365QOD-Day450

"Archimedes was contemplating a mathematical diagram when the city was captured. A Roman soldier commanded him to come and meet General Marcellus but he declined, saying that he had to finish working on the problem. The soldier was enraged by this, and killed Archimedes with his sword."- Wikipedia

Third element of flow is  the lack of sense of self-consciousness.

The quote above is the ultimate example of  losing yourself in the flow.  Archimedes was rumored to have been working on an idea when soldiers entered his place.  They tried to get his attention but he ignored them  He was most likely not even aware of them  It lead to his death. 

Typical everyday example would be when you were working on a task and people walk into the room, you simply do not notice them, and are startled by being touched on the shoulder.  At that moment you have lost the sense of self-consciousness.

Today's question is:
"Have you ever been startled while doing something?(What were you working on?)"

365QOD-Day449

"If I could only concentrate, I could get this done"- my frustrated thought

The second element of flow is cultivating deep concentration.

Most of our lives are spent on walking through life.  We are seldom in the present.  We think about the past
or the future and believe that we multitask through the present.

So what does cultivating deep concentration look like?  In the book Career Renegade the author gives the example of playing ping pong. 

Ping pong action comes so fast towards you that you must focus on the ball.  You could not let your thoughts wonder away even for a a micro micro second.  You must be in the flow to return the ball across the net.

Is this only sports related?  Nope.  I have experienced the same feeling deriving a proof in my graduate courses.  I was so involved and moving through the steps that I felt like smoke was going to come out of my ears.

Today's question is:
"What were you doing when you entered flow through deep concentration?"

365QOD-Day448

"Flow with it...." - 70s advice

In many previous posts I discussed the idea of flow.  Flow is a concept that was introduced by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi( pronounced cheeks-sent-me high). 

Even though I know what it is, I could not accurately describe the elements that are critical in importance to be able to enter flow.  The book Career Renegade discusses some of these.  Over next several posts I will discuss each one.

First element of flow is Working toward a clear goal with a well defined process.

When working on large projects it is very easy to become discouraged.  It can be overwhelming.  But the task, whether it is bog or small, must be defined very clearly.  In other words you must know all of the major objectives that need to be hit in order to reach the goal. (refer to an earlier post on GOSPAL technique for more detailed discussion)

You need to be able to clearly state the objectives and visualizing them would be very helpful.  If you can not state them and visualize your objectives, then you are not going to get there efficiently.

Today's question is:
"Can you clearly state and visualize your Objectives?"

365QOD-DAy447

"Imagine you woke up this morning to a phone call saying you had won the state lottery.  It was all yours, but there was a condition:
1. You had to continue to work for the rest of your life
and
2. you could use the money to live on,
but
3. NOT to fund any professional endeavor. 

Now, what would you do?" - Jonathan Fields, Career Renegade book
(I added the numbers and the spacing for emphasis)

Often times you hear people saying  "I don't have passion. I just got work to do."  Most people have a job and do not work on their passion.

This is why I found this quote in a book, Career Renegade, that I am reading useful.  If this scenario could be true then wouldn't you want it to happen after you started your dream job.  I suspect that dream job is where your passion would be.  Maybe you would fund the "professional endeavor" before you got the money.

Why wait?

Today's question is:
"If money was no issue, what work would you do?"

365QOD-Day446

"Shazam!"- app name

I can't stop saying that out loud.  I downloaded this app a couple of weeks ago and have just fallen in love with it.

Man it used to bug me that when a song was playing and I had no clue what it was that I could not figure it out.  No more!  Now I just tag it.

It allows me to immediately know what the song is.  In a second or two.

I can not help but think that anytime we are bugged by something that there is a business idea behind it.  What other information do I crave instantly?  Name of a person in front of me that I have met but can not remember.  I can see the meeting time and place but their name escapes me.   Is there an app for that?  Hummm...

Today's question is:
"What is bugging you that an app could fix?"

365QOD-Day445

"Can't be everything to everyone"- advice I often hear

It is hard not to want to please people.  I have a hard time saying no.  Even though I know I should say more no more often than yes, it is usually the other way around.

The other day I had approved overtime for  a group that was working for me.  This was after I had turned it down.  I was swayed my their second request and I changed my mind.

However, by my supervisors in the field I was told that the work did not get done.  I went to inspect and it sure did not.

Not only was I paying for OT but the work did not get completed.  So I went back and pulled back my approval.

I had to do that.  Just because I approved after being presented with a plea did not mean that I approved no work to be done and for me to pay for it.  This was not acceptable.

Today's question is:
"Have you ever cancelled your approval?"

365QOD-Day444

"You do not know anything until you have actually done it"- a comment made to me

A few years ago I wrote a book on ETF trading.  I never published it but simply used portions of it to teach MBA courses on how to invest.  It was fun to see the students apply the knowledge I was passing on to trade ETFs.

I wrote about it, taught it, so I must know it? Well, there is a difference between theory and practice.  In theory I know everything that is to ETFs.  Well maybe most things I I needed to know.

However, when I actively started to trade I quickly learned that I knew what to do but my execution sucked.  Of course I thought it was the brokerage company.  Maybe it was lack of real time data.

Nope it was me.  Until I started to actually do it a lot, I did not know the many little steps that I failed to absorb and apply. 

Today's question is:
"What do you know in theory BUT would have a difficult time applying?"

365QOD-Day443

"If we just close a few clients and just buy some search campaign, then we'll be generating revenue in no time!  Of course, we didn't understand until six months in, when each of our 'just' took twice as we expected and were four times more challenging.  Today, it's a mantra we live by internally: There is no such thing as 'just' "- Jesse Pujji, founder of Ampush Social

When trying to execute an idea we often become very hopeful.  Our plans become grandiose and as the article said 'just' is one of the most dangerous 4-letter words in the dictionary.  The quote is from Best Advice I ever Got column in Inc. magazine

It is good to be positive.  The other extreme, total negativity, does not serve to move us forward at all. 

But how much is enough?  Just enough to nudge us forward while questioning the validity of the move.  Do something that you believe is the best move that will nudge you forward but expect to have to sidestep and recover from an unforeseen.

Most of all believe in the move.  Without the belief the move forward will only be a half a step and not a full step.  Landing a full step provides stability when landing.  You can still be going in the wrong direction.  But once landed, you can quickly change.  In my experience changing in the middle of a half step causes an imbalance and a fall.  Your brain is processing the 'wrongness' of the step and trying to correct.  I believe that we need to finish the step, pause to evaluate, and then take another step forward.

Today's question is:
'Have you ever recovered your footing when interrupted while stepping forward a half a step?"

365QOD-Day442

"It is a thin line between being committed and getting committed"- Runner's world 

Each day presents us with choices.  Do we do what we say we are going to do or do we slip?

In my opinion the quote above teaches us that we need to be committed to our goals without obsessing.
How do you decide?

I believe a goal has to provide a pull forward.  You see the goal as naturally fitting you.  However, if that goal is pushing you forward then you are going to get committed. Being pushed to do anything involves pressure from others or work.

Today's question is:
"Are you being pushed or pulled?"

365QOD-Day441

"Do place you your fate in people"- advice given to me

By nature I have fate in people.  I hope for the best.  Often people will ride high and will have my fate.

However, eventually people let me down. Maybe this is simply human nature.

I need to be clear.  I am not looking for perfection.  People are people.  If they were perfect they would be god like.  Since we are not god, I am looking for consistancy.  If you say you are going to do X then simply do X.  Don't overpromise and underdeliver.

This is something I have recently been dealing with on vendor side and on people side.  Many companies while dating will promise you the world that they can do X but sometimes even before they start will pull back from X.  So do you continue the dance?  Sometimes you do not have a choice.  Unfortunately, with vendors you might not have the flexibility to stop dating because the job needs to be done and contracts have been signed.
 
But what do you do when people disappoint you?  Do you just simply give them another chance or do you drop them out of your life?  I have done both.  In my opinion the smartest thing to do is to over time limit the access to inconsistant people.

Today's question is:
"How do you deal with people that can not keep their word?"

365QOD-Day440

"So did you waste your first 16060 days?"- Ron Wheeler

Today I had a conversation with Ron.  During the conversation I told him my vacation story from 2010 when I heard Joel Osteen tell his audience to number their days. For me the number of my remaining days rounded up to 21000.

His question, 44 years times 365 days, made me pause during the conversation.  Were the first 44 years of my life a waste?  The obvious answer is no.  Maybe not as productive as they could have been. 

Consider the math. If you live to be a 100 years old, you wil live 36500 days.  I am not even at the half-way point.  Since I am not where I want to be, I need to come up with a plan.

Today's question is:
"What is your plan for your second act?"

365QOD-Day439

"Don't underestimate what you know" - advice to a fellow passenger

Lately, I usually download a movie on my phone/tablet before traveling.  Before takeoff I fall asleep and later on I watch the movie.

That is the plan BUT yesterday that plan changed.  I sat next to a very nice flight attendant, Carrie, with whom I had a two hour conversation.  We talked about travel, life, and taking action.

During our conversation I spoke about my book, blog, and the second book I was working on.  Then I made a suggestion to her to start a blog that would focus on the issues in her line of work.  I recommended that she later on take the blogs and put them in a book.  Sounds familiar?

I even challenged her to do something because as the words from yesterday's post "Never start your sentences with I should have" advise we regret not doing something more than doing it.

Will she?  I hope so.  I think she has a very large audience- all flight attendants.  It is specific to what she does every day and she loved what she does.  I belive that her passion would translate and make the blog successful.

Today's question is:
"Can you convert what you do into a daily blog?"

365QOD-Day438

"Never start your sentences with I should have.."- an ad caption

As I was walking through an airport I spotted this ad.  It made me stop and take the time to write it down even though I was late to get to my plane.

Why did I feel it was important to stop and capture it?  Because I knew that I would have forgotten it by the time I would have gotten on the plane and tried to remember it.  We have to know our limitations and mine is short term memory.

The words spoke to me because I do believe that in the end we will regret the things we did not do more than the things we did and whose result we did not like.    We must live a life of action.  Your world will not change by wishful inaction. 

Today's question is:
"What will you regret not doing today?"

365QOD-Day437

"I can do it myself"- sometimes a costly mistake

I have always done my own taxes.  Having an engineering background enables me to work on complicated tasks without panicking or being overwhelmed.

The math for taxes is actually very easy so I do not understand what the freaking out it.  BUT even I had to draw the line this year and get some help.

Last year was a transition year in many ways.  Having lived in Indiana, worked several places, and then moved to Texas, created challenges.  Getting professional help was worth gold.  Someone that is an expert in a subject that can provide guidance can be very helpful.  It is not shameful to ask for help.  As a matter of fact, we should welcome and at times seek help.

As a professor, I always look forward to training sessions.  Most things I can teach myself BUT going somewhere and making that committment saves me a lot of time trying to "figure" it out.  I easily cut my learning time to one forth of what it would take me to learn it on my own.

Today's question is:
"How do you know when you need help?"

365QOD-Day436

"Much better..." - my reaction at the end of my run

In a post I wrote last week I talked about how my mind got the best of me.  When confronted with a challenge that asked me to stretch a little bit in the running arena, it let me down.

This Sunday morning I had a choice to make: believe my mind that my knee was hurt or simply go our and run a shorter more manageable distance.

My choice was the second one.  So on a very windy, sand blasting your face, humid day I went out and ran 3-4 miles.  I did not measure it since all I wanted was to go to my first turn.

Next weekend the plan is to extend it to 7 miles.  Following week get it back to 10 miles. 

Moral of this story is that at times we have to take a big step back and rebuild our abilities over time. 

Today's question is:
"Have you ever gotten ahead by taking a step back?"

365QOD-Day435

"Turn up the silence"- Tommy Henderson

I was having a conversation with Tommy when he used this line.  I thought... Wow!It is rare that we are ever alone.  With people comes noise.  With people comes a need to address their needs.  Often times these take away from our needs.

How rare is to sit in silence without noise and people?  Think about the last time you were truly alone.  No people, no TV, no radio, no Internet, no games, ... just you.

Today's question is:
"Can you handle the silence?"

365QOD-Day434

"So what. A case of the envy?" - my initial reaction

A friend of mine sent me an article about a former University of Chicago dean making 700k per year.  I thought that the article would be negative.  This is why I thought envy.

It actually was surprisingly positive.  It highlighted the achievements that the dean had lead and the school accomplished during his tenure.  Impressive results- 800M in funding over his time.

So if we are to reward performance, why shouldn't a dean make the money he deserves.  I never fault anyone for what they earn.  It is their business to get the most for their labor. 

In my opinion we should focus on what we earn, how to maximize that, and think of additional sources of income.  Thinking about someone else's deal is just a waste of time.  It shouldn't matter to us what they are getting paid and whether they are worth it.  It is rare that the two are equal.

Today's question is:
"What are you getting paid vs. what are you worth?"

The article is shown below:
http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20120412/NEWS07/120419934/was-booth-schools-snyder-worth-700k-a-year

365QOD-Day433

"Dr. Doodle"- a name I got called during a meeting

Fourth creativity characteristic is to Sketch Out the Idea

Sometimes it is very to stay awake during meetings.  It seems that people are talking but they are not really saying anything worthwhile to listen to.

It is at times like these that I start sketching.  It could be something I am thinking about or I might just sketch a person in the meeting.  You know it is a long meeting when you have time to sketch all of the participants.

You do not have to be an artist BUT all of us can sketch an idea.  As a matter of fact, a few years ago I read a book called The Back of the Napkin that teaches how to sketch your ideas.

Today's question is:
"Can you sketch basic shapes in 3D?"

365QOD-Day432

"An essential aspect of creativity is not being afraid to fail.  Scientists made a great invention by calling their activities hypotheses and experiments.  They made it permissible to fail repeatedly until in the end they got results they wanted"- Edwin Land Polaroid co-founder

Fourth rogue trait is to Embrace Failure.

Pretty wise those scientists.  Allow your guess to be called a hypothesis.  Pretty fancy.  To prove you are wrong then you create a hypotheses, an alternate hypotheses, run an experiment, collect data, analyze the data,  and test your conclusion.

If you hypotheses fails then you accept the alternate hypotheses or start again with a new hypotheses.  Eventually you get a hypotheses that fits your data perfectly.  You have failed until you get the results that you want.

Cool!

Today's question is:
"What hypotheses did you test today?"

365QOD-Day431

"When I was doing my vacuum cl"We're taught to do things the right way.  But if you want to discover something that other people haven't, you need to do things the wrong way... When I was doing my vacuum cleaner, I started out trying a conventionally shaped cyclone, the kind you see in textbooks.  But we couldn't separate the carpet fluff and dog hairs and strands of cotton in those cyclones.  It formed a ball inside the cleaner or shot out the exit and got into the motor.  I tried all sorts of shapes.  Nothing worked.  So then I thought I'd try the wrong shape, the opposite of conical.  And it worked"- Sir James Dyson

Second rogue characteristic from the article is Wrong-Thinking

I love the line.. you need to do things the wrong way.  It is permission to turn your thinking upside down and produce an unconventional result.  If everyone is doing A, followed by B, followed by C, maybe that is the way they have been instructed to do.  Maybe they are doing it without thinking? 

As Dyson illustrates, he understood the right way to think through his problem BUT it was not producing a satisfying result.  Only when he turned to something that intuitively seemed wrong that he found the answer.  He has to disagree with his own belief(s).

As the old saying goes, "When no one disagrees, then no one is thinking"

Today's question is:
"Do you allow yourself to do things the wrong way to discover the new way"

365QOD-Day430

"That is stinking thinking"- anonymous

While reading an article on What It Takes To Innovate: Wrong-Thinking, Tinkering, and Intuiting I learned the characteristics of  some past creators.

The first one was to Produce and Test More Ideas.

In a recent post I talked about a boss demanding new ideas that had been implemented in three different fields.  Unreasonable?  I think it is more eye opening.

According to the article, the researcher Michael Michalko discovered that"
"Edison guaranteed productivity by giving himself and his assistants idea quotas.  His own personal invention quota was one minor invention every 10 days and a major invention every six months"

Wow!

If you set the bar high enough you will have to work harder to reach it BUT if you do you will be rewarded greatly.

Today's question is:
"What quotas do you set for yourself?"

365QOD-Day429

"Cute"- my evaluation

The other night I watched the movie Midnight In Paris.  It is a movie in which the main character, on a trip to Paris, leaves his fiance every night and at midnight get transported back in time to the 1920s.

While there he falls in love with a lady who is also being charmed by Hemingway, Picasso, and others.  Very interesting concept.

He eventually decides that there is no perfect time in the past and decides to live in the present.  The present creates many challenges.  Often we remember the "good old past" and think that there were no difficulties like the present.  Maybe we are fooling ourselves?

Today's question is:
"Would you chose a different time to live if you had a choice?"

365QOD-Day428

"I know Dad...I read about it in your blog"- Stefani's answer

I was catching up with my daughter yesterday.  Since she is away at school it seems that catching her to have a conversation is often a task.

Our conversation was about a hand injury that she thought she might have.  I started telling her about my own when she stopped me.  I know Dad... I read about it in your blog.

This was the highest compliment that my daughter could pay me.  For her to read my posts and remember them is the ultimate high.

In the past, when my kids and I were in my car I used to tell them stories.  Now since the three of us are in three different places it is hard to do.  BUT Stefani's statement opened my eyes.  If my kids were willing to read my posts it is as good as telling them stories face to face.  It might even be better.  They can always read them and share them with their friends.  Wow!

Today's question is:
"Have you ever underestimated your influence?(I did)"

365QOD-Day427

"My mind got the best of me today"- my thought this morning

Today is Saturday and I decided to go for a 10 mile run.  I decided to keep things fresh so I chose a slightly different path.  I ran about 4 miles and instead of my normal turn I kept straight. 

In my mind the path forward was about equal to the my normal turn.  But as the time kept ticking I realized that it was most likely closer to 13+ miles. 

With a couple of stops I made it back to my normal turn spot and stopped.  All of a sudden my back started being stiff.  My right knee kept feeling funny.  After a couple of attempts to resume I just gave up.

What was suppose to be a fun distance run turned into a grueling 4 mile walk back to home.  It was frustrating to know that I should resume but my mind decided otherwise.  I don't know if my mind just simply decided I was not ready for 13 or it just didn't feel like it.

As the old saying goes, " A mind is a terrible master".  Today it got the best of me.

Today's question is:
"How do you do something else then what your mind tells you to do?"

365QOD-Day426

"While walking along a each, a young gentlemen saw someone in the distance leaning down and picking up something and throwing it back into the ocean.  As he got closer he noticed that the figure was that of an elderly man, picking up starfish one by one and tossing each one gently back into the water.  The young man smiled and asked, "Why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?"  To this the elderly man replied, "The sun is up and the tide is going out.  If I don't throw them in, they'll die.

Upon hearing this the young observer commented, 'But Sir do you realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish along each mile?  You can not possibly make a difference!'

The elderly man listened politely.  Then he bent down, picked up another starfish and threw it into the ocean past the breaking waves and said, 'It made a difference for that one.'"

This story was on the back of a RE/MAX index card.  I changed the young man and elderly gentlemen positions in the story.  It made more sense to me that an elderly person would be wise enough to be concerned with the affect on one starfish.

In our youth we are almost most often concerned with ourselves.  It takes time to realize that the effect we have on others helps to create or destroy relationships.  Like the story above, we have to realize that every interaction is like a starfish with at least five legs:
1. how we see that person (now)
2. how that person sees us (now)
3. how we want that person to see us (future)
4. how we want to influence that person in this situation (near future)
5. how we want the relationship to unfold in the far future (future)
(I am sure you can come up with your own version)

It seems that majority of the interaction should be future focused.  Maybe with a long term view the interactions would be more nurturing.

Today's question is:
"Did you nurture someone today?"

365QOD-Day425

"Mistakes are simply data" - Josh Linkner blog

I read this post  The Dirty Little Secret of Overnight success today.  In it Josh makes the statement above. 

As I have said before when talking about my book The Result you always get a result.  This quote game me another way to phrase it.  The result is simply data.  Don't read too much into it and try to get a better result.

Never be afraid of a result- good or bad.  It is simply data...

Another quote I got from his post is:
"the ubiquitous WD-40 lubricant got its name because the first 39 experiments failed.  WD-40 literally stands for 'Water Displacement- 40th attempt" 

Maybe we should number our results in order to keep track of how many times we have made an attempt?  Maybe this will clue us in not believing that we have tried something a million times.

Today's question is:
"Do you number your results?"

365QOD-Day424

"My boss likes to say , 'I want a totally new idea - and three examples of where that idea has worked before"- boss' request in the article Are you Learning as Fast as the World is Changing

From yesterday's post(habit 2) and the article this quote was memorable.  The author initially dismissed it as silly but later on saw the wisdom.  Just because your field does not have the solution it does not mean that it does not exist in another field. 

Why three examples?  The more I thought about it the only reason I came up with is that by finding three you definatively convince yourself that the solution will work for you in your field.   I also believe that finding only one might not provide enough insight into the solution.

Today's question is:
"Which one of your problems has a solution in another field?"

365QOD-Day423

"The real act of discovery consists of not in finding new lands but in seeing with new eyes."-Marcel Proust

I read an article today in Harvard Business Review titled, "Are you learning as fast as the world is changing?"  The title caught my eye and it made me pause to ponder the answer. 

In past posts I have talked about reading many different magazines and books. But is that enough?

Maybe exposing oneself to different types of people is the answer?

The author of the post, Bill Taylor, offers three habits of the mind that would help:
1. First, the best leaders (and learners) have the widest field of vision.
2. The best source of new ideas can be old ideas from unrelated fields
3. Successful learners work hard not to be loners

I believe that the last two habits lead to the first.  If one goes out of their way to meet new people, from different fields, and connect ideas from their field into their own they will learning as fast as the world is changing.

For me this was very easy to do in Chicago.  It has been a lot harder in Texas.

Today's question is:
"How do you expose yourself to new people in different fields?" 

365QOD-Day422

"No way!"- my initial thought

I watched a Yahoo story video of a 86 year old woman on parallel bars
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/olympics-fourth-place-medal/86-old-performs-parallel-bars-routine-164528695.html

Impressive to say the least. For a 86 year old to have that level of flexibility is admirable.  It made me feel good for her and inspired me to do better.  I do a little bit of running and weights BUT I have not done yoga in years.  Maybe I need to start again?

Today's question is:
"How flexible are you?"