I could script these talks, do a few rehearsals, record professionally with mics and lights, edit better, put music and effects and titles and captions… but then I wouldn’t be able to do one a week. I hope these zero-cost productions are still good enough to inspire some.
You may watch Mush Talks #1-10 here. And please feel free to leave comments below 🙂
My two weeks in Nepal were full of inspiration, with some important lessons learnt and many beliefs reinforced. Through this series of blog posts, I am sharing some of those thoughts and hoping to inspire some of my readers.
There are many things that we take for granted in life. When you are up in the mountains or in villages, a network on your phone is a privilege and Internet access a luxury. Imagine waking up in the morning completely offline, with no emails, messages or FB to check. And going through the day, using just the camera function on your phone. Once I accepted the reality, I began to see the beauty of the situation and the many benefits of disconnecting, unplugging and being offline:
I was still connecting to the Internet for an hour or so almost every evening after the trek. I was posting photos to Facebook, blogging my daily diary, and even uploading my daily 2-minute videos to YouTube whenever the connection was ‘good’. And I found that even my connected time was so much more productive and efficient due to the focus, and the awareness that I only had an hour or two to get everything done.
Since getting back from the trip, I have incorporated some of these ideas, yet again, into my life. I have switched off many ‘push’ notifications on my phone, so I can better control the flow of information. I have again started doing emails in blocks of an hour, 2-3 times a day. I have again limited my social media time to the bare minimum, and only twice a day. I have again started switching off my phone after 7pm. It’s only been a week, but it’s working out so well then I’m unlikely to go back to the old habits.
What do you think about disconnecting, unplugging and going offline for scheduled periods of time every day? How will that affect your productivity at work and the quality of your time with yourself, friends and family?
For many of us, New Year is a time to make some resolutions and commit to bring positive changes in our lives. See if you would like to include any of the following to your goals and to-do lists for 2014:
1. Learn to be happy! Happiness is the foundation for all success and achievements. Happier people are more productive at work, better at relationships, healthier and have more energy. Practice the happiness principles daily:
2. Become more productive! Do the right things, do them well, on time and with ease. That may seem too ambitious but here are some of the ways to achieve that:
Do you have any additional tips for the two lists above? This is part 1 of a series. Can you guess what’s coming up next?
For daily inspiration and resources on happiness, motivation and success, please also see Dinchack on Facebook.
During the last six months, I have tried more apps than in the last few years, to increase productivity and efficiency in managing my business. Most of them were just average, few are dinchack (wow!) and some have become indispensable. If you are looking for useful productivity apps for your iOS devices, you might like to try these:
Please let me know about your favourite productivity apps through comments.
Answer these simple questions and find out:
The more yeses you have, the greater is your time management, and the better your quality of life! And what if your time management isn’t so great? Firstly acknowledge. Then understand that it’s a skill that anyone can learn, like driving or cooking or languages. And like any other skill, you can learn time management from books, courses, workshops… as long as you start applying the principles that you learn. Time management is a skill that you live with, so you need to make the necessary changes to your habits and behaviours.
Get a better understanding of some tested and proven time management strategies, and some practical tips, at my upcoming class at General Assembly in Hong Kong on Tuesday 8th October. Registration and details here.
[Photo at Interlaken in China – a recent short holiday]
My new Facebook page just crossed 1000 fans in the first week! Check it out for latest news on Dinchack (my new company) and tips on happiness, motivation and success.
“Bonus time” is an interesting concept that keeps me happy when I am supposed to be angry, frustrated or disappointed.
If my flight is delayed by an hour, I consider it the ‘bonus time’ I’ve been granted. Full 60 minutes of no plans, no commitments, no schedules! I can do whatever I like – read, work, think, relax, eat, take photos, call family, or just sit and do nothing for a change. Of course, I have the alternative to get angry at the airline; demand explanations; get upset about the delay; think of the rest of the things that would all be delayed by an hour… but none of that is going to help. Next time you have a delay or a wait, try to think of it as a gift of ‘bonus time’ e.g.
In each of these situations, you have a choice to get upset or consider the waiting time as ‘bonus time’ in which you can do something positive, productive and unplanned – like making that call to someone special or catching up on the news or thinking some good thoughts or just conscious breathing. Will you try?
[Photo taken during a road trip in Yogyakarta last week]
Here’s another very useful shopping strategy to keep life simple and uncluttered. If it’s anything other than the basic necessities, it must do one of the three things:
If it does, I allow myself the pleasure of impulse buying. The following wooden stand that I bought today is such an example. It helps keep the coffee capsules organized and tidy, replacing the boxes. The photo shows before and after.
Do you think the three questions can save you some money, time or space?
Related post: 3 rules for guilt-free shopping
In an earlier post, less stuff = more happiness, I shared how and why I started simplifying my life, five years ago, by reducing my possessions. Once I had done that, the challenge was to keep it that way and ensure that the old habits don’t creep back in.
My short shopping spree today made me realize how religiously I follow certain rules that have allowed me to keep my possessions to the minimum and continue to have a clutter-free life. These rules can be summarized as three simple strategies that anyone can follow. Simple, but not easy…
Some very simple and useful tips by Tony Schwartz, author of Be Excellent at Anything, from Harvard Business Review:
Human beings aren’t meant to operate like computers — at high speeds, continuously, for long periods of time. We’re designed to be rhythmic, and to intermittently renew. Here are the six strategies we’ve found work best:
1. Make sufficient sleep your highest priority: Far too many of us buy into the myth that one hour less of sleep allows us one more of productivity. In fact, even very small amounts of sleep deprivation significantly undermine capacity for focus, analytic thinking and creativity. The research is clear: more than 95 per cent of us require 7-8 hours of sleep in order to be fully rested, and for our brains to optimally embed new learning. Great performers, ranging from musicians to athletes, often get even more than 8 hours. [Related post]
2. Take a renewal break at least every ninety minutes: It’s now how long you work that determines the value you produce, but rather the energy you bring to whatever hours you work.The first key is to intermittently quiet your physiology. You can dramatically lower your heart rate, your blood pressure and your muscle tension in as little as 30-60 seconds with regular practice. With your eyes closed, try breathing in through your nose to a count of three, and out through your mouth slowly to a count of six. In this way, you’re extending your recovery. As your body quiets down, your thinking mind will also get quieter and you’ll feel more relaxed.
3. Keep a running list of everything that you want or need to do: The more fully and frequently you download what’s on your mind, the less energy you’ll squander in fruitless thinking about undone tasks, and the more energy you’ll have to be fully present in whatever you’re doing. Continue reading
Four simple principles of productivity from CNN today by Laura Stack. Laura Stack is president of The Productivity Pro®, Inc., and the author of What to Do When There’s Too Much to Do and four other books, including Leave the Office Earlier.
“These days, it’s seems like we are all expected to do more with less. Spending hours in the office to make sure all the assigned tasks get done bleeds into our family time, and even at home, it seems there’s a never-ending cycle of things that must be done.
Yet studies have shown that 60-hour workweeks can result in a 25% decrease in productivity. The productivity numbers get worse as the work hours increase, because exhaustion steadily erodes judgment and performance.
So what to do when there’s too much to do? The key is to do less, not more (what, you’ve never heard a time management expert tell you the key to success is to do less?).
Just say no: First, say “no” to more work. Though this might sound obvious, it’s one of the hardest things to actually do. But being realistic about the amount of additional work you can take on is as important as getting the job done. A simple, “Sorry — I’d love to help out, but I don’t have the bandwidth to take that on right now,” is sufficient.
Negotiate: When that fails, negotiate. If your boss presents you with a project you can’t outright refuse, but your plate is undeniably full, don’t hesitate to point this out. Openly discuss your current deadlines and workload, and communicate both honestly and clearly. For example, you might say, “I’m currently working on X, Y, and Z. I want to return quality work in a timely way, and if I take on this new project, it will jeopardize my promised deadlines. Would you like me to hand it off to someone else, outsource it, or would you prefer to reprioritize my existing commitments?”
Prioritize: Focus on strategic enablers of business. Everyone has too much to do, and nobody really cares how many tasks you crossed off a to-do list if key projects keep falling through the cracks. Split your to-do lists into a Master list and a High Impact Task (HIT) list.
While the Master lists tracks everything that needs to get done at some point, the HIT list includes only a reasonable number of items that can be accomplished each day, so you’re constantly focused on key priorities and work on them in the proper order:
P1: You will get fired if this isn’t done today.
P2: A valuable long-term activity that should be done soon.
P3: Someone will be unhappy if this isn’t done eventually.
P4: Human “pain-management” activities such as socializing or Facebook.
Focus: Master the skills of concentration. Stop multitasking and focus on one thing at a time. Multitasking just dilutes your attention and fools you into thinking you’re productive, when you’re really just busy.
Don’t allow people to hold distracting conversations outside your cubicle or office door either. Limit your social media usage, and anything else that can keep you from accomplishing your most important tasks.
When you find ways to do less while increasing your impact, you’ll gain more time to spend on things you actually enjoy.”
Mush’s comments: Increased productivity at work means more time with family and with yourself to do the other things you are passionate about. My own tips on productivity aren’t too different from the above.
[Photo of Cheng Chau Island, another beautiful hike during the weekend]
I recently had the privilege of connecting and interacting with one of the happiest and most successful people I’ve ever known. He started as a salesman and built one of the biggest direct sales companies in the region. I always admired how he found time for leisure and everything else that he enjoyed doing, even during the busiest times of his business. He retired early and rich, while the company runs on the systems he had built. In the following note, he shared with me his thoughts on motivation, productivity and dealing with depression:
Books: Two books that helped me greatly are:
And my favorite now for ageless wisdom is The Portable Thoreau edited Carl Bode.
Work Habits:
By doing these two things I accomplished the same in one third of the time than most people! Now I am stress-free and have lots of leisure. Continue reading
I’ve lived with this mantra for over five years now, so I was obviously very interested to watch Graham Hill’s talk on TED with that title. He has summarized the benefits very well, but he doesn’t tell us what did he do with all his collections, possessions and stuff. Here’s my story and tips:
When I started the process of reducing my possessions and simplifying my life, I started with the biggest chunk – my collection of books. I realized I wasn’t going to re-read most of them. My hope that my kids would read them all one day wasn’t realistic because they don’t have the same interests as mine. So I gave them all away to friends or charity. I also got rid of the book shelf, so that the books I continue to buy must be given away soon after I finish reading them. Since the iPad, I only buy digital books. They are cheaper, easy to store/backup and environment friendly. You can increase the font size and brightness; you can highlight passages; you can call up a dictionary by just touching the word. And if you really miss the touch and feel and smell of real books, you can visit the book store once a while and get all that for free. I have also tried audio books, and they have their benefits too.
Then I was able to simplify my entire wardrobe to fit into ten hangers and one drawer – plus a small suitcase with winter stuff on one side and special occasion stuff on the other. I took most of the unnecessary clutter out of my life – excessive suits, shoes, belts, ties, watches (I’ve actually stopped wearing a watch), videos, CDs etc. I still need to finish scanning the photos and get rid of the albums. All of this means, I need less space for my possessions and less maintenance time. I can focus on quality instead of quantity/variety. I only buy things that I really need and have space for. If I buy a new shirt, an old shirt has to go.
My travel bag has got smaller and smaller, regardless of the length of the trip, and is now down to a small carry-on, without the additional backpack that used to go with it. I still take all the photos and make all the movies with my pocket Canon Ixus. That means I can pack easily and quickly, travel much lighter and move around easily. I have applied the same principle to my work i.e. office space and desk. It’s all easier said than done, but extremely rewarding and worthwhile. I believe it makes you more productive, more efficient, lighter and happier!
[Photo of my travel bags taken just now in the hotel room. The shoulder bag has the camera, spare battery, spare SD cards, phone, wallet, passport, charger, pens and few other essentials]
I had been putting off writing this piece for two days. Procrastination is a very strange phenomenon. We know something must be done now, but we delay it. It can be a phone call to mom, an email to a customer, a report to the boss, getting up on time, making an important decision, ending a bad habit, starting a good one, saying some nice words, apologizing for a mistake, it can be small tasks or big projects… but we often delay it despite expecting to be worse off due to the delay. We know that procrastination can cost us money, health, relationships, productivity or social disapproval for not meeting responsibilities or commitments… but we procrastinate. Procrastination is not always inaction. Very often, we get busy with less important or less urgent tasks to avoid the high-priority actions. Few reasons why we procrastinate, and some ideas on what to do about it:
Happy to add a very useful guide on beating procrastination by a fellow blogger. It’s very detailed, comprehensive and full of useful tips.
[A recent photo of sunset through a window – one of those things that can’t wait.]
[A re-post from June 2009] Most people seem to start their day in a rush – rushing to get ready, rushing with the breakfast, rushing to work. These people often spend their entire day in a rush, playing catch-up with the rest of the world. This can be easily avoided by getting up a little earlier. There are many other benefits of getting up early, but I will list the five that have always worked for me:
Even if you work from home, there’s plenty of reason to start the day before everyone else does. And if you are a housewife, who usually spends the day taking care of others, this could be your time, to do the things just for yourself! Please share your comments and tips.
[Check out Mush’s photos, videos and Facebook page]
Here’s a collection of links to some of the most popular posts on my blog during the last 12 months. I hope you find them useful and consider sharing with friends. These may have some ideas for your New Year Resolutions too:
On Happiness:
On Health and Nutrition:
On Productivity:
Please let me know which ones did you find most useful.
[Photo taken during a hike in Rotorua, NZ – Nov. 2010]
In an earlier post I wrote about the pros and cons of audiobooks. The article was quite popular and did a few rounds around cyberspace. Check it out if you had missed it.
Since writing that post, I have become a big fan of audiobooks. I often listen to them while driving (alone), taking long walks and during sleepless nights on long flights. Besides the seven advantages I listed in the earlier post, I also find it easier to preview an audio version before buying a hardcopy.
Audible has become my favorite place to download audiobooks. There are different subscription plans that offer up to 30% savings and let you download a book of your choice every month. There are thousands of books in various categories, both fiction and non-fiction. If you have a computer with iTune and an MP3 player, try it once. ‘No time to read’ is no more an excuse!
PS. Just downloaded Crush It! by Gary Vaynerchuk for the overnight flight to Dubai – in case none of my fellow passengers wants to tell me her life story 🙂 Off to a bookshop now to buy a real book, just in case the battery on my iPhone runs out 🙂
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What’s the perfect time…
So many people spend their lives waiting for the perfect time to do what needs to be done now. What are you procrastinating?
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Someone recently asked me how I always manage to be on time. My response was, ‘It’s not how, it’s why’. Being on time is easy, if you really want to. Few reasons why being late is bad, whether it’s for business, personal, family or social commitments:
Now some tips on how to be on time:
“I never could have done what I have done without the habits of punctuality, order, and diligence, without the determination to concentrate myself on one subject at a time.” (Charles Dickens)
[Photo of the clock tower in Cardiff]
We all want more happiness, better health, increased productivity and improved relationships. We want to be able to motivate ourselves to do the things we know we should do to enhance our lives. I try to help myself and others to achieve all that through this blog.
Here’s a collection of posts from the last couple of years that I consider to be the best, considering the popularity and comments from the readers. Most articles are short, and take only a few minutes to read. Please let me know through your comments if this collection could form a useful ebook…
Happiness:
Health:
Productivity:
Relationships:
Motivation:
Please take a few minutes to tell me about your most favorite articles, through comments below. Thanks.
[Photo of Kuk Po hike near Tai Po in Hong Kong, taken last week]
Mush Panjwani 