1: “Every Saturday, a siren goes off in Tim’s quiet suburban community, signaling that it is noontime. No one gives it much attention around town,” Erik Peterson and Tim Riesterer write in their terrific book Conversations That Win the Complex Sale.
It’s just the “noon whistle,” people say.
But the same siren is also used to signal a severe weather emergency.
“As a result,” the authors note, “the same … continue reading
1: Turns out anxiety and excitement are the exact same emotion.
Physiologically, that is. Which just means how your body operates.
“Whether you are anxious about something or excited about it, your body responds in a nearly identical ‘high arousal’ state,” Jane McGonigal writes in her book SuperBetter: The Power of Living Gamefully.
How does your body react?
“You have excess energy, you may feel butterflies in your stomach, … continue reading
1: How do you personally respond when adversity strikes?
Do you see adversity as a challenge you can meet, or as a threat that could overwhelm you?
Your perspective on adversity significantly impacts your life.
Good news: There’s a proven way to shift from threat to challenge. Read on to learn how.
“In a threat mindset, you focus on the potential for risk, danger, harm, or loss,” Jane McGonigal writes … continue reading
1: Are you facing a challenge that feels overwhelming? Are you walking through something really hard right now?
There is good news, Jane McGonigal writes in her book SuperBetter: The Power of Living Gamefully.
Let’s start here. “You are stronger than you know. You are surrounded by potential allies. You are the hero of your own story,” Jane notes.
How do you access these powers that are already inside … continue reading
1: Then Intel CEO Andy Grove was sitting in a conference room with other members of the Intel team.
The topic? “Evaluations of a certain highly touted new software from a company whose other products we already use,” Andy writes in his legendary business book, Only the Paranoid Survive: How to Exploit the Crisis Points That Challenge Every Company.
Intel’s head of Information Technology shared the challenges her team … continue reading
1: There are two traps CEOs and leadership teams fall into regarding innovation.
Trap #1: “The minute we think we truly understand the customer and can take our attention off discovering what matters, we’re dead,” Panera founder Ron Shaich writes in Know What Matters: Lessons from a Lifetime of Transformations.
“Sooner or later,” Ron notes, “even the most brilliant and innovative concept will fall behind the times and become … continue reading
1: One summer night in Milwaukee, the San Francisco Giants lost to the Brewers in a brutal late-inning collapse.
Bruce Bochy, the team’s manager, found himself sitting alone in his office, brooding over the loss.
Still restless, he decided to walk back to the team’s hotel.
“It was maybe four miles, and it was late, and the Brewers’ stadium is not exactly pedestrian-friendly,” Rustin Dodd writes in his post … continue reading
1: In the 1980s, Microsoft founder Bill Gates began secluding himself for a week each year, cutting off communication to dedicate time solely to reading and thinking.
He called it “Think Week.”
It was his time “to be creative and push his thinking with new depth and breadth,” Sahil Bloom writes in his book The 5 Types of Wealth: A Transformative Guide to Design Your Dream Life.
“It allowed him … continue reading
1: Researchers at Harvard and MIT analyzed the moods and behaviors of 28,000 smartphone users.
What did they learn?
“When people felt down,” Rachel Barr writes in How to Make Your Brain Your Best Friend, “they tended to seek out activities that promised instant gratification, like watching TV or drinking wine.”
When the participants were in a good mood, however, “they leaned toward more productive activities,” Rachel notes, “that … continue reading
1: Ever eaten every French fry in the bag, even though we knew from the first bite they weren’t very good?
Me, too.
Turns out chasing pleasure isn’t always the key to feeling good.
“That’s not a moralistic perspective; it’s a neurobiological one,” Rachel Barr writes in How to Make Your Brain Your Best Friend: A Neuroscientist’s Guide to a Healthier, Happier Life.
“To understand why, let’s go beyond … continue reading
