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Internal choices are more powerful than external forces.  In other words, deciding for yourself that  you will do something is incredibly more motivating than someone else telling you to do it.  Choosing your every action is one of the biggest factors of true fulfillment, no matter what you have set out to do.  However, getting to the point where you feel as though every action is actually a choice is incredibly difficult.

Many days I find myself in a dangerous routine of forced action.  I feel compelled to complete a list of to-dos, chores, or assigned tasks.  At work or at home, it makes no difference.  If I feel forced into completing something I give less effort and I eventually become bitter about the task altogether.  This obligatory feeling does not consume every moment of my life but it does happen in some form nearly every day.  Is it possible to avoid feeling like your life is an endless list of errands and annoying post-it notes?  Of course.  You just have to make the choice.

Choices and Chores

Every weekend I create a list of the many things I want to accomplish in those two incredibly short days.  I include everything I want to do and everything I feel obligated to see through.  Without fail, I do the (more…)

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Accidents happen.  Your life, however, shouldn’t be one of them.  When I imagine someone who truly embodies a graduated and clueless lifestyle, I picture a wanderer, someone with no direction, no purpose, and no real understanding of anything beyond the present moment.  This person probably has a history of success and productivity but for one reason or another has no real focus at the moment.  In addition, this clueless chap has no idea how to begin the journey to discover a future life worth pursuing.  Don’t get me wrong, living in the present is the best and only way to live.  All life is lived in the present.  The past is a memory and the future is a projection, both of which only exist in our mind and that take us away from the present moment.  Therefore, the goal is to make our present moment more useful, more productive, more purposeful, driven, and meaningful.  Ultimately, your mission is to live with great intention in all things you do.  Living on purpose is grounded in clarity of thought, clarity of intention, and clarity of action.

Clarity of Thought

Thinking is not natural.  In fact, real hard core thinking is a very refined skill that most people rarely engage in.  In order to utilize the vast power of (more…)

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Life is based around your ability and willingness to serve others.  It may not seem that way as you grow up because most people are serving you.  As a kid, your parents put you first, or at least they should.  In school, your teachers make every effort to help you grow.  However, as you’ve probably noticed, in the real world and in business, you don’t have an advocate.  You don’t have someone holding your hand through the process.  You’re on your own and you have to make the experience amazing for yourself.  The most direct, efficient, and effective way to maximize your own experience is to focus on other people.  It sounds backwards but it works every time.  Think about exercise where you actually tear down your muscles in order for your body to repair them.  It seems counter intuitive, but the result is that your muscles grow back stronger than before.  In order to reach the life that you want, whether in your career, finances, relationships, physical ability, or otherwise, always find ways to put others before yourself and you’ll be amazed at the results.

Help Your Boss

Want to get ahead in your job?  Stop doing things your way.  Go to your boss right now and ask them (more…)

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Bold action is the one remedy for really obnoxious problems.  It gets you out of bed in the morning.  It eliminates mediocrity.  It produces success that you have been dreaming about.  However, bold action requires risk taking, bravery, and a willingness to fail.  Being willing to put yourself on the line for what you care about and believe in is one of the fundamental building blocks of bold action.  In the last few months of my life I have experienced radical change and vast improvement in many areas, due in no small part to my own willingness to take bold action as often as possible.  What is bold action?  It’s doing the big stuff, the hard stuff, the stuff that you know will change your life but that you have put off due to any number of excuses.  Bold action is difficult.  It’s time consuming, expensive, risky, and may back fire on you for any number of reasons.  Why would anyone want to take bold action?  Because it get results every time.  Seriously.  Bold action will almost always produce a result that teaches you a grand lesson, creates enormous success, or at least provides the basis for a really great story to tell your grand kids someday.

Characteristics of Bold Action

What does bold action look like?  Could you recognize bold action if you saw it happening?  Could you see (more…)

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The most effective way to try anything new is with the expectation that it will be temporary.  Trying new things forces you to overcome fears, jump into the unknown, and risk failure.  Knowing that something new will only last a few weeks will allow you to open up fully to the experience.  In the last few months I have completed a few 30-Day Trials and they have been incredibly successful.  30 Days is a great time frame because a month seems so short, yet it has just enough time to allow you to form a new habit, adjust to a new lifestyle, or even make a positive, powerful, and permanent change in how you live.  If you attempt something new just once, you don’t really know how it could affect your life on a daily basis.  Having the time minimum of a certain number of days forces you to continue past the initial wall of fear and judgment.  30 Days lets you open your mind to the possibility of you living with your new decision on a permanent basis.

The real goal of a 30-Day Trial is personal growth.  You want to be able learn from the experience, increase your self-awareness, and come away with new knowledge that makes you one step closer to (more…)

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As a part of TLC Book Tours I had the opportunity to read and review Tim Daniel’s new book, The Pursuit of Nobility.  As the author describes his book, it’s about liberation.  It’s about a personal journey to free yourself from the massive amount of people who are simply sustaining society, and join those who are pushing society forward.  Tim describes the Nobility as problem solvers, creators, and seekers of a greater challenge.  Here at Graduated And Clueless I write blog posts about personal development, growth, and topics beyond the simple job search.  The Pursuit of Nobility closely aligns with my mission as it addresses a higher calling in life, beyond maintenance, above the crowd, and into a whole new world where the Nobles cause real world change.

One of the most fundamental questions in life, and especially important to recent and clueless grads, is why?  Why am I here?  And if I ever figure that out, how will I achieve what I am supposed to?  Tim Daniel addresses these topics head on in a way I have never heard before.  The calling of the Nobility is not for everyone, but if it’s yours, (more…)