Break the Twitch
Love Your Attention, Build Better Habits
It is incredible how quickly Pokemon Go has permeated through our culture. Even if you don’t play it yourself, it is likely that you know someone that does. Smartphone games have gone viral before, but this one is very, very different when viewed from a human behavior and habit-change perspective.
[Read more…] about Pokemon Go Is Ground-Breaking, But Not Why You Might Expect
I’m sitting here at my desk, with a now slightly less blank page in front of me. After almost two years of Break the Twitch writing, it still plagues me every time I look at it. Even the most mangled piece of writing is less intimidating than the empty sheet. In that moment the possibilities are infinite, and that is scary. I thought that it would get easier over time, and it hasn’t–that’s not exactly what this piece is about, though.
[Read more…] about How Trying To Be A Good Writer Made It Difficult To Write WellI learned about meditation back in my High School days and have been practicing it on and off ever since. Recently, I’ve found that I really enjoy taking some time out of my day to just breathe and be present. Remember, there are many wonderful forms of meditation and prayer that you can explore, this is just one way that I like to practice.
Most importantly, meditation doesn’t need to be intimidating. If you’re wondering how to meditate, or simply how to get started, check out this video. I explain why I started meditating, the benefits I’ve seen, and provide some tips on how to get started with meditation.
Over the last few weeks, Amy and I have become particularly interested in making sourdough bread. We love the idea of making bread the same way that humans have for many thousands of years. Besides the delicious nature of the bread, there are some great reasons for doing it this way, too.
[Read more…] about Five Things I Learned from Sourdough BreadAs I enter this new phase of my life, largely having complete control over my time, I’ve been thinking quite a bit about how I should be spending my time and attention. Outside of a typical career, personal growth can be a little more difficult to track. Without the traditional promotions and positions, I’ve had to come up with my own definitions of growth and success. Right now, reigning in my schedule, creating my own accountability structure, and working efficiently are my priorities.
Historically, I’ve allowed myself to get distracted by exciting new projects, meeting random interesting people, and generally expanding my social sphere. What I’ve realized in the past few weeks, is that right now is not the time for that particular type of growth. Currently, my primary focus is making videos and writing for this site, as I have a ton of ideas and opportunities to do so–now it’s simply a matter of producing and executing on that plan.
That’s what got me thinking about these different types of personal growth and how, if we’re able to recognize which we need, we can make better decisions on how to spend our time and energy. Each type of personal growth will benefit us more or less depending on whether we need to discover new interests and redefine who we are, or simply go ‘heads down’ and crank out the work.
While they can be blended, even switched back and forth each day or week, it’s important to be aware of which type you’re currently in. That way, your attention can be focused in a meaningful way on achieving that particular type of growth. Knowing this will also prevent you from getting too laser focused on the wrong narrow path if what you really need is to be expanding yourself in all directions.
This is the first time I’ve shared this idea about the types of personal growth, so please check out the video above and leave a comment below when you’ve figured out which type you’re geared towards right now. I’d love to hear what you think!
We all have aspirations and goals, but what is standing between us and those dreams? Most of the time, it’s one small change that can create tremendous results. All it takes is a shift of mentality and a bit of action.
A common thing many of us do (and something I used to do) when starting on a new goal is to talk about it. It’s a habit of declaring what we’re going to do next — either for ourselves or for others to hear. Sometimes, simply talking about the thing feels like enough of an accomplishment that you feel like you’ve made progress, even when you really haven’t. Which person would you rather be, someone who “says” you’re going to do something or someone who actually does it?
This is a potential pitfall you can avoid. Simply take the thing you said you were going to do, find the easiest action you can take, and then do it immediately. For example, if you want to exercise more, you can start with a single push-up per day. With this trick, it doesn’t matter how small the action is; all that matters is that you took action towards your goal.
Continuing with the exercise example, perhaps you started with a single push-up a day for a week. After the first week, let’s say you were able to go up to two push-ups a day. By slowly dialing up on the number of push-ups, by week 52, it’s likely you’d be able to do 52 push-ups a day.
Now, if you had chosen to start the exercise routine by going full tilt and doing as many push-ups as you could, you’d likely burn out on the first day or so. You’d just be too sore to keep going. By keeping the action immediate and small, there’s lower resistance from Newton’s Third Law, and it’s easier to be consistent with the action.
This technique works the same way for any other goal or objective you’re trying to reach. Just take the smallest thing you can do, do it, and keep on building up from there. Below are some examples for how to take immediate action and make one small change based on bigger goals.
While it may be simple, the small change does make a difference. Over the last three years, this philosophy has allowed me to become a minimalist, declutter our home, build a popular blog, and recently quit my full-time job. You can use the same strategies to accomplish whatever you desire.
