IMPLEMENTATION (strategies used): Well the streak to complete the weekly tasks on time has come to an end after five weeks, but I still was able to complete the task later on in the week. Below is a list of strategies that were used, where new ones are listed first with more in depth explanations.
1. Early Scheduling: This is a strategy that I was incorporating during my streak of completing my tasks on time, and it was a huge benefit this week. In this strategy, you first PLAN to complete a task and then SCHEDULE a time to complete the task as early in the week as you can. Two benefits are produced from doing this. First, you get a sense of accomplishment if you complete the task in the beginning of the week at the scheduled time. In addition, it allows you to devout more time to do additional tasks to reach your goals within the same week. Second, it provides more time to complete the task if life presents you with something that needs to be attended to during the original scheduled time.
2. Seinfeld strategy: Although my streak of completing the weekly tasks on the scheduled set time ended, my streak to complete the weekly tasks is still alive. This idea of keeping the streak alive goes back to the Seinfeld strategy that I learned from James Clear It is called this because a young comedian once asked Jerry Seinfeld how to become a "better comedian." Jerry said take a huge calendar and place a big X for everyday that you write jokes, and if you can place an X for every day of the year, then you will become a better comedian. This strategy makes your progress visible and provides additional motivation to continue the streak of completing weekly tasks that move you towards your goals for the year.
3. WHY, WHY, WHY?: This strategy is used to identify the problem, which is one of or the most important part of problem solving. For example, this week I wanted to know why my streak of completing weekly tasks at a scheduled time came to an end, and this strategy is what helped me to do so. I learned this strategy from an engineer at Proctor and Gamble and he explained that when faced with a problem, always ask "why" until you get to the root of the problem. For example, he mentioned that they needed to solve how a cart of product was coming up damaged. Everyone thought that the new machines were the cause of the problem. Instead, this person, who I will call Joe, first asked why? They found out that the truck that carries the carts gets bumped. Then, he asked why do the tricks get bumped? This lead them to the delivery route. which was in a tight area that had a concrete protector. Then Joe asked, well "why" is the concrete protector there? Which, led them to finding out that it was there from the previous construction of the factory. Through this process he was able to identify the source of the problem and remove the misplaced concrete protector. This saved the company a lot of time and money by not replacing the newly built machines. I tried this strategy and was able to save time and frustration, as I was able to identify the cause of my problem very quickly. So the next time you are faced with a problem, try the WHY, WHY, WHY? strategy.
4. 3-Bucket System: I learned the 3-Bucket system from Jeff Goins who breaks up the process of writing into three easy steps. First, create a place (physical or digital) where you can collect ideas. Second, schedule a time to draft the first version without the pressure of making edits. Third, edit your draft after you have taken time away from it. This process makes writing much easier and I find myself producing better writing in a shorter amount of time.
5. Got 2-minutes: I learned the 2-minute rule from James Clear which helps you initiate a task, as usually this is the most difficult step. This strategy helps you focus on what you would do in the first 2 minutes of starting a task and then complete those actions. I often times do this and then look up at the clock and see that I have been working for well over 2 minutes. I have now merged this with the "Got a Minute" strategy, which is used to turn any amount of free time into productive time. It comes from Vierordt's Law, which states that when estimating a previous task, people overestimate short durations and underestimate long ones. Simply, we regularly overestimate how long it will take to accomplish meaningful tasks. task. Often times they can be accomplished in a short amount of time. So don't judge if you will start something by how time you think you have, just star!
6. Read More: Want to read 30 books this year? Here is your strategy. I also learned this from James Clear,all you need is a timer and information that you want to read. Each day set the timer for 20 minutes and read for the duration of that time. That is it. Do that on a daily basis and you will be able to get through more books in a shorter amount of time.
REFLECTIONS (learnings and actions): Like I mentioned above, the streak to complete the weekly tasks at the scheduled time has ended, but the important thing is that the streak to complete the weekly tasks is still alive. I was interested to see what was different this week from previous weeks, and I was easily able to identify the variable that caused the change by using the "Why, Why, Why" strategy. The culprit...a vacation.
Let me first say that I am very grateful to be able to take vacations and I am not complaining about them.With that being said, I was abel to identify that when my family and I go on vacations, our weekly schedule is thrown for a loop. This in turn shifts when we eat, sleep, and have free time to do what we usually do at home.
Again, let me state again that I still love going on vacations, but what I learned through this experience is that you need to plan in advance. If you know that you are going on a vacation, think of ways that you can still complete the weekly task on time. That means scoping out areas where you can get some quiet time to work, or looking at your vacation schedule to see where you slip away for 15 - 30 minutes to devote time to your weekly tasks.
Now that I have identified this issue, I can no plan accordingly for future vacations. I know that this will require creativity to plan on how to work on the weekly tasks, while still enjoying the vacation with your family. But this brings me to something I read a while back about creativity. Often times we feel we need to have everything set in a certain way in order for us to tap into our most creative self, but actually this statement is false. We are often the most creative when we have to deal with constraints. Think about a time when you did not have a certain tool or resource and you still had to complete a task? What did you do, well you probably improvised and completed the task in a different way. For example, I remember getting to a friends house for dinner and when it came time to open a very nice bottle of Malbec from Argentina, we realized that they did not have a wine opener. Instead of eating the dinner and not sharing the wine, my friend and I use a screwdriver and ice pick to get the bottle open. We would have never thought of that combination without the constraint of not having the wine opener. So the next time you are faced with constraints, embrace the opportunity to be creative.
Thanks for tuning in and will see you in Week 23.
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