So, who am I?
Aaargh, this is the egocentric stuff I hate to write.
My name is Mike Kirkeberg and I am the writer and founder of this blog.
Born in the Twin Cities
Born in Minneapolis, I grew up on what we called the “Near North Side.” Now much of the North Side has been emptied out with the housing crisis. Lotta empty houses there.
The only thing that kept my neighborhood from being on the wrong side of the tracks was that the other side of the tracks was the Mississippi River. If those old stomping grounds were still around today, they would be called multi-ethnic. They’re not around because they fell victim to eminent domain to make way for Interstate 35W.
Usual Suspects
People laugh or look at me strangely when I tell them that in my neighborhood you couldn’t get a date unless you had a criminal record. That might be a slight exaggeration, but not much. Unfortunately I went through that ugly period in my life and, for lack of a better way to put it, by hook or crook worked my way through it and ended up with a “later in life” college degree.
I have to admit, though, for a period in my life, I didn’t do well.
The seventies for me was reasonably peaceful; okay maybe it was just a little less tumultuous. The late sixties and much of the eighties are a blur – lots of drugs, lots of craziness. It took me a long time to grow up. And I’m not quite finished yet.
I’m a guy who believed in continuous improvement on a personal level, and am always trying to learn something new. My goal is to share what I learn with other guys who are aging – as I am, of course – and want to do well with the third (or fourth or fifth) chapter in their lives.
I am also a cancer survivor, at least for the time being.
Stuff I Write About
I write about the stuff that interests me and that I hope will interest you. The purpose of this blog has evolved over time. When I started, I wanted to explore the possibilities, as we get a bit older, of preserving our brains, how they work and how they can help us do better in life.
Over time, it has evolved into a blog for men 50 and older to do this same thing. The question I work to answer is always how we can keep our brains and our lives flexible, whole and creative for as long as possible.
I also want to help men be better leaders of both themselves and others and to find a primary purpose for living. Purpose is one of the key factors in aging well. Without it – and you will see me struggle with this very thing in my writing – we feel as if we are continuously adrift.
Some science comes into all this. I want you to know I am up front, that I’m not a neuroscientist or scientist of any kind. What I am is an expert at my life and my hope is that as I learn, again, I can pass it on to you.
What Do I Try to Pass On?
The tips and ideas I pass on to you are practical, personal development and growth tools, self coaching tools, and occasional products that will help you, the average joe like me, as the expert on your own life.
What Counts is What Works for You
If you get on a personal development program, it only makes a difference if it helps you to do the things you want to do. It also matters that you have a healthy body to carry the three-pound mystery (the one we call our brain) around with you.
They are connected in ways that we never even thought about until about 20 years ago.
The personal development here is for you – and me. As a coach who may, at times, urge you to go against your brain, my philosophy has always been based on two things:
First, we are all just bozos on the bus, trying to find a sane lane to drive in our life. And I mean bozos in the best positive light, just regular guys – and, of course, the people who care about you.
Second — we are all in the soup together, and we have to help each other swim.
What You Won’t Find Here
- I bring a point of view with me. It is open to change. In saying that ….
- I hope you won’t find any dogma here. For myself, I am religiously irreligious. On the other hand, I try not to take it on myself to stomp on anyone’s beliefs or values.
- I think rigid rules are major obstacles to personal growth.
- That doesn’t mean that I won’t suggest routines and practices; even with those, I always recommend you take them with a grain of salt.
“The greater danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.” – Michelangelo
Being Helpful
After a year of pounding the keyboard almost every day, I am still just getting started. It reminds me of being in school. I came in and thought I knew a lot, and I constantly realize how much there is to know, and how little I really do know.
And I think I’m a quick study.
My goal is to always be helpful. If I’m not fulfilling that goal, let me know. I want to learn.
There’s an old saying about there being nothing new under the sun.
That needs to be revised -
There is nothing new under the sun, and everything is new under the sun. And everything is changing.
Reflect on some success you’ve had; it probably began in conversation. You found a feedback loop that helped you do life differently and then you began to see and things differently. Most want it to be the other way around — Think differently, then do.
If you feel stuck, it’s because you have behaved in a certain way, sometimes by doing and sometimes by not doing. An old friend once told me, “You can’t think your way out of something you behaved your way into.”
I invite you to the conversation.
Contact me for questions or ????
Disclaimer:
All content on this blog – including articles, newsletters, and news – is for information only and not intended to diagnose, treat or advise on medical, health, legal, financial or other issues.
This Old Brain .Net by Mike Kirkeberg is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.