GrasshopperNotes.com - Thoughts for inspired living


April 29, 2022

Change The Music

Filed under: John Morgan's Blog — John Morgan @ 5:43 am

Fethullah arslan gd2ca0a405 1920I have to start listening to the conversations around me at the gym more often. The other day I heard one guy say to another, “Just when you learn to dance, they change the music.”

I had no idea what they were talking about, but his line struck me.

Seems, in life, the music’s always changing. Heraclitus, a Greek philosopher, is credited with saying “Change is the only constant in life.” So, here’s the question: “How do we dance around change?

We could go with the old axioms: “the only away around is through,” or “suck it up,” or we can even quote Jack Nicholson as the Joker in Batman: “Did you ever dance with the devil in the pale moonlight?”

But upon reflection, there seems to be a more reliable remedy: Respond vs. react.

We’re conditioned to react to change. The problem with reactions is that they always lead to the same place: the same place. If we want to learn some new dance steps, we have to learn to respond.

Reminds me of a personal learning experience. In the past, when I attempted something simple that didn’t turn out so well, I would react by cursing my behavior and go on a mini rant about how inept I was. Let’s say I was filling up the pepper shaker and wasn’t paying close attention, so I overfilled it and the excess spread out all over the counter. I would then bring out my old Navy language and castigate myself between sneezes, or maybe even try to blame the pepper manufacturer with my tirade. That was a reaction that sent me into a tailspin.

Somewhere along the line, I got the gift of awareness to interrupt that reactive type behavior and, instead, chose to laugh at my mishap. I would poke fun at myself and say something like, “what a dumbass” and laugh it off. My new response had me feel lighter and caused me less ensuing drama.

Learning new dance steps is learning to respond. Responses will take you someplace new on the dance floor. Reacting will dance you into the same dark corner where you’ve stubbed your toe many times before.

When response becomes a constant in your life, you’ll react less often and start dancing to the beat of a different drummer.

All the best,

John

Listen to the recorded version below.



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April 26, 2022

The Biggest Danger

Filed under: John Morgan's Blog — John Morgan @ 6:59 pm

No gb512ae1c9 1920What’s the biggest danger facing civilization? I’m sure there are multiple opinions regarding this question. Here’s mine.

The biggest danger is ignoring and denying facts you don’t agree with. Notice I didn’t say facts you don’t believe, but things that you know are factual and choose to deny and ignore.

In a world of “Is” and “Isn’t,” there is no spinning a fact. A brick is a brick and cardboard is cardboard, and only one can be used to build a wall that will stand. A fact will stand on its own. It doesn’t need to be propped up with cardboard.

Ignoring bricks and espousing cardboard is dangerous because a world built on one will collapse.

Ask any schoolteacher about a conference with a parent about their child’s problematic behavior in class. What they will tell you is that some parents will issue a form of denial like, “not my child.” Now to be fair, some of these parents just can’t believe and are astounded their child is capable of such behavior, but other parents know its a fact and will deny it until the day they die.

To my eyes, there is a growing segment of society that believes facts don’t matter, especially when it comes to getting what they want. If we can’t acknowledge facts, we will be unable to build anything sustainable because it will collapse from its own weight if we refuse to weigh the facts.

I honestly don’t know the answer; I only know the question: How long will something last when we claim what is, isn’t?

All the best,

John

Hear the recorded version below.



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April 24, 2022

Going In Circles 2 – Recorded Version

Filed under: John Morgan's Blog — John Morgan @ 11:53 am

Here is the recorded version of the Grasshopper Note for the week of 04-25-22.

Read the written version here.

Make sure to download a FREE copy of my ebook: INTER RUPTION: The Magic Key To Lasting Change here.



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April 16, 2022

Comfortable Beliefs

Filed under: John Morgan's Blog — John Morgan @ 8:49 am

Here is the recorded version of the Grasshopper Note for the week of 04-18-22.

Read the written version here.

Make sure to download a FREE copy of my ebook: INTER RUPTION: The Magic Key To Lasting Change here.



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April 10, 2022

You Can Imagine, But You Can’t Know – Recorded Version

Filed under: John Morgan's Blog — John Morgan @ 7:55 pm

Here is the recorded version of the Grasshopper Note for the week of 04-11-22.

Read the written version here.

Make sure to download a FREE copy of my ebook: INTER RUPTION: The Magic Key To Lasting Change here.



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April 8, 2022

Get Off Your “But”

Filed under: John Morgan's Blog — John Morgan @ 5:34 am

Marriage ga7ceeff17 1280“But” is one of the most camouflaging words in the English language.

We often attempt to hide what we mean when we utter “but.”

Notable examples:

“You’re doing a great job . . . but”

“ I love your proposal . . . but”

Or any politician . . . “I’m all for your bill on mom and apple pie . . . but”

Here’s a novel idea: Have the guts to say what you mean or remain silent.

We’ve all heard the observation that what comes after the word “but” is what you really mean, so get off your butt and say it, or forever hold your tongue.

BUT . . . There is a novel approach on how to deftly avoid using the word “but.” About a dozen years ago I wrote a blog post called “Convince Yourself.” You can find a link in the notes if you’d like to read it. It addresses a way around using the word “but.” I refer to this technique as the ultimate listening skill. It was a lesson I learned almost 40 years ago and it’s still the best way I know to get off your “but” and stop hiding what you really mean.

Bottom line: If your mission is to pummel someone, keep butting them. And if you’d rather get through with your point of view without bloodshed, I highly recommend you to get off your “but.”

All the best,

John

Hear the recorded version below.



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April 6, 2022

Intelligent Pandering

Filed under: John Morgan's Blog — John Morgan @ 11:59 pm

Lectern gba852e4f4 1280How intelligent are you? The Grasshopper answered that question for me the other day. He said, “You’re intelligent enough to recognize intelligence.”

I took that to mean recognizing it in someone else. If I see a commentator on TV, or hear one of their guests speak, I have enough intelligence to recognize if they’re smart or not. Some of the guests are quite educated and put that fact to good use when they express their point of view. Even if I don’t agree with their slant on an issue, I can’t call them dumb.

Some guests, though, are crazy – crazy like a fox. These folks are quite intelligent but pander for a living. They’re usually politicians. And like all good politicians, they know what the hot button issues are for the base of their voters and they tailor their remarks to that group. They’re intelligent enough to know that a section of their voters aren’t educated enough to recognize pandering, so they spread it around with a firehose.

They don’t care if others recognize their pandering ways or even call them out on it. They’re smart enough to know that it works on the people they’re trying to influence.

Many advertisers are geniuses when it comes to pandering. They pander and prey on peoples’ fears and frustrations and then come to the rescue with the solution – their product or service. Recently, I was watching a video of Nancy Wolfson, a famous, advertising voice coach, and she said this to her audience: “The main objective of advertising is to make people feel bad enough about themselves so they buy crap they don’t need.” Her tongue was somewhat in her cheek but she wasn’t far off from the truth. Which brings to mind a well known oxymoron: Truth in Advertising.

Pandering is what I refer to as “Bad Hypnosis.” For a fuller explanation of what Bad Hypnosis is, go to the link in the description and watch my short video called “Bad Hypnosis.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlMguY58YJo

In a nutshell, Bad Hypnosis is any suggestion that, if taken to heart, will lead you to an un-resourceful frame of mind. The video will walk you through a short mental exercise you can do to protect yourself from the universal scourge of intelligent pandering, or bad hypnosis.

The goal here is simple: to become intelligent enough to recognize pandering and neutralize it before it sucks you into crap you don’t need.

All the best,

John

Hear the recorded version below.



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April 3, 2022

I Forgot To Remember – Recorded Version

Filed under: John Morgan's Blog — John Morgan @ 6:40 am

Here is the recorded version of the Grasshopper Note for the week of 04-04-22.

Read the written version here.

Make sure to download a FREE copy of my ebook: INTER RUPTION: The Magic Key To Lasting Change here.



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