Productivity
Harsh Parenting Linked to Depression, Unhappiness, and Other Problems in Kids and Adults
“A review of two decades worth of studies has shown that corporal punishment is associated with antisocial behavior and aggression in children, and later in life is linked to depression, unhappiness, anxiety, drug and alcohol use and psychological maladjustment. Beyond beating, parents can also hurt children by humiliating them, labeling them in harmful ways (“Why…
Read MoreStephen King and Anthony Trollope on the Importance of Approaching Your Work With the Proper (Non-Grandiose) Attitude
From The 7 Secrets of the Prolific: The prolific tend to see their writing not as some holy mission but their “work, “craft,” or even “job”: Stephen King: “Don’t wait for the muse…This isn’t the Ouija board or the spirit-world we’re talking about here, but just another job like laying pipe or driving long-haul trucks.…
Read MoreVideo: The Truth About Procrastination
The Truth About Procrastination featuring Hillary Rettig from Hillary Rettig on Vimeo.
Read MoreHe Gets It!
“We must act knowing that our work will be imperfect.” Barack Obama, 2d inaugural address, January 21, 2013
Read More“Procrastinating Surgeon Putting Off Coronary Bypass By Cleaning Entire Hospital”
The Onion gives us a sterling example of procrastination as a mimic of productive work: “NEW YORK—Sources at Columbia University Medical Center reported Sunday that cardiac surgeon Dr. Robert Klinge, 44, was putting off an impending coronary bypass procedure by cleaning the entire hospital. “I know that guy’s arteries are a mess, but so are…
Read MoreThis is Called “Situational Perfectionism”
Situational perfectionism is when something happens that causes your perfectionism to spike. Examples include: *You’ve invested in your writing or other dream – say, by taking a class or buying a piece of equipment – and think, “Now, I’d better make that pay off.” *You’ve just finished a workshop or class, and are feeling all,…
Read MoreThree Great Success Tips from Ted Behr
My friend Ted Behr went to a success workshop and came back with three great tips.
Read MoreCoping with Harsh Criticism
My friend and former student Kirstin Butler wrote a fantastic post on coping with traumatic rejection. I won’t go into a ton of detail about the feedback itself, because I know it was well-intentioned. But it also contained a few comments — I believe the exact phrase was “total rewrite situation” — that hit me…
Read More“Scope Creep” will Poison Your Projects!
“Scope creep is poisonous,” a client of mine recently said after finally finishing an academic paper he had been procrastinating on for more than three years. He had a full spaghetti snarl of reasons for not getting it done–and remember, our reasons for procrastinating are always valid–but after he worked through them and started to…
Read MoreSeth Godin’s Icarus Sessions A Great Idea – and Coming to Your Town
It’s so important that you be able to stand up and say, “This is who I am and this is what is important to me, and here’s why it is important.” If you don’t you remain ashamed and isolated, which feeds procrastination. Uber marketing guru Seth Godin knows all this and is organizing a global…
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