Ideas, Insights, Decisions, & Direction. Learn about yourself. Take a road trip.

Posted on December 4, 2010 by Darin Eich


Put the rubber to the road and experience life and this amazing land for yourself. In a plane you don’t get to stop along the way. We need more “drive” in our lives. Driving allows you more control than flying. It is not faster. It is slower. Slower is better sometimes. Plus, when you drive you can stop along the way at any little thing that interests you. Stopping along the way is more serendipitous than reaching your destination which was always apart of your plan. Maybe you need less plan and more serendipity? The journey is the best part.

What are some of the greatest road trips you’ve ever done? They are lifelong memories. I’ve done at least 8 long road trips. Most I’ve driven between Wisconsin and Virginia and Wisconsin and California. Each one is a source of pride and smile inducing memory. The meaning is in not just reaching the destination but the great ideas you get along the way, the people you meet, and the places you stop. A road trip is a great prescription for making a big decision, thinking something through, or opening yourself up to get a new insight on your life. Open it and drive it.

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Experiment on achievement: Small daily goals or big ongoing goals?

Posted on November 15, 2010 by Darin Eich

What works better for achieving something important? A big goal over a long period of time or smaller daily goals? My vote is for smaller daily goals because they help you take consistent action…and you have daily achievements to savor instead of having to wait a long time to say you achieved your goal. I like yoga. I also like yoga challenges. I decided to do an experiment. For my first challenge I wanted to do 30 yoga sessions in 30 days. I achieved that goal. This first yoga challenge was so engaging that I undertook a second one four months later…this challenge was different. Instead of focusing on a month time period I would focus on a day. My goal was to do 2 yoga sessions “this day” and see what I would end up with. What I ended up with was doing 30 yoga sessions in 15 days. The focus on “just this day” yielded 15 achievement moments to celebrate and achieving more sessions than the last challenge…by far. Perhaps you can think about setting goals in new ways…what can be done this day?

From Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 I wanted to do more than I did last time. I was trying to figure out what I should do…30 sessions in 20 days? 40 sessions in 30? More than 30 in less than 30 days again? With being gone traveling for 4 days and having visitors for a couple of weekends I was losing many days. So if I wanted to do more than I had in the first challenge I would have to double up. Because of this my thinking shifted. My goal this time would not be the overall time period or total number of sessions but to focus on each day…2 sessions in a day. My thought is that it will add up to exceed my goal. Instead of the big focus I am doing the small focus.

This daily challenge presents it’s own complications. Two times a day is a lot. It requires about 3 hours each day. Also, I had some lower back pain…not good for the start of a challenge. The thought that was entering my mind at the start of this next challenge was to either not do my daily yoga and biking to heal my back strain or to plow through and do the challenge. I decided to plow though. This time though I am more mindful of what I needed to do to improve my back. I used the yoga as treatment. I focus on the “laying down on your belly leg raising poses” like locust that are great for strengthening the lower back. I focus on the core. Those front and back muscle strengtheners help. I just don’t flop down into any bends or side angle poses like I do. Sometimes my own flexibility can be a challenge. I go slower and let the muscles engage to support.

It is also challenging because it is familiar now. When I started and did the first challenge the yoga studio, the people, and the poses were new. The new excitement factor has worn off. Everything is more comfortable and familiar. The external sources of motivation were not as high so I would have to find it more internally. This is why the “this day” approach to the goal achievement was needed.

The outcomes of the two-a-day challenge are mostly time and social related. It is nice to have about 3 hours of each day accounted for with something positive and social. It is nice to do things with people. It is nice to have a challenge in your life. These are very simple things but often forgotten.

Of the people that I mentioned the two-a-day challenge too, few thought that two-a-day yoga is that helpful. They don’t think yoga should be utilized like a physical challenge. I don’t know either. Your body is never really ready to do it’s best work. You are always conserving energy. You never hit any of the poses in a yoga journal cover moment that make you feel great. You don’t look as good. Maybe the lesson is marathon style…to be OK at 80% though I am a 100% making moments memories type of guy.

I think this yoga challenge made me more effective at work. I have to be effective because I only have a certain amount of time to work with all of this yoga happening! Plus I think the yoga chills me out. Less thinking and more just doing well.

What big goal would you like to achieve? Is it some sort of challenge related to your health perhaps? What goal can you shift to a “just this day” action focus? What can you do today?

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Start a mini hero’s journey to innovate your life: Reflections on a 30 day yoga challenge

Posted on October 25, 2010 by Darin Eich

I’m fascinated with “The Hero’s Journey” from mythologist Joseph Campbell. The Hero’s Journey has also become popular in Hollywood, with movies like Star Wars, The Matrix, and Avatar building the path of the main character in the film consistent with the stages of the hero’s journey. We also can undergo the hero’s journey in our own life. Why not add some excitement, innovate your life, and begin one? Why not undertake a journey towards innovating yourself with a challenge that will engage you holistically? I decided to begin my first ever yoga studio membership with a challenge…doing 30 yoga sessions in 30 days. It was an engaging and motivating 30 day period in my life. It was a mini hero’s journey. Here are some reflections on this challenge.

1. Make it mythical. Like the hero’s journey any journey that is meaningful and worth doing should engage your whole self. It will likely have the hero’s journey elements of the call, allies, belly of the whale, trials, adventures, and a return. Mine did.
2. It should be hard! Any journey worth writing about should not have been easy. Problem was my 30 day yoga challenge was getting easy towards the end. The toe that was bothering me was healing. I was no longer an anonymous stranger, the instructors and front desk people were starting to call me by name. I banged out two sessions in one day easily. I decided I needed to end it harder with a second back-to-back double session day.
3. Over-perform. My goal was 30 sessions in 30 days. I was thinking of hedging back on it because I would only have 28 days to do it and I didn’t think it would work out. We need to go above and beyond the call of duty. I decided to over-perform the goal and go for 30 sessions in 28 days. Then I decided to over perform that goal and do 30 in 27, then over perform that one to do 31 in 28. Shoot past your goals. I had two variables to work with…days and sessions. You can over perform one or both of those! Things get easier when you get in the groove…you can do more!
4. The heroic journeys are not necessarily about earning that degree, running that marathon, or doing 30 yoga sessions. They are about a journey to a new and higher level of consciousness. I do not view my body and mind the same way I did before the 30 day challenge, especially my body.
5. The return. There is usually something more. You just don’t do it and be done. You are different now. I want to do more with yoga, personally I’d like to see if I can maintain a 4-5 day per week practice. I keep getting the idea of other challenges, such as doing a yoga teacher training…taking it to the next level. Not that a job teaching yoga is on my mind now but doing would be an interesting journey and I could be better prepared to help my friends as I want to encourage others to do yoga. I think yoga plays an important role in solving problems related to our health care crisis. I think it could be one of the best consistent things you can do for yourself because it is holistic. Anyway, it is something I have needed.

What was the impact? What outcomes did I gain as a result of this 30 day challenge?

1. Assessment of complete body: strengths and needs for improvement.
2. Better strength all over.
3. Better flexibility all over.
4. Better alignment…or at least knowledge of alignment.
5. Better state of mind.
6. Something social to do for 1.5 hours each day!
7. Learned a number of new poses.
8. Motivation to be involved in the larger Yoga community.
9. Understanding and awareness of different parts of a single muscle or bone.
11. Toughening up physically. Holding uncomfortable longer.
12. Toughening up mentally. Quieting the mind and being still for longer.

This first yoga challenge journey was so engaging that I undertook a second one four months later…30 sessions in 15 days. This was an experiment on motivation and action that I’ll write about soon.

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Innovate your life with new ways of moving, thinking, and learning

Posted on October 22, 2010 by Darin Eich

When we want to innovate our own lives, trying something new can help. We should do more than just TRY something new, we should stick with it and integrate this something new into our lives on a consistent basis. This new thing has to matter in a positive way that will help us get better, innovate, and grow. It also should be NEW…a new way of moving, thinking, or doing something. For me a great strategy has been to find a physical activity that is completely different and make it a hobby. Since being active & healthy is an important value of mine, and kinesthetic movement activities are strengths and one of the “multiple intelligences” I gravitate towards, I try to find physical activities like these.

Learning something different from scratch is key. In the past I have tried ice-skating. I have also done kayaking in an inflatable kayak. Both of these activities require the body to move in a different way in a different place. The movements my mind knows (like walking or biking on a road) don’t apply here. I have to use my mind in new ways and form new connections. With ice-skating your legs are moving in a new way on the ice. With kayaking your arms are paddling in new ways on the water. It is so good for the mind and the body to engage in new movements, to learn them, to improve them, and to engage the mind in them. It is exciting and motivating to learn something new and see yourself get better at it.

My favorite addition to innovate my life has been using the same strategy…engaging the mind and body in a new movement to learn. I have integrated yoga. The opportunities for learning and moving with yoga seem endless. People have been doing yoga for thousands of years. The movements feel natural and helpful for the body unlike some of the other physical activities I’ve consistently done in the past like volleyball or basketball. I’m not sure if the body is designed to suddenly jump as high as you can and hit a ball over a high net. Yoga is different. I was introduced to yoga in a rather extreme way. I started with Bikram yoga which is a series of 26 postures in a 105 degree room! Talk about a different way to use your body in a new environment! This was a good catalyst to get interested…it was really different but felt great. It was engaging for the mind and the body. It motivated me to learn more and practice more. It was inspiring to get better and share stories with friends who were also just getting started with yoga. I’ve continued my yoga practice with a Vinyasa Flow style. This has been a different series of flowing postures minus the 105 degree room. I’ve learned many new poses and you can also advance in each pose. The community aspect of yoga has also been great. There is more variety too. Both styles have different benefits and through trying a lot of it out on a consistent basis I’ve found Yoga to be something that I want to integrate into my daily life. I’ve even created “Yoga Challenges” which I’ll share about in future articles and relate to helping us achieve something important.

Why not think of a new physical activity that is a completely different way of moving, thinking, and will require you to learn something new from scratch! Maybe it is yoga? Maybe it is kayaking? Maybe it is something you create?

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Go to the people with the tools you have! Innovation lessons learned from NYC subway musicians.

Posted on October 15, 2010 by Darin Eich

This video really struck a chord with me! New York City band Atomic Tom is trying to make it big. They are trying to get their music out to the people. Problem is…their instruments were stolen! Did that stop them? No. Great stories have great responses to adversity and challenge embedded in them. They decided to ideate, improvise, and innovate! Did they wait for people to come to them to help them and give them instruments? No. They brought their music to the people where the people were at using the tools they had…their IPhones! Check them out performing this catchy song “Take Me Out” on the subway with piano, drums, guitar, and mic powered by their smart phones! A lot of lessons on innovating yourself to be learned from this! Plus they did a great job of increasing their exposure and using social media and mobile apps to innovate what they do best and advance themselves in the direction of their dreams!

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Inspirational Speeches from Movies

Posted on October 5, 2010 by Darin Eich

Ever get motivated by a fictional movie to do something for real? There are some great movie moments out there. Movies have motivated us to all sorts of different things. We live vicariously through the characters. The best speeches come during the part of the film when the odds are against the lead character and his people are in a state of despair. Then…the speech…and the action…and the success..or at least the courageous attempt. Start a slow clap and enjoy this great video with 40 inspirational speeches in 2 minutes! I will think of some of my favorite movie scenes that weren’t included. What are yours?

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10 Inspirational Quotes for Personal Innovation, Creativity & Action

Posted on September 27, 2010 by Darin Eich

We have a page with a number of motivating quotes at InnovateYourself.com/quotes. Here is a selection of 10 inspiring quotes for creativity, courage to act & personal development:

“You can count how many seeds are in the apple, but not how many apples are in the seed.” -Ken Kersey

“The tragedy of life is not death, but what we let die inside us while we live.” -Norman Cousins

“It’s all right to have butterflies in your stomach. Just get them to fly in formation -Dr. Rob Gilbert

“One doesn’t discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time.” -Andre Gide

“Do not be too timid and squeamish about your actions. All life is an experiment.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson

“This above all: to thine own self be true.” -William Shakespeare

“We forfeit three-fourths of ourselves to be like other people.” -Arthur Schopenhauer

“I always wanted to be somebody, but I should have been more specific.” -Lily Tomlin

“Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.” –George Bernard Shaw

Full page of quotes can be found at InnovateYourself.com/quotes

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How are you, your talent, & your innovation getting discovered?

Posted on September 19, 2010 by Darin Eich

Are you hiding and hoping somebody will discover you and your great talent or innovation? Or, are you getting out into the world in a major way and making it easy for people to find you and see you doing what you do best. The world is changing by making success MORE accessible to you! This is evident with the example of musicians. People who would be relegated to karaoke and taking action on their dreams and are getting discovered through American Idol and now even through YouTube. One of the most popular singers now is Justin Bieber. This really young guy who is one of the most followed on Twitter and fills stadiums with screaming girls and their mothers put himself out there on YouTube and he was discovered from singing in his living room in front of a simple camera. Check out the story on CBS news:

As for me, Justin Bieber is not quite my style. I’m more of an R&B group kind of guy. Give me some Boyz 2 Men any day! In my search for that 90′s style R&B in 2010 I came across this group called Legaci. The videos are of four guys singing in their Bay Area living room. Amazing voices and my kind of R&B songs! Guess what, these guys were recently discovered on YouTube by Justin Bieber’s “people” and now they are touring the world and singing backup and about ready to take it to the next level themselves. Check out their harmony in this “Whatcha say” video:

So the lesson from YouTube is tremendously big things can happen. Discovery can happen. Just sharpen your skills, let your talent shine, innovate, and then broadcast it to their world by camera from your living room!

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Self Talk: Out Talk the Negative Voice to “Talk yourself into it.”

Posted on September 15, 2010 by Darin Eich

How many times have you asked someone about a new idea they were motivated to do and it never happened and they said they “talked themselves out of it.” We need to talk ourselves into it. We need to launch a new big idea for our life out of nowhere and when people ask us where it came from we can just tell them…”Oh, I just talked myself into it.”

YOU NEED TO OUT-TALK!!! You have this competitor in your mind called negativity. This competitor is quite annoying and often babbling randomly about the same negative things over and over again. Rarely does this voice leave on its own. You know him and his voice, when you have to wake up in the morning he’s the guy telling you to stay in bed, call in sick, etc. Well you need to out talk that guy. Arm yourself with the positive stuff. Constantly talk yourself up and affirm positively. Beat him at his own game. Out talk him! You will be on your way.

Talk yourself into it! Tell yourself what you are, what you want to be, and what you will be! Most of us don’t talk ourselves up or even talk back to that negative voice in our head. Be aware of this voice. Stop it. and out talk it with positive affirmations. This little girl in the video knows how it is done! Why not give it a try yourself?

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Inspiration for Personal Innovation at Ironman Wisconsin

Posted on September 14, 2010 by Darin Eich

Ironman Wisconsin happens each September in Madison, Wisconsin. Thousands of competitors converge in this great city to do one of the ultimate physical tests of the body and mind. It is like an all you can eat buffet of personal motivation that day. You leave watching that race wanting to start something remarkable, do big things, and overcome great odds. You witness inspiring stories swimming, biking, and running by you every single minute. I saw a blind man run by me. Five minutes later a man with one leg ran past. I saw all ages and all body types. I saw people do something that they or the ones who know them will never forget.

Take for instance my friend Chris. He hadn’t really exercised very much in the last 10 years and wanted to suddenly change his life. He was catalyzed to innovate himself so about five months ago he did something that none of us could believe. He signed up for the Ironman. I thought that if this guy can complete the Ironman anything is possible. It had been a while since I had actually seen with my own eyes an inspirational journey as drastic and amazing as this happen. He decided to sign up for the Ironman even though he wasn’t doing any swimming, biking, and running and he would have to do a 2.4 mile swim, then a 112 mile bike ride, and run a full marathon of 26.2 miles. Just doing one of those things seemed impossible…much less all three in one day. But Chris knew something about himself. He knew what he might be capable of. He flew to Nepal and Bali and trained on his own for months. He lost 65 pounds.

On race day I saw him complete the swim in thirty minutes less time than he thought he would. I biked alongside him as he passed five people on the 111th mile. I saw him tell stories as he ran the marathon. Dreams are coming true and the impossible is happening once again, because in his first Ironman Triathalon ever Chris became an Ironman. He pulled the whole thing off in 14 hours and 44 minutes. The last split of the run was his best time. He was energized and joked with people drinking margaritas as he ran up the State Street hill towards the finish by the Capitol. I followed him around the course on my bike and it was one of the most motivating experiences I’ve had in quite some time. I was in the audience of the performance of a lifetime.

Finding inspiration for personal innovation is something that is worth seeking. I’m glad I spent the day at Ironman…I soaked up inspiration and motivation from friends and strangers and my mind is now working on ideas to do something big myself. I am thinking about what my own Ironman might be. There is an amazing video highlighting some inspiring stories from Ironman. It is emotional, compelling, and inspiring. Just try to keep a dry eye while watching.

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