Working hard

This week I worked a lot at a lot of different things. I didn't work as much as Catherine because I would probably keel over if I had to do that, but we all know she is a little trooper. That being said I am trying to support her as she has been working on this project for a long time and it's about to get even tougher as they near the completion. Thank goodness for meditation, exercise and sleep! Thankfully the new sleeping routine I wrote out with C last weekend seems to be helping her to get off to sleep quicker and get a better quality of sleep with less worry. A bedtime routine is essential for good sleep hygiene and getting rid of the technology stimulation has been a small part of that. She's doing an amazing job and I am extremely proud and constantly amazed by her tenacity, willpower and commitment. She just needs to remind herself how amazing she is, how far she has come and how important she is.



A short time ago I set a limit on myself of not working more than 50 hours a week. At that time I had identified that number as the limit of my coping abilities. I also said I wouldn't work Saturdays in order to fully rest and enjoy my time off. However times change, I have progressed beyond what I thought possible. Quite simply I got off my arse and took action to change. I have been working on a new habit of getting up and training early before work, of meditating each day and committing myself to work. No matter what mood I've had this week I've reminded myself that I am at work to get shit done, to learn and not think about anything outside of this. I've been doing 50 hours a week with Steve and then private work early in the mornings or after hours. I worked a Saturday to get a new client's work done as I can't get there in the week. Am I doing too much? Maybe. But the difference is my mindset, I am committed to taking action on the things I want to change and that comes from hard work. Yes I need to be intelligent about it and that is where meditation, exercise and a good sleep routine balance the workload out.


So what has changed?

1. I've been getting up earlier. I've been using the apps Hypnos and Sleep Cycle in order to get the right amount of sleep and make the most of my time. These have allowed me to get up at 5 or 5:30 am and feel awake and rested. I plan on making this earlier as I find early mornings are my most creative and productive. 
2. The key to any of my new changes has been to tie it into my existing routine. I spoke about this before in "Taking action and creating habits" and how we should start really small and frequently remind ourselves when creating a new habit. With that in mind I have been meditating in the mornings when I make my morning cuppa, the bare minimum I aim for is 3 minutes. If I do more then that is a bonus, but 3 minutes is all I need achieve for now. 
3. I have been getting my training in, whether it is early in the morning or as soon as I get back from work I have made sure that I did it regardless of how I felt. On Tuesday I had to run 10x400m intervals with 400m recovery after each. I went down to the beach feeling ok and ran around the grassy area in front of the beach (conveniently 400m long) until I had completed the session. I was tired and didn't run as fast as I wanted, but by the end I had run 8km around a circle and finished my training. I gave myself a pat on the back and noted a win for the week. 
4. Rewards. I've started to reward myself for the small wins I have. This does not mean I eat chocolate, food or buy clothes for myself it just means I tell myself "good job Tom" when I have done a meditation, a training session or just got up early. I have a larger reward in mind, but until I can congratulate myself on the small wins and enjoy them I won't be able to enjoy the big stuff later on. (My brain doesn't work in a normal way remember!)

That is not to say that I haven't been challenged by my brain and it's old tricks. Yesterday when I was working on making a pool box for a client it began to rain and was consistent for a couple of hours. I worked through it, but it slowed me done (power tools in the rain = injury). I also made a mistake when buying the cladding I got the wrong length for what I needed, so I had to return it and correct the mistake. I also took longer to get my frame right as I realised I would have to make it in two pieces and clad the back before I put it in place over the pool cover. All this began to produce some familiar thought processes with my brain telling me "you are taking too long" and "you won't make any money out of this now". Fortunately I was able to just listen to this and accept that it was just a thought before calmly continuing with my work, enjoying the slowness, the precision and the satisfaction from not fucking it up. I learnt a lot from yesterday and because I took my time I didn't make a couple of bug mistakes that I would've had I rushed. Yes the rain was cold and wet, but like my thoughts it wasn't going to kill me, nor deter me from producing smart work. I have to go back to finish off as there is more to do, but I feel more confident about it and am looking forward to seeing the finished result.

Conclusion

I've chattered on a lot, but the point was to say that I am improving and progressing with my mind and my actions. I don't want to be the person that "talks a good game", but rather the man that takes action and lives by what he writes and says. None of what I am writing now has come overnight, I have to work at it each day, it is my life. But strangely having that to drive me has helped a lot. I am doing this for myself because as I said last year I had had enough. I needed to change and now after a year of working out what works and what doesn't I am finally putting in the work to make a lasting impact. If you feel the self pity, lethargy and hopelessness that I felt last year and in the years before then perhaps now is the time to start taking action. Your brain will always do it's own thing if you let it. Accept these two things:

1. Your thoughts are not real, they won't physically stop you from doing anything. (Even if you think they can.)
2. You can take control and change your brain.

How long will you let your brain control your life?

Tom out (mic drop)