Lifestyle Design » fun

The Important Things In Life…

Adam — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 18:39:08 +0000

Here’s a copy of an email FWD I just received. I think it holds some valuable lessons…

Especially for those who live in busy, fast-paced cities, like myself.

I’m out in Tucson, AZ right now, for a friend’s wedding. I’m having a great time, busy, relaxing, seeing beautiful things, and learning a lot. It’s good to unwind sometimes. Sometimes busyness (the cups of tea, and sand) help you re-align focus, determine priorities, rid anxieties, and all in all get back on track.

caduceus tasting room: jerome, AZ

Remember…..

When life seems difficult, your dreams are having trouble manifesting, you feel confused as to how to do something, or even what to do next, the matters of real importance need to take priority. By harmonizing the important things in life, you will gain the clarity necessary to accomplish the little things…

Enjoy the post…

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Fr. ——————————
Date: Fri, Aug 14, 2009 at 11:47 AM
Subject: Fwd: Two Cups of Tea
To:

Begin forwarded message:

Subject: Two Cups of Tea

TWO CUPS OF TEA:

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough,

remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 cups of tea…

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full.

They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.

Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous “yes.”

The professor then produced two cups of tea from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

“Now,” said the professor, as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life…

The golf balls are the important things; your family, your children, your health, your friends, and your favorite passions; things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car.

The sand is everything else; the small stuff.

“If you put the sand into the jar first” he continued, “there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18 holes. Do one more run down the ski slopes.

There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first; the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the tea represented.

The professor smiled. “I’m glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of cups of tea with a friend.”

Share this with some friends and family. I just did….

To your unconventional success!

Adam Shields

http://lifestylingblog.com

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Killer Drum Solo

Adam — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 23:54:46 +0000

American Legion Harlem Jazz from adam shields on Vimeo.

Here’s a killer Jazz drum solo by my long time friend (about 18 years now) Sean Cameron.

This is what I do when I let myself not work…. Drink wine, go out, check out some jazz, drink some more wine, laugh a lot, get silly…. blah blah…

This is another video from that awesome Sunday night Jazz event at the American Legion in Harlem.

If you love jazz, and want to check it out, hit me up. Send me an email through my contacts page down on the right side of the screen.

Check this! If you’ve ever totally craved perfect pitch, then you better get this! It’s the secret formula to “getting it”!

Click here to check it!

Adam Shields

PS. Sean and I were recently comped in to Birdland, in the city. A dear friend knows Steve Kuhn, and Mr. Steve very graciously gave me two comps… Who better to bring along than Sean Cameron, right? Here’s a link to a New York Times article about the event: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/09/arts/music/09kuhn.html?_r=1&emc=tnt&tntemail0=y

Here’s a link to my last video post from the American Legion:

http://hadituptohere.com/how-to-listen-to-jazz/

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7 reasons why you should sign up for my newsletter

Adam — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 01:27:03 +0000

Ok. So here’s the 7 best reasons I could come up with, for you to sign up for my newsletter.

I admit, I borrowed this post title from Tim Ferris, author of “Four Hour Work week”. He mentioned it in a video he recently posted. I thought it was a great idea, worthy of being ripped off, so I decided to grab it!

Enough said.

Reason 1: It’s fun!

If you sign up, you’ll get info on the “Do What I Love” book launch. You’ll be informed about new blog posts, but you’ll also get the bizarre, occasional rant, rave, or absurdity. The absurdities can be fun, and this makes it totally worth entering your email up on the right there.

Reason 2: You might learn something.

After all, this IS a “How-to” blog. My goal here is to teach you that it’s possible to make an income doing what you love in life. I want everyone to be self-employed…. if that were actually possible. I hand out loads of tips, on a regular basis. Keep coming back!

Reason 3: You’ll be a better person for it.

I cover a lot… yes, A LOT of personal development topics here. This is my interest, and my passion, so naturally I’ll spill the beans, telling you everything I can about how we can all be better, more refined persons. I think everyone should be always working on themselves. I’m a lover of virtue, and you’ll see that in my writing. You’ll learn how being a true nonconformist is the absolute best thing you can do for yourself. Think for yourself, question authority.

Reason 4: You may discover that you actually hate what you do.

Had it up to here means this: You’ve had it up to here with where you’re at in life, and you need to make a change. My book, “Do What I Love” is all about HOW to make that change, as is this blog. I want to force the realization into your consciousness that you may just be spinning your wheels in life. You’re likely just working some lame, dead-end job to make a buck. That sucks! You should be doing something more fulfilling with your life. Who wants to die with regret and unfulfilled dreams?

Reason 5: You’ll create BIG dreams.

What you’ll learn is that you really need to dream BIG to get anywhere in life. And if you fall short of those dreams, and don’t make it to the stars, you’ll at least have landed on the moon. The moon is VERY far away, if you haven’t noticed. Dream big, aim high, reach for the stars, and you’ll be very surprised what you can accomplish.

Reason 6: You’ll wonder at the discover that there’s a better way.

There’s a much better way to live your life. You don’t have to settle. Don’t settle. You can, and will (with a little effort) have the things you truly desire with passion. We live in a universe constructed on the principles of free-will. Creation is, that we can have what we want. Just don’t hurt anyone in the process. NEVER settle!

And Reason 7: You’ll get to know me.

Who cares right? I wouldn’t. But, I’ll say this in my defense, “I may not be the most articulate cat on the street, but being a pisces, I’ve seen and analyzed a lot of craxy s**t in life. A LOT! Bits of my experience will leak in my writing, and you’ll get a glimpse of the things I’ve come to understand. I’m human, like you, and you’ll really feel that. You’ll be able to relate to a lot of what I say, and you’ll get to know my strengths as well as my flaws. I’m a student of the brutally honest school.

So, there you have it. There’s the 7 best reasons I could come up with for you to sign-up for my newsletter up there. Hope they validate your desire to do so.

I want to thank Tim Ferris of fourhourworkweek.com for unknowingly being borrowed from with the title to this post :0)

To your unconventional success (and my newsletter sign-up)

Adam Shields

PS. 1 more great reason to sign-up….. I’m GIVING AWAY a FREE Ebook, which you can download immediate following your sign-up. In it, I reveal the #1 secret to making things happen in your life. Sounds like a scam and all, but there really is only 1 thing which has worked for me. I was just as lazy as the rest of ‘em at one point. So go ahead, sign-up, learn something, chill, laugh, and get on with it… your life that is. :0)

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