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14 October, 2011

Following Up on a Nugget of Inspiration


I'm sitting on a plane headed to Thailand, and have just written what I intend to be a blog entry.

But I'm hungry, I wanted to write more, and here I am.

I have a lot on my mind at the moment, a lot bubbling up and I would like to capture it.

At the forefront of my mind, is a desire to succeed. I've got a destination in mind, and I know where I want to be in five years time, and I know where I want to be in ten years time. Beyond this, I don't think I have the foresight to envisage beyond that, but I will know before I get there.

I'm driven. That's a given. I'm not settling for mediocre and I want to achieve a lot in my time here. Every day progresses and I'm closer to achieving my goals. Each year passes and I reflect on the year before in wonder.

I'm on an upwards trajectory and am fortunate enough to be have been on this path for long enough now for reflection, this reflection sees appreciation, and this appreciation drives me to seek more. I'm a proud person, and I seek a hell of a lot to be proud of.

I'm starting a lot of this sentences with 'I'. That's because I have me on my mind. Nobody else is going to hand me what I want so I have to rely on myself to get there. Fortunately I have a skill set and the acumen to go there and continually self-improve.

Where's the destination? What do I want to achieve?

First things first, I have a book I want to publish. It has 54,000 words done and it's not enough. I want to finish it. I want it out there. I want to spread my message and have something I can be proud of. Why am I telling you this? I want to be accountable. Without documenting what I want it will only remain in my head, and all that lies in my head are dreams.

I'm going to wrap this entry up here. That's my first goal. I'm making this promise to myself: by the time I'm back on the plane, I'm going to have tangibly progressed towards my goal. 54,000 words down, and its not enough. I'm going to continue writing...

A Life-Changing Breakfast


Last Sunday I had a breakfast that might have changed my life.

I work at Google, and it was a brunch with some colleagues. I work at a brilliant company, and presumably the people I were having brunch with were brilliant people. I'm new to the company and while it's safe to assume these people were brilliant, it's not for this reason specifically that I had a life-changing breakfast.

It wasn't the food either. I'd opted for the big breakfast, and it was quite good, one of the best Western breakfasts I've had in Singapore. There was Chipolata sausage, poached eggs, toast, spinach, and even a dash of bolognese sauce. It was a touch unconventional, and I guess that's what made me label it Western.

It wasn't the coffee. Even though I was told this coffee was some of the best in Singapore, and it delivered on this promise and then some. It was a round, fat cup, and the liquid was warm, nourishing, and had just the right amount of edgy bite. No, it wasn't the coffee.

I did order another on the way out, and I guess this breakfast was the precursor to that life-changing moment.

Because across the road was a bookshop. Despite being an aspiring writer, I read very little of books. I read content and converse voraciously. But it's quite a rare occurrence to find me reading a book, I simply don't have the attention span.

But I was surrounded by presumably brilliant people and at their behest I entered the bookshop, it was called Books, Actually.

I purchased a book in there, but that's not what changed my life. It was the book that I picked up yet didn't buy.

It was called 'It's not how good you are, it's how good you want to be'.

The book appealed to me because it was small, palatable, and once I started reading, I found myself nodding and agreeing. It wasn't just because the book was written by a guy in advertising. It helped, I work in advertising after all, but it was more because it was inspirational.

I decided then and there to purchase this book. This inspirational knowledge that would help me progress in life, but I was stopped.

By one of the brilliant people I was with. She said she had the book and would lend it to me, I thanked her, and the next day at work she handed it to me on loan.

Four days later, I'm sitting on a plane headed to Thailand, and feeling compelled to write this entry after reading the book. I wanted to record this moment in time, the day my life changed.

Watch this space.

09 October, 2011

Everything is Coming Up Marshall

2011 continues to deliver in ways I could never envisage.

The past week and a half has seen me return to Melbourne for one of my best friend's weddings, commence an epic trip to Japan, get immersed in one of the best weeks of my career, and see me return to Singapore positively beaming with a trip to Thailand on the cards for Thursday night.

I'm a very lucky person. A year ago I was at my housemate's birthday in Sydney seeing one of the gigs of my life and thinking life is good. It's continued to outstrip itself and challenge what it's like to be happy. Also a year ago, I wrote an entry stating My Bassline is Increasing. I reflected on what's gone down since my move to Sydney, and the simple things seem better than they were years ago.

I had an anonymous commenter ask in that entry:
Is it that you are more contented, or is it that you have just realised that over time your life can infinitely be more advantageous and that taking advantage of all opportunities that are present to you at any stage of your life actually adds to your personal satisfaction and well being?
I never bothered to answer the question, as at the time I couldn't distinguish the difference between being more contented and having more opportunities. I thought it was a given that with more opportunities comes more contentment.

Fuck that. You make your opportunities, and they're in abundance if you look hard enough. And if you can't see any you make them.

I think the point my anonymous commentator was making was that your ability to realise this over time increases. This year has seen more change amongst my friends than almost any other. One has decided to traverse the world based on a feeling, another quit their job to take up study again, another became a tattooist after years of professional artistry.

Is it because things have finally come good or because they're out there making the most of what they've got?

If the question is rhetorical to you I think you get it, and if it's not then I won't wish you good luck, because you'll never get it if that's what you're relying on.