My life changed when I googled how to get laid.
After typing those 4 words into a search engine, I discovered pick-up websites. This got me interested in NLP (but not the pick-up scene).
NLP led me to books about Buddhism. Before long, I was reading about Taoism, Hinduism, Kabbala, mysticism, Reiki, psychology, self help, personal development, spirituality, and so on. I knew I had to try meditation.
So I pulled up a chair, got comfortable, closed my eyes, and turned my attention to my present experience, vaguely trying to concentrate on my breathing or to work through some NLP technique.
I no longer felt as though life happened to me. I felt that I could change my life from the inside, instead of being changed by external events. I had tools to help me now. I felt empowered.
How to meditate
I concentrate on the breath. Our minds think constantly throughout the day, and it’s seemingly impossible to turn these thoughts off.
The more I watched my thoughts, the more unnecessary this mental chatter seemed to be. And I could see how damaging my habitual thinking and beliefs had become.
So now I was watching my thoughts and trying to keep them positive and less judgmental.
You can change your thoughts, your character, and even your immediate environment from the inside out
The combination of meditation and watching my thoughts stopped some negative thought patterns and beliefs. At the age of thirty-three this was life changing.
Within a few days of practicing five to ten minutes of daily meditation, my dark moods stopped.
As my dark moods lightened, so did my personality. I smiled and had more time for people, and consequently they smiled back and had more time for me.
Affirmations
I also started affirming things in my head whilst I was totally relaxed within meditation. I affirmed things like “I’m happy”, “I’m enjoying increasing my income”, and I affirmed things so I would meet girls.
I affirmed I would meet my wife. I met her. And I married her.
Here are what I affirm everyday in the morning at the moment:
- I am happy, I am calm, I am kind
- I am enjoying increasing the love, health, and happiness in my life
- I am enjoying increasing the passive profits to my businesses exponentially
- I am enjoying helping and inspiring other people to build businesses and increasing love, health and happiness in their lives
- I am enjoying increasing the love, health and happiness in the lives of the people around me
But another thing happened that was truly life changing.
Clearing the smoke
I had been a cigarette smoker since the age of eighteen—a habit I truly detested. My clothes smelled, my breath smelled, I smelled.
I’d resigned myself to a life of cigarette smoking and thought that giving up smoking was just another achievement that was beyond me—along with having a girlfriend or any meaning in my life.
Then one morning I woke up and didn’t want to smoke a cigarette. I was fully expecting to get the urge to smoke at some point during the day.
At the end of the day, I sat and looked at a pack of cigarettes on my coffee table. This pack of cigarettes had no more hold over me than any of the other objects on my table.
Days passed. Weeks passed. I never smoked again. I left the pack there as a reminder. Finally, I threw it away.
Lifting the head fog
Marijuana affects different people in different ways. Many of my friends maintain that they work better whilst smoking it. I have nothing against weed.
Personally speaking, weed demotivates me, harms my short-term memory and, generally, forces me in on myself.
However, as I’d given up smoking nicotine, I’d also stopped smoking weed. At the same time I’d increased my exercise routines, ate better food, started to drink less and took fewer other drugs.
My memory, cognition, and creativity all improved within days of starting meditation and stopping smoking weed.
Suddenly, I regained the childlike enthusiasm and interest in the world that had been beaten out of me by school and work-life.
Website
I was spending a lot of time online researching and discovering. I’d always wanted to create a website for myself but had decided that HTML and web publishing was beyond me.
But, finally, in 2005, I managed to create a three-page static site with HTML at RobCubbon.com.
That’s how it all started, Steemians. Next time I'll go on to explain about how I grew the business.
Over a decade later and I’m living in Chiang Mai. I haven’t worked since 2008.
Welcome to the Steemit community @robcubbon! It seems you have a few interesting stories to tell. You might have come to the right social network. ;-)
A couple of tips, ignore the automated bots, they do nothing for you and just earn from your votes.
We love original content! Many other newcomers try to cheat with copy and paste from other websites.
Be patient with building an audience. Steemit is not get rich quick scheme. It is about the people the relationships you build here.
For many new people, the voting and points system seems complicated at first. Here is an excellent post and entertaining video about how it all works.
https://steemit.com/steemit/@sethlinson/announcing-steemit-explained-a-new-animated-series
Welcome aboard and full Steem ahead! =)
Hello @leoplaw thank you I enjoyed watching that video about voting power. I need to research more into many areas of the platform.
Dig around. Steemit is not so straight up and down with how it works. But if you're in it for the long haul, that is half the fun of it. Another point to make is, that the "rules" can, and will change in the future. It is community driven, unlike Facekbook and others. This is where voting for Steem Witnesses comes in. Think of them as like a board of directors that can be voted in or out. The further you get into this platform, the more you will come to realise how transformative blockchain technology is going to be for our world. You are now one of the early adopters. Enjoy! =)
Yeah, digging around superficially at the moment and it's coming up with more questions than answers at this rate. I started reading the white paper and that very quickly went over my head. I've found a few good resources though so I will dig on. Your right a lot of things change very quickly because I'm reading a lot of stuff that is in some ways out of date (but in other ways useful) :)
You'll get the hang of it. There are some advanced possibilities, but that requires some research and a bit of technical know how. But, the main thing is, post original content and mingle with others, share, comment, upvote. =)
Got it. thank you
So glad you created a new one with even more about yourself. This is one of the best parts of the steemit community is getting to know each other on a little more personal level. We hear each others stories, successes and failures and it makes us all stronger in the end. @robcubbon
thank you @dihoa I've certainly had a few failures. haha. One more introduceyourself post to come as well :)
This post received a 4.7% upvote from @randowhale thanks to @robcubbon! For more information, click here!
Hello @robcubbon. Welcome to Steemit. I am David. I wish you have a happy journey here.
thankyou David
Nice to meet you Robcubbon ! Welcome to the steemit community ! Take care, @digital-gypsy
thank you @digital-gypsy I've followed you because I like your name :)
Hello @robcubbon. Welcome to Steemit. I am David. I wish you have a happy journey here.
thank you @davidzack
HUGE welcome to #steemit @rob, great pictures ! I am following you because you interest that i see some common one. This is a great community and hopefully we will grow up on great and useful content!
Happy steeming and greetings from Switzerland!
Francesco
thanks @andreolf I've followed back because if you have common interests with me I figure that it'll work the other way :)
Congratulations! This post has been upvoted from the communal account, @minnowsupport, by robcubbon from the Minnow Support Project. It's a witness project run by aggroed, ausbitbank, teamsteem, theprophet0, and someguy123. The goal is to help Steemit grow by supporting Minnows and creating a social network. Please find us in the Peace, Abundance, and Liberty Network (PALnet) Discord Channel. It's a completely public and open space to all members of the Steemit community who voluntarily choose to be there.
If you like what we're doing please upvote this comment so we can continue to build the community account that's supporting all members.
This post has received a 2.83 % upvote from @booster thanks to: @robcubbon.
Welcome to Steemit @robcubbon . Good to read how meditation helped you. Upvoted and followed.
thank you @dheerajdj
What a nice turn of events! Haha! I enjoyed reading your intro - welcome to Steemit!
Looking forward to reading more. Also I am visiting Chiang Mai next year! Maybe I hear a Steemit Meeting coming up!
I am following you :D
thank you for that welcome @sjennon Yes!! A Chiang Mai Steemit meetup sounds great. I'm sure we'll have one by the time you get here! Following back :)
And if you don't, we will make sure there is one! Nice to meet you!
Hi
Welcome to steemit. This is an amazing place with awesome content. Look forward to seeing some of your posts. Come and have a look at @yoda1917 I am sure you will find something there interesting and I give my best to help the new people :)
Regards
Yoda
P.S, here is an example of my work.
https://steemit.com/steemit/@yoda1917/enforce-the-constitution-or-you-may-as-well-kiss-your-money-goodbye-18-07-2017
thank you @yoda1917
Keep up the writing; sure hope you can share lots of interesting topics. Check out some of my posts; if interested, please comment and let’s review.
https://steemit.com/health/@indepthstory/myth-cell-phone-use-causes-cancer-fact-some-probability
UPVOTE if you like and then please click on the FOLLOW if you want to keep up to date on new posts and share your views,
Best rgds.,
@indepthstory
thankyou, @indepthstory
Big baller! I can't wait to to in Chiang Mai and meet more digital nomads like you! Btw, I wanna join a meditation group in Thailand. You know any? Thanks in advance! :)
There are many, many here. Hehe! See you soon :)
Yup! Looking forward to it! Peace!
Welcome to Steemit robcubbon.
AMAZING Rob
thank you, sir :)
Welcome to Steemit robcubbon.
thank you, @hackerwhacker
Welcome robcubbon to Steemit.
Great introduction. Meditation really does make everything else so much better. Have an amazing day.
agreed. thank you
this is crazy I just read someone else's post living there.. nice to meet you .. I also meditate .. the journey is great in steemit we get to meet like mnds. :)
I wonder who that was. Looking forward to the journey :)