Productivity & Mindset

Category

September 20, 2019

The Cost of Staying Stuck and The Freedom Radical Change Provides

Staying stuck costs more than we realize and getting unstuck requires change. Change can be scary. It can be truly terrifying. Radical change even more so. We are hardwired for consistency. We take the same route from home to work and back again, telling ourselves it's because it's the shortest path. Not true. We are not agents of change but agents of consistency. Agents of repetition. What if that which feels most comfortable and natural to us is bad for us? What if change, radical change, is the best thing we could ever do to get unstuck?

September 19, 2019

Learning to Write Longer by Writing Shorter

Big tasks can be overwhelming. Huge writing assignments or the notion of starting a book with an intended final word count in the 80,000 word range (after edits) is daunting, discouraging, and usually leads to distraction and defeat. Little tasks and short writing goals, however, are easy and achievable. If you don't think you can trick your brain into viewing your writing assignment differently, think again.

September 18, 2019

Making Lists Brings Order and Success to Chaos

Have you ever had trouble falling asleep because your brain is on overdrive? It's hard to turn off the switch when so many things need our attention. Human beings cannot think two thoughts at the exact same time. We can move between thoughts incredibly quickly, and we can act upon multiple thoughts at the same time (like compound exercises), but our brains are literally unable to take two inputs and process them at once. It's this natural proclivity to become overwhelmed that results in the effectiveness of making lists.

August 30, 2019

Why You Only Think Clearly After You Start Writing

I know you struggle with this. Know how I know? Because everyone struggles with this. I posed this question to Twitter recently asking people if they would still write if no one read what they wrote. The results surprised me. Not because just about everyone said they would continue writing. It's what so many added to their response. By and large they said, no one reads what I currently write so of course I would continue writing if no one reads it. Here's a simple truth. Writers don't write to be read. They write for a much more powerful and instinctual reason.

August 21, 2019

What to Do When You Think Everything You Write Is Bad

You've been there. Maybe you're there now. Everything you write is horrible. Terrible. It's the horrible, terrible, no good, very bad writing (day). Welcome to the club. Stay awhile. While you're here, you should know something. Everything you write probably doesn't suck. And even if it does sort of suck, that's good because...

August 16, 2019

What to Do When You Don’t Know What to Write (Writer’s Block Fix)

Most writers eventually reach a point where they don’t know what to write, feel uninspired, or hit a creative block. Low levels of inspiration happen to everyone. The question is what you must do when writer's block arrives.

April 9, 2019

Why Human Life Has Inherent Value (Imago Dei Explained)

Do you think all human life is sacred? Most people quickly respond with a head nod in the affirmative or, the more confident among us, with a stretched out arm. The World Health Organization estimates roughly 40 people commit suicide per second. That's 1 Million people ending their own life each year. By 2020, they expect this number to double and CBS News reports that over 10 Million people consider suicide each year. In 2017, Statista reports there were 1.28 Million violent crimes in the United States of America. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states 650,000 babies were aborted in 2015 in the USA alone with approximately 56 Million babies aborted worldwide according to the Guttmacher Institute - Induced Abortions Worldwide. Between 1982 and 2011, a mass shooting occurred in the USA roughly once every 200 days and between 2011 and 2014 that reduced to once every 64 days. In the USA, nearly 2 Million cases of self-harm are reported each year which amounts to every 1 in 5 females and 1 in 7 males according to Healthy Place.

September 27, 2018

Why Multitasking Is Destroying Your Productivity

Do you start something new just as you get tracking on something old? You're not alone. Often referred to as having an idea fairy on your shoulder, it's normal and natural to find a greater sense of joy chasing new ideas with new potential rather than old ideas that have reality attached. But you don't need to be someone who can't focus on just one thing. You can learn the skill of singular focus to achieve a greater level of success in all areas of life.