WT = Waiting Time. DT = Development Time.
PLANNING (task, scheduling, and WT = DT): I plan to write my Leap Year W25 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 grateful I am for the faculty of taste and to be able to sample amazing food.
EXECUTION (strategies used): W54 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 task until Friday. 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 was about to comment how this was a pretty plain week, but was able to make a pretty large connection and in the middle of creating a new strategy.
I have recently started to listen to the audio book "The Art of Learning" by Josh Waitzkin. It is an amazing book and I highly recommend it for any of you who are life long learners.
One of my learnings from the book was in a previous post and it highlighted that mistakes are the trigger for the downward spiral, or melt down in a situation due to the succession of multiple errors.
Focusing on the breath is also something I have learned from meditating for the last year and a half. This daily practice of mindfulness has helped me in many ways.
Although there are a lot ways of meditating, I have been able to gain clarity in its purpose by performing it everyday.
The purpose of meditation is not to control your thoughts, but rather not to have your thoughts control you.
We often get caught up in our daily lives and are not present to the current situations as we hold onto to "what was" and are not present to "what is."
I made a connection this week from what I am learning from Josh and the purpose of meditation with a learning I gained from Dane Maxwell.
It is the phrase:
Resist nothing, welcome everything.
For example, I woke up Saturday morning to draft my weekly post to find the internet was out in my house. I tried connecting and disconnecting, moving to different parts of the house, and thought about not drafting the post until later, as I did not have internet.
I was about to postpone the post when I remembered the "downward spiral." Thus, I took a deep breath and saw I was holding on to the idea of having internet (what was) and not being to not having internet (what is).
I would have been stressing about it later, as we were hosting some friends later and I needed to prep food for their arrival. The situation of trying to figure out why we did not have internet, completing the weekly post, and preparing food for guests spelled danger for me. The decision not to draft in the morning, would have caused unneeded frustration later, and might have led to other consequences. This is the downward spiral, the succession of mistakes which cause situations where you melt down.
Thus, I just turned on my 4G and drafted the post. The funny thing is the internet came back on just when I finished drafting my post.
This situation is all ties back to the idea to
Resist nothing, welcome everything. Life will always present you with many opportunities (challenges), but you will find more success and avoid unwanted outcomes by releasing "what was" and being present to "what is."
What went well?
Weekly task completed and a new strategy which helps you be more present is in the works.
What is something we can improve upon? What actions can we take next week?
Being 100% committed to action which move us forward. Being 99% committed allows room for doubt and excuses.
What is something to avoid next week?
Not being 100% committed.
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