Greetings Y'all

Day 2 and already feeling "stuck" about what to write. Not that kind of stuck though. When people talk about "writer's block" as a thing I often feel dead to that as a concept. I never have nothing to write about. Thank that to years of stream of consciousness writing. But "stuck" nevertheless - starting this email wondering what to write about for day 2 that won't send the 7 subscribers I have gathered into unsubscribe because the email is still not sexy or interesting. I'll probably delete this paragraph.

I've spent "all this time" so far, just setting this up. "Obsessing" about what to do, how to do it, all the things. I'm familair with this. It's what I do in all Kymology Challenges. It's what I do, it's what I teach, it's how I Guide. First things first: belabor the Set Up. Emphasize why it's important, insist on the details, define your things. I say it makes the rest easier and it does. So here I am on Day 1 post Set Up and feeling: now what?

It does all feel a bit overwhelming and I knew that it would. Signing up for anything to last a year SHOULD feel overwhelming. And you shouldn't do it lightly, which I haven't. (Don't break commitments to yourself.) And I also say I'd typically rather be overwhelmed than underwhelmed so there's that which means this is all good and fine and just as it should be.

The thing is, this will all get fluid and easier, and I know that. The momentum will come and I have done the setup well. Just don't break the streak once you get started, will be the aim. If you break the streak, you'll have to do it all over again. Or at least I will because I can't start something without it being a whole thing.

So maybe this IS the topic for the day that just came out of this stream of consciousness writing that should probably be deleted and the topic made more condensed, refined. Or maybe not. Will see how it goes. And that reminds me of a note I put somewhere, that has yet to be sussed out -

is it "will see" or we'll see?"

use the streak

What's a streak and why does it matter?

Streaks can empower you or disempower you, help you or hurt you.

Have you ever experienced STREAK MAGIC? It's when you've been doing something in an every day way or some other defined consistency, you've built yourself a streak.

Multiple days in a row of doing the thing you said you were going to do = streak.

The thing about a STREAK is that it can become a VERY COMPELLING THING that keeps you doing the thing.

I've seen someone else write about this before and it was called a thing. I don't recall the name for it. I could look it up or leave this here and someone will probably tell me.

The other thing about a STREAK is that it can become a thing that keeps you FROM doing the thing. How can the same thing keep you doing the thing, or keep you FROm doing the thing?
Everything is a when is it which.

A great way to really FEEL A STREAK is to SEE A STREAK. A good old fashioned childlike chore chart is great for this! I am not too old or too sophisticated to use a chart!

Counts are good for creating STREAK FEELINGS too. Like how I have started this daily email thing as a count. Yesterday was D1 for the day 1 email, today is D2, and one day it will be D10 and D100 and so on. Counting it like that will make it hard to break the streak.

the down side of streaks

The down side of streaks as a thing, is the same as the "up side" - if you break it, you can feel all is lost and you have to start over or it is over.

I once did "75 hard". I of course had to modify it a little to make it my way, but before I modified it I read all about it to know about it. One of the things in that format is every day no matter what and they really mean it. If you have a miss, you start over. That's what it says, literally. Imagine being 74 days into a 75 day challenge and having a miss for a very reasonable reason. you start over. That's the set up, it's in the rules.

It's one of the things I think people resist the most about that "challenge", but I think it's probably one of the things that is most illuminating and useful in that program.

People want to give all the great excuses when it comes to having a miss .. but what is there if you truly have NO MISSES?

This is where a streak can hurt you but in the long run help you.
Short run hurts to to start over or quit when you miss.
Long run helps you if you start over and get to the end without any misses. What that feels like and does to your soul and psyche!

Imagine it: 10 days in or 100 and you were going for 200 or 365 or the rest of your life. What happens when you're at whatever number in your count and you have a miss, you broke the streak.

Imagine being at 100 days of doing something every day, you really did that and you miss on day 101. What is that like? Do you forgive yourself? Take it easy? Have some ease and acceptance and compassion and understanding? Or do you decide it mattered and it's not okay and you start over? Or is it that because you had that miss, it's over. You're done with it?

What options are in the in-between

This about streaks. You can use them for good, you can use them for bad, they can help you or hurt you. Whatever you do, once you start, don't break the streak until you're done!

It goes with yesterday's topic of: what moors you?

Streaks can moor you. Streaks can also "make you" give up.

How have streaks shown up in your life?

The point of everything that you'll ever see in this email is what you do with it.

Energy to you,

If you'd like to receive these Kymology notes to your inbox every day, reply to this EMAIL OR sign up here. If you know someone you think would like this stuff, forward this email.

Below here will start to be an area of reference. Things collected over this time that will become the year.

word of the day

Apricity: the warmth of the sun in winter

quote to consider

“The only zen you'll find on mountaintops is the zen you bring up there with you.” ~ Alan Watts

INdex and keep-in-minders

Exhibit. When I say the word exhibit it's my way of saying a post or a share. I exhibit my life by posts and shares on social media and other places where things are published. Exhibits.

A Year of Inspiring, The Kymology Daily - what it is: daily emails about whatever I'm thinking about and writing out. Not quietly. Not maybe. Not sometimes. Not irregularly. Not in silence until it's done. Daily.

​The Kymology Daily ​

"It's been awhile since I've been called inspiring."
Then be inspiring again.

Don't break commitments you make to yourself.

...why do I think all this is worth sharing? Is there a point? Yes, I usually have a point, a little idea as a thing to be thought about that isn't only about me. Something for you to consider.

Resources

A link list for quick and easy clicking.

• ​Kymology Website
• ​Substack​
• ​Kymology on Youtube​

All this stuff needs work, but here it also is.

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Thank you for being here.

Energy to you. 🔺
​
Ciao for now!

KG

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