also know I am better off for what I learned from them. In 1942,

8 min readDec 2, 2020

Gewies

Just now·8 min read

I detail many of the proven exercises for finding more stillness in my book Stillness Is the Key, but here are 10 I adapted specifically for the times we currently find ourselves in.Thankfully, there are thousands of years of teachings that will help you keep steady, focused, and at peace. Stillness has been the secret weapon of the Stoics and the Buddhists, the Christians, the followers of Confucius, Epicurus, and so many others.After bills and expenses, David is left with $-25 of spending money for the entire month. That’s right, he has a negative balance. Recently, he asked his boss about a possible raise and was told “this company does not reward employees with money.”

He realized the show didn’t need to be sold out to be a success. It just needed the appearance and perception of a sold-out show. He called the local sheriff and asked to borrow some inmates. He had the men physically remove all of the unsold seats from the stadium.

There’s a theme here — perception shapes reality. You can perceive a “no” as a rejection or an opportunity. You can perceive a small crowd as a disappointing turnout or an intimate affair.

“In fact, a study showed that expressive writing (like journaling) for only 15 to 20 minutes a day three to five times over the course of a four-month period was enough to lower blood pressure and improve liver functionality,” writes Kasee Bailey of Intermountain Healthcare.

The number one thing to filter out if you want more equanimity in your life? The news! The Greek philosopher Epictetus had it right when he said: “You become what you give your attention to.”
A local entrepreneur — and die-hard Elvis Presley fan — offered to give Jerry the money. Perhaps it was because an entrepreneur respected his audacity and was curious to see if he could pull it off.
This was a critical point in both of their careers. Jerry was still looking to gain Elvis’s full trust. Elvis — accustomed to being a rock-idol — had a lost a bit of luster with age.
Perhaps it takes something as tumultuous as our current world to clarify what that word stillness means. When we hear it, we know the importance of it, intuitively and instinctively: The quiet. The gratitude. The ability to step back and reflect. Being steady while everything spins around you. Acting without frenzy. Hearing only what needs to be heard.Sometimes, when I want to feel a little bit better, I look at the stack of books I have managed to get through since the pandemic began and feel a fondness for the hours I spent in those pages.The next night, Elvis had his “sold out” show. The smaller-yet-packed crowd provided an intimate experience with everyone involved. All of the fans got up close and personal with Elvis, and Elvis felt the love and adoration of a tightly packed crowd zeroed in on his every move.
Being informed is important, but watching every live report, reading every breaking news tweet, checking your news apps 28 times a day is not how we get there. Fueling your own anxiety doesn’t help anyone when there’s so much to do.There were a few problems with his goal. One, Elvis already had a manager he’d been working with for years — the Colonel. Two, why would Elvis work with a random Joe Schmo of the street? Three, to be redundant on purpose — he was Elvis freaking Presley — literally the most famous person on the planet at the time.Again, the ludicrousness of the task at hand didn’t occur to Jerry at all. He started thinking of ways to get the money. He called every bank in the city — a fool’s errand. After tapping out nearly all of his ideas and resources, he somehow found a way to get the money.

Elvis was set to do his first show in Miami. As of the night before the show, the seats hadn’t sold out. In fact, a good number of seats were still available. Elvis refused to perform at a show that wasn’t sold out.
After bills and expenses, David is left with $-25 of spending money for the entire month. That’s right, he has a negative balance. Recently, he asked his boss about a possible raise and was told “this company does not reward employees with money.”
The next day, Jerry met Elvis and the Colonel at the hotel. He handed the Colonel a briefcase with one million dollars cash. The Colonel never imagined he’d get the money. He just wanted to find a way to get this stranger to stop bothering him. But after seeing the sheer ambition and ingenuity from this fellow, he decided this was someone worth entrusting Elvis Presley’s career.The Colonel went on to explain that Elvis wouldn’t be going on tour any time soon or perhaps ever again. In his 60s, he’d transitioned to making movies. He also went on to explain that even if he were to go on tour, it wouldn’t be with some random guy.Getting your thoughts down on paper can help you identify thought patterns that distort your reality and cause stress. It can also help you become more self-aware. And the more you understand yourself and what causes emotional instability, the better you can relate to others.As Rome was being scourged by plague and war, the emperor and Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius wrote about being “like the rock that the waves keep crashing over,” the one that “stands unmoved and the raging of the sea falls still around it.”Getting your thoughts down on paper can help you identify thought patterns that distort your reality and cause stress. It can also help you become more self-aware. And the more you understand yourself and what causes emotional instability, the better you can relate to others.

also know I am better off for what I learned from them. In 1942,

Davidrockrootsmith

1 hour ago·8 min read

Gewies

Just now·8 min read

Written by Paglababa