The Best Conversations
The most interesting conversations happen when the topic of interest is not all about you, but all about others.
Jim Collin’s Goal Setting Approach Visualized
Sketch of the three key questions from my blog post yesterday about Jim Collins goal setting approach.
Do Something New
Why do the same old stuff this holiday weekend? Try something new..it might just be fun!
Best New Year’s Resolution? A ‘Stop Doing’ List
Here is a great article by Jim Collins, the author of numerous books like “Good to Great” and “Great by Choice” (which I am currently reading). Jim has a legendary work ethic and capacity to focus. He goes so far as to use a stopwatch to monitor and log the time he spends on creative tasks (good!) vs other nonsense and consuming information. His goal is to spend half of his time every day being creative.
In a world where people are overly fixated on to-do lists, he sets goals by first focusing on the things that aren’t worth doing as a means to help clarify the things that do matter.
The 20-10 assignment mentioned in the article got me thinking.
She then gave me what I came to call the 20-10 assignment. It goes like this: Suppose you woke up tomorrow and received two phone calls. The first phone call tells you that you have inherited $20 million, no strings attached. The second tells you that you have an incurable and terminal disease, and you have no more than 10 years to live. What would you do differently, and, in particular, what would you stop doing?
With clarity here you can move on to deciding what really matters. Here are three questions from article to help contemplate those things:
- What are you deeply passionate about?
- What are you are genetically encoded for — what activities do you feel just “made to do”?
- What makes economic sense — what can you make a living at?
Another pic from the Methow Valley, near Winthrop, WA.
Methow Valley Nordic Ski Camp
Spent a few days in the Methow Valley over the weekend getting a crash course in Nordic skiing as part of the Methow Nordic Club’s annual ski camp. We did both skate and classic skiing. I really like the sport. It reminds me of trail running combined with the fluid nature of swimming. I’m already looking into doing a race or two before the season is over.
View of the Methow Valley - near Winthrop, WA.
The Real Reason to Practice Yoga
Yoga is a fantastic workout for your physical body, but that is not its purpose.
It’s purpose is to cultivate a deep sense of connection to the present moment. In doing so it is the ultimate workout for the mind.
Sweating, losing weight, gaining strength and all those things are collateral benefits but should never take precedence over the real purpose.
I’ll go so far as to say that if your real goal is to get “fit” physically, there are many more effective and time efficient ways to do so. Start running or swimming. Do Crossfit or a spin class. There are definitely better ways to get a normal “workout.”
The real reason to practice yoga is to exercise the mind.
Another view of The Great Wall near Jinshanling, 80Km northwest of Beijing, China. 11/27/2011 by Ravi.
Goal setting
The best way to increase the odds of achieving a goal is to actually set a goal.
What’s your big goal?
Vegan meal at the Microsoft cafeteria in Beijing, China. Tofu, Rice, Seaweed, Diced Potato, Rice roll, Baby Chinese Broccoli. If you can't tell already....the pics I include in my posts often have no relationship to the content of the posts!
