WFP2 – Weekly Focus Point 2

On Sunday evening I was once again performing stand-up comedy at a bar in Ilford called the IG1 bar. It was a hugely successful event and we always spend time with the crowd afterwards to find out what they thought and to get plenty of feedback. The overall feedback was that everyone really enjoyed themselves and wanted more! We had about 60 people come along and the setting was an open bar with round tables and people sitting around enjoying themselves. It’s the first time I think as a group that we have done an event in that kind of setting. It is usually the theatre kind of setting that we perform in so this brought with it a different kind of learning experience that and I really enjoyed. That setting for some reason just feels more intimate and personal and also I think because it reminds me of other comedians I’ve seen performing at similar events.

While I was there it was an opportunity for me to practise WFP1 – being in the moment. Just before it was my turn to perform and I centered myself and became present in the moment. I didn’t worry about how the future and how I would perform and I didn’t stress about the past and whether I had practised enough. I had someone ask me how to be in the moment and there are a few simple techniques. Try this one to begin with: While doing any movement, become consciously aware of the inner processes going on that allow that to happen. E.g. As you get ready to sip your drink, become aware of how it is all happening. How your brain is communicating that desire to your arm so that it then carries out the intended function.

This weeks focus point is slightly different and it’s more about tangible practise as opposed to inner awareness. I mentioned this on John Assaraf’s blog as it coincided with something he mentioned. How often do you sit back and observe your inner chatter? Most of that inner chatter is either evaluation or questions and a lot of the time it’s neutral but it’s the meaning we give to that which we think that creates what we perceive to be negative or positive. What do you think about yourself? If you have a low opinion of yourself you’ll no doubt you’ll feel bad when you think about how other people perceive you. If you have a high opinion of yourself you’ll look down at other people. Somewhere in the middle is a healthy respect for yourself and others. You don’t put yourself or others on a pedastol and you don’t negate yourself. To find the balance here is a good exercise you can try.

Many self employed people and in particular on personal development websites you will see that the person in question has written a 3rd person bio about themselves. If you’ve never done one before, try writing one! Even though I have done one for this blog I will be writing another one soon for a specific project I will be working on. In that bio I will be focussing more skills that concern that particular project.

It’s an interesting process and can be a bumpy one! We find it so easy to criticise ourselves and much harder to think highly about ourselves. Not in an arrogant way but in a way that condusive to not only bringing out the best in you but the best in others also. So grab a pen an paper or switch on your laptop and go ahead and write a 3rd person bio about yourself that is not arrogant but honest and that demonstrates qualities and traits you believe thats represents you as a wholesome character who oozes confidence and self respect.

Here’s one I made earlier!: 😆

“Amit is a man of many talents. Not only does he run his own business as a Life Coach but Amit also undertakes challenges and pursuits of a huge variety. Amit spends much of his time working with and coaching children from walks of life with the aim of self-empowering youths. Coupled with this Amit hosts a Radio Show called ‘Backchat’ which is a topical youth talk show aimed at the 13 – 25 market and it’s purpose it to not only talk about but tackle some of the toughest issues affecting the younger generation. Amit also volunteers at an organisation called PACE which is charity which encourages and promotes the inclusion of young disabled people in sports. In his spare time Amit is an amateur stand-up comedian and regularly appears as part of the Humili-Asian amateur comedy nights. So far Amit has performed in front of crowds of 200+ and believes that humour is one of the most powerful mediums through which human beings can be inspired. Amit is also a keen badminton player and has many other hobbies like chess, music, running, solving puzzles, reading, driving, travelling, and gadgets.”

There we have it, simple, to the point, gives some good information about me and lets people know what I do and makes it easy for them to connect with me. There’s always room for improvement but it’s a step in the right direction. Remember that the purpose of this exercise is to redress the balance in the way that you think about yourself and break the habit of the negative self talk that you might be used to and replace it with more constructive productive self talk.

As always try this exercise for yourself and if you wish post up your own personal bio here in the coments! 😉