My happiness grows in direct proportion to my acceptance, and in inverse proportion to my expectations.
~ Michael J. Fox
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On this day
February 17thThinking
If you make people think they’re thinking, they’ll love you. If you really make them think, they’ll hate you.
~ Don Marquis
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Pointless
At first, the inherent unimportance of these pursuits coupled with the grueling commitment required to attain them seem at odds: Why set a target and spend so much effort on something that doesn’t matter? But a good meaningless goal is an act of protest against the self-optimization hamster wheel. It subverts the cult of productivity by sneakily leveraging the tools of productivity.
~ Gloria Liu from, In Praise of Pointless Goals
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Someone recently used the phrase “QM’ing to Valhalla” in a conversation I was having. (I’m pretty sure it’s in a Movers Mindset podcast, but I fear it may have been part of a conversation before we were recording.) Everyone who does the movement thing I love, chuckles at this phrase. There’s a lesson buried deep inside of the culture of effort which you only learn when you really try to QM to Valhalla.
To unpack the joke a bit. First, “QM” is short for quadrupedal movement; Movements where your hands and feet are supporting you (and sometimes, but usually not, your knees.) All QM is hard work, and excellent exercise. QM is great for a workout or a warmup. Second, of course, Valhalla is the hall of Norse mythology where one might end if one died in battle. So to some degree “QM’ing to Valhalla” is also about imagining oneself in some battle with… I dunno. It all seems quite wrong-headed when I try to actually explain it.
So why then, Craig, are you on your hands and feet crawling across the Williamsburg bridge?! Answer: I’m, apparently, trying to QM to Valhalla. When I heard the phrase, it was immediately clear that it doesn’t have to be literally QM. The phrase also applies to other pointless goals of mine. For example, I once tried to do 10,000 repetitions of 5 “simple” activities within one calendar year, and once tried to do something active for 100 straight days.
I can’t say I’ve given up pointless goals, but it feels like I have. Maybe I’ve learned the lesson? Although, if I did learn the lesson, then I should be able to explain it. I’m not sure if the lesson is that Valhalla doesn’t exist, or that you can’t get there solely by hard work.
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Principles are few
As to methods, there may be a million and then some, but principles are few. The man who grasps principles can successfully select his own methods. The man who tries methods, ignoring principles, is sure to have trouble.
~ Harrington Emerson
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Principles
As to methods, there may be a million and then some, but principles are few. The man who grasps principles can successfully select his own methods. The man who tries methods, ignoring principles, is sure to have trouble.
~ Harrington Emerson
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This is strikingly accurate for all the domains I’ve tried so far. I believe it’s useful to begin by trying some method-work; To explore conversation as a mastery practice, it would be insurmountably boring to sit in my research library reading about conversation. But trying a few different experiments provides invaluable experience. Some things are reproducible, and some things aren’t. Why is that? Some things work as I expected, and some things don’t. Why is that? Some things aren’t connected the way I’d expected, (imagine if the light switches in your house worked lights in other rooms, instead of the one you expected.) Why is that?
Niels Bohr said something similar about Painful experience, and I agree. The experiences serve as guides on either side of the roadway. In the beginning, everything is unknown and the road is seemingly boundless. Some exploration however soon finds a guide limiting one side. Farther exploration moves along the road and perhaps finds the other side’s guide. Progress continues in a serpentine fashion along the road. As principles are learned, the road becomes clearer. Armed with the curiosity and inspiration born of experimentation, progress along the road accelerates as the guides become more clear.
In the end—or the end of the beginning?—things again seem simple. One might even say they seem principled.
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Howard ‘Cosmo’ Palmer: Mindfulness, intention, and cosmonauts
How can individuals use movement, mindfulness, and intentional living to transform their lives and overcome challenges?
Against all odds, Howard ‘Cosmo’ Palmer survived serious heart problems in his childhood to become a healthy, active athlete into his 40s. he describes his childhood health journey and its effects on his life. Cosmo discusses his thoughts on changing your habits, and his personal intentions in the world. He unpacks the meaning behind his nickname and connection to cosmonauts, and shares his heroes and inspirations.
For myself is to be an example to the world that you can learn to love yourself, through what we have as life, and be whatever that means to you, and then give back.
~ Howard Palmer (13:31)
Howard ‘Cosmo’ Palmer is a self-care, meditation, and wellness advocate. Born in Jamaica, and currently living in Colorado, Cosmo uses his mindfulness and meditation practices to balance his other responsibilities: engineering, parkour, and yoga. He is passionate about helping others improve their lives through intentional, peaceful daily actions.
The conversation explores the transformative journey of overcoming childhood health challenges, focusing on how movement served as a means of freedom and self-expression. From severe early health complications to becoming an advocate for mindfulness and intention, Howard shares how physical and emotional resilience shaped his perspective on life. His philosophy of movement emphasizes the connection between the physical and the emotional, treating it as an art form that reflects internal energy.
The discussion also addresses the importance of mindfulness and intentional living in navigating life’s adversities. Cosmo connects his personal experiences to broader cosmic and philosophical concepts, using these frameworks to inspire others. Topics include the evolving nature of identity, the role of habits in personal growth, and the impact of societal and personal adversities on self-awareness.
Takeaways
Movement as freedom — A personal journey of overcoming physical and emotional limitations through movement.
Intention in daily life — Emphasizing how deliberate actions and habits shape personal growth and transformation.
Cosmic philosophy — Connecting self-awareness with universal principles to foster a deeper understanding of life.
Legacy as daily living — Redefining legacy not as a final accomplishment but as a continuous process of authentic living.
Mindfulness and resilience — Using mindfulness to navigate trauma and foster a balanced, conscious life.
Resources
Howard ‘Cosmo’ Palmer @c0smopk
Ryan Ford — Mentioned as an example of inspiration and movement philosophy.
Bruce Lee Philosophy — Referenced as a guiding figure for self-expression and resilience.
(Written with help from Chat-GPT.)
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Reflection: Day 48
FAULT — “So is it possible to be altogether faultless? No, that is impractical; but it is possible to strive continuously not to commit faults. For we shall have cause to be satisfied if, by never relaxing our attention, we shall escape at least a few faults. But as it is, when you say, “I will begin to pay attention tomorrow,” you should know that what you are really saying is this: “I will be shameless, inopportune, abject today; it will be in the power of others to cause me distress; I will get angry, I will be envious today.” See how many evils you are permitting yourself. But if it is well for you to pay attention tomorrow, how much better would it be today? If it is to your advantage tomorrow, it is much more so today, so that you may be able to do the same again tomorrow, and not put it off once more, to the day after tomorrow.” ~ Epictetus, 4.12.19-21
How are you going to continue to trigger yourself to do your morning reflection?
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Arrived in the middle? Visit the first post, Where to begin?
(The entire series is available to download as a PDF ebook.)
Turn it to advantage
Without an antagonist prowess fades away. its true proportions and capacities come to light only when action proves its endurance. You must know that good men should behave similarly; they must not shrink from hardship and difficulty or complain of fate; they should take whatever befalls in good part and turn it to advantage. The thing that matters is not what you bear but how you bear it.
~ Seneca
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Why storytelling is a big deal
But forget business for a minute. Stores are much bigger than that, they’re central to our human existence. The way we shape reality is through storytelling. If we can tell a story about it, that means it exists. And this explains our species’ unique capacity for metaphor…for that is how we turn abstract ideas into stories.
~ “Gaping Void” from, «https://www.gapingvoid.com/blog/2019/01/15/the-real-reason-why-storytelling-is-a-big-deal/»
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As I mentioned in the meta-interview of me for the Movers Mindset podcast, I love stories and story-telling. But helping others tell their stories is what I enjoy most about the interviews. Everyone is so incredibly different—yes, I too thought that was obvious before I started interviewing people. ;) Some people, I have nothing more to do then press the ‘record’ button. Some people, have something they need to say but it takes hours of conversation to figure that out before I can press ‘record’.
I’ll be candid: The podcast is incredibly painful to create. Until you’ve tried it—I urge you to never try it, by the way—you cannot understand how much time, effort, and money it takes to do it well … did I mention the time? Worse, the more I work on the craft of story-telling, interviewing, and the countless nuances of producing a show. Bottomless, hopeless, endless, thankless, merciless.
But then I randomly listen to an episode from the catalog, one from a while ago that I’ve sort of half-forgotten and I remember why it would be inconceivable to stop this early in the journey.
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Those who show up
Decisions are made by those who show up.
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Slightly excited…
Here it is! After five years of work and planning, my mom has her new house.
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Past, Future, Present
If you are depressed, you are living in the past.
If you are anxious, you are living in the future.
If you are at peace, you are living in the present.~ unknown
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BookMooch: free, used-book swapping
BookMooch.com is a huge (as in: 100,000’s of books), free, book swapping site. Why buy a new book when you can save one from the landfill?
It’s free to join and create your account. You start out by posting up some books which you are willing to give away. If someone would like one of your books, they request to “mooch” it from you. If you accept the mooch, you simply ship it to them paying the postage. In return you get a bookmooch “point”.
If you see a book you want, you can request to mooch it. (If the owner accepts, they ship it to you and they pay the postage.) Each mooch costs you one point. You earn points when someone mooches a book from you; you get 1 point for within-the-U.S. mooches, and 3 points if you’re willing to ship internationally. You also get 1/10 of a point for each book you list in your moochable inventory.
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