Life Lesson

You can’t build a deck without lumber that has been treated to last.

Much like ourselves. Or our relationships. Or our projects.

Stay Positive & The Prep Is A Requirement

Isn’t it odd that they don’t teach frustration courses at your local community college?

There’s no gym to pay monthly for to practice getting frustrated.

I have yet to come across a sub reddit for getting better at being frustrated.

All to suggest, there’s a space out there for exercising good habits; not bad.

Probably not worth trying to do it ourselves, huh?

Frustrating, I know.

Stay Positive & Membership Of 1 Isn’t That Fun, Anyway

I’d like to argue that the reason many lose momentum of a great habit is that there’s no end to it in sight.

They didn’t define the conclusion; didn’t set the finish line tape; didn’t define what done looks like.

We don’t decide the end so that we can work backward (though it does help in planning)…we decide it so we know what needs to be done when we wake up. It’s harder to lose momentum when you know what that momentum is building toward.

Go ahead. Write your ending.

Stay Positive & Now Keep It In Sight

There’s the obvious side of resilience: action through the challenging time…forward movement against friction…making progress despite the odds against you.

The other side is less obvious: Reflect, learn and evolve. It’s about responding, reflecting and growing from the opposition rather than fighting through it. It’s talking with a friend about the situation…journaling about the lessons you’re learning…pausing the forward moment to ensure you’re going in the right direction with the right motiv.

Stay Positive & Resilience Is Most Impactful When Both Sides Of It Are Flexed

Recovery isn’t only a necessity when something goes wrong.

It’s just as important when things are going right.

It would behoove us to treat our work and our relationships more like lifting weights. We stretch and make progress and then nurse ourselves to recover and grow from the exercise.

“Always on” isn’t an attribute I’m interested in a team member having.

I’d put my money on the one that creates space to recover than the one who doesn’t.

Stay Positive & Can I Put My Money On You?

When you realize it wasn’t worth it, you have a choice.

You can sulk. You can swim in the lost costs. You can let it kill the rest of your day, or maybe even your week if you really want it to.

Or you can acknowledge the lesson from it and know you never need to go that route again. Lucky you, you’ve ruled out an option that someone else may have to consider along with all the others for themselves.

It may feel like it was an anchor slowing you down, but having a list of actions that weren’t worth it actually gives you a competitive advantage going forward.

Stay Positive & Which Will You Choose? And How Fast Will You Choose It?

Procrastination is often seen as the enemy of productivity, but what if you could harness it?

The key is recognizing when procrastination strikes and pivoting to smaller tasks tied to the larger objective you’re avoiding. When you avoid a big task, use that energy to complete quick, easy-to-do items that support the progress. This keeps momentum going and, before you know it, the intimidating task becomes easier to approach.

Productivity isn’t about being busy; it’s about learning to manage avoidance effectively; to work through it; to dance with it.

Stay Positive & Go Ahead, Trick Yourself