Week One is almost over and I’m pretty happy with how it has been going.  I’ve stayed strictly on-plan and with only a few mistakes early in the week it’s gone off without a hitch.  Next week I’m going to show you guys how I created an environment that made it almost impossible for me to fail but today I thought I would share some great information on how you can learn to eat better and improve your overall health.

Junk Food Anonymous (12 Steps To a Healthier Diet) – Click Here

Leo Baubata of Zen Habits has become a master of breaking bad habits and creating new ones.  In this article he lays out a 12 step program to get you eating healthier and making better decisions.  It’s not the only way to go, but if you’ve been having trouble changing your diet then starting with these small changes might help you overcome the resistance and finally make a lasting change.

Your Primal Crash Course – Click Here – Part 2 – Part 3

Matt Maderio of Three New Leaves has put together a fantastic guide to the Paleolithic Lifestyle and it’s slightly modified version The Primal Lifestyle.  In these three articles he talks about the lifestyle, why it works, what he eats and gives you a slew of links at the end to help you find all the information you could need.  I highly recommend  you give this a quick read and check out a little more of Matt’s site to read his full story.

Say Hello To Summer Tomato – Click Here!

I tried to find a single article to pull of this site for you but I couldn’t decide on just one.  Darya Pino is a scientist and writes the health blog Summer Tomato.  She write about everything from how to pick the best produce from your local farmers market, to cooking delicious meals yourself, and tons in between.  She’s even got her own free e-book designed to get you eating healthy in no time.  I keep this site bookmarked and find new information on it all the time.

So What Have I Been Eating?

I lucked out picking the food I’ve been eating this week.  Not only is it delicious but it’s easy to make and keeps well in the fridge so I can cook once and enjoy the food for the rest of the week.  Here’s a few of the meals I’ve been eating and links back to their recipes in case you’d like to try them yourself.

-Breakfast: Poached Eggs With Kale/Spinach

-Breakfast:Best Eggs In The Universe

Growing up I always heard that eggs would raise your cholesterol so I stayed away from them.  But new research has shown those assumptions to be incorrect and so I’ve been content eating them again.  Both the recipes are fantastic though I’ve started shying away from the poached eggs because I can’t stand the vinegar.  Even the slightest hint of it makes me cringe.  If you can stand it they are fantastic and really easy to make.  Instead I usually stick with the fried eggs and bacon or an omelette if I have the supplies on hand.  It’s extremely high protein, tastes awesome and cooks up in just a few minutes.

-Lunch/Dinner: Chicken Vinadloo

-Lunch/Dinner: Beef & Broccoli Stir Fry (Available In The Free e-CookBook)

-Lunch/Dinner: Thai Stir Fry Of Chicken & Basil

All three of these meals are really easy to cook and have been what I’ve been eating all week (occasionally i’ll cook up some chicken quickly too).  Unfortunately I didn’t get a chance to snap a picture of the Thai Stir Fry or the Beef and Broccoli but if you click the links you can see image of them there.  Either was these meals keep me full and satisfied enough that I generally don’t need to snack.

-Snack: Roasted Curried Cauliflower

If I do decide to snack these are great.  They take a little longer than the other food to cook but they taste just like french fries and hit the spot when I’m craving something that doesn’t taste healthy.

I’ve also been eating tons of salad, and veggies as fresh as I’ve been able to get them.  I’ve been shying away from fruit as the sugars in them might curb some weight loss but I love fruits and will eventually add them back into the diet in moderation.

Lessons From A Week Of Healthy Eating

Early on in the week I started getting really tired and having severe headaches.  My blood sugar was dropping really low because I wasn’t eating enough.  These food are much lower in calories then the meals I was used to eating so I started bringing a little extra and that solved the problem.

This turned out to be a lot easier than I thought it was going to be.  Since the foods taste so good I don’t really feel like I’m sacrificing anything by eating healthy.  Plus the fact that I’m cooking on my own and eating healthy has given the motivation to continue.

I do have cravings and miss some of my favorite foods, but Sunday is my cheat day (1 per week) and I’m looking forward to eating all the stuff I’ve been missing out on.

I haven’t had the chance to weigh myself and I think I might wait to do that until the end of the month because the results might derail my momentum.  But my body does feel a little better, and my skin looks a little healthier to me, even my teeth which is kind of a strange experience. =)

I’ve been enjoying cooking for one.  I make enough to last me the week and since the meals are so quick I don’t feel like I’m spending hours in the kitchen.  Since I’m also only feeding my self I get to be a little more experimental than if I was cooking for others (like the chicken Vindaloo).

That’s it for week one.  I’m going to enjoy my weekend and I’ll see you guys next week.

Experiment #1 didn’t work out quite as I had hoped, and resulted in my taking a 9 month break to writing.  Recently the urge to learn, and write has been hitting me pretty hard and led me to dream up a new experiment and a wish to share my experiences online again.  So for the next month I’ll be posting on here and we’ll see how it goes.

Destination: A Healthy Lifestyle

I have never been a very health conscious person.  I never really learned how to eat well, exercise or really take care of my body.  This has led me to being overweight, fairly out of shape, and extremely discouraged. My health is the part of myself I’d most like to improve, so I have set it as my main direction.  Starting from where I am now, (not being healthy at all) living a healthy lifestyle seems pretty impossible but breaking it down into different parts feels more manageable.  The first part I’ll be tackling is my diet.

I’m choosing to focus on my eating habits for a few reasons.  It is one of the areas which has the greatest room for improvement, and it’s also an area that can help me get the greatest results in loosing weight.  Both reasons are extremely important to me and if successful will build massive amounts of momentum in making the other necessary changes in my life.

Scott’s Rough Guide To Eating Healthy

When I started coming up with this experiment and mapping out where I wanted it to go there were a few guidelines I knew I needed to follow.  The first of which was I did not want to “go on a diet”.  Being on a diet sounds restrictive and turns me off to the idea right away.  It also paints the idea that it is a temporary solution, and that eventually I would return to eating the way I was before.  If I wanted to maintain my health then it only makes sense that I find a healthy way of eating that would be sustainable for a long as possible.

The second guideline was that it needed to be enjoyable.  If I have to eat the same bland foods over and over again with no variety or taste I would not last long.  Simplicity is important to me, so I don’t mind having a few staples but I need to be able to mix and dress them so I still enjoy eating.

The last guideline I came up with was that it has to be an easy choice to make.  Fast food is so easy to get and readily available that it makes it almost a no-brainer when you are hungry.  I need something that is just as available and easy that I can make the choice to be healthy with the least amount of resistance.

The Paleolithic/Slow-Carb Diet

After doing some research and thinking about what has worked for me before I picked the Paleolithic/Slow-Carb style of eating.  You can google either one of those terms and come up with a whole slew of links with more information but it mainly consists of eating foods that our ancestors ate hundreds of years ago; foods that our body is designed to consume.  McDonald’s and all fast food is out, in fact all processed food (or non-food as some of it is) is to be avoided.  Instead you eat natural foods, fruits, vegetables, chicken, beef, etc.

This style of eating meets all my requirements, and has the added benefit of including some of my favorite foods (bacon for instance!).  It’s a healthy form of consumption that I can stick with for as long as I want.  It’s flexible, there are tons of recipes already available and by making just a few small changes to the foods you eat already they can be converted into slow-carb meals.  A lot of these meals are also extremely easy to make (think feeding yourself or your family in under 15 minutes); As long as I do my part (shopping and cooking in advance when possible) I can make sure I have healthy meals available whenever I’m hungry and make it the easy choice.

Starting Out On Day 2

It’s 6AM which is getting towards the end of my day and I just finished eating Chicken Vindaloo (pictured above) for dinner.  So tomorrow when everyone reads this I’ll be on my second day.  Over the next month I’ll be posting my experiences and the results of eating healthier.  My hopes are high that I will see some physical results and by the end of the month this will be second nature that I’ll be ready to move on to the next part of living a healthy lifestyle.

The Power Of Eye Contact

I was never much of a social kid growing up.  I have always had great friends but struggled with meeting new people.  At parties I never knew what I was supposed to do; often times I would sit alone on a couch.  Even at parties where I knew everyone I would still get overwhelmed and keep to myself.

I realized this was something about myself that I wanted to change so I started reading books and studies on social interaction and communication.  It’s become a huge hobby of mine (recently re-ignited when my brother introduced me to micro expression training) and I’ve spent a lot of time learning about it.  So when I came across this guest post on Tim Ferriss’ blog talking about President Clinton’s powers of persuasion and powerful presence created by his eyes I was immediately interested.  Here’s a quote from the post and Michael Ellsberg’s book on the topic of eye contact:

Anderson (Special Agent Dana Scully on The X-Files) spoke on Late Night With David Letterman of an encounter she had with Clinton several years earlier: “We all, mostly women, lined up. And when he gets to you, he takes your hand and makes eye contact. After he leaves and he moves on to the next person, he looks back at you and seals the deal. When I got home, I expected to have a message from him, and I didn’t. I bet women across America expect it too.”

The effect mentioned above is called a Reality Distortion Field. If you’ve ever had the experience of being the only two people in a crowded room during a conversation, you know what it is.  That fact that he was able to create this by his presence alone was something I wanted to learn how to do.

Benefits Of Learning Good Eye Contact

Powerful presence isn’t the only great thing about developing good eye contact skills.  There are a lot of benefits. In personal and professional relationships making good eye contact not only lets someone know they have your full attention but also portrays confidence.  Good salesmen use eye contact to build rapport and con-men use it to appear trustworthy while they rob people blind.  Romantic attraction also has a lot to do with finding a deep connection in someone else’s eyes; If you are uncomfortable and look away you might miss an opportunity to meet someone extraordinary.  Making eye contact with people in public also helps you feel more connected to the world around you.  I experienced that yesterday while I spent the day in New York City.

Hone Your Skills

Becoming skilled at eye contact is a matter of practice.  The more you try it and experiment with it the better you’ll get.  Locking eyes with someone else does have a certain intensity to it and you may need to work through any fear or uncomfortable feelings that come up.  Here are some tips that might help.

• Start by practicing with a close friend or family member.  Start off easy and set a stopwatch for only 30 seconds.  During that time you are to focus on looking into eachother’s eyes and just notice any thoughts or feelings that come up.  It’s natural to feel uncomfortable or tense (laugh a little if you have to).  Take a break and then reset the stopwatch for 1 minute and try again.  Increase the duration and repeat as many times a necessary until you feel comfortable.
• Make direct eye contact by any waiters, bartenders, store clerks, and cashiers you meet.  These people are there to help you and may even be grateful for a sincere connection.
• I have gotten myself in the habit of making eye contact every time I greet someone, especially if it’s a new person.  When my arm goes out for a handshake my eyes look right into the other persons.  It makes a great first impression and will help you feel more comfortable.  Don’t break the eye contact until you transition into normal conversation.
• Get your eyes away from your feet and out of the sky.  Try to make eye contact with anyone you pass when out in public.  You’ll be surprised at how many other people manage to avert their gaze from you.  On occasion you will find someone else who is awake in the moment and make a small connection.

When you start feeling comfortable with that you can move onto some more advanced techniques.

• Try communicating with just your eyes.  Can you get someones attention with just your gaze?  Can you flag down your waiter? A cute girl/guy at the bar?
• Play around and experiment again.  What happens when you make too much eye contact?  Or too little?  Try positioning your body or changing the distance with someone during a conversation.  See how it effects how connected you feel.  Can you say specific things with your eye or read the ‘thoughts’ of others?  Who’s eyes are comfortable to looking into and who’s aren’t.  Why?
• If you get the opportunity to find an Eye Gazing Party go an attend for some awesome practice.  It’s like speed dating but without asking any questions.  You just have a few minutes to looking into someone’s eyes before moving on to the next person.  I have not been able to find one in the New York City/Long Island area but if you hear of one let me know!

30-Day Experiment #1: February 1st – March 2nd

For the next 30 days I will be working on my eye contact skills as much as possible.  I have some specific missions laid out that I will be talking about on twitter so make sure you follow @iamhaen for those updates.  My direction is to work towards creating my own Reality Distortion Field and all around becoming comfortable with looking into peoples eyes.  Overall I hope to be able to convey an aura of confidence and increase the amount of intimate and meaningful conversations.

If you would like to participate you will get the most out of this experiment by working on it every day.  It doesn’t have to take a lot of time just make a conscious decision to increase your eye contact and notice what happens.  Try some of the techniques listed above and let me know how they go.  I really want to know what you experience come let me know in the comments on twitter or through e-mail. I would love to feature some experiences you guys have at the end of the experiment. Please share this post with anyone else who you think may be interested as well.

This experiment may not be for you.  If you don’t want to participate no worries.  Next week we go back to our regularly scheduled program.  It’ll feature a somewhat embarrassing story and explain why failure is pretty cool and can help you to get rid of fear.  Make sure you don’t miss it by signing up for the e-mail newsletter below. Feel free to share this as well if you think your friends may be interested, I really appreciate it.

Further Reading:

• How It Works: Clinton’s “Reality Distortion Field” Charisma by Tim Ferriss
• The Power Of Eye Contact by Michael Ellsberg (Also check out the site The Power Of Eye Contact)

‘Do you want to stand out or immerse yourself into another culture’ image provided under a creative commons license by Alaivani.

It’s been a crazy week.  I’m in New York and we got hit with a crazy storm yesterday.  Tons of snow and lightning and thunder too.  I was up late enjoying the weather.  At one point the sky lit up blue and it made some crazy sound from where I was, more like the smoke monster from Lost or thing from Cloverfield.  It was pretty insane.  The foot or so of snow gave me the opportunity to do some work and a little writing.  It was nice to reflect a little.  I did find some pretty cool stuff for you guys so I hope you’ll enjoy!

Donate $1 To A Charity And Be Sure That 99 Cents Gets There – Click Here!

I wrote previously how I gave up getting presents and going out to celebrate my birthday this in lieu of raising money to donate around the world.  I wanted to help make some peoples dreams come true and that’s what I did.  It was great feeling and I’ve enjoyed making loans across the world.  I wanted to share with you guys another opportunity to help do some good.  Philanthroper is a website similar to groupon in which each day it features a charity and allows you to donate $1 to that cause.  It uses a fantastic processing system call mPayy that takes only 1% of the donation.  That means that for every dollar donated only a penny goes to fees.  If you are looking for a way to give pack this might be for you!

The Future Of The Internet And Society Lies In Trust – Click Here!

If it hasn’t become apparent yet it soon will that trust is becoming an extremely large part of our experience.  Both online and off I rely on trust to take care of me.  I read site from bloggers who I know are giving me their best work.  I will buy products from someone who I trust is knowledgeable on a subject over something that I’ve only seen advertised. We might not all be becoming cyborgs with wormholes in our head but the future is going to offer us more and more ways to interact with each other and we need to learn how to function with that.  Mike Donghia from The Art Of Minimalism shows you how he sifts through all the noise and learns to trust people.

Packing Light While Living Cold and Ridiculously Extraordinary Q&A – Click Here!

Two posts from Karol Gajda!  The first one is an updated light packing list that he revamped for his stay in Chicago.  I love these lists and found out he has some pretty interesting gear.  The second link is another massive post.  Karol took the time to answer a boat load of questions on Business, LifeHacking, his life, and Personal Development and filled his answers with some really great insights.  I haven’t read through the whole thing yet but skimming through it was enough to let me know there is some great info.

Farming, Exploration, and You! – Click Here!

There can be tension between people who are choosing to find a new way to live and those who are not.  It’s a tricky thing to navigate, especially on a personal level.  Tyler Tervooren offers a fantastic way to look and think about these difference and why both ways of life are so important to the world.  Go give it a read and figure out if you are a Farmer, Explorer, or both!

Image provided by me!

I know this is not my normal schedule but I want to take some extra time and clear up any confusion about my post this past Tuesday.  I hope this clears up any concerns that you guys have.  If it does not I encourage you to get in touch; I personally respond to any and all e-mails or comments.

I Am A Minimalist.  That Is Not Changing.

I want to be perfectly clear. This Tuesday I published a post called The Death Of Minimalism, The Birth Of The Experimental Life.  I had written it over a month ago, and I had planned it before the end of 2010.  If I had known that on the same day Everett Bogue would declare minimalism as dead and “the echo of a revolution that once was” I would have never gone ahead with that title.  The title of my post was designed only to grab a little more attention than normal.

It’s still cool to be a minimalist. It’s down right awesome.

I apologize if anything I wrote seemed to imply differently.  Minimalism has impacted my life in so many ways and I am grateful for everything that led to it.  I am going to continue living with less 100 things.  I am still going to eat healthy simple foods.  And I am going to continue to pare down everything I can in my life.  The benefits are far too great for me to even consider anything different.

I Want To Share More Of Who I Am.

A few weeks back I shared some personal information that you didn’t know about me.  This last post was a continuation in that spirit.  I am a minimalist but I am also many other things. My desire is to expand this site to include more aspects of who I am.  I am creating the opportunity to share as much of myself as possible.  To be completely honest I am scared.  This is a huge risk, for me and for you guys as readers.  It could fail miserably, but I think it will be worth it.  If you are willing to take a leap of faith with me please subscribe.  You can click here for RSS and I am now offering a e-mail subscription option via the form below.

To the minimalist bloggers I have been cultivating relationships with.  I am still going to fully support you guys.  Posts about minimalism will still appear on my site and I am going to pick up where I left off on the ebook I was writing.  I think it’s time for some new perspectives.

I want to apologize again to anyone who might have been upset about what I wrote.  I didn’t mean to alienate anyone.  Monthly visits and subscribers have increase exponentially in the past few weeks and I am awed by it.  Thank you! I wouldn’t be writing if it wasn’t for you guys.

Image provided by me because it’s late and I didn’t want to go searching through flickr!

Minimalism Isn’t Dying, Not Really

It’s alive and kicking.  I’ve seen the idea creeping into more mainstream arenas and that is amazing.  It’s not commonplace but more people know about it now than ever before.  (That’s an amazing feat performed by the forerunners of minimalism!) If I wanted to use a more accurate term minimalism has become self-sufficient. There is enough information already out there.  Anyone who wants to learn how to simplify just needs to search for it.

People are learning faster than ever too.  Though I read different minimalist ebooks and blogs for months it really took me just two days to change my whole perception of the world.  There are those who are doing it even quicker than that.

Minimalism Is A Tool

And it’s a fantastic one.  Minimalism is a way to look at the world and change it to better fit you.  It’s a means of cutting out distraction, negativity, and waste so you can find something better.  Through Minimalism I have developed the ability and presence to cut through and find the core of something.  It’s a skill I will be using for the rest of my life.

Minimalism isn’t about owning 67 things (unless it helps you live the way you want).  It is not about eating natural foods (unless you feel better when you do).  It’s definitely not about telling your boss to screw off, quitting your job, becoming homeless and thinking your way is better than anyone else’s.  Most of all minimalism is not the only thing that life should be about.

I could continue writing about minimalism for ever but I assure you it would become both boring and tedious.  If you know the importance of decluttering you don’t need me to give you 1o steps to making space in your sock drawer.  So much great information is already out there and making your own discoveries is a lot more meaningful than being given all the answers.

Minimalism was a journey for me and it is one that has changed my life.  It is time for me to continue on and start learning some new things. So, what’s next?

Experimentalism? Nah…The Experimental Life

I was considering using the term Experimentalism but I have no interest in starting a new movement.  Especially not this one; it could be a disaster.  The Experimental Life is about finding new ideas and trying them out.  It’s about challenging old beliefs and replacing old habits with new ones.  I want to grow and expand myself beyond minimalism and see what else can change how I experience the world.  It is the continuation of the journey I started with minimalism and I am hoping a few of you will join me.

Next week I will post the first 30 Day Experiment.  It is just what it sounds like, something new to try for 30 days and see what happens.  I’ve done a few of these before and some have been great.  Some have been terrible.  It’s always been extremely interesting.  I would really like this to be interactive and I implore you to participate.  I’ll be talking about it on Twitter and at the end write about how it worked out.  It would be really cool to get a few opinions besides mine.

I’ll still be writing weekly articles unrelated to the experiment on expanding topics (and i’m sure there will be some on minimalism too!).  I am always looking for ways that I can reach out to people more and if you have any ideas on what I can do to make this site better I would love to hear it!  Leave a comment or e-mail me.  If you are excited about what is coming let others know.  Clicking those social sharing buttons at the bottom make me feel like a million bucks!

Last but not least I want to share with you two other people who are choosing to experiment and find a new path for all of us to follow in.  At first glance Everett Bogue appears to have gone off the reservation.  I know, I have been confused about some of what he’s been writing but he is actually searching for the future of humanity in technology.  He’s moved on from minimalism too and you can read all about it on Far Beyond The Stars, and his Letter.ly (Unfortunately I will not be able to keep up with him there).  Mike Donghia’s site, Art Of Minimalism, is also evolving and going beyond minimalism.  He will be focusing on creating businesses that are more human.

“Mad Scientists – better living through reckless experimentation” photo provided under a  Creative Commons License by, Smoobs.

Alright! Lets get right into it today!

The Downside To Indefinite Traveling – Click Here!

Karol Gajda lists 8 reasons why traveling isn’t all (double) rainbows and fun.  Uncomfortable beds and temporary loneliness aside Karol agrees the positives of a mobile lifestyle is still completely outweigh the negatives.

The Minimalist Part I – From Get Off This Wheel

I found this hilarious video through twitter and I wanted to share it with you.  It’s a hilarious looking at how crazy minimalism can be.  Definitely enjoyable.  Check out the site Get Off This Wheel for some other good content on simple living.

Is There A Minimalist Elite? – Click Here

Some people seem to think there is. There has been a small undercurrent of posts recently that seem to be knocking anyone who isn’t living out of a backpack and getting a new stamp in their passport every other week.  Minimalism may be going off track just a little bit. On Minimalist Packrat Tanja confronts some of these ideas and offers her own solution.

What Would You Bring For 1 Month Trip? – Click Here!

I love packing lists, and especially ones with pictures.  Over at The Everyday Minimalist is a great post with tons of pictures outlining everything she will be bringing with her to Asia.  It’s extremely well done and I was amazing at how little she will be traveling with.  It puts my list to shame! =)

I hope you guys find some new stuff in these links and I’ll see ya next week!

“#qotd January 15th, 2011” photo provided by Me!

Line Up, Soldier!

There is a new war being waged every minute of every day.  It is not a war on terror.  It isn’t a war on drugs.  This war isn’t about oil or land or money.  This war is for your attention. Your mind.

From the moment you wake up in the morning to the moment you go to sleep (and often even then) something is calling for your attention; Begging you to look at it, listen to it, and read it.  Your computer announces “You’ve got mail!”.  The news anchor on television claims that something in your house is killing you.  Your children want you to play with them. Your friends want you to commiserate with them about their day jobs.  Twitter chirps and in your pocket your phone buzzes in excitement as it receives a new text message.  All of these things and so much more are competing for the most important thing in your life.

It’s Not Quiet On The Western Front…

…and it’s not going to be anytime soon.  The future is only getting busier.  Communication is so fast, everyone has a voice, and technology is only making it faster.  Sooner rather than later we’re going to be mainlining information straight into each others heads.  We are analog beings living in an increasingly digital world.  If we want to survive we need to adapt.

Running away isn’t an option, not for long.  You could close your Facebook account. Shut down Twitter.  You can throw away your cellphone and hide but the world is going to pass you right by and you are going to miss the most important things.

You could fully embrace it too.  Start an account on every network.  Answer the phone while watching TV and playing with your kids as you try to work and listen to that great band your girlfriend told you about.  Eventually though, you’ll just lose yourself in the crossfire and you will shut down.  You’ll still end up missing the important bits.

Instead you need to take the harder route.  You need to evolve and train yourself to navigate the information streams.  By asking “What is most important?” you determine what those important bits are.  By choosing where to be present you decide what you will miss and what you won’t miss.  This is the path of the Mental Ninja.

Your Training Starts Now

It doesn’t have to be hard.

• Make use of the ‘filters’. Start with your e-mail.  Set rules so unimportant messages and spam get deleted or moved.  Next your social networks.  Remove all updates from people you don’t need them from.  Friends you haven’t spoken to since high school, make sure they never clog up your feed.  Messages from FarmVille, CityVille or any OtherVille, gone!
• Break your addictions. If you reach for your phone every time it vibrates without realizing it you’ve become it’s slave.  If you start getting agitated because you it’s been 11 minutes since the last time you’ve checked your e-mail it’s time to start weening yourself off the drug.  These are great tools but they are vying for your attention.  Don’t give them anymore than you have to.
• Start making decisions. “Decide” is a strong word.  It’s original meaning is to “cut off” or “cut down” and it’s given the same suffix as “homicide” and “suicide”.  When you make a decision you kill any other possibilities.  That is powerful.  Look at the options and decide what is most important and stick with it.  Everything else is gone.
• Take time for You and rest. Even as a Mental Ninja you will get exhausted.  There is so much information out there.  Make it a priority to take some time away from all of it.  Fifteen minutes of meditation every day will do you wonders.  A digital sabbatical is a great start but you might even want to go further than that.  I am planning on doing a lot of camping this summer, most of it will be on my own.  Just me, a notebook and my thoughts.

The future is coming and it is bringing amazing things with it.  Don’t shy away, and don’t get sucked in.  This is when it all changes and you need to be ready.

“ninja” photo provided under a Creative Commons License by, R’eyes.

How are you doing this week?  I was sick for most of it and now that I’m better I am excited to get back to work.  I was up till six in the morning writing last night as inspiration hit me.  It felt great, though it’s definitely left me tired.

Linkage!

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Why Creating Is So Important – Click Here!

Creating, like I do here, like Mike Donghia does, like Everett Bogue does and Tanja Hoagland does is one of the most powerful things going on right now.  Mike explains why it’s so important and what is does for you and the world in the link above.

Inspiration

I think you should join us and start creating meaningful art for the world.  I tell a lot of people this and one of the things I hear is that they aren’t a creative person.  They are afraid that they just don’t have it in them.  In the beginning I was terrified of that too.  I wasn’t a creative person until I started to create and many times the ideas I have come out of no where.  They grab me and force me to write even if it’s 2AM and I want to sleep.  It isn’t something I’ve ever had inside me.  It is an energy that from time to time I tap into.  I learned this years ago in a term called Awen which means divine inspiration.  In the video below Elizabeth Gilbert explains this perfectly.  You don’t have to be a creative person, you just have to let creation flow through you.

Minimalism Is Personal – Click Here

I had a discussion with a friend of mine yesterday regarding minimalism with a family and as a home owner.  He was impressed with the things I’ve done but said that there is no way he could get down to 67 Things.  That may be true but minimalism isn’t about the number of things you own, or how little you spend.  It’s not a competition with everyone else though sometimes we like to make it that way.  Minimalism is something you define for yourself and in the link above Jenny Smythe has done just that.  Take a look at her definition and then think about what yours is.

Lets Get Primal – Click Here! (Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3)

As Matt Madeiro wrote “The Primal Lifestyle is a return to our roots.”  It is a focus on eating simple and healthy foods that our bodies enjoy and a way of exercise that breaks us free from the sedentary office lifestyle.  It promotes good health and in the few weeks I have been practicing it I have lost 15 lbs. put on a nice amount of muscle (without setting foot in a gym) and I feel great!  Matt has put together a three part guide that lays out all the basic information you need and resources to learn more.  You aren’t gonna want to miss this stuff.

Awesome Update! Matt is running a contest on his site to give away two books on the this lifestyle. The Primal Blueprint and The Primal Blueprint Cookbook both by Mark Sisson.  All you gotta do is head on over to THIS POST and leave a comment for a chance to win.

A Travel Planning Bible – Click Here!

I am a little late on finding Tyler Tervooren’s Advanced Riskology blog as it’s already garnered 3,000 subscribers and is full of fantastic content.  This article is a massive 7,000 beast on how to plan an “international adventure.” It covers a bunch of tools and tactics that will put you on the right path when planning for travel.  I’ve bookmarked this in Evernote so I can go back and read it whenever I need to.

That’s the great stuff for this week. I hope you guys enjoy it and I’ll see you on Tuesday!

“Bottling Day!” photo provided by Me! Beer coming in 4 Weeks!

Last Sunday I had a whole bunch of great stuff planned in New York City, it was going to make for a fantastic post!  I even had a kick ass title all planned out: “Real Minimalists Don’t Wear Pants”.  Unfortunately due to a mixed up cup of coffee I got really sick and I’ve spent the last few days in bed trying to sleep it off.

Since that post is not going to make it I thought I’d give myself the opportunity to share a little bit more about who I am.  I have compiled here for your reading pleasure a list of 25 facts about me and my life that you probably didn’t know.   It is a little scary posting some of these but I hope that by sharing them you will learn a little more about me as a person.  When you get to the bottom say hello and share a little about yourself in the comments section.  I want to get to know everyone who reads this site as best as I can.

25 Facts About Scott Kostolni

1. I have a fascination with ancient civilizations.  Aztecs, Druids, Picts, Mayans, Ancient Egyptians, I love them.  I currently study Druidism with the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, and I dream of visiting Stonehenge along side the Pyramids and Machu Picchu.
2. Though it may not seem so from my writing I’ve always struggled with valuing my self under other people.  There is enough self-doubt in my head to sink the Titanic.
3. Out of the 5 senses the one I really couldn’t stand losing is my hearing.  Music is such a huge part of my life.  I like any genre (though I tend to stay away from country and rap because I’m bored of how limited those have gotten) and if you can introduce me to my next favorite band I’ll love you forever!  My all time favorites are: Coheed and Cambria, The Dear Hunter, Regina Spektor, and Incubus.  I play a little guitar and I played clarinet for 4 years in high school.
4. I tear up at cheesy family movie moments.  It’s embarrassing.  Toy Story 3, I balled like a baby.  My sense of humor in movies is a little off too.  90% of comedies bore me, funniest movie I’ve seen in the last few years was “A Serious Man”.  It might be labeled a drama but I giggled and rolled around on the floor the entire time.
5. I studied martial arts for 5 years and I eventually want to get back into it.  The confidence that has given me is something I have had plenty of chances to appreciate.
6. I love collecting titles! I’ll list a few! I’m a minimalist, a movie producer (major motion picture. My name along side Kiefer Sutherland, Stephen Colbert and iJustine!), an EMT, a philanthropist, a lifeguard (expired), a writer (fiction and blogging), a hatchet throwing champion (retired), a poet (published), an artist (have been in an art show), a hacker, a member of Eve University and the Ivy League Navy, a traveler (44 US States and all 11 Countries in the Epcot World Showcase, booyah!).  I may or may not be a reverend, I need to double check and If I’m not I will be soon.  There are more I’ve forgotten I should post a resume with all of them. I dream of being knighted by the Queen of England, if you can make this happen give me a call.
7. I once drove my family on our sinking boat to safety years before I was allowed to drive a car.  Family vacations for the win! =) This is actually one of my favorite memories.
8. I was a Cub Scout and then a Boy Scout till I turned 18 and aged out.  Though I completed an Eagle Scout Project I was not able to receive the award.  Because of this I love camping and worked for Schiff Scout Reservation for the best 5 summers you can imagine!
9. I get severely homesick very easily.  I can be only a few miles away and still get really upset.  I had hoped this would go away on it’s own but it never has.  I’ve just learned how to deal with it better.
10. Favorites! Color: Green. Food: Pizza and Sushi! Video Game: Silent Hill 2 or Kingdom Hearts. TV Show: Battlestar Galactica (2003) and Lost. Time Of Day: Early in the morning when the world is still asleep, though I’m rarely awake for it. Season: Fall. Holiday: Halloween! City: New Orleans. Theme Park Ride: Wild Mouse at Hershey Park. Classic Disney Moviein. Disney Character: Stitch!
11. I can lie to myself very efficiently.  This has a lot of great uses but also causes a lot of trouble.  I can create conversations, relationships and people in my head so well it’s easy to sometimes prefer them to reality.
12. I have scary specific knowledge in certain topics but often times have no clue about things that are considered common.  It embarrasses me a lot, not that I’ve ever told anyone.
13. I am pretty good at reading people, and body language and facial expressions are interesting to me.
14. I am pretty shy and I like to be behind the scenes making things happen more than being the center of attention.
15. I believe in God but it’s a little different than most people.  God is the energy that makes all living things alive.  It’s where we came from before we were born and where we will go back to when we move on.  Reality is just our souls playground.  If you can remember that and learn to quiet your mind you can touch that energy and use it in your life.
16. I also believe in extra-terrestrial life and ghosts.  I’ve experienced ghosts before and I really want to go hunting for them.
17. Scotty Knows! Anything you’ve heard to the contrary is pure bullshit, and I’ll have none of it.
18. I actually do enjoy watching sports, but I have no interest in sitting around arguing about teams or players or anything like that.  I am a nerd, but the knowledge and ferocity of sports conversations puts anything I’ve ever said to shame.  I usually stick with the Super Bowl, World Cup, and The Olympics.  Though this year I’ve become a big fan of the local All-Girls Roller Derby League!
19. I used to suffer from severe depression.  I did some pretty horrible things to myself and lost some really good friends.  Medication didn’t work and when suggestions like ECT started to be tossed around I knew I had to make a change.  It’s never gone away but I have learned how to handle it and I have set my life up to insure I am in control of it.
20. Blank pieces of paper make me happy.
21. If I can help you most of the time I will, but I do get pretty annoyed when I’m asked repeatedly for information that could easily be found using Google.  Many people have received a LMGTFY answer from me.  It’s always sent with love.
22. I really enjoy arguing with people.  It helps me to learn about varying opinions but also helps me learn about myself.  I’ll take a heated debate about anything over small talk any day of the week.  (Actually I think we should ban small talk as a society).
23. I can easily get addicted to MMO Games.  I played EverQuest like it was my job in high school.  I can still navigate that world better than my neighborhood sometimes.  I also get homesick for it.
24. My friends know this one.  I hate talking on the phone.  If you call me I’ll usually text you back.  It’s just a fear I’ve had since I was little.  Coupled with the fact that my iPhone rarely receives calls (or voicemails) it’s a terrible way to keep in touch.  Find me on twitter or e-mail.
25. I have a completely irrational fear of Spiders.  I hate them, they have too many legs, and they are creepy.  Do not bring them near me, I will run away like a little girl.