the mesh network | northern california real estate

No News Changed My Attitude

Sunday morning I went over to the PW market to buy some groceries and they offered a free Sunday San Jose Mercury newspaper, so I accepted one.  It only took a moment for me to start shaking my head once I sat down to read the front page.  It was depressing.

 

Here are the front-page stories:

 

“Red ink flooding state” -- “A year of turmoil” -- “After the crash” -- “Reps financial picture grows even grimmer”.

 

Yeah, I’ve heard there’s a recession going on but in our house we’ve chosen not to participate!  As you know, I gave up watching any TV last year for the month of December.  I gave up my morning ritual of watching the stock market opening news on CNBC and that tradition has carried forward.

 

No news TV or newspaper for us -- and I feel great!  Friends tell me that hiring has started again; they are getting calls from recruiters; VCs are funding a round for a startup of another friend; and our business has really taken off at an unbelievable pace since the beginning of the year!

 

What does it say about our society when the best news we find fit to print on the Sunday newspaper, a day of family and relaxation for most people, are 4 bad news stories?  I didn’t even open the paper to continue, just recycled it.

 

-Mark

No TV for December -- Part 2

This month seemed to just fly by so quickly, despite my commitment to not watch any TV for the entire month.  It was much easier than it sounds, trust me.  Your time will become filled with other things, hopefully things that are much more important and meaningful.

 

Observations:

1)   I don’t feel like I really missed anything.  I still read my Wall Street Journal to keep up with events.

2)   Surprisingly, I think I have a better or more positive daily attitude since I don’t watch any news.  I believe I’m already a pretty positive thinker, but I have to say that I surprised myself to see how much negative influence the little news that I used to watch was having on me.

3)   I’ve been reading more -- I finished 3 books: The Lost Symbol, Airframe, Rich Dad Poor Dad, and have made it partway through Smart Couples Finish Rich.

4)   We watched several DVDs for films that we really would not have had time to watch before giving up TV.

5)   The house was more quiet and peaceful in a way that made me notice how much noise was going into my head each day.

 

Should we keep going without TV?  Should we cancel our cable all together?  I’m seriously considering it.

 

-Mark

No TV for December

Yesterday went by very smoothly, despite my new “commitment” -- no TV for the month.  While Sabrina immersed herself in the Montana photography school she lived like a hermit by having no TV, pulling all-nighters to deliver a project, and focusing her energies into her passion -- photography.

So I started looking at myself and asked if I could give up my casual TV as well -- after all, how painful could it be?  I don’t really have time to watch that much TV, but I do turn it on as “background noise” sometimes or to relax a few moments to wind down at the end of the day.

To challenge myself and see if watching TV is a habit or an addiction, I have decided to go the entire month of December with no TV.  I may even realize that spending $700+ per year on casual entertainment is way too much and putting that money to work somewhere more productive would make me happier.  We can probably watch whatever entertainment we may need for free through Hulu or Fancast and I believe that’s the ultimate future of broadcast TV anyway.

If I start pulling out what’s left of my hair within a few days I’ll be sure to let you know.

-Mark

Month 2 Week 2: The Magic Formula

Although I may not be tracking my 16oz of water per day, I believe I’m doing pretty well in that regard.  Also, I was very pleased with the results of the last step -- 15 minute “speed elimination” as I found all kinds of stuff to eliminate.

This week, we’re going to work on the office drawers.  The magic formula that author Regina is talking about is 1) Eliminate; 2) Categorize; 3) Organize.  I guess we’re specifically applying this to our office drawer space.  She recommends organizer inserts too in case things are just thrown into a “junk” drawer.

So I’m first asking myself “When was the last time I used this?” and if the answer is not within the last 6 months, then it doesn’t need to be in my office.  Another one is ditching old business cards I’ve collected -- of course these people are already logged into my relationship database so why am I keeping the cards?

First step: 30 minutes to blast through my drawers and eliminate.  Next step would be to categorize what’s left.

-mark

Month 2 Week 1: Reclaiming My Office

As expected, this month we’re offered 2 new habits to incorporate into our lives.  The first work habit is -- to place a 16oz glass of water (or water bottle) on my desk and take it with me everywhere until it’s finished.  The idea here is to detoxify and flush the system for optimal health.  The second is a home habit of keeping the bathroom clean by re-hanging the towel or tossing it in the hamper, wiping off the counter, and checking the trash to be emptied.  I’m already ahead on this one since it’s a natural part of my habits.

This week's office task is interesting.  Regina wants to start by doing a 15 minute “speed elimination” on my office.  Just blast through and get rid of all non-work related items (clothes, extra shoes or exercise outfit, food and drink containers, plates, etc).  I’m pretty good in this regard, no bad habits there.  Next removing seasonal items (fans vs space heaters, umbrellas, etc) or even photos that are out of date and could be updated with something newer.

Wow, 15 minutes went by very quickly!  As suggested, I need to repeat this 15 minute blast cleaning every day this week until I’ve removed all the non-essential and dated stuff.  I have printer cartridges to be recycled and I even found material from the 2007 National Association of Realtors convention that should have been tossed a long time ago…

-mark