Category: productivity

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Exercise motivation productivity

Exercise is the key to a Productive Day

Richard Branson is known for his unconventional leadership. An Inc.com article by Jeff Steen reveals his connection between exercise and productivity.

 

“The only reason I’m able to do all the things I do and to keep on top of a busy schedule without getting too stressed is because I stay fit.”

Richard Branson through a CNBC interview

It goes on to say that while exercise has many benefits, it also relieves stress and depression. I have to agree with the article. Exercise has been a part of my routine for twenty years. Between that and my spiritual practices, it has helped me stay active and productive through the good and challenging times. It has also helped me whenever I needed to get the creative juices going!

Our bodies were made to move. We don’t have to do marathons or Iron Man Competitions. You can start where you are. If you haven’t exercised for some time, a walk around the block is a good start.

Wherever you are, make exercise part of your daily routine. It has been a great benefit for me. And it can be for you as well.

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motivation productivity

Working Hard or Hardly Working

I used to believe that hard work was the only thing that makes a person or business prosper. While I believe it is still key, I have observed that hard work is only part of the formula.

Hard work can only get a person so far if they are not kind and empathetic towards coworkers and clients. A person can do superior work, but nobody wants to do business with them because they are a bear to be around. Our emotional intelligence, or EQ, is as important as our IQ.

Hard work doesn’t mean much if a person is working hard at the wrong things. Anyone can work hard at digging a hole, but is the hole good for anything? Does it have a purpose? Is the action in line with the company’s goals?

Hard, good work is essential. It is the fuel that powers creation. It creates value. But hard work without vital relationships and purposeful focus is like the Myth of Sisyphus. A person can roll that boulder up a hill, only to see it roll down and repeat the action.

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motivation productivity Running

Lessons From a Seventeen Mile Florida Run

August sunrise at Juno Beach, Florida
I took this photo when I was into the third mile of my run.

Seventeen miles wasn’t my goal. I was determined to get nineteen miles in. But after seventeen miles, there was a drawbridge between me and my goal. It looked like a mountain. I had been training in Ohio. But now I was in Florida. It was 10:00 AM and 91° Fahrenheit. My water bottles were nearly empty. I decided to call it off and get a ride.

Next month (September 2017), I plan to run The Air Force Marathon in Dayton, Ohio. It will be my first marathon and I have been training for the race. I was determined to keep to my schedule despite the change of locale. 

Three days later, I am thinking about what the run taught me.

Continue reading “Lessons From a Seventeen Mile Florida Run”
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Book Review creativity productivity

A Week of Pondering

This week, I have been on vacation. I have had the opportunity to catch up on some reading. One of the books I’ve loved this week is “Making Ideas Happen” by Scott Belsky.

Here are two of the points I’ve received from this book:

  1. To-do lists/action steps are critical to getting an idea off the ground. It helps keep the focus on an idea.
  2. Self-marketing and transparency are critical to making your idea known.

In the coming weeks, I’m going to consider how I need to make larger ideas happen. I love to create gag cartoons, but I need to go to the next level in order to give them life.

I love how this book has made me reconsider how to get creative ideas to the next level. I’d recommend this book to any creative professional.

Scott Belsky is the founder and CEO of the Behance Network. The site for this book is www.makingthingshappen.com.