The essence of your mind is intrinsically pure.
Uncategorized
10 Travel Tips From Someone Who Logs 200,000+ Miles Each Year
I didn’t know about the talcum powder trick. The $20 idea is good but I’d also say keeping a crisp $100 somewhere is also a solid practice. One time in Frankfurt I couldn’t get one of my bills exchanged because it was an older style. Now I try to bring only new cash and use my cards whenever possible.
How to avoid burnout
“There are two ways to avoid getting burnt out. These are the only two ways I have EVER succeeded in avoiding getting burnt out.” – James Altucher
M life games
When considering a trip to Las Vegas, I’m always looking for ways to reduce my cash outlay. While this doesn’t count as travel hacking in my book, I’m all in if I can catch some discounts or freebies.
Here’s some information I’ve cobbled together so far using the M life games that are available on Facebook and as apps:
– There are 4 different games you can play to earn coins/points
– myVegas Slots
– myVegas BlackJack
– POP! Slots
– KONAMI Slots
– Each game gives you free coins and bonuses every day you open each app
– If you link them to your Facebook account, all of your coins go into one pot
– You need a M life account number to redeem your points but you can play without one
– Register for a M life account at https://www.mlife.com/en/sign-up.html
– You can pickup your M life card from a M life counter at any MGM property
– To redeem a reward, you need: your driver’s license, M life card, and your myVegas reward purchase confirmation number
– You need to go to the reward location’s M life counter to have the it loaded to your card
– You can only redeem three myVegas rewards every rolling 30-day period
– You can earn discounted items, buy one get ones, or fully comp’d tickets and rooms
The Place Where You Are
“Pause for a moment, right now, to notice where you are.
What is it like? What is the light like? What about the sounds, the smells, the feelings your body is feeling, the people around you? What is your state of mind? What are you worried about, joyful about? What is stopping you from appreciating this moment?”
via zenhabits.net
What I learned when I asked
In December I received an email from Ramit Sethi talking about honest feedback. Basically his observation is people say they want the truth but when the time comes most of us don’t really want to hear it (at least in relationships.)
I am always looking to increase my knowledge on various topics or ways to improve myself. Ramit provided a word-for-word script to do just that. It went like this:
Hi NAME,
I’m trying to come up with a really good New Year’s resolution for 2015 and I want your help. I know this might sound weird, but I would love your feedback on (1) one thing you think I do really well, and (2) one thing I could improve about _____.
Thanks!
I filled in the blank with “my social skills.”
The suggestion was to send it to three people. I sent it to seven. To date, I’ve received replies from five of the seven. The criteria for my selection was to choose people who I see out socially on a semi-regular basis and who seem to have some similar values. Wanting to become the best person they can be and improve themselves and their community were major considerations.
I am more of a don’t wait until the calendar changes, do it now, kind of guy. So while I don’t really “do” resolutions, the timing was a great excuse to get some insight about myself.
In the responses I’ve gotten there were definitely themes, both with what I do well and what needs improvement. The improvement item that was mentioned most often was to narrow my focus and execute on it. For me, this is applicable for more than just social situations.
photo via Michael Dales
Socially, it looks like being completely mindful in conversations, fully absorbing the moment. In business, it is taking an idea or product or goal, and executing on it fully or maybe it’s assembling the right team to do that. Personally, it is more like picking a hobby or interest and getting really good at it. It’s tough to learn guitar, German, Arabic, how to take better photos, remodel my home, read 52 books in a year, cultivate a consistent meditation practice all while planning my next European adventure. Focus.
This isn’t a new insight to me but it is a great reinforcer. Like with many lessons in life, we need to keep hearing something in different ways until it actually sinks in. Focus.
I’d like to thank all of the people who played along. If you’d like to participate, feel free to email your answers to me or leave them in the comments.
