How to Stop Procrastinating Once and For All
"What I've found is that while everybody may procrastinate, not everybody is a procrastinator," APS fellow Joseph Ferrari, professor of psychology at DePaul University.
Some statistics
In 1978, 5% of people surveyed admitted to chronic procrastination. Today? 26%.
According to a Gura survey in 2008, 40% of people have experienced financial loss due to procrastination.
1 in 5 people procrastinates so badly that it may be jeopardizing their jobs, credit, relationships, and even their health.
In 2012, it was estimated that the cost per year for procrastination for businesses is $10,396 per employee.
Cost-benefit analysis
Make the benefits of whatever you need to do feel bigger and the costs of doing the action feel smaller to get you to move. The reward for doing a pestering task needs to feel larger than the immediate pain of tackling it.
Visualize how great it will be to get it done
How will it feel to get what you need to...
Bringing Happiness Back to Life - Danny Hadas
Danny Hadas is a # 1 bestselling author, entrepreneur, and advisor to the world’s most iconic brands. His work has impacted millions of people across 500+ companies worldwide, including Disney, BMW, and AT&T. As the founder of The Emovation Project, Danny teaches business leaders how to power their profits by empowering their people.
In this episode, Danny and Mark talk about being productive during a pandemic, structuring your days like day camp, and how to bring happiness back to life.
How to Learn Something New - Jordan Harry
Jordan Harry is a memory and speed reading coach who has given a TEDx talk that has been viewed by 1.6 million people and taught over 15,000 people from 147 countries speed reading and memory.
When he was 10, I had a speech impediment which left him struggling with speaking in public and reading.
He now reads seven times faster than the average reader (1,500 words per minute), the CEO at StudyFast, and an international public speaker.
His mission is to make speed reading and memory training accessible to all.
Featured on the BBC, TED, Virgin StartUp, LBC Radio, and Metro.
In this episode, Jordan and Mark talk about speed reading, the right way to learn something new, why forgetting is a good thing, habiting forming, and the myth of muscle memory.
1,000 Days In A Row
On August 29, 2017, I began my run everyday run streak. In this episode, I share the WHY along with some nerdy stats with you and my plans for the future.
You Want to Do A Lot (But STOP!)
Are you doing too much?
Are you trying to do too much in your business?
There's no shortage of social media websites you can be on. There's Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, Snapchat...just to name a handful.
But do you need to be on all of them?
The answer is no.
What do you need to do?
What do you want to do to serve, as Seth Godin says, your tribe?
Maybe you've been wanting to write a book.
And start a podcast.
And finally, start building up your YouTube channel.
And start doing Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn Live.
And start writing blog posts on a regular basis.
But wait, there's more!
You want to start writing on Medium.
And participating on Quora.
And improving your SEO.
And develop a course.
And creating a membership site.
Time out!
STOP!
You're doing too much.
The more stuff you do, the more likely you're not going to do anything well.
Everything I just...
Why You Should Document Your Life
In 2011, Bronnie Ware, an Australian nurse who spent several years working in palliative care, caring for patients in the last 12 weeks of their lives, wrote a book titled, The Top Five Regrets of the Dying: A Life Transformed by the Dearly Departing. (Full disclosure: I've not read this book yet.)
When's the last time you stopped long enough to think about the regrets you have?
Have you ever stopped to think about regrets...period? (You should.)
Here's the thing: days turn into weeks which turn into months which turn into years which result in a lifetime.
Regrets suck
There is nothing positive or encouraging about regrets.
But, sadly, because you don't take time to think about regrets, you're probably going to have a lot of regrets later in life.
Before I go on, let me define regret for you: "feel sad, repentant, or disappointed (over something that has happened or been done, especially a loss or missed opportunity)."
How to say no to regrets
There's a simple...
Negative Self-talk and Overcoming Fear - Michelle Kuei
Michelle Kuei is a certified transition life coach who helps negative self-talkers to discover inner strength and beauty by overcoming fear for judgments. Michelle is the author of the new memoir, Perfectly Normal: An Immigrant’s Story of Making it in America, as well as the inspirational illustrated e-book, “Miss Little Musical”. She is a board member of the United Nations Association of the USA Pasadena Chapter and a Clinical Pharmacist at USC’s Keck Medical Center. She is also a member of the National Speakers Association, Toastmasters International and the founding board member of World Without Borders.
In this episode, Michelle and Mark talk about negative self-talk, why normal is a lie, living in abundance, why you can't fail, and more!
My Morning Routine
A productive day doesn't just happen.
It happens when you're intentional about it.
And while I think the key to a great day starts with a solid morning routine - the subject of this post, I believe the key to a said morning routine starts the night before.
Let me share with you how I set myself up for a productive day.
Note: please don't overthink what you're about to read. Take it in, think about it, and then figure out how you can set it up to work for you.
It starts the night before
A good morning routine starts the night before with a solid bedtime routine.
For me, this means all screens are off at 9 pm: TV, smartphone, tablet, laptop, etc. Anything that I've not done can wait until morning. If it can't, well, that's my problem and I don't worry about it now.
A powerful signal I give my brain that it's time for sleep is to read a print book next to my bed. The only light I have on in my bedroom is a 40-watt, yellowish light on my nightstand....
Untethering Your Life, Later in Life - Cepee Tabibian
Cepee Tabibian is a social media strategist and community manager who works as a liaison between brands and people to capture attention. In 2015, at the age of 35 she "hit refresh" and left a comfortable life in Austin, Texas for the unknown in Madrid, Spain. That one decision led her on a path of rapid personal and professional growth.
Realizing there was a gap in the market for women "of a certain age" who wanted to radically change their life, she founded She Hit Refresh in 2017 to help other women like herself. She Hit Refresh is an online community for women age 30 and over who want to break free from routine and start a life of travel. The community has grown to over 5,000 members worldwide and has expanded to a blog, podcast, in-person workshops, and an annual retreat.
In this episode, Cepee and Mark talk about Cepee's why on moving to Madrid, Spain, mistakes people make when moving abroad, and when she realized she...
How I Use the Pomodoro Technique
Before I share how I use the Pomodoro technique, I don't want to assume that you know what it is so...
According to Wikipedia, "The Pomodoro Technique is a time management method developed by Francesco Cirillo in the late 1980s. The technique uses a timer to break down work into intervals, traditionally 25 minutes in length, separated by short breaks. Each interval is known as a pomodoro, from the Italian word for 'tomato', after the tomato-shaped kitchen timer that Cirillo used as a university student."
The key word in the above description is traditionally.
That's an important word for the sake of this blog post.
First, there are no Pomodoro police
You can use the traditional Pomodoro Technique of 25/5 which means you work - fully focused - for 25 minutes and then take a minute break.
However, if you create your own Pomodoro timing, you won't go to time management jail! There is no Pomodoro Technique police.
I've been telling anyone...