Going All In

I saw this post and recognized the "death" strategy from Buddhism and from Carlos Castenada.  Coincidentally, I used this approach on my last meditation retreat.  If you stay mindful and try to see each moment as your last, not only does it concentrate the mind, but gives you sense of tenderness towards the moment and life.  It also imbues a sense of fragility that is instructive and, let's face it, true.  The wording and sense of urgency in this post is similar to that in "War of Art."  A sort of "fight to the death" against the Resistance is Pressfield's mindset.

There’s something inspiring about knowing that you are going to die. That you are dying right now. It’s scary. But it inspires focus. It demands action, priority, and extreme behavior.

You’re suddenly "all in."

Because you have to be. Life demands it. You die if you don’t fight with every fiber of your soul.

You can’t be kinda “in.”  Or kinda sorta “in.”  You are “in” or you are “out”.

That’s it. The only choice.

Everything else appears to be a choice. But it’s just your brain’s way of protecting you — by lying to you.

If you want to be “in” all you need to do is act like it:

    Show up even when it hurts.

    Focus fiercely on the only thing that matters.

    Take extreme measures to make change happen

The difference is you.

Your intensity. Your relentlessness. Your unapologetic quest for answers and better results.

When you act that way, you’re guaranteed to do something incredible.

Because you’re “all in.

intuition

I don't know this author, but I am familiar with these concepts and do think they can be truly instructive.

Judith Orloff
 This gut-centered voice committed to your happiness, health, and survival is, with practice, accessible to everyone. But when you deviate even a nano-fraction from your inner voice, energy wanes, whether a subtle seepage or radical bottoming-out. The more ferociously faithful you are to this truth, the more energized you'll be.

Intuition offers a direct line to your life force, and also, as I experience it, to a divine intelligence. We can't afford to remain deaf to intuition's messages. Its expertise is energy; its job is to know every nuance of what makes you tick. A master at reading vibes, intuition is constantly tallying: what gives positive energy, what dissipates it. Who you meet, where you go, your job, your family, current events, are all evaluated -- crucial data that you can learn to interpret and apply.

Tricks to Finishing To Do Lists

I wasn't going to post this because it seemed, well, a re-hash.  But I found myself going back to the 1-3-5 concept over and over, so I'll share.

Now that you have a comprehensive list of everything you have to do for work ever, you should define a daily to-do list. On any given day, assume that you can only accomplish one big thing, three medium things, and five small things. (Note: if you spend much of your day in meetings, you might need to revise this down a bit.) Before leaving work, take a few minutes to define your 1-3-5 for the next day, so you’re ready to hit the ground running in the morning. If your position is one where each day brings lots of unexpected tasks, try leaving one medium and two small tasks blank, in preparation for the last-minute requests from your boss.
Yes, I know it can be tough to narrow your list of to-dos down to 1-3-5—but it’s important to prioritize. Like it or not, you only have so many hours in the day and you’re only going to get a finite number of things done. Forcing yourself to choose a 1-3-5 list means the things you get done will be the things you chose to do—rather than what just happened to get done.

Read more: http://www.thedailymuse.com/career/why-you-never-finish-your-to-do-lists-at-work-and-how-to-change-that/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+daily-muse%2FWQfD+%28The+Daily+Mu.se%29#ixzz2KKLs9fYg

Do your ideas

Develop your ideas secure in the knowledge that money is always looking for an outlet.
First, have something the world needs. Find that need and how could it be filled or improved.

Be balsy

The majority of people don’t go after their wildest dreams because they think they’re unrealistic. Tim says it well: “Ninety-nine percent of people believe they can’t do great things, so they aim for mediocrity.” The level of competition is highest for realistic goals because most people don’t set high enough goals for themselves. But not only do you statistically have a better chance of achieving what may seem like an unrealistic goal, doing so fuels you. Once you feel the first high of accomplishing something major and seemingly unattainable, you want to go bigger and badder, and you force yourself to fulfill the need all the more. Even better, the technically smaller goals suddenly seem less daunting. 
George Elliot said, “It’s never too late to be what you might have been.” Don’t wait. Why not start now? Post one thing you want to do before you die in the comments below.

Boldness

“Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.”
- William Hutchinson Murray, The Scottish Himalayan Expedition (1951)

Becoming an Expert

10,000 hours
But a lot more than that, too.  Great stuff.
This blog has a tons of tips.

10,000 Hours of Deliberate Practice

It’s quantity and quality. You need tons of time spent training but it has to be the right kind of practice. Just showing up is not enough, you need to continually challenge yourself with the right kind of effort. “Deliberate Practice” is a specifically defined term. It involves goal setting, quick feedback, and countless drills to improve skills with an eye on mastery. It is not “just showing up” and, plain and simple, it’s not fun. What are the key elements?

Death Ground Strategy

From Robert Greene's book on War, this strategy is in alignment with Buddhist principles of mindfulness and staying in the moment.

You are your own worst enemy. You waste previous time dreaming of the future instead of engaging in the present. Cut your ties to the past — enter unknown territory. Place yourself on "death ground", where your back is against the wall and you have to fight like hell to get out alive.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/33-strategies-of-war-you-should-apply-to-everyday-life-2012-12?op=1#ixzz2GvWgY4mS

Effort Creates Ability

The findings of this research line up so exactly with the Lauren Resnick passage I wrote about the other day—the one in which she writes that “effort creates ability.” Factors like students’ motivation and study skills must be “nurtured by education” if all students are to succeed.

Read more: http://anniemurphypaul.com/2012/12/study-skills-and-motivation-matter-more-than-iq/#ixzz2GvUkTdWR

Hard Work II

Mark Cuban
When asked what people should know before starting a business, he responded:

"It's not about the idea, it's about how prepared you are. Everyone has ideas, most don't do the work required to get the job done. The 2nd thing you need to know is that sales are the most important aspect of a small business. No sales, no company."

Cuban's advice is all about being pragmatic. People toss around terms like "disruption" and "innovation," then go and make products that nobody wants to buy, or don't actually do the work required to make their idea work as a business.

When it comes to his personal success, he takes a similar tack. When asked about passion versus hard work and how he motivated himself he wrote:

"I daydreamed for motivation. I didn't lie to myself and talk about my passions and how if I was passionate enough about something i could be successful at it.

I was lucky. I grew up knowing that hard work and smart work [has] a greater impact on results than being passionate about something."

So work hard, and be prepared.

More Productivity Tips

http://www.businessinsider.com/the-science-of-productivity-video-2012-12?utm_source=alerts&nr_email_referer=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHfjvYzr-3g&feature=player_embedded

Not sure why I couldn't put the link on the image, but anyway.  There is a simple "accountability" log that appeals to me.  Instead of "planning" or having a "to do," you turn it around and keep a log of everything you do.  Of course, deadlines feature prominently.  Intense work followed by breaks. Breaking the project down into bite sized pieces.  Lots of standard advice, but useful and pithy.

The Power of Less: Starting Small

Like the stripes. Not my total favorite, but getting there.

Leo Babauta
Start new habits in small increments. Why?
Narrows your focus
It keeps your energy and enthusiasm going for longer
It's easier to handle
You ensure success
Gradual change is longer-lasting

Some suggestions
Waking early: start by waking fifteen inutes earlier instead of an hour or two
Productivity: start by trying to focus on the task at hand for five to ten minutes at a time
A major project: Start with just one small task from the the project, instead of trying to tackle everything at one, then go to the next small task and so on
Decluttering: STart with just one drawer instead of trying to declutter your entire office or home.

The Power of Less: Possible Goals

LOVE this study. Want.

Here are some of Leo Babauta's suggestions for goals to try to accomplish one at a time (30 days each)
1. Set your 3 Most Important Tasks each morning
2. Single task. When you work on a task, don't switch to other tasks.
3. Process your in-box to empty
4. Check e-mail just twice a day
5. Exercise five to ten minutes a day (for me an hour would be a better goal.)
6. Work while disconnected, with no distractions.
7. Follow a morning routine
8. Eat more fruits and veggies evry day.
9. Keep your desk decluttered (ha..)
10. Declutter your house 15 minutes a day (love that idea.)
11.Stick to 5 sentence limit for email. (Doesn't apply to me too much.)
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Tips for Making Data Memorable

We offered 6 principles for making your data memorable.
1. Simplicity. Become a master at exclusion. Find the essential core of what you are presenting.
2. Unexpectedness. Keep your audience’s attention by presenting the data in a striking way.
3. Concreteness. Cut the vague corporate-speak. Use concrete language and data, examples and images.
4. Credibility. Back up your arguments with carefully-chosen numbers.
5. Emotions. Your community is a group of real people with real experiences and feelings.
6. Stories. We never forget stories. Don’t just measure relationships; describe them.
From radian6  www.radian6.com

Notebooks

Seems "writing it down" has a lot of traction among idea experts.  From Vera John-Steiner author of "Notebooks of the Mind"
Notebooks are a crucial link between inner world of mind and outer world.
You can express yourself freely in a non-linear fashion
  1 Find the best time for you, a.m. or p.m. to make notebook entries or at any time
  2. Generate first, then organize, avoid the critic!
  3. Use your notebook to record ideas at any time

3 ways of generating ideas
  Word association
   Analogical thinking  
   Fantastical storytelling 
 

Idea generation from Edward De Bono

From "6 Thinking Hats."
The process of dfining and solving problems from diverse angles
1. Maintain a notebook. (In my case, that's the easy part, it's finding it againg that's tough...)
2. Practice ideaphoria
3. Discern patterns
4. Express ideas visually
5. Explore roads not taken

Write it down

advice comes from Jane Wurwand, CEO of Dermologica via Entrepreneur:
"I try and stay curious all the time so when I’m driving around LA or whatever city I’m in I’m always trying to pay attention to everything that’s happening — the way a menu is written, the way a plate is served, the way a booking is taken or customer interaction."
Wurwand recommends carrying a notebook everywhere you go and writing literally everything down.
She says she keeps a running commentary of her stream of consciousness and then uses it when she is looking for ideas or product names. She recalls one instance when she went to a bar and it took her seven minutes to be seated because a girl working at the bar was on her phone. She wrote that down and it later reminded her to pay more attention to customer service at her own front desk operations.
“Gather thoughts a bit like a magpie, put them together in a written book, keep it on you at all times and then all the time your subconscious is working on it and chewing it. Then when you spit it out, you’re like 'Oh I like that idea!' ”