mantaray: (imprints)
2017-03-07 01:51 am

Build Resilience

Jim Rohn quote: “The ultimate reason for setting goals is to entice you to become the person it takes to achieve them.”

13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do
BY AMY MORIN
 
Mentally strong people have healthy habits. They manage their emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in ways that set them up for success in life. Check out these things that mentally strong people don’t do so that you too can become more mentally strong.

1. They Don’t Waste Time Feeling Sorry for Themselves
Mentally strong people don’t sit around feeling sorry about their circumstances or how others have treated them. Instead, they take responsibility for their role in life and understand that life isn’t always easy or fair.
 
2. They Don’t Give Away Their Power
They don’t allow others to control them, and they don’t give someone else power over them. They don’t say things like, “My boss makes me feel bad,” because they understand that they are in control over their own emotions and they have a choice in how they respond.

3. They Don’t Shy Away from Change
Mentally strong people don’t try to avoid change. Instead, they welcome positive change and are willing to be flexible. They understand that change is inevitable and believe in their abilities to adapt.

4. They Don’t Waste Energy on Things They Can’t Control
You won’t hear a mentally strong person complaining over lost luggage or traffic jams. Instead, they focus on what they can control in their lives. They recognize that sometimes, the only thing they can control is their attitude.

5. They Don’t Worry About Pleasing Everyone
Mentally strong people recognize that they don’t need to please everyone all the time. They’re not afraid to say no or speak up when necessary. They strive to be kind and fair, but can handle other people being upset if they didn’t make them happy.

6. They Don’t Fear Taking Calculated Risks
They don’t take reckless or foolish risks, but don’t mind taking calculated risks. Mentally strong people spend time weighing the risks and benefits before making a big decision, and they’re fully informed of the potential downsides before they take action.

14 Things Positive People Don’t Do

7. They Don’t Dwell on the Past
Mentally strong people don’t waste time dwelling on the past and wishing things could be different. They acknowledge their past and can say what they’ve learned from it. However, they don’t constantly relive bad experiences or fantasize about the glory days. Instead, they live for the present and plan for the future.

8. They Don’t Make the Same Mistakes Over and Over
Mentally strong people accept responsibility for their behavior and learn from their past mistakes. As a result, they don’t keep repeating those mistakes over and over. Instead, they move on and make better decisions in the future.

9. They Don’t Resent Other People’s Success
Mentally strong people can appreciate and celebrate other people’s success in life. They don’t grow jealous or feel cheated when others surpass them. Instead, they recognize that success comes with hard work, and they are willing to work hard for their own chance at success.

10. They Don’t Give Up After the First Failure
Mentally strong people don’t view failure as a reason to give up. Instead, they use failure as an opportunity to grow and improve. They are willing to keep trying until they get it right.

11. They Don’t Fear Alone Time
Mentally strong people can tolerate being alone and they don’t fear silence. They aren’t afraid to be alone with their thoughts and they can use downtime to be productive. They enjoy their own company and aren’t dependent on others for companionship and entertainment all the time but instead can be happy alone.

12. They Don’t Feel the World Owes Them Anything
Mentally strong people don’t feel entitled to things in life. They weren’t born with a mentality that others would take care of them or that the world must give them something. Instead, they look for opportunities based on their own merits.

13. They Don’t Expect Immediate Results
Whether they are working on improving their health or getting a new business off the ground, mentally strong people don’t expect immediate results. Instead, they apply their skills and time to the best of their ability and understand that real change takes time.
mantaray: (sailormoon: sakura)
2016-11-28 04:04 am

do it!

This song is super clever in how it built upon a nursery rhyme-esque motif? and it expands upon the idea by reinforcing a "glitching" dimentia. the repeating "또 왜, 너 망설이니? / Don’t U Wait No More" lines chirp with a sort of wind-up toy cadence. the distorted vocal sample that bleeds into one lo-fi wail, the dissonant backing synths that seems to combat the vocals, it all adds up to suggest a malfunctioning toy looping its demented melody. the real stroke of genius is that it avoids certain creepy cute tropes/trappings by pairing this schoolyard rhythm with nu jazz/neo-soul style vocals. wendy's squeaky high notes during the bridge seems to emulate a scratchy vinyl. was the cherry on top of this mad confection. essentially the auditory representation of Dismaland. hypnotic. 

Lucky Girl like a spiritual successor?
mantaray: (existence)
2016-08-25 08:52 pm

things about myself that i know to be true

  •  I get overstimulated fairly easily, today I've been voraciously trying to branch out my music (too much tunnel vision on K-pop & J-indie music have left me wanting. 
  • The years of listening to so much music in languages I don't understand have trained me to appreciate music on a purely aesthetic level, and throttled the emotional connection in many cases. I remember at 18, when lyrics could make or break a song for me. Now I fear I'm consuming at too surfacial a level. 
mantaray: (existence)
2015-07-07 07:59 pm

I wish I could see ultraviolet

do you ever think about how vision is one of our most acute senses, yet we can only see the tiny visible spectrum? I want to see colors I could've never dreamed of.
mantaray: crayicons @ lj (magic red heels)
2014-07-28 04:46 am

Learning how to speak to myself

 Here are reminders to
treat yourself gently
make delicious food that inspires satisfaction only you are capable of
roll in the warmth of clean pressed laundry
revel in the accomplishment of having produced something
relive and reexamine pieces of your childhood in sailor moon crystal
bask in the multiplicity of the world outside
push yourself, just a little, and marvel at the illusion of your limitations
focus so that you feel settled in your capabilities
mantaray: (celestials)
2014-03-05 01:03 am

new discoveries

cannot for the life of me recall the dream i had last night... all i know is that i took a feeling of strange familiarity away from it. the scene was grey concrete, someone wanted something from me, and the whole time I just wanted to bond with my puppy.

I've been badly craving for pet companionship lately, to the point that I actually browsed my local dog shelter and fantasized about adopting them. Someday... someday soon I hope.

-----

I've been finally making headway in purging through my library, now I really appreciate music with a certain level of complexity or resonance.
mantaray: crayicons @ lj (magic red heels)
2014-03-01 11:23 pm

face it, you'll be ok.

Nothing solves my problems as much as tackling it head-on.
mantaray: (celestials)
2014-02-27 04:18 pm
Entry tags:

pelicant

weirrrrd dream last night, in a forest marsh of lush green, I encountered wrinkly animals that had the head of moose and body of kangaroo. I observed the clumsy creatures as they milled about trying to survive. A large pelican flies by and three of the creatures hop into its large mouth, hitching a safe ride across the dangerous marsh. I stay rooted to the spot, pondering my next move. The eye of the crocodile makes contact with mine, and suddenly it lunges up and snaps its enormous jaw in the air.


illustration by Naota Tajima (aren't they the cutest?)

This is probably conjured from memories of New Orleans and the ferry tour I took across its wetland canals. Christmas was too cold to spot anything other than birds, so the guide took out a baby alligator for us to fondle. Its cold leathery skin still feels familiar to my fingertips.

mantaray: (flowering)
2014-02-26 05:12 am

affirmations

* creativity is magical
* make things that have heart
* be appreciative of who you are and how that expresses itself

this is spawned from bugging Rob Rob aka my fav prof,
mantaray: crayicons @ lj (magic & witchery)
2014-02-11 07:02 am

the kindness of others

Sam sent me this, how cute




Also, shinee covering Cho Yong Pil’s Bon Voyage makes me happy :,)

mantaray: crayicons @ lj (magic red heels)
2013-12-21 02:10 pm

type

Strength of individual traits: Introversion - 36%, Intuition - 22%, Feeling - 27%, Judging - 1%.
INFJ
vs
TVtropes

mantaray: (kyary: uncanny)
2013-09-28 12:33 am

10 things i like about me

1. i feel hopeful for the future
2. i make terrible jokes but ppl laugh at them anyway
3. i feel more comfortable in my skin than i ever have, and that makes everything else so much more enjoyable in extension
4. i identify as pansexual and it's liberating
5. im fairly smart i guess
6. i still suffer from the same issues as before to varying degrees, what's changed is that i understand myself more so I'm much more adept at dealing with them.
7. im quite articulate
8. im excited for all the good music i have to listen to
9. im conventionally attractive
10. porn, porn is gr8, essential part of life rly
mantaray: (sailormoon: sakura)
2013-07-30 01:12 am

im sorry to myself

I'm scared I wanna cry again I just want to shrink into a ball of fear ; ;;;;;

kpop is such an easy out for an escapist like me I HAAAATE ITTTT


i'll do better. this way of thinking isnt doing me any favors. just stop doubting yourself, take yoruself less seriously.
mantaray: (Default)
2013-07-11 10:10 pm
Entry tags:

Structure!

1. JUMP OUT OF BED IN THE MORNING! No matter how you feel, go through the steps and simply doing them will make you awake & give you a rush of energy. It's all about attitude!

2. Force yourself to be at rest without technology, stop taking your iPad/laptop/portable device with you everywhere. Learn to appreciate things just as they are; savor the silence.

3. Environment can be critical. Again, go work somewhere without easy access to distractions, where you can't easily lie down or bum around.

4. KNOW THAT YOU ARE THE ONE IN CONTROL. Take the power back by saying "I'm greater than my impulses". Don't click that icon.

5. JUST GET STARTED. Delay gratification - get started for at least 20 minutes before you earn a reward. Sometimes you work into a flow and forgo the break! Think of the work as a pie broken into small chunks, tackle it gradually. Pomodoro

6. If you still can't get into it after these steps, then redirect that nervous energy somewhere productive - run it off, dance it away, clean house to oblivion. THEN TRY AGAIN. It'll be easier to work once you see that you can be productive

7. Praise yourself for a job well done! And uphold it, the delayed rewards of self-fulfillment is much more long lasting than any dopamine rush! YOU ARE ABOVE THIS.
...And if you fail, don't beat yourself up! You are already on the upswing by choosing to improve, JUST KEEP GOING. MOMENTUM IS EVERYTHING.


Break it down )
mantaray: (matisse: bubajazz)
2013-07-11 09:18 pm
Entry tags:

dreams of artistree

Can you give up on a dream?

No, I don't think it's advisable to talk yourself out of your dream. It's possible and sometimes necessary, but I think much depends on how rigorously you've pursued a career in music. If you can honestly say you've done all you can do to become a performer, composer, what have you, and things haven't work out the way you've imagined they would, then I think you can make your music your avocation or hobby without regret. Keep in mind, though, you aren't even thirty years old yet, so you're hardly washed up. You may be experiencing the on-set of the navel-gazing and tea-leaf reading that happens to us when we move from our twenties into our thirties. I don't want to patronize you; that was my experience, FWIW.

I think making yourself your business is the challenge of any career in the arts. I'm an actor and a fledgling writer, and I understand this conflict all too well. I've worked a few other jobs along the way, and all of them were satisfying and certainly more lucrative to greater or lesser degrees. Still, it wasn't until I got serious about setting and pursuing my artistic goals that I started to cobble together a satisfying career as an artist.

First of all, consider what it is that you really want to do with your music. Do you want to perform? Compose? Teach? Whatever it is, identify it concretely and then ask yourself some questions. Who are your contacts in the music world? What's your training? Would more training at a better school be a good use of or waste of time? Who are your role-models or people whose careers you'd like to emulate? How did they get where they are, and what did they do that you haven't? What resources are out there that deal with the business side of music? What can I learn from those? Once you start giving structure to your dream by turning it into a set of attainable goals and milestones you've already achieved toward it, you can address the aspects of it that may be too overwhelming to think about when taken altogether. "Your dream" will seem less like some magical orb dangling out there in space just out of your grasp, and more like a satisfying way of living you come to after a rewarding, if at times arduous, journey.

Then I think you may ask yourself about the practical considerations of your life - do you have debt you have to pay? What kind of rent, bills and expenses are you responsible for? What's your standard of living? Can you live more humbly without feeling deprived? Do you want to struggle for a time, or could you be happy living with my music as a side project to your other, more lucrative chosen career? Once you've got both sides of the equation mapped out practically, then you can start to make choices. Whatever you do, choose because of what you know rather than what you fear.

Good luck.
posted by TryTheTilapia at 7:55 AM on July 14, 2007



You say there are good reasons on paper to give up your greatest passion - but I haven't read any yet. All I read is you saying that you should do this or should do that.

You are lucky to be good at something and love it so much. Many people in this world never find that within themselves their entire life. If you give up on that because of any objective idea of what you should be doing, I would think that very tragic! Do what fulfills you.

And remember that what you DO can always change... you don't need to carve your career goals into stone. Follow your heart.
posted by loiseau at 9:00 AM on July 14, 2007

Read more... )
mantaray: (matisse: acrobatic)
2013-07-11 12:25 am
Entry tags:

the waves

In other news, I feel like I'm finally beginning to bloom into an adult with responsibilities and a touch of reality. So I should take it as a step of growth to not run away in morbid embarrassment at my past...

Anyway, lately I've been finding it real hard to kick this freaking habit called the internet, namely kbob (i know, i know, 3 years and still going, i'm doomed). In fact I just caved in by browsing for videos the past 3 hrs (ugh). I'm gonna try this intermittent alarm method - work for a period, earn a small reward. <whispers>pomodoro</whispers>



>>> 9 Warning Signs of An amateur Artist
This is some pretty hard-hitting stuff,  it really presents the reality of how difficult this path can be. I don't entirely agree with #3 as it only applies to artists who have reached a relatively mature point in their careers to continue exploring various facets of the same plane. Anyway, what's important for me right now is not only to start, but also finish.

“The seed of your next art work lies embedded in the imperfections of your current piece. Such imperfections are your guides–valuable, objective, non-judgmental guides to matters you need to reconsider or develop further.” ~David Bayles


 
changes and doubts )