How To Follow Through On Habits

May 14, 2013 — Leave a comment
Stay on that grind.

Stayin on that grind.

I’ve come to realize that habits are the key to success.

Screen Shot 2013-05-13 at 7.47.56 PM

The great thing about habits is that they become easy once they are established. The human mind loves to take shortcuts. So naturally, it tries to turn everything into a routine. This is why habits are so important–you do them without thinking about it.

I knew this. Yet, I was having trouble establishing the habits I set out to form. For one, I tried to overhaul all of my habits at once and completely change my life. Ambitious, yet I failed miserably. After some research, I found the best approach is to focus on one habit at a time.

But then, I ran into the problem of which habit to focus on. I couldn’t make up my mind! I kept switching around the habit after a few days.

Finally, I decided to focus on exercise because it effects so much of your life (i.e. energy, sleep, diet, mental sharpness, emotions, etc.) This is what Charles Duhigg calls a “keystone habit” in his book, The Power of Habit. The keystone habit is one that spills over into other habits. For example, if I exercise everyday, I’m going to have an easier time falling asleep, which will in turn give me more energy during the day, and so on.

So, I set out to create my daily exercise habit. However, I kept missing random days. I was trying to make exercise a habit, but it wasn’t going as perfectly as planned. Not that I am a perfectionist by any means, but I wanted to do better.

That’s why I decided to create a formal application process for myself. For each habit I want to form, I have to go through a list of questions/steps and write out a contract with specifics. I then place the contract in a file folder labeled “Habits Log.”

This accomplishes a number of things.

1) I get clear and specific about the habit. Ambiguity is the enemy of action. I want to achieve certainty and directly tell my brain what I want it to accomplish, and when, where, why, how it is going to happen.

2) I write it down on paper. There’s something magical about writing it down. It makes it legit. It removes the abstract idea floating around in your brain and makes it concrete.

3) I make a commitment to myself. Before I could rationalize not following through, but now I have signed my name to getting it done. If I mess this up, it’s on me.

4) It takes me through proven steps and techniques for establishing the habit. In my application, I included a number of techniques to help myself follow through. For example, creating accountability by telling a friend or two about your goal. 

Without further adu, here’s an example of a recent habit application I filled out.

How To Follow Through On Habits

1) Identify the habit you want to create. Exercise for 10 minutes everyday. (Important to start small.)

2) Write down a start and end date. Start: May 13, 2013. End: June 12, 2013.

3) How will you accomplish this? What are specifics you plan to do? I’m going to lift weights 3x a week and play basketball, run on the other days. My lifting program will follow the simple strength training program that Mark Rippletoe advocates in his book Starting Strength with a few tweaks. This will focus on the fundamental lifts. Specifically, workout A is bench press, front squat, and deadlift. Workout B is standing overhead press, pendlay row, and front squat. Then, I will sprinkle in pull-ups, dips, and some core exercises. I can do pull-ups in my house or after my workout if I still have energy. Same with dips. I will do my core exercises on off lifting days after running/playing basketball.

4) Choose a trigger. This is going to be tough considering the next two weeks will break from routine as I transition into summer. I’m going to exercise first thing every day to combat this. My trigger will be finishing up breakfast. I plan to lay out all my workout clothes in advanced to reduce resistance and provide an additional trigger.

5) How can I make this fun? The best way to make lifting fun is to see results. I will take a before picture and track the weight I lift meticulously. When I run,  I can explore new paths and parks each time. Listening to new music or audiobooks will also help make it a satisfying experience. I already enjoy playing basketball so nothing extra is needed for it.

6) Create accountability. I need to clarify this. I’m going on vacation soon so I can use my family to provide accountability for that period. However, I’ll be in Como for a few days after exams so I need to make sure I have somebody who is checking up on me. I will make some calls/emails tomorrow to help find accountability. (putting it on my task list.)

7) Assign a time during the day that you will this habit. First available time in the morning after breakfast.

8) Create a reward for doing your habit. The endorphin rush is already a decent reward. Also, I find it satisfying to breathe deeply after getting my heart rate up. Feels good. I have a big calendar that I X on the date if I did my habit for the day as well. I think it could be a good reward to text my accountability partners after I complete my habit, like “wussup son, just exercised like a boss.”

9) Make sure to start small with the habit. Even though exercising for 10 mins a day seems like cake, I’m following through with this concept.

10) Identify possible failure points. This is important. I failed before because I was stuck at home (I usually workout at the rec) and never got around to going out and running. The best way to beat this is to make it #1 priority and do it early in the morning. Also, I was considering buying a trampoline as a fun way to exercise at home. I really have no excuse not to go run around for 10 minutes. Come on now.

11) 1 Habit At A Time. Yep.

12) Why do you want to form this habit? Exercise is important for many aspects of life such as happiness, productivity, rest, energy, mental sharpness, emotional stability, need I say more? Plus, I want to get back into lifting.

13) Have a motto to say to motivate yourself during tough times. 

“The pain you feel today will be the strength you feel tomorrow.”

14) Specific guidelines to follow. In order to complete my habit for the day, I must exercise for 10 minutes. Walking does not count.

15) Track your progress in a journal. Done.

16) Post in an open forum. Periodic updates on dabos3.com will suffice.

17) Write out a contract, and sign it.

18) Additional motivation: Watch videos on fitness, people with energy, people with good health/fitness, bodybuilders, running, etc. Attempt to watch a motivational video before every workout, but not completely necessary. Make sure workout music is poppin.

19) Actions I need to take: 
-Email Mizzou athletic trainer
-Create a spreadsheet to record journal entries.
-Buy a new, healthy protein supplement.
-Find accountability
-Take Before picture
-Record beginning lift numbers

This may seem excessive, but I wanted to get specific about the habit so that I have no reason not to follow through. I encourage everyone to do this even if it seems stupid, it’s better than the alternative of “keeping it in your head.” Also, I am confident it will prove effective.

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Book Review: Hacking Your Education

May 12, 2013 — Leave a comment

hacking_your_education

Hacking Your Education showed me what a life without formal schooling would look like. Seriously, are we so caught up in the system that we think people can’t learn without it? Dale Stephens has been out of school nearly his entire life, relying on his own self-directed learning instead. It is an exciting concept: learning with no boundaries. You can truly explore what you’re interested in. What a thought.

The thing I like about this book is that it promotes independence. So many people are scared to make decisions for themselves these days, and they end up letting others or the status quo guide their life. That’s no way to live.

This isn’t a book against college, but rather one arguing for choice. We shouldn’t ask, “where should I go to school?” We should ask, “should I go to school.” While college is not all bad, the truth is that it’s becoming less and less of a necessity.

It’s time to do work that matters. If college is a part of that path, so be it. However, we should realize that not all are cut out for college, and Dale does a good job laying out the alternatives.

Key insights:
-The degree isn’t the savior it used to be.
They say you need a college degree to get a job. Yet, 44.4 percent of college grads under twenty-five are unemployed or working jobs that don’t require their degree. So what gives?

-Only do things that have a purpose behind it.
How many things have you done in your life that had little to no purpose for you life? Probably a lot. Stop it. I don’t respect people who tell me to do things because “I said so” or “that’s just the way it is.” That’s stupid. Dale points out that you should go to college only if you know why you’re there. I totally agree. No reason to do something half-heartedly.

-Get up early. It’s great productivity. However, it’s pretty difficult to pull off in college.

-Would you date yourself? I thought this was a great question for introspective thought. It’s important to accept yourself, but also be able to be self aware and look at your life from an objective perspective at times.

-Take on projects that you don’t know how to do. This is absolute gold. Think about the consequences of adopting this mindset. You either accomplish something you’ve never done before or you fail and learn from it. It’s win-win.

-Twitter is a great way to reach out to people. Dale mentioned several times when talking about somebody in the book that he met them through twitter. I’ve seen other people do this too, and I think the internet can really bring people together. Powerful.

-Writing and Programming are two valuable skills to learn. These are two skills that companies need, yet many young people are deficient in the areas. Luckily, I’ve been working on my writing, and I definitely want to dive into some programming as well.

Take people out for coffee. Picking someone’s brain over coffee is one of the most valuable things you can do. New connection + valuable advice. Make this a habit. 

Travel. This book made me want to travel around.

Nothing has to be formal. We all get caught up in having to do things in a certain way, living within the system. But the reality is that you can live however you want. There are no rules. If you want you can go sit in on a lecture for a class that you’re not enrolled in. You can attend a conference that you’re not supposed to be at. Look for unique ways to grow and learn.

Things to research further:

-Astra Taylor
-zizek (film)
-Summerhill School by A.S. Neil
-Growing Without Schooling (old magazine)
-Dumbing Us Down by John Taylor Gatto
-Codeacademy
-uncollege.org/code
-Stanford online education resources
-Groupon programming classes
-Hoehn’s musings
-MIT online courses
-www.e-180.com
-www.skillshare.com
-Lanyrd.com (find conferences)
-Couchsurfing.org
-www.hackerspaces.org
-www.clarity.fm (find mentors)
-Deschooling Society by Ivan Illich
-Khan academy
Opencourseware
-EdX
-Udacity
-Coursera
-Degreed
-Smarterer
-Entelo
-MOOCs

Personal Index

“If the best experiences happen outside the classroom, why am I paying $42,000 a year to sit inside a classroom?” (xiii)

“44.4 percent of college grads under twenty-five are unemployed or working jobs that don’t require their degree.” (xiii)

3 main reasons we go university:

-Social experience
-To get a job
-To learn for learning’s sake (1-2)

People say “college graduates earn more over their lifetime than people who didn’t go to college.” Classic example of causation vs. correlation fallacy. College graduates don’t do well because of the school. For the most part, they’re already smarter and have access to more resources than those who don’t go. In other words, they make the schools look prestigious, not the other way around. That’s about to change. (2)

“Do I need to join student groups or could I move to a city and join interest-based groups there? Do I need a degree to get a job or could I teach myself to program computers? Do I need to listen to lectures or could I just go to the library and start reading?” (2-3)

“Hackademics wants to know what you’ve built, what you’ve created that has added value to the world.” (4)

“fifty-seven hundred janitors in the US with PhDs.” (6)

“consider going to a university in Finland where all higher education is free, even for international students.” (7)

“Since 1980, college tuition has risen more than 350 percent adjusted for inflation.” (8) 

“If college were teaching useful skills, 22.4 percent of college grads under age twenty-five wouldn’t be unemployed.” (8)

“Thirty-six percent of students showed no improvement in critical thinking, complex reasoning, or writing over four years of college.” (8) 

“Universities do not exist to train you for the real world; they exist to make money.” (9)

“That’s one of the biggest problems our education system has–no one asks why you’re going to school.” (13) 

US higher education is thirtieth in the world. Pathetic. (14)

“You should go to college only if you want to go to college and know exactly why you are going to college.” (16)

“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will spend its whole life believing that it is stupid.” -Albert Einstein (19) 

“The power to make my own decisions at an age when most parents think their kids should be seen and not heard is, to this day, the greatest gift my parents have ever given me.” (20) 

Everybody is interested in something. Just have to tap into it. (21)

“People educated at home do better on standardized tests.” (21)

“You need to stop giving a shit about grades and start building things.” (24) 

Get up early. It’s enormously productive (24)

College culture makes normal sleep cycles very difficult (26)

As soon as you get out of bed standup and get the blood pumping <<I’ve found this very effective for getting up when the alarm goes off. Simply standing up for a good minute will wake you up. (26)

Develop a morning routine. (26)

“In the nineteenth century, American schools were modeled on the Prussian school system, which was explicitly designed to create factory workers.” <<remains basis of our education system (28)

“Did my grades show me the progress I’d made or did they just make me dependent on external validation.” (28)

“The biggest roadblock holding most of us back from the life we want is entirely self-created: It’s that we care what other people think.” (29)

“make authenticity a priority. That you have the courage to act with your own convictions.” (29) 

Don’t be controlled by others’ opinions. At the end of the day, all you have is yourself. All you need is your own approval. If people can’t accept that, they never cared in the first place. Most important skill you can learn is to be yourself. (30-31)

“Would you date yourself?” (30) 

Get rejected. Who cares?

Video idea–page 31

“Taking on projects that you don’t know how to do is a fabulous way to ensure that you’re always learning.” (35) <<<This is gold, do this.

Make a to-learn list (36)

“One downside of school is that we’re never asked what we’re interested in.” (37)

“Extrinsic rewards–such as grades, that traditional schooling relies on wholeheartedly–depress students’ desire to learn on their own.” (37) 

You’re more likely to remember things that you’re interested in (39)

Making a to learn list (40)

Share goals with people for accountability. (40)

Create a personal website and share your work on there for the world to see (51)

Organize a collaborative learning group/brain party. (54)

“Nearly 90 percent of the kids praised for their effort chose the harder test.” <<Praise kids for their effort, not their talent or skill level.  Difference in fixed vs. growth mindset. (59)

Any skill can be learned and improved upon.

Employees will often post job listings with high standards to discourage scrubs from applying. Don’t buy into it. You can do the job.

Make a list of things you suck at (68)

“Don’t ask yourself why you should try something new, ask yourself why you shouldn’t.” (71)

A great way to find new experiences–through volunteering.

Good copy script for frustrated student (71)

“It takes years for knowledge to become part of a formal curriculum.” (74)

A lot of people go to college because they don’t know what they want to do with their life. That is the wrong approach. Go try stuff out. Volunteer and see what actually goes into the job before you spend thousands on formal schooling.

Don’t ask permission to do stuff. Just do it.

Email script (page 74)

“I asked Derrick if there’s anything that has set him apart, and without hesitation he responded, “Yeah, I think I’m awesome.” (75)

“For the most part, you can’t intimidate me, and that’s because I know who I am and I know what I am and I’m good with that, and there’s nothing that anyone can take from me–I have to give you that power.” (77)

2 skills that are valuable: writing and programming. Programmers get paid over 100,000 entry level in Silicon Valley. (78) 

Make time to write. Write about your passions. Somebody may even pick up on it and it may lead to something. Never know.

Go to events and strike up conversations with people.

Pull a Steve Jobs and attend random lectures that you’re not enrolled in. Nobody’s gonna check.

Find mentors by emailing top people in your field. Go directly for the top people. (88-89)

You can sometimes guess somebody’s email. (90)

More email scripts (93) –Be specific. Be strategic about subject line.

Budget money to take people to coffee. 52cupsofcoffee.tumblr.com

When you meet somebody for coffee, ask them who else you should meet. (98) 

Become an apprentice hack (101) <<gold.

“The Internet is one of the best learning tools out  there because you can customize your own experience.” (104)

Twitter is amazing for reaching out new people who share your interests and who you could possibly meet.

Conference hacking/pitch yourself to a conference (111/112)

Thousands of tedx events.

Create you own elevator pitch.

“80% of jobs are never advertised.” (130)

Linkedin is your friend.

Introduce your friends to each other. Organize events to bring people together.

Learning resources. We have access to all the information we’ll ever need. (141)

The library is the greatest weapon.

Couchsurfing.org <<money

“You don’t have to be in college to be in college.” (148)

Incubators (153)

Start a company or get a job while in school (154)

How to get books paid for by your school? (ask ramit)

Go travel. Broaden horizons (164)

The ultimate goal: to be independent. To not need anything from anybody. How can I built this skill?

Collect airline points. Credit card deal? (166)

You can live on under $1000 a month. (169)

Buy a one way plane ticket (175)

“Having to learn while you do something as opposed to before you do something seems to be the biggest difference between the real world and school to me.” (179)

Say yes to things that scare you. You will either succeed or you will fail and learning something from it. Win-win. (179)

Student loan debt can’t be declared bankrupt. It stays with you your whole life. (181)

“Only 54 percent of young people between eighteen and twenty-four are currently employed; that’s the lowest it has been since the government started keeping score. (182)

Not against school. For choices. Can we not trust people to make their own decisions and be responsible for their own learning? (183)

Education should strive to facilitate an environment where the student can become curious and learn about himself and the world. (186)

 

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The Time I Went Raw Vegan For A Day

May 5, 2013 — Leave a comment

 

I call it the green salad.

I call it the green salad.

I like to shake things up every once in a while. Just to see what happens.

Yeah, I’m cool like that.

So last Monday I decided I wanted to eat super healthy to see how it would affect my energy levels.

I became one of those health nuts, questioning the origins of every ingredient that entered my body. I started saying things like, “the body is a temple, bro.” and “Hey man, how many vegetables have you had today?”

I went grocery shopping at Clover’s Natural Market. Walmart was too mainstream for this new and improved health guru. I even found myself breaking carrots (as opposed to breaking bread, funny right?) with the hipsters at The Main Squeeze, an all organic cafe on 9th street. Were these guys destined to be my new best friends?

I went home and was immediately mocked by my cheeseburger-loving roommates. They said my dinner looked like a bunch of weeds pulled from the garden. I was unfazed.

That day, I literally ate 75% raw vegetables, and the rest was fruit and nuts (all organic). I felt good about myself. I was a little lightheaded, but that was just my body adjusting, right?. I started wondering what it would be like to eat like this all the time.

Then, I came to a very profound conclusion: it would SUCK.

The next day I made a little visit to Chipotle, and I haven’t turned back since. Don’t get me wrong–I try to eat pretty healthy, but there were three things wrong with my approach for this massive diet overhaul:

1) Extreme behavior change is never sustainable
I didn’t really expect to actually eat like this the rest of my life. It was more of an experiment. However, if I did desire to make this my normal diet, I would have to start with smaller changes overtime. I fall victim to this principle often, and get too ambitious.

2) Making yourself miserable is not good for you health either. While I wasn’t miserable trying this out short term, long term it would have been dreadful. Stress is a significant factor for overall health. So there’s no point to restricting yourself to ridiculously rigid standards if you hate your life and feel guilty every time you order a burger with the bros.

3) A raw vegan diet is deficient in regards to macronutrients. For one, there’s no Omega-3 to be found. Our ancestors ate meat so why can’t we? Just make sure it’s grass fed meat and not processed or shot up with growth hormones. That’s my take.

I originally wanted to do a 7 day cleanse just to see how it felt at the end of it, but I did some research and found out that it would take a two week detox period for my body to fully adjust to this change. Ain’t nobody got time fo that. I needed energy now.

Maybe if I’m off on a remote island for a couple weeks, I’ll try it again. Keyword: try.

Ultimately, I don’t got beef with vegans or vegetarians (get it). I just know that I would probably never go down that path for any significant period of time.

Now, if you’d excuse me, it’s time to fire up the grill.

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Just upgraded the theme…you like?

Posted on May 4, 2013 In Uncategorized
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Book Review: Linchpin

April 20, 2013 — Leave a comment

linchpin

 

Finished: April 20, 2013
Rating: 8/10
Published: January 26th 2010
Page Count: 236

In this book, Seth Godin denounces the status quo and old paradigm of business and embraces the linchpin–a difference maker, an artist, an innovator that works without a map.

He really hits small-minded thinkers where it hurts, and offers a perception of society that praises the unconventional and creative individual.

This is a book that will cause you to think twice about following cliched advice. Is that really where you want to end up? Amongst the average?

Safe is the new risky, and risky is the new safe. In a race to the bottom of the price model, only Walmart can win. For the rest of us, we must seek out connection, give often, and deliver humanity in our work.

Seth excels in the creation of a book that is about mindset and attitude. You may not find the quick tactic or golden nugget right away, but it will set you down the path of finding true meaning and fulfillment in your contribution to the world.

Enough of my formal review…

This is a book about getting real and identifying yourself as a human being and not a “cog in the machine.” I had been suspecting much of what Seth brought to light long before, but this really puts it all out there for you. Put the old way of thinking to rest, it is no longer working. The guarantees of working for a company straight out of college for 50 years is gone. The only way to navigate this new reality is by relying on yourself– treating yourself as a free agent, becoming indispensable, becoming the linchpin.

The only way to win is to get over your fear of thinking for yourself.

-Lizard brain. Everyone has a genius inside of them. The lizard brain is the resistance, the fear, that tells you to settle. The Lizard brain wants you to stay safe in your room because you’re evolutionarily wired to just survive. You have to overcome that voice. We live in the safest society of all time. There is no tiger around the corner.

-Real artists ship. This is how you beat the lizard brain. You ship. This is a Steve Jobs quote that Seth elaborates on. Perfection is the enemy of the artist. The only reason to start something is to finish it. Your genius means nothing if you are crippled by the resistance and can’t hit the publish button on your blog.

-To not innovate is to die. Look at Blockbuster, Kodak, the entire newspaper industry. They are suffering because they were stuck in comfortable, limited modes of thinking. If they had some linchpins, they would have welcomed the change, better yet gone to seek it out.

-Be Indispensable.The only way to be irreplaceable is to be human. More and more jobs are being outsourced everyday. Nobody needs you to enter data into a spreadsheet. We need you to find your genius, connect with people, offer new solutions, and stop waiting to be told what to do.

-The system is broken. School might in fact be the enemy. School trains you for the old system that was created during the Industrial Revolution. It tells you to put your head down, do what you’re told and things will work out. That’s good if you desire to work in a factory with concrete instructions. School teaches you to please the teacher and to be obedient, but that’s the last thing we need. We need people who are indispensable and creating new opportunities, not another cog in the machine. Learning can still be done, but it is important to recognize that formal education is not the end all, be all it once was.

-We are all artists. Every one can be creative. In fact, it’s almost a crime not to be. This doesn’t mean you have to quit your job to become a starving musician. This means you look to humanize your work. You look for unique solutions, go out out of your way to connect with people, and give people the gift of your genius.

-It’s not all about the money. Of course, it is important to support yourself, but a job is more than that. Money is only one component of job satisfaction. Challenge, recognition, flexibility, autonomy, location are all important as well.

-Give gifts. Be genuine in your art. People who do it just for the money do not often succeed. We can tell when you’re not being transparent. Master the concept of giving without expectance of reciprocation. It does more for you than for the recipient.

-Prajna. Remove your attachment to an outcome in an effort to get your perception as close to reality as possible. Eliminate bias the best you can, and view yourself from a far. Accept your condition and work to improve it. That is the best way.

Significant Quotes

“For hundreds of years, the population has been seduced, scammed, and brainwashed into fitting in, following instructions, and exchanging a day’s work for a day’s pay. That era has come to an end and just in time.” (3)

“People want to be told what to do because they are afraid of figuring it out for themselves.” (10)

“Being good at school is a fine skill if you intend to do school forever. For the rest of us, being good at school is a little like being good at Frisbee. It’s nice, but it’s not relevant unless you career involves homework assignments, looking through textbooks for answer that are already known to your supervisors, complying with instructions and then, in high-pressure settings, regurgitating those facts with limited processing on your part.” (47)

“Every interaction you have with a coworker or customer is an opportunity to practice your art of interaction. Every product you make represents an opportunity to design something that has never been designed, to create an interaction unlike any other.” (57)

“Who are you trying to please?” (60)

“For generations, we’ve been pushing workers to do something inherently unnatural. We’ve been teaching, cajoling, and yes, forcing people to hide their empathy and their creativity and to pretend that they are fast-moving automatons, machines designed to do the company’s bidding.” (71)

“If the game is designed for you to lose, don’t play that game. Play a different one.” (74)

“When you give something away, you benefit more than the recipient does.” (89)

“The greatest shortage in our society is an instinct to produce.” (102)

“Successful people are successful for one simple reason: they think about failure differently” (115)

“You become a winner because you’re good at losing.” (115)

“You’ve probably guessed what happens when you have a great backup plan: You end up settling for the backup.” (116)

“It’s not an accident that successful people read more books.” (126)

“you must determine if the route is worth the effort. If it’s not, dream bigger.” (133)

“the only difference between my friend and someone who changes everything is the resistance.” (135)

“the only risk is the loss of time.” (141)

“Real change happens when someone who cares steps up and takes what feels like a risk. People follow because they want to, not because you can order them to.” (201)

“Transferring you passion to your job is far easier than find a job that happens to match your passion.” (201)

“Everyday is a new chance to choose.” (206)

“If you want to create a unique guitar riff, it sure helps if you’ve heard all the other guitar riffs on record.” (219)

“And if history is a guide, your job there isn’t as stable as you think, because average companies making average products for average people are under huge strain.” (226)

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2 Habits To Double Student Productivity

April 17, 2013 — Leave a comment
This kid needs help.

This kid needs help.

 

I am a nerd.

I study the art of productivity. I study the science of productivity. I study the productivity of studying productivity.

Why?

Because I want to eat homework assignments for breakfast, accomplish epic feats, and ultimately make you look like a sloth in comparison to my dominance.

Story time…

I have been pretty annoyed with school this whole semester. If you read my post, What I’ve Learned From My College Classes, you understand my beef. However, I recently came to the conclusion that I can’t ignore school. It doesn’t work. Sure I can do the bare minimum in wasteful classes, but I still have to actually do the assignments and show up to exams somewhat prepared. I tried my best to will it out of existence, but as long as I’m enrolled in college I might as well embrace it.

So my new goal has become to knock out schoolwork as quickly as possible so that I can concentrate on more interesting endeavors.

Here’s my two step process:

1) Implement Project Based Productivity
2) Go To The Library Everyday

Project Based Productivity

This is a pretty simple method that I created based off a Pat Flynn podcast. The core principle is simply to focus on one project at a time. So I just enter all important assignment/exam due dates into google calendar, mark it in red, and set SMS reminders. Then I look at the due date that is closest in the calendar and focus on that project until it’s completed.

The key is to COMPLETELY IGNORE all other school assignments until the first one is completed. Then it’s on to the second one and so on… Of course, you have to deal with small assignments that pop up in between, but that’s usually not that big of a deal.

Combined with this next habit, you can stay on top of your school work with relative ease.

Go To The Library Everyday

This is simple, yet super powerful. Originally, I was going to write this post on just this alone.

It’s simple: just go to the library everyday. I usually go after my classes and stay for about 2 hours, bumping it up to 3 if I have a really demanding week. The beauty of it is that I can just concentrate on school during this designated time block and then not have to worry about it the rest of my time.

The reason is works so well is because it harnesses the power of two fundamental principles of productivity:

The Power of Habit
Once you’re able to establish the habit of going to the library everyday, it makes it easier to do school work on a consistent basis and avoid procrastination. It’s the same concept for working out. Just get yourself to the gym. That’s the trigger. Don’t concentrate on the mountain of mundane homework you have to do. Just focus on getting yourself to the library, the environment will take care of the rest.

The Power of Environment
I’ve just recently realized the significant influence your environment has on your behavior. I learned this from watching a video of Peter Bregman, the author of 18 Minutes. Think about it. How much easier is it to focus in the library versus in your house/dorm room? It seems obvious, but if you just make yourself go to the library and cut off all distractions, the likelihood that you will get work done increases dramatically. There have been days where I don’t want to do any schoolwork, but once I get to the library and sit there for a few minutes, the environment takes over and figure I might as well do something productive. Boom! Assignment finished before I can think twice!

This principle really shows that people who study in social settings are idiots. Working on a group project is one thing, but cut the chit chat and handle your businesses. Why prolong the project? It’s only wasting time that you could use to actually be socializing. Remove yourself from all life and hit a study session like a man! (or woman)

Combine these two methods with Parkinson’s Law and people will think you’re a unstoppable, productive machine.

FAQs

Ignore all my classes? But I’ll get behind.
Think about it this way: you’re going to cram anyway. Better to cram a week or a few days than the night before. Once you get about a week before your exam, make studying for that class your project. You can understand a whole semester’s worth of a material in a week. Teachers just love to stretch it out and act like everything they say is some genius revelation. Not so.

What if I have more than one test/project?
This requires planning and adaptability  If you have multiple tests in the same week, your workload should be less in other weeks. Use the other weeks to get ahead and you’ll be fine. If you have to study for two tests in your daily library sessions, so be it, but this whole process is based on the principle of getting ahead and staying on top of things.

What if the class is important?
By all means, if the class is interesting or important to your future, then soak it up like a sponge. Use project based productivity for the boring and useless material.

Are you a genius?
Yes.

In College, Productivity , , , , , , , , , ,
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Make Waves

April 6, 2013 — Leave a comment

Maui Huge Wave

I have a new motto.

It’s better than YOLO.

I think way too many people just go with the flow, don’t stand out too much, and end up with an average life.

That may be fine for some, but I’d rather have a horrible life than an average one. Seriously, the status quo sickens me. Who would want to live a life that made no difference? That’s just depressing.

That’s why you’ve gotta make waves. 

Think about it. If you never make waves, you never make mistakes, you never learn. If you don’t make waves, you can never truly measure your potential or see what you’re truly capable of.

This can be applied to all spectrums of life. Why is it so hard to get a job? Because your resume is stuck in the middle of a heaping pile of them! Seriously, it wouldn’t surprise me if large companies had a resume box or even a resume room where they dump all of them. No doubt, some of them go straight to the trash.

So why not make waves and send them a video, selling yourself as a valuable hire. Heck, why not cold call the CEO? Anything to make waves and get through the clutter. Seriously, what do you have to lose? It only takes one executive to be impressed with you to get the job. So instead of submitting 100 more resumes, do something crazy that will at least get somebody’s attention. They’ll actually be happy that they don’t have to scan another cliché resume.

“Risky is the new safe.” – Seth Godin 

You can take this approach to anything. You only need one woman to love you, one person to believe in you, one idea to stick. Instead of creating a master plan for everything, go out and make some waves. You can analyze later.

Making waves is all about having an impact, doing things like never before, setting outrageous goals, and learning from every experience. Don’t be another replaceable cog in the machine. Be unique. Do you.

When people are at your funeral, do you want them to say you were a “nice guy” or do you want people to tell stories about how you lived life passionately and inspired them to do the same?

I know we get caught up in just making the grades or paying the bills, but that’s no way to live. Seriously, your goal is to just get by? I’m not even talking money here. I’m talking mediocrity, accepting the average–the bare minimum of life.

“It’s lonely at the top. 99% of the world is convinced they are incapable of achieving great things, so they aim for the mediocre middle-ground. The level of competition is thus fiercest for “realistic” goals, paradoxically making them the most time- and energy-consuming.” – Tim Ferriss

I want to do the things that excite, that scare me. 

You can’t get anywhere if you don’t make waves. Sure, there are times to take things in, sit back, and relax, but ultimately happiness is growth. Everyday I want to improve my life and the lives of others.

That’s why I make waves.

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Photo credit: Denis Dore. www.maui-hawaii-dream-vacations.com.

 

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