Good Habits

The 6 Habits of Well-Traveled People

Steve Bloom 16 Comments

'Too Many People', United States, New York, New York City, Times Square

“How do you get to travel so much?”

“Why is it that you always seem to be traveling somewhere?”

I’m asked questions like these on a regular basis. It’s rather surprising too since I really don’t feel like I travel all that often. I travel roughly three to four times a year, but there are people out there that travel way more than that.  But if you consider that the people who ask me these questions travel maybe once every couple of years, I can see why they’d think I travel a lot.

After some self-reflection I’ve realized that I have different habits from those who don’t see much of the world.  These habits have helped build a lifestyle where travel becomes a big part of my life.  What is more, I’ve noticed these same habits in other regular travelers.
Continue reading →

Why Being Assertive and Disagreeable Pays Off (And Being Nice Doesn’t)

Steve Bloom 14 Comments

Living together - 187/365

If you met me in real life, you’d probably say I’m a friendly person.  In general I like to get along with people and will go out of my way to help someone even if I don’t know them very well.  But meet me under the right circumstances and I can be a downright prick to you.

It’s not that I go around looking for reasons to be rude or disagreeable to people I meet.  In fact it’s the other way around.  I’d rather be nice to everyone all the time.  But being assertive and disagreeable is often unavoidable and absolutely necessary to get where you want in life.
Continue reading →

Taking the Path of MOST Resistance

Steve Bloom 21 Comments

I faced a tough choice today.  Should I sit down and relax or write this post despite the fact that I’m tired, not motivated and feel like I could just do it tomorrow?  I was giving myself a lot of reasons to put it off, but I went ahead and started writing anyway.

What’s funny about the whole thing is just how often you run into choices like this.  Pick between doing the hard thing even though you don’t feel like it or take the easier option and forget about it.  When I’m faced with that choice, I always try to go with the harder option.  You can face a lot of resistance taking that path, but it will make your life so much better in the long run.
Continue reading →

6 Ways to Enjoy Every Day as Much as Possible

Steve Bloom 12 Comments

Imagine waking up every morning and looking forward to what will happen throughout the day. As you take in a deep breath, you feel wonderful knowing you’re alive so you can enjoy what life has given you. That would be a great feeling, wouldn’t it?

That’s the way I try to wake up each morning. I truly see life as something to be enjoyed and each day represents a chance for me to feel great. After all, why would you spend most of your time feeling miserable?
Continue reading →

Break Through Conventional Wisdom and Do Things on Your Terms

Steve Bloom 15 Comments

Are you the kind of person who accepts some things as true without actually questioning the facts and weighing the possibilities? It’s called conventional wisdom and we’re all susceptible to it to one degree or another. Who hasn’t heard that you need to spend three months’ salary on an engagement ring or you need to change the oil in your car every 3000 miles?

By the way, both of those pieces of conventional wisdom are actually wrong, but are generally accepted as true by a large number of people. While those things might not be that big a deal to you, there are bigger dangers to accepting conventional wisdom at face value. By tying yourself down to how you think things are supposed to be when it’s not necessarily true, you can miss a lot of opportunities to live life on your terms.
Continue reading →

What You Can Learn By Doing Dangerous, Stupid and Crazy Things

Steve Bloom 26 Comments

 

A couple of years ago while traveling through Belize, I had the opportunity to take a boat out into the nearby coral reef and swim in an area full of sharks and stingrays. Before I jumped into the water, I thought about how crazy it was to put myself into that situation. Most people would probably think it was too dangerous.

But I love experiences like this. They seem dangerous and stupid at first, but afterwards you look back and wonder why you thought that way to begin with. In fact, I’d say there’s actually a lot you can learn by doing dangerous, stupid and crazy things.
Continue reading →

Why It’s Important to Surround Yourself with Interesting People

Steve Bloom 13 Comments

I think Jim Rohn, a motivational speaker, put it best when he said, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with”. While there is always room for individual choices and personality, the fact remains that one of the biggest influencers of your behavior, beliefs and attitudes come from the group of people you most interact with.

You can’t deny the powerful influence groups can have over your behavior. After all, if they didn’t exert power then things like peer pressure and groupthink wouldn’t exist. Groups help shape social norms and expectations. So taking a closer look at what those norms are and how they influence your behavior is extremely important.
Continue reading →