Often the risks that we do not take are the ones that would most improve our lives.
The type of risk I’m discussing has no moral danger, nor physical danger in its action. We don’t take such risks not because they have any danger inherent in the action but because we are afraid to do so. We are scared. (more…)
The average reading speed of English is around 400 words per minute (wpm).
At half this speed I was a very slow reader, only reading about 200wpm.
My reading material was almost entirely technical information that contributed to going at slow pace.
Being overwhelmed by the amount of information to read was a stress inducer. Perhaps you’ve felt like that too? (more…)
Getting Things Done (GTD) is a pretty well known system for improving your life productivity created by David Allen.
It details a method of collecting all your inputs in one system. By inputs I mean any input into your life schedule such as events, things to do, or material possesions. All these things and more make up “stuff” that you effectively and efficiently manage using the GTD system.
Gone are the days of not knowing where an item is, even if it lies in a swollen inbox.
If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed with life’s inputs the GTD system is sure to assist in helping you regain control and lower your stress.
What is the difference between the alarm going off in the morning and getting out of bed? For me it is the snooze time in between.
When the alarm goes off I’m still semi-concious and hit the snooze button for extra repose. So the time set on the alarm to get up is not the actual time I arise.
How do I get up at the set time? I could set the alarm earlier, so that after snoozing I’d be up at the time planned. However this is interpreted by a freshly awoken brain as “useful time when I should actually still be asleep”, and consequently it feels it is owed extra slumber than the snooze button will give.
The optimal solution is to arise on the sound of the alarm, yet my freshly woken mind is convinced that the one hour for morning tasks (allocated before I went to bed) can be accomplished in just half, which leaves the other half hour for snooze time.
Coersion, threats, etc, have limited impact upon the awoken mind. The most significant impact I’ve found is to bed down earlier the night before, which significantly increases my chances of getting up on the alarm. So changing me over time from a night owl to an early bird.
Remember Confucius never said “An arrow can only strike the target if the target exists.” This is because I made up that sentence just now in order to illustrate the point of setting goals.
A goal, tangible or virtual, is a marker by which we can measure our efforts. No marker means there’s no way of knowing you’re reaching your goal. It’s the target on the shooting range, the bullseye on the dartboard, the lap time on the clock, the landing light on the runway, the point “B” on the Google map, the luggage carousel in the airport…err, well you get my drift. It’s the point that tells you you’ve hit the mark, acheived, or arrived at where you want to be in life.
We take many corrective steps to steer us towards the marker (the goal) till we eventually achieve it.
Want to be successful? Define what success means to you, write it down and set down your marker. Set your goal.
My current goal is 166 more edits away (sic.)