Our Struggle for Mediocrity

April 28, 2010 9 Comments

Mediocrity pervades every facet of our existence.

We see mediocrity at work. It’s the person, maybe you, who does just enough to stay out of trouble with the boss but never enough to be recognized for their efforts. Instead of using time productively, they stare mindlessly at a computer screen wasting time, checking their email again, rereading the same messages for the third time.

As long as the required tasks for the day are completed, there’s no reason to work harder than what’s required. It isn’t like you’re going to earn more money by working any harder. All that matters is that the boss is out of your hair. Then everything will be fine.

Our schools and colleges are filled with mediocrity. Students are being filled with information that serves no purpose aside from being the answer to a multiple choice question on the next exam. In the words of the Greek author Plutarch:

The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled.

Poetic words but not true of many students today. Instead of thinking, they memorize and recite facts, formulas and definitions. Students are not being taught how to think, they are being told what to think. This method of “teaching” is mass producing mediocre minds.

This isn’t only the fault of the institutions.Students have no reason to excel. They want to do the minimum amount of work in order to be successful. Maybe it makes sense. Why put forth extra effort to earn an A or B when a C or D will still get you a degree?

Mediocrity lives in our homes and our relationships. Our relationship with our spouse that was once full of passion and excitement now resembles a business arrangement. Instead of lovers, you’ve become partners. The youthful idealism of love has disappeared and been replaced with a big, adult sized pile of shit. What the hell happened? This isn’t what love is supposed to be like but we have accepted it as reality and we follow the status quo belief that passion and lust are not sustainable in a relationship.

We aren’t unhappy but we could be happier.

We go through life putting forth the least amount of effort necessary. If you can spend half of the day at work doing practically nothing without anyone noticing, you’re going to. If you can earn a degree in college with poor grades, you might as well. If you’re kind of happy with your relationship, at least you’re not miserable, right?

There’s no reason to push ourselves to do better when the results will be the same no matter what we do. Good enough is good enough. 

Except, it isn’t good enough. If you float through life being mediocre, you aren’t living up to your full potential. You’re missing out on opportunities and the chance to have the life you’ve always desired.

If you wonder why you’re never recognized at work or are always passed up for promotions, try looking inward at your own performance. Is your work mediocre? Are you wasting time? Could you be more productive?

Learning really is fun, if you’re expanding your horizons and perception of the world. Life isn’t a list of facts and statistics and there’s much more to learning than memorization of names and dates. Learning is about understanding who you are in relation to the life you are living. It’s about finding meaning and purpose. Thinking and contemplation are the most crucial aspects of education and, sadly, are missing from our schools. I’ll let you in on a secret, there are no definite answers in life.

If your relationship has become the icon of mediocrity, you have to be the person to change it. Expect resistance from your spouse. They won’t have any idea what hit them and confusion will abound. Persist, rebuild the passion and lust that brought you together. Be dangerous, be spontaneous…wake up the neighbors! The ones across the street! Its okay, they need something to talk about anyways.

Break free from the cycle of average. Kick yourself in the ass and push yourself beyond the limits of your potential. Whatever you do, don’t be mediocre because mediocrity sucks!

Leave normal to the rest of the world, you deserve so much better.

Filed under Potential

Your iPhone is Killing Children

April 26, 2010 2 Comments

Our electronics are the latest fashion statement.

If you don’t have white wires dangling from your ears, you aren’t cool. If you can’t check Facebook on your phone then you must be a dinosaur. It seems like each week a new phone hits the market, creating a perception that the phone we bought last week is already obsolete. The last thing we consider when purchasing a new iGadget is what happens when we are done with it? All we care about is how sexy we are going to look when our friends see us on our new phone.

So we replace our old one with the newer version.

As the number of consumer electronics we purchase continues to grow, so does the amount of electronic waste we produce. Electronic waste is becoming a serious issue around the world, especially in poorer countries such as China, India, Malaysia and Kenya. People in these countries process the waste for precious metals such as copper, gold, silver and palladium. Sounds like a good trade, right? The poor countries can extract these metals and sell them for a profit but the question is, “At what cost?”

Recycling of materials from electronic scrap has raised concerns over toxicity and carcinogenicity of some of its substances and processes.  Toxic substances in electronic waste may include lead, mercury, and cadmium. Carcinogenic substances in electronic waste may include polychlorinated biphenyls. Capacitors, transformers, and wires insulated with or components coated with polyvinyl chloride, manufactured before 1977, often contain dangerous amounts of PCBs.

Our waste is making people sick. Children are being exposed to lead, which, at high levels, can cause brain damage or even death. Think about that when you are buying your next piece of iCrap.

In 2002, laborers in a Chinese village were paid $1.50 a day and they have already experienced environmental and health impacts as a result of the e-waste processing.  The drinking water becomes contaminated as a result of glass and cathode ray tubes (which contain lead) being pushed into the rivers.  Because the groundwater is so badly polluted, water has had to be trucked in from other regions.  When laborers in these countries incinerate the waste with no protective equipment or clothing, they inhale the polluted air and become physically weak as a result.  [Studies] estimate that it is 10 times less costly to ship computer monitors to China than it is to recycle them in the U.S.  While much of the world has banned the process of exporting hazardous materials, the US had not yet ratified the agreement.

Who else hasn’t ratified the Basal Convention along with the United States?  Haiti and Afghanistan.  As the leader of the Free World, we have an obligation to do better than this and if our government isn’t going to do the right thing, it is up to us as consumers to step up and protect not only the environment but our fellow global citizens.

Where Can I Donate or Recycle My Old Computer and Other Electronic Products?

Filed under Environment

What Do You Really Have to Lose?

April 25, 2010 8 Comments

The following is in response to an article at The Simple Dollar titled What Do You Really Have to Lose?  I encourage you to read the original article so you can form your opinion based on all of the advice he offers to an upcoming college graduate.

As another school year draws to a close, students around the country will be graduating college.  This is an important point in life where the choice of money or passion is typically decided.  Some will find careers in their field of study, realizing after four years of classes that they were chasing dollar signs rather than their passion, while others are left to flounder, unable to find their dream job and unwilling to settle for less than they deserve.

A few days ago, a college student I know was talking about his upcoming graduation.  His plans mostly revolved around getting a good paying job, but he also talked about how he might go back to school some day and study a particular branch of philosophy that he truly loved studying and reading about.

I asked him why he was choosing to put a good paying job over a path that he was deeply personally passionate about that might not necessarily earn a great deal in the near future.  He pretty much exploded, offering up a rant about how the world revolves around money and the only way he would ever be able to chase the dreams he has is if he has lots of income.

What is Trent’s advice to this recent graduate?

Since you don’t need much income, get a job sitting behind a counter at a gas station at night.  Earn minimum wage and sit there with your notebook open, collecting your ideas and thoughts about whatever it is you want to do.  Spend your mental and physical energy building the life you want.

There is no better time in your life to just throw caution to the wind and see where your passion will carry you than when you’re young and free of many responsibilities.  If it doesn’t work, you’re not out anything much – maybe a few years, at worst.  If it does work, you’ve opened the door to a lifetime of doing what you want to do.

What do you really have to lose?  Not much.  What do you have to gain?  The life you dream of.

After four years of college, Trent thinks the best option for this student is to sit behind the counter at a gas station doodling in a notebook?  Get real!  He has a degree which has the potential to earn a lot of money, he should pursue that avenue, even if it doesn’t make him happy, temporarily.  At least he will be unhappy while earning a decent wage rather than being unhappy selling cigarettes and porno magazines while barely scraping by on minimum wage.

Unless his education was financed by his parents, repayment on his Student Loans will begin six months after graduation.  Trying to pay those loans on a minimum wage job isn’t realistic.  If he takes a higher paying position, at least he could focus on knocking out the debt quickly so he is able to move on to better things sooner.

If it is his desire to return to school to study philosophy, having a cash reserve would make that transition much easier.  Most people are not able to pursue their dreams in life because of a lack of money.  It is not possible for them to switch between the lifestyle they have been living to one which might limit their income.  The higher paying position would also allow him to save money on a more accelerated schedule than a minimum wage job would allow, thus making that transition happen much faster and more easily.

This is my advice to this same college graduate:

Your job does not define you.  Society’s emphasis on a person’s career obscures our perception of self.  Defining who you are as an individual based on your career is limiting.  You are unique.  Don’t lose your individuality, don’t become another cog in the corporate machine.

Money is not everything but it can help create the life you desire.  Maybe your perception of the world is that it revolves around money.  It doesn’t.  This is a mistake many people make.  They believe that happiness is derived from driving fancy cars and living in expensive homes.  They believe success is defined by material possessions.  Life is about internal happiness, not external gratification.  Success is finding satisfaction and acceptance within and of yourself.

Income is only half of the equation.  So many people believe that making a lot of money is the foundation to the life of their dreams, only to find out that they have become a slave to their job.  Earning a large paycheck serves no purpose if your lifestyle grows with your income.  Live frugally, save as much money as possible and use this as your foundation to pursue your ambitions.

This is the time in your life when you have the power to define the remainder of your days here on Earth.  Work as hard as you can to set yourself up for success.  Seize opportunities when they present themselves, don’t be afraid to take risks.  Play the game to your advantage and build a strong foundation for the rest of your life.  Make every decision based on how it will affect your dream of studying philosophy.

Don’t work at a gas station!

Filed under Career, Education, Goals, Passion, Prioritizing, Success

The Single Best Invention of Life

April 24, 2010 Leave a comment

 

The following is a portion Steve Jobs’ Commencement Address given at Stanford on June 12, 2005:

When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like:

If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.

It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?”  And whenever the answer has been “No” for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.

Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life.  Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure – these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important.  Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose.  You are already naked.  There is no reason not to follow your heart.

About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer.  I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning, and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas.  I didn’t even know what a pancreas was.  The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months.  My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is doctor’s code for prepare to die.  It means to try to tell your kids everything you thought you’d have the next 10 years to tell them in just a few months.  It means to make sure everything is buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family.  It means to say your goodbyes.

I lived with that diagnosis all day.  Later that evening I had a biopsy, where they stuck an endoscope down my throat, through my stomach and into my intestines, put a needle into my pancreas and got a few cells from the tumor.  I was sedated, but my wife, who was there, told me that when they viewed the cells under a microscope the doctors started crying because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery.  I had the surgery and I’m fine now.

This was the closest I’ve been to facing death, and I hope its the closest I get for a few more decades.  Having lived through it, I can now say this to you with a bit more certainty than when death was a useful but purely intellectual concept:

No one wants to die.  Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there.  And yet death is the destination we all share.  No one has ever escaped it.  And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life.  It is Life’s change agent.  It clears out the old to make way for the new.  Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away.  Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.  Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking.  Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice.  And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.  They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

Filed under Inspiration

What Does it Mean to “Be Green”?

April 22, 2010 5 Comments

Today is Earth Day.

Around the globe people are banding together to help improve the health of our planet.  My contribution this year was to clean the river that runs through our campus.  Halfway through what I expected to be about a two hour job, we ran into a bit of a problem: a tractor tire almost as tall as me, buried in the middle of the river.  It was filled with sediment that smelled like death (no exaggeration).

We pulled it out of the river and laid it on the ground, contemplating our next move.  Should we roll it all the way across campus to our collection area or should we try to find another option to get it there?  While we were discussing our alternatives, a student offered to meet us with his pickup truck so we could load it into the back and drop it off right where we needed it.  Problem solved…or was it?

Another student thought it would be environmental heresy to use a fossil fuel burning machine to help us in our quest to save the planet.  I, on the other hand, didn’t want to be the person rolling an old tractor tire across the campus as it leaked muddy, smelly water the entire way.  Sarcasm got the best of me and my response of “Ironic, isn’t it?” brought on a barrage of environmental propaganda I wasn’t expecting.  I decided to keep my mouth shut and let her rant about her commitment to the Earth and the environment.

At that point I could have launched into a monologue about how big of an environmental hypocrite I am.  Actually, it would have been quite entertaining for myself but maybe offensive to this particular person.  I drive my car daily but I compost my kitchen waste.  I own a 52″ television but my apartment is 100% CFL.  I am the Vice President of the Environmental Club on campus but I spend a lot of time flying around the world.  I am a meticulous recycler but I take long showers.   I will drive half an hour one direction to buy organic food.  We purchase dish detergent that is phosphorus free and I am growing my own vegetables but I eat meat regularly.  I buy credits from my electric provider to offset my energy consumption and hang my clothes to dry…

I am thankful that there are people who care about the consequences of their actions and I am thankful there are people in this world who don’t feel a need to consume and be wasteful.  I, too, care about the environment but I am also thankful for the luxuries of technology.

This interaction made me wonder what it means to Be Green.  Do people with a superiority complex turn people off to the Green Movement?  Am I being Green enough?  Are my efforts to be environmentally friendly void and invalid because I am also making other choices that are not the best option when we consider their effects on the Polar Bears?  Should I do more?  Should I have pushed that stupid tire all the way across campus instead of picking it up with a truck?

Being Green doesn’t require you to be a tree hugging hippy.  For those people who are so devoted to the cause of saving the planet, I applaud you.  I find your ambition to be a noble one but please don’t stand on a soapbox and ridicule people who aren’t doing everything you think they should do.  Your only success with this approach will be in alienating people from the movement.  Encourage people for what they do right, teach them when they are making poor choices but do not judge.  I believe most people have a fundamental desire to make the right choices.  Sometimes those choices are not so simple.

Do you choose paper or plastic at the grocery store?  I always thought paper was the best choice.  It’s biodegradable, paper is the most recycled material and trees are a renewable resource.  Then I read an article stating the opposite of what I thought was the right choice.  In fact, paper is not the best choice due to the energy required in the manufacturing process compared to that of plastic bags.

Making the right choice isn’t always easy and your attempts at doing the right thing might actually not be the best choice.  Being Green is about doing what you can in the areas of your life where it makes sense.  Give some, take some.  Do what works for you and do your part.  Being Green doesn’t require you to give up your car  and you don’t need to hug a tree or put flowers in your hair.  There is no need to grow out your armpit hair and sing folk music to a poorly tuned acoustic guitar.  (Yes, I know I am stereotyping.  It is all in good fun.)

It is the small choices that we make on a daily basis that make the most difference.  Recycle, install CFLs, carpool, turn off lights when you aren’t using them…the options are endless.  Mix and match to your heart’s desire!

Happy Earth Day!

***Disclaimer: My area of study is in Environmental Science and I intend to continue my Postgraduate work in Natural Resource Science & Management.

Filed under Environment

Update: Goal #28) Eat a Balanced Diet

April 18, 2010 8 Comments

When I threw out my 2009 calendar, I made resolutions like everyone else.  One of those resolutions was to stop treating my mouth like a dumpster and begin to eat a healthy, balanced diet.  Like my struggle to kick the soda habit, eating healthy has been a challenge for me.  There are so many excuses not to eat healthy.  It is too expensive, there isn’t enough time to prepare healthy meals, I don’t know how to cook and, of course, vegetables are yucky!  Besides, pizza and cheeseburgers are delicious, why deprive myself of foods I enjoy?

My desire to change my eating habits is a direct result of my vanity.  I want to be the guy at the beach that the girls whisper to their friends about but my vanity wasn’t enough to motivate me to change.  One night I was sitting on my couch eating a Big Mac, drinking a Coke and eyeballing the box of McNuggets that I was about to devour when I decided to look at the Nutrition Facts for that greasy cheeseburger I was stuffing down my throat.

You know how you know something but you don’t really know it?  I knew that eating fast food was bad for my health.  I heard about  it all the time.  I even watched Supersize Me a couple of years ago but when I turned over that cardboard box with my greasy fingers and read the Nutrition Facts, it struck me.  I had my “aha moment” and from that point forward I have been working on improving my diet in a real way.

At first change was slow.  In between our normal home cooked meals of lasagna and tater tot casserole, we tried a couple of recipes I found on the Internet and we were surprised that healthy food could actually taste good but I didn’t want to put myself on a diet because I am not the type of person who believes in counting calories or eating cabbage for every meal.  My goal was to find a way to eat a healthy, balanced diet where I didn’t feel like I was depriving myself of good food.  I didn’t want to eat out of a box and pretend I was eating right (i.e. Healthy Choice, South Beach).

What I found was a something called Eating Clean and even though the books are titled “Eat Clean Diet“, what I found was less of a diet than a way of life, exactly what I was looking for.  I read as much information as I could about what it meant to Eat Clean and what I learned about the program really resonated with me.  It made sense.  Eat nutrient dense foods, avoid processed foods and refined sugars, drink water.

After trying some recipes I found online, I decided to purchase the Eat Clean Cookbook and a book about the general principles of Eating Clean.  Almost everyday we try to prepare a recipe from the cookbook and so far our experiences have been a mix of good and bad.  Some recipes aren’t to our taste but we are having fun experimenting with different cooking styles and ”exotic” ingredients (Coconut Butter?).

The more recipes we try, the more we Eat Clean, the more we are moving into the program and away from our old eating habits.  We purged our cabinets and refrigerator of almost all of our processed junk foods and donated it to the local church.  I find irony in giving food that we decided not to eat to another person to eat but I couldn’t see it going to waste.  We are now in the process of transitioning our cabinets to cleaner, healthier choices.  It has been expensive, I will admit but I think after we have all of the basic ingredients, the cost will go down.

I am not one who promotes products but I feel confident promoting the Eat Clean Diet and recommend the book and the lifestyle to anyone who is looking to change the way they eat for the better.

Filed under Balanced Diet, Dieting, Food, Goals, Health, Updates

Update: Goal #98) Witness a Space Shuttle Launch

April 17, 2010 11 Comments

A few months ago I was contacted by a reader informing me that the Space Shuttle would be launching for the last time in September.  If I was ever going to accomplish my goal of witnessing a Space Shuttle launch, I’d better be doing it soon.  I checked my schedule to see if I could make something work but was disappointed to find that I would be in class during each upcoming launch date.  It wasn’t going to work out and I put it out of my mind.

Then a couple of days ago I received an email from Niel:

I noticed that you want to see a Space Shuttle launch.  I wondered if you knew that the Space Shuttle fleet is in the process of retiring and there will be no more launches after September.  I saw the launch of Endeavour in February, and I think it’s worth the effort to see it.

My reply was little more than an expression of my disappointment with the retirement of the Shuttle Program and my disgust in our government for closing down a program that inspires our youth to pursue ambitious goals in mathematics and science.  I closed the email with this statement:

I have checked out the launch schedule in the past for the upcoming year and at the time I wasn’t sure that it would fit into my schedule but being the rebel that I can sometimes be, I might have to find a way to make it happen!

After sending my response to Niel, I checked out the launch schedule again and found that, indeed, I had scheduling conflicts with school.  Frustrated, and a little angry at a perceived lack of control in my life, I fired off an email to my Chemistry professor politely informing him that I would be missing class so I could travel to Florida to watch the launch of Endeavour.  Then I booked my flight to Orlando.

I had no idea what the repercussions of skipping class would be or whether there would be a quiz or exam that day.  I didn’t care.  Sometimes a person just needs to follow their ambitions without fear of consequence.  The next morning when I checked my email I had a response from my professor:

I understand your interest in the Space Shuttle.  I will help you out with this as much as possible.

At this moment, all I have is a plane ticket to Orlando and a hotel room.  I don’t have a ticket to the launch area and it is not even a guarantee that the launch will take place that day.  It is a risk I am willing to take.  My opportunity to accomplish this goal is coming to an end and it is time to do whatever it takes to turn this goal into a reality.

Thanks Niel for the push I needed!

Filed under Goals, Space Shuttle, Updates

Welcome Get Rich Slowly Readers!

April 11, 2010 4 Comments

This week’s article, “I Was Drowning in Debt” is being hosted at Get Rich Slowly!

If you are new to Hundred Goals, Welcome! and thank you for taking the time to click over and see what Hundred Goals is all about.  I have been reading Get Rich Slowly ever since I began my financial turnaround and I want to thank JD for hosting this week’s article.  Getting out of debt has been a challenging battle, one that I have not yet won but I know that in time, I will be victorious!

If you would like to become a part of the Hundred Goals community, there are a number of ways for you to stay connected:

  • Receive free updates by e-mail.
  • Follow @HundredGoals on Twitter.
  • Become a Fan of Hundred Goals on Facebook.
  • Leave your comments about any of the articles you read on Hundred Goals.  I enjoy reading your thoughts and I always respond!
  • Introduce yourself via e-mail [HundredGoals @ hotmail dot com].

Here are some articles to help you discover what Hundred Goals is all about:

Thanks for visiting and I hope to see you around!!!

Filed under Connect to Hundred Goals

The Fortune Cookie

April 9, 2010 1 Comment

The other day I was eating Chinese and when I cracked open my fortune cookie, the paper on the inside asked this question:

If you don’t have time to live your life now, when do you?

Such an insightful little cookie…

Filed under Life

Perfectly Unsatisfied

April 3, 2010 9 Comments

In the quest to become a perfect version of ourselves, our focus is perpetually fixed on our shortcomings and we become obsessed with improving any deficiencies in our lives.  Like a disease, our acute awareness of imperfection begins to infect other aspects of our lives.  No longer are we focusing solely on ameliorating our own character flaws.  Now, what began as an internal aspiration to better ourselves begins to spread and affect others.

The imperfections of those around us begin to complicate our quest for a perfect life.  Our focus shifts from correcting our own character flaws to trying to correct the character flaws of our partners (children, family or friends).  We offer suggestions and innocent critiques to try to encourage them to change and improve.  Our intentions are good, yet toxic to the relationship.  By focusing our attention on their flaws, we poison the relationship.  Before long we forget all about the positive qualities of that person, our supportive tone becomes critical and our gentle encouragement turns to venom.

Our effort to create a perfect life has taken an unexpected turn and now, rather than perfection, we have become perfectly unsatisfied.  How can we pursue a perfect life without harming our relationships?

It is Your Journey, Not Theirs.  When our lives are intimately entangled with others, the boundary of individuality is often blurred and it is easy to lose our sense of self.   When you become frustrated with others, remind yourself that this is your journey. 

Lead by Example.  If you want someone to change, instead of criticizing their current lifestyle, be a model of success.  When people begin to notice a positive change in your behavior or attitude, it will influence them to improve their own life.  Share your excitement about the changes you have made!

Be Patient.  Breaking a habit or changing a lifestyle doesn’t happen overnight.  Your own transformation is the result of your desire to change coupled with persistence and daily diligence.  Be supportive and offer encouragement rather than judgement.

Watch Your Mouth.  Words are powerful and have the potential to lift a person up or tear them down.  How you chose your words affects your relationship with others and can influence their desire to change…or not.

Appreciate People for Who They Are.  Why is this person a part of your life?  Is it because they make you laugh?  Do they support you in times of need?   Maybe they share in your wild and wacky adventures or just love you unconditionally.  Stop focusing on what is wrong and appreciate them for the person they are.

Perfection Doesn’t Exist.  Not really.  Even if it did, it is the imperfections that make life interesting.  It is the challenges that give life meaning.  Try not to get hung up on perfection.  Instead, enjoy life for the gift that it is, bad breath, pimples and all.

Filed under Relationships

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