14 Down, 14 To Go

So If You’re Playing Along…

...we are halfway there. Fourteen minutes invested in this intentional living experiment. How is your experiment going so far? Mine is going great! By the way, if you’re not playing along, you’re still welcome to join in. It’s not too late. Consider this your nudge.

Yes, I Know You Know

I know you know how to live intentionally. I know you know what you’re working on in your life. I know you know how to build good habits. I know you know that showing up each day is the hardest part. And I know you know you don’t need me chiming in, but here’s the thing. We all need some nudges of encouragement. Of course, I know you already know that as well. But it’s true. So here’s the nudge. You know?

Nudge, Nudge

Go ahead. Take a minute right now. In fact, hold on just a minute…

...okay, I’m back. I literally just left this document for a minute, worked on my project and came back. In fact, my minute ended up being ten minutes. And I actually had a couple of really good ideas. I made a few notes, made some tiny changes, and created a sense of closure. It feels good to make progress even if it’s just a little.

Get Going, Get Focused, Get Out

There you go. The three-part secret to getting things done. Just six words. Simply Get Going (see Eat That Frog by Brian Tracy), then Get Focused (see Deep Work by Cal Newport), and then Get Out (See “Attention Residue” by Sophie Leroy). Two books and a research article that give us the secret to truly practice getting things done. Those summaries could be a little longer, but for right now, we're just keeping it simple.

The Simple Practice of Starting and Stopping

Getting to the starting line is often the hardest part. After you get to the starting line, focusing is the hardest part. Then after you get going, stopping is the hardest part. Three things that need daily attention, intention, and practice. Keep it simple. Read the books and research article referenced above if you want, but this is the super simple version. This is the nudge to get going. So get going.

In Only One Minute?

Yes. Remember that this is only an experiment. Just show up every day. Do that twenty-eight times and you can start building a habit of showing up. Then just focus for a minute. Do that twenty-eight times and you can start building the habit of focusing. Then create some cognitive closure and stop (again, see Sophie). Do that twenty-eight times and you can start building the habit of creating closure and stopping. Get Going. Get Focused. Get Out. Start, or continue, your experiment today. I know you know this works, but I’m nudging you anyway.

That’s It!

If you started two weeks ago, you’re fourteen minutes into this experiment. Halfway there. I’m playing along, and my project is coming along well. Let’s see what we can do in our next fourteen minutes. Play along. Keep it simple. Get going. Nudge, nudge.

Enjoy the experiment.

Enjoy the day.