Your best just got better

Is your brain telling you you're hungry?

 

I subscribe to a monthly publication called "Brain in the News." It is distributed through DANA press (www.dana.org) and I highly recommend it for anyone interested in how their brain works!

This picture is from an article I enjoyed, and something I talk about with people as it relates to them...performing at their best.

The author - Anna Gosline - pulled some great research together to connect brain activity and eating...fascinating stuff.

So, what will you eat next? And, is that the best thing you can do to keep your focus, work on the most important things, and feel better at the end of the day?

Email me with your ideas!

Are you brainstorming, or are you deciding and doing?

(Writing on my phone, from Starbucks in Stuyvesant Town)

Great overview in The Wall Street Journal today - a synopsis of a Harvard Business Review article from the December issue.

I am a proponent of separating "thinking" from "deciding and doing."

This does not mean "do without thinking," but it does imply that when you ARE doing, you've already thought the project or action all the way through. So, focus on a particular event, project or issue.

Write down (yes, I still will say to write it, it's a FAST way to get things out of your head...) anything you can about that circumstance.

My advice: For a project worth real resources (time, energy, focus, cash...) write anywhere from 40-100 things that your mind comes up with related - or kinda related - to the topic.

Then, walk away for an hour or more. (A day or two may be optimal.)

THEN, review what ya wrote, and pick a to do. You may find you're "smarter" when you separate "thinking...from doing."

Repeat this process as necessary... Write some things down, then pick the most valuable/highest priority items!

Reserve time for your own growth and advancement.

How would you rate yourself on your own “scale of productivity?” Was yesterday a 2…or a 10? When was the last day you left work, arrived home, or reflected on a day at work and thought, “Wow, that was a great day!”?

Every day, too many people leave  their office without having spent time on the Significant Things. A lot of people set goals and objectives for themselves, and then, for one  reason or another, don’t get around to actually progressing by taking action on their most Significant Projects and Actions.

So here is something you can try: reserve a specific time this week – away from your computer, your mobile phone and your coworkers and/or staff. This time block should be between 45-90 minutes (how long can you go away and still have your department or business run along without you?).

Before and After (Part 2)

Recently, I was at a wonderful hotel, and on the last night of the stay the restaurant manager came over to the table and said, "Mr. Womack, we here at the hotel want to say thanks. I have heard from three of our staff how you have gone out of your way to express your gratitude. So, we'd like to share ours with you. We hope you enjoy this dessert.

Now, I admit I am a dessert fan. And, if you click on the picture you'll expand the view of what I was served!

There was just one problem...

What does BEST mean to you?

Does it have to be better?
Does it mean you're stronger?
Would you you have to go faster?
If it was "the best," would it mean it was easier?

This morning I realized that my best may or may not fit into one of the above categories...but, my best will always be different than what I have done before!

I left my house with about 80 minutes to spare. I rode my bike 11.5 miles to the start of the 10K race I was going to run. I arrived in time to get about 12 minutes of warm-up time. (*Warming up for a 10, today, consisted of: 5X100 "kicks," and about 6 minutes of easy jogging.)

At the go signal, I went out with the second group. We were running about 9MPH or so. I then settled into an easy pace I thought I could sustain. At about the one mile mark, I passed 3 people who had gone out with the lead group..."Hey, look," I thought, "I'm getting better!"

A Little Laptop With Big Ambitions

Click on this link for more: A Little Laptop With Big Ambition

A Little Laptop With Big Ambitions
How a Computer for the Poor Got Stomped by Tech Giants

 

In 2005, Nicholas Negroponte unveiled an idea for bridging the technology divide between rich nations and the developing world. It was captivating in its utter simplicity: design a $100 laptop and, within four years, get it into the hands of up to 150 million of the world's poorest schoolchildren.

I'm still anxiously awaiting MY $100 laptop; and, after reading this report in the WSJ today, I'm even more excited to share my experiences.

If you have a moment, please view the video (from the WSJ.com website!).

Our newsletter, in a MindMap!

Download 5_things_the_best_companies_do..mmap

How cool is this! The MindJet folks (thanks Gaelen) put together a MindMap using our last newsletter as the prompt for that. Click the link below to check out what they've done!

Link: The Mindjet Blog » 5 Things the BEST companies do.

The Jason Womack Company newsletter offers free tips this month on how companies can strive to be the best workplace possible for their employees.

Do you need to track requests you send via E-mail?

I heard about this from someone I worked with in Canada last month. (Thanks Trent!) In his work-world, he sends E-mails that he needs to track - E-mails to his team as well as outside clients. Because not EVERY E-mail needs to be watched, he set up a "rule" inside of Outlook [he is using Outlook 2007] so that if he puts his own name into the BCC field, his E-mail routes directly to a .Waiting folder

Create “.Waiting” folder
Set rule to Move all files from your email address to the “.Waiting” folder
Except where your email is in the To: or CC: field.

I asked him if he'd send me the "step-by-step" directions for this, and he send me the above three lines. I will admit, I was expecting a much more detailed explanation...but, if it's this easy to set up, it might REALLY be worth you trying it out!

I use Entourage, and here is what my .Waiting folder looks like. click on the image below:

I'm so glad I was a high school teacher!

It's not every day, but I get these kinds of notes often enough to make me smile and think, "I'm so glad I had an experience of lifetime..."

I taught in schools (5th-12th grades) from 1993-2000. It was a great choice, and gave me a lot of ideas about teaching, learning, producing and growing. Education is not something done TO us, but something we do for ourselves. I remember this student (see his note to me below) from my US History class... Here's what he wrote to tell me recently:

Hello Jason,

How are you.  It has been a long time since we have spoken but I thought this would be a good time to at least say hello. 

I will be graduating from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University with a BS in Aeronautical Engineering.  I would like to send you an invitation but have no current address for you.  I hope this email reaches for that matter.  Hope to hear from you soon!

"The" question about what I do and why...

"Jason, why do you do this, why do you want to be more productive?"

In a seminar last month in Ottawa, Canada, someone asked me this question during the live presentation. My response was immediate: Well, let me tell you, I do not want to be productive to simply get more things done.

I do want to be productive because, quite frankly, there are SO MANY other things that I want to do.

I work to find the most effective and efficient ways to do things.

I want to know... How do people: have an idea, track that idea, take action on that idea and debrief the value of implementing that idea? That's what (if there was anything) could keep me up at night!

You see, if I had an extra half an hour a day I can fill that space in with high value and important activities.  I could write a letter to my mother, I could phone call my brother, I could find a new website with information about the combination of information as it relates to office productivity, personal excellence, and lifestyle engagement. All things that I enjoy doing!

Do share, if YOU had an extra 30 minutes tomorrow...what would YOU do?