nlightened.me

It is the start of a new year. It is also the beginning of myriad resolutions. I have been a victim of New Year Resolutions. There were synonymous with goal setting and never worked for me. The reason was I emphasised a lot on solutions without enough reflections. As a result, the goals were disconnected with past experiences, devoid of conviction and lacked deep commitment. There was passion, but less purpose. There was huge willpower, but little why-power. So a few years ago, I re-articulated resolutions as a Reflections and Evolution exercise. This changed the equation profoundly. I spent 80% of my time reflecting on what habits and practices are benefiting me and what I need to do more of. The reflections then led to convictions and practices that built on benefits and deficits. The focus shifted from fixed solutions to continuous growth and evolution. Goals were relegated to guardrails, to measure progress rather than to deliver an ambitious target.   

So here are the 5 Habits & Practices that helped me most in 2018.

1. Connecting with Self

Meditation has been the single biggest contributor to my personal balance. Meditation is simply listening to your thoughts by giving yourself the best appointment everyday. There are many forms of meditation ranging from apps like Headspace to courses like Transcendental Meditation. The technique you use matters much lesser, the act of meditating itself is transformative. It will reconnect you to reality and anchor your core. If there is only one new thing you can do this year, try meditation. Start by sitting silently for 5 minutes and observe your thoughts.

2. Conquering the Morning

We all have a period during the day where we have the highest energy and productivity. For most people, including me, this tends to be the morning although it need not be the same for all. We need to preserve and make the best use of this time. This is where we do what matters most to us. For those familiar with cricket, this period is akin to the Power-play where there are restrictions on fielders (or distractions in life) and therefore teams batting can capitalise to get ahead. I have a separate post on what my morning routine is. Use your morning (or highest productivity period) to get ahead on your plan. It is a great feeling to start your day accomplishing what matters most to you everyday.

3. Practicing Deep Work and Mono-tasking

As our work gets more challenging, the distractions are getting more pervasive. While we work to skill, re-skill and learn new topics, the beeps and buzzes on our smart phones, smart watches, smart bands and smart assistants keep demanding attention. This is a double whammy. No wonder, attention is the most precious resource today. I channel my attention via Deep Work and Mono-tasking. This simply means focussing on one important topic at a time and moving to the next only when the first is completed. I use the Pomodoro technique, wherein you set a timer for 45 minutes, focus on the task ahead and eliminate all distractions. Imagine a Caveman with a notebook (smart or good old-fashioned), stop watch and nothing else. You will accomplish way more in those 45 minutes of mono-tasking than after 3 hours of multi-tasking. There is plenty of science to support this too.    

4. Disconnecting

With deep work comes the need to disconnect. Once you learn to use a higher proportion of your cognitive capabilities via deep work, disconnecting will help you unlock the next level of performance. If deep work is akin to being completely immersed under the waters, disconnecting means letting your mind wander amongst the forests with no path in mind. There are many ways to disconnect. My favourite techniques are short walks (ideally in the open), listening to pleasant music, savouring coffee or reading enjoyable prose or poem. Keep the breaks short and pure, ideally 10 minutes but experiment with what works for you.    

5. Daily Discipline

John Maxwell said “Motivation gets you going but Discipline keeps you growing”. Doing all of the above requires discipline. It requires waking up at 5 AM (or whenever your morning starts), it requires putting notifications off, it requires starting the 45 minute timer and putting your head down to work, it requires saying no to the unscheduled chat or coffee, it requires not reaching out to check the latest e-mail or WhatsApp message. This is where building purpose & joy helps. Instead of exercising only your will-power, try to exercise your Why-Power too. Remember Why you are doing this, how you will feel after having accomplished what you set out to do and build rewards if that helps. For example, I love coffee and I only take my first coffee break at work after the first session of deep work is accomplished. This gets me started on a deep work session and rewards me with a coffee break to disconnect. 

So here are the 5 reflections of what worked well and helped me grow in 2018. In my next post, I will share the 3 Powers that I need to develop in order to continue growing. Reflect on what are the habits and practices that have helped you most over the past year?