The Price is Wrong. Or, Ego is Never On Your Side

The Price is Wrong

Last week, I published an analysis of spinning the wheel on The Price is Right.  Even if my original assumption was correct, there are still mistakes in my analysis.  However, the logic in my original assumption was not sound.  Here was my assumption last week:

If the probability that you will not bust on the next spin exceeds the probability that you will win by staying where you are at, then you should spin again. 

 This was incorrect. Instead, the assumption and logic should have been as follows:

If the probability that you will not bust on another spin AND you end up winning exceeds the probability that you will win by staying where you are at, then you should spin again.  

Under this assumption, the calculations are more difficult, but doable.

Ego is the Enemy

I'm currently reading Ego is the Enemy by Ryan Holiday. This fits perfectly with what I was trying to accomplish with the last few posts.

When I posted about how to escape from prison, I had thought about that problem all week, bouncing ideas with a colleague who checked my work and kept me in line.  When I finally stumbled upon the solution, he confirmed it worked before I wrote it out.  In other words, I was able to keep my ego in check.

Now, guess what happened with the post about the Price is Right?  I didn't confirm with my colleague, and get a second opinion.  I was confident in my answer and let my ego take control.  My ego is not on my side, and it would be very good for me to remember that. 

Posting an incorrect solution for the world to see was a great reminder.

A Day Without an X

Not Breaking the Chain

Previously, in my blog post Homebrew Daily, I referred to the habit building technique that requires you to keep track of each day that you devote to building the habit.  This can be done by marking an X on the calendar, thereby building a chain of days which you psychologically do not want to break.  It is a great method.

Not stated in that blog post, but something I started on that same day, was learning Norwegian on Duolingo.  According to Duolingo, I'm on a 66 day streak today.  

However, I started this 67 days ago. I missed a day.  

I also missed a day of my Homebrew Daily ritual.  

The Day Without the X

On my last blog post, I wrote about choosing your suffering.  I wrote about how I chose to suffer through a 100 mile bike ride one Saturday.  What I didn't write about, was that on that same day, I couldn't mark an X on the calendar. I missed studying Norwegian. I missed learning anything about homebrewing. 

Somewhere between 20 and 30 miles into the bike ride, my phone died. Even using it in airplane mode, my phone went to the dark side.  Little did I know, it would be for good.  

Upon finishing the bike ride over an hour later than I thought I would (I took a wrong turn at one point that took me 5 miles out of my way), I was not going to make the 6 pm dinner that Erin and I had planned with friends Ed and Mary in Lawrence.  

I was able to shower at the facility where we started the ride, and get on my way.  However, my phone would not charge. Not only could I not contact Erin to let her know I was OK, but I couldn't ask for directions to Ed and Mary's place. Although I had been there twice, and could have probably got myself in the general vicinity, I didn't know exactly where it was. 

Using someone's phone at the first gas station I pulled into in Lawrence, I let them know everything was fine and got directions. 

There was much fun and wine drinking at the dinner party.  Eventually, it was determined that we should stay the night instead of driving back to Topeka.  

Up until that point, I had a plan of working from my iPad or desktop computer as soon as I had arrived back home to complete my daily habit ritual. I began thinking of alternatives. Maybe I could ask to borrow their computer for a little while?  

Or maybe I shouldn't worry about it.  Maybe I've built a great habit, and am going to stick with it, and don't need another X in a calendar day to do that. Maybe I should enjoy the moment that has been dealt to me.  

Perhaps we should allow ourselves a "Weekend Amulet" that can be used to put a temporary freeze on your streak of days.  You remember those days when you did a little extra work building your habit?  Maybe you were earning yourself "lingots" that can be used to purchase "Streak Freeze Amulets" for when they are needed.  

It is important to completely own a great new habit that you have built.  But it is probably just as important for that habit not to own you.  

Choose Your Suffering

A pretty view during a recent bike ride around Shawnee Lake

A Subtle Art

In Mark Manson's book, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck, he presents a counter intuitive approach of looking at life.  For some it may work.  It worked for me last weekend. Here is how it works.

We all suffer on some level. In fact, life can be alternatively viewed as just a long time of unavoidable suffering.  With each decision you make, you choose some level of suffering. 

Earlier last week, I was informed of the Buffalo Bill Century Ride in Leavenworth, KS.  The ride had 25, 60, and 100 mile road options, along with a 50 mile gravel ride. The 60 and 100 mile rides grabbed my interest.  

When the weekend came, I was under no obligation to choose to get up at 5:45am to get ready and travel to Leavenworth to begin riding 60 or 100 miles at 8:00am.  I could have chosen a lesser form of suffering.  Sitting on the couch, reading, studying, or maybe watching some TV could have been my choices.  I only would have suffered my own feeling of guilt for not having taken advantage of such an adventure. 

I chose a higher level of suffering, because that was easier in my mind. I would suffer the open roads of eastern Kansas.  

Along the route, there was a fork in the road. To choose right would mean only 60 miles, and to be done with the ride in a more reasonable time frame. To choose left would mean a commitment to 100 miles, and more suffering.  I chose left.  

The pains that one goes through in a 100 mile ride are really not all that bad when compared to other forms of discomfort. I'll take the swollen underside over a guilty conscience. I will take the sore quads and aching back over the simple discomfort of more decisions that would need to be made in a normal day (like, what beer I should have next? Or, should I leisure read longer or take a break and do some push-ups? Perhaps I should go to the library and rent some movies.) 

For me, framing it in terms of suffering helped me get out there and on my bicycle.  I like to have a full calendar, and to schedule each moment of my day.  This requires a lot of decisions, and as such, a small amount of suffering. I didn't want that suffering.  I wanted the decision free kind of suffering of an increasingly stiffening neck and shoulders as the day wore on.

The next time you need to make a decision on doing something difficult, you might give this method of framing your decision in terms of suffering a try. 

Pushing a 2 Ton Baby Giant on a Swing

You can't push all at once. Use the momentum of the swing, silly!

Imagine a 2 ton baby giant on a swing, and it is crying at you to push her.  You feel obliged since it could possibly crush you with a swat of her arm.

Although difficult, when your hard pushes are timed just right, the giant will begin to swing higher and higher. However, it takes quite a mighty push, and it takes a mighty push at a specific time during the swing. Specifically, on the apex of its back swing. 

Learning Something New and Very Difficult

When you are first learning something that is really hard to grasp, it will take a lot of your time. In fact, it better take some of your time every day. Otherwise, you will lose what you've gained. 

Say you want to pass a class with an A. That is equivalent to getting the baby giant up to some high level on her swing. Trying to cram everything in the night before the test is like pushing the baby giant to that level with one push.  It isn't going to happen.  

If we think as each swing forward and back as a day, then we can reach that A level with a timely push every day. Skipping a push, and the giant will quickly lose its momentum and it will take an extra day to get back on track.  

A quick review of notes is the equivalent of giving a simple maintenance push, that will keep the giant at her same level. Anything extra, and you can gain a little more toward your goal. 

This idea came to me while listening to a similar analogy in Mind Hacking by Sir John Hargrave on my way back and forth to work. I hope it provides an avenue for you to hack your own mind, and perhaps conquer that difficult challenge that looms in front of you. 

Application

As an avid reader, I often ask myself what is the purpose of reading so much if I'm not going to apply what I read.  For example, the book Give and Take by Adam Grant outlines the benefits of giving to others. Here are a few ways in which you can give:

• Nominate someone for an award.
• Download all the birthdays of friends into your phone and set reminders to send physical birthday cards.  
• When traveling, send postcards to friends and family.
• Volunteer for duties that need done.  
• Follow through with friendly inquiries.  

When books are read that are not in a personal improvement category, look for parts that you can write about and share with others. This is how one can "apply" that knowledge. 

Books of fiction are for entertainment. You can "apply" these books by smiling, laughing, or simply being amazed.  Then one can tell of their experience to others. If this application isn't possible, then the book should probably not be finished.  

Application may not be that important to you. There are a few camps of mathematicians: those that enjoy the pureness of mathematics, and those that don't see the point unless it can be applied.  Even the purest of mathematics will have an application someday in the distant future.  It is good to keep that in mind when you're reading, even if you're enjoying it for enjoyment's sake. 

Drama is Resistance

Erin and I about to enjoy solar eclipse totality in Highland. We are shooting this picture blind, as many of you know.

The Email

One of the forms of The Resistance, as defined by Steven Pressfield in his amazing book, The War of Art, is drama. Our species is so addicted to it that we can become a prisoner of our own self inflicted version of it.

Let me give you an example. 

A student emails me about what I'm going to do about class for the solar eclipse, which is on the first day of class, a Monday. 

The class to which he is referring is a Tuesday, Thursday class.  I slap my forehead.  Literally. 

Now, prior Jason would have been so beyond disturbed about the stupidity of this. Prior Jason would have written an email that would be littered with hidden sarcasm. He would have spent perhaps 30 minutes to an hour trying to wrap his mind around how someone could bring themselves to make such an error. 

Eventually, any email that was created would be edited down to this: 

Dear Student,

Our class meets on Tuesday and Thursday, so you don't have to worry. 

-Dr. Shaw

That's it.  That's the email.

Yet I would spend more than a half hour of my time stewing about it. I would be angry about the fact that I couldn't, as a professional, send the more snarky email.  Even getting back to work, I may have to take a break and visit a colleague's office just to tell them the story about it (now wasting TWO people's time). 

However, I am not prior Jason. This time around, I literally did slap my forehead. However, I followed that up by closing my eyes, taking a few deep breaths while thinking to myself how much time I could waste with this individual if I let The Resistance take its course.  I pulled the solar glasses over my eyes, so to speak, and shut all of that other stuff out.

After a few deep breaths, the above email is produced and I move on, because I've got stuff to do (don't we all).  

Homebrew Daily

The beginning of Not Breaking the Chain

As I read Steven Pressfield's The War of Art, I eventually found myself wondering where I was giving into the Resistance. It takes his entire Book One (pages 5-57) to define the Resistance. Generally speaking, it is anything and everything that keeps you from harnessing your creative side.

My Creative Side

Along with the occasional blog post (writing), I think my creative expression is most prominent in my home brewing.  I like to make really good beer, and I've always wanted to gain the knowledge it takes to create my own recipes.  It does not take much to create a recipe.  Make sure some malts, hops, yeast, and water are included and you have a recipe. 

That is not what I'm talking about, though. I want to create recipes that make outstanding beer. I want to become a better brewer. 

However, I've been fighting the Resistance without even realizing it. It was telling me things like

• "There's plenty of craft beers out there to choose from. There really is no need to brew your own beer."
• "It takes several hours to brew a batch, and you don't have that kind of time."
• "You're probably never going to make a pilsner-lager, so there is no need to read that email from Brad Smith."

So I made a game plan on how to fight this Resistance. A while ago, I commented on Jonathan Vieker's wonderful blog post, The Secret to Doing Hard Things Daily.  In that comment, I vowed to "use this method of not breaking the chain to achieve the next big goal, whatever that may be."  

The chain to which I was referring is the streak of days in which you have devoted to building the habit or skill you want to build. Once a solid streak is in place, you don't want to break that chain. 

The reason it works is as Jonathan says,

It substitutes a highly specific, immediate goal (avoid the psychological pain of seeing the chain broken) for a vague, long-term goal (develop a new skill or habit). 

How I'm Going to Do It

Obviously, I cannot brew every day.  I do not have the time, money, or the desire to do such a thing. The good thing is, that you don't have to brew every day to get better at brewing.  There is plenty of literature out there about brewing, and there is always something that needs cleaned, measured, or manipulated in the brewing process.  

My plan is to devote some block of time to the following every day.

• Brewing better beer
• Pre- and post-brewing related activities (yeast starters, dry hopping, racking, cleaning, etc.)
• Learning about brewing (reading literature or newsletters, listening to podcasts, attending conferences, etc.)
• Writing about brewing

Last night, I began reading the book For the Love of Hops, by Stan Hieronymus. Today, I have a keg and tap to clean since I just cashed my Mosaic IPA.  There are home brewing podcasts that I can download for when I'm traveling or walking back and forth to work. I have 54 emails in a folder labeled "Home Brewing" from Brad Smith (his Beer Smith Home Brewing Newsletter).  

In other words, there are things I can choose to do that will take 5 minutes, and some that will take 5 hours.  Whatever I choose, I'm not going to break the chain. 

Neophilia

Erin enjoying a margarita flight

What's Happening?

This is my second day of summer break. With more time on my hands, I will probably be writing more often. I'm going to try a format similar to how I began each of my statistics classes during the Spring 2017 semester.

On Friday the 19th we fly to Atlanta, GA where we will be picked up by the newlyweds Dennis and Rachel Ho. They will drive us to Asheville, NC where we will meet our friends Gerrit and Kristi Scholten. Once together, we plan to paint the town and do all things fun. We may send you a postcard if you're good. 

Over the Memorial Day weekend, Erin and I will be riding the Cottonwood 200. This is a 200 mile, 3-day bike ride that starts as Washburn University in Topeka on Saturday, May 27th and ends that evening about 75 miles away in Council Grove, KS.  On Sunday, the ride is an out-and-back that goes to Cottonwood Falls and returns to Council Grove, which is approximately 50 miles. On Monday, we ride back to Topeka.

Did You Know?

One of my 2017 resolutions is to bike 2017 miles. At the time of this writing, I have 1641 miles to go. This means I am 18.6% finished with my goal. Tuesday, May 16th is the 136th day of the year, which means that I am 37.3% finished with the year. Although behind, the summer rides are coming and will most likely get me ahead.

Number of the Day - 44

On Saturday, April 22nd, Erin and I met friends Jonathan and Sarah in Columbia, MO to participate in the March for Science. According to Pew Research, the 

percentage of U.S. adults who say the protests, marches and demonstrations about science held this April will Help/Make No Difference/Hurt public support for science

is divided evenly at 44% for both "Help" and "Make No Difference." In fact, 7% believe it will hurt public support for science. This was one of FiveThirtyEight's Significant Digits on Friday, May 12.

March for Science

Neophilia versus Neophobia

I'm currently reading what will probably be a contender for the most influential book I've read in 2017. On shelves in 2012, I'm five years behind. It is called The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion by Jonathan Haidt. 

This has been such an influential book, that I expect to weave much of what was written in that book into several more blog posts. I will build a foundation with this post. 

Haidt first brings up neophilia while giving several moral foundations of politics in chapter 7. The six moral foundations are 

• Care/Harm
• Liberty/Opression (introduced in Ch. 8)
• Fairness/Cheating
• Loyalty/Betrayal
• Authority/Subversion
• Sanctity/Degradation 

If you think of a spectrum of very liberal on the left to very conservative on the right, imagine a graph of six lines that measure the importance of these moral foundations to individuals (use the picture below to get an idea, which is not to scale and slightly inaccurate). Starting on the left, the lines from top to bottom represent each of the moral foundations given above, respectively. 

Hence, the more liberal minded individual puts a lot more weight in the top three (and especially the top two) than the bottom three. While the more conservative minded puts about an equal weight to all six foundations with a near opposite ordering of priority. 

In the section on Sanctity and Degradation, he introduced the terms neophilia and neophobia. 

• Neophilia is a desire to experience and try new things, along with a general distaste for routine and tradition.
• Neophopia is a fear of new experiences, with a general comfort in what is "tried and true."

In my search of a more positive word that describes a general desire for routine and tradition, I was unsuccessful.

Neophilia describes me very well. Haidt claims that liberals score higher on neophilia, being more open to experience "new foods, people, music, and ideas."  Conservatives, on the flip side, scored higher on neophobia.

Why was this in the sanctity and degradation section? If one thinks in the specific terms of sex and the sanctity of marriage, consider the following bumper sticker.

This would be on the car of a neophile, and most probably, one that leans to the left.

The primary reason why I believe The Righteous Mind to be so influential is that it has helped me "trade in anger for understanding." I encourage you to do the same, whether you read this particular book or not. 

Failure

This is the name of the exam that I failed

This morning I woke up a little before 5:30 and remembered that yesterday was the first Tuesday of the month. I failed at getting my post in on time. This wasn't on purpose, but it completely fits into what I was going to write about.

A week ago (well, a week and a day ago now), I sat down for a four hour actuary test. Through the Society of Actuaries, it is the third exam and it is called Exam MLC, which stands for Models for Life Contingencies. I did my best. That, however, was not good enough. I failed.

There were three steps I went through that were not too different than the steps my friend Jonathan suggests in his blog post: Failure is Good. So are You Failing Enough?  These three steps were as follows:

1. Feel the pain. Failing the exam gave me a depressing feeling. I felt very psychologically drained. I knew it would pass eventually, but I did not force it to go away. I let myself feel what I was feeling. After all, we're human.
2. Begin focusing on whatever positives that come from this. I couldn't see these right away, but they surfaced soon enough.  I was able to share the experience with my students, show some vulnerability, and let them know that I knew what it was like to be in their shoes. I noticed Sharing Your Failures came in quite handy. 
3. Think about what I have to do for next time. There was a simple fact: I wasn't ready.  I didn't realize that until about a week before. I now know what to expect, and the strategies I need to use in order to pass it. 

The next MLC Exam will be in October. Since this is too much time, I will need to do some fortnightly drills to stay with the material over the summer before I begin to go into full study mode when the Fall semester begins at the end of August.  My Fall semester will be light this year with old and familiar preps, so those two months will be sufficient enough time to master the material. 

Yesterday was full of failures. It was quite the unusual day. 

I failed to get to a candidate breakfast on time. 

At dinner with my wife, Erin, we found out that our calendars were a week apart with regard to a two and a half week period of time that involves the Bike Across Kansas and our trip to the Pacific Northeast. I failed at communicating with her for the past several weeks - specifically, noticing that the dates she was mentioning were not the dates I had in my calendar.  We have some work to do to rectify this failure in communication. 

Although I'm getting better at using a calendar for my day to day activities, yesterday was a clear indication that I have some work to do. 

Focusing Rhythmically

Part I: Scheduling Deep Work

I'm slowly making my way through Deep Work by Cal Newport. Although I am not yet finished, I can tell that this will be a game changer and have a significant impact on my life.  Let me fill you in on how it has changed my life in the past week.

In the Rule #1 section, Work Deeply, Newport discusses the four philosophies of working with depth. As soon as I read about the example and case study of Brian Chappell, and what Newport describes as the rhythmic philosophy of deep work scheduling, I knew I had found gold.  

Chappell was finishing up his dissertation when offered a full-time job, along with an arrival of his first child. His failed attempt at scheduling 90 minute chunks of time - the amount of time that intense focus can be sustained in a work period - in an ad hoc manner led him only to a single chapter written in his entire first year. 

This drove Brian to begin waking up at 5:30am every morning and working until 7:30.  He would then go to work totally finished with any kind of dissertation obligations for the day. This resulted in getting a chapter written every 2-3 weeks.  

It was this concept that totally resonated with me.  I admit, I am weird in the fact that I don't need an alarm to wake up this early and start working (after making a cup of joe, of course).  My morning routine has usually consisted of snoozing or slumbering restlessly later than this natural wake up time, enjoying a cup of coffee while I leisure read either the news or a book, and then having a quick bite before heading out the door.

This changed last week.

My first week of rhythmic deep work scheduling began on Tuesday, February 28th and this has lasted through today.  I've used most sessions for my own MLC Exam studying purposes, with the exception of one day last week which I used for class preparation when I got a little behind. 

These deep work sessions will continue beyond passing the MLC Exam. Studying for this exam will be replaced by working on publications, further professional and personal development, or anything else that requires intense focus. Eventually, I can see filling that time with learning a language or a musical instrument.

Part II: Nobody Really Gives a Shit

Newports 3rd rule is to quit social media. Check.

OK, so I quit for different reasons than he gives, but the deed is done. Now, after reading about the reasons he gives, I'm pretty sure I will never go back. I really appreciated and admired his analysis of what the draw to Facebook is in the first place.

Prior to Facebook, he describes, it took a lot of work to get a significant number of people to read whatever you write. Facebook created an avenue to get a lot of people to read whatever you want to blabber on about. There seems to be this code of "you like my stuff and I'll like yours."  It is highly addictive.

But here is the kicker. If/when you quit Facebook, and if you don't announce it on Facebook before doing so, nobody will notice. OK, by nobody, I mean out of the 400 Facebook friends that you have, 395 will not notice.

That is kind of a hard pill to swallow. The masses don't care what you have to write or say. If they do, that took some very hard work to get to that point, and it most assuredly did not happen on Facebook.

This has me thinking a lot about what I'm writing, and the content that I want to produce. Do I want to write something that the masses will eventually find their way to?  Do I care to reach them?  Maybe I just like writing whatever it is I like to write, and find it meaningful to reach the extremely small number of people that actually do read this.

I don't know. It does give me something to think about. 

A Fisherman's Buoys: The Most Influential Books of 2016

I've only read five of these books. But I plan to read them all.

First, I should mention the book Minimalism: Live a Meaningful Life by Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus. Although I read this book in 2015, I believed it has paved the path to all of my future reading by putting a name on a philosophy that was already part of my being.

When it comes to human psychology and philosophy, I think labeling is important. Prior to reading Minimalism, I was like a fisherman floating around an endless sea every now and again finding a spot that was good for fishing.  Then I would aimlessly set out again to find another good spot, sometimes getting lost in the process. Once I had read the book, it was as if monstrous-sized buoys with LED lights were placed in all of my good fishing holes. Not only could I easily see them now, but I could navigate between them with ease.

The buoy system is my philosophy of Minimalism. The buoys themselves are the tenets of that philosophy, focusing on passions, relationships, contribution, health, and growth.  How I decide to navigate between them defines my psych, I suppose.  It was this navigation that led me to all of the books I decided to read in 2016. 

So, which were the most influential? (A total of 33 books were read in 2016, just FYI).

• Half the Sky by Nicholas D. Kristof & Sheryl WuDunn
• Give and Take by Adam Grant
• The Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson
• Daring Greatly by Brene Brown
• Republic, Lost by Lawrence Lessig

One of my passions is reading. There are several books I have read for the pure enjoyment of reading them or to learn something new.  One such book that I found very moving was Half the Sky. It is a tough book to get through, but a very important one.  It opened my eyes to a world I think very little about in my own little bubble, and that is the way women are treated globally.

Did you know, for example, that the U.S. is the worst among developed countries and ranks 61st globally in maternal health?

The Primal Blueprint has changed my life health-wise. I now live as Grok would, the fictional primal being referred to quite often in this book.

Republic, Lost has educated me and given me the depth I will need in order to make the contributions that I want to make in society. In particular, advocating for Represent.US and Our Revolution.

Daring Greatly has done wonders for my personal development and growth. I cite this often now, and most recently on the first day of my statistics classes.

Although Give and Take may fit more into the contribution and growth categories, I'm using it here to highlight my relationships with people. In Give and Take, you will read about givers, matchers, and takers, and it will get you thinking of what type of person you are in life. When I thought critically about my relationships with students, I feel like I've been more of a matcher. This book has been very influential in how I will develop relationships with students from now on as I strive to be more of a giver. 

When a Bloody is a Prior.

A Delicious Homemade Bloody Mary with Homebrewed Coffee IPA as a Chaser

A close second to a delicious craft beer is a spicy Bloody Mary with all kinds of pickled items and a slice of bacon for garnish. I have found an amazing recipe for one made from scratch called the Elixir Bloody Mary. The link will not only give the recipe, but it also includes a short video on how to effectively make one.

I've taken the liberty to also add other items to it along with the pickle and bacon garnish. The celery stalk, olives, and a pepperoncini are all my additions. Also, instead of Tabasco, I use whatever hot sauce I have on hand, which is usually far superior to Tabasco and almost always hotter. This results in a top shelf, spicy-ass, Bloody Mary.

This isn't a post about Bloody Marys, however.  It is actually about an intention to go running or biking (or engage in some other physical activity) later in the day. 

Are you going to pass up one of these bad boys because of that? Or, alternatively, will you not pass one up, but then use it as an excuse to not go for that run or bike ride later?  

Why?

I was on a run around Washburn's campus one evening when I remembered I had a Bloody Mary that morning. It is different, but nowhere near impossible. Not too long ago, a few friends of mine joined me in drinking 12 oz. of Founders Breakfast Stout before a 4 mile run. We all finished just fine. In fact, I don't think any of us would have done better or worse had we not partaken in this consumption. 

The point isn't to drink before working out. Indeed, it generally is not a good idea.  The thing I want us to think about is why some of us choose to make it an excuse, or let it into our head that we simply CAN'T do whatever we set out to do because of something that really doesn't have to be an excuse.

I'm not sure about the science behind it, so I probably shouldn't be even suggesting this. But, which of the following seems like the healthier option?

1. Having a Bloody Mary in the morning, and then vegging out all day.
2. Having a Bloody Mary in the morning, and then having a low heart rate 30 minute jog later that day.

Yes, obviously there is a more comfortable 3rd option... 

3. Having a low heart rate 30 minute jog in the morning followed by a Bloody Mary. 

Or, an even better and healthier 4th option...

4. Having a low heart rate 30 minute jog in the morning and skipping the Bloody Mary.  

The 4th option is too boring, and the 3rd option is always what we shoot for, but sometimes life gets in the way and we're faced with a given situation. That given (which is sometimes referred to as a prior), is that we've already had a Bloody Mary.  

Now your options are 1 and 2.  It is that simple.  If you're trying to be healthy, you know which option you should choose. 

Time Spent Watching TV

I'm not watching TV right here, but it is on inside.

We are awake approximately 960 minutes per day. With 366 days during the leap year of 2016, I was awake for very close to 351,360 minutes (350,400 minutes during non-leap years, just FYI). 

This is also approximately how long you were awake during 2016. So, how did you use your time? 

In 2016, I kept track of the amount of TV/Movies I watched. I added 500 minutes as an adjustment for all those times when I was sitting in a restaurant or sports bar and there was a TV on the wall, or I was at another person's home and their TV was on.  These times I did not log. My total time: 15498 minutes. 

That is 4.41% of my time, or about 42 minutes and 20 seconds of TV/Movie watching per day, on average. Counting days in terms of awake time (960 minutes rather than all 1440 minutes of a 24 hour day), I watched TV for 16 total days of my life in 2016.  

Many of you know that I don't watch very much TV. Erin and I don't have cable. We've canceled Netflix. Still, I've managed to be in front of the tube 42 minutes each day.  

When I think of what I could have accomplished during those 16 days, I get a little nauseous. What if I practiced playing the guitar for those 42 minutes each day?  What if I practiced learning Finnish?  

I could probably play guitar somewhat decently by now, or perhaps speak, write, and read fluent Finnish.  

It is a little unreasonable to think I can utilize all of that time. We all need some of our time to be entertaining, and there were several shows and programs that I thought were very worth my time. On the same token, there are many more programs that I would have been perfectly fine having not watched. 

If interested, here was my list for 2016. I've italicized all those that I believed worth my time in terms of the quality of the movie, the company I was in, the educational aspect, or the pure entertainment value.  

Movies/TV	Time
Mozart in the Jungle S1 & S2	480
Everest	121
Bridge of Spies	142
Spectre	148
Sicario (2 viewings)	242
Suffragette	106
Creed	133
The Guard	96
Vikings S3	450
Mad Max: Fury Road	120
The Big Short	130
Spotlight	128
The Revenant	156
The Martian	144
The Americans S1	612
Fortitude S1	528
Star Wars: The Force Awakens	138
House of Cards S4	635
Deadpool	108
Van Wilder	92
Sherlock Holmes: The Abominable Bride	44
Californication S1	348
Game 7 NBA Finals	140
The League S6	288
Bosch S1 & S2	1020
Walking Dead S5	672
Palio	91
Magic Mike XXL	115
Fargo S2	530
Whisky Tango Foxtrot	112
Hail, Caesar!	106
Better Call Saul S1	460
Daredevil S2	700
The Fundamentals of Caring	97
Tallulah	111
Ip Man	106
Beasts of No Nation	137
River S1	360
The Hateful Eight	187
Dope	103
Vikings S4	450
The Last Man on the Moon	95
Cartel Land	100
Brooklyn	117
Sons of Anarchy S7 Ep1-Ep6	345
Luther S4	174
Mr. Robot S1	460
Game of Thrones S5	560
The Nice Guys	116
Eye In the Sky	102
Anomalisa	90
Triple 9	115
Knight of Cups	118
Midnight Special	112
The Lobster	119
Star Trek Beyond (2 Viewings)	244
The Man Who Knew Infinity	108
The Kettering Incident S1 e1	50
Sausage Party	89
Central Intelligence	107
The Intern	121
Supermensch	85
Pricele$$	58
Hell or High Water	102
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story	134
Citizen Koch	90
Pay 2 Play	87
The Jungle Book	106
Zootopia	108
~ Adjustment for TV in other places	500
Total Time Watching TV/Movies 2016	15498

The Resolutions of Twenty Seventeen

Upper Iowa River flowing through Decorah, IA

New Year resolutions are usually not my thing. Minimalism admonishes one of the negatives of goal setting, which is what resolutions seem to be.  It is good to have goals, but it is also good to understand that goals can sometimes evolve, morph, or even disappear completely as life (or shit) happens. 

With these things in mind, I'm going to write a few of mine down. This list has evolved over the last several weeks, and I imagine it will continue to change and evolve as 2017 progresses. 

Personal

• Maintain a weight between 163-169 lbs. 
• Ride my bicycle 2017 miles.
• Watch less TV and fewer movies than I did in 2016.
• Remain off of social media.
• Make my own limoncello, orangecello, and ginger beer.
• Kayak all the lakes, rivers, and small bodies of water in the Topeka area (including Perry and Clinton Lakes)
• Complete at least one triathlon

Work/Career Related

• Work toward creating an SBG/SE2 Professor of Actuarial Science position through the Washburn foundation and Security Benefit Group and SE2 in Topeka. 
• Pass the MLC Exam through the SOA
• Explore NSF grants that will build either the pure or secondary education math programs
• Submit at least two papers for publication in a peer reviewed journal. 

Community 

• Firmly establish the Topeka Chapter of Represent.US
• Follow Through with my role as the Secretary of the Greater Topeka Hall of Foamers.

Along with resolutions, one should also have a plan to achieve or stick with them. I won't go into my work or community related plans with this post, but I will spell out some actions I will take on my personal (health, growth, and passions) list. 

To maintain the weight I would like, I plan on having two weigh-ins a week, on Tuesday and Friday mornings.  Ideally, most all of my weigh-ins will be between 165-167.  With the amount of travel that Erin and I do, I'm going to allow myself no more than 4 weeks of being above 169 (this could be as few as 4 weigh-ins or as many as 8). 

I plan on riding 17 miles tomorrow (Jan. 2) since the temperature is supposed to get as high as 60, just to get it down to 2000 as quick as I can. I really like to ride my bike and use this activity as my favorite kind of exercise. The purpose of the resolution is to try and get myself to do what I like a lot more often. This may be my most lofty resolution, but I'm going to give it my best. 

In 2016, I kept track of the amount of TV and movies I watched. I will blog about this near exact amount soon. This year, I plan on keeping track again.  I want the number of minutes that are consumed with this activity to decrease in 2017.  Since this time is approximate (but a very good one), I mean to decrease it significantly enough to be certain it was an actual decrease (say, well over 1500 minutes less).  

After the election, I quit Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. It is possible, just to let you know, and I'm enjoying life a lot more. I want to remain off of social media in 2017. 

My friend and mentor, John Mullican, makes his own limoncello and orangecello and it is amazing. I want to make my own, too.  Also, I want to make my own ginger beer a few times this year for the purposes of some state-of-the-art Moscow Mules. 

We bought a kayak out of season at the end of 2016. Erin and I kayaked this year in Maine during our East Coast Extravaganza, and during our 6th anniversary celebration in the Des Moines area. I was instantly hooked, and want to delve into the sport. At the first sign of some warmer weather, I'll be taking it to Shawnee Lake.  

Upon adopting the Primal Blueprint style of living, the training for runs, rides, and races has become much less taxing on our bodies. Running, riding, and exercising in general has become so much more easier to insert into our everyday life now that we are familiar with Primal Endurance.  Besides the swimming, I feel like I'm ready for a sprint triathlon right now.  I just need to get the swimming in this summer.  

Do you have resolutions? Take some time to make a plan! Otherwise, you may see those resolutions drop off in February, and this will just be another year, instead of the great year of 2017! 

When Depth is Important

In my last class of Theory of Interest, I began describing an idea that we had already learned in a very complex, convoluted way when a student interjected, "Why wouldn't we just do it the easy way? When would we ever want to use this method?"

I answered him honestly, and told him that in the real world, you would never use this complicated method.  Then, I used the opportunity for a teaching moment about depth.

We can all walk away from an amazing presentation in which we felt we learned a lot, but what we have actually received is a surface level understanding.  Sometimes, that is all we need or desire.

Until it comes time to apply it, talk about it, or write about it. At this point, you are slapped in the face with a huge disconnect from seeing someone else apply it, talk about it, and write about it, believing you can do the same, and then ending up like Homer here:

Depth becomes important.

In my own life, I have been reading all I can about how money corrupts our government. If you've spent any length of time with me, you've heard me talk about it. The depth I've had to go to in order to do that much is vast. There is so much more that has moved me that I want to share, but I haven't gone to the depth I need to in order to convey it in a sensible manner.

The best thing I've noticed about getting off of social media, is that I'm talking to people more. I'm engaging in conversation more. I find reading and writing a very important part of gaining depth, but I've been missing out on discourse. This is a key part of personal growth.

Have you seen a good documentary lately that was moving? Could you speak at length about it, and bring me to the same level of heart-rending emotion that the documentary brought you to? Probably not, unless you pick up a book or two or three about it, write about it (in a journal or blog), and practice communicating it to others.  This is when depth is important.

Rule of Thirds on Motivation

Topeka just finished its 2016, "Those Who Lead, Read" program last week. I'm excited that they will be continuing the program in 2017.

On November 10th, Erin and I attended a presentation on Leadership Through Self Discovery & Vulnerability. The presenter was Elizabeth Lenherr, the Director of Learning and Development at Advisors Excel in Topeka.  The books she centered her presentation on were Paulo Coelho's "The Alchemist" and Brene Brown's "Daring Greatly." 

During the discussion at the end, a gentleman offered a simple rule of divvying your time among mentees, friends, and mentors. He cited Tai Lopez as the source for this inspiration. The idea is that you should be spending about a third of your time each with 

• Those who you can mentor, educate, or inspire in life
• Your peers, friends, and co-workers, or those on your same level
• Those who are far superior than you in areas that you want improvement

These fit perfectly into three of my five areas of philosophy: contribution, relationships, and growth. (Passions and health are the other two). 

In reflection on my own personal growth, I've come to realize that mentors are what is missing in my life.  

So, what am I going to do about it? 

1. Identify the areas in my life where I want some serious growth. 
2. Find some individuals that are far superior in those areas identified in 1.
3. Find a way to get past my extreme independence and the mentality that I can do anything or figure anything out on my own.
4. Reach out to them with a email, phone call, or a face-to-face interaction.

The first time I typed that up, I skipped what is now number 3.  I sat there and pondered the list without the current number 3 and tried to figure out why something so simply put was not so simple. 

Shame. Vulnerability. 

I first have to admit and embrace where I am deficient before I can get better. 

Meta Level Up

In David Allen's "Getting Things Done", he talks of next actions. 

Sometimes, what makes it on our To-Do list is too vague, or just too big a project to be jotted down so simply. To tackle such things, you need next actions. Sometimes, these are hard to come up with. 

Whenever I struggle with next actions, I remove myself from the situation and level up, metaphysically speaking. I think in terms of the writer of my life. Since I'm writing it at this moment, it doesn't have to be myself in the situation. For example, it can be Dirk Diggler. 

So, it is now my job to write about what Dirk Diggler is going to do next to get this job done. This frame of mind helps the brainstorming go a little easier. (Especially if it someone you aspire to be like, or simply a super version of yourself. The use of Dirk Diggler is not a good example at all here, and is used primarily for humor.)

This 'leveling up' method works great with other things in life besides next actions. 

In Adam Grant's "Give and Take", I read about someone who was able to become a good negotiator for himself and his family by leveling up. He was able to eventually make a break through and negotiate better raises, better rent, and better other things in life by playing a role of a mentor for himself. He asked himself how he would instruct someone else to negotiate for themselves in the same situation. Then he followed those instructions and played the part of the mentee.

Next time you have a chore on the to-do list and are having a hard time coming up with a next action, try leveling up. Ask yourself, "What would Dirk Diggler do?" 

Living Primal

On our East Coast Extravaganza, I told Erin that I was ready to commit to any kind of diet that she wanted to go on. I was heavy, low energy, and wanting to change something.  

She first started us out on a three-week body transformation. The goal was to transform us from carb burning vessels into fat burning vessels.  It was similar to, but not exactly like Mark Sisson's 21-Day Transformation. Mark's Primal Blueprint philosophy was what we eventually adopted. 

At first, I didn't think it would be something sustainable. I was skeptical, just like I am of any diet program. How do you make something a lifestyle rather than just a diet?  Since 2009, I've simply been on a rollercoaster of going back and forth from overweight to normal, overweight to normal. I would like something that eliminates the roller coaster and keeps me at a normal weight. 

And I think I've found it. 

Time still has to dictate whether this will work in the long run, but I have high hopes. There are a lot of things that you have to give up living a Primal Blueprint lifestyle. Grains are the toughest. As skeptical as you may be about giving up grains, when you read the science behind what grains do to our bodies and learn about our diets from an evolutionary biological standpoint, and then feel the difference in energy and hunger levels, it is easier than you think to remove grains from your diet. 

And what is great, is that it doesn't have to be for good.  As long as you stick with the diet 80% of the time, you will lose and/or maintain a healthy weight.  Anything that doesn't assume and allow a little cheating now and then will simply not work. As James Crumley said, "never trust a man who doesn't drink." 

We arrived home from our trip at the end of June. It has now been 4 months since we got back. Here is a snapshot of my weight logging app, Libra. 

The Primal Blueprint may not be right for you. Here are some things I like about it that you should try and find in any kind of diet and/or workout plan.

• It should not depend on purchasing THEIR product. Selling products is okay. After all, the people behind all of these diets are making this philosophy their life's work, so they have to make an income. 
• It should be a lifestyle, not just a diet program or just an exercise program. 
• There should be a lot of research done (look for a thick bibliography). 
• After a month of practicing the lifestyle, you should KNOW whether it is something you can stick with. Ask yourself...
• While in the losing stage, is it near effortless? While it the maintaining stage, it it completely effortless? Do you have more energy as a result? Are you sleeping better?  Are you less gassy and/or bloated? Was the health screening looking top notch (or better than it was)? (All of these should be answered with yes. Otherwise, find something else).  

What has really changed in my life is the way I work out. After reading the Primal Blueprint and browsing Primal Endurance, which delves in to more detail of the exercise portion of the Blueprint, I found out that my own workouts were not sustainable. It made sense, as I've noticed I have to change things up every so often as I get burned out.  

I quit running in 2014 because I hated it. Now, it is back on the list of things I do again, because I'm not destroying my body doing it anymore. 

I started CrossFit style workouts earlier this year, but had to back off of these intense style workouts.  I have still maintained some of the CrossFit philosophy of changing up workouts almost every time I go to the gym, but now the intense ones are much less frequent.  I found out that these types of "sprint" style workouts should only be done once every 7-10 days.  All your workouts in between shouldn't get your heart rate above 0.75*(210-age).   

That is really easy to do exertion wise, but really hard to do mentally. It feels like you're going to tip over on a bike. It feels like you're walking instead of jogging. But the benefits are amazing. There is an amazing science here that you are privy to. You just need to check it out from your local library. 

Giving at Work

Givers, matchers, and takers make up this world. Which are you?

Adam Grant, in his 2014 book, "Give and Take: Why Helping Others Drives Our Success", describes these three types of people. It has been a fantastic read so far, and I have already begun looking for more ways that I can be a giver in my life. 

Washburn University has Employee Wellness Program Incentives separated into three Tiers.  At Truman, I was able to enjoy the rec center at no cost. It was free for faculty. Although it can still be free at Washburn, it isn't until you go through a 3 Tiered process.  

The first of these Tiers is simply to schedule a health screening and have blood drawn.  The next two are a little more activity based and require you to complete 6 different activities.  For example, in this Tier 2 Wellness Action Sheet, you can check off the third box by nominating someone for the Living Well at Washburn Award.

Who do I know that lives well at Washburn? My mentor and friend, John! That's who!

• He has lost around 25 pounds this year by sticking with a Whole 30 diet. 
• He and his wife Melanie, while visiting Taos, NM this summer, hiked along the Rio Grande Gorge. John, by himself, hiked Mt. Wheeler a couple times. 
• For 2016, he is getting close to biking 2016 miles.  Whether he makes this goal or not, he has definitely biked over 1500 miles, and that is a pretty awesome year of biking. 
• John and Melanie cook amazing meals in their spectacular kitchen. Erin and I were fortunate enough to have dinner at their place with them one Friday evening. 

What an easy way to give at work. There are awards galore at Universities and the workplace. I'll admit, that up until reading about givers and takers and how that relates to me, I have always looked through awards for the ones that I could win, and wondered what I would have to do to get one. This is a "taker" type of mindset, and I'm glad I never acted on this self-serving behavior. 

When those emails come to my inbox informing me of awards on campus and asking for nominations, I will now give them pause. What an easy way to be a giver in the workplace, by thinking of someone who you believe deserves it, and taking a few moments to write up a nomination!  

Quitting Facebook

Two days after the election, I decided to quit Facebook. I went through the motions of quitting Facebook about a week prior, but couldn't push the button to deactivate. Facebook actually makes it difficult, by informing you of all that you will be missing out on and not have access to if you decide to deactivate. During the process of deactivation, they do a wonderful job of asking "Are you REALLY sure you want to do this?"

What they aren't good about, is informing you of the freedom that will come.

It took the election for me to recognize that Facebook is worse than Fox News. It allows post-truth politics to propagate unchecked. This played a huge part in getting a racist and misogynist elected president. Soon after quitting, I began seeing the headlines about this concern.

Since quitting, I have realized that it was an addiction for me, and it was something I needed to quit. It has only been 10 days now, and I still catch myself thinking in terms of postable experiences throughout my day. I'm ashamed of myself.

Here are some pros and cons I've thought about:

Pros.

• The next time many of my friends and family see me, they'll be a little more excited to see me and hear about what I've been up to. It will genuinely feel like a lot of time has passed since we've seen each other, and we will actually have something to talk about and catch up on. I'm saving all of my 'postable' moments for when we next get together.  We'll actually have to talk and stuff because we won't be able to say, "Oh yeah, I saw that on Facebook."
• I have now escaped this world of enabling and promoting a "fitting in" type of attitude. Brene Brown, in her book "Daring Greatly" describes the difference between fitting in and belonging. Facebook seems to me as an ultimate competition of getting likes, laughs, and loves, all which equate to some superficial fitting in. I'm tired of this game, and I'm ready to belong somewhere. That somewhere is not on Facebook.  
• My phone stays charged all day now.
• I spend much less time on my smartphone now. This means more time for productivity. I've noticed this in a huge way. 
• I have been forced to reach out and communicate in ways I feel are more fruitful and expressive. 
• Not everyone is on Facebook (including me now), so I when I organize events, I will be sensitive to this idea and not just discount or not invite people that are not on Facebook since, dammit, they should have been if they wanted to be invited to this event.  And even if they are on Facebook, sometimes they don't check it all the time. 
• I can now converse with people more easily. I have things to talk about. I can begin to decrease the frequency of the word "Facebook" in my conversation. No longer will I say, "Oh yeah, I saw that on Facebook" or "You may have seen this on Facebook, but..."  No longer will I be interrupted by individuals with "I saw your post about that on Facebook."  
• Freedom. Sweet, pure, freedom. 

Cons. 

• I'll miss out on many significant life events of my closest friends at the time they are happening. I will have to wait until they share it with me through some other avenue or simply wait until we see each other again. 
• Facebook seems to be one of the primary ways to organize group events. I'll miss out on group discussions happening in brewing clubs, softball groups, poker groups, etc. 
• Facebook was a great place to store and organize photos. 
• Facebook made it easy to invite a crapload of people to events as long as they were on Facebook. 
• There are more cons, but I'm biased in my decision to quit Facebook, so I'm going to quit trying to think of them. 

Quitting Facebook is extreme, I get it. It is not necessary for many people that aren't addicted like I was. Many Facebook users have much better control than I did, and don't need to go to this extreme.