🗓️Developing Daily Habits
As I embarked on this journey to increase my online presence and take a more active role in creating content, I am reminded of the importance of developing daily habits. I find some of the best plans are ruined by not being able to fit it in my daily life and so the best weapon against this is developing simple daily habits. For example: I started a daily habit of getting up earlier in the day. I know this is one thing that all successful people have in common and one that I knew I had to take more serious. In the beginning of the year, I developed a daily habit of waking up one hour earlier on the weekdays and waking up the same time on the weekend. This added at least another 9 hours of productivity to my life (calculating the fact that I had a tendency to sleep later on the weekend). Those 9 hours have given me the time I need to plan my day, reflect on my thoughts, and get some productive time in to read, write and learn. I suggest that if you haven’t developed a daily habit of grabbing extra time in the morning, that you start that today.
🎥The Latest on my YouTube Channel
It’s only been three weeks into my YouTube journey and with only three videos uploaded I already see how consistency is the key to sustainability. My second video has been posted giving my thoughts on the 4 Best Side Hustles for long term sustainability. You can catch that video here:
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I also took another major step on my YouTube Journey this week by enrolling in the YouTube 1K Challenge offered by Think Media. This is a five-day bootcamp being conducted by one the industry’s leading channels. The program runs from Jan 24th to Jan 28th. I am looking forward to participating in this to see what I can learn from the gurus. I will be doing an honest and full review on the course so be sure to subscribe to my channel so you can catch it when it is available.
🏆What I am learning
🎬I am diving a little deeper into Camtasia to learn some of the tools that are available. I spent some time this week learning how to edit the audio on my videos since I did have multiple clips that had varying levels of volume on the original recordings. I also begin playing around with some of the simple transitions they offer to see how I can incorporate that into my videos to create a better viewing experience for my audience.
🪙I am about 2 hours into the 6-hour Blockchain developer course on Simplilearn. I do not have to tell you how much potential I see in the blockchain arena in the coming years, so I want to make sure I stay on top of the trends.
I have completed 3 of the lessons. Introduction, Overview of Bitcoin, and Bitcoin Blockchain. I have learned a lot from this simple to follow course, but I am mostly looking forward to the next couple of chapters that cover Ethereum and deploying smart contracts on Private Ethereum Network. If you are interested in learning along with me, sign up for an account using my affiliate link here https://simpli-web.app.link/e/hwcdjHJhlm. You will get FOUR FREE Courses and you can connect with me and share notes.
📖What I am reading
I am halfway through the book by Meera Kothand called Uncover Your Difference. I haven’t uncovered any gold nuggets of knowledge to pass along yet, but I am just now getting into the meat of it. Make sure you check out some of my other reviews on my website here: https://www.paulmilakeve.com/book-reviews
I revisited some highlights from Crushing It by Gary Vaynerchuk. I read this book so many years ago and found it full of encouragement that I wanted to go back and revisit some of the highlights to get a new perspective. I was impressed to be reminded that he spoke about TikTok long before its current state. It was music.ly at the time and he made reference to this as something that should be watched in years to come.
🛠️Project Updates
🛋️I completed the remodel of my office/studio. I purchased a great recliner chair from Amazon that is the center piece of my new reading nook. I just put it together yesterday, so I haven’t been able to immerse myself in the experience yet, but I am so looking forward to kicking back and doing some serious reading while I sip on my morning coffee. Here is a quick picture of the reading nook that my wife so enthusiastically helped me put together.
👍What I am loving
📺Enjoying quality time with the wife is always something that I love. On my list of what I am loving this week is that we uncovered some great food at Costco. We purchased a large package of some pre-seasoned chicken wings and dug into them as we were streaming some new shows. We loved them.
🛀During a recent trip to Las Vegas, I found a refreshing new shower gel at the hotel where were staying. I enjoyed it so much that I took a picture of it so I would remember to buy some for the house. It is the Aloe & Green Tea Refreshing Shower Gel by J.R. Watkins. I found some on Amazon and ordered the 6 pack of it. I started using it the other day and I love how I feel when I use it.
📊Random Insights
My wife and I experienced some emotional stress this week because our beloved dog Princess hurt herself somehow. We noticed that she was limping on her front left leg which we decided is her dominant side since that is the paw she raises to give us high fives and to defend herself when we are playing. After noticing the limp, we tried to self-diagnose but she did not give us any indication that something was wrong. This prompted a visit to the vet. $380 and a bunch of x-rays later we walked out assured that there is nothing wrong with her bones. The assumption is that it is a pulled muscle or something. This got me thinking about my financial strategy. We were fortunate to have the extra money available to do this, but we do not have a strong enough plan to account for this happening more often. She is 10 years old, and we cannot assume that she will stay healthy forever. I would love some recommendations on pet insurance is anyone has any experience with it. Let me know if you use it or not and what is your thinking behind it.
For those interested. Here she is: