Perhaps the nagging critic is right. Maybe it is time to hang up the cleats. But before you do; consider this…
What A Dud Really Is?
For centuries the word “dud” referred to a ragged piece of the clothing. The type, if worn at all, donned by peasants not princes.
In the late 19th century the word became synonymous with something counterfeit or defective. Now it simply refers to something that does not work.
For the creative, the dud is:
The box office flop.
The book that ends up in the bargain bin; not the best seller list.
The project that seemed good on paper; but floundered in completion.
Why it failed? Who knows. Perhaps it didn’t resonate with the audience. Perhaps it needed more time to complete. Perhaps it fell short of some internal standard.
Whatever the case, what you made wasn’t up to snuff. Now your creative world tilts on its axis. You begin to doubt your abilities, possibly your very existence.
What Should I Do If I Create A Dud?
Recognizing you’ve made a dud is painful. You believed in something, tried to execute, and it didn’t work.
This recognition, while unpleasant, is a good sign. Your anguish shows you care. It shows you have standards. That you are a professional.
While you may consider yourself a fraud, the fraud lacks your standards. They shrug off the dud. Or more likely delude themselves. They blame others in the chain of command, or the poor tastes of the audience.
You have pride in your work. That is reason enough to stick in the game.
Because the game you are in, producing valuable creative work, is a long game. One filled with failed attempts. Consider this:
Most songs produced by megastars like The Beatles and Michael Jackson didn’t become hits. You just remember the ones that did.
Francis Ford Coppola may have directed the Godfather and Apocalypse Now, but he also directed dozens of forgettable films you haven’t seen.
Thomas Edison is said to have made 1,000 failed attempts, before making a spark and creating the light bulb.
Everyone makes duds. If you’re at the top of a field, you’ve probably made dozens of visible ones, and hundreds more behind closed doors.
But the professional pushes forward anyways. They see missteps as a cost of business.
They know their work is bigger than the success or failure of a given project. And that earth shattering ideas often fall on the tail end of a long line of duds.
What Can I Learn From A Dud?
There is another definition of “dud” I did not mention.
In the first World War a “dud” was a shell that did not detonate. While these shells were considered faulty, they were still dangerous. Groups of troopers roamed barren battlefields to look for these empty shells. They knew that if poked or prodded, these duds had the potential to blow up.
Your duds too can enjoy a second life. You may need to polish them up, examine them from different angles, or simply wait for the right time to revisit them. But “dud” is not a synonym of “dead”.
Take pride in the ideas that didn’t flourish. Know they strengthened you. Collect them. Learn from them.
Like the hollow shells of war, your duds too have explosive potential, but you need to stay in the battle to see them burst.
7 days ago history slammed the door on the nasty, no good year 2020. Optimists, like myself, hoped for a new year filled with beach weather, double rainbows, and all around love and cheer.
Thus far that has not been the case.
The new year brought with it a more contagious mutation of the Coronavirus, a coup attempt in the United States, and a continuation of the all around bitterness that feels like a sign of the times. There’s no way to sugar coat it; 2021 will likely be another tumultuous year.
As I get older, I believe maintaining your sanity over the course of a calendar year is a feat worthy of praise and plaudits. This is doubly true in the plague filled, hyperpolarized times we’re living in.
That’s why I’ve come up with 5 ways to stay sane in the (likely) insane year ahead of us. I hope at least one of them gives you a needed dose of comfort in crazy times.
Practice Gratitude
Gratitude? The world sucks right now, what do I have to be grateful about?
I’ll start with this. If you have the ability, time, and means to read this article you’re better off than well over 99% of people who have ever lived.
Go back around a hundred years and the world is limping in the aftermath of the first World War: a global crisis which took 20 million lives, and left over 20 million more maimed, wounded, and psychologically scarred.
Go back a thousand years and you’d likely be a peasant. Your day would consist of going to work, then coming home to a crowded hut in an overcrowded village. Most of your children would die before they were born. Those who survived would live, on average, 35 years.
I don’t mention these grim facts to make people feel guilty. I mention them to show that in spite of our current circumstances we’re lucky to be alive at this point in history.
There are an infinite number of realities we could have been born into. We have a nasty tendency to focus on the ones that are better than the one we live in. We don’t consider that there are many other lives we could live that are far worse than our own.
If you feel down during the new year, take a moment to list the things you’re grateful for. These can be items big and small. This simple act grants you a renewed perspective and appreciation for what you have. You may even realize that while things suck from time to time: this is an incredible moment to be alive.
Have A Zero Tolerance Policy For Toxicity
Imagine your brain as a pristine pasture. Think of each person you spend time with, each activity you engage in, and each piece of content you consume as a guest in this special place.
What type of guest are they? Do they tidy up, plant flowers, and generally make this a sacred spot. Or do they litter, poison the river, and turn your valuable real estate into a trash heap.
Your mind is your most precious resource. Yet too often we pollute it. We invite crappy content and crappy people in to stay. These unwelcome guests become squatters in our psyche. They take up room, devalue us, and suck our energy.
This year I want you to be ruthless about who and what you allow to take space in your head. This applies to activities you engage in, the people you hang out with, and who you follow online.
Purge relentlessly. Lean on the side of savagery. If you get an inkling icky feeling about someone or something, cut them out. It doesn’t have to be forever, just long enough for you to reclaim your headspace.
Think of this as an act of generosity, not cruelty. You’re not trying to hurt anyone, you’re simply prioritizing your mental health.
Reconsider Your Relationship With Social Media
Trashing social media, usually over social media, has become a global pastime for the more enlightened members of the web. I don’t want to join the crowded voices and tell you to deactivate your Facebook account; but for the sake of your sanity, it may be wise to reconsider your relationship with social media.
I have mixed feelings about the Netflix documentary on the subject. For a more nuanced take, I recommend Cal Newport’s book Digital Minimalism. Instead of blanket condemnation, he asks his readers to consider their values and question whether social media best serves what they care about.
If you value education, is social media the best way to educate yourself? If you value kindness, is social media making you a more caring person? If you value your emotional health, is social media making it easier or more difficult to exist in an already complicated world?
Answers will differ from person to person, but everyone (and their sanity) can benefit by asking the question.
Seek Out Timeless Wisdom
Have you heard of the “appeal to novelty”? It’s a human fallacy where we assume new and novel things have more value. It’s the reason marketers peddle designer drugs and fad diets. It’s why people line up for blocks to buy the latest Iphone every year.
The “appeal to novelty” is perhaps most evident in the information sphere. Our modes of consumption (see rant above) have injected jet fuel into this fallacy. In the era of 24 hours news and endless social media feeds, novelty is king. All news is “breaking news” that one must react to.
This novel approach rewards half considered, yet infernally hot takes, and disregards more reasonable and thoughtful views.
We are not the first humans to live through challenging times. People have dealt with misinformation, pandemics, and political scandals long before the advent of the internet.
To stay sane and better informed during the new year seek out time tested sources of knowledge: ideas and books that are hundreds even thousands of years old. If something has been around for that long, it speaks to a universal truth. One that has lived many lives, and endured in different cultures and epochs.
Wisdom is knowledge without an expiration date. Look back. Consume content with lasting value. Be a connoisseur of timeless insight. These are the places where you will find peace.
When Something Disgusts You; Do The Opposite
In the new year you will come across many opinions and people you find disagreeable. If you’re anything like me, your first instinct will be revenge. To slander, shame, and vilify that nasty person with all the godlike powers in your smartphone.
Sound tempting? If so, please try this instead.
Pause. Take a breath. Now pat yourself on the back. Thank whatever deity or non deity you believe in that you are not the person who disgusts you.
Cursing someone out changes nothing. We delude ourselves that this righteous anger makes others see the folly of their ways or exposes them as a fraud, crook, or asshole.
If we succumb to this eye for eye approach are we any different from the person we despise? Are we both not adding fuel to a noxious fire? Might our best course of action be to do the opposite?
Marcus Aurelius put it best when he wrote “the best revenge: is not to be like your enemy.”
When something or someone infuriates you, use it as an opportunity to practice your values.
When others sow anger: you will sow kindness.
When others sow negativity: you will sow positivity
When others sow meanness: you will sow compassion.
You are the one person in the world you can control. Take this obligation seriously. It may not be a lot; but it’s all you have. As Sufi poet Rumi said:
“If everything around seems dark, look again, you may be the light.”
I’ve made a silly New Year goal to watch the best college commencement speeches of all time.
In the past, I found these speeches hackneyed: the same tired advice to work hard, never give up, and follow your dreams repeated ad nauseum. It didn’t help that my commencement speaker was the equipment manager for the football team.
Like Wallace, Gaiman hits on a number of topics: The ups and downs of life as an artist, how to survive as a freelancer, and ways to deal with failure.
What jumped out at me was a section of the speech where Neil discusses how he makes career decisions :
“Something that worked for me was imagining that where I wanted to be, an author, was a mountain. A distant mountain. My goal. And I knew that as long as I kept walking towards the mountain I would be all right. And when I truly was not sure what to do, I could stop, and think about whether it was taking me towards or away from the mountain.”
Here are a few reasons why I love this metaphor:
It Begins With An End In Mind:
Many of you may recognize the expression “begin with an end in mind” from Stephen Covet: 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People. The image of the mountain illustrates this adage. The mountain represent the “end” or purpose you work towards.
Neil’s is clear cut, to be a fiction writer, but I think the metaphor works just as well for someone who doesn’t have a clearly defined career/life goal.
If you want to do something creative, but don’t know what that “something” is: substitute the goal for a principle or life style. Your mountain might simply be to have a career that gives you the flexibility and time to do creative work.
It’s Actionable:
Decisions are difficult. Especially big life decisions involving your career. Neil’s mountain provides a simple, actionable template for making these decisions.
Will (X Decision) move me closer or further away from my mountain (life goal or principle).
If it moves you closer: Do it!
If if moves you further away: Don’t!
This isn’t to say it is easy to know which direction a choice takes you. But it gives you a system for evaluating your choices. And a clear criteria for what the “right move” is.
It’s Flexible
After illustrating his mountain metaphor, Gaiman explains that at different points in his career he accepted and turned away jobs because they took him closer or further way from the “mountain”.
He emphasizes certain choices moved him closer to the mountain at certain points in his career, but further away in others.
For young writers like Neil, a steady job at a established publication may be just what you need to get more experience. For someone more seasoned, this might be a tempting distraction from the work you really want to do.
The same opportunity can be both good or bad at different times in your life and career.
The calendar year has come to a close. Hopefully you, my brainy reader, have learned a lot from this most difficult and unusual year.
However, if you’re one of the many who spent the past 365 days sobbing on the sofa; fear not! Below is a list of 5 life changing lessons I learned from some of the best books I read in 2020.
1. Look For “Ways Of Life” Instead Of Goals Or Dreams
“Beware of looking for goals: look for a way of life. Decide how you want to live and then see what you can do to make a living WITHIN that way of life”
The quote is taken from Hunter S Thompson’s letter On Finding A Purpose. I stumbled across it while reading Shaun Ushers: Letters Of Note.
Put simply, cultivating a broader way of life, trumps chasing a specific dream. As Thompson says: decide “how” you want to live first. Then look for goals and careers that are compatible.
2. Bet On Your Strengths
“The superheroes you have in your mind (idols, icons, titans, billionaires, etc.) are nearly all walking flaws who’ve maximized 1 or 2 strengths.”
Tim packs two important life lessons in one quote.
First, everyone on the planet is a walking bundle of neuroses. Even powerful, successful people. Often times especially powerful, successful people.
Second, the people who achieve some degree of success, do so by doubling down on their strengths rather than dwelling on their flaws.
Self flagellation may be in vogue, but take the opposite approach. Optimize and appreciate what you’re good at.
3. Just Do It Already!
“On the spectrum of creative work, the difference between the mediocre and the good is vast. Mediocrity is, however, still on the spectrum; you can move from mediocre to good in increments. The real gap is between doing nothing and doing something.”
If there is a creative project gathering dust in your mind: Get Started. NOW! Seriously, click out of this post and get going; I won’t be offended.
If you do: remember that perfectionism is the true enemy: not mediocrity. As Mr. Kleon so eloquently put it, “mediocrity” is still on the creative spectrum. “Perfection” only exists in its own sad solitary void.
4. Do What You Want To Do In Spite Of The Outcome
“If You Knew You Were Sure to Fail, Then What Would You Do?
We can begin with this: If we failed, would it be worth the journey? Do you trust yourself enough to commit to engaging with a project regardless of the chances of success? The first step is to separate the process from the outcome. Not because we don’t care about the outcome. But because we do.”
Outcomes are uncertain. Success rare. Victory fleeting.
Invest your time in something you would do even if it were certain to fail. Let go of the outcome. Paradoxically, this is the only chance we have to get the outcomes we desire.
5. Add More Humor In Your Life… And Don’t Do Meth
“Speed eliminates all doubt. Am I smart enough? Will people like me? Do I really look all right in this plastic jumpsuit? These are questions for insecure potheads. A speed enthusiast knows that everything he says or does is brilliant. The upswing is that, having eliminated the need for both eating and sleeping, you have a full twenty- four hours a day to spread your charm and talent.”
Possibly my favorite quote of the year. A warning against, or veiled endorsement, of doing speed.
I’ll withhold judgement. But this quote made me laugh out loud. And that is good thing. Laugh a little more in your day to day. Life gets lighter with a little levity.
It’s a New Year! Time to shake off your hangover. Throw out the Christmas tree. And of course, come up with a few New Year’s resolutions.
For most of us this means jotting down some loosely defined goals about losing weight, finding love, and generally kicking ass during the coming calendar year.
For most of us this ALSO means swiftly discarding these goals in a few weeks once the luster of the New Year fades, and life kicks in again.
I don’t say this to be dismissive. In principle I’m a fan of New Year’s resolutions. It is one of the few culturally sanctioned times to reflect on your life and plan for a better future. However, the customary format of year long resolutions sets many people up for failure.
I want to propose 5 alternatives. They’re tailored to people who are sick of New Year’s resolutions but want to make a positive change in their life.
Each item highlights a flaw in how we approach New Year’s resolutions, and offers a different solution. Check them out:
Alternative 1: The Monthly Challenge:
What It Is:
If you ever stumble into my room you’ll likely see one of these taped to the wall:
To do a monthly challenge, decide on an area of life you wish to improve (i.e weight loss, writing a book). Then break that goal into an action you perform each day of the month (i.e run a mile, write a page of your book).
Every day you perform your chosen action put an “X” on your monthly challenge sheet. If you complete the entire month you can reward yourself in any way you see fit.
Why It’s Better Than A Resolution:
A calendar year is too long to account for. This onerous length is why so many of us give up on our resolutions at the beginning of the year.
A month is manageable. It’s enough time to make a meaningful change.
A month is flexible too. If you wish to continue your challenge past the month, you can. If your priorities shift, you can create a different challenge next month.
The monthly challenge has not one, but two rewards systems. The micro reward of crossing off a day on your challenge sheet, and the larger reward you enjoy at the end of the month.
Alternative 2: Conduct An Experiment
What It Is:
Put on your lab coat and geeky glasses; we’re about to conduct an experiment. This might sound brainy and scientific, but it’s not.
An experiment simply evaluates a hypothesis. For those of us who failed science class, a hypothesis is what we think the outcome of our experiment will be. It can take the form of a sentence like:
If I do (insert activity) for (insert amount of time), this (insert prediction) will occur.
If you wanted to try out a new diet to lose weight your hypothesis might be:
If I do the Keto Diet for 1 month, I will lose 10 pounds.
Once you run your experiment, compare the results with your hypothesis. Use this to draw conclusions. Did the experiment work? How close were your results to your hypothesis? What went well? What could you improve?
Why It’s Better Than A Resolution:
Resolutions are personal and loaded with emotion. Experiments are cold and detached. When we don’t complete a New Year’s resolution we get an icky shameful feeling. We may even see ourselves as failures.
The experimental process removes this baggage. It allows us to merely do the work and not get swept away in the ups and downs of the process. If you don’t “succeed” it’s not a mark against you, you just had a faulty hypothesis.
The process also lends itself to improvement in a way resolutions don’t. Even “set backs” and “missteps” provide valuable points of data. Data you can use to tweak and improve future experiments.
Alternative 3: Choose Principles Instead Of Resolutions
What It Is:
Principles are rules you choose to live by. They frame how you want to live, how you will act, and what you will tolerate from yourself and others. They are the code of conduct of your best self.
Principles dig deeper than standard goals and resolution. Some examples:
Goal: Go on a plant based diet
Principle: Treat the earth and my body with respect
Goal: Earn more money
Principle: Have more time and freedom to do what I want with who I want.
Goal: Write a Novel
Principle: Express and ignite creativity in myself and others
Why It’s Better Than A Resolution:
Principles illuminate the elusive WHY behind traditional resolutions. They strip resolutions to the bone. They reveal what you really want, and signal if it’s out of alignment with what you say you want.
These often conflict. Many times what we “want” is us parroting the things society and our parents tell us to value rather than what we covet at our core.
Principles also give you a playbook for how to act. They have broad applications that inform decisions in many areas; now and in the future.
For example the principle to “treat your body with respect” has implications for when you exercise, what you eat, and how much you sleep. The resolution to lose 20 pounds over the new year only applies to a specific area and period of time.
Alternative 4: Write A Thank You Letter From Your Future Self:
What It Is:
Pen a thank you letter from your future self. The version of you that has worked towards a meaningful goal and now reaps the rewards.
The letter details what this future self is thankful for. Be both broad and specific. If your future self is grateful you saved $2,000 for a vacation, let your past self know all the juicy details. Where you are. What you’re doing. How much fun you’re having.
When you’re finished, take the letter and stow it in a private place. Revisit it when you have doubts and struggles.
Why It’s Better Than A Resolution:
This alternative likely made a significant amount of readers cringe. Hear me out.
Most goals are trade offs between a current and future version of yourself. Your present self makes a commitment, often a cumbersome one, so a future version of yourself can enjoy a better life
You do a grueling workout, so your future self can enjoy a better body
You eat yucky leafy greens instead of ice cream so your future self can enjoy a longer, healthier life
You stock money in a savings account so your future self can enjoy an early retirement.
The Thank You Letter is a silly, but powerful reframe. It fleshes out the future version of yourself who will enjoy the rewards of your work.
Progress is incremental. It’s often imperceptible in the moment. This infuriates most people. It’s why we bail on our News Year’s resolutions a few weeks in. Our struggle is clear and present, while the payoff is vague and distant.
But there is a payoff! One a future self will receive if you remind your current self to continue to put in the work.
Alternative 5: Annual Bucket List For The Little Things In Life
What It Is:
List the activities you want to do in the coming year. The catch: you can’t list big sexy things like plan a Hawaiian vacation or buy a mansion.
The items on your list must be small, but noteworthy. Like: try a new sushi restaurant, take a bubble bath, watch a French film, or pet a labradoodle.
If you keep a calendar, schedule some of these activities on there. Give yourself modest meaningful events to look forward to in the new year.
Why It’s Better Than A Resolution:
News Year’s resolutions are self serious. They operate on the assumption that to have a “good year” you must tick off a standard set of boxes involving your health, finances, and career. While these are important, they neglect the smaller pleasures in life.
We live day by day. No matter how extraordinary you are, you spend most of life in the daily drudge of modern existence. Work meetings, Filing taxes, Cleaning out the refrigerator.
What makes this daily drudge manageable? Minor moments of gratification!
These items scarcely get consideration when we make New Year’s resolutions. They’re ignored in favor of lofty and often unattainable goals. Yet these little joys are what make the lofty goals worth while.
What good is a banging body if you can’t go to the beach. What use is more money if you don’t spend it on experiences you enjoy. What good is a stable career if it comes at the expense of doing the activities that give your life meaning. We aim for bigger goals so we can enjoy the little things. Schedule time for them in the New Year.
In a desperate attempt to remedy the situation I created a writing challenge. In the challenge I gave myself a strict time limit of 1 hour to write blog posts.
In two days I will complete the challenge. To mark the occasion, I looked back at the articles I wrote. Some were bad. Most were average. A few were, dare I say, good.
The results varied, but I did spot some recurring blunders. Most of which were standard stylistic mistakes High School English Teachers like to rant about.
They’re common, but without a discerning eye, we default to them . In order to shed light on some of my writing errors I made a “wall of shame.”
Shame 1: Overuse Of The Conditional
Have you ever had a lazy friend who always made excuses? Their excuses took this form: I WOULD have done _____, but I didn’t.
Woulds, coulds, and shoulds are preludes to both lazy excuses and lazy writing. Eliminate them from both areas of your life.
While we’re at it, let’s also cast “will” to the shadow realm.
Don’t: I WILL eliminate this meandering word from my vocabulary.
Do: Eliminate it!
Shame 2: Weak Adverbs
I’m a cautious cat. It’s one of my strengths and weaknesses. I eschew certainty. Who can be certain in a world filled with grey areas.
Because of this, I don’t speak or write with assurance. I hedge my statements with adverbs like “possibly” and “probably”. While noble, this comes off as diffident writing.
Don’t use adverbs that diminish your ideas. You are the god of your page. Reign over your kingdom with firm hands.
Shame 3: I Think…
This pairs well with Shame 2. There are many opinions in the world, and I don’t want to give the impression mine is the only one. Thus, I use “I think” too often. I need to make it crystal clear that the thoughts on page are my opinions, not immutable laws.
To that I say: the audience knows these are your opinions, dummy. Your readers are keenly aware that it is YOU doing the thinking. Don’t stutter on page. Say what you mean or shut up.
Shame 4: Cut Out Gerund When You Can
To complete the trio of weak writing, I am considering cutting out the gerund.
While “considering” is the considerate thing to do, be a big boy/girl and “cut it out” already.
Shame 5: “It’s As Simple As That” (and other tired colloquialisms)
This one is the most embarrassing of all. I shiver at the thought of divulging this to you, my dear reader. But here it goes.
I used the phrase “As Simple As That” in three blogs this month.
Once is enough to hurl me in writer’s prison and throw away the key. But thrice! That’s a mortal sin.
Don’t use silly colloquialisms like “As Simple As That”. It really is “as simple as that.”
A Parting Note:
While these 5 items seem like deep sources of “shame” to me and other writers, they’re avoidable.
My advice. Save the worries for the editing process, and write. You can deal with most of these “shames” with a simple “CTRL + F” when you edit.
Alas! The 31st of December 2020 is upon us. A day which could not have come fast enough. In less than 24 hours this hellacious, polarized, plaugey year will be over.
Due to circumstances, normal New Year’s festivities have been cancelled. And most responsible adults are likely cooped up at home in search of a more homely type of New Years cheer.
While we wait out the waning hours of the year, I propose a toast to the things that have kept us sane during a most insane year.
For me the two greatest sources of sanity were music and friendship. I find both a great song and a great friend can make the unendurable; slightly tolerable.
In celebration of this dynamic duo I have created a fresh year end tradition:
The End Of The Year Kick Out The Jams Playlist
Or as I call it this year…
The 2020 Fuck This Year & Kick Out The Jams Playlist
How does it work?
Start a playlist on Spotify, Tidal, or your song streaming app of choice. Send a link to a group of your closest friends. Have them each add 1–10 great songs that they discovered or re-discovered over the course of the year.
Bonus points if it’s a group of friends with eclectic tastes. This is a golden opportunity to for the jazz snob, hip hopper, and metal head in your life to join forces for a common goal.
The playlist is a great way to bring together friends, commemorate another calendar year, and make a long list of banging tunes for all to enjoy!
The year is coming to an end but the dance continues. May the tune of the next year sing louder than the one note dirge we all lived through.
Here’s a News Year’s Resolution I guarantee you can follow through with:
Save $1
You read that right: Save a dollar. All you need to do is earn a dollar. Stow it away: can be in a piggy bank, swiss bank account, and everything in between. And you’re done!
Wait… But what now?
First off: Congratulations! You’ve now entered the rarified 8% of people who complete their New Year’s Resolutions. Feel free to pat yourself on the back. Enjoy a cookie. Or throw yourself a debauched New Years party.
While these all sound tempting, if you’re like most people once you save that first dollar you’ll probably start thinking:
“Having an extra dollar in the bank is pretty cool, but you know what would be even cooler: $2. In fact, $100 sounds more to my liking.”
If you’ve read this blog before you know I’m a mega fan of making tiny, bold changes in your life. These actions, while small and seemingly trivial, tend to snowball into larger transformations.
I’m not alone in thinking this. Habit Guru James Clear, author of the best seller Atomic Habits, lists “starting with something incredibly small” as the first step to building a habit that lasts.
Zen Habits Blogger Leo Bautista also echoes these sentiments. He says when starting a new habit:
This year why not follow Leo’s advice and make a resolution that is “so easy you can’t say no”. Target an area of life you want to develop and make your resolution the smallest action that will help you improve.
The $1 example is just for finance. Examples for other common resolutions might be:
If you want to lose weight: Run 1 block
If you want to gain muscle: Do 1 Pushup
If you want to declutter your house: Throw away 1 item
These minor accomplishment trigger the momentum and dopamine that come from following through on a commitment. They also give you a life line when you inevitably slip up later in the year. If you falter two months down the road you have a simple action to come back to.
While you’re co-worker throws in the towel because they fall short of their audacious resolution, you’ll know that anytime you slip up you can begin again by saving a dollar!
It’s college, your professor has just given you a term paper which you have 1 month to complete.
A month! That’s a world of time. Maybe if you’re particularly diligent you make an outline and plan a little. But if you’re anything like me, and 90% of other college students, you’ll likely put the paper off.
A couple weeks go by, you glance at the calendar and realize your paper is due in a few days. At this point your brain jumps into hyperspeed. Through a mixture of sheer will and copious amounts of caffeine you finish the paper just before the deadline.
Sound familiar? For most of us, this story has played out countless times in our academic and professional career.
Why is this?
A phenomena known as Parkinson’s Law explains the situation.
The Law states that the importance and time it takes to finish a task expands and contracts depending on the amount of time allotted to the task.
Let me put that in plain English for you.
If you have more time to complete a task; you will use more of that time to complete the task. If you have a shorter deadline, then you will complete the same task in less time.
Usually the quality remains constant. So, the end result for both a long and shorter deadline are about the same.
What does this mean?
It’s comforting to give yourself as much time as possible to complete a project. We justify this by thinking the added time will improve the end product. Giving yourself more time, gives you precious hours to plan and think about the project.
But as Parkinson’s Law shows us, this is not the case. That added time will likely be used inefficiently. You will either spend an unnecessary amount of time on unimportant tasks. Or simply procrastinate by enjoying your favorite digital vice.
Worse yet, you are probably still thinking about your assignment when you’re not doing the work. The uncompleted task takes up some space in your brain, even when you’re not working on it. This is a double whammy! You’re not making progress on your project, and you get less enjoyment out of your free time.
3 Ways To Use Parkinson’s Law To Your Advantage
1: Give Yourself Deadlines.
I like deadlines about as much as I like bee stings and tetanus shots, but they are necessary to get anything done. Without a deadline, a task won’t be completed. It is as simple as that.
This is especially important when you’re working on a personal project. School and work naturally impose deadlines, but when it’s a project we’re doing on our own we’re more likely to give ourselves leeway.
Plus, if it’s a personal project, it’s likely something you care about. This makes it even more important to set a deadline. Why let your boss or professor hog all your productive time!
2. Make Your Deadlines Ambitious. But Realistic
If something takes a month to complete, don’t cram it into a weekend. This will just frustrate you. But when setting a deadline, lean towards a more ambitious one.
Even if you don’t hit the deadline you will likely make more progress than if you pushed your due date into the future.
3. Add Accountability For Extra Credit:
Just setting an ambitious deadline will ramp up the urgency to complete a task. If you want to move the notch up another dial, add accountability.
A simple way to do this is telling a trusted friend you are going to complete something. Just telling them will add social pressure to finish on time. No one wants to look stupid in front of a friend.
If you feel comfortable, make a public proclamation about your goal. Post about it on social media or your blog. The more people who know about it, the harder you’ll focus to meet your deadline.
Over the past month I set the goal of doing 50 pushups first thing in the morning. You may be asking: why subject yourself to this torture at such an early hour?
I asked myself the same question when I started. And I’m embarrassed to admit during the first week I missed my mark of 50 pushups on most days. That was until I discovered an easy process for completing the pushups.
The weird thing about this process is it is completely psychological. It has little to do with getting stronger, or even how I felt in the morning… I actually did the best on days I was groggy and hungover.
And it definitely works if you can’t do 50 pushups… or if you can do way more than 50 pushups. The number of pushups can be adjusted to your fitness level so long as the amount is just below your point of failure (ie you can complete the repetitions; but just barely)
The number of pushups is unimportant because while this 3 step process will help you do more pushups, it’s not really about pushups…
It is about breaking seemingly difficult tasks into manageable steps, and getting over the mental hurdles that prevent you from completing them. It can be applied to anything from a tough workout, to learning a new skill, to completing a demanding project.
Check it out:
Phase 1: The Beginners Rush
It’s About The Pushups: This is the rapid fire phase I call “The Beginners Rush”. For pushups this applies to the first 20 to 30 reps. Because your muscles are fresh these are the easiest to do. So I recommend doing around half of the reps as fast as you can. The more the better!
The goal is to do as many pushups as you can before your muscles get tired. And more importantly, before your mind starts coming up with excuses to stop.
I find if I do this first wave of push ups slowly, my “inner quitter” starts blabbering and coming up with excuses for why I should stop. And it is much easier to listen to this voice when you have 40 pushups remaining.
It’s Not Really About The Pushups: At the beginning of a new activity or project you will naturally have more energy and enthusiasm. Your task is fresh at hand and you have yet to run into the difficulties and fatigue that will creep in during later phases.
Use this momentum to get as much done in the shortest time possible. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but you just have to take as many steps as you can in the right direction. This way when doubt and fatigue kick in you can look back and see that you have already done a good chunk of the work.
Phase 2: The Pain Period
It’s About The Pushups: When I hit 20–30 pushups my muscles begin to show the first signs of weakness. Suddenly pushing myself on and off the floor is not as easy as it once was. This is when my mind starts saying things like: “My arms hurt; why am I doing this”. “It’s much too early to be doing so many pushups.” “Breakfast sounds nice about now”?
The reason we rushed through half the pushups in the first phase is because when the pain starts to set in you can look forward and know that you are over half way there. You may be aching, but there is an end in sight.
For the “pain period” I divide my next 10–20 pushups in sets of 5. I power through a set of 5 and then allow myself a brief reprieve in the upright position. While I’m resting I mentally count to 5 and prime my mind for the next 5 pushups. I usually do this until I have 5–10 pushups left.
It’s Not About The Pushups: After the initial wave of excitement wears off you will go through a plateau or pain period. This is when you start realizing that what you want to achieve is harder than you think. The seeds of doubt have been planted. This is usually the time when people either quit or think about quitting.
This is the most psychologically taxing part of the process. That’s why it’s important to finish a good chunk of the work before this pain period begins.
Like with the pushups, it helps to break tasks down into more manageable chunks. Consistency is key. Even if you’re working less, the work will seem more demanding. To counter this set small but achievable milestones. It allows you to trudge along when you least want to.
Phase 3: Stumble To The Finish
It’s About The Pushups: In this phase your muscles are really worn out and you are reaching your point of failure (ie when you simply can’t do another pushup). Because there are only 5–10 reps left, this is the only part of the process where I focus on the individual pushup.
Your goal here is completion. You’ve done the most difficult work in Phases 1 and 2. Right now you are merely using your remaining energy to complete the task. Your mind should be saying “almost there, one more rep, one more rep.”
Because you are so close to the end it is easy to stop. Your mind can rationalize your failure with excuses like: “46 pushups is good enough.”
Don’t do it! Focus your power on each individual rep. You’re almost done. Will your way to 50.
It’s Not About The Pushups: When you’re completing any task or project you will reach a final hurdle of fatigue and resistance. You’re near the end, but the tail end of the work seems to go on forever. That is why you need to focus on completing the smallest unit.
If you’ve followed the previous two phases there should not be much work left. This final “stumble to the finish” is you pinpointing the last few items that need to be done, and laser focusing on them. It may be a messy stumble, but with this last bit of effort you will cross the finish line.
