Don't Celebrate So Hard

   I had an idea a few days ago  --and with the summer being this warm, original ideas don't come often : ) . It was an idea I've had many times before, but have never took advantage of to make a change in my everyday life.  (Changes in behavior are, of course, hard, and it's easier to put them off until some indeterminite point in the future. ) The idea I had was this:  Whenever I feel successful (by any measure), I eventually come to a point where I want to celebrate. Part of this celebration usually includes a break from the behavior that gave me that feeling of success.  The feeling is therefore evaporated, and I find myself too often back and ground zero. Why do we do this?  Logically, this doesn't make sense.  We should celebrate our present and future success, not the last day of it.
   An easy example: I was in a pattern of waking up early to run.  I was feeling really good while in the pattern, and came to a point where I thought I could celebrate. I celebrated, broke my pattern of getting up early, and threw every thing else out of wack as a result.   The consequence -- a loss of the feeling of success I had.  And in retrospect, the excess celebration wasn't worth it.  Not even close.  I've done it many times. Ups and downs. Ups and downs.
   One of my goals this year is better self-discipline.  Part of this will be staying true to the behavioral changes that bring me feelings of success. (Again, we all measure success differently.) I will still reward myself, but instead of one moment of excessive celebration, I'll enjoy the feeling of success while I have it, and celebrate in ways that don't break the momentum.

Focusing on Strengthening My Scaffolding

   I have been thinking a lot about creating a motivating environment for myself.  A lot has happened since my last post. In an effort to practice what I preach : I signed up again for the program that surrounds me with motivating and inspiring runners,  I volunteered three times at Open Books, which I hope will give me some sort of idea of what teaching in the United States would be like, and have been attending as many German events as I can to keep my German fresh.  Each of these things excites me every morning to wake up early and get the day started.
     I also have recently met a great guy named Richard Lange who is an adjunct faculty at National Louis University, a fellow German enthusiast, and mentors teachers among many other things.  We have been meeting regularly and he has motivated me to stay focused on my writing, helped me to explore different teaching opportunities, and helped me keep my German sharp. Today we'll be meeting to discuss how we can revive a shrinking German get-together that is 10 years old, but down to only a few members.  He has published an article of mine on his website and put me on his new teacher mentorship board.  Great man.
   Best of all, I am building the self discipline (my early morning ally being my biggest ally in this regard) needed to get all of these ducks in a row, and have time to enjoy more time with my friends.
    
  

Scaffolding

  Recently I have been thinking a lot about the circumstances that surround us and how proactively changing those circumstances can make the life you want to lead a lot easier. I'll give you a couple of examples.  Please feel free to make a comment about how putting yourself in a different environment has helped you!
   There are a variety of places I could go everyday to write and learn and focus on my goals.  The basic choice I make is whether to stay home or go to a cafe.   I need a place that has somewhere to sit, somewhere to put my computer, and an electrical outlet. The advantage of staying home is I don't spend any money. Unfortunately, though, I don't have a desk and chair in my room, so I usually end up laying on my bed with my computer and not being very productive. I don't know how the pyschology works, but if I'm not in a "work setting", I tend not to work.  It's also too easy to get tired and fall asleep.  
  On the other hand, I could go to a cafe, spend $3-10 on coffee and food, and surround myself with others who are studiously studying and eagerly working and let myself be influenced by that environment.  As you might expect, I get a lot more work done there.  This is one of the reasons why "working from home" isn't as cool as it sounds.
   Today I am doing a hybrid of the two and working at our dinner table downstairs, sitting upright, organizing and structuring my ideas, and saving money at the same time.  I still prefer the cafe as an environment, but this comes a close second.
    Second example.
 I am training for the Bank of American Chicago Marathon in October.  *My goal is 3:45 and to raise $2000 for Urban Students Empowered, an excellent organization.  There are a number of training programs I can sign up for and each is fairly expensive, especially when you don't have a job.  Saturday was the last day of the program I paid for a while back and while running one of our intervals, two of the people I knew in the program flew by me.  I did my best to keep up with them, but they were simply too fast. ( Not only are they fast, but they simply physically look like great runners. Great form. Great stride.) Still, I ran a lot faster than I would have had they not been running with me.  I thought "They are such great athletes and I want to be like them."  Even though the program is expensive, I'll probably sign up for it again.  Not only does going to regular practices keep my self discipline sharp, it surrounds me with athletes who are better than me -- athletes I use as role models.
   Last example.
   Thursday night I went with another friend to a second friend's house to drink some wine he had brought back from Michigan.  I was tired and not extremely excited to be going, but it literally changed my weekend. Both of my friends who were there were training for the triathlon.  One runs six days a week and bikes or swims after work five days a week.  About half of our conversation that evening was about the triathlons they were training for.  I thought to myself, "I am such a lazy ass compared to these two. "  I had skipped a couple of runs and hadn't run in three days, but with my newfound inspiration I got up the next morning at 6 (I had zero plans to do this before the wine get-together) and ran. That started a chain of events that made that Friday and this past weekend very productive. (After the run, I went grocery shopping, made home-made granola, and attended orientation at Open Books , all before 2pm.)
   Sometimes putting yourself in the right environment costs you money or time (sometimes it costs nothing at all), but if you extrapolate the benefits over a period of years, the decision to create better circumstances (or scaffolding) is a no-brainer.

  * I am raising money for Urban Students Empowered this year for a third time.  It is a GREAT organization.  Please donate here. Thank you!!