What your life has revealed
Here is a simple set of questions to help explore your values. Looking back on your life: Take a few minutes to reflect on these questions. Then consider:
Coaching
The other side of fear
The things we fear in business and life are usually illusory. The fear is real, regardless. Accept that your brain and body are responding this way. (Radical self-compassion.) Just don’t give into it without questioning it. You really should be afraid of the lion. You needn’t be afraid of putting your work out into the … Read more
I’m at home all day, so why is it so hard to meditate?
You’d think being forced to stay home is the ideal time to develop a deep, consistent mindfulness practice. It’s good for well-being, and it’s good for focus at work, with clients and while working from home. So why do I *not* meditate? Why do I keep putting it off? When I stop and pay attention … Read more
Do bad work first so you can do great work
If you know what you want to do, but you feel stuck and are not getting started, this post is for you. Perfectionism is the action killer. Do something badly a first time, then do it the second time, and a third, and you’ll be far ahead of where you are now. So far ahead … Read more
A message to you, the reader
I hadn’t heard back from a client in several weeks, so I sent another message. When they responded a short while later, they let me know that my messages had been encouraging and helpful in a busy time. And I got to thinking that many of you, the readers of this blog, are in similar … Read more
Procrastination is about emotions, not time
When we ask ourselves why we procrastinate, a couple of reasons come easily to mind: That we are lazy, and that we suck at time management. The first is actively unhelpful. The time management explanation is also a distraction. Time management skills are important, don’t get me wrong. Planning, timeboxing, project tracking and to-do lists … Read more
When fear of starting is a paper-thin wall
In the context of discussing procrastination and the pain of starting, a commenter writes: Fear is a wall 1000 miles wide and a mile high, but only tissue paper thin. A la Harry Potter running through the brick wall to the train station. – (source) This is a helpful frame. Anything that helps me get … Read more
Procrastination self-prescription (that works for me every time)
I have work to do, but constant low-grade pain from a shoulder strain is killing my concentration and will to work these last 24 hours. I’ve distracted myself with social media and I’m letting people down because of it. If only I knew an anti-procrastination coach. Oh, wait! Okay, here’s my self-prescription: 5 minutes of … Read more
Time flowing like a hundred yachts
These words always caught my attention: So Time, the wave, enfolds me in its bed, Or Time, the bony knife, it runs me through. I saw them frequently beginning in my first year at university, 1989, while hurrying between lectures. Two lines of verse spray-painted on the rear of the University of Sydney’s chemistry building. … Read more