I sleep how I eat
April 9, 2025
There are 3 basic sleep stages: light; deep; and REM. For decades, I’ve struggled to get REM sleep. I know this because I use a smart device to track this. Somehow, I found a solution to my problem: the core issue was an amino acid imbalance. I’ve been a vegetarian for a very long time. I found out I wasn’t consuming complete proteins. A complete protein is one that gives the body the critical 9 amino acids that the body cannot self-manufacture. For me, I wasn’t consuming any food that would allow my body to produce serotonin. Serotonin is needed to regulate REM sleep. Well, to run an experiment, I decided to take glycine pills which cause the body to produce serotonin. When I started ingesting glycine, my REM sleep went way up. Experiment complete. I modified my diet so that I consume complete proteins at every meal because complete proteins will include the amino acids needed by the body to create serotonin. For a vegetarian, this is harder than for a carnivore since animal products (such as protein) are often complete proteins. I started regularly eating eggs, tofu, and beans coupled with whole grains (both of the latter make a complete protein). I also decided to every now and then consume beef broth (which I call Meat Tea) which contains glycine. Additionally, I started taking L-Tryptophan before sleep because this allows the body to create Serotonin and / or Melotonin based on its needs. And from time to time, I eat a little meat for a meal too. I’m now sleeping better than I ever have. I sleep how I eat.
Am I optimizing for too much efficiency?
May 25, 2023
I observed an action that a teacher of mine took during a sport we were playing. The teacher made a move and wasn’t happy with the results. Aloud, they said they were being lazy. I then asked if they were optimizing for too much efficiency? This comment piqued both of our minds. During game-play, we were trying to exert as little energy as possible (to manage the economy of the game) such that our output was no longer effective. This made me realize that the pendulum was swinging too far in one direction. I should question the value of efficiency based on the desired output.
Focus on your work
August 31, 2020
B.K.S. Iyengar said something akin to the following. When an undesirable thought enters your mind, instead focus on your work and see what wins. This is a tool I use every day to manage my state of mind. I find it extremely helpful. If I’m feeling anxious, I focus my thoughts instead on my work at the time and I often find that my anxiety goes away. Work can be anything. It can be actual work, relaxing, sleeping, meditating, eating…anything.
Right away isn’t always the right way.
December 6, 2019
Take a moment before you do something. You might find a better way.
Work with someone who teaches instead of takes
September 2, 2019
I want to work with someone who wants to teach instead of take. This statement immediately got by attention. It came from a friend who told me I could post about it. My friend and I were having a convo where we were analyzing each other’s professional relationships so that we could determine where areas to improve exist. My friend identified instances where people we report to are taking from us instead of teaching us. I think it’s important to identify when this occurs so that a decision about a next step can be made.
Being productive and just being in both the "dream world" and the "real world"
August 9, 2018
I like to use both of these worlds to accomplish things. I also like to use both of these worlds to just be. What I've learned is that neither one is only usable for just one state of being. Both worlds are quite versatile. I challenge myself to just be in both worlds and also to be productive in both worlds. I find that this approach builds necessary tools that crossover into both worlds. If I find that I am dreaming too much or I am being productive too much, I believe this is an indicator that I am out of balance regardless of which world I am in.
Be comfortable not knowing
June 12, 2018
One of the biggest sources of anxiety for me is not knowing the answer to a problem. I used to spend hours digging into a problem which may not sound bad but when you're doing the same thing over and over and not making any forward progress, then this is bad. It's bad because I feel that it emphasizes to me that I don't know what the answer is which then causes me anxiety. When I finally started walking away from these types of problems and telling myself that it's okay that I don't know the answer, and believing in myself that I will eventually find the answer, answers started coming to me. Sometimes the answers came when I was staring at the sky trying to think about nothing. Sometimes the answers came when somebody else said something that inspired me to think a different way. I find that taking a break from problem solving can sometimes be the best way to solve a problem.
Meditation is the best travel service ever
June 5, 2018
Because you show up with a bunch of baggage at the beginning of the journey but at the end, the baggage is all gone! Someone shared this with me and it made an impression on me. Thanks to who did that.
Where is "looking" taking place?
May 28, 2018
Ever notice that all of us either look in the past, present, or future? Consider deciding which model is ideal for the situation at hand and then guide the conversation accordingly.
It's temporary
April 9, 2018
Failure is temporary. Success is temporary. Each state is something that has occurred. Celebrate each. Don't become attached to either.
In between cause and effect is just being
March 3, 2018
This is one of the ways that I identify with meditation. A cause can certainly affect me. However, when the cause occurs, I can choose to simply continue being.
Help people solution forward
January 18, 2018
It doesn't matter what people did in the past if you can help them with what they will do in the future.
Make big problems smaller
August 24, 2017
Make big problems smaller so that you can take a small step forward. This allows you to not feel overwhelmed by a whole bunch of ambiguity. When you solve even a very small portion of the bigger problem, not only will you feel better but you also replace a large amount of ambiguity with a little bit of clarity. If you keep doing that over and over, eventually you will see a clear path to success.
Understand instead of judge
July 26, 2017
I was raised to judge. After years of education, I came to the conclusion that this is a terrible thing to do. It's easy to judge because judging involves using the mechanism of blame. Blaming is super easy to do because there's no responsibility involved with blaming. Instead, I've chosen to embrace understanding. It's more difficult to invent a scenario that explains why something is happening but doing so forces you to understand. I find that the model of understanding is much healthier for my emotional state. It also has the added benefit of causing me to rationalize why nuances in the world exist.
My own recovery drink mix
July 26, 2017
For years, I've regularly purchased hydration drinks to help me recover after doing something strenuous. It dawned on me that I could make this myself. After reading Wikipedia, I determine that the five most common electrolytes are salt, potassium, magnesium, calcium, and chloride. I checked various drinks and many seem to have the first three. So, I started making my own and it seems to work fine. My personal mix is water mixed with half a teaspoon of salt, a packet of Splenda, concentrated lime juice, and magnesium when I want to add it. For magnesium, I use the Natural Calm powder. I make about 24 oz at a time. I also crush potassium and calcium using a mortar and pestle. To be fair, after doing this for a while, the effort was high. I ended up researching electrolyte drink mixes and settled on the fact that the market could make a better one than I could for a huge savings in time. Still, a fine experiment and experience to go through.
Make your own dog food
July 26, 2017
My dogs make me a better person. I want them to live as long as possible and with as few problems as possible. So I make their dog food. The recipe is simple. It's a combination of carrots, raw mackerel, raw turkey, oatmeal, green beans, and flaxseed. It takes me 2 hours to make a 3-week supply for two dogs. I freeze all of it and thaw what I need before I need it. It makes me feel great to do this for them.
Do something difficult frequently
July 20, 2017
Eleanor Roosevelt said, "Do one thing everyday that scares you." I have followed this advice for a long time.
Own what you're good at
July 20, 2017
Own what you're good at versus expecting people to be as good as you. This is a foundation for a team!
