{"id":676,"date":"2016-05-09T13:12:15","date_gmt":"2016-05-09T13:12:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/adriangrigoras.com\/blog\/?p=676"},"modified":"2016-05-09T13:12:15","modified_gmt":"2016-05-09T13:12:15","slug":"password-changed-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adriangrigoras.com\/blog\/password-changed-life\/","title":{"rendered":"How a Password Changed My Life"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

\u201cHow could she do something like this to me?\u201d<\/em> said a voice in my head. All the time. Every day.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Back in 2011, when everything had gradients, iOS icons made sense, and people used deodorants, I was stuck in middle of a pretty bad depression due to my divorce.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Thankfully, I think I was smart enough (and had great people around me) so I managed my way out.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

One day I walk into the office, and my day begins at my computer screen. It was all great, until I saw this message:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

Your password has expired.
\nClick \u2018Change password\u2019 to change your password.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

No shit.<\/em> I thought clicking \u2018Change password\u2019 was gonna do something else.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I read this dumb message in my mind with angry grandpa voice: The damn password has expired.
\n<\/em>
\nAt my workplace, the Microsoft Exchange server is configured to ask thousands of employees around the planet to change their passwords. Every 30 days.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Here is the horseshit: The server forces us to use at least one UPPERCASE character, at least one lowercase alphabetic character, at least one symbol and at least one number. Oh, and the whole damn thing can\u2019t be less than eight characters. And I can\u2019t use any of the same passwords I\u2019ve used in the last three months.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I was furious that morning. Tuesday, 9:40 a.m. It was so hot that my torso was already sweaty even though I just got to work. I was late. I was still wearing my helmet. I think I forgot breakfast. Something tastes like cigarette in my mouth. I need to get shit done before my 10 a.m. meeting and all I have in front of me is a huge waste of my time.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

So there it was… this input field with a pulsating cursor, waiting for me to type a password that I\u2019ll have to re-enter for the next 30 days. Many times during the day.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Then, letting all the frustration go, I remembered a tip I heard from my former boss.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I\u2019m gonna use a password to change my life.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

It was obvious that I couldn\u2019t focus on getting things done with my current lifestyle and mood. Of course, there were clear indicators of what I needed to do \u2014 or what I had to achieve \u2014 in order to regain control of my life, but we often don\u2019t pay attention to these clues.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

My password became the indicator. My password reminded me that I shouldn\u2019t let myself be victim of my recent break up, and that I\u2019m strong enough to do something about it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

My password became: \u201cForgive@h3r\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I had to type this statement several times a day. Each time my computer would lock. Each time my screensaver with her photo would appear. Each time I would come back from eating lunch alone.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

In my mind, I went with the mantra that I didn\u2019t type a password<\/em>. In my mind, I wrote\u201cForgive her\u201d<\/strong> every day<\/em>, for one month.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

That simple action changed the way I looked at my ex wife. That constant reminder that I should forgive her, led me to accept the way things happened at the end of my marriage, and embrace a new way of dealing with the depression that I was drowning into.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

In the following days, my mood improved drastically. By the end of the second week, I noticed that this password became less powerful, and it started to lose its effect. A quick refresh of this \u2018mantra\u2019 helped me. I thought to myself I forgive her as I typed it, every time. The healing effect of it came back almost immediately.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

One month later, my dear exchange server asked me again to renew my password. I thought about the next thing I had to get done.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

My password became Quit@smoking4ever<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

And guess what happened. I shit you not. I quit smoking overnight<\/em>. This password was a painful one to type during that month, but doing it helped me to yell at myself in my mind, as I typed that statement. It motivated me to follow my monthly goal.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

One month later, my password became Save4trip@thailand<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Guess where I went three months later<\/em>. Thailand. With savings.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n
\n

\"2014-07-08-thailand.jpg\"<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/center><\/p>\n

\n

Thank you, password.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

So, I learned that I can truly change my life<\/strong> if I play it right. I kept doing this repeatedly month after month, with great results.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Here is an extract of what some of my passwords have been in the last two years, so you get an idea of how my life has changed, thanks to this method:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

Forgive@her \u2190 to my ex-wife, who started it all.
\nQuit@smoking4ever \u2190 it worked.
\nSave4trip@thailand \u2190 it worked.
\nEat2times@day \u2190 it never worked, still fat.
\nSleep@before12 \u2190 it worked.
\nAsk@her4date \u2190 it worked. I fell in love again.
\nNo@drinking2months \u2190 it worked. I feel better.
\nGet@c4t! \u2190 it worked. I have a beautiful cat.
\nFacetime2mom@sunday \u2190 it worked. I talk with my mom every week.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

And the one for last month:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Save4@ring<\/strong> \u2190 Yep. Life is gonna change again, soon.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I still await very anxiously each month so I can change my password into something that I need to get done.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

This method has consistently worked for me for the last two years, and I have shared it with a few close friends and relatives. I didn\u2019t think it was a breakthrough in tiny habits but it did have a great impact in my life, so I thought to share it with you all.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Try it yourself! Write these statements with the right mindset and attitude, and you\u2019ll change your life. Let me know how it works for you!<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Remember, for added security, try to be a bit more complex with the words. Add symbols or numbers, or scramble a bit the beginning or the ending of your password string. S4f3ty_f1rst!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Pass the tip to those who might need it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Updated on Jun 21, 2014: She said yes.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Source:\u00a0huffingtonpost.com<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cHow could she do something like this to me?\u201d said a voice in my head. All the time. Every day. Back in 2011, when everything had gradients, iOS icons made sense, and people used deodorants, I was stuck in middle of a pretty bad depression due to my divorce. Thankfully, I think I was smart\u2026 Read More »<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-676","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-personal-development"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adriangrigoras.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/676","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adriangrigoras.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adriangrigoras.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adriangrigoras.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adriangrigoras.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=676"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/adriangrigoras.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/676\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":677,"href":"https:\/\/adriangrigoras.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/676\/revisions\/677"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adriangrigoras.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=676"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adriangrigoras.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=676"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adriangrigoras.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=676"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}