Day 365 of Festivus: Feats of strength
As I close up 2013, a contemplation on what I have learned and practiced and what I have learned and have not practiced.
As I was preparing myself to write this, I thought of Mike Tyson at his best. When he was young, still under the tutelage of Cus D’Amato, he was an unstoppable force. Tactically, he moved his head so quickly from side to side and had such tremendous body movements and precision his opponents could never find a target and were very vulnerable to his attacks. Then that changed, new management and trainers took over, Mike started believing his own mythology and he started standing square in front of his adversary with productive counter movement he was thrashed.
I observed this lesson but did not properly apply or sustain. My 2014 will be consumed with movement. I am very excited about that.
I did not spend enough time with friends and I thought my own busyness excused this lapse, that somehow I could catch up for time lost enjoying their company. I was wrong and I am also excited to spend more time with friends.
I did not write enough down and I did not blog enough. Instead I never allowed my thoughts to be articulated and fully shaped. I will now write everything and blog as a ritual and obsession.
I read a lot in 2013 but when i reflect, I read to much crap. I must be more cautious. I will always read Fred Wilson, Tom Tunguz, Sramana, Hunter, Fred, Birch, Feld and several other sources of content…but my time watching 60 minutes and other coffee table type content has come to an end.
I can synthesize that missed content elsewhere or not at all.
2013 I felt my response time to emails and items on my todo list lingered an unreasonable amount of time. That is a horrible habit and one of my highest priorities is to remedy that.
Because of the elections of friends, our family office/philanthropy, ‘side’ businesses/ and investments I felt I tried to do too much ‘front’ and ‘middle’ work and didn’t do enough completing.
I did not do enough daily meditation, most of all this is personally shameful to me.
And, lastly I did not spend enough quality time with family and with myself. I did not communicate openly with them or with me.
I forgive myself.
2014 will be corrective for me. Life is short and every moment must be appreciated and accounted for. This is discipline and philosophy, it is the best thing that 2014 promises, not a ‘new’ me but rather a more aware self.
I neglected a few points here, I didn’t paint the place again or get new floors installed, my diet was sloppy, I didn’t exercise enough nor practice scrabble as much as I would have liked. I didn’t create the scrabble foundation I had anticipated for 2013, but those, like every thing else I laid out, can and will be done.
For the rest of the day I will be preparing, with my wife Nancy, our thankfulness for being allowed 2013 and our plans for 2014.