Because you asked

A blog on advertising, marketing, music and technology

[finianmurphy]

Christmas wrapped

[finianmurphy]

#26 Be comfortable saying no thanks

In a career, as you get noticed, you get a lot of requests. Often flattering, but often overwhelming, a friend recently explained to me you can be paralysed by saying yes to everything. Learn to politely reject opportunities to give you focus.

[finianmurphy]

#25 Learn how to code

There was an old MS DOS computer in our house when I was young. I learnt QBasic and was amazed when I figured out how to create colours and animations on a screen. While my coding ability is really weak, I respect coding and should learn it - as it is the future of every industry.

[finianmurphy]

#24 Get Lucky

I realised a while back that no matter how hard you try, luck plays a huge role in success. The right time, the right place, serendipity is a powerful thing. 

[finianmurphy]

#23 Unfriend people

Dunbar’s theory suggests that humans can only comfortably maintain 150 stable relationships. If you realise you have little in common with someone, particularly if you try to maintain the friendship, walk away. Less stress.

[finianmurphy]

#22 Read

My Mum always encouraged me to read. As a teenager, I always ignored her. I regret that, but I have made up for it in my twenties by reading books, short stories or articles to educate and inspire.

[finianmurphy]

#21 Listen

You might thinking you’re listening to others, but sometimes you have to truly listen.

[finianmurphy]

#20 Be mindful

Meditation or mindfulness is nothing new and I’ve been guilty of jumping on the latest trend, but since spending 15 minutes a day meditating, I can safely say I am more mindful in my every day life. I have more focus on the task at hand and more considerate of my actions. Being mindful of the here and now reduces my anxiety for the future and possible regret of the past.

[finianmurphy]

#19 Offer your support

Being generous costs very little and there’s nothing better than helping someone out. Whether it is business or social it helps build on the relationship and more than likely the person will return the favour.

[finianmurphy]

#18 Honesty wins out

In contrast, honesty always wins. You will get caught out. The world is becoming more open with information and people are becoming more connected, that I believe being honest is the best solution. Whether you are telling the hard truth or complimenting someone, honesty tends to be more attractive than deceit.

[finianmurphy]

#17 Blag

Blagging is great fun. Getting into a gig that your not really on the guest list for, convincing the security guy that your pass is waiting for you inside or being confident to persuade a client. Blagging is good in measures, otherwise you become a constant chanced, and everyone should try it now and again.

[finianmurphy]

#16 Meet new people

You go to school, you meet your neighbours and you start working. These people tend to be your friends. People in your vicinity. This often means you don’t meet people who are into the same things as you. This is why I loved twitter and began to meet up with people who I met there. Some have remained good friends, others fortunately I can unfollow on twitter!

[finianmurphy]

#15 Move

Growing up, I was never sporty, but started to run in the past 5 years. This lead to me running a marathon and realised the importance of moving and exercise. Not only is it good for the heart, but good for the head too.

[finianmurphy]

#14 Chance your arm

After a few beers the fourth night I lived in France, I asked the barman could a friend and myself play a gig in the pub the following week. He said yes and with a week’s long of frantic practice we got ourselves a monthly gig, which helped pay the rent and some beverages.

[finianmurphy]

#13 Listen to new music

When I was in college, I commuted for 47 minutes on the train. This equates to the average length of a music album. When I stopped commuting for so long, I promised to continue listening to new music. Surprisingly this is a discipline, but discovering new sounds is also great.

[finianmurphy]

#12 Prioritising does not mean procrastinating

Procrastination is a favourite pastime of mine. I love putting things off, particularly new things I’m not comfortable with. However, recently I also learnt how to prioritise tasks, which I need to get done. This means putting stuff I’m not comfortable with at the top of my list and working towards things I enjoy.

[finianmurphy]

#11 Never stop learning

I was always average in school, formal learning is valuable but has limitations like expecting you to learn stuff off by heart. However today, there are so many opportunities to learn something new with articles and videos on whatever you want available for free on the internet.