Gmail's Improved Labels Rawk!
This morning, I woke up to Gmail's improved labels. Previously, I would get completely distracted by the amount of emails I had in different labels. As soon as I was finished with my "2Do" emails, something would pop into "Facebook" as soon as I'd read that, a new email came into "Twitter" and so on.
This was not good for my productivity.
So you can imagine my sheer joy at the improved Gmail labels interface. You can now "hide" the non-work, non-paying labels and only show the important stuff. The non-important stuff can be dealt with in one go and then hidden again. Distractions be gone! Helloooo productivity :D
Lookie! It's so neat & tidy!
Yes, that's right SIXTEEN more! An email into any one of those SIXTEEN more meant Norio wasn't getting sh!t done :D
Viva Gmail, viva Google, viva Norio's productivity ;)
My Spiritual Beliefs and Michael Jackson
Ignoring your emotions is a recipe for disaster, so I've had to pay them some attention this weekend to try and understand what's going on inside me.
So, why am I mourning Michael Jackson?
First of all, my spiritual belief is that we are all God. That is to say that there is no God that exists outside of us because there is no "out there" or "in here". We are all just one massive creative energy, exploding outwardly and then coming together again, over and over again.
So that means that MJ is God. Much like my thumb is Norio. So is my pinky. It doesn't mean that my thumb governs my body but it is as MUCH a part of me as any other part.
Having said that, each one of his songs that struck a chord with me did so because it was God talking to me. Much like God talks to me through the movie I'm watching on TV, the book I'm reading on the loo & my wife bitching at me for not doing something I said I would do.
It's both profound and simple all at the same time. How can I *not* be God, how can MJ *not* be God if I believe that we are all God.
It's like ignoring a painful sensation in your thumb. That painful sensation is there to let you know that you hurt yourself and need to take care before you get an infection. An infection that, depending on the circumstances, could kill you.
So now you hopefully understand my belief.
Back to MJ. "Man in the Mirror", "Heal the World", "The Earth Song" are all messages from a part of God for us to wake up and smell the roses. Take care of yourself, take care of your earth and, as Ghandi would say, "Be the change you wish to see in the world".
* (See foot notes for my thoughts on his other songs)
So the first reason is that I feel a certain sense of loss that the messenger has died. The message, for me, was "Love and care for one another and the planet you're living on."
And the second reason I feel such a great loss is: because we are all one, Michael Jackson really was (is) my friend. When I was crying, as a child, in my bedroom and not understanding the world (or my parents, or the death of my dog or the death of my grandfather...), the comforting words and voice coming out of my tape player were coming from a friend, far away.
His energy, while he was alive, swept across most (if not all) of the earth. He was trying hard to help people around him even though - or maybe BECAUSE - his own life wasn't perfect.
That energy connected with me and many of my friends. And closure will come to me from realising that the energy is still with us. It's no longer focused in a single, physical place but it's there.
Most of my spiritual beliefs (about 95%) come from the book series "Conversations with God". I don't claim them to be "the way" but they are "my way". Reading those books awakened a truth inside me that made them feel right when other spiritual beliefs didn't. That's my only reason for believing what I do - it feels right. Well, that and it gives me closure :)
So, with that, I'll try and remember that MJ is still around. Still a part of us. He's done his bit in the world and now he has changed form. Diluted but still there.
* The other songs? Well that fits into my belief that we are here to experience ourselves/ourself as the all that is. The only way to do that is by forgetting what we are and experiencing it afresh. So God is (and we are) the love, the hate, the sex, the abstinence, the cheating, the faithfulness, etc.
And the biggest gift we can give ourselves is unconditional love for ourselves, the people around us and the world in which we live. It's not easy but it IS blessed and you feel it, each time you get it right :)
My Tribute to Michael Jackson
My favourite musician while I was growing up was Michael Jackson. I was thoroughly obsessed with his music, his dance moves and his general persona. There wasn't a single song of his I didn't adore and this love for his music has stayed with me into my adult years.
The fact of the matter is the Michael Jackson was :( an amazing artist. He pushed the envelope and gave 110% of himself at all times.
I remember when he came to SA. We didn't have the money to go to his concert and we were visiting a friend close to Ellis Park (where his Joburg concert was held) and it was horrible to hear my idol so close and yet so far away.
Each one of his videos told a story, each one was a production in itself. The man did everything to his absolute best abilities and it showed.
Watching his concerts on TV was always a mesmerising experience for me and it was always sad when it ended. I would sit and wait in front of the TV - hoping for an enchore.
He was passionate about changing the world for the better and he sang about it, loud and clear. From "Heal the World" and "Earth Song" to "They Don't Really Care about Us" and "Black or White".
As a child, I wanted to be him, I wanted to meet him, I wanted to dance like him and sing like him. As an adult, I love his music and always will. I would have loved to have met the man that changed the world in so many ways and with an amazing childlike innocence that was, in my humble opinion, largely misunderstood by the world at large.
I think I owe my passion for music (and musicianship) to Michael Jackson. Thank you and rest well.
You'll always be remembered.
Edit: How I'll Always Remember the King of Pop:
Edit: These Songs Changed My Life...
- The Man in the Mirror
- Black or White
- The Earth Song
- Heal the World
Edit: Other Amazing Songs that will Always Mean Something Special to Me...
- Ben
- Stranger in Moscow
- I Just Can't Stop Loving You
- Liberian Girl
- Remember the Time
- Will You Be There
- She's out of My Life
What did MJ mean to you?
The fact of the matter is the Michael Jackson was :( an amazing artist. He pushed the envelope and gave 110% of himself at all times.
I remember when he came to SA. We didn't have the money to go to his concert and we were visiting a friend close to Ellis Park (where his Joburg concert was held) and it was horrible to hear my idol so close and yet so far away.
Each one of his videos told a story, each one was a production in itself. The man did everything to his absolute best abilities and it showed.
Watching his concerts on TV was always a mesmerising experience for me and it was always sad when it ended. I would sit and wait in front of the TV - hoping for an enchore.
He was passionate about changing the world for the better and he sang about it, loud and clear. From "Heal the World" and "Earth Song" to "They Don't Really Care about Us" and "Black or White".
As a child, I wanted to be him, I wanted to meet him, I wanted to dance like him and sing like him. As an adult, I love his music and always will. I would have loved to have met the man that changed the world in so many ways and with an amazing childlike innocence that was, in my humble opinion, largely misunderstood by the world at large.
I think I owe my passion for music (and musicianship) to Michael Jackson. Thank you and rest well.
You'll always be remembered.
Edit: How I'll Always Remember the King of Pop:
Edit: These Songs Changed My Life...
- The Man in the Mirror
- Black or White
- The Earth Song
- Heal the World
Edit: Other Amazing Songs that will Always Mean Something Special to Me...
- Ben
- Stranger in Moscow
- I Just Can't Stop Loving You
- Liberian Girl
- Remember the Time
- Will You Be There
- She's out of My Life
What did MJ mean to you?
My New Hobby: Fishies
A few months back my brother in law gave me his old fish tank plus a bunch of accessories. I hadn't done anything with it till this past Sunday when I cleaned it all up, put in some gravel and filled it with water.
Yesterday I put the pump in and got a bulb and plugged it all in. It's sooo pretty and the whole exercise cost me: R11 for the bulb :P
(Actually, it cost Tanya R11. She bought the bulb for me as a gift. She loves supporting my hobbies. I adore my wife :))
I'm waiting a week for the water to cycle before I stick some fishies in but, in the meanwhile, here's a pic of my pretty tank. I'm so proud of it. I think it's uber stylish!
Any of my readers into fishies? Got tank pics?
Yesterday I put the pump in and got a bulb and plugged it all in. It's sooo pretty and the whole exercise cost me: R11 for the bulb :P
(Actually, it cost Tanya R11. She bought the bulb for me as a gift. She loves supporting my hobbies. I adore my wife :))
I'm waiting a week for the water to cycle before I stick some fishies in but, in the meanwhile, here's a pic of my pretty tank. I'm so proud of it. I think it's uber stylish!
Any of my readers into fishies? Got tank pics?
2009 Goals - Recap
Time to recap on my goals for 2009.
First, my business goals...
FreeArticles.co.za stayed earning under the R5,000 mark but I sold it for R50,000. Less than it's worth but I'm investing it and it does free up my time for other things, so I still feel like this is a win :)
Not doing good in this regard. The site makes maybe R300-R500 a month. Maybe. However, I have a BIG plan in the works to transform the site into a Drupal site which will give me a lot more freedom in offering more/better/cooler features which also translates into easier monetisation.
Even though I feel off-target with this goal, I'm having fun with this site. I love it so I'm not concerned about the cash I'm not making with it ;)
Win + fail. Went under debt review, couldn't make payments. Creditors likely to be on my butt again soon.
On-target here. We've got an affiliate who is promoting us like crazy and we're about to start offering a managed-trading option where we do ALL the hard work for our clients. They seem very happy with this so far and it should boost their income in a very BIG way. So affiliate signups should skyrocket. Definitely feel on-target here :)
I've gotten the ball just barely rolling along on this one. We need to get more icons and designers on the site then I can push the SEO into top-gear and achieve this goal quite easily, I'm sure.
So far I'm getting the feeling that I should review these goals every 3 months, not 6 months. Reviewing every 3 months would probably inspire me to get back on course a lot faster. Not impressed with how I basically "forgot" about these goals! Moving on...
Not even close. Haven't put any effort into this site at all. It has so much potential. Seriously off course here :/
Good things happening here. Got an investor involved who has funded some development in a new direction. Still lots of work to do but this one might surprise me and go over the R10,000 mark this year.
This is (if I recall correctly) related to JogMyMemory.co.za. Headed in the right direction but need to pay a bit more attention to this to get to R100,000 per month!
Way off-course but also not entirely convinced I still want this. The past few months have made me wonder if I would rather like to keep things very small, tight & easy. ie: Build sites over 3-24 months and then sell them. Rinse, repeat.
Having sold FreeArticles.co.za, I know what it takes to build a site I can sell and I know how to find a buyer. With bandwidth prices coming down, we should see more buyers entering the market, so there's a good chance I can make a very, very happy living out of this sort of web site flipping biz.
On to my personal goals...
Fell off the wagon here. Stopped doing the pushups altogether. Not happy about this and would like to get back on track but not sure how to motivate myself to stick with the program.
Took a weekend off in Mpumalanga. Was really nice but still not quite the week I was aiming for.
Rent has been on time every month. Quite a change from last year. Quite a relief. Other things have been a little less on-time :P
No idea if I've achieved anything here. We've been doing little bits here and there for them but nothing I would label "significant".
Probably also a few very minor things here.
A little bit of success here. I'm currently working on "Ten Words" by Joe Satriani and, also, a jazzy composition of my own. Not sure how many songs I need before I can call it a "repertoire" but I'm making a little headway here, which is good :)
A couple of disappointments in some areas while other things are progressing at an acceptable rate. One thing's for sure, I don't have the same energy as what I had in the beginning of the year, when I wrote this post. I need to revive that energy as it is, most likely, what is needed in order for me to achieve all these goals in the next 6 months.
One thing I've noticed is that, each time we move houses (we moved to Kempton Park in March), I lose all my motivational stuff, goals, quotes, affirmations, etc, that I had stuck around the house. That's pretty sucky as I lose focus and get beat down a whole lot faster. I'd like to pay some attention to having a more permanent way of reminding myself of my goals & aspirations.
Perhaps a wooden notice board? I'm not sure but I need to address that before I lose any more steam!
First, my business goals...
1. Get FreeArticles.co.za back over the R5,000 hump.
FreeArticles.co.za stayed earning under the R5,000 mark but I sold it for R50,000. Less than it's worth but I'm investing it and it does free up my time for other things, so I still feel like this is a win :)
2. Push GuitarForum.co.za over the R5,000 hump as well.
Not doing good in this regard. The site makes maybe R300-R500 a month. Maybe. However, I have a BIG plan in the works to transform the site into a Drupal site which will give me a lot more freedom in offering more/better/cooler features which also translates into easier monetisation.
Even though I feel off-target with this goal, I'm having fun with this site. I love it so I'm not concerned about the cash I'm not making with it ;)
3. Go under debt review and stop getting calls from banks and things ;)
Win + fail. Went under debt review, couldn't make payments. Creditors likely to be on my butt again soon.
4. Push SpotOnForex.com over the R20,000 hump.
On-target here. We've got an affiliate who is promoting us like crazy and we're about to start offering a managed-trading option where we do ALL the hard work for our clients. They seem very happy with this so far and it should boost their income in a very BIG way. So affiliate signups should skyrocket. Definitely feel on-target here :)
5. Push IconFarm.co.za over the R1,000 hump.
I've gotten the ball just barely rolling along on this one. We need to get more icons and designers on the site then I can push the SEO into top-gear and achieve this goal quite easily, I'm sure.
So far I'm getting the feeling that I should review these goals every 3 months, not 6 months. Reviewing every 3 months would probably inspire me to get back on course a lot faster. Not impressed with how I basically "forgot" about these goals! Moving on...
6. Push iThank.co.za over the 1,000 users hump.
Not even close. Haven't put any effort into this site at all. It has so much potential. Seriously off course here :/
7. Revive JogMyMemory.co.za and push it over the R1,000 hump.
Good things happening here. Got an investor involved who has funded some development in a new direction. Still lots of work to do but this one might surprise me and go over the R10,000 mark this year.
8. Develop semi-confidential projects that are potentially worth over R100,000 per month.
This is (if I recall correctly) related to JogMyMemory.co.za. Headed in the right direction but need to pay a bit more attention to this to get to R100,000 per month!
9. Get R1m funding so I can get other people to do the work necessary for some of these and so I can finally realise my vision of Maxiware CC being a solid web development and internet technology research house.
Way off-course but also not entirely convinced I still want this. The past few months have made me wonder if I would rather like to keep things very small, tight & easy. ie: Build sites over 3-24 months and then sell them. Rinse, repeat.
Having sold FreeArticles.co.za, I know what it takes to build a site I can sell and I know how to find a buyer. With bandwidth prices coming down, we should see more buyers entering the market, so there's a good chance I can make a very, very happy living out of this sort of web site flipping biz.
On to my personal goals...
1. Reach my 100 pushups goal and stay there or do better.
Fell off the wagon here. Stopped doing the pushups altogether. Not happy about this and would like to get back on track but not sure how to motivate myself to stick with the program.
2. Take at least one week-long holiday somewhere pretty. Can even be up the road, as long as it's pretty.
Took a weekend off in Mpumalanga. Was really nice but still not quite the week I was aiming for.
3. Pay everyone on time.
Rent has been on time every month. Quite a change from last year. Quite a relief. Other things have been a little less on-time :P
4. Help my mom, dad & sisters in some significant way.
No idea if I've achieved anything here. We've been doing little bits here and there for them but nothing I would label "significant".
5. Help other family as well.
Probably also a few very minor things here.
6. Build a repertoire of really awesome songs I can play on guitar. (Learn them first, duh :P)
A little bit of success here. I'm currently working on "Ten Words" by Joe Satriani and, also, a jazzy composition of my own. Not sure how many songs I need before I can call it a "repertoire" but I'm making a little headway here, which is good :)
A couple of disappointments in some areas while other things are progressing at an acceptable rate. One thing's for sure, I don't have the same energy as what I had in the beginning of the year, when I wrote this post. I need to revive that energy as it is, most likely, what is needed in order for me to achieve all these goals in the next 6 months.
One thing I've noticed is that, each time we move houses (we moved to Kempton Park in March), I lose all my motivational stuff, goals, quotes, affirmations, etc, that I had stuck around the house. That's pretty sucky as I lose focus and get beat down a whole lot faster. I'd like to pay some attention to having a more permanent way of reminding myself of my goals & aspirations.
Perhaps a wooden notice board? I'm not sure but I need to address that before I lose any more steam!
Super Simple jQuery Accordion
After struggling to get jQuery.UI accordion working in a Drupal site, I gave up and decided to code my own little accordion. As it turns out, it was incredibly simple. All you need is jQuery.
HTML Sample:
JavaScript (jQuery) Sample:
Is there a simpler way? Probably but this is pretty quick and easy too! ;)
HTML Sample:
<br /><div id="accordion">
<br /> <h3>Section 1</h3>
<br /> <div>
<br /> <p>
<br /> Mauris mauris ante, blandit et, ultrices a,
<br /> suscipit eget, quam.
<br /> </p>
<br /> </div>
<br /> <h3>Section 2</h3>
<br /> <div>
<br /> <p>
<br /> Sed non urna. Donec et ante. Phasellus eu
<br /> ligula. Vestibulum sit amet
<br /> </p>
<br /> </div>
<br /> <h3>Section 3</h3>
<br /> <div>
<br /> <p>
<br /> Nam enim risus, molestie et, porta ac,
<br /> aliquam ac, risus. Quisque
<br /> </p>
<br /> </div>
<br /></div>
<br />JavaScript (jQuery) Sample:
<br /> <script type='text/javascript'>
<br /> $(document).ready(function() {
<br /> // accordion effect
<br /> $("#accordion div").hide();
<br /> $("#accordion div:first").show();
<br /> $("#accordion div:first").addClass("active");
<br /> $("#accordion h3").click(function() {
<br /> $("#accordion div.active").hide();
<br /> $(this).next().show("fast");
<br /> $(this).next().addClass("active");
<br /> return false;
<br /> });
<br /> });
<br /> </script>
<br />Is there a simpler way? Probably but this is pretty quick and easy too! ;)
Demo:
Section 1
Mauris mauris ante, blandit et, ultrices a,
suscipit eget, quam.
Section 2
Sed non urna. Donec et ante. Phasellus eu
ligula. Vestibulum sit amet
Section 3
Nam enim risus, molestie et, porta ac,
aliquam ac, risus. Quisque
New Word: Reado: It's like a Typo but for Dyslexics
I'm not really dyslexic but I don't always read things right. So maybe I am. Anyhow, my friend said he was going away in 2 weeks. I replied, "What will I do for 2 weeks?".
Reado: It's like a Typo but for Dyslexics :)
Reado: It's like a Typo but for Dyslexics :)
Who am I Gonna be in 15 Years?
That's the title of the A4 sheet of paper I have next to me. I wrote this list about 8 years ago, when I was just 17. It has 10 things written on it and I've achieved 3 so far. Considering I still have 7 years to go, I'm doing okay but I think I need to re-assess and shoot a little higher.
Here's the full list...
Who am I gonna be in 15 years time?
Drives a Viper RT/10 [Not Done]
To be honest, I'm not phased by this one any more. I'd love to rent a Viper a few times a year and take it round the track a coupla times but I can hardly justify owning one. I drive our car maybe once a week and, most times, I need boot space.
Although, there's nothing wrong with owning one and keeping it for Sunday joyrides. Just don't know who'll take care of the kids while we're out. There's definitely no space for kids in a Viper!
(Kids?! What kids?! Relax! We don't have kids yet but read on ;))
Owns his Own Successful Company [Not Done]
Some people might argue that I've succeeded here but I really haven't. If I died tomorrow, my business would begin to die with me. There might be a little bit of money due to me but, without someone to collect it, that would probably never reach my wife so, really, I don't have a business, I just own my job right now.
Although... I do make R5,000 passive income a month from one of my web sites. That has to count for something. I should probably take a few moments to teach my wife how to take over that site. It's good money for the 1 hour a day I work on it.
It's still not a successful company, though. Just a good passive income.
What do I need to do to turn my current company into a successful company? Create a product I can sell (as opposed to the service I currently sell - my own time as a developer) and then create systems (advertising, sales-copy, autoresponders, procedure documents for employees, etc) that help me sell that product to hundreds or thousands of people. Employing people (although I'm scared-white of it) is probably also an important next step here. I can't sub-contract forever. Not if I want a company instead of just a passive income. It just doesn't work that way.
Is Married with Cute-Ass Kids [Half Done]
How about: Married to a cute-ass wife? Then I'd be able to tick this one off ;) I suppose the cute-ass wife guarantees me cute-ass kids, right? I mean, I was kinda cute and she's adorable so all we need to do is misplace the condoms :D
Although, on a serious note, I won't misplace any condoms until we've paid off our debt and actually feel like we could afford to have kids without moving back in with our parents or living in a trailer park!
I've still got 7 years before I need to get this done so I say we give it a shot in 2010 :)
Has a Beautiful House in a Beautiful Area [Not Done]
Not done but I have a good idea of what I need to do to make it done. I'm quite keen on living in the Centurion Golf Estate. Prices there range from R1,5m all the way up to R15m. I'm a modest guy so I'll happily call one of the "entry-level" (what's entry-level in a Golf Estate???) my "beautiful house in a beautiful area".
The trick here is that I could rent such a place for between R11k and R15k. That sort of money is a bit out of my grasp right now but not by much. But that would be cheating. My goals-list says nothing about "living" in such a house but "having" such a house. So I must buy.
Can it be done in the next 7 years? Quite easily I think. Probably within the next 3 years. Sooner if I can pay off my debt a bit faster and buy on auction or similar.
The interesting thing is that, when I wrote this list, I never really knew what "a beautiful house in a beautiful area" meant to me. I didn't even really like kids at the time. But I looked within when writing the list and now it all makes perfect sense to me and resonates with me in an absolutely divinely spiritual and higher-self kind of way. Hope that makes sense to you ;)
Doesn't Let Anything Stop Him from Getting What he Wants [Not Done]
I still let obstacles get in the way. Earlier this year I decided to attack my dreams with "persistence that doesn't recognise failure". That's a noble and wise thing to choose for yourself. It's also incredibly difficult because, unless you remind yourself of this choice daily, you will forget it and it's so easy to fall back into the slump of, "I failed, best I give up and do something else."
Someone important (I don't know who) said, "It's because you give up that you fail. Not the other way around". And that's profound. It's also self-evident to an extent...
If you don't give up when you fail, but you keep on keeping on, 1 of 2 things will happen. You will die trying (which is a life worth living!) or 2, you will succeed. But the moment you give up, you lose both options. And all you're left with is failure. And only because you accept it as all that's left. Because it's not. You can get back on that horse and try again, until you're beaten black and blue but also until you've succeeded or died trying!
Haha - I can't help think of Morpheus, "Isn't that worth fighting for? Isn't that worth dying for?" I say it is!
So, back to this goal on my list of goals I wrote 8 years ago. I still let things get me down but, by golly, I'm doing a lot better than I was doing even 6 short months ago! So it may not be done, it may never be done but it's worth pursuing till my last breath, so I'm okay with that :)
Earns at Least 6 Digits a Year [Done!]
Okay, so I've achieved this one and I'm damned proud of it. It means a lot to me not because it's a lot of money (I no longer consider it to be a lot) but because it used to mean "a lot of money" to me.
I'm still very much in the early 6-digits-a-year side of things. I hope to reach the middle or end of that scale by the time my deadline arrives for this list. Although, chances are good that, by that time, 6 digits a year won't be a lot of money any more. The fact of life is that we'll always want more and that's okay with me. Because having a list like this to reflect on will help me appreciate my achievements, even long after I've begun taking them for granted.
Is Disciplined and Balanced in his Lifestyle [Not Done]
I go through stages when I'm disciplined and balanced but the very fact that I've never completed a fitness program (and "complete" means achieved my fitness/weight goals) before giving up tells me I'm not disciplined. The fact that I've stuck with a fitness program long after it got boring and painful tells me that I do have this in me. Somewhere ;)
Balance is another problem for me. Being a Libra, I constantly seek this out but I do it in the worst way possible. I first over-indulge in something (coffee, food, work, relaxation time, whatever), then I completely cut myself off and then I find a healthy balance. However, each step takes months at a time so, at this rate, I'll never achieve this goal but it does help me live a healthier life and gives me insight to both sides of an obsession - be it over-indulgence or complete abstinence. I'm sure that will serve me many times in my life.
Has Released at Least One CD of Music Nationally [Not Done]
I'm quite excited about this one because, when I wrote this (2001), distributing music over the internet was still largely unheard of or, at least, not very common.
These days, you have big bands (Radiohead) releasing their music exclusively over the 'net and still making a profit. We're living in interesting times where a musician can make a living from his music and do it quite independently. I'm not talking about becoming a rock star here but making a few bob from my music would be great.
How far am I from achieving this? I'm satisfied with how well I play guitar but I'm useless at writing songs so I'd say I'm a good 4 years or so away from this. I need to learn some song-writing theory, learn how to play along with the song (instead of overtaking it with my noodling!) and then create something cohesive and pleasing to the ears.
The good news is that, by the time I'm ready to release my CD (or album, more likely), I'll have access to a huge group of potential fans through my online guitar community, www.guitarforum.co.za. That's very exciting. What's even MORE exciting than that is that I'll be in a position to teach other members of that community how to do the same thing and make some money from their music. And that, I think, makes up a large chunk of why I'm still allowed to be alive today - I'm here to eventually empower others and teach them how to do things they might not believe to be possible. Cool! :)
Has a Site that Generates at Least 150 Unique Hits a Day [Done!]
Not only have I done this one but I've plastered it. I've got a site that does between 900 and 2000 unique visitors a day. Not too shabby at all. It pays my rent but I must admit, it amuses me to think how fixed I was on getting that (small) amount of visitors and no where did I mention monetising that traffic. Back then, it would've been an achievement just to have gotten the traffic. Now I know how to get the traffic but don't always know how to maintain it and don't always know how to monetise it. Fascinating how we grow and our challenges grow with us!
Is Always Ready to Help Out a Friend When in Need [Not Done]
I'm almost ashamed to admit this but I'm still too afraid to be as helpful as I could be. I'm afraid of losing it all, I'm afraid of failing miserably, I'm afraid of not knowing what to do to help, I'm afraid of so darned much that I end up not helping the people who need me. The people who I could do so much for, if only I could recognise that I'm good enough to help them. That I have everything I need within me to do it, I just need to actually go out and do it now.
On the positive side, I'm growing in this direction. Since we've moved to Joburg, I've helped one or two people out in ways that I thought were impossible for me to do before. I've also promised my help to a few other people - again help that I would normally think is beyond what I can do.
I'm not Christian but I do believe that, "God doesn't call the qualified, he qualifies the called". I believe it on an intellectual level, now I just need to move into believing it on an emotional, spiritual and experiential level. Getting there. At least I'm headed in the right direction. I've got to give myself points for effort there. I used to be very stingy with my time and now I'm better. (It's like a disease, I tell you ;))
Conclusion
You might ask yourself if achieving these things will give me a sense of fulfillment. I can tell you now that they won't. I guarantee that I will eventually take these things for granted once they ARE in my life (as I currently do). But what I also guarantee is that I will have learned the value of setting and (most importantly) working towards goals until you achieve them. I'm sure that that will be the most important lesson in my life and that, in the next 7 years, after I've achieved all these things (if I live that long!), THEN life will truly begin and then I will set life goals for myself that will be truly worthwhile.
The exception to this is, of course, the values I have set as goals for myself. Striving to live in a balanced and disciplined way, and to always be available for my friends and family when they need me, those things will stay with me till I die (I hope). And those are the things I hope to fill my next list with.
Sure I could start now but, right now, I'm still in a place in my life where the material stuff means too much for me to give it up. I believe there are 2 ways to learn how to look beyond the material....
1. Is to have nothing and find happiness, peace and joy in that.
2. Is to have everything and find happiness, peace and joy in that.
Because neither offers fulfillment by itself. You have to REACH that stage and then look beyond it to find happiness, peace and joy. At least, that's what I choose to believe right now.
Here's the full list...
Who am I gonna be in 15 years time?
Someone who:
Drives a Viper RT/10 [Not Done]To be honest, I'm not phased by this one any more. I'd love to rent a Viper a few times a year and take it round the track a coupla times but I can hardly justify owning one. I drive our car maybe once a week and, most times, I need boot space.
Although, there's nothing wrong with owning one and keeping it for Sunday joyrides. Just don't know who'll take care of the kids while we're out. There's definitely no space for kids in a Viper!
(Kids?! What kids?! Relax! We don't have kids yet but read on ;))
Owns his Own Successful Company [Not Done]
Some people might argue that I've succeeded here but I really haven't. If I died tomorrow, my business would begin to die with me. There might be a little bit of money due to me but, without someone to collect it, that would probably never reach my wife so, really, I don't have a business, I just own my job right now.
Although... I do make R5,000 passive income a month from one of my web sites. That has to count for something. I should probably take a few moments to teach my wife how to take over that site. It's good money for the 1 hour a day I work on it.
It's still not a successful company, though. Just a good passive income.
What do I need to do to turn my current company into a successful company? Create a product I can sell (as opposed to the service I currently sell - my own time as a developer) and then create systems (advertising, sales-copy, autoresponders, procedure documents for employees, etc) that help me sell that product to hundreds or thousands of people. Employing people (although I'm scared-white of it) is probably also an important next step here. I can't sub-contract forever. Not if I want a company instead of just a passive income. It just doesn't work that way.
Is Married with Cute-Ass Kids [Half Done]
How about: Married to a cute-ass wife? Then I'd be able to tick this one off ;) I suppose the cute-ass wife guarantees me cute-ass kids, right? I mean, I was kinda cute and she's adorable so all we need to do is misplace the condoms :D
Although, on a serious note, I won't misplace any condoms until we've paid off our debt and actually feel like we could afford to have kids without moving back in with our parents or living in a trailer park!
I've still got 7 years before I need to get this done so I say we give it a shot in 2010 :)
Has a Beautiful House in a Beautiful Area [Not Done]
Not done but I have a good idea of what I need to do to make it done. I'm quite keen on living in the Centurion Golf Estate. Prices there range from R1,5m all the way up to R15m. I'm a modest guy so I'll happily call one of the "entry-level" (what's entry-level in a Golf Estate???) my "beautiful house in a beautiful area".
The trick here is that I could rent such a place for between R11k and R15k. That sort of money is a bit out of my grasp right now but not by much. But that would be cheating. My goals-list says nothing about "living" in such a house but "having" such a house. So I must buy.
Can it be done in the next 7 years? Quite easily I think. Probably within the next 3 years. Sooner if I can pay off my debt a bit faster and buy on auction or similar.
The interesting thing is that, when I wrote this list, I never really knew what "a beautiful house in a beautiful area" meant to me. I didn't even really like kids at the time. But I looked within when writing the list and now it all makes perfect sense to me and resonates with me in an absolutely divinely spiritual and higher-self kind of way. Hope that makes sense to you ;)
Doesn't Let Anything Stop Him from Getting What he Wants [Not Done]
I still let obstacles get in the way. Earlier this year I decided to attack my dreams with "persistence that doesn't recognise failure". That's a noble and wise thing to choose for yourself. It's also incredibly difficult because, unless you remind yourself of this choice daily, you will forget it and it's so easy to fall back into the slump of, "I failed, best I give up and do something else."
Someone important (I don't know who) said, "It's because you give up that you fail. Not the other way around". And that's profound. It's also self-evident to an extent...
If you don't give up when you fail, but you keep on keeping on, 1 of 2 things will happen. You will die trying (which is a life worth living!) or 2, you will succeed. But the moment you give up, you lose both options. And all you're left with is failure. And only because you accept it as all that's left. Because it's not. You can get back on that horse and try again, until you're beaten black and blue but also until you've succeeded or died trying!
Haha - I can't help think of Morpheus, "Isn't that worth fighting for? Isn't that worth dying for?" I say it is!
So, back to this goal on my list of goals I wrote 8 years ago. I still let things get me down but, by golly, I'm doing a lot better than I was doing even 6 short months ago! So it may not be done, it may never be done but it's worth pursuing till my last breath, so I'm okay with that :)
Earns at Least 6 Digits a Year [Done!]
Okay, so I've achieved this one and I'm damned proud of it. It means a lot to me not because it's a lot of money (I no longer consider it to be a lot) but because it used to mean "a lot of money" to me.
I'm still very much in the early 6-digits-a-year side of things. I hope to reach the middle or end of that scale by the time my deadline arrives for this list. Although, chances are good that, by that time, 6 digits a year won't be a lot of money any more. The fact of life is that we'll always want more and that's okay with me. Because having a list like this to reflect on will help me appreciate my achievements, even long after I've begun taking them for granted.
Is Disciplined and Balanced in his Lifestyle [Not Done]
I go through stages when I'm disciplined and balanced but the very fact that I've never completed a fitness program (and "complete" means achieved my fitness/weight goals) before giving up tells me I'm not disciplined. The fact that I've stuck with a fitness program long after it got boring and painful tells me that I do have this in me. Somewhere ;)
Balance is another problem for me. Being a Libra, I constantly seek this out but I do it in the worst way possible. I first over-indulge in something (coffee, food, work, relaxation time, whatever), then I completely cut myself off and then I find a healthy balance. However, each step takes months at a time so, at this rate, I'll never achieve this goal but it does help me live a healthier life and gives me insight to both sides of an obsession - be it over-indulgence or complete abstinence. I'm sure that will serve me many times in my life.
Has Released at Least One CD of Music Nationally [Not Done]
I'm quite excited about this one because, when I wrote this (2001), distributing music over the internet was still largely unheard of or, at least, not very common.
These days, you have big bands (Radiohead) releasing their music exclusively over the 'net and still making a profit. We're living in interesting times where a musician can make a living from his music and do it quite independently. I'm not talking about becoming a rock star here but making a few bob from my music would be great.
How far am I from achieving this? I'm satisfied with how well I play guitar but I'm useless at writing songs so I'd say I'm a good 4 years or so away from this. I need to learn some song-writing theory, learn how to play along with the song (instead of overtaking it with my noodling!) and then create something cohesive and pleasing to the ears.
The good news is that, by the time I'm ready to release my CD (or album, more likely), I'll have access to a huge group of potential fans through my online guitar community, www.guitarforum.co.za. That's very exciting. What's even MORE exciting than that is that I'll be in a position to teach other members of that community how to do the same thing and make some money from their music. And that, I think, makes up a large chunk of why I'm still allowed to be alive today - I'm here to eventually empower others and teach them how to do things they might not believe to be possible. Cool! :)
Has a Site that Generates at Least 150 Unique Hits a Day [Done!]
Not only have I done this one but I've plastered it. I've got a site that does between 900 and 2000 unique visitors a day. Not too shabby at all. It pays my rent but I must admit, it amuses me to think how fixed I was on getting that (small) amount of visitors and no where did I mention monetising that traffic. Back then, it would've been an achievement just to have gotten the traffic. Now I know how to get the traffic but don't always know how to maintain it and don't always know how to monetise it. Fascinating how we grow and our challenges grow with us!
Is Always Ready to Help Out a Friend When in Need [Not Done]
I'm almost ashamed to admit this but I'm still too afraid to be as helpful as I could be. I'm afraid of losing it all, I'm afraid of failing miserably, I'm afraid of not knowing what to do to help, I'm afraid of so darned much that I end up not helping the people who need me. The people who I could do so much for, if only I could recognise that I'm good enough to help them. That I have everything I need within me to do it, I just need to actually go out and do it now.
On the positive side, I'm growing in this direction. Since we've moved to Joburg, I've helped one or two people out in ways that I thought were impossible for me to do before. I've also promised my help to a few other people - again help that I would normally think is beyond what I can do.
I'm not Christian but I do believe that, "God doesn't call the qualified, he qualifies the called". I believe it on an intellectual level, now I just need to move into believing it on an emotional, spiritual and experiential level. Getting there. At least I'm headed in the right direction. I've got to give myself points for effort there. I used to be very stingy with my time and now I'm better. (It's like a disease, I tell you ;))
Conclusion
You might ask yourself if achieving these things will give me a sense of fulfillment. I can tell you now that they won't. I guarantee that I will eventually take these things for granted once they ARE in my life (as I currently do). But what I also guarantee is that I will have learned the value of setting and (most importantly) working towards goals until you achieve them. I'm sure that that will be the most important lesson in my life and that, in the next 7 years, after I've achieved all these things (if I live that long!), THEN life will truly begin and then I will set life goals for myself that will be truly worthwhile.
The exception to this is, of course, the values I have set as goals for myself. Striving to live in a balanced and disciplined way, and to always be available for my friends and family when they need me, those things will stay with me till I die (I hope). And those are the things I hope to fill my next list with.
Sure I could start now but, right now, I'm still in a place in my life where the material stuff means too much for me to give it up. I believe there are 2 ways to learn how to look beyond the material....
1. Is to have nothing and find happiness, peace and joy in that.
2. Is to have everything and find happiness, peace and joy in that.
Because neither offers fulfillment by itself. You have to REACH that stage and then look beyond it to find happiness, peace and joy. At least, that's what I choose to believe right now.
OMG this girl is fine ;)
I've filed this one under "Personal Development". Hehe ;)
See: www.bikinibeat.org for more. Thank me later!
See: www.bikinibeat.org for more. Thank me later!
My Top 5 Strengths
Wow, 3rd update today - I'm on a roll :P
According to Happier.com, these are my top 5 strengths. (They should know after I completed their 240-question questionnaire!!).
Creativity, ingenuity, and originality
Thinking of new ways to do things is a crucial part of who you are. You are never content with doing something the conventional way if a better way is possible.
Humor and playfulness
You like to laugh and tease. Bringing smiles to other people is important to you. You try to see the light side of all situations.
Judgment, critical thinking, and open-mindedness
Thinking things through and examining them from all sides are important aspects of who you are. You do not jump to conclusions, and you rely only on solid evidence to make your decisions. You are able to change your mind.
Fairness, equity, and justice
Treating all people fairly is one of your abiding principles. You do not let your personal feelings bias your decisions about other people. You give everyone a chance.
Forgiveness and mercy
You forgive those who have done you wrong. You always give people a second chance. Your guiding principle is mercy and not revenge.
Now I just need to focus on practising these strengths daily! But how?!
According to Happier.com, these are my top 5 strengths. (They should know after I completed their 240-question questionnaire!!).
Creativity, ingenuity, and originality
Thinking of new ways to do things is a crucial part of who you are. You are never content with doing something the conventional way if a better way is possible.
Humor and playfulness
You like to laugh and tease. Bringing smiles to other people is important to you. You try to see the light side of all situations.
Judgment, critical thinking, and open-mindedness
Thinking things through and examining them from all sides are important aspects of who you are. You do not jump to conclusions, and you rely only on solid evidence to make your decisions. You are able to change your mind.
Fairness, equity, and justice
Treating all people fairly is one of your abiding principles. You do not let your personal feelings bias your decisions about other people. You give everyone a chance.
Forgiveness and mercy
You forgive those who have done you wrong. You always give people a second chance. Your guiding principle is mercy and not revenge.
Now I just need to focus on practising these strengths daily! But how?!
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