Monthly Archives: March 2023

The other night I thought about fear. A powerful emotion closely related to shame but actually more intense than anger. I was recollecting a conversation with a friend about driving and I thought of what I did before when I was having that same issue. I realized that more of us are actually fearful of something we have not experienced yet. And the only way to get through it is to go ahead and do it. The more we spend time worrying, the lesser we spend on doing. We create more and more excuses on not doing if we think too much. And hence, we never tried. We're constantly disturbed about the idea of failing. But what if success was an option and we never tried? "Don't go there", "No, that doesn't look good", "I don't think that's a good idea". I hate when I hear negativity right off the bat. These are excuses of people who never tried, who never left their comfortable situations, who did not take any risks, who never accepted failure because they think they are better when in fact they are afraid. I look up to people who execute, who try despite their limitations, who decides with only 20% of the information. I loath those who assume they can't, who limits themselves, who makes up excuses instead of finding a way. How would you know where you stand if you haven't actually done anything? Attack that wall of "doing" and let your results speak to…

Today marks my 6th year anniversary of passing the NCLEX and I felt the need to share something to help my fellow Filipino nurses who are aspiring to become a USRN and work here in the US. Think of this as the easy and budget-friendly version of the entire NCLEX process. I myself DIYed my NCLEX and you can do it too. I know, the entire process of being a USRN is overwhelmingly confusing (this was my initial impression too) but there is a simpler way to look at it. The less-intimidating approach it is to look at it as two (2) separate processes: 1. Evaluation of Credentials (via CGFNS) and 2. State-specific License Application (via state BON website). It's easier and less confusing if I show it in a diagram. I will leave out the specific details and only show the major steps, the specifics will handle itself once you are the main tasks. Here is the diagram: It looks easier and less confusing. We helped two friends process their NCLEX and they are already here in the US working as an RN. We only guided them on doing the main steps, provided them the direction they needed and the process just flowed answered their questions as they go. This diagram not only provides guidance but also saves you, the aspiring candidate, a lot of time and money by avoiding fees that processing agencies ask. It's basically the same if you process with an agency because it's still you…

We have a surplus of information. About 20-30 years ago, information was scarce and to the ones who had it, it meant power. Now, it is everywhere and we no longer consider it as an upper-hand. In fact, too much information can be a disadvantage, a distraction even. Not only that it creates doubts, it amplifies our weakness. An excess of information implies less concentration. Oftentimes, leads us to a path of nothing--easily falling for anything, without standing for something. The better way to information is to go against the crowd, to avoid what everybody knows. If more and more people know and do the same thing, the lower the value of that same thing gets. And the chances of it failing is higher as well. If access to information is a tap away, what becomes more difficult? Filtering them. Letting go of the junk and focusing on those that are actually relevant to us has become harder than ever because we have fooled ourselves that we are better off with more, when in most cases we function at our best with less.

The good thing about being the "kuya" or the "older" person in the room is your hindsight advantage. That's why parents/elders usually give the young-bloods directions and strong, unsolicited opinions about a particular scenario because "they could've" done it themselves if their circumstance at that time allowed them to--this is kind of controversial but you get the point. Few days ago, I was asked by my younger brother about a life decision that most of us go through. I obviously experienced what he was asking about and I have my own opinion of it. I wanted him to see a different angle in contrast to what he is seeing now and what I then saw. But for some reason, I don't want to give him an "opinion", because that would be my preference. Every life decision is personal and I want to have him own his piece of the pie. He may have preferences that are skewed from mine. And I don't want him to look only from my lens, as there are many lenses to peek. The best I can do is shed some light or open his mind to other options that may also work for him. I do not want to direct him to do this then that, and he'll merely follow what I say even though he had his own desires. There are things that only him can ultimately decide. And if he's looking from a different lens, I might not see it on my end.…

As we go through adulthood, there are several things that demand our time. So we create hacks and workarounds to somehow catch-up with our own lives. In my case, I create default systems. Currently, I am working with meals, I want to eat as healthy as possible when I can not compromising what's on my plate's taste. So my go-to breakfast right now is simply: scrambled eggs with scallions, sautéed spinach on the side and a cup of coffee--with rice, of course. Simple and quick but has everything I need. And the cool thing about is I don't have to think too hard to make it. Automation, the non-AI way.

Photo by Andrew Neel The truths about learning: it is messy, it takes time and it comes with a lot of frustration. We go through all these to be wiser than we were yesterday, last week, last month or perhaps last year. Wisdom is something we take pride and value because it is something we can only share, not taken.

If we have become so blinded by the end-result, it will be difficult for us to love the process.

I hate that at some point in our lives (or for some people, their entire lives) we have to be a cog. That we don't have a choice but to comply to what our boss tells us to do. That we need trade our precious time for the company's benefit. But of course we get something in return for trading our time, money, our means to survive, to pay for the things that we need. But is it always for our benefit? Does it come with wisdom too? I hope we don't let it become the reason why we remain as a cog. We are not just another gear, prove that we can be the operator too.

I have had lots of ideas circling in my mind, my problem was that I did not act on them. They remained as ideas, they never had value.

If we find ourselves complaining about a situation we're struggling with, it just means we have not accepted our reality. We can either look-away and keep on complaining about our problems or confront them and come up with a resolution. A normal life has pains associated with it and how these pains are approached is up to us.