#17 Grab an opportunity

Grab an opportunity. When you’ve decided to set yourself on a journey towards a specific career goal, unexpected magic happens. You get an opportunity to make the first step. It happens so fast and sudden that you don’t even see value in it. And that’s the tricky part.

You have to have the courage to pursue that chance. Of course, if it aligns with your career goal. Don’t think about rewards or any other benefits. Imagine that it’s your essential step to break free from the years of inaction. This trigger sets you up for future success. Embrace it right away.

Next time may happen months and years from now. In the worse scenario, it may not even happen at all. So get right to business the moment you set your mind to it. Even if this specific job or a gig won’t bring you direct results, it will connect to the new or more significant possibilities.

It just happens, I don’t really know why. The excitement of unknown will motivate you to achieve better results. When your mind is free from unnecessary knowledge, you can produce results people would never think possible.

Also, you’ll pleasantly surprise yourself with your hidden powers. Grab an opportunity and reach your goals.

#16 The magic of love

The magic of love. It heals, it makes you happy, it inspires, yet it’s simple. When it comes into your life, do not resist, embrace it, let it fill every single fiber of your being. It’s worth it. All your life begin to make sense. You feel like a kid again.

The world sends you beautiful signs and signals. The Universe seems to be enjoying the fact that you’re in love and it starts to surprise you with unexpected gifts, which turn out to be miraculous. Life always gives you an opportunity to experience more love as if its existence depends on it. Let yourself to fall in love and do so madly.

There’s no shortage of benefits of being in love. This is one of those things that makes us human. It gives us purpose and a drive to live our lives in full. It allows us to be the doers, the achievers, the risk takers.

We weren’t born to sit on the sidelines, every one of us has a great purpose and love helps you to find what that is or creates circumstances in which you have a chance to make your great move. It also keeps you from going on the wrong side. Love is your friend and shield that protects you from misfortunes.

Yes, it’s scary, horrifying to open up your heart to someone, especially, if it’s been broken so many times. The love will make it whole again. Let the love flow into your life, and you’ll be pleasantly surprised with the magic that comes with it.

#15 Today is the answer

Today is the answer. Is life a game? What role do we play in it? What’s our ultimate mission? Imagine that we live a new reality every day. Take a moment to think about it. What if memories of the past events that we consider our biography reprogram every day in all human beings. It happens simultaneously, so we don’t notice the change.

We believe that we have lived through all those days, experienced various emotions, built careers, started families and relationships. The truth is we won’t know whether it’s right or not. There's no evidence to support that. What we can do is to realize that a new day is a new life and we have to use the most out of it because tomorrow we’ll live a different one.

Things you haven’t finished today won’t be the same on the next day. Today is your answer to life. Meet your friend, write that beautiful scene in your screenplay, inspire co-workers with your enthusiasm and love for the world, because tomorrow somebody else will play your role and the entire reality will be different.

Of course, that’s a theory and most likely isn’t true. However, a possibility of its existence makes you value every precious minute of your day and empowers to live in the moment, as the greatest actor, who impersonates his character completely.

Today is your answer to life.

#14 Action cures failures

Action cures failures. And that’s a fact. No matter how massive your defeat. You didn’t get what you’ve wanted. That sucks, very much. There may be moments when you want to dig yourself under the ground as deep as possible. Or go into some retreat. Hold on! Make a quick analysis.

Ask yourself: ”Does this activity makes me happy? If the answer is “no”- forget about it, but if it’s a “yes,” then declare to yourself: “I’m doing it again starting now.” Push yourself a little harder and turn frustration into a dedication.

The faster you’ll make this decision the better. In other words, you tell yourself: “I refuse to suffer.” To what your mind probably responds something like: “What do you mean you’re refuse?! Are you kidding me?! I’ve already pre-planned your depression for the following year, what I’m gonna do now?” That’s the moment when you act.

When you do this first step towards attaining your goals, your mind will say: “I see... Why didn’t you tell me before?!” And now with the first action made, and your mind on your side, you set yourself up for a beautiful journey while avoiding unnecessary suffering.

As a result, you’ll be much better self then you were when you failed, and that’s golden. Now your mind and body are well-prepared to tackle the challenge. Good luck!

#13 Living on the edge

Living on the edge. This is a tricky concept. Should you live like that or not? Within the last few days on my filming trip through the deserts of Arizona, Utah, and Nevada. I’ve encounter three things that made me reconsider the concept of living on the edge.

Number one, walking down the Las Vegas strip. Number two, gazing at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, and number three, writing this episode in the sky while flying from McCarran airport to the Burbank one. So what is living on the edge? It’s not just running along the rim of the Grand Canyon. This is way bigger. It’s life in its absolute, purest form. It’s a constant stream of energy that drives you towards your goal.

Yes, there is a fair chance of losing and failing. But also another opportunity to discover great experiences unknown to the most of humanity. If you live in a box whether it’s a physical one or a mental prison in your mind, get out of there. That is not life. Make a change. The key here is that the flow of energy makes you happy and lasts as long as you’re trying. While failure is painful but short.

The challenge is to think of failure as a learning tool. You’ve failed not because you’re a born that way. Most likely you just didn’t give your best, or it’s not your thing at all. Be honest with yourself. Rethink your priorities Ask yourself: “Why am I doing this?” And don’t let your emotions control your actions, force your actions to cure your despondency.

If you failed, take a deep breath and sing a song about your failure making up words as you go along. The next day, start from a fresh page. It’ll save month maybes even years of time. Keep your energy flow going by embracing the power of living on the edge.

#12 Let the world guide you

Let the world guide you. In the moments when I feel that my daily life goes in a linear mechanical way and loses its juice, I escape from it for a while. As I was practicing it, I discovered a way to let my mind free and allow the world to open a conversation.

Leave your phone and other devices at home and go outside. Once you’re there, close your eyes, take a deep breath in and then blink your eyes open as you breath out. The first sign that gets your attention. Follow it. It can be anything: a traffic sign in a shape of an arrow, a cloud that challenges you to run after it. Or something in the way that pedestrians move or birds fly.

Pursue that impulse until you discover another piece of visual information advising your mind where to go. I do it for a while until I come to a place that gives me an answer or a suggestion to what should I do next in my life. It reveals the essential change I must make, and reminds me of my true values. Then I go home.

Usually, it takes a while, and your mind finds a solution almost at the same time as your body gets exhausted from wandering. Since you explore a real world, you may interact with other people and perhaps start new friendships. Our reality is a vast ocean, and you’ll always be receiving surprises from it as long as you allow yourself to be open to it.

Let the world flow into your body and soul. So the monotonous life will explode in a colorful, emotional spectrum and you’ll appreciate the gift of life.

#11 Fasting

Fasting, or in other words not eating. This is a cool new tool I’ve been playing with for a few months now. I fast, as I’m recording this episode. The benefits are remarkable.

You’re saving time and money while losing those extra pounds accumulated over the weekend. Your senses sharpen. I can smell fried chicken from miles away. Your brain goes into a survival mode and focuses on important projects, which makes it an excellent practice to rethink your life’s purpose.

Your body cleans itself from the toxins, which have been there for years. Yes, your body needs cleaning too. The hunger will definitely intervene as you fast, but it comes in waves. Survive the waves and the rest of the day won’t be that hard. I usually experience two to three waves during the day.

After a few fasting sessions, you’ll discover that your body is perfectly capable of functioning for twenty-four to forty hours without food. Here’s the way I fast. Stop eating at 10 PM on the first day, don’t eat the entire second day, and resume eating in the morning on the third day, at whatever time works best for you.

Give it a shot. If you’re fearful that your body can’t handle it, consult with your doctor first. Otherwise, have a victorious cheat day then dive into a fasting journey.

#10 Rise to a challenge

Rise to a challenge. Grab a cup of delightful warm tea or coffee, turn off all the devices you have, allowing your mind to deepen into the treasures of your consciousness. Take a few moments until your body relaxes and then ask this question: “What challenge thrills my heart?”

It can be anything, running an obstacle race, writing a novel, climbing the Everest, or sailing around the world. The limit is your imagination. Once you’ve found your breathtaking mission, take action immediately. Sign up for a race, take a novel writing class, or read an article on how to climb Everest.

On top of that, make a considerable financial and psychological commitment, the one that’ll leave you with no other options but to take the challenge. Raise your stakes as high as you possibly can. The next day, start sharing your passion with your social circles. From now on, you’re on an exclusive heroes journey. Your actions have to be consistent, so your skills and confidence increase exponentially.

On your quest, you’ll encounter the moments when your brain will give the most persuasive reasons to quit, and that’s exactly when you have to push harder, that’s the moment that separates most people from achieving goals. Eventually, when you take this challenge and complete it, your life will change forever.

You’ll feel like you can do anything, there’ll be no fear. And which is more you’ll have a cool story to tell later. Rise to your challenge, my fellow humans.

#9 The Importance of laughter

Laugh as if your life depends on it. The world may seem cruel at times. One day your life is good and then the next you go into a series of little and sometimes huge misfortunes, and there’s that desire to find someone responsible, someone, but yourself.

The one thing we seem to forget is that we always have a choice. Even though there’s none at first glance, it’s still available, even during the worst possible circumstances. We possess power over our reactions to the challenges.

You can get disappointed and internally or out loud blame the world and its members for your difficulties, or you can laugh at it. With all your passion, with all your might. Turn your disappointments into a powerful burst of laughter.

Just start laughing. It may begin as awkward and silly, but you keep going with it until you reach the state of flow where the troubles become the thing of the past and lose their influence on you.

You can even take it further and call your friends and laugh with them, or crack a joke at your workplace. Go and have a blast and don’t care what other tells you they're missing out lots of fun.

#8 Magic of swimming

In this episode, I describe my random, yet life-changing swimming experience.

Swimming. Elegant, glorious, and inspiring activity. On top of that, it could be a life-changing experience. It reunites you with nature on the deepest most intimate levels and makes your soul sing.

I was so overwhelmed with my projects, as well as the critical life decisions that I couldn’t take a deep breath. Then after a late night conversation with my friend, I concluded that I must go for a swim. The next morning I woke up very early and got myself into a swimming pool. I was lucky enough to be the only one there.

During the swim I was thrilled with the smoothness that my worries disappeared, replaced by courage and boldness. That was when I tried something new. I reexamined my personal and work-life and imagined as if I’ve already accomplished everything. All that opened new channels in my thinking process I felt like a newly born man and went on conquering the day.

Go to a pool, a pond, a lake, or the Pacific Ocean and fearlessly glide like a dolphin. You’ll discover new energy that’ll drive your day and possibly give you a fresh start in your life.

#7 Sunsets and sunrises

This time, I talk about the magic of sunsets and sunrises and how they can change your life.

Sunsets and sunrises. What a wonderful concept. Why do they exist? Are they suppose to tell us something essential or reveal the ultimate truth? Perhaps they remind us how glorious the world is.

Each time I go for a run, walk or find myself outside when the sun is in its splendor, I experience a deep connection with it as if this moment was perfectly customized for me. All the marvelous memories I’ve had, materialize in my head as if on a movie screen. My mind calms down, the body unwinds, and I gradually realize which life goals, people, and experiences I value the most and which I should stay away from or let go.

No matter what, the sun has to rise and set. Every single citizen of our lovely planet Earth has the opportunity to witness this beauty of nature while discovering the enormous power within so they can achieve things that people will talk about hundreds of years from now.

#6 Humans and A.I.

What makes us Human? In this Episode I share my thoughts about it.

What makes us human? Such a wonderful question. Is it all about the bonds we have with fellow sapiens? Or is it the ability of our brain to function in a certain way that Artificial Intelligence can’t?

As I was having more conversations about Intelligent Machines with people I know, as well as random ones I met while carpooling, I discovered that we, humans, gradually turn into computers, while robots are becoming more human.

We tend to make our lives more efficient by limiting real-life interactions with others to save time, simultaneously machines spend a lot of time communicating with us almost non-stop and which is more they learn how to feel.

That was eye-opening, especially when you start to think about all those warnings about A.I. taking over the world.

Here’s the deal, if you’d like to save the humanity, go out and have a meaningful face to face conversation with a living and breathing individual you’ve been communicating with online, and ask him or her, “What’s it like to be a human being?”

#5 Technology addiction

How the tehnology makes us addicts and what we can do.

A virtual life versus a real one. I’ve noticed this secret evolution of machines. I’m talking about smartphones here. They’re fueled with distractions coming from various apps that attack our humanity nonstop. This dependence on the technology appears to me like a modern type of slavery.

That is a virtual ball and chain well-tied to our souls every single day. And when it's away from us, we feel insecure, bored, even lost. This notion of having the smartphone in your pocket to feel safe makes me terrified. Do we need this security?

Each life journey is an adventure, but it reveals its secrets only to those who dare to experience unknown. You’ll never discover the miracles of the World if you delegate control over your life to a mobile device.

Leave your gadgets at home and lose yourself in nature for a day or two. Make the first step to real life, and thrilling wonders of the Universe will open up to you.

#4 Distractions

In this Episode, I describe my experience of being overwhelmed by distractions and what helps to ignore them.

Fall in love with your failures. They are the ones that improve you. When you fall flat on your face make sure you put both of your hands on the floor and push yourself up. That’s important. There are way too many distractions in our modern world, and it seems impossible to avoid all of them.

Yesterday, I stuck in the web of anxiety, and a terrible spider of procrastination was slowly consuming me. That was the moment I closed my eyes and shut down my mind from the physical world. At first, it was scary and uncomfortable, but then I felt liberated. What was the point of getting myself so stressed out? None.

The world is an illusion. So why can’t I focus on what’s important to me? It’s all a game anyway. I opened my eyes and wrote the first word of my screenplay. Then I wrote a page. The gears started to spin, and I kept on going. There was no time left for distractions. Find out what’s meaningful to you and do the first step.

#3 Try something different

In the third episode of the UNCONSCIOUS THOUGHTS series, I emphasize the importance of trying something different.

Do something different, take a path that is strange and unique, when everyone drives in your city consider taking a long walk. A few days ago, I walked with my friend from Burbank to Santa-Monica, which is a 6-hour challenge. This simple way of choosing a different path makes you think in an entirely new way. Fresh connections develop in your brain as your legs get tired.

Since your not protected by the cage of your car, you have to encounter real human beings, some are nice, some are questionable, and some are weird. The coolest part is that you have an opportunity to interact with them, even though, sometimes you have to. But that's okay. That's the beauty of it. You genuinely feel alive.

You learn more about your nature and what is crucial in life. On lucky days you can discover something utterly beautiful. Dare the world and try something different.

#2 Hidden benefits of running

A second episode of the UNCONSCIOUS THOUGHTS series, where I contemplate the wonderful benefits of running.

When I feel stuck or need some fresh ideas, I go for a run. It’s a powerful tool. It brings your body and mind to their best shape, so you are ready to conquer the day and the world. Early morning, before the sun showed up. I ran up to the top of the Mt. Hollywood. A majesty of nature in its full power revealed itself to me.

A stream of clouds was moving over the mountain like large white waves lit by the freshly risen sun. The view was a pure wonder. All my worries, disappointments, and failures felt so insignificant. As a bonus, I got a solution to one of my stories that I was struggling with. It felt like I’ve visited another world or even a universe. It supercharged me with its enormous energy.

So, go for a run. You never know what miracle you’ll discover.

#1 The power of silence

A first episode of the UNCONSCIOUS THOUGHTS series, where I contemplate about little and big things that happen to me in real life and how they can help you.

Welcome my favorite humans! I’m your host, Konstantin Starodetskii, and this is Unconscious Thoughts, a space where I contemplate about little and big things that happen to me in real life and how they can help you. Enjoy.

I wonder how silence sometimes becomes a luxury that you never really know of. Today I’ve had a somewhat surreal experience. As usual, I was fighting my way through the traffic to get to the evening class on time. On the road, it was complete chaos, fueled by stress and hate radiating from other drivers.

Eventually, I’ve managed to put my car in safety of a parking spot, but then when I step out - a sudden silence stroke my ears, it was so quiet, that it was loud. All human beings seem to left the Earth. It was a weird sensation, but it got me thinking... How precious and powerful silence can be. I believe we should find a way to experience it more often in our daily lives. A marvelous and refreshing experience. Try it too.