Four Reasons Why Reviewing Written Goals Helps You Achieve Them
Here's a piece of advice you may know: Write down your top goals and re-read them every day. Simply implementing this daily review can make a significant difference in whether you achieve the goals. If this sounds like some kind of magical thinking, it's not....
The Secret to Doing Better Next Time
Did something go badly? A "discussion" with a spouse or coworker that ended in acrimony? A proposal that flopped? When something goes badly, you may be tempted to forget about it and just try to do better next time. But the secret to doing better lies in thinking...
A Good Time to Take Stock
The new year is a time of rebirth. To begin on an inspiring note, I suggest you spend a little time taking stock of your achievements from the year that is ending. Make a record of your accomplishments — everything you did or said or bought or made happen that you're...
To Resolve or Not to Resolve
Do not make any New Year's Resolutions this year. At least, not unless you're mentally ready for the commitment. How can you tell? Here are three tests: Test 1: Is your goal concrete and specific? A goal to do "more" with friends is vague. It would be better to plan...
The “AND List”
The "AND" list is a basic tactic for addressing resistance and temptation in the moment. You can use it when you aren't instantly motivated to do what you "should" be doing. This tactic helps you acknowledge your own mixed motivation so that you can act consciously...
Keep It Interesting
Boredom kills concentration, productivity, and pleasure. It's hard to motivate yourself to pay attention when you're bored out of your mind. If you find yourself bored in a meeting or on a project, you need a remedy. Here are three things you can do. One idea is to...
Reset Your Counter
Here's an excellent piece of advice I got from small-business coach Mark LeBlanc: Whatever you are tracking — time spent during the day, exercise periods during the week, or sales during the month, make sure you reset your counter mentally at the end of the tracking...
Recommendation: The Marketing Minute
Often I recommend books in this newsletter. Today I'd like to recommend a person: Marcia Yudkin, a business and marketing consultant who I have learned a tremendous amount from over the years. One of my favorite resources from Marcia is her weekly "Marketing Minute"...
Three Questions for Reflection
As those of you who have taken my freebie "Jump Start Your Thinking" class know, I like to collect questions. Questions are the spur to thinking. The right question at the right time can trigger important learning. Here is a set of questions I collected from Glenna...
Tip: Three Reasons to Learn a Formula
At a humor workshop I attended recently, Judy Carter taught us a formula for creating a joke around something mean that someone said to us. The steps were: Remember exactly what words were used, plus the tone and body language, so you can act it out. Backtrack: what...