Be quick on your actions. Have patience on your results.
Be quick on your actions. Whenever I have an idea, I start typing it down as soon as possible on my app for notes on my smart phone or laptop. Sometimes I write it down in my notebook. Next, I research and write my plan and strategy. If it looks doable, I execute my actions stated in my plan. I do my best to work on my small goals daily. Over time, these small goals compound, and so does my knowledge, skills, and relationships. If it’s a physical activity, I read up on it and then begin practicing it. If I enjoy the activity, I add it to my arsenal of physical exercises.
Have patience on your results. Many successful people say it takes 10 years or more to achieve our big goals. I don’t consider myself a successful person, but for all the things I’ve envisioned achieving, it took me about 6 to 7 years to accomplish them, whether it be a high-scoring soccer player in my teenage years, becoming a lawyer and politician, and reaching certain benchmarks for my business ventures. Of course, on my journey towards my goals, I’ve had numerous small failures and a few big ones. However, my failures gave me valuable lessons, skills, and some good relationships that adds to my ever-growing foundation. Currently, I’m reinventing myself and working on several business projects that has been very challenging, even uncomfortable at times. I’ll keep working hard to succeed, yet always be ready to adjust and evolve when things don’t go as planned. I’m doing all I can to be patient with my results.
If you’re impatient on your results, you’ll get frustrated with your failures and criticize your progress as being too slow. Further, your stress and anxiety will rise. Impatience on your results may cause you to give up on your dreams before you could fully know your potential. For me, it would kill me to not know the extent of my potential, win or lose.
I hope these practices can help you as much as it helps me. I wish you the best in all your endeavors!
[I wrote this article for Positive Masters, an e-commerce store at www.positivemasters.com , which provides lifestyle practices, creative writing, apparel, accessories, and fashion to boost your happiness and counter any stress, anxiety, or sadness you may be facing. The store offers free shipping for purchases of $50 or more!]
Practice mindfulness every day to consistently be aware of the beauty around you!
Mindfulness is a simple and powerful daily practice to boost your happiness. Simply be present to enjoy all the good things around you. Wherever you go, look around to enjoy the sight. Here’s a beautiful picture of the trees, plants, sky, and clouds in Waikele, Hawaii as I walked to the coffee shop. The contrasting colors are amazing! 😃
[I wrote this article for Positive Masters,an e-commerce store at http://www.positivemasters.com , which provides lifestyle practices, creative writing, apparel, accessories, and fashion to boost your happiness and counter any stress, anxiety, or sadness you may be facing. We offer free shipping for purchases of $50 or more!] ❤
Here’s an article I wrote for Positive Masters at www.positive masters.com, an e-commerce store that provides lifestyle practices, creative writing, apparel, accessories, and fashion to boost your happiness and counter any stress, anxiety, and sadness you may be facing.
On your bad days, just work on 1 to 3 of the most important things that you need to do, and more importantly, by completing them, you know you will feel better. That alone is huge!
On some days, you wake up with less motivation to attack your day. Maybe you’re stressed about the overwhelming amount of work you have to do. Maybe you’re down because things aren’t going as you planned? You’re wondering if something will or will not happen, causing you angst. Are you worrying about a relationship, the break-up of one, or being lonely? The death of a loved may have hit you hard. Maybe it’s because someone yelled at you at work or the critics are attacking you. Heck, it could be all of the above.
You turn off your alarm, wishing you could fade away into a wonderful dream where you’re smiling and sipping a favorite beverage as you overlook the glistening blue ocean with puffy white clouds floating through the teal blue skies. Aaaaaahhh, that would be wonderful!
No, you can’t do that. Not now. So you drag yourself out of bed and freshen up. Then you return to your bedroom and make your bed to get your first win of the day. You tell yourself, “No matter what happens today, I can make my bed, and when I return, it’ll be welcoming me!”
You execute on your favorite practice, gratitude. “I’m so lucky to be alive to have a shot in this universe,” you say to yourself. You’re mindful of all the useful and memorable things in your home and express your gratitude. As you make your breakfast, you use your late grandma’s plate and quietly express your thanks as you think of your grandma. You see items from your other late grandparents and your parents, causing positive energy to pour into your soul.
With your breakfast, you drink green tea for its benefits such as L-Theanine to calm your anxiety and mellow its caffeine, which gives you the calm type of clarity that you need.
In addition to your mindful and gratitude practices, you do a quick self-reflection on all the good qualities you have and how you’re going to apply them to get closer to your dreams of your future. On your worse days, you meditate to clear yourself of all your negative thoughts.
Okay, Now you’re ready to take on the day. However, you power up your computer and stare at it. Damn, you feel nothing.
You ever feel like this? I do. We all have these challenging days because we’re human. We can’t expect to always have those awesome days when ideas flow smoothly and problems get resolved rather simply. Those terrific days when you put in 10 hours of fulfilling work that didn’t feel like work because you were enjoying the process.
On your bad days, just focus on 1 to 3 of the most important things that you need to get done that day and execute on them. That’s all you have to do. When coming up with the 1 to 3 things you need to work on, don’t add up many tiny tasks, instead, lump them into broad categories to fit into those 1 to 3 things you need to complete for the day. It’s psychologically beneficial to simplify what you need to do. We’re telling ourselves, “I got this. I can do this.” Don’t allow the gloomy side of your mind to sabotage your plan by overcomplicating and even exaggerating the work you have before you. For that day, you don’t have to achieve a million things, only on those few key goals you set for yourself. Accomplishing these goals, even if they’re little are huge because every single accomplishment will add up over time. Getting those few things done will also boost your happy chemicals. Praise yourself for this accomplishment!
This is a part of the process of what I do to keep myself moving forward on my not so good days. It works for me. If it can help you in some way to feel better on your terrible days, it would make me happy!
[I wrote this article at www.positivemasters.com, an e-commerce website that provides lifestyle practices, writing, apparel, and accessories to boost your happiness and counter any stress, anxiety, and sadness you may be facing.]
Choosing a career that’s relatively safe, although no job is truly safe, may bring peace for you. However, you may have that itch to do the things you’ve always wanted to do, but there’s a higher risk of failure and attacks from haters and critics. The question is, “Will you regret not giving a shot at your dreams?”
You’ve got one shot in your life, make the most of it! The fact that you’re born into this world and still alive reading this article, demonstrates how lucky you are. Scientists estimate that the chance of you existing are about 1 in 4 hundred trillion. That’s crazy odds! Not only are you lucky, you’re a one of a kind with your own personality and way of thinking. This makes you lucky and special!
When I was young, my parents made my two younger sisters and I try many sports and activities. From there, my sisters and I gravitated towards certain sports and community organizations that we enjoyed and had an interest in. My sisters and I continue to do this as adults, trying new things for our careers, community, and personal lives. We push ourselves into uncomfortable territory, but find pleasure in learning, developing skills, and building relationships. However, by exposing ourselves to risk, the greater potential of failure and criticism can be stressful. I’ve had my share of failures. I see failure as part of the process to learn, grow, and evolve. Everyone has a different stress tolerance so its good to assess your goals and strategize on how to execute them. By writing your thoughts and research down, you get a better feel of the system you’ll create for yourself, the daily work placed into your calendar that you’ll need to accomplish in order to get to your various stages of your vision. By doing this, you mitigate some of your risk.
Further, the risks you take to fulfill a dream you have is not going to kill you, unless, you’re planning to do something that risks your life. Yet, your animalistic fears still get triggered when you get anxious of the future such as whether your project will fail or whether you’ll be attacked and ridiculed by critics. You feel like a saber tooth tiger is pursuing you. Your mind can blow your fears out of proportion. Focus on what you can control and don’t let the uncontrollable things take you down. When you succeed, all the worries will be for nothing. If you do fail, you’ll learn, and then pivot to make your next moves, evolving as you proceed on. Either way, you still gain a lot a value: skills, knowledge, and relationships that will propel you forward!
[I wrote the following article for +positive masters+ at www.positivemasters.com, an e-commerce store that provides lifestyle practices, creative writing, books, apparel, accessories, and fashion to boost your happiness and crush your anxiety and depression.]
Much of our happiness and suffering is determined by our mindset.
History has shown how resilient humans can be, even under very difficult situations. Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., Nelson Mandela, and Daniel K. Inouye are a few examples of individuals who accomplished so much to make our world better despite mental and physical challenges weighing against them. 👊
With a strong will and an understanding of what you can and can’t control, you will accomplish great things by working on your small wins day by day! 😃
[I wrote the following article at www.positivemasters.com, an e-commerce store that provides lifestyle practices, creative writing, books, apparel, accessories, and fashion to boost your happiness and crush your anxiety and depression.]
Get at least 7 hours of sleep to have a positive mindset and healthy body.
Sleep is very important to having a positive mindset and healthy body. Health professionals recommend adults to sleep 7 to 9 hours, although some people may need as few as 6 hours or as many as 10 hours of sleep each day. If you’re a teenager (ages 14-17), you need about 8-10 hours of sleep each day. Children need more hours of rest, and much more is needed for babies.
I aim to have at least 7 hours of sleep every night, however, I have to admit that I’m not consistent on this. I’ve succeeded 85 times and today, July 10, 2019 is the 170th day of the year. After working during the day, I often return home and continue working late at night and into the early morning, even until the light of dawn when I’m in the zone. As of last night, July 9, 2019, I’ve made a greater commitment to achieving more restful nights of sleep.
Here’s 5 benefits a good night’s sleep has on your mind and body:
1. Reduces Your Stress and Anxiety. With a lack of rest, your mind and body goes into a state of stress, which causes high blood pressure and a higher production of stress hormones. High blood pressure increases your risk for heart attack and stroke. Increased stress hormones raises the level of inflammation in your body, causing a greater risk for heart-related conditions, as well as cancer and diabetes. Having a good sleep will prevent you from going into this state of stress. Also, ever notice how much more stressed out and anxious you are when you don’t sleep enough? With a full rest, you’re better at attacking your challenges!
2. Makes Your Mind Alert. A good night’s sleep makes you more energetic and alert. When you’re tired, it’s hard to focus on your tasks, especially where a lot of thinking is involved.
3. Improves Your Memory. Sleep plays an important role in a process called memory consolidation. During sleep, your brain is processing your day, making connections between events, sensory input, feelings, and memories.
4. Reduces Your Depression. Sleep affects many of the chemicals in your body, including serotonin. People with serotonin deficiencies are more likely to suffer from depression. Keep your serotonin and other happy chemicals up by going to bed early enough to get those restful hours.
5. Repairs Your Body. Sleep is a time when your body is working hard to repair damage caused by stress, ultraviolet rays, and other harmful exposure. Your cells produce more protein while you’re sleeping. These protein molecules form the building blocks for cells, allowing them to repair the damage.
So do your best to get some deep sleep and the next morning you’ll be ready to crush your day!
[I wrote the following article at www.positivemasters.com, an e-commerce store that provides lifestyle practices, creative writing, books, apparel, accessories, and fashion to boost your happiness and crush your anxiety and depression.]
It takes years to build a good reputation, yet, it takes only a moment to destroy it. Our greatest mistakes in life often occur when we’re stressed, anxious, or angry.
Whenever you feel stressed, anxious, or angry, one remedy you can apply that’s really simple to do is deep breathing. As soon as you feel your heart rate picking up, your muscles tightening, and/or your head feeling nauseous, take a deep breath and count to four, then exhale slowly while counting to four. Keep repeating this slow breathing technique until you feel your heart rate normalize, your muscles relax, and clarity return to your mind.
Even if you’re not stressed, anxious, or angry, try this breathing technique. You’ll feel much more relaxed and ready to accomplish things.
[The following content is from a blog post I wrote at www.positivemasters.com, an e-commerce store that provides lifestyle practices, creative writing, books, apparel, accessories, and fashion to boost your happiness and counter your anxiety and depression.]
Creative Writing, a Remedy for Stress, Anxiety, & Sadness.
You’re grieving the latest round of loved ones who passed away, a close family member and a dear family friend, both with caring and happy personalities, and both Positive Masters. You’re putting out fires fueled by personality clashes in a non-profit organization you’re leading that’s suppose to promote inner peace. Phone calls and emails get thrown at you from your business partners and vendors, telling you everything that’s going wrong. Payments aren’t coming in from your clients while your attorney defending you for your driving under the influence case is needing his payment. Oh, and for that driving under the influence case, the court threw the book at you for not being a good role model as a politician so you’re facing five days in jail. Business events, charities, and parties with alcohol was your escape from your stress back then. In your inner circle, a close friend is in the lowest point of his life and another is going through a painful divorce. On top of this, you’ve got so many things to do on a couple of other start-up business projects that gives you anxiety. When you stop working, your dark monkey mind haunts you at night and as soon as you wake up, telling you everything that could go wrong.
Your muscles tense up, your heart beats harder, and your breaths become shorter. A part of you wants to fade out. You picture Luke Skywalker meditating on the large, flat rock on a cliff on a remote island on the planet Ahch-To. His spirit is being astral projected to the planet Crait to face-off the entire First Order to defend his loved ones, until his energy is depleted, and ultimately, he fades away with the sun setting in Ahch-To to be one with the force, leaving the rest of us to live on, facing the dark side without him.
So you go into your office, close your door and meditate. After a few minutes, you feel a cozy sensation, like you’re being hugged. It’s from the presence of your grandparents on both sides of your family. Both of your grandmothers radiate loving warmth to you. Your mother’s father who was very close to you, gives you extreme comfort, like he did when he was alive. His positive energy is so strong, no words are needed, just his presence. Then you hear the words from your father’s father. You don’t hear it, you feel it. “Jon, it’s just money. You can make more. It’s just five days in jail. I’m investing in you. Keep going.”
“I miss you so much. I love you,” I tell them as tears stream down both of my cheeks. I feel their warmth slipping away to the chill of the air from my air conditioner. My breaths are now deeper and longer, relaxing my body, and most importantly, relaxing my soul.
I pack my loyal robots, slipping my smartphone into the pocket of my cargo shorts and placing my laptop into my favorite backpack that I’ve been using since my days in law school, and headed off on my usual path to my neighborhood coffee shop to get back to work on my vision.
Here’s the Angry Explosion Short Sleeve Unisex T-shirt by +positive masters+ @positivemasters !!! The e-commerce store is at https://positivemasters.com !!! 💥
Positive Masters’ Angry Explosion Unisex Short Sleeve T-Shirt is great to remind us to maintain a positive mindset! Just as mantras chanted by Buddhist monks help them to live positive lives, the words and designs on our products can serve as your mantras to guide you in living joyful lives!
Angry Explosion is the antagonist of the Positive Masters. We definitely can’t be happy when we’re angry. Through our positive practices, a number of which will be shared on our blog at http://positivemasters.com , we’re able to prevent ourselves from losing control to our anger, one of the most destructive emotions. By wearing the Angry Explosion T-Shirt, it’ll remind you to always be present and mindful of your emotions so that you can behave in the most positive manner, even under the most difficult situations – a super power! 😊
This is a great gift for your sometimes grumpy dad! Or give this shirt to a friend who needs a reminder in this playful kind of way! 😅
This Unisex Short Sleeve T-Shirt feels soft and lightweight, with the right amount of stretch. It’s a comfortable shirt for both men and women.
• 100% combed and ring-spun cotton (heather colors contain polyester)
Here’s my new brand, Positive Masters, an apparel line for men and women with unisex t-shirts, men’s t-shirts, women’s fit t-shirts, women’s crop top tees, mugs, and much more to come! We will also have positive life practices, creative writing, books, art, and other goods to help lift your spirit! Our happy products are available at our e-commerce store at www.positivemasters.com.
Each design has a meaning. For instance, our primary logo here highlights our mascot: Master 7, a master of positive mindset. How we view ourselves and surrounding is key to our happiness. A Positive Master always sees the good in herself/himself, others, and situations. Take a moment to reflect on all the positive people who have influenced you and how they made you feel. This interaction of positive energy creates momentum for all of us to attain inner peace and joy.
As you can feel in my words, Positive Masters is a deep passion of mine. I myself have gone through struggles in my personal life and career. If a writing, graphic design, service, or product can help you be happier in your precious life, I would be extremely touched.
With Warmest Aloha,
Jon
Positive Masters provide lifestyle practices, creative writing, books, apparel, accessories and fashion to boost our happiness and crush our anxiety and depression!
My anxiety level is up today so seeing this post by @riskhappy is motivating me to snap out of my terrible feeling. I’m going to focus and work on what I can control. First, my appointments and work I have to finish dealing with my immediate deadline, followed by another deadline, and then another, and then paying a big bill. The first is extremely important because if I succeed in executing it, I can complete what I need to do for the other three areas in the short-run and long-run.
Practices: (1) Focus on what I can control; (2) Work on one thing at a time to maximize my productivity; and (3) Be present and put aside my fear of what may or may not happen tomorrow.
What are your strategies to alleviate anxiety and stress? I hope you’re doing well! ❤
#anxietyremedies #stressrelief #anxietyrelief #anxiety #stress #worry #fear #business #law #governmentaffairs #entrepreneurship #ecommerce #socialmediamarketing #writing #prioritize #productivity #bepresent #mindfulness #keepgoing #stepbystep #personalgrowth #selfhelp #selfimprovement #motivation #quote #motivationalquote #spilledthoughts #practices
Repost @riskhappy (@get_repost)
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“10 years from now, make sure you can say that you chose your life, you didn’t settle for it.” – Mandy Hale #riskhappy
Our mindset is key to our daily hustle. When we have a setback, it’s challenging to maintain our optimism. Our workflow gets interrupted by our disappointment and anxiety. 💻
Having someone positive to work with can be a huge factor. Lately, I’ve been working with my friend Claire at Starbucks @starbucks who I became friends with while at Pearl City High School. She’s building an E-commerce business. We keep motivating each other to keep pushing forward every day. We place tough deadlines on ourselves in order to accelerate our progress. I’m so happy to have reconnected with Claire! I don’t feel as alone as before, working on projects that face a high level of risk .
Keep moving forward on your vision every day! If you can find a positive work friend who motivates you, even better! 😃
Thank you so much to Hawaiian Electric @hawaiianelectric and Drive Electric Hawaii @driveelectrichi for the power bank, which I’ve been wanting for about 5 months!!! I’m super grateful!!! I’m making really good use of them in my daily grind on my #work !!! I got them at First Hawaiian Bank’s @fhbhawaii 2019 First Hawaiian International Auto Show at the Hawaii Convention Center @hawaiiconvention on Sunday March 31, 2019. Now, more than ever, since I don’t drive, and instead, catch the bus to all my meetings and events, I’ve been needing one of these to recharge my @samsungmobile Galaxy S7 Edge, which I use for business and personal use. A couple of times my smartphone ran out of power while in transit. My friend Brandon Mitsuda @brandon_mitsuda gave me his since he already has his own.
Thank you so much to Hawaiian Electric for these power banks! I needed them badly as I do business while moving about in Honolulu’s awesome bus system!
I ran my 11th Great Aloha Run, an 8.15 mile race from Aloha Tower to Aloha Stadium! It felt nice to get out in the sun & run, one of my practices to lower my anxiety, stress, & any low feelings.
I recently lost my aunty, a really sweet & kind person. I’m still in shock & grieving. Her passing has hit me really hard.
Today, I got blasted by a blogger for my efforts on an aviation business project I’ve been working on w/ my business partners since 2015. It really hurts. My business partners & I have been working tirelessly w/ no pay for about 3.5 years. I’ve never been so poor in my life. For those business people who told me they lost or almost lost their home because of their sacrifice to build a service or product, I totally understand. There have been times where I’ve cried by myself, wondering why I put myself through such struggle. Yet my business partners & I keep working despite the pain because we have so much passion in what we do & believe in the potential it will provide for the community. The critics should try putting themselves out there & risk their money & time on business, politics, & the arts. Maybe they would feel empathetic for those who put their heart & soul on a value for others to use or enjoy. I don’t understand how humans can be so cold as to try & damage others & even desire suffering onto others. I invite my critics to spend a week with me as I draft documents, meet w/ community leaders, write fiction & nonfiction, read books & laws, create branding content for a restaurant, volunteer for a nonprofit, meditate, do my gratitude prayers, play with my little nieces & 2nd cousins, go through anxiety on my business projects, & face the deaths of people I love. Maybe then, they will see me. I hope by the end of that week, they can feel that I care for them to find happiness within themselves. Creating & working with others is much more upbeat & positive than always comparing, complaining, & hating. Heck, there is nothing positive w/ comparing, complaining, & hating. I wish these people love & happiness.
– Jon Riki Karamatsu, Haiku Poem #189, 11/6/2018 –
First, we all have problems, death of loved ones, attacks from our opposition and haters, legal woes, financial hardship, broken relationships, bad working environment, and such. To put things in perspective, there are children who are dying because there’s no drinking water. Our problems are tough but we can make it through them.
Second, most people don’t care whether we’re alive or dead. The only ones who do are our loved ones and haters. Avoid the haters and focus on our loved ones.
Third, practice things that counters our anxiety and depression such as but not limited to getting enough sleep, gratitude, exercise, eating well, getting sunlight, going to our happy places, appreciating nature, being around positive people, listening to happy music, writing our hearts out, helping another, meditation, lighting a nice smelling candle or wearing an uplifting scent, having a nice hot or cold shower or bath, working on our passions, and updating our vision board and life plans. I have much more practices that I will share with you in the near future after I finish editing my second novel.
I’m in emotional pain right now so I feel you if you’re going through anxiety or depression. I’ve been through these lows before so I know I can get through them. As mentioned above, I have a long list of practices that I execute to get myself back to my happier levels. I’m with you on your comeback. Sending you my love.
To distract me from worrying about tomorrow, I work on what I can today.
At times we decline opportunities to pursue our dreams, which causes us stress. I’ve been through it with my political and legal career, and now I’m going through it with my recent goals in the private sector. Focusing on what I can work on now has helped me move forward on my journey, even through the roughest parts. I wish you the best in your journey. I’m feeling you and cheering for you!
Chaired my board of directors meeting for Jodo Shu Hawaii earlier and now working at Coffee Talk in Kaimuki, Hawaii while my mom attends a meeting for wellness products. I’ve been in the zone for the past week, pulling off nonstop writing and learning sessions of up to 10 hours straight at coffee shops. I snapped out of a low and depressive energy period caused by stress and anxiety – partly because life and death became very real when I had to save my cousin-in-law from choking on food. There’s so much I want to accomplish before I die. I want to play a small role in providing value to others, especially in products and services that can help others find peace. So excited to work!!!
Let’s keep moving forward as hard as we can! I feel your sacrifice, tears, anxiety, and fears, but the value you provide will help us all enjoy a fuller life. We’re in this journey together to better our world. I thought this picture of a lamborghini speeding ahead would energize you with happy energy, and put a smile on your face as you continue your daily practice towards your goals. Let’s get some wins today!!!
I was saddened to hear of the passing of Chester Bennington of Linkin Park on July 20, 2017 at the age of 41. He was also the lead singer for Dead By Sunrise and fronted Stone Temple Pilots from 2013 to 2015. His voice had a great range for melodic top 40 tracks to the hard screaming sounds of rock and roll that sometimes blended with rap by Mike Shinoda, the other frontman of Linkin Park.
Chester was authentic and open about his life, the struggles of his childhood when his parents became divorced, being sexually abused by an individual older than him, and getting bullied in school. He let out his frustration and suffering in his art and music. Much of his struggle resonates in the lyrics of the songs he helped write and through the sound of his voice. However, Chester also turned to drugs and alcohol to numb his pain. Even with his rise into a rockstar with amazing bands, he faced depression until he took his life.
As a politician in Hawaii, I worked on the issues of bullying, sex abuse, drugs, and mental health. I continued with some of this work while a Deputy Prosecuting Attorney and Legislative Liaison at the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney of the City and County of Honolulu. I left public service after being charged by the police for driving under the influence when I was stopped at a roadblock. Half the time I served in public service, I felt like I was dealing with power trips of politicians and judges, many with temper tantrums who were unable to put the issues above themselves. Now, I direct my efforts in helping the community through start-up business ventures, business law, and nonprofit organizations. If I succeed in building the businesses that I’m passionate about, I want to dedicate my money on causes that I’ve failed to achieve as a politician and government attorney such as building a peace curriculum in our schools to teach our children positive daily practices to reduce bullying, sex assault, verbal abuse and physical violence; and helping orphans of war receive water, food, medicine, clothes, toys, and an education.
The death of Chester by suicide hit me emotionally. I’ve been listening to Linkin Park since their beginning. I’m listening to Linkin Park songs as I write this post. I know the power of the darkness can haunt us, especially when we’re alone. At night and early morning is when they attack me. When they win, nothing matters – nothing. I know this. I live because I’ve created so many goals to work on. I work hard – so hard that it pushes away my pain – that is until I’m alone, then I have to start all over again. But I can’t just live by working. I want to love and be loved. I want to have fun. For these reasons, I created a system of practices I created that helps me to keep moving forward through gratitude, peace, and happiness. If you are facing anxiety and depression, these are the things I do to counter the darkness:
(1) Sleep – For maximum output, 7+ hours of sleep works for me.
(2) Exercise – Run, lifting weights, and swimming are some of the exercise I do that gives me a high and a feeling of confidence that I can achieve anything.
(3) Healthy Diet – Foods that have Vitamin B-complex and Vitamin C helps us against depression and anxiety. L-Theanine in green tea has a calming affect.
(4) Gratitude – I have gratitude for not just the big things, but also the many little things.
(5) Mindfulness – I live in the moment to be aware of the beauty and wonderful things around me. Mindfulness is what energizes our gratitude. The more mindful I am, the higher the level of my gratitude.
(6) Win-Win/Positive Thinking. There are wins in everything we do, even failure and bad incidents.
(7) Goals – I plan and execute my goals by a system that rewards small wins and big wins. It’s the process of the daily practice that gives us a rush of dopamine every time we achieve small wins, and in time, we get that satisfaction from attaining our big wins.
(8) Writing – Blog, journal, social media, fiction, and nonfiction. Writing is so therapeutic, and it feels good to send positive messages to my friends and network.
(9) Positive Relationships – Stay near positive people who will fire you up with good energy, and avoid negative people who drain your energy.
(10) Music – Soothing music is great while working, and when you need a lift, play a lively song and dance.
(11) Read and listen about amazing people – Exposure to people who overcame huge challenges keeps me motivated and thinking extraordinary with a mindset that anything is possible when you consistently work hard, build relationships, and learn.
(12) Go to your happy places – My happy places are beaches in Hawaii for relaxation and coffee shops for work.
(13) Ocean Therapy and Nature –For me, swimming in the ocean does wonders by heightening all my senses and revitalizing my vision for my life.
(14) Sunlight – Vitamin D3 from the sun helps us against anxiety and depression.
(15) Sensory Therapy – I enjoy lemon scented cologne, vanilla and lavender scented candles, hot and cold showers, and massages.
(16) Learn – Right now, I enjoy learning about subjects such as self-development, health, writing, Japanese language and culture, aviation, fuel, Iraq war, and orphans of war.
(17) Meditation – This practice calms my mind, body, and soul.
(18) Travel – Experiences at other locations creates wonderful memories and recharges our mind, body, and soul.
(19) Read Fiction – Experience other lifestyles and locations, feel the beauty of love, and do extraordinary things.
(20) Inspirational Movies and Television Shows
The following song, “Shadow of the Day” by Linkin Park expresses how I feel about the loss of Chester Bennington and the darkness that haunts us all.
Here is “Heavy” by Linkin Park, another song that moves me emotionally.
“Numb” by Linkin Park is a song that resonates with the frustration we feel after working so hard to be who we are, only to be attacked by others who want something, and punished harder by others because of who we’ve become, despite us still being human.
“Nobody Can Save Me” by Linkin Park. On a positive note, near the ending of the song, the lyrics goes:
I wanna fall wide awake now
So tell me it’s alright
Tell me I’m forgiven, tonight
And only I can save me now
I’m holding up a light
Chasing up the darkness inside
And I don’t wanna let you down
But only I can save me!
Been searching somewhere out there
For what’s been missing right here
I want to end this entry with a positive and motivational song by Linkin Park, “Battle Symphony.” Chester will live on through his music, loved ones, and fans. My heart goes out to him and his loved ones.
Like many of you, I strive for things that have a great amount of uncertainty that create anxiety and stress. I wish I was a superhuman, immune to such feelings but I’m not. So I make an effort on overcoming anxiety and stress with many practices like gratitude, mindfulness, win-win thinking, exercise, balanced diet, writing, music, nature, time with positive people, sensory therapy, meditation, and such. Whenever I work on any of my goals that has a high risk of losing time and money such as elected politics, business projects, and fiction and nonfiction books, I try to mitigate my risk with research, strategy, and hard work, but no matter what, a degree of uncertainty will always exist.
To alleviate my anxiety on the uncertainty, I practice win-win thinking or positive thinking by telling myself, “When I invest time and money into a project I’m passionate about, at worse, I get a higher education like attaining another college degree. At best, I get a return on my investment on top of my education!” By looking at my goals in this manner, I see the outcome as a win no matter what the outcome because my time and money are used towards bettering myself in gaining more knowledge, skills, and relationships, but if I succeed, I can get a higher education and make a living out of what I love! Stay positive everyone!
Here’s a picture from my short 2.77 mile run along the coast of Ko’olina on 5/15/2017. After my run, I swam the length of Lagoon 4 six times. Exercise and being in and near the ocean is helpful in alleviating stress and anxiety. I’m grateful to live in Hawaii.
JON RIKI KARAMATSU 