Every once and awhile I like to compile a list of some of Lyved’s older articles for those who are new to the site or for those who haven’t had a chance to explore the archives.
Here is a list of some of Lyved’s most popular and thought-provoking articles from the past.
The art of getting off your ass
“What do you think is the single most important element to getting things done, living the life you want, and accomplishing goals? It’s ACTION. It’s getting off your ass and going for it!” Read article here: http://www.lyved.com/success/the-art-of-getting-off-your-ass/
How to graduate the School of Hard Knocks with a 4.0
“The School of Hard Knocks has no physical location but it has millions of students and just as many teachers, but most aren’t even humans. There are no books and there are countless tests. It’s the toughest and best education you can get. Sometimes it costs you money, but other times it’s free.” Read article here: http://www.lyved.com/life/how-to-graduate-the-school-of-hard-knocks-with-a-40/
The Vengeance of Unfulfilled Dreams
“Criticism, lack of money, lack of “know-how,” and the onset of “reality” after high school and college are all often the most common excuses people give for leaving their dreams to be unfulfilled.” Read article here: http://www.lyved.com/body_soul/the-vengeance-of-unfulfilled-dreams/
Escaping Cape Fear: 9 Ways To Not Let Fear Stop You
“Cape Fear. It’s not only a physical place in North Carolina and a movie by Martin Scorsese, but it’s an imaginary place we create in our minds. It has treacherous waters on three sides and our biggest fears blocking our only route out.” Read article here: http://www.lyved.com/body_soul/escaping-cape-fear-9-ways-to-not-let-fear-stop-you/
The New 7 Deadly Sins
“The seven deadly sins were made famous by Dante Alighieri in his epic poem “The Divine Comedy.” The seven sins are lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, and pride. Dante listed them to keep people in line and on the right path during the 1300’s. Many people still avoid the temptations of these sins today, but now there are more “deadly” sins to avoid.” Read article here: http://www.lyved.com/body_soul/the-new-7-deadly-sins/
The incomplete guide to being completely insane
“‘If being crazy means living life as if it matters, then I don’t mind being completely insane.’ -Revolutionary Road That’s what actress Kate Winslet’s character in Revolutionary Road said after friends began to think that her dream of moving her family to Paris was a crazy idea.
“We’ve all been there and we will all be there again; standing at a crossroads with four possible directions to head but with no directions to tell us which way is best.” Read article here: http://www.lyved.com/misc/at-a-crossroads-with-no-directions/
Face it. Most of us have something lying around the home, car, closet, or at work for “just in case.” Just in case it rains. Just in case a guest stops by for an impromptu stay. Just in case I decide to go mountain climbing. It never ends!
The downside of this just-in-case blues is that the more we think we “might” need it, the more we’ll accumulate, and soon, we don’t even know why we have the item here in the first place!
The upside of all this? Not much. Unless you really do have impromptu guests crashing at your place often. Or you have spur-of-the-moment mountain climbing excursions. But these things rarely happen and you know it.
The fact is we carry around most of the stuff for “just in case” due to fear. Fear of emergencies happening around each corner. Fear of the “what if’s.” Fear of the unknown.
But guess what? Life is unknown. There are absolute uncertainties around each corner; that is for sure. Allowing ourselves to be afraid and live in fear is simply not worth our finite time and effort.
Accumulating so much stuff for just in case allows us to bank on the idea of failure when living in the moment is sometimes all we can, and should, do.
So how do we alleviate these just-in-case blues that plague the best of us?
Here are 4 simple strategies to get rid of the just-in-case blues:
1. If you don’t think you absolutely need it, then don’t bring it!
We can eliminate so much of our items we travel with if we just didn’t bring it along.
We over pack, justifying to ourselves that we may encounter some sort of crisis while out and about that warrants us having to carry a first aid kit, extra pair of pants, socks, hand sanitizer, extra napkins, a mini flashlight, extra batteries, and the like. It’s become ridiculous. A life and death crisis most likely will not happen and if it does, so be it! That’s how life is intended. You can’t plan everything out nor can you prevent anything from happening that is supposed to happen. Learn to let go.
2. Realize you can’t control everything.
This ties in with learning to let go and shush our inner control freak. As much as you might plan, things you didn’t expect to happen will happen as they invariably do. Adapt to it, go with the flow, and make the best of it. Sometimes, a change of events actually turns out to be better than the original plan.
For example, spring break 2005, I went to Hawaii with one of my girlfriends. As we were at Chicago O’Hare International Airport waiting to board our plane, we were so immersed in our conversation that we completely missed the announcement over the intercom that our gate had changed! We just sat there, wondering why we hadn’t been called to board our flight yet. Once we realized something was wrong, we had to scramble to get onto the next flight to Hawaii. It turned out that the next flight to Hawaii was a direct flight, unlike the original one which had a layover in California, thereby having us get to Hawaii earlier than planned, giving us more time to enjoy our vacation!
Sometimes the unexpected is just as fun, if not better, than the original plan of events. Learn to go with it.
3. Don’t have things lying around, tucked away, or stored in the back of your closet if you’re not going to use them.
By continually putting things off to the side and labeling them as just in case items will only put you deeper into your clutter and mess. The more stuff you own, the harder it is to find what you actually need, when you need it. Have only the essentials; get rid of the rest. And by essentials, I’m talking about life essentials. Not things that don’t add any value to your life but rather, things that help you sustain life and enjoy it as best as possible.
4. Rid yourself of duplicate items.
Three umbrellas, really? A dozen pairs of jeans (or more!)? Thirty shirts that all kind of look the same? What’s the point?
Duplicate items also include photos and multiple versions of the same document. Not only does this take up space and memory but it’s much harder to sort through when you have 10 photos of the same exact people all in slightly different angles to show their best sides to the camera.
If there’s no need to have multiple versions of the same thing, then get rid of it. Tell me, how often do you ever go back to your second or third version of your resume when you’re on version twelve right now?
How often do you wear each pair of jeans you currently own? You most likely wear one or two, and those would be your favorite ones. Why have the rest around then?
Don’t keep things that are duplicate items for the sake of keeping them. Keep what is in better condition or better quality, and get rid of the rest.
Now What?
Less stuff means less hassle and less worries. Truly, our possessions take away our energy due to having to maintain it, fix it, insure it, watch over it, store it, clean it, and so forth.
Ultimately, eliminating your items by minimizing your life and living simply will help curb your just-in-case blues and also help you move forward with your life, instead of continually looking backwards. You’ll no longer need to keep something for the sake of having it just in case and mainly due to fear. You’ll be keeping something because you’ll actually need it. Realizing this difference can make all the difference.
Written by Nina Yau
My name is Nina Yau and I’m a writer, artist, and martial artist. I’m also a minimalist who owns less than 100 things. I blog about changing the way we think and view the world through minimalism at Castles in the Air.
Article photo by Kevin
Almost everyone loves to write, read, share, and tackle life goal lists. There are tons of books like “1,000 Places To See Before You Die,” sites for sharing lists like 43Things.com, and even a movie about two men chasing their final to-dos called, “The Bucket List.”
It’s fantastic that people want to do and see so much before they die. But I’ve realized after writing and publishing a few of these lists, is that they often imply a “years down the road” mentality, that we have a ton of time to finish every item on our lists. This makes us lose interest and leaves our lists to collect dust. None of us know how long we’re going to have. We may never live to an old age. So how about a new list with a more seize-the-day approach?
Here are 40 things to do, say, see, hear, taste, smell, and feel as soon as possible. Some things on this list are very small and simple, but can give profound results if you let it be so.
1. Enjoy a small victory after many major defeats.
2. Build something with your bare hands.
3. Hear whales communicating underwater.
4. Listen to the entire catalog of music from your favorite singer or band.
5. Let go of an inhibition.
6. Do something just for the hell of it. Not for money, fame, praise, or receiving an award.
7. Believe when all others have lost faith.
8. Taste fresh mountain spring water.
9. Hear genuine laughter.
10. Do something taboo.
11. Sit and listen to a waterfall.
12. Don’t say; “I’m having a bad day.”
13. Eat healthy.
14. Listen to a genre of music you’ve never liked.
15. Find beauty where others don’t.
16. Don’t think someone is strange just because they’re different.
17. Think those that are “normal” are strange.
18. Give a negative situation positivity.
19. Head to the woods.
20. Speak to someone much older than you. But listen more.
21. Ask questions that have no answers.
22. Give before someone asks.
23. Sincerely give a compliment to a stranger.
24. Give someone you don’t like a chance (or a second chance).
25. Reconcile with someone or a past event.
26. Get lost in a book, art work, or movie.
27. Dress to impress yourself.
28. Help an injured animal. (Seek trained professional if you could be in harm’s way.)
29. Take a break. Don’t worry about chasing a goal. Just enjoy the moment.
30. Go the extra step when you really don’t want to.
If you’ve walked down the streets of New York City or any metropolitan area, you’ve seen the plight of the homeless, begging for change, sleeping on benches, and walking aimlessly.
When I see someone like this I feel the urge to throw them a couple of dollars. Yet, I’ll admit it; something inside me stops me from doing so. I debate whether it’s the right thing to do. I ask myself;
“Are they really going to use the money to buy food?”
“Is this just putting a band aid on a more severe and long term problem?”
“If this person is really desperate, why aren’t they trying to seek assistance at the numerous organizations set up to help them?”
“Will I be putting myself, those with me, or strangers walking by in harm’s way?”
So the dilemma certainly isn’t about money. I’m not greedy. I’m happy to donate money to a trusted organization that will feed and provide shelter to the homeless.
What do you think? I want to hear your opinions and stories. Is it good to help a beggar? Better to donate to a charity set up to provide more effective help? Please post in the comment section below.
Today, June 19th, I was given an amazing opportunity. I was allowed to share a little bit of my story and my family’s story on Oprah Radio’s The Derrick Ashong Experience during a discussion about fatherhood and fathers.
Derrick Ashong is a musician, artist, social entrepreneur, and radio host who’s taking talk radio to the next level. The Derrick Ashong Experience discusses issues in society, arts, business, politics, and about how each of us can make this world a little bit better. I highly recommend catching future airings of Derrick’s show. It airs Saturdays on Oprah Radio – XM Channel 156 and Sirius Channel 195, from 12 pm to 3 pm ET, 11 am to 2 pm CT. You can also watch it live online at Ustream.tv here: http://www.ustream.tv/derrickashongexperience . Or if you can’t tune in live, you can watch a repeat online of the show a few days after broadcast on Oprah.com here: http://www.oprah.com/oprahradio/About-Oprah-Radio-Host-Derrick-N-Ashong . Also be sure to follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ashong and join his Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/DerrickAshongExperience.
I shared how my father was abusive to my mother and how they broke up and how my father left for good when I was about 9 years old. When the video of the show is uploaded onto Oprah.com I will add it to the bottom of this post so those who are interested can check it out.
I’d like to thank Derrick, his producers, and the rest of the crew at Oprah Radio for giving me a chance to share my story. I really appreciate such an opportunity!
I’d also like to welcome the listeners of The Derrick Ashong Experience to Lyved. I hope you find this site enjoyable and valuable. I invite you to please check out our most popular article page as a great starting point: http://www.lyved.com/most-popular/ Also, I invite you to please join us at our Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/lyved and follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/andrewgalasetti . Look forward to connecting!
Thanks everyone!
-Andrew
You can hear me share my family’s story after the 1 hour and 26 minutes mark, but I recommend checking Derrick’s full show out and his future shows.
On Lyved (pronounced lived), you will find articles on various aspects of life. Every post is positive, motivating, and offers tips on how you can improve your life and change the world. To learn more about Lyved please visit here.
Written by Nina Yau
If you’ve walked down the streets of New York City or any metropolitan area, you’ve seen the plight of the homeless, begging for change, sleeping on benches, and walking aimlessly.
Derrick Ashong is a musician, artist, social entrepreneur, and radio host who’s taking talk radio to the next level. The Derrick Ashong Experience discusses issues in society, arts, business, politics, and about how each of us can make this world a little bit better. I highly recommend catching future airings of Derrick’s show. It airs Saturdays on Oprah Radio – XM Channel 156 and Sirius Channel 195, from 12 pm to 3 pm ET, 11 am to 2 pm CT. You can also watch it live online at Ustream.tv here: 
