New Year, Same Me – Why Mess With Perfection?
Gang, it’s that magical time of the year, it is gym Christmas. By that, I mean everyone and their brother/ or sister, is gearing up to “make some big changes”. They are going to create a “new me”.
Let me tell you kids something, it’s all bullshit. Not the change part, but the “big” and the “new me” part, it’s you lying to yourself.
In my quest to put out any content that isn’t Star Wars lately, Ol’ Uncle Jay has a few tips to change your life, but taking little bites, so you handle it much easier, and your chance of actually forming a habit goes up.
Start small.
When you learn to swim, jumping off a cliff into the ocean is NOT the way to go about it. If you go to the gym, it’s a marathon, not a sprint. Don’t watch the other people, concentrate on you, what you can do, and then challenge yourself, and set a few easy goals, and then when you hit them, do it again. My journey started because I had jiggly arms when brushing my teeth. They still jiggle a little, but each month less and less. If you want to write, start with a blog and a paragraph. If you want to get better drawing, start to doodle, get a sketch pad.
Make time.
The older you get, the more you feel you have to do for others, be it kids, or friends, or family. I’m going to tell you a little mantra, and hopefully it makes it a little easier to slip away, and take however long you need to get sane, and find yourself some time. Are you ready? Here it is…”Fuck Them”. Set your schedule, make your time, and everything will fall into place, and people will adjust. I’m ot saying 5 hours a day, but there is time in the day to get your time as well.
Sacrifice.
Recently I was called a self flagellator. That I enjoyed the pain, and being uncomfortable, and was happy with the issues I have (depression, Paranoid, etc…). At first I was taken aback, and then quickly realized that there is some truth there. I have spent a lifetime sacrificing what I want, for the good of others. Now I am willing to sacrifice sleeping late for some gym time with energy. I have learned that sometimes, making a little less money, and wanting to go to work 80% of the time, is better than more money, and wanting to go 20% of the time.
Portion Control.
Not just food, though that is an excellent idea if you want to lose weight. Don’t overdo your passions, or they become second jobs. I loved to bake pies for people, but I did it to the point I hated doing it. I cut my pies in half (so to speak), and had to cut some people off. I was happy, because the people who got them were thrilled, and all my free time wasn’t baking. Efficiency, when you learn how to do it, is the greatest thing in the world.
Peacock.
Don’t be afraid to show off your hard work. I force myself every day to take a gym pic. (That I go) Not that I see change, but it keeps me in line, and I have found when I stop doing it, people will ask if I quit. So it’s the same boring pics. But I go through Instagram, and I can see the changes. It’s the same with anything. Never get rid of old writings, or old pictures you’ve created. Old food you can get rid of. Sometimes, a stranger will tell you how amazing you are, or a project, and the feeling is amazing. Find your groups.
Steal.
If something works for someone else, or you see a picture you like, or a premise for a story you enjoy, give it a shot. What you create will never be exactly the same. (well, if you go word for word on a story, then it will) It was said that William Shakespeare wrote the original premises for every story ever told, and we’ve been copying them sense. From what I have read, there’s half a chance that he stole his stories from someone else. You’ll never replicate the Mona Lisa, but it’s a lot of fun trying. I’m not smart enough to come up with new exercises, but I am more than willing to steal routines, Frankenstein them together into something new, and use it.
Stay in your wheelhouse.
Know what you like, find your style, use your flair, and stick with it. If you are from the Midwest, and have never travelled away from it, then why would you write about living in Arizona? Stephen King has been everywhere, yet he writes about Maine (mostly). Ansel Adams mostly took pictures of the west (I didn’t research this, but all the pictures I remember are from the west), because he was good at it. I have friends who lift three times as much as me, but I lift what I can lift, and I don’t get hurt. Heck, I am a minimalist when it comes to working in colors when I draw, and when I use color I panic, but it is what I like.
Ignore people.
Opinions are like assholes, everyone has one, and they all stink most the time. You have two types of people. Those who tell you that you are amazing no matter what, and those that will shit all over you any chance they can get. You get the occasional unicorn who will be honest, but you have to be careful, because sometimes them being “honest”, winds up just shitting on you. Eli Sirota will send me his doodles, and I love them, and he nit picks himself. I’m jealous, because I can’t draw in that style. Eli is always encouraging, though sometimes I know he doesn’t like the subject matter, and that’s fine. He is the type of guy who looks to the positive though, and I try and emulate him whenever I can, because I can be snarky. But if you do what you like enough, you’ll get good at it, and he gets better and better every day. Shout out to Blizzard!!! Point being, don’t believe it all. But don’t let them stop you, or stunt your growth.
Have fun.
Who cares if you’re good, or if you are growing huge muscles, or making others happy. Make you happy. The only person you really have to please, is you. You look at yourself in the mirror, the joy or art or writing is yours. Have fun. Write what you want, draw what you want, do what you want, as long as it doesn’t hurt others.
Life is a marathon, not a sprint.
This isn’t the Matrix (I wish, learning Kung Fu in minutes would be cool.) You have to work to improve. The best part, you can do it as fast or as slow as you want, but regardless, it’s not going to happen overnight. So enjoy the journey.
That’s it. I have boiled down almost ever self help book I have ever read, and didn’t once tell you to find God. (a lot do) Have fun, work hard, don’t quit, and #fucktheSnydercut
You can find my @jaycanchu on Twitter or Instagram. @xKenricX is the complaint department. If you want to put me in your will, please get in contact with me.
Stay Thirsty My Friends