direction and momentum

The Top Three Issues of the 21st Century

2009-05-09T16:18:00.001-07:00

There are three issues that top the scale for their overall impact on the progression of human society in the 21st century.

They are:
1) Water: Human beings are mostly water. The earth is mostly covered in water.

2) Trash: Humans generate ever increasing amounts of trash. The earth is mostly covered in trash.

3) Energy: Human beings consume ever increasing amounts of energy.

Water tops the list because it is absolutely necessary to sustain human life. Our bodies cannot survive without a reliable supply of clean, potable water. Our food cannot be grown without water. And water plays host to most of the organisms that threaten our health. Additionally, water is used for cleaning. From the food we eat to the plates we eat it off of, to the waste our bodies eventually turn that food into, we keep our surroundings sanitary by using water.

Energy is at the bottom of the list because it is absolutely unnecessary to sustain human life. We are blessed with bodies that can generate all the energy they need to survive, from sources available in our surroundings. We can eat wild foods and clothe and shelter ourselves with the by-products of other animals, plants and minerals. Energy is important because it feeds human ambition. Energy produced by means other than our own body's digestion of food, is what allows humans to engage in activities other than survival. Energy allows for progress. Energy feeds our egos and makes us feel important.

Trash lands in the middle. There is no escaping our trash, but trash functions to serve the other two issues. How we manage our trash determines for how long our water supply remains pure and healthful. How we manage our trash determines how long we can pursue the production and consumption of energy before we choke on the by-products. Trash management acts to maximize the sustainability of both water and energy.

In order to direct human activity towards health, achievement and sustainability, these are the three issues that must be addressed.

Good luck, to all of us.

Argue for Your Limitations and You Get to Keep Them - Richard Bach

2009-02-15T17:11:00.000-08:00

As we know from the law of conservation of energy,
a system returns the same energy
as is put into it.

So don't put energy
into eliminating obstacles
you are just giving energy
to the obstacle.

Instead put energy
into creating solutions
so your energy strengthens
that which you desire.

Motion = Opportunity

2009-02-02T23:52:00.000-08:00

Judo is a martial art
about sensing an other's balance
and controlling it.

This takes sensitivity
and the ability to act decisively.

When a person moves
they use imbalance to do so.

The moment of imbalance
can be extremely short
and is the moment in which
action to control that balance
is most effective.

If we are sensitive enough to recognize that moment
and nimble enough to act while it is occurring
we can experience far greater results
with far less effort
than with actions taken at any other time.

Look for motion
it signals imbalance
and an opportunity to control outcome.

And act
with timeliness
and decisiveness.

Little Things Matter

2009-01-26T19:24:00.000-08:00

Do the little things really matter?
What difference do they really make?

If you are trying to attain a goal
and that goal is painfully far away,
any action you take in the direction of that goal
will be miniscule
compared to the total action necessary to acheive it.

"Why bother?" you might conclude.
What difference will my effort really make in the end?

Around the turn of the twentieth century
mathemeticians and physicist began to notice a phenomenon
which eventually came to be known as "chaos theory."

What chaos theory attempts to demonstrate
is how extremely minute changes
to the initial conditions of a system
can create emormously different outcomes.

That is; a tiny difference in where you start
can make a huge difference in where you end out.

So if your goals seem so far away
as to make them unreachable
and your trajectory so misdirected
as to be uncorrectable,
remember the lesson
of the chaos theorists.

Make a small change now.
You never know where it could take you.

Conservation of Energy

2009-01-11T11:37:00.000-08:00

The simplest definition for the Law of Conservation of Energy can be stated as:

Energy cannot be created or destroyed.

A result of this law is that
it is impossible for a device
to produce more energy
than is put into it.

What are you looking to accomplish in your life?
Security?
Financial gain?
Harmony and love in the household?

None of these can return more
than what is put into them.
And the only thing fully in your control
is what YOU put into them.

Inch by Inch, Life's a Cinch

2009-01-08T19:25:00.000-08:00

When I was growing up, my father used to say,
"Inch by inch, life's a cinch.
Mile by mile, life's a trial."

Now my father is pretty cheesy,
and I am pretty arrogant,
and so I scoffed at his commentary.

But it is true.

So many things in life seem overwhelming
because we look at where we currently are
and compare it to where we want to be
and see an impossibly wide chasm between the two.

What we need to do is break the task into small,
easily accomplished steps.
The two most important things in this process are
direction and momentum.

When determining the steps,
work backwards from the end result
back to the current situation.
That way you can be assured
that the steps you take today
lead in the correct direction.

And once you start, keep moving.
Newton's first law of inertia states
"an object at rest tends to stay at rest,
and an object in motion tends to stay in motion."

Make sure you are in motion
and that your motion is
in the direction of your goals.

Gracias al Lector

2008-12-30T21:13:00.000-08:00

Thank you to all two of you who are following this blog.
You are the reason this entry exists.
We all act for attention at some level.
One level on which I am is this blog.

The thought that others might care
to see what I have to say
feeds my ego and makes me feel good.

Thanks for indulging me.

Lessons of the Highway

2008-12-30T18:41:00.000-08:00

I just took a road trip.
350 miles one way.
Once I got in the car,
it was easier to go forward than back.
Although 349 miles lay ahead
and only one behind
my momentum was forward.
Guided by a clear sense of purpose.

I had no companion
and with the radio broken,
watched the odometer and did math in my head.
The monotony of the highway
and the slow progress of ratios and percentages
slowed the pace of my distraction.

The harshness of the desert landscape
and my vunerability passing through it
kept my focus sharp and my purpose singular.
Get to the other side.

Decide clearly
Do one thing at a time
Start.

These are the lessons I bring home with me.

The Earth Only Spins Forward

2008-11-23T09:11:00.000-08:00

When thoughts of regret or nostalgia present themselves,
take example from the planet on which we reside
and spin forward.

An evening with Enterprise Network

2008-09-18T22:32:00.000-07:00

The Enterprise Network is a cool group of volunteer executives who organize and put on events.
Tonight's was the "Executive Forum - Social Media Marketing"

My my space page has me and Tom as friends
And my linkdin has 6 connections.
I have a lot to learn on this subject.

Tonight was a great start.

Now my blog has two entries.

direction and momentum

2008-09-16T23:32:00.000-07:00

I named this blog direction and momentum because that is what I am thinking about right now.
It is often what I think of.
Direction, momentum and inertia .
That seemed like too long of a title.