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My Journal - Joe


wookieshark88

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?I'll never forget a few months ago when it felt like it was literally just me and you commenting back and forth every day after a few of the first few members disappeared for a bit (ZANE!!).

The momentum continues to build. Redesign of the main website has helped a lot I think.

?wut

?

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I mean, when I came back, there were like three times as many people here than when I left

?There was a period right after you left where it was literally just wookie and I for a week or so. Then it jumped back up and now it's better than ever! :D

Don't think I don't remember when it was just me and you mostly too. The good ol' days.

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?There was a period right after you left where it was literally just wookie and I for a week or so. Then it jumped back up and now it's better than ever! :D

Don't think I don't remember when it was just me and you mostly too. The good ol' days.

?It was great for me! I really needed to get things back together at that point!

Last night was really relaxing. I was able to set up a lawn chair in the front yard and just sit comfortably in the cool autumn air with my beverage watching the lunar eclipse. Sitting there observing one of nature's wonders was a great time to practice mindfulness. It was so quiet, peaceful, and still. I have always had a fascination with space so it was great to have the time to take in the moment.

Today was another good day even if it was a bit challenging. I woke up really congested, achy, and low on energy. Instead of heading to work right away, I got to stay home with my baby so I could take her to her doctor's appointment. She's right on track with her growth and development which is awesome! What wasn't so awesome was how much her shots upset her. It's tough to hear your own baby cry like that.

After the appointment I went to work. Ideally I would stay home to rest and get better on a day like this, but I don't have any accumulated time off from work, and I don't want to get in trouble. This is a common problem at my job because there are always sick people at work who just infect more people who don't have enough accumulated time off either. I decided to take this as a challenge and get through the day with the least amount of physical exertion possible. I work at a desk so being still all day in a chair is probably decent enough rest. I got everything done that I needed to do (except for exercise). The doctor gave me plenty of preventative tips to keep my baby well so hopefully that works out.

I'm thankful for:

  1. The beautiful show in the sky last night.
  2. Being positive even when not on the top of my game.
  3. A healthy baby.
  4. Keeping my habits (except for exercising).
  5. Having the self control to relax and not exercise when it's appropriate.
  6. Being able to be happy. Depression is no joke.
  7. Getting a good amount of homework done.
  8. Talking to my parents last night.
  9. My morning routine.
  10. Eating all my cholesterol lowering foods (green tea, walnuts, avocado, and oatmeal) today.
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I didn't plan this in my original journal entry, but I want to share it. This article talks about how using willpower saps memory power. I really believe that we need to set up our lives in a way that minimize the need for willpower. Keeping the memory in top shape is a good reason to do so!

Today was a good day. I finished listening to my latest book, Freakonomics by Levitt and Dubner. It's not a very tough listen and has a pop-sci feel to it. What I have taken away from it is that intuitive thinking can often be very wrong although very popular. I found myself compelled to disregard some of the data that was presented in the book like reading to a child and taking her to a museum has no impact on her success. Of course these are things that I have wanted (and already) do to provide the best for my baby. I particularly enjoy doing these things because I love to see the wonder and smiles on her face when we do these things. They're a lot of fun for me personally, and I enjoy spending the time with her. Back to the subject of this paragraph, the book helped me to realize that I should do my best to make decisions based on facts, and not intuition. Data is a very tricky thing to interpret which can be a blessing and a curse. It's tough to make the best decisions in life when it's tough to make sense of what's going on around us. Conversely, because of the amount of non-intuitive truths out there, a key to forming a very successful business could be to discover a frequently overlooked and non-intuitive solution to a common problem. Of course a solution would need to be formulated and marketed effectively etc. Perhaps the way I will find out what my business should be is to create and administer surveys and to find existing statistics and see how if they can show a subtle unsolved problem that I can offer a solution to. This can help me to find a niche that doesn't require a mountain of specialized knowledge or have much competition. I have no desire to try out compete hoards of smart and creative people. I'll definitely be pondering this (although maybe that's a waste of time because the solution is non-intuitive anyways, haha).

School, work, and habits have all gone according to plan today so all is well with that. I've had to keep myself from exercising again today because I want go get over this cold or whatever it is as soon as possible. Hopefully tomorrow I'll feel well enough to get back on track with that. Perhaps I should read a book on statistics and surveys at some point!

I'm thankful for:

  1. A mentally stimulating book.
  2. Things not always being what they seem. The world is more exciting that way.
  3. Quiz #2 on Wednesday. It's my next chance to solidify an A in my class!
  4. A delicious lunch.
  5. Feeling better than yesterday.
  6. Getting lots of sleep last night.
  7. Meditation being particularly good today.
  8. Getting to the library on a regular basis.
  9. My wife getting Pho for dinner tonight!
  10. My baby not getting sick. I really hope this continues. I've been sanitizing my hands regularly and wearing a surgical mask since yesterday when I'm around her.
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So far, today has been absolutely fantastic! I feel 90% better from my cough. My habits are going well as usual. I feel like I'm just about ready for my test tomorrow. However, these aren't the reasons why today has been absolutely fantastic. The reason is the I started listening to "How to Meditate" by Pema Chodron. I honestly had minimal expectations for this book. I just got it from the library with other audio books because I wanted to make sure that I had enough listening material to keep my reading habit going along. My logic was, "I meditate, and this book is about meditation so might find it useful. No matter what, my reading habit will be met, and that's awesome for me." I popped the CD into my computer and hit play hoping that I would actually be able to just absorb some of what I was about to hear. With some of the audio books, I felt like I had very little retention which is frustrating. After about 5 minutes of listening to this book, I restarted it with a pen in my hand ready to take notes because it was awesome! I've finished 2 out of the 5 discs and I've already taken four pages of notes! I've tried the different things I wrote down in mini meditation sessions and they are amazing! I cannot wait to finish this book and incorporate the whole thing into my meditation practice. For me this book has reached the top tier of books I have read. "The Power of Habit", "The Slight Edge", and "How to Meditate" are my three favorite books of all time now. If you are practicing meditation and wish to improve, I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

Haha, I guess my journal entry turned into a book endorsement of a book I have not even finished yet. Oh well, I'm happy with it, and this is my journal!

I'm thankful for:

  1. "How to Meditate" by Pema Chodron.
  2. Being inspired today by a book.
  3. My habits leading to the discovery of an inspiring book.
  4. Learning about habits from "The Power of Habit".
  5. Learning to give self improvement books a chance from Cam.
  6. Finding Game Quitters.
  7. Finding /r/stopgaming
  8. Quitting video games.
  9. Wanting to quit video games.
  10. Having a strong and burning desire to be a great father and husband.

That stuff I read in "Think and Grow Rich" about how wanting something bad enough will cause the universe to make it happen for you seems a little less like BS to me now. I love how the world can surprise me. For me, hell would be complete and utter predictability.

Edited by wookieshark88
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Today was another good day. My test was super easy, and I would be surprised if I scored lower than 95%. I also finished so fast that I was able to walk around campus for 30 minutes while I waited for the test to end and for the lecture to begin. During this time I practices being mindful and in the moment. That time was such a blessing because of how busy I am these days. My drive to and from school was nice as I was able to listen to some Tim Ferriss podcasts. The more I listen to his stuff, the more I get into it.

Last night was rough. My baby woke up five times during the night. The norm for her is to sleep until morning. My poor wife got up to take care of her three times, and I got up twice. This definitely has made me more tired today, but I'm getting through the day pretty well regardless. She has been really happy all day today so I'm not really sure what was going on. Being a baby, her habits can change literally overnight so the wife and I will just have to observe how she's doing and act accordingly.

Work was good today. I got plenty done and learned a few new things which is always nice. I just found out that a guy I work with is preparing to start meditation which is awesome. It'll be nice to have something in common with a coworker. I often feel like I'm not too compatible with most of my coworkers (which really doesn't bother me).

I also listened to disc 3 of 5 of my book and took two more pages of notes! I'm loving this one so much. It will be fun to finish and rewrite my notes into a coherent overview of what I have learned. I've done the same for the first third of "Think and Grow Rich" and I'm going to finish doing it when I wrap up the semester. That is a book that I need to read and not listen to. I really miss reading things right now.

I'm thankful for:

  1. Doing good on my test.
  2. Having 30 minutes of mindfulness time.
  3. Tim Ferriss's podcast.
  4. "How to Meditate" by Pema Chodoron.
  5. My common interest with a coworker.
  6. My new boss seeing to be a good person to work for. I always get so nervous that I'll get a disastrous boss like the one I had three years ago.
  7. Upping my meditation game this morning to a new level! I'm not really trying to reach enlightenment, but I am trying to kick ass at life and be really happy every day (so far so good!). If enlightenment comes, that's cool too as long as I can still kick ass at life and be really happy every day.
  8. Noticing how positivity has become a more natural part of my thought process over the last few months.
  9. Having a nice little conversation about my quitting games with my wife last night. She showed more interest than the last time I talked to her about it. It's hard for her to comprehend how much I struggled with it. It's hard really show her what it did to me because I hid it way too well. She's getting it little by little though.
  10. Being really happy and kicking ass at life today.
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I always love reading your updates. Having been investing in things like mindfulness, Tim Ferriss podcasts and quality books for many years now, it's exciting for me to know on my end how much your life is going to continue to evolve and change over time as you continue to put "the work" in.

Doing the right small actions over time = big results. You just need to have faith in that. For example, yesterday I'm driving from Baker City, OR to Seattle and I'm listening to the podcast as well. I know it will help me in some way.

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Today is another good day! My baby was able to sleep straight through the night so my wife and I were able to start the day fresh. This is such a big difference maker. I guess that it's normal for babies that usually sleep through the night to have isolated nights where they wake up a whole lot. It's very comforting to feel like I don't have to keep trying to figure out what is wrong and how to fix it. Also, my cold is 95% gone. I was able to do some light exercise, but not too much because I can feel that if I start breathing too hard, my asthma is going to act up on me.

Meditation is really becoming more powerful for me as I learn more about it. I'm able to combine my newly acquired knowledge with my headspace routine and it's a whole new experience. I've got all my notes together, and I'll soon create a coherent breakdown of the wisdom contained in the book. I'm really looking forward to seeing the end result of this effort!

The weekend has started, and it's a great thing! I spent most of the week feeling sick or sleepy. Today, it's all coming together, and I look forward to spending this time without work very effectively with a feeling of happiness!

I'm thankful for:

  1. Feeling better today.
  2. Getting a good night's sleep last night.
  3. Getting a lot of work done today.
  4. Finishing my awesome book.
  5. Being happy.
  6. A new record low weight! 28 pounds down and 7 to go.
  7. My library card. We'll have to see what books I can come home with tomorrow.
  8. Having the strength to live my life the way I want to. This definitely has not always been the case.
  9. Having the opportunity to see my baby love life.
  10. Being able to share my life with a wonderful woman.
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Today was another good day! It was quite busy all day as the wife and I got a ton of things done around the house and outside. It's awesome to get caught up on things. We did laundry, winterized, sent out some mail, vacuumed, cleaned, organized, replaced filters, grocery shopped, home repaired, did homework, got books for the baby, and had fun!

My baby is almost ready to crawl! I can see her putting her knees up in the crawling position and moving them back and forth. Once she can coordinate her knees with her arms, she's going to be moving! That just makes the need for babyproofing a little more urgent. I'm so grateful that I can watch her be on the verge of crawling without thinking about playing some video game. I'm so happy to be fully present in these moments.

I'm thankful for:

  1. Not being a procrastinator anymore.
  2. The fun new books I got from the library for myself and my baby! She enjoys when we read to her, and I hope to help make her love of books a lifelong one.
  3. The insurance I bought for my wife's engagement ring. Today was the fourth time she's had to use it. I love the ring design, but the quality is not as good as it should be.
  4. My cat cuddling up with me as I relax.
  5. My wife for putting up with my spastic way of getting things done sometimes.
  6. My baby for being so determined to crawl.
  7. The delicious wine we're having right now.
  8. Having a great mental focus throughout the day.
  9. Getting one day closer to reaching my goals! I'm definitely on the right side of the Slight Edge.
  10. Being happy. This is how I know I will be successful in all of my goals!
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Can't wait to celebrate when you hit that goal with your weight! :D

?I'm getting really close! I'm already as fit as I have been in about two years!

Today was a great day! It started great as my family and I went to the pool for swim class. Fun was had by all, but some of my baby's friends weren't at the pool today. I'm pretty sure they have the cold that has been ravaging this area lately. Next we all went for breakfast at one of our favorite local breakfast places! I got poached eggs over spinach and Canadian bacon on an English muffin. Delicious! After a great breakfast, we got over out to the bookstore to pick out some new books for the baby. She was laughing and sociable the whole time! Because she still had so much energy, we just had to go to the aquarium. We all had a blast seeing all the fish! Her favorite was the huge sting rays which she could stare at forever. From there we went home to get more chores done. My wife made a fantastic beef stew while I got a bunch of chores done.

My habits are mostly done, except that I need to meditate before bed. Things are mostly in order to begin a new and successful week tomorrow!

I'm thankful for:

  1. Staying on top of everything.
  2. Getting to see my baby stare in wonder at the fish.
  3. Beef stew!
  4. Getting pretty close to my goal weight!
  5. Being happy all day.
  6. Baby books.
  7. Mindfulness.
  8. Working on all my dreams!
  9. Having the family of my dreams.
  10. Having a great place to journal.
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Hey Joe, nice journal! 10 things to be grateful for, with such consistency every day. You set an example. I used to focus on the same ones every day, and in broad strokes (my wife, my children...). Now I look at your mindset and learn. Thank you!

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Hey Joe, great to read to your journal. You always seem to have a great day every day! One thing I noticed is that most people have this 'grattitude list'. I looked it up on the internet, it seems like a good idea! I just want to say you are an inspiration to me as your progress motivates me as well.

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Hey Joe, great to read to your journal. You always seem to have a great day every day! One thing I noticed is that most people have this 'grattitude list'. I looked it up on the internet, it seems like a good idea! I just want to say you are an inspiration to me as your progress motivates me as well.

?I'm really happy you took the time to comment on my journal! That inspires me to keep going strong too!

As for the great days are concerned, I'm learning how great and bad days are in large part due to my frame of mind. As I learn to cultivate my inner happiness, the days seem great! Honestly, they really are so much greater than before because the black hole of games is gone from my life so that helps too.

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Today was a good day. I got plenty done at work.

I listened to "The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success" by Deepak Chopra. It was decent, but the subject matter in the book is presented more powerfully in other books. It was a short listen which was nice. I got through it in about two and a half hours.

Because Chopra's book was so short, I was able to start listening to "Einstein" by Walther Isaacson. It's so beautifully written like many of his books are. It's also presented in a story format instead of an explanatory tone like a lot of books I've listened to lately. I figure that listening to a biography of an iconic genius would be a good use of my listening time. So far it has been!

Also, I'm over a third of the way done with my outline of "How to Meditate". It's coming out pretty good, but I think that I'll have to read and revise it a bit once I finish the first draft. It's such a good book, and I really want to make sure that my outline reflects that. Once it's in a condensed and quality form, I'll be able to read it over on a regular basis to internalize its wisdom.

I was able to get a little bit of my homework done today which was great. On any given day, I don't know if I'll get a chance to study so it's really important to capitalize when I can. This semester has been about keeping my eyes open for a chance to study while balancing family time with it. I think I'm doing good so far!

I was able to cook dinner for my wife tonight! I was able to make her some vegetarian burritos. I changed up my usual recipe just a little bit to accommodate the ingredients I had. It wasn't quite as good as I could be, but it was definitely interesting. I learned a few things I would do again and a few that I wouldn't.

I'm thankful for:

  1. Getting a lot of things done.
  2. Having a blast playing with my baby after work!
  3. Being able to smile all day long!
  4. Getting some good exercise in because my lungs are feeling good again!
  5. A quality meditation session in the morning.
  6. All of the wonderful comments in my journal! Thanks Chris, Tom, and Phoenix!
  7. Being happy. It's just two words, but they're two very powerful ones!
  8. My wife for being a joy!
  9. My cholesterol lowering wine. I'm normally a beer guy, but I've been enjoying this.
  10. Being free. I chase my dreams, have my family, and learn every day. It's great!
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Hey Joe, nice journal! 10 things to be grateful for, with such consistency every day. You set an example. I used to focus on the same ones every day, and in broad strokes (my wife, my children...). Now I look at your mindset and learn. Thank you!

?Thank you! It's funny because I think Cam suggested that I pick three things every day, but I didn't pay close attention and did ten. I never wanted to change it because it taught me to analyze my life and search for the good things that I would tend to not remember. Sometimes I have my unfinished journal up on my computer as I search my day for things to be thankful for. It was unintentional, but it turned out great.

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Hey Joe, great to read to your journal. You always seem to have a great day every day! One thing I noticed is that most people have this 'grattitude list'. I looked it up on the internet, it seems like a good idea! I just want to say you are an inspiration to me as your progress motivates me as well.

?I highly suggest doing a gratitude list if you already have a journal. If not, I would just focus on doing short and simple journal entries first. I find that good habits are more sustainable when started gradually and built upon. All my life, I would throw myself all out at a good "habit" only to flame out after a few months or even days. Give yourself a goal that you 100% know you can attain if you just give an honest effort. Once you get comfortable, then you can increase that slightly.

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Today was another good day. There hasn't been anything out of the ordinary that happened today, but that's okay because my ordinary day since quitting games is a successful day! I've done all my habits like usual and am happy.

One thing that is worth mentioning is that I feel like I am more acutely aware of my thoughts, actions, and the people around me. I've been observing the people in my office building for a few months now. This is pretty easy because I take the long way back to my desk whenever I leave it. This has afforded me the opportunity to have encounters with several hundred people five times a week. I give them all friendly glances and a smile as I walk past them. The same people seem to usually give me the same reactions every day. Here's a list of the kinds of reactions I get with an estimated percentage of people who give them:

  1. People who smile and converse with me. We usually share quick stories or jokes. (5%)
  2. People who make eye contact and smile back in a seemly genuine manner. (10%)
  3. People who make eye contact and smile back in a seemingly politely obligated manner. (30%)
  4. People who make eye contact and keep a neutral facial expression. (30%)
  5. People who make eye contact and seem to be annoyed by the smiling guy (5%)
  6. People who seem me coming and look the other way and pretend I don't exist. (15%)
  7. People lost in their own world oblivious to anything around them. (5%)

Personally I enjoy doing this every day and just people watching. The conversations and smiles brighten up my day, and the annoyed people amuse me. Does anybody have thoughts on my observations or suggestions on how I can modify my little experiment?

I'm thankful for:

  1. The smiles I get throughout the day. They're uplifting!
  2. The scowls I get throughout the day. They're funny!
  3. Numbered lists. I really like them.
  4. Finding my cat this morning. He was...I'm not sure where he was, but I know he was in the house the whole time.
  5. Being completely present when I'm with my daughter. She has made me rich beyond any monetary sum.
  6. Getting next Monday off!
  7. The weather being awesome today.
  8. Learning how to get things done quickly and efficiently and how to slow down and appreciate the moment.
  9. Avocados. They're so delicious and fill my heart with joy. It's a pure, cholesterol-lowering joy.
  10. Staying current in my studies. It's no easy thing these days.
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Personally I enjoy doing this every day and just people watching. The conversations and smiles brighten up my day, and the annoyed people amuse me. Does anybody have thoughts on my observations or suggestions on how I can modify my little experiment

?You can experiment with shaking hands. With whom do you feel like shaking hands? Why? What does the shake tell you? Plus you'll practice a fundamental business skill :)

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Personally I enjoy doing this every day and just people watching. The conversations and smiles brighten up my day, and the annoyed people amuse me. Does anybody have thoughts on my observations or suggestions on how I can modify my little experiment?

I'm thankful for:

  1. The smiles I get throughout the day. They're uplifting!
  2. The scowls I get throughout the day. They're funny!
  3. Numbered lists. I really like them.
  4. Finding my cat this morning. He was...I'm not sure where he was, but I know he was in the house the whole time.
  5. Being completely present when I'm with my daughter. She has made me rich beyond any monetary sum.
  6. Getting next Monday off!
  7. The weather being awesome today.
  8. Learning how to get things done quickly and efficiently and how to slow down and appreciate the moment.
  9. Avocados. They're so delicious and fill my heart with joy. It's a pure, cholesterol-lowering joy.
  10. Staying current in my studies. It's no easy thing these days.

?Hi wookieshark,

I just starting to read your journal, and whoa! You've been doing it for so long! Your continuous effort is a prime example of how the slight edge works, this is getting easy for me to understand and I only started reading the book yesterday.

I'll make sure to add a gratitude list to each of my own journal entries, I'm sure it'll brighten up my day.

Keep it up I say! Not that you'll need the encouragement. You're one of the success stories that'll keep me going. I look forward to your future journal entries and getting time to read you previous ones!

To add to your experiment, you could just stop walking suddenly and see who actually notices, perhaps those who perhaps pretend you don't exist may even raise an eyebrow to judge you as a weirdo. Who knows? Better test it!

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Tom, I actually did shake somebody's hand yesterday before the suggestion! It was somebody I already knew, but hadn't seen in a year. I will ponder your shaking hands questions.

Alex, I most certainly do need encouragement! That's a big reason why I post here. I draw strength from everybody here who is honest with their struggles and successes. I see the games I used to play in the world around me. My imagination often sees a location and wonders, "How would Sonic move through this area? How would Mario?" These are thought patterns that I've had since I was a kid, and they always drew my back to my games. There's a lot more examples of this in my life, but I don't want to trigger anybody to want to play those games. I actually would have never thought to share this part of my mind without your post. It actually feels good to just put that part of my mind out there for all to see. :) Does anybody else suffer from these kinds of thoughts? I really want to be free of them...

Today was another good day. I was able to finish up my outline of the book "How to Meditate". I went over it a few times to make it as consistent and clear as possible. I'm really excited about it! Perhaps I could sell it to those who want a condensed guide on the fundamentals of meditation? I really do want to work for myself one day so I should probably start applying that Slight Edge that I'm talking about all the time. Maybe I could sell it for a dollar. It would be the first dollar I ever earned without a corporation or a yard sale. I need to figure this out...

Class was good today, but I'm a little behind in my notes for class so I want to get caught up this weekend. Hopefully I can get in 90 minutes of time tonight and a few hours in on Saturday to catch back up and maybe even get a little bit ahead.

I had my therapy session last night. It was really positive and uplifting. I was able to share all of the good things I've been up to in my life and get feedback and insight for how to keep it up. I'm definitely not suffering these days, but I see therapy like going to the dentist for a cleaning. In the past I've walked away from therapy and my medication because I felt so good about things and it didn't turn out so well. It was pride that I was too good for that stuff and my own negative connotation for those things that led to me doing so. I should never be ashamed to seek help with my shortcomings. Swallowing pride is what led me to admit to myself that I can't control my gaming habits, and that I should seek help in a social way. The funny thing is that I figured it would be painful to seek help from others, but instead it's been a hugely rewarding experience! I've received so much good advice and was able to become much more like the person I want to be. Now, I find so much gratification in being able to share what I have received from others and help improve lives. I'm definitely no guru or master of advice, but I know what helped me and will always be open about it.

I'm thankful for:

  1. Getting my outline done!
  2. Learning that some stigmas are unwarranted.
  3. Improving my technique of combating drowsiness while driving.
  4. Learning in general. It makes life so interesting and fun.
  5. Having people in my life that add to the quality of my life.
  6. Alex and Tom for their suggestions on my experiment! They're a little out of my comfort zone which makes them a good challenge!
  7. Being inspired to share something that I would have never thought to share.
  8. People who cook for me. It's one of my favorite things ever!
  9. My mother in law. She donated some baby formula that we weren't going to use to the shelter. I love that she thought to do that!
  10. My wife for helping me remember things that I otherwise might forget.
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