Category: A Matter of Time
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“How can I help?”
Or, “What would be most helpful?” If someone’s ever nice enough to ask you this, it’s generally a good idea to have a pointed, specific, answer to this question. It just takes a little bit of preparation before the meeting, or even a more intentional mindset during the meeting, to see how the other person…
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Write it down for someone else
Whenever you can, however you can, stored and published in some digital and searchable format for posterity.
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Parenthood and possibilities
A few days after we came home from the hospital, I sent a letter to a friend, including a photo of my son and some first impressions of fatherhood. He responded, simply, “Everything is possible again.” It was the perfect thing to write, because that was exactly how it felt. We could retell our stories…
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Foundation first
One philosophy or heuristic I have been drawn to recently is to prioritize foundational activities. Personal life: wash your face, work out, eat healthy and regularly, feed your cat, shower, do laundry, present yourself, journal, write, draw, etc. Do things that make you feel alive. This is actually the most important foundation. Professional life: keep…
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When happiness happens
You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life. Albert Camus HAPPINESS.—A butterfly, which when pursued, seems always just beyond your grasp, but if you sit down quietly may alight upon you. New Orleans Crescent
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Clear the calendar
On any given day, your brain could give you a burst of energy to do something you’ve been putting off; it might feel like a whim. Consider giving this more attention than you’d think. Clear an afternoon off for it if you can, and let the inspiration take you where it wants you to go.
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The 90% tax on your creative work
Mahershala Ali says: You really only actually act between action and cut. 10% of the time. The rest of it is prepping for [it]—the wardrobe, the costume elements of it, the building the psychology and getting ready for the piece itself. Actually getting to act is such a miniscule part of the experience that you…
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“I should have done this earlier”
Or, celebrate—because it’s great that you’re doing it now, and you’ve figured it out for the next time.
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Three things I learned about execution as an employee (that I didn’t as an entrepreneur)
1. There is always a surplus of work that needs to be done. As an entrepreneur, it’s easy to “deprioritize” this stuff and drop the ball, and not feel the effects until later. As an employee, that’s not possible, because your team will hold you accountable. You need to manage all of these things well;…
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Three things on spontaneity
Scheduling something makes it more likely to happen, while simultaneously taking the fun out of it. Selin A. Malkoc makes the case that it feels too forced. One solution is to plan less, and to get comfortable with the stigma of unplanned meet ups—which is currently characterized as “lazy and non-committal.” They’re also less ambiguous;…