Interestingly, I had a discussion just today with a colleague who was put off by the manner and tone an individual was using to provide valuable insights during a teleconference. I had previous interactions with the individual who was providing the feedback, so I understood that right or wrong, that was his style. I told my colleague that the person was providing valuable feedback, probably earned through some painful lessons, despite the somewhat tactless approach he used to convey his points.
One of the reasons I’m able to work with just about anybody, is that I realized that everyone has their own set of ‘filters’ through which they experience the world. These filters not only bias the way in which people perceive the world, but also the way the interact with it, including with other people. Additionally, not everyone has learned how to communicate effectively. Top it all off with individual quirks, some more pronounced that others, and you can get some rather interesting interactions.
I’ve found that the trick is to separate the personality from the message. While some people are utterly toxic, others just have certain idiosyncrasies to their approach. Once you understand a person’s style, even if you don’t particularly like it, you can still work with them effectively. Maybe you don’t want to invite them over for dinner, but at least you can interact with them and not get all bent out of shape. Another key is to realize that most of the time, it’s never about you – even if the person you have to deal with is somewhat obnoxious. Finally, it’s just not worth the energy to get all bent out of shape over someone’s personality, particularly is you have to work with them (of course harassment, bullying, threatening, etc. is never acceptable, but that’s a different story altogether).
The part of the title that mentioned being easily offended is why I clicked the link, but that was only one little piece of the article; the author offers 7 additional maxims that amount to the fact that you need to ‘own’ your own life, control what is within your control, and don’t cede control to other people or things you cannot change. I highly recommend reading the entire article, and really reflecting honestly on the 8 points. They are proven concepts that increase the likelihood of living a happier, more fulfilling life.
“Everything we think, say and do in life is a choice. Regardless of what’s happening to us, we always have a choice in how we respond, and when we leave our focus and energy there, we find ways to win and succeed.”
There are at least three types of people when it comes to self-assessing capabilities: (1) those who are either arrogant or defensive, always bragging about their ‘accomplishments’ and covering up their weaknesses, (2) those who focus on their weaknesses, often failing to notice their strengths, or downplaying them, and (3) those who are self-aware and accurately assess both their strengths and their weaknesses. I often represent the second group, selling myself short.
I recently had my performance review with my manager. During the review, we discussed my performance this past year with respect to employee development. When I wrote up my self-assessment, I had in my mind a very narrow view of what ‘developing my employees’ meant, hyper-focusing on a single dimension of this role. I had failed to recognize not only that the scope was much broader, but that I had actually performed significantly better in both the overall role that I had failed to consider, but also in the specific facet that I thought I’d neglected.
It wasn’t until my manager starting asking me some questions about it that I realized I’d had blinders on! This brings up a good point though: if you relate to Type #2 above, you might discover that other people rate your proficiency much higher than you rate yourself. It’s interesting, because I’ve noticed this tendency in the past, but apparently I forgot. While I certainly don’t consider myself to be ‘Mr. Perfect’, I do think that I often sell myself short for probably a number of reasons, including failure to frame the context and criteria properly. This is why it’s so important to have frank discussions with people whom you trust – people who will give you honest feedback regarding both your strengths, achievements, weaknesses, mistakes, failures, blind spots, personality quirks, ‘super powers’, whatever. If you notice that you’re a #2, get a second opinion!
Prior to retirement, we spend roughly ⅓ of our waking life at our jobs. Given the amount of time we spend in the workplace with our colleagues, why would anyone choose not to be actively engaged? Even if the work you do at your job isn’t exactly what you want, you’re spending a large portion of your life doing it. You’re also probably interacting with the same people every day as well. If you’re going to invest such a large percentage of your life there with those people, why simply trudge through it or just let it happen to you?
Regardless of what your job is, make it your own and make the workplace better through your efforts. You can do this by building relationships, getting to know your colleagues and teammates, exuding positive energy, initiating and participating in healthy dialogue, generating and implementing new ideas, sharing lessons learned, coaching and mentoring others, and generally leaving your (positive!) mark on the workplace. It’s not about the job per se, it’s about pursuing excellence, exercising your inner genius, and supporting your team. It’s about being the best you can be at whatever it is that you do, as well as making the world a better place through your sincere, personal touch.
Conversely, if it’s not worth the effort to become deeply engaged with your work and with your team, or worse – you hate what you’re doing – then why are you still there?!?
Whether chasing a challenging goal or just trying to accomplish a mundane ‘everyday’ task, just taking the first step is often one of the most difficult hurdles to overcome. Regardless of whether the obstacle is fear (of success or failure), lack of motivation, lack of information, or any other myriad reasons, the only way to get through is to move forward.
While the fact that you have to actually do something to get started seems intuitively obvious, it still helps to be reminded. Plus, knowing something and actually doing it are two different things. Lately I have been reading books like a crazy person. A number of the books I have read recently, as well as some I have read in years past, explicitly address the importance of just getting started, offering techniques to overcome the inertia of inaction. My own experience aligns with what I’ve read, in both my professional and personal life.
What Do the ‘Experts’ Say About Getting Started?
Here are some books that you may want to read that cover various aspects of getting started. Each of these books addresses different pieces of the puzzle. I have found that there is no panacea, no ‘one-size-fits-all’ method for improving any aspect of life and productivity is no exception. Reading multiple books and studying a variety of systems provides a diverse set of perspectives and techniques from which you can synthesize the techniques that work best for you.
Start: Punch Fear in the Face, Escape Average and Do Work That Matters, by Jon Acuff (Theme: Always be starting)
Atomic Habits: an Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones, by James Clear (Theme: Create positive, manageable, “low-friction” habits to overcome inertia and build sustainable momentum)
The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles, by Steven Pressfield (Theme: Overcome The Resistance, which is always fighting to hold you back and keep you from starting, particularly with creative works)
Just Start: Take Action, Embrace Uncertainty, Create the Future, by Leonard A. Schlesinger and Charles F. Kiefer (Theme: Use low-risk experiments and small steps to adapt to new/unknown types of work, learning from low-consequence failures)
Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time, by Brian Tracy (Theme: Leverage various techniques to overcome procrastination and get going; start with the most ‘distasteful’ thing to get that out of the way up front)
Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity, by David Allen (Theme: Identify the specific next action to overcome lack of action caused by ambiguity)
Practical Examples
A handful of personal examples come to mind with respect to getting started. I’m sure there are many more, but these are fairly poignant.
As an engineering supervisor, I have had employees who struggled with making progress on their assignments – in fact, they specifically struggled with getting started. After several discussions with me regarding their assignments, they still appeared to be stuck. In these cases, I explained that I was not going to judge them for imperfection of works in progress. Next, I told them that I could not help them unless they picked a direction and started moving. Once they started doing something (anything !), then I could provide coaching and support; however, as the saying goes, “you can’t steer a parked car.” This approach usually helps.
Examples abound in everyday life as well. For example, there are weekends when either the weather isn’t very inviting or I’m just not particularly motivated, but I should be riding my trials bike. Not out of duty (it’s certainly not drudgery!), but because I love trials and because you only get better by riding more. After realizing that I’m just fighting my own internal resistance, I usually try a very simple technique: just begin doing something related to getting outside to ride my bike. Usually I going to my bureau and start taking out the clothes I will ride in. After that, I change into those clothes. Then maybe I’ll get the GoPro ready, get a bottle of water, and so on. The key is to start by doing a very easy activity that moves me toward my objective. When that activity is complete, I start another.
After the inertia of starting has been overcome, sustaining momentum to keep going gets easier. It’s much less difficult to keep moving than it is to start. Once you realize this fact, practice building self-awareness so that you can recognize and identify your source of resistance, and overcome it by just getting started. Study strategies and tactics discussed in the aforementioned books and any other sources that you find. Leverage what they have learned, and tailor your personalized approach through experimentation.
In an instant, my world turned upside down. For all I knew, my son – our only child – was dying in my arms. It was Christmas Day, 2018. Only minutes earlier we’d eaten breakfast after opening our gifts, but now my son was non-responsive, convulsing, gurgling, and frothing at the mouth. He complained of stomach discomfort after breakfast, but that was certainly no cause for alarm. Though gripped with fear and terror, I fought to remain calm and focused to ensure that I could make good decisions and avoid making the situation worse. Immediately I yelled to my wife to call 911 while I positioned my son to avoid injury during his seizure. I literally thought to myself, “is my child going to die in my arms?” Finally, after an agonizing minute or two that seemed like an eternity, my son’s body relaxed and he began to become aware of his surroundings once again. Soon after, the ambulance arrived.
After our son was rushed to the nearest emergency clinic, a CAT scan revealed a large abnormality in his brain – what appeared to be a large cyst, about 2 inches in diameter. Based on the results of the CAT scan, our son was then transported by ambulance to the hospital. An MRI confirmed that the abnormality was indeed a cyst. Surgery was scheduled to cut drainage slits (fenestrations) in the cyst membrane to allow the spinal fluid to naturally reabsorb.
Having any surgery can produce anxiety, but this wasn’t just any surgery – it literally was brain surgery: cut a hole in the skull and poke instruments into the brain. It’s not something I’d want to go through, and it sure as hell wasn’t something I wanted my child to have to endure. Not only that, but we had to wait a week for an opening in the hospital’s surgery schedule. I wrote down some of my thoughts and feelings during this time. On the day of surgery, I wrote:
"9:20 am: Getting ready to leave for the hospital for [my son’s] surgery. I'm feeling very anxious. Almost hard to breathe at times. Everything is expected to go well, but still very nerve-wracking. Trying to remain calm and appear calm to avoid freaking out everyone else. I hate this waiting. Just want it to be over."
After the surgery was complete, the surgeon met with us while my son was recovering in the intensive care unit. He was in a lot of pain, and on strong antibiotics that caused extreme discomfort. Unfortunately, when they entered my son’s brain, what they initially encountered was not what they had expected based on the MRI. A new game plan would be formulated and another surgery was scheduled.
Thankfully, the second surgery went as expected. The neurosurgeon told us that the prognosis was good and that the permanent success rate of this type of procedure was approximately 90%. Soon my son was released from the hospital. Over the coming months, the incision healed and the subsequent MRIs indicated that the cyst was properly draining so that pressure was relieved on the surrounding brain tissue. Other than seizure medication and the periodic neurologist checkups and MRIs, life went back to “normal”.
10% Chance
Flash forward two years to December 2020. During a regular follow up consultation, the neurologist explained to my wife and son that based on the latest MRIs, it appeared that the cyst fenestrations had sealed up. The cyst was growing again. Another surgery was necessary.
Since the initial drainage slits had ceased functioning properly, the plan for the upcoming surgery was to attempt using another fenestration procedure if conditions looked favorable for that approach during the surgery. Otherwise, the backup plan was to install a shunt that drains the spinal fluid into the abdomen – a concept that really freaks me out. While shunt installation is apparently a ‘routine’ procedure, the potential complications are horrific: blindness, infection, overdrainage, even death.
“When the shunt allows cerebral fluid to drain from the brain’s ventricles more quickly than it is produced, the ventricles can collapse, tearing blood vessels and causing bleeding in the brain or blood clot, marked by severe headache, nausea, vomiting, seizure and other symptoms. This risk occurs in approximately 5 to 10 percent of people with shunts.” (Source: Johns Hopkins Medicine)
Neither procedure is guaranteed to last a lifetime, so even if a shunt was necessary, my son might have to go through this all over again at some indefinite future date. Or it could be a permanent fix. While the success rates are fairly high, there is still risk. Since having seizures is one of the potential symptoms of failure and my son will be driving in less than two years, this brings a whole new level of concern. Somehow, we often seem to focus on the worst that can happen.
Anxiety and Anticipation
Surgery was scheduled for early April of 2021, giving us four months to wait. Four months of not knowing what the future would hold. Four months to dredge up and replay the events of Christmas two years prior. Four months to reflect on what this means for my son and what he needs to process mentally. The day before the surgery, I reflected on the future:
“Either way, [whether fenestrations or a shunt are used,] this is very stressful... mostly because of what my son will have to go through. It certainly could be much worse, I know. But I hate that my son, brave as he is, will have to deal with this for the rest of his life, because any solution could stop draining at some point and require another surgery, even with the shunt.”
In the weeks leading up to my son’s next brain surgery, my anxiety level increased – slowly at first, but accelerating as the date loomed closer. However, I couldn’t afford to let fear and worry occupy my attention and cause me to lose focus on completing my responsibilities. I still had to be a good husband, father, employee, and leader. Not only is attending an extended ‘pity party’ non-productive, it’s also emotionally draining.
In order to cope with the stress and anxiety in the weeks leading up to the surgery, I intentionally avoided dwelling on negative outcomes or fear itself. Since I often do fall into the trap of entertaining worst-case negative fantasies, this was a bit novel to me, but very helpful. Several techniques proved useful:
Avoid playing ‘victim’: It’s not personal, it’s not all about me, and I can’t change it. It’s not the end of the world. There is a high probability of success. No complaining or seeking sympathy.
Focus on the positive: This is difficult for me, but I tried to focus on positive outcomes instead of negative possibilities.
Talk it out: Especially in the last few days prior to surgery, I shared my thoughts and feelings with a handful of people. While receiving empathy does feel good, verbalizing my fears and focusing on the positive was more fruitful.
Compartmentalize: Since dwelling on uncertainty and factors outside of my control changes nothing (except my anxiety levels), why bother? I visualized picking up my worry, placing it in a ‘timeout’ corner, and turning my back to it. I spoke to my worry, telling it that I would not give it any of my attention. I acknowledged it, then ignored it as best I could.
Fortunately, my coping mechanisms paid off. While my stress did increase as the number of days until surgery diminished, I was able to maintain focus and remain effective in my responsibilities at home and at work. Only on the night before surgery did I lose any sleep due to anxiety related to my son’s condition.
Perspective
Surgery was scheduled to begin around 7 am. After a couple hours of waiting, my wife and I were informed that the procedure went smoothly and our son was in the recovery room. A shunt was not necessary (whew!) and the fenestration was performed successfully.
Later that day, I visited the cafeteria located in the hospital basement in order to buy lunch for my wife and myself. In a somewhat comical twist, the panini heating machine that the cook used to heat my wife’s sandwich billowed smoke enthusiastically. Moments later, the acrid sandwich smoke set off the fire alarm throughout the entire hospital. After paying the cashier, I slunk away feeling guilty, only to be detained at the elevator along with several other hospital guests by the fire safety response personnel. Soon firemen appeared, fully decked out in their fire suits and hats, wielding their firefighting gear. For safety, we could not leave the area – neither by elevator nor by stairs.
As minutes slowly ticked away, the tension noticeably increased in some of the waylaid guests – worried parents of child patients. Like me, they had left their children for what they thought would be just a few minutes so that they could obtain nourishment. I soon came to realize that fenestration of a brain cyst, while certainly serious, is also comparatively trivial.
Eventually the fire alarms cleared and guests were allowed to leave the cafeteria. As a testament to just how aware and caring the entire staff is at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, the fire safety personnel directed parents who appeared to have the most urgent need to return to their children into the first elevator car that arrived following the ‘all clear’ notice. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, that meant only three of us were ushered into that first car.
As the elevator rose, the two anxious mothers sharing the elevator with me briefly shared why they were here: cancer had returned to one child; severe pain (no cause offered) tortured the other child. Suddenly, brain surgery and cyst fenestration was no big deal. Mere hours following surgery, my son was recovering quickly, with miraculously little pain. His diagnosis was certainly not terminal, despite the possibility that he’d have to return for future surgical treatment. And we’d be released from the hospital later that afternoon. Honestly, I felt somewhat guilty – not only for taking a precious spot on the first elevator ride after the fire alarm (and for being involved in causing it in the first place), but also because through all of the self-centered anxious drama in my own brain, I had failed to realize that my son’s condition could be much, much worse. In fact, for some children and their parents right here in this very hospital, it was significantly worse. This humbling experience notably realigned my perspective.
You’re Not Alone
I don’t share this story to shine the limelight on myself out of dramatic vanity, but rather because, just possibly, you are going through something similar. Maybe your situation is much worse than ours; maybe our son’s experience puts yours into proper perspective. In times like these, it’s easy to feel like you’re the only one suffering; you aren’t. I wrestled with the decision to share my son’s medical history in such a public way; however, I believe it is important to let others know that they are not alone, whatever the cause of their struggle.
Additionally, difficult experiences produce wisdom, often forged in a crucible of suffering. Sharing hard-earned wisdom multiplies the positive results and brings deeper, richer meaning to the struggle. I offer the following bits of wisdom from my experience:
Feeling fear and anxiety is normal (but don’t let it control you)
In an emergency, don’t panic; force yourself to focus on what needs to happen so that you can make good decisions during the crisis
To an extent, you can compartmentalize your anxiety to focus on the now
Keep it in perspective: there is often someone who is worse off than you
You’re not alone – whatever you’re going through, others have endured similar (or worse) situations
If this story has helped you in any way, please let me know. Also, if you have gained wisdom with respect to coping with stress and anxiety of your suffering child or loved one, please share what you have learned.
Several weeks ago I read an article by Eduardo Scheffler Zawadzki on Entrepreneur entitled Nick Cave and the secret to silencing the voice of doubt. While I am not familiar with Nick Cave, I found it interesting that someone with popularity and success can still struggle with fear and doubt. If someone who is in the limelight struggles with self-doubt, then we should not be surprised when it happens to us.
While I suggest reading the entire article, there are a few select quotes I’d like to highlight.
“In his little text Nick Cave explains that this voice [of doubt] is the true enemy of aspiration. A cruel command that orders us to distance ourselves from a possible better version of ourselves. Without realizing it, many of us fall for their game and, scared, we give up.”
“We constantly judge ourselves, we disqualify ourselves, we scoff at our efforts. We deny our little achievements and, without help from anyone else, we managed to fall apart.”
And finally, my favorite quote from the article:
“If you allow the battle to be won by your homunculus, if you surrender to bitter self-criticism, you run the risk of existing defeated and frustrated, eternally punishing yourself with dislikes like a little tyrant. But if you believe in yourself, if you have the courage to fight against the dark echoes of doubt that you engender, sooner or later you will realize that in the process you have created something unique, beautiful and valuable.”
The word ‘homunculus’, translated literally as ‘little man’ from Latin, means a fully-formed tiny human being. Cave refers to the ‘homunculus’ as the inner voice in our heads that repeatedly tells us we’re not good enough. We need to fight that ‘homunculus’ within each of us: stand up to the inner voice of criticism.
A few years ago I read The 12 Week Year by Brian Moran, and signed up for the associated email newsletter. One of the latest emails linked to a short video called “Rethink Failure”. All too often, we see failure as a permanent condition, something to avoid. We fear criticism and judgement – from other as well as from ourselves – and use ‘failure’ as proof that we’re not good enough. Not only is this just untrue, but it’s unhealthy and nonproductive. First of all, things will not always go perfectly. Secondly, you can’t grow and improve your skills without ‘failing’ along the way – just like you weren’t born able to walk or talk. Cut yourself some slack. Instead of beating yourself up, figure out how to learn from ‘failures’. That’s how the most successful people get where they are. I know – much easier said than done. But that doesn’t make it any less true.
Achieving your goals, managing your workload, and meeting deadlines requires the use of effective time management practices. This requires a combination of up-front planning, honest self-reflection, good habits, and personal discipline. The objective is to intentionally and proactively control your time, maintain a results-oriented focus, and achieve (or exceed) your goals.
Throughout the years, I have read many books and articles on how to manage time most effectively. I’ve tried a bunch of different techniques, but none of them is a panacea. No single approach meets all of my needs or lets me manage my time as effectively as I would expect. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with any of the time management approaches I’ve tried, but none of them by themselves seems to completely meet my needs. It’s likely that in some cases I didn’t fully commit. And maybe some aspects don’t align well with my personality. Regardless, I’ve learned something from each one.
16 Tips for Establishing Effective Time Management Habits
While I’m certainly not a ‘time management guru’ – I still have room for improvement – I have been refining my process over the years based on bits and pieces taken from what I’ve read combined with personal experience. You might say it’s a ‘Frankensteinian’ approach (or a buffet if you prefer that analogy). I encourage you to do the same. Leverage proven strategies and techniques to improve your own performance. Experiment with different ideas and develop a tailored set of approaches and habits that work best for you. Also, consider ‘paying it forward’ by sharing your best practices. Regardless of which system or tools you use, there are a few key components and techniques to effective time management (in no particular order):
Understand that your time is limited. You can’t do everything, so you need to focus on the activities that are the most important. You get to choose – YOU are the only one who can control the use of your time. I know you want to say, “but what about…” I’ll stop you right there. You ALWAYS have a choice. Always.
Define your goals. Your goals dictate where to focus your time and energy. They are the roadmap (or GPS, if you prefer). Understand the ‘big picture’ – both your personal goals and what you need to get done where you work – and align your actions accordingly.
Identify and eliminate activities that waste time and/or don’t serve your goals. Consider using a notebook to track how you spend all your time for several days. Be brutally honest! And refer to #1 above.
Create positive habits. Habits reduce friction by making desired actions automatic. Consider using a habit tracker to help build and sustain your habits. If you don’t have a mobile phone, use a piece of paper or a calendar to check off daily progress.
Just start. Even tiny actions toward your goal will move you forward, giving you momentum to keep moving. It’s easier to keep going than to start going, so make it easy to start. When I’m struggling to go out and ride my bike on days when it’s cold and dreary and I’m tired and unmotivated, I literally start by just laying out the clothes I would wear to ride. That always creates enough momentum and change in mindset to get me out the door.
Do the hardest or most unpleasant things first. Get them behind you. Otherwise you waste time and energy fretting about doing it. Just do it and get it over with. I know, easier said than done. One approach is to attack your most important and/or most difficult task for the first hour of each day. And never start by opening up your email.
Eliminate distractions like email and phone notifications. Turn off everything that pops up, dings, or rings when you need to focus. If you have a door, shut it. You can’t do this 100% of the time, but sometimes it’s necessary.
Plan every day in advance. Use prioritized lists to track what needs to be done. Consider maintaining an organized ‘master list’ of everything that you need to do (including someday/maybe), and then using different lists to target your work for increasingly more granular time periods – e.g., 1 year, 90 days, 30 days, 1 week, 1 day (hint: they should align all the way down). Optimally, one database can be used to drive them all (I use Remember the Milk for my personal list), but use whatever tools suit you best.
Follow the 80/20 rule: Focus on the 20% of activities that get 80% of the results.
Plan your day with 20% of your time reserved for emergent issues and opportunities. Unexpected interruptions and ‘fire drills’ are a part of life – expect them, and plan accordingly.
Always identify the next action step. Be specific – for example, if you need to call someone but do not know their phone number, the next action step is to look up their phone number. Having details at this level provides clarity and reduces friction. Ambiguous actions are more likely to be put off until ‘later’.
Understand your personal daily energy levels and plan what you do accordingly. For example, if you tend to have high energy in the morning and low energy in the afternoon, use your mornings to focus on tasks that require more of your creative and thoughtful attention and deeper concentration.
Don’t work on too many goals at once – it dilutes your focus and can be overwhelming. Instead select a handful of goals to address at a time. You might even start on just one, then as you improve your ability to attack your goals and manage your time, add a couple more.
Know when to say “no” – to others as well as to yourself. You can’t do everything. Be selective. See #1.
Don’t confuse busyness or effort with productivity and results. Not only do you need to be doing the right things, you also need to avoid being stuck over-analyzing (prevents starting) or ‘polishing’ (prevents finishing). Results are ultimately what count, so focus on the actions that are more likely to get you the desired results. Be honest with yourself.
Recommended Reading
The following books offer frameworks, strategies, and tactics for living a more productive life through effective time management. The last one on the list (Just Start) isn’t really a time management book per se, but covers concepts that support higher productivity and increased chances of success when starting projects that have uncertainty with respect to the success of their outcomes.
Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity, by David Allen (Theme: Process all incoming requests for action: do it immediately, delegate it, or add to your comprehensive lists of “to-do’s” and “someday/maybe” items)
Atomic Habits: an Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones, by James Clear (Theme: Create positive, manageable, “low-friction” habits)
The ONE Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results, by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan (Theme: Focus on the “ONE thing” that is most critical for moving forward)
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Steven R. Covey (Theme: Focus on goals and actions that align with your personal core values)
The 12 Week Year: Get More Done in 12 Weeks than Others Do in 12 Months, by Brian P. Moran and Michael Lennington (Theme: Use actionable 90 day plans to work in “sprints”)
Just Start: Take Action, Embrace Uncertainty, Create the Future, by Leonard A. Schlesinger, Charles F. Kiefer, and Paul B. Brown (Theme: Use low-risk experiments and small steps to adapt to new/unknown types of work, learning from low-consequence failures)
Additional Reading
You might consider reading these as well. Each of these books offer useful insights and techniques to support your effective time management approach.
Lifehacker: The Guide to Working Smarter, Faster, and Better, Third Edition, by Adam Pash and Gina Trapani, John Wiley & Sons, 2011
The Lazy Winner: How to Do More With Less Effort and Succeed in Your Work and Personal Life Without Rushing Around Like a Headless Chicken or Putting in 100 Hour Weeks, by Peter Taylor, Infinite Ideas, 2011
Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time, by Brian Tracy, Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2001
Eliminate the Chaos at Work: 25 Techniques to Increase Productivity, by Laura Leist, John Wiley & Sons , 2011
Imagine getting ‘bonus’ paychecks twice a year? Would that help you pay off your debt or save for your next car, a remodeling project, a vacation, or your kids’ education? If your company pays you biweekly (every two weeks) instead of bimonthly (twice a month), you’ll receive 26 paychecks per year, versus only 24. That means two months per year will have three paychecks instead of only two. How you handle the ‘extra’ paychecks can make a huge difference in your finances.
I’ve had jobs that pay twice per month as well as those that pay every two weeks. I actually prefer the biweekly paycheck to the bimonthly paycheck. Here’s why. Regardless of the number of paychecks, obviously your annual pay is the same; however, other than the deductions taken directly from each of your paychecks (such as for medical insurance), pretty much all of your other bills are monthly. Think about it: mortgage/rent, car payments, credit card bills, utilities, phone bills, etc. I’ve never had anyone bill me on a biweekly basis. It has always been monthly, annually, or some integer multiple of months (3, 6, 36, whatever). So use that to your advantage.
The Magic of Biweekly Paychecks
Personally, I love receiving a biweekly paycheck. The magic occurs if you plan your budget based on receiving only two paychecks per month instead of budgeting based on dividing your annual pay by 12. This has two benefits. First, it forces you to live well below your means since each biweekly paycheck is less than each bimonthly paycheck for the equivalent salary. Second, twice a year, you’ll get a ‘windfall’ equivalent to one full paycheck! If you put that towards paying down debt or towards one of your major saving goals, each ‘bonus’ paycheck makes a sizeable contribution to your financial goal. It’s a huge morale boost!
As an example, assume you make $50,000 per year. With a biweekly paycheck, that’s about $1,923 per paycheck (versus $2,083 if you’re paid bimonthly), excluding deductions for taxes, benefits, 401k, etc. For gross estimating purposes, assume roughly half your paycheck goes towards taxes and other deductions (it’s probably actually less than that). That means you’re left with an ‘extra’ $1,000 (or more) that month. And that happens twice a year! What could you do with a $1,000 bonus every 6 months or so?
I don’t know about you, but I hate working out. I hate going to the gym. I hate using exercise equipment. I hate reps. I’ve never liked working out. Some people seem to love the whole experience, but I just don’t get it. It’s boring, miserable, and hard – there is literally nothing to like about it.
There is only one problem. I love trials biking, which takes strength. When I first started trials biking, I hadn’t done anything to build strength for years. Nor had I done any sort of exercise, really. Not a great health combination at nearly 50 years old!
The more my trials riding progressed, the more apparent it became that I needed to do something to build strength, especially in my arms. While I still don’t go to the gym or use any weightlifting equipment, I did start doing pushups several times a week for the past year. I do several sets of slow pushups (count to 5 going down, hold for a 2-count, then count to five back up), followed by several sets of “regular” pushups. That pretty much sums up my strength-building regimen so far. And I can’t stand it – I hate every moment of it! But… it has absolutely made a difference in my riding.
Making matters more frustrating, I have had to stop a few times for weeks or even months at a stretch due to injuries or illness. Each time that has happened, it seems to take longer to re-build lost strength. This year in particular, I had an intercostal muscle strain that set me back two months over the summer, and then about a month of illness this winter. After 5 weeks of pushups, I’ve barely made any progress and I’m significantly behind where I was just a few months ago.
But you know what? I keep doing it. I track my progress with a habit tracker app and force myself to do these damn pushups three times a week (along with stretches and exercises to heal and prevent further injury of various things). It’s a struggle, every time. I get up 30 minutes earlier than I would otherwise, so I can do them in the morning, no excuses. I constantly want to quit. It’s hard work, does not feel good, and just generally unpleasant. But I do it anyway. Why? How? Because I keep that vision in my mind of my goal to become progressively better at trials biking. I know if I don’t, I’m going to struggle even more than usual when I ride, or could get hurt by not having the strength necessary. By making it a habit, tracking when I do it, and focusing on my “why”, I keep myself motivated to keep doing it, even when I just want to give up. This is the key – throughout the physical pain and mental struggle, visualize what it is you want to achieve.
