Did you know that a task that’s interrupted takes 50% longer and has 50% more mistakes than an uninterrupted one? It takes a while for our brains to get into a focused state where we’re able to concentrate fully on a task without feeling distracted. Once we’re in that state, we can enjoy a very [...]
Plodding and bursting are two different strategies for getting things done. Understanding these two modes will help you in two ways. First, you’ll be able to identify your own default mode, so you can better take advantage of it. And second, you’ll be able to understand others who prefer your non-dominant mode, so you can [...]
Learning Strategies is hosting yet another Mindfest that you can listen to online, and like their previous Mindfests, it’s completely free. They’re really on a roll with these… This one is called the Effortless Success Mindfest, and it’s a streaming version of an audio program from Jack Canfield. I listened to this full program on CD [...]
I have many friends who are broke and other friends who are very wealthy. When people are broke, their favorite excuse is “I don’t have enough money.” When people are wealthy, their favorite excuse is “I don’t have enough time.” Anyone can come up with an excuse to avoid taking action, and their excuses always [...]
Lean into action in spite of your doubts. It’s unreasonable to expect perfect clarity in advance. A fuzzy idea is good enough. Ideas don’t normally become crystal clear when you’re standing still and pondering them. In fact, they rarely become crystal clear even after you’ve implemented them. When I get an idea for a new [...]
Put your head underwater and keep it there for a while. You’ll soon realize that you’re 100% committed to breathing. Notice that you don’t make excuses not to breathe. Notice that you don’t worry about motivating yourself to breathe. Notice that you don’t need to justify your desire to breathe. You just breathe. Commitment is [...]
The harder I work, the luckier I get. – Samuel Goldwyn Arbeit Macht Frei is a slogan on a sign above the entrance to the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland (among other concentration camps used by the Nazis). It roughly translates as, “Work sets you free.” What the Nazis expressed with cruel irony, I say seriously. [...]
While I normally write for people who are interested in improving their lives, I’m aware that many are committed to the opposite path. These people deliberately decline steps that would lead to measurable improvements. They prefer that everything goes wrong — for as long as possible. Sometimes they screw up and accidentally do something right. [...]
Even when you take the time to set clear goals, visualize success, and break big goals down into projects and action steps, it can be difficult to get yourself to take action consistently until your goal is 100% complete. Crossing the starting line is much easier than crossing the finish line. Your overall results in [...]
“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable man persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” – George Bernard Shaw In reading the biographies of very successful men and women, one theme frequently surfaces: such people have a strong bias for action. Those [...]