Day 2

Amazingly, it's working. The motivation I've been trying to build for months has come. Although I only invited six people to read this blog, committing to something publicly makes it much easier to do.

It is amazing how what you focus on changes the world you perceive so much. By the simple act of focusing on body sensations in my free time, my level of relaxation goes up tremendously. On your purely practical, non-spiritual level, it seems to me that learning how to train the mind and deciding what to train it with may be the two largest predictors of happiness and success.

I think certain thoughts are like an addictive juice. I first realized the power of this last June. For the previous six months I had been doing a lot of meditation and not letting my mind get carried away with fantasies, etc.. I was still focusing on business, but more focusing on it as something I did not letting it become who I was. At any rate, I was at a speaking seminar and I decided to let my mind go instead of control it. Well, immediately, I felt the juices flowing like a burst of sugar, and I started thinking non-stop about the business that night and coming up with creative ideas. I couldn't stop and it felt great. Well, after that, it was harder to get a grip on the mind again. While the creative bursts feel great, they seem to take control and it feels like I don't have an option, but to think about certain things.

I guess that's the problem with addictions. It's the upside that makes it difficult to stop. Also, it seems so harmless. My sense is that I can lead a happier life and a more successful one by letting go of fantasy and other "to be defined" thoughts even though they provide short-term benefits.