Hi friends,
 
Time is ticking by, and I have not yet written you the life-changing post you need to read this week.
 
What?
Did I hear you correctly?
You DON’T need me to write you a life-altering post?
What do you mean I made that up?
 
Well, of course I did! That’s exactly how our mind works.
Once it tastes some success, it decides this is the only way to go; go big or go home.
 
In my case: write a life-changing post, or don’t write at all!
 
Our mind suddenly raises the bar. It moves the goal post further. It changes the goal size making it bigger than you intended. This way, you never reach your goal.
 
For example, my original goal was to write you a personal note from the heart every week that gives you hope and inspires your week.
The new goal my mind made up, however, based on the lovely feedback I received in the last two weeks from you: Write posts that get people so excited to reply to you; if they don’t, you failed.
 
Does that happen to you too?
 
You aim to journal daily.
One day you get excited, and you journal for 20 minutes instead of 5 minutes, as I taught you in my podcast and workshops (keep your habit small). Consequently, the 20 minutes become your new success criteria.
 
But guess what happens? The next day, you don’t have 20 minutes to journal, so you forgo your aim and don’t do it at all.
Before you realize it, you quit your fragile budding habit before it takes root.
 
That’s why if you’re starting a habit, I always recommend the MTM method, which helps you get over the all-or-nothing trap:
 
  • Minimum: Journal one sentence.
  • Target: Journal one paragraph
  • Maximum: Journal one page.
 
Whatever you achieve in a day you win, it all counts, it’s all progress, it’s all a success!
 
And remember, if you feel like doing more than your maximum, stop, lest that become the new standard. Stick to the MTM you set until your new behavior becomes a habit.
 
P.S.: Calendar Fun: This is week 10, day 64 of the year.
 
Image item
Move to Move the Mind مشيتوا اليوم؟ 
credit: Harsh Darji
 
This week, I continue to share with you my digital life report according to my favorite social media management app Appblock:
  1. I spent -3% less on my phone than the week before.
  2. The daily average was 3 Hours 18 Min, compared to 3 Hours 31 Minutes in the previous week.
  3. My top three apps were Instagram, Netflix and WhatsApp in order.
Below are the rules I shared with you last week and how I did:
  • 20 minutes of Netflix phone app on Sunday-Wedensday: Achieved.
  • 1 hour on Instagram daily max: Achieved. The average was 45 minutes, the range was 21 minutes to 1 Hour.
What about you? Are you mindful of your digital life? Do you have some rules about when to use your phone and how often?
 
Share with me your rules, I would love to know some of them and perhaps I will share them to inspire my social media friends.
 

Here is your weekly dose of The Sunday Spark ⚡️ a newsletter listing 5 insightful things I thought were worth starting your week with: 
 
 
1. 🖌 Have you ever heard about the100dayproject? The idea is simple: choose a creative project, and do it every single day for 100 days. This is how it started, and here is FAQ about the #100dayproject. This year’s round started online a couple of weeks ago, but you can start anytime. Want more inspiration? Check the most creative Instagram feed through their hashtag #The100DayProject.
 
 
3. 🗣 I loved Tim Ferriss’s advice on the art of elevator pitch. Very helpful. Some meetings change our lives; we need to be ready.
 
 
5. 💬 🙏 It is said that His Holiness the Dalai Lama considers the following Bodhisattva Prayer for Humanity, written around 700 AD, to be THE source for developing altruism in your character and the “Spirit of Awakening.” It is also said that His Holiness recites this prayer every morning as part of his waking rituals:
 
“May I be a guard for those who need protection
A guide for those on the path
A boat, a raft, a bridge for those who wish to cross the flood
May I be a lamp in the darkness
A resting place for the weary
A healing medicine for all who are sick
A vase of plenty, a tree of miracles
And for the boundless multitudes of living beings
May I bring sustenance and awakening
Enduring like the earth and sky
Until all beings are freed from sorrow
And all are awakened.”
(Resurfaced through Readwise)

This is Sunday Spark issue #118! 
 
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Some cool resources I personally use, love and recommend, with discounts just for you: 
 
  1. I like to start the day with my personalized Momentum Plus tab, which helps me stay focused with a powerful mantra, an inspiring image, a to-do list, countdowns to big dates, and world clocks where I keep an eye on time zones of friends and family living abroad before contacting them. Being a newsletter friend, you would get a special offer of a 10% discount when you subscribe to Momentum Plus with the promo code: bardees.
  2. Enjoy a free month of the Readwise app, it is the BEST way to retain the knowledge you gain through reading. Using spaced repetition, it helps you remember your highlights from kindle books/articles you read. I am in love with their new reader feature. Reading online has become a top-notch experience thanks to Reader. Get one month free using my link.
  3. I have been using @ExistApp for years as a digital journaling tool to track my mood in relation to my productivity and health choices. Try it out.

Note: some of the links above may be affiliate links, but always keep in mind that I don’t endorse anything I don’t use and love myself. 

 
See you next Sunday First name / my dear friend! 
 

 

In case you missed these posts on Instagram…

 
 

 
Have a Brilliant Week :)
 
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