ROL: 1 Rule For Breaking Bloggers Block.

ROL (Return on Life) is about making small incremental changes that can greatly enhance quality of life. ROL is a qualitative measure modeled on the quantitative measure ROI (Return on Investment). This week's ROL is the only rule you'll ever need to break blogger's block (stay with me, I won't lead you astray).

You haven't been able to post to your blog all week. You've tried everything: Looking out the window, reading other blogs, walking away, staying put and you got nothing. Never fear. In this case you only have to remember 1 rule:

You have no rules.

It really is that simple. It's your blog, do as you see fit. You make the rules, you can break the rules. For example:

A Blog Should Be Well Organized, With A Beginning, A Middle and an End.

Yes, a blog should be well organized with clear linear thinking. At least that's how a blog should be when things are moving along. When you're out of topics or can't string together 5 words to make a coherent sentence, try something different. Start at the end and work to the beginning. That technique is used all the time on 1 hour TV dramas.  Better yet start in the middle, like the 1st page of a four page letter didn't get into the envelope. Why not write the intro and body and have your readers write the conclusion. Mix it up. Remember:

You have no rules.

A Blog Should Be Easy On The Eyes.

It's hard to entice readers if your blog creates eye strain. Concepts should be short, sweet and properly punctuated. It's a good thing Edward Estlin Cummings never wrote a blog. eecummingsdidntalwaysusepuntuationandoccasionallyarrangedhispoemsinshapestomakehispoint.  e.e.cummings didn't seem overly concerned about the rules. It's also important to blog in measured tones. In line with a texting convention, WRITING IN ALL CAPS IS CONSIDERED THE SAME AS YELLING.
NO ONE WANTS TO BE YELLED AT, SO IT'S A BAD IDEA TO PUT EVERYTHING IN CAPS. Except of course if you can't find a way to communicate your thoughts. Find a topic that makes you want to yell and SCREAM TO YOUR READERS.

You may be thinking the title starts with the words "1 Rule" and there is more than one rule listed. Note: Italics are used to convey something important.

You have no rules.

But I Don't Care About Blogging.

Hey Barry, you say ROL is about making incremental life changes. You don't expect me to pick up on your Social Media Meshugas and start a blog? What does any of this have to do with me?

Many of the bloggers help tips I have read also apply to life in general. Just as bloggers occasionally reach an impasse, life sometimes get stalled. When that happens, remember:

You have no rules.

This isn't license to drink and drive or internet date jr. high schoolers. That's dangerous,anti-social and criminal. Still, many of the rules we all choose to live by are nothing more than self-imposed limitations. In many cases self-imposed limitations are good. Self-imposed limitations are indicative of adult behavior. But sometimes it's good to act like a kid. So when you find yourself stuck in a rut, change things up. Don't self impose a couple of limitations. Everything will be okay. The sky won't fall. You'll be back in gear.

What do you do to shake things up? Any rules that need to be broken? Please feel free to share your thoughts.

Ralph Waldo Emerson Trust 30 Challenge: Ordinary Isn't.

This Trust 30 prompt is from Patti Digh, based on this quote from Master Emerson:

Good and bad are but names very readily transferable to that or this; the only right is what is after my constitution, the only wrong what is against it.

Good, bad, simple, complex, extraordinary, commonplace: These are merely words.  These words can be self-descriptive and at the same time self-limiting. By striving to be the smartest kid in class I ignore day to day consistency.  It is day to day that is superb but greatness which is merely mundane.

Get Your Head Out Of The Locker Room.

Taking a quick peak in the gym locker room and making a comparison: biceps, quads, lats, perhaps something non-musculature.  I know it's a guy thing, perhaps it runs in the other locker room, too. "Wow, does he have a license for that thing? Walking around, showing off. Does anyone care about his new Jag? Still, if I had me one of those..." Such thought is an absolute waste of time. I am gifted with what I have and it's the same for everyone else. Someone will always have stronger, bigger, faster, better. It's up to me to achieve with my list of talents. When size envy or speed doubt start to take hold remember: When one of our 5 senses is weak or non-functioning, the remaining senses grow stronger in order to compensate.

Life Is A Movie. Today, Merely A Snapshot.

It's so easy to consider all the things I have yet to achieve. After all, when my to-do list is completely to-done, I am to-done also. Wanting to gain a new skill after mastering the last task is a good thing. Still, I'm not what I'm striving for, I'm what I am. The list of what I want to accomplish will usually be much longer than the list of what I have completed. Yet, it's what I have already accomplished that is my go-to list for what I want to achieve. Until I run out of tomorrows I may get there yet, today.

I'm Not The First. That's No Big Deal.

In this day and age, it's commonly understood that those we choose for a life partner have a history that precedes the joint relationship. The exception is marrying a blood relative in which case stop reading, we can't find common ground. It's understandable to be slightly uncomfortable with the previous history of a life partner. Still, we move forward based on on our unique perspective and how we will create a new history moving into the future. The same applies to any other project. It's not important that someone else has already completed the project, it's what we bring to the project in it's current iteration that is significant. Don't want to do or write  date something that's already been done or written? That's as ludicrous as not dating someone because they've already been on a date.

Ordinary or Special?

Each morning everyone wakes up, puts feet on the floor and rises to begin a new day. The moment immediately before gaining consciousness, nothing matters. Who I'm not, where I'm not going or what has been completed before me is inconsequential. What is critical is taking my skill set and my history and using it to perfect the tasks in front of me. Everyone faces the same challenge, just another ordinary day. It's that moment, waking with a clean slate that makes the day special. Special isn't ordinary.

Uncle Sam Wants You.

to BUY AMERICAN!

I received a chain email over the weekend, urging me to buy American from August 1-August 31. The email cites a Diane Sawyer special report  about the economic benefits of buying American made products. The email specifically targets Wal-Mart and China. The email also suggests that that if 200 million Americans declined to purchase merely $20 of goods made in China, that single joint activity would reverse a billion dollar trade imbalance. The email concludes asking for a commitment to celebrate Made in America from August 1- September 1, specifically seeking out American made options for routine purchases. I think it's an idea worth improving, don't you?

START NOW.

Some ground rules: No more targets or bogeymen. China isn't inherently evil, neither are any of the Super Big Box Marts. The fact is our economy is struggling and it is both simple and patriotic to seek out products that provide the biggest bang for the buck to the US economy. The job you save could be your neighbor's...or your own.

HONOR THE AMERICAN WORKER.

The first Labor Day celebration was held in Boston in 1878. Labor Day was rushed through Congress in 1894 to begin the healing after the violent Pullman strike. Although there hasn't been recent violence today's economy is certainly painful for many. America faces an ongoing trade imbalance and budget deficit. You or I can't fix it ourselves but working together we can help close the gap.  Is there a better way to honor the American worker than buying American?

BUY AMERICAN!

Labor Day is celebrated annually the 1st Monday in September. This year Labor Day will be September 5, roughly 5 weeks from today. For the next 5 weeks pick 1 staple and find a way to substitute an American made product. Starting in September find 1 purchase a month to exchange for a product made in America. Pass the idea to your friends. Sit back and imagine how much nicer Labor Day, 2012 can be with a small change in awareness and buying behavior.

SHARE THE WEALTH.

Don't do this quietly. Tell your friends and neighbors. Post your product exchanges as a comment or via "Crowdsourcing A Good Life" either on the site or Facebook page. Have an entrepreneurial spirit? Contact me via FB, Twitter or LinkedIn and let's set up a Facebook site together. We can make a difference, all it takes is action.