Open Source Blogging

“Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain but it takes character and self control to be understanding and forgiving.” —Dale Carnegie

Article by Zen Habits contributor Jonathan Mead; follow him on twitter.

If we really want to be happy, why do we act like such babies?

We can claim to be proactive in our life by settings goals and going after what we want. But if we’re always whining and complaining all the time, are we really living effectively?

If you don’t believe me, count how many times you complain about something or other in one day. Whether it be being stuck … Continue Reading

Editor’s note: This is a guest post from workplace expert Alexandra Levit, a Wall Street Journal writer and published author. Follow her on Twitter.

Technology is supposed to increase our productivity and reduce our work hours, yet many of us find the opposite to be true. We feel busier than ever, we stay at the office later than ever, and sometimes we leave without finishing a single task of substance! Do these five things right now and go to your family on time tonight.

1. Clear off your desk. When your office is cluttered, you’ll have the tendency to … Continue Reading

Post written by Leo Babauta. Follow me on Twitter.

New York Times techonology writer David Pogue, a writer I admire, recently listed some of his best productivity tips — and it’s a good list. One thing I noted with interest is that he uses his email inbox as a to-do list, which is a fairly common practice.

And while there’s certainly nothing wrong with that, and I’ve done it myself, I wanted to make a quick counterargument.

An email inbox isn’t the best to-do list, and here’s why:

1. You can’t change the subject lines. This means your to-do list is made up of … Continue Reading

Post written by Leo Babauta. Follow me on Twitter.

One of the most striking things about my trip to Japan was how thin everyone was. I kept saying to my family, “There are no fat Japanese!”

That’s not entirely true, of course. Aside from sumo wrestlers, there are some Japanese people who are fat — but at least in my two-week trip to Tokyo, they were pretty hard to find.

Seriously: in American (including my hometown of Guam), you could walk around and half if not most of the people you see will be at least a little overweight. Many are … Continue Reading

Article by Zen Habits contributor Jonathan Mead; follow him on twitter.

Have you ever thought about why you get stuck?

I’m sure you have. There are entire industries built around productivity. There are multitudes of books, seminars, webinars, podcasts, blog posts, desktop apps, email apps, mobile apps, and physical products centered around helping you get things done. They are supposed to help you get unstuck, right? Because if you weren’t stuck, you wouldn’t need any of those things to keep you going.

But what if you didn’t need any of those things? What if you could solve all of your “problems” … Continue Reading

Post written by Leo Babauta. Follow me on Twitter.

If there’s an underlying theme throughout Zen Habits, besides simplifying your life, it’s finding happiness.

I’ve written dozens of articles on different ways to be happy, but it all boils down to one thing: be happy now — don’t wait for it.

Still, for those who want more depth, I’ve compiled a couple dozen of my favorite happiness articles from the archives. I hope you enjoy them! (If not, you’ve missed the point.)

18 Practical Tips for Living the Golden Rule
Feeling Down? 7 Ways to Pick Yourself Back Up
Savor the … Continue Reading

Post written by Leo Babauta. Follow me on Twitter.

If there’s an underlying theme throughout Zen Habits, besides simplifying your life, it’s finding happiness.

I’ve written dozens of articles on different ways to be happy, but it all boils down to one thing: be happy now — don’t wait for it.

Still, for those who want more depth, I’ve compiled a couple dozen of my favorite happiness articles from the archives. I hope you enjoy them! (If not, you’ve missed the point.)

18 Practical Tips for Living the Golden Rule
Feeling Down? 7 Ways to Pick Yourself Back Up
Savor the … Continue Reading

Post written by Leo Babauta. Follow me on Twitter.

We all make excuses.

But the successful ones are those who can kill the excuses like the miserable maggots they are.

I’m too tired. I don’t have the time. I don’t feel motivated. I’d rather do nothing. I don’t have the money, equipment, space. I can’t because …

We’ve all made the excuses. Here’s how to kill them.

See the positive. Excuses are usually made because we don’t feel like doing something — we’re accentuating the negative. Instead, see the fun in something, the joy in it. And maintain a positive attitude, or you’ll … Continue Reading

Post written by Leo Babauta. Follow me on Twitter.

We all make excuses.

But the successful ones are those who can kill the excuses like the miserable maggots they are.

I’m too tired. I don’t have the time. I don’t feel motivated. I’d rather do nothing. I don’t have the money, equipment, space. I can’t because …

We’ve all made the excuses. Here’s how to kill them.

See the positive. Excuses are usually made because we don’t feel like doing something — we’re accentuating the negative. Instead, see the fun in something, the joy in it. And maintain a positive attitude, or you’ll … Continue Reading

Post written by Leo Babauta. Follow me on Twitter.

While I enjoy the simple beauty of Japan, and all the awesomeness it contains, I thought I’d leave you guys with some of my favorite posts from the archives. Many of you haven’t dug through the massive archives (nearly 800 posts, at least half of them pretty decent), so I decided to cull through them and find a few nuggets you might have missed.

And if you’ve already read them, here’s a chance to enjoy them a second time. I’ve always believed we should get the most enjoyment out of things … Continue Reading