Marcus Lopés

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Marcus

Letting Go of the Things that Don’t Serve Us

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In these early weeks of 2023, I am thinking about how to fix my life. Not everything. Or at least not everything at once. But the one or two (possibly three) bad habits that are holding me back. If I want to stop feeling stuck, and stop focusing on the past, I need to become — as Mark Manson puts it — ‘future-obsessed.’ This is a first step in letting go of the things that don’t serve us.

If you are able to think then you are able to make different choices. If you are able to make different choices, you are able to improve. If you are able to improve, with enough time, you are able to overcome anything. – Mark Mason [Read more…] about Letting Go of the Things that Don’t Serve Us

On Perfectionism

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The man with insight enough to admit his limitations comes nearest to perfection. –  Goethe

I am, for better or for worse, the poster boy for perfectionism. I’m the type who aspires to cross my t’s and dot my i’s. It means I’m setting incredibly high expectations for myself. And Unbelievably so. In everything that I do. So, when I fail … Lord, have mercy, you don’t want to be in my sights. Because I’m angry at myself for missing the mark, and that doesn’t make me nice to be around. [Read more…] about On Perfectionism

Find Joy

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Find out where joy resides, and give it a voice far beyond singing. For to miss the joy is to miss all. – Robert Louis Stevenson

Where do you find joy?

All you have to do is turn on the news to see all the chaos in the world. From the recent calamity of electing the new Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives to the fallout from a certain prince’s memoir to the ongoing war in Ukraine. It can be easy to lose hope, to lose sight of the joy that is still in the world and fills our hearts.

Find Joy

find joyIt’s not always easy because I want to stay informed, but I try to limit my news consumption. Because there’s already enough going on in my head that I don’t need to add to it. So, with all the chaos around us, which can potentially throw us off kilter, I find ways to bring joy to my life each day.

Sometimes that means I get out and go for a run, the one sure way that clears my mind and lets me reconnect with myself. Or I go into the kitchen and bake, attempting new recipes or preparing family favourites. It can be an act of kindness, either given or received. Last week, the server at A&W brought joy to my day simply by saying, “Long time no see.” (Because sometimes you feel like you go unnoticed in this go, go, go world.)

It’s Not Always Easy

Every day I work in an environment where there is the risk of dealing with angry, abusive and entitled clients, and it’s not always easy to bring or find joy. But if I can find or bring the joy, even briefly, it brings a sense of calmness to the moment. And that can carry me a long way.

Find your joy. When you can. Wherever you can.

The Hardest Part of Focus

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Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until brought to a focus. – Alexander Graham Bell

Most mornings my day begins somewhere around 3:00am (later on Saturday when my body finally tries to catch up from my lack of sleep). What I love about that time of the day is the quietness. It’s still dark outside. There is stillness. I feel like I am the only who exists on the planet. And since I have always been a morning person, getting up early isn’t the hardest part. [Read more…] about The Hardest Part of Focus

A Lesson from ‘The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck’

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I first read Mark Manson’s book, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck, last year. It was one of those books that I added to my To Be Reread list. Sometimes a book has too much to unpack, and I have to go back and reread it a second or third time to take it all in.

I started rereading The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck this past Tuesday on my way to work, a way for me to make good use of my commute time.

‘Not Giving a Fuck’ Ain’t Easy

not give a fuckAs much as I want to, and as much as I try to convince myself that I’m good at not giving a fuck, in reality I suck at it.. I know I need to be more selective about the things I should care about, because there are a lot of small things that piss me off. Like people walking against the flow of [pedestrian] traffic. The people who place their bags on the seat next to them on a crowded subway. Others who play music on their phone or have their conversations on speaker and think we share their taste in music or have any interest in what they’re talking about.

I turn the volume up on my headphones so that I drown out the world around me, which allows me to — temporarily — not give a fuck. [Read more…] about A Lesson from ‘The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck’