How To Make Next Year Your Best Year

best year ever

Exactly 5 years ago, I had a rough time during this time of the year. My career and life felt stuck. I had no idea what to do about it.

From the outside, it looked like I was doing well. I had my own business, a decent apartment, and a nice car. But I didn’t have any perspective. I still lived in my hometown and frankly, I was bored with my life.

Does that sound familiar? You have an okay life, and yet, it doesn’t feel right. It’s the ultimate challenge of the 21st century. Our lives are safer than ever, and yet, we feel empty.

By the end of 2013, my frustration was building up. I started blaming everything and everyone for my lack of growth.

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Aim High and Do Everything In Your Control to Become Your Best Self

aim high

The world is full of paradoxes. One of the biggest is the tradeoff between having high and low expectations. It’s a prerequisite to becoming your best self.

On the one hand, we need to expect to win at life, otherwise; what’s the point of even trying? But on the other hand, we can’t be discouraged when we lose.

The two different concepts are perfectly explained by the following two quotes.

  1. “You were born to win, but to be a winner, you must plan to win, prepare to win, and expect to win.” — Zig Ziglar
  2. “Blessed is he who expects nothing, for he shall never be disappointed.”― Alexander Pope
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How To Be A Leader That Inspires People To Change

lead from the front

No matter how old you are or what type of role you have in life, there are times you’re a follower, and there are times you’re a leader.

I don’t care whether you’re in high school or leading a firm with 500 people, some situations require leadership.

  • When you get in trouble with your group of friends at school, there must be one person who takes ownership and apologizes.
  • When your company has to deal with a huge setback, there must be people who lead the way toward growth.
  • When your relationship with your partner is on the line, one of you must commit to improving it.

You see, when people talk and write about leadership, we often assume that you need a title to be a leader. “A CEO or president, that’s a leader,” is what most of us falsely assume.

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The Best Books I’ve Read In 2018

thebestbooksof2018

How many books does a person read in a lifetime? I did the arithmetic one night over beers with a friend.

First, we established that averages are useless. Some statistics say that people read 12 books per year on average. There are always a few people who read more than 100 books a year. So that number is inflated.

Based on our experiences, most people we know only read a book that’s popular. For example, this year’s book was 12 Rules For Life by Jordan Peterson. Most people read books because “everybody has read this book!”

And then they might pick up one or two other books in a year. They probably won’t even finish them. But let’s be optimistic about people and assume most folks read 5 books a year. Over a 50-year career, that’s only 250 books.

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