about what I want to pursue as a career.

It has now been almost 1/2 a year since I’ve graduated college, and although I have been keeping busy diving into my own personal interests, I have yet to draw any clear path about where I want to be in the future.

Is this normal for a recent graduate? Maybe, maybe not.

Either way, I know panicking won’t do me any good, so I remain relax and focused.

It’s not that I don’t spend time thinking about the future – I do and I do it often – but I want make sure that when I find my niche that it is something I can become fully engaged in. The last place I want to be in 40 years is at some dead-end job with no love or pride for my craft.

Long ago I came to the conviction that there need not be a difference between work and play. That one can simultaneously do what they love and prosper from it if they put their mind to it. First, I need faith in my capacity to think, grow, and create value.

Believing I can achieve something must be the first prerequisite for actually going out and doing it.

Mission Statement

Throughout my life I have always had some desire to write. As a kid I remember thinking up short screenplays, reviewing video games online, and expressing my feelings about loved ones through lyrics and poetry. Today, I continue to make a conscious effort to improve my writing ability by blogging on sites such as this one and Libertarian Minds.

The past year has been an experiment to see if I can stay committed to blogging and still come out enjoying it in the end – I do.

That is why I now want to take my craft to the next stage. This, to me, means turning it into a profession.

First, I want to create a mission statement. Then I will write it above my desk, so I can recite it every morning. This one simple ritual will help me to maintain flow and keep my mind concentrated on the habits I need to adopt in order to be successful.

Here is a picture of my mission statement written on a dry-erase board:

To become a professional writer I will follow my self-appointed mantra of RAWA meaning “Read A lot, Write A lot.” In it there are 6 tenets: consume, digest, rest, grow, repeat, and evolve.

1. CONSUME A LOT OF MATERIAL

Lucky for me I love reading and I already go to all sorts of different websites on a daily basis. Over the year I have accumulated a list of my favorite and most informative resources:

Mainstream Media

CNN.com
MSNBC
FOXNews

Sites to follow the most up-to-date news of popular issues.

Libertarian Opinion/Blogs

Reason
Cato Institute
Ludwig von Mises Institute
Campaign For Liberty
Foundation for Economic Education
Anti-War.com
Center for a Stateless Society
Ayn Rand Institute
Capitalism Magazine
Libertarianism from A to Z: Jeffrey Miron’s blog
Think Markets
Marginal Revolution: Tyler Cowek and Alex Tabarrok’s blog
LewRockwell.com
Stephan Kinsella
Austro-Athenian Empire – Roderick Long’s blog
Free Advice – Bob Murphy’s blog
Ideas – David Friedman’s blog
Fringe Elements – Ryan Faulk’s blog
Economic Policy Journal – Robert Wenzel’s blog
Free Association – Sheldon Richman’s blog
Brad Spangler
Fr33 Agents

Professional resources and personal blogs to help build a comprehensive libertarian philosophy. More to be added.

Alternative Opinion/Blogs

Salon
Smithsonian Magazine
Huffington Post
New York Times
Bloomberg
WallStreet Journal
Alternet
DailyKOS
The Daily Caller
Politico
New Yorker
Fora.TV
Rolling Stone
The Conscience of a Liberal – Paul Krugman’s blog
Libcom.org

Other resources to stay knowledgeable about opposing opinions. This is important to help keep a well-rounded view. More to be added.

I will try to visit most of these sites at least once every week. The big ones like CNN.com (or ones I really enjoy like Mises.org), will probably be visited more frequently. I also go to reddit everyday where users post articles from all over the web.

The main point of building a huge list like this is to always have reading material available and to have access to a wide range of viewpoints and philosophies.

2. DIGEST IT ALL

It would be wasteful to read hours everyday but to never think critically about the content. I believe contemplation is one of the most important mechanism to human learning.

Studies have shown that when rats are given time to reflect, they learn faster than rats who don’t. Time spent introspecting on one’s thought patterns can help us better understand our beliefs. We may even discover that we have made a logical fallacy or a cognitive bias.

Humans are infallible but they are also self-correcting. There is no need to be alarmed when a belief of ours has been challenged. Instead it should be seen as an opportunity for growth. Those who deny their mistakes will always remain fixed where they stand, but those who are willing to weigh other alternatives are more likely to progress their understanding and step forward as intellectuals.

Digesting material means to put a conscious effort into reflecting on what we have learned and how it fits into our worldview.

3. REST

Between all this reading and thinking I am going to need some leisure time. This means things like nap-taking, hanging out with friends, listening to music, watching Mets games, and going out to dinner. Life stuff. Stuff less mentally-intensive so my mind has a chance to rejuvenate itself. After all, variety keeps the mind healthy and balanced.

Including rest in your routine is the difference between hard work and smart work. Also, one positive thing about actively taking your mind off of your work is that it lets your unconscious mull over ideas as you engage yourself in other activities.

4. GROW

Once I have consumed, digested, and taken a healthy break, I am then ready to apply my knowledge into the form of writing.

While the digestion phase was about breaking down information, the growth phase is about integrating information into an article that conveys a coherent theme. All writing, whether fiction or non-fiction, is the process of connecting old ideas and transforming them into something new, something more contemporary, and something more aligned with the zeitgeist of the times. It is the process of moving knowledge forward.

To fulfill my goal I must write each and everyday, even if it is just for a little bit. If by the end of the day I am not happy with what I have written – and it never gets published or even posted on a blog – it is still a worthy exercise in critical thinking and creativity. I think of it as analogous to a professional baseball pitcher: although it may not always be there day to start a game, they still go out in the bullpen and throw some pitches everyday, because that is how they keep their skills sharp.

If you want to be good at something you need to live and breathe it. It needs to be a part of your daily routine. By aiming to write everyday I am setting a precedent to continuously improve until I reach that next plateau.

5. REPEAT. REPEAT. REPEAT.

We all have certain habits which we repeat day-in and day-out. They become automatic or “second nature.” One beauty of the human mind is that we can consciously choose to replace existing habits with new ones – to reinforce “positive” behavior and punish “negative” behavior (however an individual may come to define those terms).

Over the last year I have built up a habit of reading, thinking, and writing about political philosophy, economics, and society at large. It is something I have developed a passion for which is why I now picture myself doing it as a career.

I don’t want to be simply good at it but great at it. I want people to read what I have to say and walk away more educated, more independent-thinking, and more inspired by life around them. I want them to think, “this is so good, I want my friends to read this.”

But this kind of value can only be created if I am dedicated to my craft, which means: practice, practice, practice. I believe that the more I immerse myself in an activity, the better and faster of a learner I will be.

6. EVOLVE

Evolution is a series of adaptations and changes over time. In many ways, it is spontaneous and unpredictable. Often the order is not clear until you look back on it.

This post marks a starting point for my pursuit as a professional writer, but only time will tell where I will end up a year, five years, or ten years down the line.

While I may not know the specifics of where this path is heading, I do know that if I stay devoted to my mantra of RAWA (“Read A lot, Write A lot”), and its 6 tenets, that it will lead me somewhere productive and fruitful.

The human mind can facilitate positive evolution by identifying value and producing it over time. Only by adding value to our lives and the lives of others do we progress as humans and make life worth living.

ENDING NOTE

At its core the RAWA strategy is simple: get emerged in reading and writing and I will soon build the skills to enter the professional domain.

Of course, this is not all one needs to be successful. Along with actually having the ability, one also needs to know how to network, market their product, and land opportunities. These will be issues I will try and resolve in later posts.

For now, my main focus is thinking of myself as a writer, reinforcing these positive rituals (consume digest, rest, grow, repeat, evolve), and eventually building a portfolio of my best material to send to editors.

Specifically, the goal of NLP is to model how others think and behave, including those who are creative. What are the strategies a so-called “creative person” plays out in their heads? What is the structure of their experience, and what mental steps do they take before producing a creative outcome? Or, is it all spontaneous? And if so, how does one increase the chances of such a spontaneity occurring? These are the types of questions an NLP practitioner would ask.

The Disney Creative Strategy

The most popular NLP technique designed to enhance creativity is the “Disney Strategy,” (4 page PDF) first modeled by Robert Dilts based on his conversations with filmmaker Walt Disney.

>”Dilts noticed that Disney had three separate approaches to his creative work and he alternated between these roles, which Dilts identified as Dreamer, Realist, and Critic. Each role has a distinct orientation in relation to the creative process: the dreamer is the place of free association, brainstorming and even fantasies; the realist is the place of action, of imagining putting the dreams into the physical world; and the critic is the place of testing the soundness of your idea’s, checking in on what will or won’t work.”

Dilts believes that we each have a part of us that can identify with these roles. However, some of us are more of one than another. What happens if we don’t find a balance?

“A dreamer without a realist cannot turn ideas into tangible expressions. A critic and a dreamer without a realist just become stuck in a perpetual conflict. A dreamer and a realist might create things, but they might not be very usable ideas without a critic. The critic helps to evaluate and refine the products of creativity.”

So the main question is: throughout the creative process how can we develop each of these roles? The answer Dilts provides says that we should set aside a time and place for each of these mental attitudes:

1. First put yourself in the role of The Dreamer. Write down any and all ideas that come to mind. Make as many freely associated connections as possible, let your thoughts just flow without any limitation or worry on how to put these ideas into action.


2. Next put yourself in the role of The Realist. Now ask yourself, “How can I put these ideas into a reality? What resources (money/time/skills) do I need?” Write these down.


3. Then put yourself in the role of The Critic. Now it is time to try and find the flaws of your strategy. What don’t you like? What potential obstacles are there? What needs improvement? Write these down.


4. Now step outside your triangle of roles. Observe your reaction to each – are you being a good Dreamer, Realist, and Critic? How can you improve each?


5. Cycle through each role again. Using any insights from #4, cycle through the roles again, this time being an even better Dreamer, Realist, and Critic.



6. Take your ideas to action Do the above as many times as needed until you can begin putting your ideas to action. Even as you carry out your plan, keep these three elements in mind at all times.

How much time you spend in each session is up to you. I recommend at least 5-10 minutes of brainstorming, idea-jotting, and question-asking per role. When I first tried this strategy I used to even light different-scented candles; which became a self-conditioned stimuli (an anchor, for those familiar with NLP lingo) to help me get into each mindset. You can use other habits (or “rituals“) to help amplify your creative roles as you practice them more and more.

Another Way To Deconstruct Creativity

The other day I came across an article on the blog Litemind called, “Deconstructing Creativity: The 4 Roles You Need To Play To Be Fully Creative,” and although I don’t think the author Luciano Passuello intended it, his strategy is actually very similar to Walt Disney’s.

The 4 roles Luciano identifies are:

1. The Explorer (be curious and alert, seek out as many inputs as possible, and talk to a lot of different people).

2. The Artist (flex your idea muscles, play, use your imagination, and integrate different concepts).

3. The Judge (be real, develop critical thinking, and be aware of thinking traps/biases).

4. The Warrior (get into action, overcome resistance, be courageous, and find out how to market and sell your idea).

Passuello doesn’t mention NLP but, like in NLP, he creates a very thorough model of his own personal creative strategy.

Other possible models

1. Real world examples

Do you have a friend, family member, coworker, or acquaintance who you think makes a good Dreamer, Realist or Critic? Why not use that as a resource to improve your creative process? You’d probably be surprised how much you can learn by pretending to think as someone else. How does your physiology change? How do your thoughts change? How do your motivations change?

2. Fictitious characters

Same thing as above, but this time pay attention to the thoughts and behaviors of characters in movies, TV, books, or plays. Imagine yourself in those roles. How does your physiology change? How do your thoughts change? How do your motivations change?

To some, a routine is getting up every morning, brushing your teeth, taking a shower, getting dressed, and going to work. It is not a meaningful part of our day, but it needs to get done so we do it. It’s a chore.

Rituals, on the other hand, are viewed as more meaningful practices. Often, there is symbolism involved, and a real sense of purpose. A big part of it is your subjective experience of the activity. I define the key differences as follows: