/*Minna and Andy are the co-founders of Foco Academy, where you can subscribe to online courses that will boost your performance, productivity, health and longevity for both your mind and body.*/

Finding Certainty in Uncertain Times

Do you feel unsure? Are you doubtful of how next year is going to look like for you? Do you wish something good would happen but so far, all the news you've heard are pretty much bad news?

This year, the year of 2020, was pretty unique right? If you live in the United States, we've just had a presidential election where over 10 billion dollars was spent on the campaign, and the fanfare that it created was pretty epic, in a bad way, my opinion.

And then there was the racial uprising that stormed across the country and caused riots and all sorts of dismay.

And then, of course, there was this virus that took over the whole world. Companies that survived through world war and the depression, even those could not survive the economic impact of the virus.

You may be hoping for a vaccine, hoping for the whole world to equalize, but you know that it isn't going to happen. So for you to feel certain about the future, the only thing you can rely on is yourself. You can only control your own future. The only person you can rely on is you.

There are 3 keys to finding certainty in uncertain times:

#1 - get centered

As a daily practice, find a few minutes, maybe even just 3 minutes, every morning and night, and just be alone, sit up tall, close your eyes, and take deep breathe. You may not want to do a full blown meditation or chant, you can, if you prefer, but if you don't have to. All you need to do is count your breathes. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Count as you breathes in through your nose, and breath out through your mouth. Feel your body. Anybody can find a few minutes here and there. If you can't, you have a bigger problem. Go lock yourself in the bathroom if you need to. Just by doing some deep breathing, it gets oxygen into your brain and your body, it clears the mind, wipes out the noise, and resets you.

#2 - Fill yourself with gratitude

One of the drawbacks of living in the modern world is that we take things for granted. For example, the running toilet is the single most important factor in extending human's life span. Before there is working toilet and the sewage system, people barely live past their 30's and 40's.

What about the air that we breathe?

The water we drink?

Food on the table?

People around us?

We are so focused on what we don't have, that we forgot to count our blessings. And since this episode coincides with American Thanksgiving, let's just give yourself a high 5, a pat in the back, and be grateful about everything we got.

I know that 2020 seemed like the worst year of your life, but to me, it is the best year of my life! Talk about manifesting everything that I wanted for many many years! For me, I am thankful that we have been working on strengthening our immune system for the past 8 years or so and it paid off big time! We never had the flu in years, and even when we get the sniffles and the coughs, they don't last. They last about half a day and then poof, sniffles be gone.

I am also thankful for how we managed to strengthen our financial mindset. We've had a tough few years, but it trained us to be financially savvy and puts us onto a path to financial freedom. We're still working on it, but we can see the destination and we're heading towards it.

What about the people? Surely you've missed your friends and family right? Well. Here's actually where I am most thankful. To me, Andy and my 4 cats are the most precious things in my life. And I get to spend a lot of quality time with them this year. So yay! Do I miss the rest of my family? Yes, especially my parents. But technology has helped us tremendously.

If you remember a time before the internet, if you want to reach out to someone who doesn't live close by, the only option is to call long distance. And they charge you by the minute! Now, we can FaceTime, Zoom, and all sorts of other ways to actually see and talk to each other even when we cannot physically be together. And that's a blessing.

And even after Thanksgiving, I would suggest that you keep on with your gratitude practice. You can choose how you want to do it. Some people like to keep a gratitude journal and they write in that journal every day before bedtime. For me, I combine my gratitude practice with my meditation. So when I meditate, I am also saying Thank you to everything that I am grateful for. The benefit of developing an attitude for gratitude, is that rather than focusing on what you don't have, which puts you into a shitty mood, you focus on what you have, and that makes you happy, joyful, and fulfilled. So figure out how you want to do your gratitude and give it a try. At least for a week and see how you feel about it.

#3 - Turn off the news

This is a tough one. I'm asking you to stop watching the news. Either on TV or from social media. Actually, it is not hard at all. Years ago we decided to stop watching the news on TV and we've never looked back. Sounds crazy? Well. Let's think about this.

In the United States, we've had the presidential elections a few weeks ago. I know people who was glued to the TV for a solid week, watching whatever channel is showing the results of the count, state by state. They spent 16 hours a day for 7 days and then finally, finally, after agonizing for 112 hours, they know who our next president is going to be. For us, it took us a solid 2 seconds to know the same results. 112 hours or 2 seconds? And they call me crazy. The election spent a whopping 10 billion US dollars on the campaign, most of it is on the media, sucking in people to watch them. Are you one of the suckers?

What about other news? There is so much injustice out there right? You've got to know that don't you? Yes I do know that, I just don't spend a lot of time agonizing over it. Look. If you are an activist and fighting injustice is your life goal, great. But that's not my life purpose. I am here to show people that there is a better way to navigate through life.

And here's what social media is programmed to do. When you look at a specific piece of news, they know. And they feed you with more of the similar content. And you read those, and they feed you more. So the more you focus on the negative news, that becomes the only thing you see. You don't see all the good that is happening out there, you don't see the new research, new development that is helping people, you don't see people helping people, regardless of their color, age, and gender. Social media is great to keep up with your friends, but it also makes you become myopic in your perspective.

Best thing to do? Stay off the news and social media if you can. I know it's hard, I look at my social media about 2 times a day, and I spend about 5 to 10 minutes each time. So that, to me, is acceptable. It's up to you what you want to do, and how you want to spend your time. But I challenge you to cut your social media time by half. How's that? Can you do it?

To recap, the 3 things to feel certain in these uncertain times, is to stay centered, be grateful, and turn off the news. If you want to find creativity in chaos, you need certainty. Follow these 3 keys and let me know how it work out for you in the comments below.

Until next time, love what you live, and live what you love.

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