Natural Explanations for Some Mysterious Phenomena
As part of the work I do to help people master the use of their own minds to achieve important goals, I occasionally find myself in the role of a "debunker." Many people don't understand how the subconscious works and they treat its influence on their lives as a kind...
Plan to Percolate
I often spend an hour pre-thinking about a topic before I "need to," not because I'm pressed for time, or because it's new material, but solely to allow me to percolate. Planning to percolate is a good use of your brain. If you don't know what I mean by "percolate,"...
Four Productivity States to Manage
Some years ago I read an interesting book titled The Origin of Everyday Moods: Managing Energy, Tension, and Stress, by Robert Thayer. The bottom line from the book is you need to distinguish (and manage) four identifiable productivity states: Relaxed & Energized...
Take Fear of the Unknown Seriously — Do an Experiment
I often hear from people who are paralyzed by fear of the unknown. They think they know the next step to take, but they are uncertain whether it will result the way they hope. If they knew, they would take it. Instead, they are stopped by fear. For example, a woman I...
Measure What’s Important
You have probably heard, "If you don't measure it, you can't improve it." True. You can't make something better unless you can get objective feedback on how you're doing. By choosing a metric, and periodically measuring it, you can see whether the changes you are...
What is “Crow” Overload?
Mental overload is the #1 obstacle to thinking. Whether it's too many things to think about, too many emotions to give you space to think, or too much complexity to untangle in your head, it is THE problem. Indeed, what distinguishes humans from animals is that we...
Judgment “Bias” is Countered by a Logical Process
We often hear about psychological studies which purport to show that physical circumstances affect people's judgment. For example, in one study people were given either hot coffee or iced coffee to hold, then they read a packet of information about a fictitious...
How Can You Become More Realistic When Setting Your Goals?
One of the members of the Thinking Lab mentioned that he has difficulty setting realistic goals for his major projects, because his expectations are unrealistic. I'd venture to say that most people set unrealistic goals in at least some areas. This is a big problem....
Adapting Advice to Your Own Purposes
A friend once shared with me how her 17-year-old daughter adapted some advice for her own purposes. It's an inspiring story with several lessons. The young woman was training to become an opera singer — an ambitious, long-term goal. It was particularly challenging for...
The Criteria For Choosing One Thing to Do
In the past, I've talked about the need to identify a unitary goal in order to be more productive. A unitary goal is: ONE thing you are trying to do. You cannot be nimble if you are trying to achieve a twofer (accomplish two things at once) or if you are vague on your...
