Week 15: RETURN TO THE PIR

This week I spent some time thinking about the mechanics of the weekly tasks and came up with some breakthroughs. I have returned to the PIR (Planning, Implementation, and Reflection) format and have been able to clearly identify what goes in each category and have listed them below:

PLANNING: This is where you identify the task that you want to complete, schedule a time to complete it, and prepare on how to turn Waiting Time = Developing Time (WT=DT). 

This week I wanted to buy Scrivener to start writing and organizing my thoughts on the book. I scheduled to complete the task on Wednesdayin the morning, as I knew we had some free time that day. Additionally, I put this task of buying Scrivener into my gTask pro app so I would not forget as well. Lastly, I uploaded the Book In A Box pdf to turn any WT = DT.

IMPLEMENTATION: This is where you include the strategies that you used to execute your task. 

This week I used my strategy to put reminders in high traffic areas and James Clear's strategy of SCHEDULING to complete my task. Just like advertisements, the more you see something the more apt that you will take the steps to complete the task. In addition, setting a time to complete the tasks saves will power as you have already made the choice when to complete the task, but also allows you to relax as you know there is a set time for you to do so. 

Photo Credit: Neils Linneberg via compfight 

Lastly, I incorporated Jeff Goins' 3-Bucket system of writing. In this process you have three buckets: 

1. Ideas

2. Writing

3. Editing

Usually I try to do all three buckets at once, but this week I stored ideas on my phone, wrote the post, and then edited it at a later time. This really actually made the process much more efficient. 

REFLECTIONS: This is where you add the learnings from the the task itself or completing the task. In additon, you can add the action steps that you can takeaway for the following week.

Although I planned, scheduled, and put strategies into place this week I still did not complete the task at the specified time. The key thing is that I did complete the task and did not judge that I did not complete the tasks exactly like I planned. As I reflected at the end of the week, I made some connections to some learnigns from previous weeks. 

First, is the idea of Type-1 and Type-2 fun mentioned by Joanna Penn. She said that a friend of hers said that activities can be broken up into two categories of fun. Type-1 fun, which is immediate gratification in the activity, for example, going to a concert of our favorite musician. You have fun by just being at the concert and listening to music. Type-2 fun on the other hand, are activities that do not produce immediate gratification and are at times challenging and difficult. You feel the fun or pleasure after you have completed or achieved a goal. For example, the process of discovering, pursuing, and achieving your dreams. It has been 15 weeks now that I have been committed to my weekly tasks in writing a book about 52 in 52. I will admit that there have been weeks when there was no Type-1 fun, but the key has been that I have been consistent each week in completing the tasks. 

Second, is the Cumulative Effect that James Clear wrote about in his blog. He wrote that his blog grew exponentially in mailing list subscribers when he committed to publishing two articles every week. It did not matter, every Tuesday and Thursday he would publish a piece of writing. This produced two benefits, first, he was able to remove clutter and produce better work, and second, he was able to aggregate his small gains to produce significant results. For example, he grew is mailing list to over 500,000. James said "Show up every week and devote yourself to improving in small amounts, as this can produce significant results in a short amount of time." This corresponds to the completion of the weekly tasks. The cumulative effect of showing up every week and completing the task to help you improve in small amounts will help you discover, pursue, and achieve your dreams. 

Thanks for tuning in and look forward to seeing you week 16.

Week 14: WHAT ARE YOUR DREAMS AND OBSTACLES?

PLANNING: This week the intention was to talk to three people about what their dreams were and the major obstacles that they faced. I decided this on Sunday and planned to do it throughout the week. 

SCHEDULING: I left this a little open this week and tried completing this task during my everyday conversations. In theory, the flexibility should have allowed me to get this done quite easily, but I ran into some difficulties that I will mention in my Learnings section. 

IMPLEMENTATION: I was able to complete the task of talking with three people this week and two main things allowed me to do this. First came a strategy from Jeff Goins who said that action will follow mindset. This means to change your mindset to being a pro at whatever you do, find out what the pros do in that field, and consistently do that on a daily basis. For me, if I want to complete 52 tasks in 52 weeks to discover, pursue, and achieve my dreams, then I have to model what other successful people do. Second is what I learned last week from Tim Ferris who said that the most important habit to have is to "stick to key habits, especially when you don't want to." 

LEARNINGS: This week I set out to find out what peoples dreams were and what their major obstacles they had. I thought it best to see what major hurdles people face, so that I can eventually finds ways to help them overcome them in the process of discovering, pursuing, and achieving your dreams. All three individuals had different responses to both questions and they are listed below:

• Person 1 (female): This person said her dreams were to help those that are less fortunate through volunteering or other programs. She also said that her major obstacles are FEAR of not succeeding in trying something new by not having the necessary skills, for example language.

• Person 2 (male): This person's dream is to work for a major publication as a journalist. He said his major obstacle was lack of experience in the field. 

• Person 3 (female): This person said she would like to be a sculptor and her major obstacle was availability of studios. 

Although each person said different things there are some similarities. For example, person 1 and 2, the lack of experience could cause the anxiety of not succeeding in a new field. This will be interesting as I continue to gather feedback, but hopefully themes will start to appear and I will be able to identify and find solutions to the major obstacles that we face in discovering, pursuing, and achieving our dreams. 

Additionally, I wanted to add the insights I gained from the process of completing the task this week. I had some difficulty completing the task of talking to three people and asking them what their dreams were and their major obstacles standing in their way. At the end of the week I had a quality reflection period and I was able to come away with three big learnings:

1) Knowledge is not power, but EXECUTION is. This came up in my weekly reading of Money-Master the Game by Tony Robbins. I say this because last week I gained the knowledge that I made completing the task difficult, as I did not incorporate earlier strategies that had worked. Although I gained that knowledge, I still did not follow through on writing my tasks out in high traffic areas or scheduling out specific times to complete the task. It is certain that this week I will make it a point to commit to these strategies so that I can complete next weeks task easier. 

2) PLANNING is a crucial step. This past Sunday I decided on what to do, but then I did not clearly plan out specifically how, when I was going to do it. As I reflected at the end of the week, it stemmed from not having a clear plan. In previous weeks I blocked out certain times and even uploaded the websites that I needed on both mobile devices and laptops at home. It was an AHA moment, when I was able to identify this. 

3) Appreciate more, and judge less. For some reason I feel that if I complete the task earlier in the week and am able to do more, then the week was much more of a success than other weeks where I struggle to complete the tasks. I have learned that you can not judge one week from another, as the main goal is to complete your 52 in 52 and use the cumulative effect of consistently completing tasks.There will be great weeks, but their will be more challenging weeks. The key is to commit to completing the tasks that help you discover, pursue, and achieve your dreams.

Thanks for tuning in and in the comment sections please share what are your dreams and obstacles? 

Week 13: IT'S ALL ABOUT THE ROUTINE

Photo Credit: S. Su

SCHEDULE: This week I planned to create an Instagram account for 52 in 52 and read at least one hour about the process of writing a book form Book In A Box. This site gives you a step by step process of writing a book, without writing. I know it sounds counterintuitive but it is quite logical once you read it. 

IMPLEMENTATION: I was able to incorporate the idea that I had learned from earlier weeks about meaningful results being produced in a short amount of time. Although I did have bigger pockets of time this week, life happened and others tasks had to be completed. The key was that I was disciplined and committed to completing the tasks. This reminds me of what Time Ferris mentioned about habits on his 5-Bullet Fridays post,  Tim has a lot of quality information and shares his top 5 on a weekly basis. He said in a post that,

"Practicing key habits when we don’t want to is the most key habit of all." 

LEARNING: This was the first week in about two months where I did not watch a video from the self-publishing website (because I finished them all). I have to admit it was a little harder as each week I knew exactly that I would watch a video and learn from each of the guest speakers. This week I had to choose another task, and although that sounds easy, it was difficult. I did some reflection and saw that the routines that I had set-up to watch the videos were for some reason not incorporated. This caused some frustration, which was misplaced on my wife Meggo (sorry). The more I thought about it, the task itself should not make a difference as I should have a system in place to complete the task, whatever it is. For example, usually I write notes in high traffic areas of the task of the week...not done this week. Many other things came up this week that needed to be completed and those took up the time where I usually watch the video modules. 

This is where the strategies from James Clear came up again. He says to SCHEDULE times for your chosen task, and let that drive you completing them. This is a better option than waiting for motivation, which is sporadic at best, and the right external circumstances to do so. This was a valuable learning, but more important is the application of this knowledge. Below is a list of actions to take to avoid completing tasks in the future.

1. Create a routine where you schedule specific times for you to complete your task. If you think you have no time, then complete a weekly audit and write down how you use your time. You should be able to find some available time to schedule time for YOU to complete your tasks. 

2. Let the schedule drive you completing your tasks, not motivation or the right external circumstances. If everything has to be right, then you will wait forever. 

3. Do not judge your work, create it! I am really bad at this, but improving everyday. It is your job to be consistent and create the work. If you constantly judge it, whatever you are trying to do will never get done. Schedule a time, complete the task, and learn from the process. If you do this consistently then the cumulative effect of what you do on a weekly basis will produce quality results. 

Thanks for tuning in this week and see you next week...J

12 Weeks In: YOUR POTENTIAL EXPANDS AS YOU MOVE TOWARD YOUR POTENTIAL

Photo Credit: Painting Lesbon by Pedro Ribeiro Simoes 

PLANNING AND SCHEDULING: This week I set out to finish the last video module on the self publishing site on tips about writing a book. Megan and I had a date night when I usually watch the module, so I scheduled in advance to watch the video during a planning time at school. As similar to other weeks, I uploaded the site to my web browser so it pops up automatically. 

IMPLEMENTATION: I pre-committed and focused on the 2-minute rule this week. Pre-committing is a great strategy to conserve will power on making decisions. Just be deciding that you are already going to do something at a given time avoids the inner battle to complete the task or not. The decision has already been made. Although this sounds simple, there is that inner voice that pops up, and this is where the 2-minute rule comes in to save the day. I focused on the first 2-minutes of watching the video and writing the post and that in itself propels me to finish the tasks. With both of these strategies I watched the video on the scheduled time and am writing this post as Meggo and Tae are taking a nap. 

LEARNING: This week I have been rethinking the idea about PIR and maybe changing it to PSILA, which stands for Planning Scheduling Implementation Learning and Actions. This fits more with what is guiding me on my weekly tasks and just feels right. 

Additionally, I was able to come up with the hook for 52 in 52 after about three weeks of wrestling with it. An easy, sustainable way to discover, pursue, and achieve your DREAMS. This combines a lot of what I have learned from the first 12 weeks. For example, in week 10 Joanna Penn spoke about the process of discovering your passions and that really resonated with me. This statement will drive how I move forward with writing and completing the book. 

Lastly, this week I had the pleasure to learn from Marisa Peer. Marisa is a best selling author of four books, a behavioral expert, and has been a therapist with olympic athletes and A-list celebrities. She had many great insights and they are listed below:

-Writing a book is like painting a picture. You are not quite sure at the beginning of the process, but then you draw a house and then a mountain and the whole canvas comes together. The same with a book, as you might start with chapter 2, 7, or even the conclusion and that will lead to filling in the periphery elements.

-If you want to sell books, write what READERS would like to read. Identify the problem and then work towards solving it. 

-Three main things about the brain. 1)It does what you think you want it to do. 2)It responds to pictures in your head and words that you tell it. 3) It likes what is similar. The first two facts connect to what I have been learning about the power of visualization and affirmations. If you think or tell your self something enough times, it will come true. 

-A couple of great quotes 

"Your potential expands as you move towards your potential." 

This resonated with me, as often times we don't know exactly how we will complete new tasks, but if you take the necessary steps you gain the necessary skills to complete the task in the end. 

"The minute you commit to something providence works with you." 

This connects to what Rhonda Byrne wrote about with the Law of Attraction and the idea that when you start something the universe works with you. 

"Belief with out talent will get you farther than talent with out belief, but if you have both you are unstoppable."

This reminds me of what Will Smith talked about in an interview where he believes that he is not the most talented, but he possess a work ethic greater than anyone. He talked about getting on a treadmill and running until he beat the person next to him because he has that inner belief that he will last longer than the other person. In addition, it ties into what Jeff Goins said last week about how activity follows identity. Change your mindset first and then activity will follow. 

-An important theme that kept coming up was the idea to have 100% faith in you self and to just start. This tied into a lot of what Marissa explained in the interview. She finished by saying you just don't know until you start, so have faith and just start!

ACTIONS: The learnings from the week come at the perfect time as next week I will actually be starting to write. There were many great tips that I learned from Marisa, but the main one that I will incorporate is to have FAITH in my self that I can write this book and JUST START, as we don't know until we start. 

Lucky 11: DEADLINES FORCE CREATIVITY

PLANNING AND PREPARING: This week I wanted to finish one of two last videos in the self publishing site, but also had to work around a short week. I pre-committed and scheduled time to watch the video and make an outline of the post for this week before I left for the beach. In addition, I uploaded the video on both my laptop and iPhone so I could turn any waiting time into developing time.

IMPLEMENTATION: As I mentioned above this was a short week, and although it was a challenge as their was a time constraint, I still was able to complete the tasks. I am finding that nap times are a great time to devout to the weekly tasks as both Megan and Tae are peacefully sleeping. This time also helps me focus as I know that it is finite but also that both of them will not need my attention during that time.

REFLECTION: I am learning that every week that by watching each video that I learn other things indirectly. For example, by making a point to watch the video with a time constraint taught me

The lesson that you can always find time if you need it. This is true as a constraint sparks your creativity. James Clear wrote how constraints are a key to creativity as it makes you automatically think how you can solve a problem in a way that overcomes the obstacle. 

I had the pleasure of learning from Jeff Goins today. He is author of four books, including the ART OF WORK. In addition, he is a speaker and entrepreneur. A lot of useful insights and I have listed them below:

•Simple question to ask if you are following your dream. Are you succeeding at the wrong things and where will this take me in 10 years? What is your dream and what are the obstacles standing in your way of accomplishing?

•Two actions to follow to achieve your dreams.

1 Be honest with what you enjoy

2 Disciplined and doing it day in day out

•In order to become a pro in whatever task you choose, ask what does a pro (of whatever profession) do and then do that everyday. Jeff had a great quote, "activity follows identify." This also validates what Jack Canfield, best selling author of the chicken soup for the soul series, said about acting as if you are already the person you want to be in order to be successful. The key is to change your mindset first and activity will follow.

•Deadlines force creativity and helps produce results. This ties back to what James Clear wrote about constraints and how they spark creativity.

•For any book, create somethign you want to read.

•Write everyday using the 3 bucket system

1 IDEA. Gather all ideas in one location.

2 DRAFT. Choose an idea and draft a version of it.

3 EDIT. Polish a draft in order to publish.

Do this on a daily basis to not make it overwhelming and create buffer for blog or book. This idea also ties into the Equal Odds Rule, which says that if you create more, you create more opportunities to hit your target.

•Creativity is a chaotic experience, but it brings order out of chaos. For example, writing a book is taking a lot of ideas and connecting them in a coherent manner.

•Clutter is the enemy of creativity. Although this will vary from person to person, the more clutter you have the less creative you can be.

LEARNING: This week I think something that I can start implementing is the idea that "activity follows identify." If I want to be an entrepreneur/writer/DJ I need to change my mindset that I am that person and then do tasks on a daily basis in order to become a pro in that field.