Chamber š° of Tech Secrets #34
Super tools āļø
The Chamber š° of Tech Secrets is open.
Super Tools
āSuper toolsā. Super! š
What are super tools? What I mean are tools (or practices) that can be force multipliers in your self-development, both professionally and personally. Do such things exist, what are they, and where can you find them?
My (current) list of super tools:
Audio Books and Podcasts: Audio books are incredible and have become one of the primary ways I āreadā. There is no substitute for real paper, but audio is close behind. The secret is in time maximization. You can listen to audio books while you drive, while go for a walk / run, or while doing chores like scooping 50 million leaves out of your pool. The same ideas hold true for Podcasts. What type of Audio books and podcasts qualify? Almost anything, so long as it stimulates your thinking and creativity, enhances your knowledge of a useful subject, expands your vocabulary, adds to your library of useful stories, and (most importantly) leaves you in a state of increased alignment to your goals | vision | values.
Physical Activity: I have a midday break for a noon CrossFit class almost every day (unless going to the office). While this has lots of benefits in alignment with my long-term goals around health and readiness for adventure, it also has proven to be a super tool in its ability to break my day into two shorter parts and create more afternoon energy. I highly recommend a midday activity.
Walks or Runs: Similarly, walks are a super tool. Walks are great for phone calls where you donāt have to be on video, for listening to audio books or podcasts, or for leaving the technology behind and simply thinking about a topic (or let your mind wander and see where it takes you). I have found that running without my phone is frustrating because I end up with so many ideas that I want to write down that I canāt keep them all in my head and lose some.
Silence and Boredom: In that regard, silence and the ensuing boredom are incredible tools that few take advantage of in our noisy world. In the book Comfort Crisis, Michael Easter talks about how boredom is a key element of unlocking creative problem solving. It is far too easy to occupy our mind with stuff and far too difficult to allow our minds to wander. Leave the phone, audio books, and podcasts at home sometime and go for a walk or run. The number
Deleting social media apps: āIf you arenāt paying for the product, you are the productā. This is true. I think most of us hear that statement and think, thatās fineā¦ the data they are monetizing isnāt that important anyway and I am getting something I like āfor freeā, so I am fine with it. I donāt click on the ads anyway. I have thought that many times myself. Recently I have been thinking about a similar twist on this statement. āIf you arenāt paying for the product, your attention is the productā. Now I have a conflict with one of my principles, which is that I own my attention. Owning your attention is a super tool.
Sleep: Sleeping 3, 4, 6 hours a night is not ācoolā and is nothing to brag about. All the research says that we need 7-9 hours of sleep to operate at our best. Doing anything that helps you operate at your best is a super tool. If you are tired all day you wonāt have your best thoughts, do your best work, or build your best possible relationships. So sleep. **For those with little kiddos, just keep doing the best you can. š Good luck!
Journaling: I write something down every day. Sometimes its thoughts and observations. A lot of times itās just a list of things to focus on today, whether big or small. At the top of my journal, which is back into google docs, is my list of monthly goals. It stares me in the face every morning. When something is done, it gets highlighted green. If itās at risk, yellow. This motivates me to look at the non-green goals and make sure I have a plan for them. When I see my goal for trail running + weighted box step-ups to help me prep for a big trail race in the spring or the item to plan the details for my wifeās birthday, I am reminded to go to my calendar and find a time for those things, or to send texts to people to coordinate. Journaling, and having goals for that matter, is a super tool.
Writing / Speaking: Writing and speaking force you to hone your opinions and thoughts and then have the courage to stand behind them. You will be wrong, and thatās entirely okay.
Connecting with Peers: Being connected with others that are solving similar problems, in life or work, is a super tool. Connections lead to more connections. They also lead to opportunities: to learn, to partner, to share.
What are your super tools? Reply here or comment wherever you found this. I want to know so I can add to my own toolbox.
Have a great week and thanks for reading!
I think some of us have been conditioned to sleep-shame ourselves, it is a good reminder that 7+hrs is a great thing, when possible.
This is a sub-category to "Connecting with Peers and Speaking"... Debating with trusted people who sit on the other side of a table on a topic. A trusted sounding board, whether truly on the other side or just playing the devil's advocate to help you explore thoughts deeper, is a super tool. One of my best friends really is the most opposite in thought to me, and the banter is incredible, and incredibly helpful. Owning a thought, with the ability and desire to grow and have your thoughts evolve as you grow is one of the greatest joys of being human, in my opinion.
Article #34! Way to go BC!
Writing / Speaking: Writing and speaking force you to hone your opinions and thoughts and then have the courage to stand behind them.
Best said by Admiral Rickover.
https://govleaders.org/rickover.htm
important issues should be presented in writing. Nothing so sharpens the thought process as writing down oneās arguments. Weaknesses overlooked in oral discussion become painfully obvious on the written page.
When important decisions are not documented, one becomes dependent on individual memory, which is quickly lost as people leave or move to other jobs. In my work, it is important to be able to go back a number of years to determine the facts that were considered in arriving at a decision. This makes it easier to resolve new problems by putting them into proper perspective. It also minimizes the risk of repeating past mistakes. Moreover if important communications and actions are not documented clearly, one can never be sure they were understood or even executed.