Five Success Secrets

Don’t Half-Ass Anything; Whole-Ass the Right Things. “If you service low-impact activities, you’re taking away time you could be spending on higher-impact activities,” says bestselling author and podcast guest Cal Newport. “It’s a zero-sum game.” You have time for anything; you don’t have time for everything. Every hour you spend on X is an hour you’re not spending on Y. What matters most?

Work with Your Nature, Not Against It. Find ways to work with your nature rather than constantly battling against it.

 Achieve Being Through Doing. The best cure for writer’s block is to start writing. The best cure for not wanting to exercise is to start moving. You don’t need to feel like doing something before you do it. Act first, and the feeling will follow.

When You’re Not at Work, Don’t Be at Work. Work isn’t everything. When you’re not at work, don’t constantly think and talk about work. You’re not there, so don’t be there. This is the art of being present.

Say "Yes and..." more often. The most important rule in improv comedy is to “yes, and” the situation. If another actor says, “My brother is flying to Moscow,” you can’t reply, “You don’t have a brother.” That negates the storyline. You have to accept the premise and say something like, “Did he accept that job offer from the Kremlin?” This keeps the story moving. Just like in improv, life gets easier when you take a “yes, and” attitude toward whatever comes your way.

--Adapted from an article written by Paula Pant

Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World