WEEK 49: START WITH THE WHY

WT = Waiting Time. DT = Development Time.

PLANNING (task, scheduling, and WT = DT):  I plan to write my Leap Year W20 post into the site Medium on Wednesday at 6 PM in study. I plan to turn those small WTs into Grateful Time, where I look to see what I can be grateful for in those situations. For example, last week I thought how great it was to receive medical care when we need it. This is a privilege you really never know you have, unless you have this taken away from you.

EXECUTION (strategies used):  W49 in the books! Although I use a combination of many strategies throughout the week, there are always some that are used more than others depending on what comes up. For example, I relied heavily on the Be a Pro and Implementation Intentions strategies this week, as I was not able to complete the tasks until Saturday morning. The highlighted strategies that were used in the week are listed below along with the I CAN'T statements that they help overcome. 

Procrastination...I CAN'T because I am not motivated or do not feel like it...

Be a PRO: I actually learned this strategy through insights from Jeff Goins, Tim Ferris, and James Clear. 

First, Jeff Goins mentioned in a podcast that “action will follow mindset.” Second, James Clear wrote that it does not matter what you want to become better at, the only skill that separates a “Pro” from an “amateur” is the ability to show up. Third, Tim Ferris said on his 4-Hr Work Week blog that “Practicing key habits when we don’t want to is the most key habit to all.” This reinforces this idea of being a “Pro” by having the mindset to show up consistently and completing the work.

The difficult thing about being a pro requires us to consistently follow through. Yet, we often let the challenges of everyday life get in the way and only attempt to do the work when we feel motivated. This produces small gains if any and leads us down a path of frustration. There will be days when you do not want to complete a key habit or activity, but develop the mindset of a “Pro” by showing up, sticking to your schedule, and then completing the tasks that move your forward.

Early Scheduling = Implementation Intentions: This is a strategy that I credit to completing my tasks consistently on a weekly basis. In this strategy, you first PLAN to complete a task at a SCHEDULED time (day and time) in a specific location as early in the week as you can. More specifically you fill in the following statement.

I plan to [task] on [day] at [time] in [location].

Three 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. Lastly, research shows that you are 2X to 3X more likely to follow through on your actions. I learned about this strategy from James Clear, who is a great blogger that writes on the science of human behavior and how to build better habits. He shows the research on how Implementation Intentions help you follow through on your plans and achieve your goals.

REFLECTIONS (learnings and actions): I have been sharing my weekly progress on the site Medium and was finally able to crystalize a huge learning about "Following Your Passions" for the book. Below is the post:

Welcome back to the Leap Year, where I share helpful tips on how you can finally take the “Leap” and pursue, discover, and IDENTIFY WHAT YOU ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT. I wanted to share something that I actually was able to connect recently in W49 of my Leap Year process that will allow you not feel overwhelmed with the idea of “Following your Passion.”

David Mead is the right hand man to Simon Sinek, who is an inspirational speaker who presented one of the top 20 TED talks of all time, titled “Start with the WHY.”  Additionally, Simon and David help people all around the world find their purpose, belief, or reasons for doing what they do, or what they call the WHY. This idea of starting with the WHY is the reason behind the success of many well known companies such as Apple and Amazon. 

David explains that certain situations and people put us in environments where we feel at our best. Furthermore, he urges that everyone should embark on this process of discovery to find out what experiences and people put us in these conditions This pursuit allows us to identify the WHY(reasons), HOW (method), and WHAT (specific actions) to our lives much easier.

This idea of starting with the WHY also correlates to human biology, as the outer layer of our brain, neocortex, is where logic and language are controlled. This is why the WHAT, or specific actions, is so easy to talk about. Where as, the inner part, the limbic system, which controls our feelings and houses our WHYs is difficult to talk about. For example, if someone asked you why you loved your spouse or boyfriend/girlfriend, you would probably say things like 

“I love them because they are smart, loves sports, or makes me laugh, or is my best friend.” 

These all describe easy characteristics that you love, but these do not truly express your feelings about them. 

Imagine if you were to take the time to discover and respond “they help me become the person I need to be to reach my potential.” 

This would be a precise assessment of why you love them.

Essentially, this is why it is so hard when someone asks you what you are passionate about or what is your purpose in life is? You have to take a moment to think, and usually respond 

“I don’t know, that is a good question.”

Furthermore, you might feel overwhelmed right now because you do not know what activities or situations bring out the highest expressions of your talents, let alone how to take the steps to pursue and discover the WHY of your life. 

I felt the same thing before I started my Leap Year process and would ask 

Shouldn’t I know my WHY or purpose by now?

Where do I even start?

How can I do this in the face of everyday challenges? 

I wanted to find my calling but felt like I was already drowning in all the questions and doubts that popped up in my mind.

Today, we often read the phrase “Follow Your Passions,” but this is a loaded statement. First, who really knows what they are truly passionate about, and second, how does one find out what they are passionate about? 

I would often feel overwhelmed or stressed not knowing before I started my Leap Year process, but I have learned that before you “Follow Your Passions,” you need to “Identify what you are passionate about.”

Following your passions, requires you to know what you are passionate about, which can be overwhelming just thinking about it. The key is to be passionate about identifying what you are passionate about. 

This will lead you to finding your highest expressions of you talent that you can better the world with. Imagine a world without Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, Steve Jobs, and the many others who found their passions and calling to add to the world in unthinkable ways.

The same is true for you…that is right, YOU! Everyone has something amazing to share with the world, you just have to take the time to pursue and discover what that is. 

Will it be easy, no, but the rewards of taking on such a worthwhile endeavor far out weigh the uncomfortable feelings that you might have to endure along the way.

What went well?

Weekly task completed and a huge learning about the order Identifying what you are passionate about.  

What is something we can improve upon? What actions can we take next week?

Admit when we don't know something. It is better in situations to listen and admit if you do not understand, rather than talking around an issue. Learned this from receiving a complex problem a student posed in class. 

Additionally, I have mentioned the Japanese word Kaizen in previous posts and I was able to make a connection to this situation. Kaizen is the opposite of perfection, and it focuses on continual learning and growth. 

This is an idea that centers around my core beliefs and is something that struck me when I reflected about being posed a difficult question and talking around it. 

We are all bombarded with various questions on a daily basis, where we have answers to most of them, but a few we do not. I have learned to apply the word Kaizen to these situations and admit that I do not know, but am going to learn what the answer is. 

It is not about having all the answers, but rather having the knowledge that you are be able to go out and find out if you do not know. 

KAIZEN!

What is something to avoid next week?

Think we know everything.