The M.A.P. Maker

Getting Things Done: What's the point?

Here's a question for those of you who are Getting Things Done fans. As you devour GTD books and create systems that allow you to squeeze more productivity per square minute than should be humanly possible, have you ever wondered, "What's the point?"

Don't get me wrong. I'm not criticizing taking a GTD approach. I could use an uber-sized chunk of that in my own life. I mean the question more literally. What is the point to it? Where are all your jam-packed days leading you? 

Today over on Half-a-dozen Monkeys, there is a post on the need to incorporate a long-term framework into your GTD efforts. 

The post got me thinking about all the clients I have worked with who have been masterful at getting things done, but ultimately realized that all the energy and effort they were putting into their highly productive days wasn’t actually taking them anyplace they really cared to go. 

If you think about GTD in terms of ROI, the payoff doesn’t just come from being able to tick a higher density of things off your to-do list. It also comes from the cumulative effect of day after day, after month, after year of doing those things. If it’s not taking you anywhere that feels meaningful and fulfilling, you’ll likely come up empty.

That's the case regardless of whether or not you are a GTD afficionado. Take a look back at last week. What did you do? What actions did you take? What items did you tick off your to-do list? Was any of it leading you in a direction you really care about? 

If the answer is no, I encourage you to spend some time exploring that long-term vision so you can tap into the cumulative potential of day after day spent taking action aimed in a direction that matters to you. Until you do, your career is at risk of amounting to little more than a series of well-executed steps taken for their own sake. 

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

What are you waiting for?

"Life is short. Don't wait." You've heard it a million times, probably so many times that it goes in one ear and slowly drifts out the other. But it's an important message. 

Sometimes, it takes the raw edge of reality to drive the point home. I heard that voice of reality today in a poetry slam reading by Gabrielle Bouliane, a woman who had been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer shortly before the event. 

Her voice is a raw, pissed off, emphatic, passionate, and inspiring. And she has a message for you in the video below that I hope you stop for a moment and really, truly hear. 

[Hat tip to David Zinger Employee Engagement for the heads up on the video.]

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

Get unstuck with a 7-day goal

Do you ever find yourself feeling stuck? You know you need to move forward, but somehow you've managed to sink your wheels into the mud and all momentum is lost. It can be a frustrating, draining experience.

In one of the herd of books I'm currently reading, The Power of Focus, I came across a great, simple idea to blast out of that stuckness. The authors described adventurer John Goddard's response when asked about overcoming roadblocks:

"When I get stuck, I restart myself by focusing on one goal I can finish in the next seven days - something simple. I don't think about anything else - that usually starts my momentum again."

I love that idea. For me, part of the challenge with getting bogged down is the inertia it creates. Stuck energy feeds stuck energy, and the cycle goes on ad nauseum.

Part of that bogged down inertia comes when my focus is too diffuse. Having something clearly defined to sink my teeth into helps me start taking action. With a 7-day goal, not only is it clearly defined, but there's a payoff within sight. The energy of both the progress and the payoff combines to break free of the self-perpetuating stuckness.

At the same time, giving it a time frame of seven days gives you enough time to engage in something substantial, something bigger than a box to tick on your to-do list. The sense of accomplishment there also feeds the forward momentum.

Try this: Do a brain dump of possible 7-day goals. What would you be able to accomplish in seven days that would energize you? What could you sink your teeth into that would start to energize you and get you moving? Pick one and start taking action. Let me know how it goes.

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

How to be a life sculptor

I often talk about the power of choice to create the life we want (see my posts on the power of the crossroads of possibility and creating your dreams one choice at a time). One of the ways I think of it is using choice as a tool to sculpt your life.

As a sculptor, you have two options. First, you can start with a vision of what you want to create and start removing what doesn't fit. That might be a toxic job, limiting habits, people who drag you down - whatever it is that is standing between you and your ultimate vision. Your efforts are aimed at a specific result.

You can use choice to remove what doesn't belong and reinforce what does. The first step to doing that is to be consciously aware of what is standing in the way and what reinforces your vision. Then you can consciously apply choice as a sculpting tool. For example, you might make a short list of ways that you get in your own way and commit to first noticing them, then to making different choices.

With the second option, you can follow the flow and discover where it takes you. As Michelangelo said, "The idea is there, locked inside, and all you have to do is remove the excess stone." You notice what doesn't belong and remove it, watch for what does belong, and let a life aligned with what energizes and inspires you emerge. 

The beauty of this is that we don't always know what's right for us until we find it. If you aim to create a sculpture based on a flawed and incomplete perspective of what you really want, the end result is bound to be just that, flawed and incomplete. Allowing yourself to discover what's locked inside the stone frees you to learn and grow. You can see each choice you are confronted with as an opportunity to move closer to the heart of it all.

Neither of these approaches are superior to the other. In fact, they're complementary. The first option gives you focus and direction. It gives you a goal to aim your efforts toward. But by itself, it risks being rigid, unable to adapt to hidden features within the stone.

The second option allows you to let go and flow naturally towards your best life. But by itself it runs the risk of meandering aimlessly, dabbling a little bit here and experimenting a little bit there. The focus and direction of the first approach helps channel the energy towards results. 

The two approaches can be used simultaneously, or you can tap into them one at a time. For example, you might let the sculpting flow naturally to help you get out of a rut created by basing your career decision on external expectations, or societal definitions of "success." Once you start to get clarity about what feels right, you can use the focused approach to give it form and substance. That alternating process is likely to continue throughout your life.

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

New Year's Resolution alternative: 52 New Week's Resolutions

'Tis the season for well-intentioned resolutions that ultimately go splat. This year, instead of making a flurry of New Year's Resolutions that never see the light of February, try something different. Resolve to make 52 New Week's Resolutions.

A new week's resolution is just what it sounds like. At the beginning of the week, you commit to something for the duration of the entire seven days. Maybe getting some kind of exercise each day, or reading a self-development book for half an hour each day, or eating your vegetables.

At the end of each week, you review how you did on staying true to your commitment. If you succeeded, celebrate. Acknowledge that success. Then make another resolution for the next week.

During the course of those 52 weeks, you might have the same resolution for several successive weeks. For example, if you are working on developing a new habit, it might be helpful to make that habit the focus of your resolutions for at least four weeks (since they say it takes 28 days to develop a new habit that sticks).

You can use resolutions to build on previous weeks' resolutions, or you might use them to give yourself a taste of something new. For example, you might commit to refraining from complaining for an entire week. It's a great small-scale way to explore something without having the daunting weight of forever-n-ever. You can see what it's all about, and decide what about it - if anything - you want to carry forward.

Why bother with new week's resolutions? Here are a few reasons.

You have more opportunities for success

When you make a New Year's Resolution, you have one chance for success, and 365 opportunities for your resolution to join the vast majority of resolutions on the failure pile. But with a New Week's Resolution approach, you have 52 chances for success.

Success builds on success. The more you succeed, the more confident you feel that you can continue to succeed.

Odds are good that you won't hit the mark all 52 times, but achieving your resolution most weeks will still have a cumulatively positive impact. Let's say you fail to keep your new week's resolution six times. You still have 46 weeks worth of success. Not too shabby!

You have frequent opportunities to refocus

When you're in it for the long haul, it's easy to veer off course. Setting a new resolution each week gives you the opportunity to check in and ask, "How's this going?" You only have a week's worth of veering off course before you check in and course correct if necessary, rather than potentially many months' worth.

You are more aligned with the reality of change

As I've said many times before here, real, substantive change doesn't typically happen with the flip of a switch. It happens gradually over time. We take a step, get a result, learn from that result and then put that learning to use as we continue forward. It's an iterative process.

Setting yourself new week's resolutions lines up with that idea. It lets you keep taking steps towards change, building on them as you go, rather than decreeing that a change has taken place and getting frustrated when you discover that, no, actually it hasn't.

Renewed commitment built into the system

Let's face it. Most of us have woefully short attention spans. Sure the resolution seems compelling on January 1st, but what about August 1st? By then it's likely to be ancient history. Making weekly resolutions keeps your focus fresh and current. And the best part is, you don't have to wait till next year to commit to positive change again. It's a continual part of your life.

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

Say yes until it's REALLY time to say no

One of the things I've noticed over my years in my work is the amount of energy people invest in saying no. The form varies (No, I can't. No, that's not realistic. No, that's not likely. No, they'll never want to.), but at the heart of it all lies one central theme - a negative assessment of potential and possibility.

No as a default response

I'm not against saying no. Clearly, it has its place. But most people jump to it far too soon. Have you ever had a doctor test your reflexes by tapping your knee with a little rubber mallet, and your leg just jerks up of its own accord? For most people, saying no is a little like that. It's a default, reflex response.

I've seen that default no ultimately turn to yes far too many times to set much stock in its inherent validity. But when you accept it as the final answer, you cheat yourself of the potential and possibility that yes might bring with it. And odds are good you've done it without even realizing it. 

Let the possibility exist

Let's say there's something you really want to do, but your knee-jerk reaction is to shut down the idea. Make it something simple, like, "I want to take a glass-blowing class." Your default no might feel very reasonable. Something like, "I don't have enough time" or "it's too expensive."

But if you resist the urge to say no immediately, you can take stock of the things getting in your way. Let's say one of the big things is that it feels too expensive. One thing you might do in that case is sit down and make an assessment of where your money is going. You might realize that you can cut out some other expenses to make room for the class. Or you might figure out how much money you can regularly set aside and make a goal to start the class in a certain number of months.

Note that all I'm talking about here is not saying no. You don't have to say yes to taking action. You simply need to say yes to allowing the possibility to exist. When you allow a possibility to exist, you keep the door open to exploring ways to make it happen. When you say no prematurely, you slam that door shut.

Try making a habit of saying yes to allowing possibility to exist. Here are some steps to help you make it a habit.

Notice: Pay attention to when you default to saying no.

Step back from no: Just for the moment, step back from saying a decisive no.

Examine the reasons: Take a look at why you are saying no. Make a list.

Explore ways to make it yes: For each of those reasons you're saying no, explore ways you might make it yes. Depending on what it is you're looking at, that could be as simple as a quick brainstorm of ideas or as deeply involved as researching it, getting ideas from other people, etc. You might also take a close look at whether your reasons for saying no are really valid, or whether they are based on faulty assumptions.

Say yes or no to taking action: Finally, make a decision on whether or not to take action. At this point, you're prepared to make that choice based on a deep insight and understanding, rather than a knee-jerk reaction. 

You can use this approach for small things like the glass-blowing class I mentioned here, as well as big things, like a potential career path. You have nothing to lose by saying yes until it really is time to say no (or yes!). There is only upside.

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

Aim for your dream: Out of reach doesn't mean impossible

There is nothing like a dream to create the future. Utopia today, flesh and blood tomorrow.

~ Victor Hugo

If you want to ensure that your life is dull, flat and uninspiring, just repeat this little mantra over and over: "My dreams are out of reach. My dreams are impossible."

A silly idea, you might think. Nobody would consciously try to deflate the potential of their dreams like that. And yet that is precisely what so many people do unconsciously. They look at their dreams and assess them as impossible, or unrealistic, or pie-in-the-sky. And they do it over and over again.

Imagine a world where everyone took that approach. Nothing new would happen. No ideas would ever be developed. Life would be flavorless and dull. We would all be stuck in an endless grey loop of what has always been. 

Here's the thing. Dreams are inherently out of reach. That's where they belong! If they weren't, we would simply call them the next logical step. And yet, the fact that they aren't readily accessible is often used as irrefutable proof that they're impossible.

That's flawed logic. There's a big difference between out of reach and impossible. Unfortunately, many people see them as the exact same thing.That's no surprise, really, since often the only difference between out of reach and impossible is what happens in the space between our ears. 

What is impossible today is impossible tomorrow. It doesn't change. But what is out of reach today might be a little closer to within reach tomorrow, and even closer next month. Think of a ship sailing toward the horizon. How much farther can it see once it reaches the original horizon? What is within reach is always expanding.

Dreams expand your potential. They give you something to grow into. They give you a sense of direction that matters. They also take time, and effort, and persistence.

The question to ask about your dreams isn't, "Can I easily achieve it?" It's, "Can I take a step in that direction?" And then, "Can I take another one?"

Achieving the big dream is almost less important than what happens when you commit to moving towards it. Committing to that direction and taking those steps opens doors, creates connections, and yields results you would never have imagined when you were sitting in the status quo. 

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

Creativity: The mule & the muse

There's a common perception that creativity is always a natural flow. That when we catch the creative wave, all time disappears and our muse takes over. And for some people that's true. I once met a woman who said, "When I write, it's like reading a book. I have to keep writing and writing because I want to see how it's going to turn out."

I wish that were true for me. Oh sure, occasionally the words just fly out of my brain and I step back at the end of the ride and go, "Whoa! Dude!" But for the most part it takes discipline and focus and no small amount of teeth-gritting to make it all the way to the end of a page. 

So I related to Elizabeth Gilbert (author of Eat, Pray, Love) as she explained her creative process in this TED Talk. She said, "I'm a mule. The way I have to work is I have to get up at the same time every day and sweat and labor and barrel through it really awkwardly."

She also talked about how she had adopted the ancient Greek and Roman view of creativity as divine spirit that visits us rather than something coming from within us. The Greeks called it a daemon. The Romans called it a genius. I think of it as a muse.

It occurred to me that when she shows up and does the mulish work, it creates the space for that daemon/genius/muse to show up and do its work. Without her mulishness, that creative spirit would be unemployed.

The more I think about it, the more sense it makes to just show up and do the mulish work so that that my muse can have a channel to flow through. The muse may not always be flowing, but if I don't create that channel, it never has a chance to show up. And if that happens, both I and the world lose out on something important.

This idea doesn't apply just to writing, or even just to any of the creative arts. It applies any time you show up and reach for a dream, a vision that is outside the mundane realm of everyday expectations.

How about you? What mulish work do you need to do so that your muse can show up?

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

Success is a numbers game

Do you ever get so caught up in trying to create the perfect outcome that you end up not really moving forward?

When I show people my travel photography, they often make some comment about how much better my pictures are than their vacation photos. What they don't see is the fact that the pictures they're looking at only represent a fraction of the total number of pictures I took.

Going through my shots when I got back from a trip, I'm often struck by how completely underwhelming many of the pictures are. Sometimes it's because what I was trying to capture just didn't quite work. Other times it's because I'm exploring various facets of the same subject, looking for the most interesting and visually appealing approach.

So while I am pleased with the pictures that I end up showing to people, many of the pictures I take end up "on the cutting room floor," so to speak.

When it comes to photography, National Geographic has always been the gold standard in my mind. A few years ago I went to a presentation by a National Geographic photographer, and one of the things that stuck in my mind was the sheer volume of pictures he took for a story - 400 rolls of film (14,400 pictures).

See a trend here? If you're getting caught up in trying achieve the perfect result, you're probably limiting what you can realistically achieve. The more things you try and the more attempts you make, a) the more chances you have to learn and improve and, b) the more chances you are creating to align your luck and skill with opportunity.

Is there anywhere in your life where you're limiting yourself by not letting yourself be imperfect? Is there anywhere you need to take a high volume approach? What could that look like?

--

Need simple steps to re-energize your career?
Get started with 101 Ways to Get Wild About Work!

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

Crossroads: How to achieve your dreams one choice at a time

Lately I've been working on some aspects of my life that haven't been working for me. Habits, ways of thinking, etc. that simply haven't been leading me in the direction I want to go.

I haven't been making big sweeping changes. I've been working on creating a better path one choice at a time. As so often happens, I started thinking of an analogy for what I've been doing.

It occurred to me that every time I was confronted with the choice of whether to pursue the old mode that wasn't taking me where I want to go, or the new mode, I was in essence at a crossroads. And depending on the choice I made, I was taking a step toward the life I want or a step away from it.

After I started thinking about that, it wasn't long before I hit the whiteboard to sketch out a visual. I scribbled something like this:

For me, it was helpful to see a visual of the idea. Every point along the way has the potential to lead me toward what I want (the green) or away from it (the brown). But not only that, the visual reinforced the notion that, even if I slip, movement towards where I want to go is only one choice away. In fact, every crossroad is the potential beginning for an endless series of positive choices.

It's unrealistic to think that every step and every choice is going to lead you in the right direction. But keeping this crossroads concept in mind can make it easier to consciously take a path that leads to the life you want. You end up with something a little like this.

 The beauty of this approach is that it really focuses your attention on the question of, "What choice am I making right now? Which direction am I choosing right now?"And it's the cumulative effect of those individual choices that takes you where you want to go.

You can apply this at any level, from the macro (would taking this job lead me in a direction I really want to go?) to the micro (e.g., creating a new habit). 

Where are the crossroads in your life? What choices are you making?

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst