We live in a hyperconnected, hyperactive world. Here are some recommendations to keep your focus: 1. Use Pomodoro. Default Pomodoro: 25 min focus, 5 min break. I like to do 18 min focus with 2 min breaks. (app hack: Focus To-Do) 2. Don't break your pomodoro by: a. Ignoring the message for 5-10 min until your pomodoro will end. b. Asking the person to wait 5-15 min because you want to finish something (no one usually minds) 3. When you do want to break your flow, write down where you are and what you wanted to do next, so that you don't have to spend 5-20 min remembering where you left off.

Don't feel like doing something? There may be a lot of reasons why you feel that way: - You're unsure about what you are supposed to do - You don't know exactly how to finish the task - You're afraid it may take a lot of time - etc. Analysing the motivations behind your feelings, might be useful, but in my experience it doesn't really help that much. If you just work, you'll see the negative feelings go away. So how can you take the plunge? Try this: - Log out of everything distracting: Facebook, Teams, Whatsapp, etc. - Set a Pomodoro for 7 minutes, break for 2 (app hack: Focus To Do) - Start focusing for 7 min, then gradually increase your focus time Remember: being able to focus is a skill. You'll get better as you practice.

'It's not what you say, it's HOW you say it!' Ever heard that from someone? Why does this matter so much? It's because body language and voice tone account for the overwhelming part of our message. So what makes us great communicators? 1. Being natural and positive 2. Speaking clearly and concisely

We were sitting in silence for the past 5 minutes. Our colleague did not yet join our call. We were depending on them to give us the OK for an important initiative we were working on for the past 4 months. It took a lot of work, courage, and patience. And here we were... nothing. Not sure if this has ever happened to you, but it sure is not fun! It's wasting time, energy, and also plummets the morale of everyone. In this article you'll find practical tools to: 1. Don't get upset 2. Clarify your objectives and create a common goal 3. Make it easy for people to show up/reschedule Let's dig in! 1. Check yourself before you wreck yourself! 🤕🤕🤕😆😆😆 Getting angry is never the answer unless... the question is: What is never the answer? So, check your emotional state: Are you angry? Are you frustrated? Do you feel disappointed? Do you feel let down? Start by writing down how you feel (on a piece of paper, or any writing software - Notepad, OneNote, Word, etc.). Spend 5-10 min writing everything that crosses your mind. Get into the flow of it. It's a bit of a cathartic exercise. It will get any negative emotion off your chest and you can start going into step 2. Understand that: 1. No one owes you anything. 2. People are not actively thinking of you (a few exceptions aside). They may be busy, lazy, or maybe even uncaring. At the end of the day: It does not matter. It's their burden. Let them carry it. Don't judge. You don't know what they're going through. 3. Someone can hurt you by putting your request at the bottom of their To-Do list. Even unintentionally. Being fuzzy, unspecific, and wanting to punish the other person will not score you any points. Even though they may be wrong, no one likes to be put under the microscope. You don't either. So move on. Solution: Get on top of their mind and their To-Do list. 2. When your purpose is clear, success is very near. 😶‍🌫️😶‍🌫️😶‍🌫️ Ask yourself the following questions: - What's in it for me? What am I getting out of this? What do I selfishly want? - What's in it for them? What are they getting out of this? What do they selfishly want? - What do I want for the relationship?

.. fear?😱😱😱😱😱 Yes and no. You're not doing what you're supposed to because: - you don't feel like it - you're not used to doing it - you listen to your internal critic more often than not - it feels uncomfortable - you're not allocating the time - you got discouraged - people around you are not supporting you - you don't have the energy - you don't have the mental bandwidth - other things always pop up and take your time - you desperately need a breather - you've depended on someone and they failed you - doing other things feels much better and they take away your motivation, energy, attention, and drive - you feel the world is much better off without you ... and the list goes on. Call to Action: Share reasons that I've missed in the comments below.😁😅😉 We all don't do what we're supposed to for multiple reasons. Are we condemned to suffer? Are we condemned to always give in to our weakness and suffer, feel guilty, and ashamed? (to get the 1-minute recipe on how to break the cycle and quickly start going, scroll to the end of the post) No, not exactly. We need to make it easy for ourselves to win. Life throws us curve balls all the time. But, if we just start doing 1 thing right that can make us feel good instead of sad, lonely or depressed. If we would just be consistent about that one single thing... we would soon see that it's possible... for us... to win. We will start sayin to ourselves <<I've done it and I at least have one good thing going for me>>. And that one thing will build into 2 things, 2 consistent habits. And 2 things will build into 3 things. 3 consistent habits. And those 3 into 4, and 4 into 5, and soon enough we might even be closer than we've thought to a good place. - How can we make it easy for ourselves to start? - Answer: Get 1 consistent habit going. Do it each day. Get 30 reps in, then add another, then another, then another. - What if I can't do it every day? The streak is not important. Building the habit is not important. Your goal is building your confidence. It's showing yourself that you can do it. That it's possible. And... count upwards. Always count upwards.