Home >

life

Capturing Ideas

by JimRaffel on July 8, 2011

Image of capturing ideas

For me it’s via writing. When I don’t find a quiet place to plug in my ear buds and write, I start to get irritable and edgy. Perhaps, it started as an outlet for all the ideas flying around in my head but now it’s the time when I convert thoughts and ideas into actionable plans. Plans that can be utilized to move my personal and professional life forward.

Honesty

One day this week was not one of my best. I was agitated and managed to annoy and irritate those closest to me. I think most of us have those days. Yet, here I am today taking a short break to write a few blog posts I’ve been thinking about. I feel the stress and angst draining from my body as I convert the raw thoughts into ideas that can help me move my life forward. That’s more than an outlet or therapy. As I look back, all my recent success can be traced to what I’ve taken the time to convert to words and share on this blog or in other communities like Third Tribe Marketing and Kitchen Table Companies.

How it Works

Throughout the day, random ides pop into my head. I try to not judge the ideas as good or bad; at least not yet. Instead, I ask myself if the idea is interesting enough to write about. If the answer is yes, then I capture the idea somewhere. My three favorite places to capture ideas are; Post-It notes, a moleskine notebook or a sticky note app I have on my Android phone. I like to think of all my captured ideas like a bank account. The more ideas in the bank account, the better my life is theoretically going to be. It’s kind of like money if things were equal.

Then, when I find time like I have today, I just search my saved ideas for ones that fit with what is going on in my business and personal life. I’ve learned from the feedback you the readers provide that a post that includes stories and examples of what is going on in my life are far more useful. I’m happy to share that writing in one of the places all my excess energy goes. This isn’t where all the extra energy has always gone. For now, let’s just say the other places proved to be more destructive than constructive to a productive future.

Saving for a rainy day

When you think about it, saving up ideas is a lot like saving up money. I save money so I can pay for things I know (and don’t know) will happen in the future. These items inlcude children’s educations, new cars, new windows for the house or even a refrigerator that dies on a Saturday evening when you have a big party planned for Sunday. Ideas are the same and, with more in my account, I don’t have to worry about producing daily blog posts. I probably have enough ideas right now to write for a year. I’m not kidding. If you don’t have it now, imagine having enough money in the bank to live for a year. That’s how I feel about this blog and my life.

Photo Credit

{

Continue Reading 0 comments }personal development

Why I don’t have hobbies

by JimRaffel on May 6, 2011

image of no hobbies

I realize this post won’t be for everyone. This is not a story about working 35-40 hours a week, going home and plopping down on the couch to watch TV. When I wrote “The Personal/Professional Blur” I explained that I don’t have work from which I come home. I understand that some folks like fixing their own cars, doing their own yard work and even fun things like running around taking pictures. That’s all good.

While you are enjoying your hobbies

What is it you think I am doing? It’s simple really. I’m reading business books, writing blog posts and participating in online forums. I’m searching for ideas that can be transformed into products and businesses. I’m searching for ways to help and teach others. In the helping and teaching lie the seeds of ideas for which people will pay. That does not mean that the helping and teaching you do is not genuine. On the contrary, if you are doing it only to find the ideas, those you are trying to help will run for the hills. Most people have very well-tuned BS meters.

This life is not for everyone

I’ve come to realize that lots of folks are perfectly happy with safe jobs that “pay enough.” I also get that these folks don’t want a life that has no lines between their personal and professional life. That’s because they don’t truly love and embrace what it is they’ve chosen to do to earn money. I’ve reached a point where I focus my time and energies on doing work that is fun with people I truly enjoy. I don’t punch a time clock or collect a pay check. That’s all good.

But what do I do for fun?

Instead of engaging in solitary hobbies, I seek out activities like hiking, biking, skiing or even wine tastings. These are activities I can engage in with like-minded thinkers and doers. It’s my time to change the world. It’s my time to leave a mark and I’m not going to do that pushing a lawn mower around my yard. Besides, in the hour it would take to do that work, I can write two or three posts like this. I’ll give my son the 10 dollars to cut the lawn.

Your life does not need to be one-dimensional to have a singleness of purpose backed up by passion that will put you in a position to make the world a better place.

Photo Credit

{

Continue Reading 4 comments }motivation, personal development

My Why

April 21, 2011
Thumbnail image for My Why

“Do you love your job? Why?” That’s what my friend Jill Felska threw out there as a Facebook status the other day. I didn’t even have to think about my answer it was almost as if my fingers typed “Because it’s not a job, it’s my life” out of reflex. This caused Jill to ask [...]

How minor adjustments make you more productive

February 14, 2011

Sometimes your life requires big adjustments to move you forward toward a productive and fruitful life. This is the case with addictive substances and behaviors. If you are addicted, then the only real answer is to quit. That often requires a commitment to change and the support structure necessary to make it happen. If your [...]

Live a shameless and unapologetic life

January 14, 2011

By no means does the title of this post infer you should be ungrateful; quite the opposite. The simple fact is that unless you won the biological lottery (think Paris Hilton) or the pay-your-dollar-here lottery, you have worked damn hard for the success you have. I’m fairly certain there are few shortcuts or get-rich-quick schemes [...]

I don’t want to turn work off

November 13, 2010
Thumbnail image for I don’t want to turn work off

Earlier this year I wrote Personal/Professional blur and perhaps it was a more politically correct way of saying that I don’t want to turn work off – ever. If you’re not the same way, I am perfectly fine with that. What got me thinking about this topic again is the following question from the idea [...]

What’s your next dream?

October 24, 2010

The dream you are working on now is already reality or at least becoming so. What’s next? I’m not suggesting you lose focus but it might be time to look forward to what’s next. I’ve worked the better part of two years to make one of my dreams come true. I’m now at the point [...]

Live in the moment

October 17, 2010

Have you ever been so wrapped up in your own little world that you feel like you missed something? I had just this feeling on a recent flight. So, I stopped writing, closed my MacBook, took my ear buds out and had an hour long conversation with the woman sitting next to me. Social media [...]

Friends for Life?

August 1, 2010

Note: This is a stream of consciousness post I wrote 7/26/2010. If you feel it speaks to or about you fantastic. Just know that it’s not written about any single person or event. Friends. I’ve had many. More than my fair share, as I look back through my life. What frustrates me sometimes is how [...]

Find the fun

May 11, 2010

Find the fun in everything you do. Life is just that simple. For months now I’ve been watching the people around me I consider most successful. They laugh, they smile, they joke about almost everything. Yes, even the serious stuff. Yesterday the 10-12 hours a day I work and the ever increasing to-do list bummed [...]