1: What’s the best way to make your to-do list?
There’s something satisfying about writing down a task and then crossing it off your list.
“That’s exactly the wrong way to create a to-do list. That signals you’re using it for mood repair, rather than to become productive,” says Carleton University psychologist Timothy Pychyl in Charles Duhigg‘s book Smarter Faster Better.
Writing down a series of short-term objectives … continue reading
1: Jack Welch returned from his trip to Japan in 1993 on fire about the power of stretch goals.
As GE’s CEO, the story of the Japanese bullet train inspired him to rethink his approach to goal-setting, according to Charles Duhigg in Smarter Faster Better.
Within six months, every GE division had a stretch goal.
But there was a catch.
Jack and the division leaders didn’t always agree on … continue reading
1: Tynan thought mindfulness and meditation were “too wishy-washy and time consuming,” he writes in Superhuman by Habit.
When he tried meditating, he found it hard to keep his attention on his breath. His mind kept wandering, which left him frustrated and ready to give up.
But then he discovered something that completely changed how he saw meditation.
“If meditation were easy, it would not be as beneficial,” he writes. … continue reading
1: The year was 1993. GE CEO Jack Welch was in Japan when he heard a story about the country’s railway system.
After World War II, Japan’s economy had been decimated.
“A large portion of the country’s population lived in or between the cities of Tokyo and Osaka, which were separated by just 320 miles of train track,” Charles Duhigg writes in Smarter Faster Better: The Transformative Power of Real … continue reading
1: A GE worker had an idea.
He suggested to his managers that they stop outsourcing the construction of protective shields for their grinding machines, as Charles Duhigg explains in Smarter Faster Better: The Transformative Power of Real Productivity.
This employee was taking part in what GE called a “Work-Out” within a struggling division that made jet engine parts.
Yesterday, we looked at a potential trap with SMART … continue reading
1: “It was the late 1980s and GE was the second most valuable company in America,” Charles Duhigg writes in Smarter Faster Better: The Transformative Power of Real Productivity.
“GE manufactured everything from lightbulbs to jet engines, refrigerators to railway cars,” Charles notes.
It was a massive enterprise employing more than 220,000 people.
The company’s leaders thought their formal goal-setting system was one of the keys to their success.… continue reading
1: Sleeping as long as you want?
Waking up without an alarm clock?
This may sound like being on vacation, Tynan writes in his book Superhuman by Habit.
By making good sleep a habit, however, it can become an important part of your everyday life.
The benefits of good sleep are immense:
“Being alert and … continue reading
1: There are often tense moments at the beginning of a Crucial Conversation.
The stakes are high, opinions vary, and emotions can get intense.
“Others are scanning your every facial tic or leg crossing for evidence of your intentions,” Joseph Grenny, Kerry Patterson, and their co-authors write in their classic book Crucial Conversations
“Do you mean them harm? Are you out to get them?” they are … continue reading
1: Some people are total jerks.
“Deep down and all the way through,” write Joseph Grenny, Kerry Patterson, and their co-authors in their classic book Crucial Conversations.
Yep.
“But let’s be honest. Have you ever lost your temper?” the authors ask.
“Yelled at someone in the heat of the moment?
“Interrupted someone when you just couldn’t take it anymore?
“Used your power (as a parent, boss, or … continue reading
1: Consider this.
Has there ever been a time when you received really tough feedback from someone, and you didn’t become defensive?
“Instead, you absorbed the feedback. You reflected on it. You allowed it to influence you,” Joseph Grenny, Kerry Patterson, and their co-authors write in their classic book Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes are High.
What was it about that situation that helped you … continue reading
