Rack pull. Photo by Scott Bird.

After a nine year break, I began lifting weights again about four years ago. This absence had not done me any favors; and I was slow, weak and a little on the heavy side.

Having eventually made the decision to begin doing something (and believe me - after 9 years, this didn’t exactly come easily), I was faced with an all-too-common dilemma. Where?

Gyms can be intimidating places at the best of times. As an outsider, it seemed as though all the members were in pretty good shape to start with. I’d stick out like a sore thumb.

Instead, I decided to set up a home gym. Get myself into a reasonable condition before I went anywhere near the commercial options. And then I discovered it - the art of working out alone. [Click here to read more →]

Tags: Health & Fitness // 13 Comments »

This is the full video of Randy Pausch’s famous last lecture. What an inspiration. Thank you Randy, and RIP.

Tags: Life // 7 Comments »

I’m excited to announce my first e-book, A Year of Change, is available to download here:

• A Year of Change - by Peter Clemens

The e-book includes my best articles from my first year of blogging both on this blog and Pick The Brain. Apart from the work that went into the articles originally, I have spent quite a bit of time putting the e-book together - so I really hope you enjoy it!

My #1 goal for this e-book is to share my story with as many people as possible, so if you enjoy it please consider linking to it from your blog, sharing it on Twitter, emailing it to your friends, etc…..

Finally, I would love to hear your thoughts on the e-book, either in the comments below or via email to peter [at] thechangeblog.com .

Tags: Change, Personal Growth, Recommended Books // 16 Comments »

Image courtesy of Chatiry Girl

Do you ever find yourself telling someone you’ve recently met the story of your life? You probably don’t think of it as a story, because to you it’s all factual. Truth is, we place a lot of interpretation on our life story. And when you remember how it was from the present day perspective, you often distort fact from interpretation. When you do tell your story, do you look at it and wonder if it’s the story you would have written for yourself? Do you ever wonder whose story are you living?

Ask yourself this question: “Am I living a life of my own design, following my passions and interests, or am I following my family, friends, or society, living someone else’s dreams?” If you now realize that you may not be living your chosen life story, it might be time to take a look at what you’d like to change. If you’ve been doing the same career or business, living the same lifestyle, keeping too busy to take time to observe your life and your feelings, it may be time to take a time out and see what’s really important to you.

You may have followed a path determined by others who influenced you early in life—teachers, parents, siblings, or peers. You may have done what was expected of you—getting a college degree, taking a job that fit your skills, climbing the corporate ladder, building a business, or staying at home to raise children. What might you have given up? A career that fully expressed who you are, creative pursuits, a story of your own making.

[Click here to read more →]

Tags: Change, Life // 9 Comments »

Have you ever started keeping a journal – perhaps starting on a particular milestone like your birthday, or January 1^st – only to give up after a few days or weeks? Like many projects which we’re initially enthusiastic about, writing daily or even weekly in a journal can all too quickly become a chore. After all, what difference can it make to write down words that no-one but you will see?

There are several ways for keeping a journal to change your life, and I’ll show you how to achieve each in just ten minutes a day. Still think it’s not worth it?

1. Your Journal Offers Self-Insight

Do you ever wonder who you really are? Do you have problems which occur again and again – patterns of behaviour that you just can’t break out of? Keeping a journal for an extended period of time lets you learn the truth about yourself: how your motivation waxes and wanes, how many projects you let fizzle out after a brief burst of excitement; what topics you return to again, and again, and again…

Ten-minute exercise:

If you’ve been keeping a journal for a while (even if it’s fallen by the wayside recently), read through some old entries. Do you spot any patterns? Look for strong emotions that occur frequently, such as anger, misery, excitement. You might also take note of recurring problems or difficulties. For example, do entries about lack of sleep coincide with stressful periods such as exams or project deadlines at work?
[Click here to read more →]

Tags: Personal Growth // 26 Comments »