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| Motivation Information |
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Lazy? Or Right on Schedule
Q. I've been working on a big project for a long time. Although I try to move ahead every day, sometimes I have to force myself to accomplish even a small task. When I skip a day, I feel guilty. How can I stay motivated?" A. When you are working on a book, job search, business start-up, dissertation, or special project, you can feel consumed by the project. And often you feel as though you can't afford to take a break, let alone a day off. I once heard a writer say, "Sometimes I'm really productive. I write five pages on my book! Then the next day I'm drained. So I review what I've written or organize my research files." And I feel the same way. I resist taking a day off to read a new mystery, go for a hike, visit an art museum, or watch a season of an HBO series on DVD. But the next day, invariably, I wake up eager to work. And I accomplish everything I need to do, and more. Frankly, I've never found staring at a blank screen (or paper, in the old days) does much good. Resistance means, "Time for a change of pace!" These beliefs are supported by scientific evidence. Psychologists who study these up-and-down activity blips have found a certain randomness operates in human productivity levels. For example, an employee "Bill" varied his arrival time at work. When Bill was late, his boss yelled at him. When Bill was on time, the boss offered praise. Sure enough, Bill responded. The day after the boss yelled, Bill was on time. And the day after the reward, Bill slacked off and arrived late. So, concluded the boss, praise doesn't work. And punishment does. There was only one problem. A computer demonstrated that Bill's arrival times showed a pattern of random variation. In fact, the computer could predict quite accurately how Bill would perform - with or without praise and blame. The same pattern has been found among students: some days you learn faster while other days you just don't get it. And some days you are productive and efficient, while other days you are sluggish. If you've studied statistics, you are probably guessed that we're talking about regression to the mean, which is very powerful. People usually have an average level of productivity. When they work hard one day, they tend to slow down the next. So here's an exercise. Suppose you have a writing project. You set a goal: write 500 words a day. For other projects, find a daily activity level that's easy to observe and measure. For the next 30 days, track how many words you write (or how productive you are in the task you've chosen). Some days you'll write 1000 words, other days none, with lots of variation. Each day just record your word count, without judging your output. At the end of 30 days, calculate an average. And calculate again after 60 days. You may find that your natural average is 300 words a day. You can lower your daily goals - or recognize that you work best with your random pattern. Obviously, if you have a deadline, you may have to increase your output. Professional writers typically write 1000-3000 words a day. But if you are making acceptable progress toward a goal, you can begin to understand, accept and work with your natural rhythm. Regardless, beating yourself up and feeling guilty won't work. If you are constantly falling behind, maybe it's time for a change of career - a chance to enjoy marching your life to a new beat. Most of all, I ask my clients to remove the word "lazy" from their vocabularies - forever! When you are berating yourself for lack of progress - stop! Chances are you are right on schedule. Cathy Goodwin, Ph.D., helps midlife professionals who want to make huge, medium and small career changes. Strategize, get unstuck, start a business or start over. Fr^e Report: Ten secrets of managing a major life change. mailto:subscribe@cathygoodwin.com Contact mailto:cathy@cathygoodwin.com or call 505-534-4294 http://www.cathygoodwin.com
Motivation - Google News |
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Business Management How To Get Through A Bad Day No matter how hard you try to make them otherwise, some days are just awful. They start off bad, they never get any better, and they end on a low and sometimes even gloomier note. These days befuddle your mind, waste your finite resources and throw your calendar off. Some people call the state of mind accompanying this day 'depression' or are content to simply think of it as 'having a bad day'. Sometimes there are logical explanations mostly, though, these days seem to strike at will and we don't understand how or why they have entered our lives. No, Fear! The Success is Yours (1) Fear is the minds great mortal sin. Violating Boundaries: Assert Yourself and Take Charge "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." Benjamin Franklin Book Summary: If Life is a Game, These are the Rules This #1 New York Times bestseller offers some useful and understandable advice that can be applied to many situations. The idea of life as a series of lessons can help to put things into perspective and add to anyone's ability to deal with setbacks and reach their full potential. Motivation: 7 More Musings on Motivation 1. "If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you can say to that mountain, move from here to there, and it shall be done. Nothing will be impossible for you." - Jesus Christ. The Doomsday Device ... The physical Brain In Action Our physical brains quickly and easily handle mundane sequences of operations, or processes without question. It repeats processes like a machine: A»B»C»...»Z». Merriam-Webster's Dictionary defines the word process to mean "a series of actions, operations, or motions involved in the accomplishment of an end". Heartbeat, breathing, and digestion are processes that occur without a single thought about what comes next. But, in many cases, our movement has become so consistent, that life itself becomes one of the mechanistic processes of the physical brain. Although, life is supposed to be dynamic, the brain only handles what it knows---what it has learned and what is sequenced. A Special Q & A - All About Passionately Soaring in Life 1. How do I discover my passion? Mortgage Marketing - How to Maximize Your Motivation Do you have the motivation to succeed in the mortgage industry? Without the drive to succeed you will surely fail. Create Your Destiny - How Massive Action Can Determine Your Destiny! We often hear that "Knowledge is Power". Is it really so? Knowledge that is not put to action remains just knowledge in your head. It is powerless and does not have any form of power at all. To accomplish results, we must couple our knowledge with the necessary action to attain results. From that, we derive this formula: After the Big Project: Recovering From Success My older daughter got married 10 days ago. The wedding was a joyous and extraordinary experience, way beyond our imaginings. I am deeply happy about all of this, and feel strongly validated by the whole experience. How to Change Your Negative Reality It is often taken for granted that the reality tomorrow will be the same as today. Perseverance As A Virtue "Through perseverance many people win success out of what seemed destined to be certain failure." - Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881) - British Statesman, Prime Minister Get Up and Do! The motivation to change my oil came the other day when I turned the key in my car's ignition. It coughed wearily, and there was an ominous clicking sound where the engine should have chimed in. Then there was a brief flashing of several lights on the dash. One of them was the oil light, and I sat behind the wheel for a minute, realizing that even if I had extra motor oil on hand, I've no idea where it goes. Why Now Is The Perfect Moment For You To Succeed Let´s discover the importance of balancing preparation, timing and momentum. It´s critical if you want to finally beat procrastination. Ending Procrastination Perseverance is about as important to achievement as gasoline is to driving a car. Sure, there will be times when you feel like you are spinning your wheels, but you'll always get out of the rut with genuine perseverance. Without it, you won't even be able to start your engine. Overcome Fear: You?ll Miss All The Shots You Don't Take A lot of folks are petrified at the mere thought of making an attempt. They believe they will not make it. They believe they don't have what it takes to make it, hence there was no point trying. A Simple Motivation Technique For Massive Success Want to hear about a simple & effective motivation technique? It´ll help you get motivated and stay motivated. 10 Common Money And Success Myths Part 2 Here are a few commonly held beliefs, or "myths," that hold many of us back from achieving success... Life Doesnt Have A Sell By Date Or does it? Anxiety & Panic Make Your Information Work for You Whether you suffer from anxiety and panic attacks or not, there is a lesson in here for everyone.
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