Are you getting ๐ฉ done in 2018? โ
3 down...
Q1 done.
[Or 'January - March are over' if you think of the year like a normal person (once an accountant...).]
Anyway, we're three months into 2018 - how does that make you feel*|IF:FNAME|* *|ELSE:|**|END:IF|*?
This week we're going to pause leadership of others and think about leadership of you.
Do you have the right systems and habits in place to succeed in your personal and professional goals and ambitions this year?
Let's be honest, for some of us 2018 so far will be a haze of good intentions that drowned in the sea of busy-ness.ย For others it will be one of many milestones towards their goals.ย Or a combination of both.
I ended last year talking about how I don't like setting resolutions; you don't need to wait for a new year (or week, or month or quarter) to make a change.ย That position has not changed.
Start as you mean to go on
Like many of you, I've hit 2018 hard; lots of travel, many hours in front of my laptop, planning things, doing things, working hard and trying to live a good life with the people around me at the same time.
A few weeks ago I wasn't sleeping well.ย Which in turn meant I wasn't eating as well because my energy was low and I was generally feeling run down.ย I also noticed that I was less creative and feeling a bit flat.
It would have been really easy to try and solve this with half a dozen approaches at once; go to bed earlier, ban myself from eating chocolate, take some more supplements, go for a walk at lunchtime, book a holiday, do some colouring in...
That all sounds like a lot of mental energy.
Instead, I changed one thing.
I started reading.
Ch-ch-ch-changes
Between 9 and 9.30pm I get into bed (yes I know, I'm like a 12 year old) and I read.ย Amazingly, this has cured all of my symptoms...
I'm sleeping better because I'm winding down AWAY from devices before bed
I'm having better ideas because I'mย a)ย well-rested and b) inspired byย the books I'm reading
I feel better physically because I'm getting a good 7 - 8 hours sleep per night
I've read three books in three weeks (which is a satisfying sense of achievement)
This a good example of not needing to overhaul your whole life to get meaningful results.
The most sustainable habits start small but act big.
Make the habit easier to do than not do.ย Example; I've heard several people tell themselves that they don't have to go for a run, they just need to put on their trainers.ย That's it, then they can go back to bed if they want.
Inevitably by the time they put their trainers on, they feel like they 'might as well' go for a run, so they do.ย Mission accomplished.
If you want to build a reading habit, start by saying you only need to read two pages.ย The important point is that it's totally, ridiculously, achievable.
PS.ย Building great habits takes time (66 days) so it's a good idea to track your progress (especially if you're a stats junkie like me) and get that nice dopamine hit of satisfaction when you see the numbers clock up.
Build the habit of anything...
Start smallย - pick something you can do easily and start today
Measure itย - download an app like Strides to track your new habit success
Iterate - make tweaks along the way (if reading at night isn't working, could you use your commute?)
Celebrate - share your success, you neverย know who else you might inspire...
"The best time to plant a treeย was 20 years ago.
The secondย best timeย is now"
Chinese Proverb
Catch up: this week on LinkedIn
Website Update
I've spent the Easter weekend eating hot cross buns and updating the website.
(It's getting ready for something exciting)
Favourite bits; a new section at the bottom where you can see what I'm reading and a new layout of some of the pages for easier reading - including the blog.
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Quick Tip:ย music to work to
"Without music, life would be a mistake." Friedrich Nietzsche
For as Iong as I can remember, music has provided the soundtrack to my life.ย I feel a bit strange if I don't have some music playing.ย When I work, the music I choose to have on in the background is very influential to my performance and concentration.
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Here are some albums, songs and Spotify playlists I like for different types of work...
Peaceful Piano playlist (for deep work and 'hard'ย reading)
The XX - XX (for 'hard' reading but not for writing)
Everything Everything - Arc (for getting admin, and tasks I don't want to do, done quicker)
Moby - Lift Me Upย (for creative endeavours; 'light' writing, designing slide decks)
Nightmare on Wax - Carboot Soul (for 'light' reading or writing)
Want to see your management or leadership challenge addressed with helpful advice and resources?ย Email me at steph@stephclarke.com and let me know what topics you'd like me to include in future newsletters.
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