Perfect Life Project

Are You Perpetually Exhausted?

Source: Donna Karlin, Fast Company

Are you ignoring that exhaustion, telling yourself you’ll take some time off in a month or so?  In the meantime how are you able to effectively lead if you’re too tired to process everything that’s going on around you?

If you don’t manage your energy, it doesn’t matter how you might manage your time as you are not processing what you need to nor are you mentally retaining what’s happening.  Leadership is more than an organizational position; it’s leading your people in a way that they and the organization can move forward.  If you’re exhausted, your mental capacity is diminished and you are not leading, you’re hanging on to the status quo hard enough so you don’t fall.

Going Low Carb Revisited

Back in February I posted about beginning a low-carb diet to quickly shed some weight and get back to my racing shape. Unfortunately that effort was unsuccessful due to several lifestyle interruptions and what in retrospect was a poorly designed program. In fact, I returned from my Malaysian holiday the heaviest weight of my life. It was time to take serious action.

Almost 4 weeks ago I began another low-carb diet, this time properly designed by a dietitian friend. Out went all the bread, pasta, rice, biscuits, and most simple sugars. All I could eat were 3 pieces of fruit per day, as much undressed salad or steamed vegetables, 100grams of lean protein and some dietary bars, or shakes. I did keep coffee and the occasional beer and wine on my list, because life is too short to miss out on some things.

The first few days were hellish. My body screamed at me and I almost gave up within 3 days. Then it started to get easier. By the end of week one a small weight loss was evident and I was feeling pretty good. I was encouraged to see out week two as thats when the results start to really show. Sure enough, I had shed a few kilos by then.

10 ways history's finest kept their focus at work

I just came across this post at a blog called LifeDev. It was actually written by Albert van Zyl from the blog HeadSpace. Anyway, its really great advice.

The lives of great people give us interesting clues about how to organise our days.

All of them attached great value to their daily routines. This is because they saw it as being part of ‘becoming who they are’, as Nietzsche puts it.

For the same reason they were also highly individual in their routines. They had the courage to go against popular opinion and work out often strange daily plans that suited them.

This is perhaps the first lesson that we can learn – that it takes courage and resolve to design and stick to a routine that suits you. But as Emerson reassures us: ‘The world makes way for the man who knows where he is going’.

There are at least 10 other lessons that the daily routines of the great can teach us:

Today is The Perfect Time to Start

Following is an excellent old post I recently came across on the the well-written Genius Types blog. Its about just getting on with your dreams rather than making excuses or waiting for the perfect time to start. I believe its very true.

The Perfect Time to Start Never Comes

When is the perfect time to start a business, lose weight, start investing, become an artist, travel the world, or create the life you have always wanted?

Australians working harder, sleeping, relaxing less

A new study of Australian lifestyle habits has revealed that we are working longer, sleeping less and getting less exercise. This is something I have been aware of for some time and used to be guilty of. In the last few years I have made a determined effort to combat this trend with a more balanced and rewarding approach that I have termed my Perfect Life Project. Below is a report from the Sydney Morning Herald detailing the latest lifestyle figures. In italics I have included my PLP figures to demonstrate how life can be successfully lived by the average person without following this alarming trend.

Going Low-Carb

I have decided to pursue a low-carb diet for the next month. There are a few reasons for this and in this post I will outline the reasons, approach and benefits.

I have always been an very active person, competing in several sports and lots of outdoor activities. A year ago I returned to the gym for the first time in almost 20 years. As I am approaching 40 I felt it was important to begin building or preserving the muscle mass that begins to deteriorate as we age. More muscle actually increases your metabolism and can result in burning fat. But mainly I wanted to get stronger and combat the aging process as much as possible. Combining resistance work in the gym with my aerobic cycling pursuits should do the trick.

Inspirational

Just over thirteen months ago, a life-long friend and
mentor of mine was involved in an horrific cycling accident.
His Saturday morning bunch ride was collected side-on by a speeding vehicle.The carnage was widespread.

10 Benefits of Exercise

I love exercising. I am a competitive cyclist, I go to the gym
twice per week, surf, play park soccer with friends and generally
keep myself active.

However even for a person who enjoys being fit, sometimes the motivation can disappear.

I just came across an excellent post at Ririan Project, a very good blog, that explains the reasons we should all stay fit.

Its very compelling so read on....

Keep Fit, Feel Young

Probably the most important aspect of what I consider to be a Perfect Life is health. When I began this study I identified 4 crucial criteria for a perfect life; Health, Income, Relationships, Freedom (HIRF). Up til now my posts have been concentrating mainly on Income and Freedom. This is not because I value them more highly, but from my point of view they were areas that needed to be addressed early.

My Health has always been very good. I have been a competitve sailor, windsurfer and cyclist as well as takeing part in many other sporting activities. I am fairly lean and strong with no major health issues.

Nonethess, as we age things change, and I have noticed some of those changes in recent years. Slower recovery, easier weight-gain, and some general "ageing signs". OK I am only 38 years old but I do believe that addressing potential Health issues sooner is better.