One Simple Trick to Defeat Procrastination Once and For All
How
often do you hear someone say the following? – “I should be doing X, Y,
and Z, but I’ll probably wait until the last minute to do it.”
I
used to be a self-proclaimed procrastinator. You know the type; the
ones who claim they work well under pressure. But the reality is that if
a person combines that sense of urgency, and learns to induce it at
will, with additional time then you’ll have the extra hours to edit,
revise, and improve your work if you see the potential for it to be even
better.
The other issue is that many people need to be told what
to do. They end up working for someone else their entire careers
because they need someone else telling them what to do. The choice is
pretty clear: You can either work to make your dreams come true or you
can be hired to build someone else’s for them.
This is because
people know what needs to be done, but when they’re fatigued from
obligations, they’re significantly less likely to have the energy or
desire to create new tasks for themselves. This is where your plan of action comes into play. Writing your goals and to-do lists every day will change your life.
1) Write your long term goals and dreams down
Don’t
be afraid to dream big – there’s something to putting that energy out
there – the world has a way of rewarding the ones who dream big. It’s
okay for your dreams to be improbable, as long as they aren’t
impossible. In fact, if you don’t have any improbable dreams you’re not
truly living.
2) Write down your short-term goals
Your
short-term goals can be separate, but are often stepping stones to help
reach the long-term goals. Give yourself some tasks you know you can
accomplish in the present so you can track your progress and feel a
sense of accomplishment as you try to catch your big break.
Wednesday, February 24, 2016
The Pros and Cons of the No Regrets Mentality
Our
generation, and youth culture in general is fond of saying anything
that justifies short-term thinking. You only live once, and no regrets
ties in directly to what we as millennials are conditioned to crave –
instant gratification.
The pursuit of happiness in the here and now is a
good thing, so long as you don’t mortgage greater happiness later on.
However, youth typically means that we lack the experience that would
help us judge what’s in store down the road. I’m sure some people can
say they have no regrets and mean it, but for the vast majority of
people it’s a way to avoid confronting the past.
The pros of this mentality are that it’s fun to act without weighing
the consequences because it can allow you to be fully in the moment. It
also leads to snap decisions, which is advantageous in certain
situations, but the negatives of this approach far outweigh the
positives.
1. Lacking humility
Thinking in
this way exhibits hubris because it displays an unwillingness to learn
from the past. It’s okay to make mistakes, and it’s also okay to call
them mistakes. This doesn’t mean you should carry emotional baggage but
think through what you’d do differently in the future.
2. Practiced apathy
The
no regrets mentality is a method of training yourself not to care. The
peace of mind that comes in the short term sets you up to live with the
results no matter the consequence.
3. Getting caught up in the moment
You’re
more susceptible to the behaviors of others once you’ve checked into
YOLO mode. Sheeple have no regrets because they don’t analyze what’s
going on.
Why You Don’t Need to Be Qualified
In this day in age we’ve been afforded extremely diverse opportunities in terms of not only employment, but ways to make money.
With
that said, often to be employed you have to have experience, but then
to gain experience you need to be employed. It’s a catch-22 that puts
new entrants of the workforce, particularly millennials, in job limbo.
However, as millennials there are some things we can do to counter this dilemma.
1. Give potential employers the proof of concept
When
seeking a job you are selling yourself – you are your brand, your
product, and your employer is considering whether or not to invest the
time and resources to train you. Instead of simply waiting to be
taught, go ahead and do whatever it is you’re being considered for. If
you want to go into marketing use social media to promote and sell
something. If you want to write then begin blogging. Whatever you see
yourself doing start doing it now, so you have proof and effort to show
employees.
2. Talk your way into the job
Going
back to selling yourself, what you lack in experience is possible to
make up for with confidence that you can do the job and are worth the
investment. I’d argue that even if you aren’t sure you can by going for
it you’re going to be forced to grow, and learn – don’t be afraid of
failure, just do the best you can to reward your employer for giving you
a chance.
3. Network, network, network
It
really isn’t what you know; it’s who you know. There’s always a more
qualified candidate, but to a certain extent networking makes you a
known commodity, and the more trusted brand.
Saturday, February 20, 2016
The Great Myth of Creativity
Many people make the
mistake of explaining why they can’t sing, write, dance, draw, or paint.
“I’m not creative,” they’ll say as if creativity is purely genetic, but
what that perception reveals is the underlying assumption that art is
not work. To say, “I’m not creative” is equivalent to someone saying,
“I’m not good at math.” You might not have an aptitude for it, but
creativity like math is about finding hidden patterns. Even chaos has
order within it. To see these patterns requires practice. Sure, not
everyone will be a prodigy, and people certainly have different talents,
but don’t buy into the stigma that creativity is solely in your blood
or something you’re born with. By thinking of art or anything as a
skill as opposed to a talent you give yourself a chance to grow and
improve. Creativity is a skill, requiring hard work and persistence.
The Best Social Exercise You’re Afraid to Do
As human
beings, we hate projections it’s no fun and it hurts, but it’s also a
guaranteed part of putting yourself out there. Whether it’s for a job, a
relationship, or anything else you have to learn to love rejection (or
convince yourself you do) in order to be persistent enough to get what
you want. In light of that, I challenge you every time you go to a
new place to talk to strangers. In a new place, where you don’t know a
soul there’s nothing to lose – if you have an awkward encounter all
you’ve lost at worst is a bit of pride. But traveling is the time to be
whatever you want to be – try out different personas – this doesn’t have
to be a front. People evolve, but sometimes the old setting makes it
hard to be the new you that you’ve known was in there all along. Ask
questions, gather stories, and broaden your own perspective. If you do
this social exercise you’ll realize you’ve got nothing to lose, and
everything to gain by reaching out.
Being a Real Friend in the Virtual Age
A commonly held
view is that a friendship is not real if it rarely or never crosses the
boundaries of the digital realm. The stigma regarding virtual
communication, that there is no intimacy online or if it’s not the face
to face is bogus. The dilemma is not whether communication is in person.
What still counts is quality.
1) Don’t try so hard to be interesting, be interested
Ask
questions and don’t be afraid to be expressive. If it’s online or over
text they can’t see your face to know you’re happy to hear from them…so
say it. If you miss them, say that. If you care about them take the time
to stay current about what’s going on in their life.
2) Call, Facetime, Skype
It’s
often inevitable that certain friendships will be strained by distance.
Some people require a sense of realness and can only get that from more
intimate forms of communication. If they’re worth it to you then don’t
look at it as a reflection of weakness in the friendship, but rather, a
need of theirs – a meaningful gesture. If you can’t meet in person,
Facetime, Skype, and calling are the next best thing. Millennials tend
to avoid phone calls in favor of texting, but sometimes you need to at
least try to connect in a more intimate way when distance prevents
physically meeting up.
3) Make time
If
you’re close enough to see your friends, do it. Make time to grab a
drink. The best way to be a real friend in the virtual age is to make
the effort to connect outside of the digital realm. This may be common
sense, but I’ve seen friends drift apart because neither makes the
effort to do this.
3 Reasons Why You Need to Share Your Dreams
Good people still exist
Believe
it or not people want to help. Don’t go into any situation expecting or
demanding help, but you’ll be surprised by people’s generosity if
you’re open to it.
Talk about what you’re working on
When
someone asks what you do, tell them what you want to do. However, only
say it if you’re actually working on something otherwise it’s just talk.
If you want to act or you sing then there’s no need to say you bag
groceries. A window of opportunity is small enough, and you never have a
chance to break onto any scene when you’re hiding your passion.
People want to know you
When
you’re already engaged in a conversation with someone and they ask
about you, it’s because they want to know the real you. The fact that
you’re currently bagging groceries has nothing to do with you. It
reveals nothing about what excites you, so it certainly won’t engage
anyone else. When you say you write songs they learn more about what
makes you tick and you’ll give them the chance to open up and
reciprocate, helping to potentially form a more genuine connection.
Getting Out of Your Parent’s House
1) Good Habits Don’t
treat your parent’s house like a hotel, expecting maid service. Be your
own housekeeper and theirs – this will get you in the habit of keeping
your life and physical space orderly. Don’t sleep n till noon –
if you are unemployed, you should be looking or doing something to
generate income, which means setting a schedule and working during
normal business hours. Create a budget and get a firm grasp on
how much money you’ll need to save up for the move out. When you get it,
keep it. Avoid spending until you your safety net prepared.
2) Jump Start Your Job Search Even
if you already have a job, consider whether or not it will actually
cover your expenses. If you don’t then you should be proactive about
this step anyways.
3) Set a Date Put
pressure on yourself to make it happen by setting a deadline. Figure out
where you’re going to live and what the true minimum of what you need
is, and do everything you can make it happen. Set aside enough
for your first few months of rent, moving and furniture costs. Spend
time with the people you need to and leave on good terms.
4) Move Out Don’t be afraid, embrace the chance to learn and be excited that you’re going to find out new things about yourself.
Why Saying I Don’t Care About Money Makes You Sound Like a Jackass
1) Insincere
You
don’t mean it. No, trust me. You really don’t. What you actually mean
is that you don’t care for excess. You have to eat, pay bills, do what’s
necessary to survive. As a citizen of a developed country you are a
part of an economic system that requires you to have money to survive.
This fact does not make you materialistic, but denying it is
unrealistic.
2) Privileged
Hearing
these words often reveals a privileged upbringing in which you didn’t
have to worry about money. But this kind of language is off-putting for
the people who know what it’s like to scrap and claw because they didn’t
have time to take money for granted.
3) Impractical and Lacking Ambition
So
you say you want to change the world. You talk about spreading
positivity. That’s a nice sentiment, and you should do that all the time
anyways, but too often we associate money with greed. However, it’s
what you do with it that counts. Don’t be greedy. Simple as that.
Building an empire is a noble goal if you understand how you can use the
power and money to help others. Bill Gates can donate billions to
charity because he has billions to give. Saying you want to make a
difference beyond your immediate sphere, but then claiming, “You don’t
care about money” doesn’t jibe in the real world.
The Other Side of Entitlement: How Millennials Self-Love is Shaping the World and Why That Might Not Be a Bad Thing
Millennials are charged as a generation with an entitled attitude. In
personal relationships as well as for employers this is a point of
hair-pulling frustration regarding Gen-Y.
In the workplace
employers feel they’re making concessions left and right and all but
bending over backwards to create a fun and pleasant work environment for
millennials with no returns in loyalty or gratitude. If a job isn’t
quite literally a dream job or their ideal scenario, my generation
quits, resulting in the high turnover rate of young employees. From the
perspective of the employer it’s hard to see entitlement as anything but
negative; however, I’d like to make a case that this is not entirely
bad. Despite the connotations of the word itself, entitlement has
practical benefits in the real world. Let’s consider the
difference in the way upper-class and middleclass children are raised
compared to lower-class children. There’s nothing genetically keeping
people within a certain socioeconomic strata, yet over and over again we
see poverty often lasts in a family for generations. This cycle of
poverty can endure for many reasons, but there’s one critical difference
in the way a well-off kid is raised from the child of the poor family –
entitlement – feeling as though you have the right to customize and
request for things to be the way you prefer them.
Malcolm
Gladwell makes the distinction between entitlement and constraint, the
latter of which is taught in lower-class families. In his book Outliers
he uses the example of an upper-class kid who is taught to ask the
doctor questions, thereby taking his health concerns into his own hands.
Essentially, one upbringing is teaching the child to be an
active in their own education and the master of their world, whereas the
other approach teaches kids to let things happen to them, to fear
authority, and to be constrained by society. This particular kind of
entitlement ties into the phenomenon of millennial entrepreneurship.
The same entitlement that drives employers crazy is also part of the
reason for my generation’s inventiveness. Millennials believe it is
their right to shape reality towards their preferences, and sometimes
that results in innovation and greater efficiency as we’re presently
seeing through the evolution of the workplace and the emergence of the
superemployee.
To a certain extent this is an experiment still playing out, but so far no one can say the results haven’t been interesting.
Thursday, February 18, 2016
A Guide to Becoming Unfuckwithable
Definition: Unfuckwithable – cannot or will not be fucked with.
1) Be confident in who you are
If you like crocs, pick your favorite color and buy them already. Wear the shit out of those badboys.
2) Treat others with respect
There’s
something to be said about having a clean conscience. Often times
knowing you did nothing wrong and seeing clearly hate is unwarranted is
enough to show you that the cause of it has nothing to do with you.
Their hate, their problem. Your peace of mind is your choice.
3) Know what you know
Believe
in the fact that other people’s problems are only yours if you let them
be. When people talk behind your back or send negativity in your
direction they’ve actually done you a massive favor. Now you know to
stay away from them. Treat them like the plague.
4) Be a Boss
Be
your best self. You should be confident regardless, but optimizing your
skills and talents goes a long way towards being hater proof.
5) Set boundaries
Be
clear about what you won’t put up with and stick to your rules. Cut out
the people who don’t respect you. Be done when you say you’re done.
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Millennials and the New American Dream
In my last post
The Perception of Millennials versus the Reality I wanted to respond
truthfully for better or worse to the stigmas about my generation.
Millennials need to be cognizant of how we are perceived to consider if
we can justify our behavior or if we need to change. Our employers, who
are likely baby boomers, can hopefully understand what drives gen y
(important stat regarding millennials dominance in the workforce) and
consider how to mesh the best of the new and the old. First, to
reduce the disconnect between gen y and the baby boomers both need to
understand how the other defines the American dream. After world war II
the world breathed a collective sigh that the nightmare of global war
was over, and in the U.S. the ideal of the era was the house with the
picket fence, children (lots of them) and a dog. But times have changed.
We’ve gone through the housing crash and massive student debt,
prompting millennials to redefine the American dream. My
generation values being valued, being heard, and making a difference. We
want to leave behind a legacy and promote real change. The new American
dream is much more about leading a holistic purpose driven life than
it is about the money in one’s bank account.
Below are the responses to this question I posed on my personal Facebook account:
"Calling Millennials: What does the phrase the American Dream
mean to you? Obviously, it's evolved and I'd appreciate any insight into
how YOU personally view this New American Dream. Thoughts?"
Ivy Elizabeth Holt (23): The ability to work hard to
accomplish anything you want. It's not exactly 100% possible from just
hard work. You have to think around society now a days to get an upper
hand sometimes. Less deserving people will and do get ahead of the hard
working people and take advantage of them. Sometimes you have to
slightly nudge your foot in the door the right way to turn things
around. My "American Dream" is to be viewed as equally intelligent to
peers despite my sex- and if not viewed at least have my work looked at
because good work can't be denied. I want to help bring about social
change that is so needed today. And still....the pursuit of happiness.
Danilo Araujo (22): To me,
coming from another country, the American dream is to become a business
owner. This is the land of opportunity, yet the system is designed to
keep everyone stuck in a 9 to 5 job. To become the boss instead of
having one is the key to financial freedom. This is my American dream
Nick Morales (20): The ability
to do something you love whilst living in a comfortable setting. Also
having many friends!
Abigail Shields (22): To be
able to have the right and support to do what makes you happy. To live
according to what you want to receive from life and to be able to work
hard to achieve it.
Friday, February 12, 2016
Perception of Millennials Versus Reality
1. Perception: Spoiled/coddled Reality: Straight up
Gen Y can
be entitled, but to a certain extent this can be attributed to their
upbringing. The baby boomer parent hit their professional peaks during a
prosperous period of American history, which created a sense of
optimism and promise they passed onto Gen Y. Millennials bought into the
hype and frankly, there are worse things to believe than that you’re
special or that you actually can make a difference.
2. Perception: Lazy Reality: False, we work differently
Millennials use technology to work more efficiently. It’s
no coincidence that the term super-employee has risen in popularity as
Gen Y has become more dominant in the workforce. Millennials are master
multi-taskers. However, for employees the perception of laziness arises
because texting and instant messaging looks the same as emailing,
researching, and networking on social media – all of which millennials
are accustomed to doing in the palm of their hand.
3. Perception: Unrealistic expectations Reality: True, but there's a catch
Gen Y witnessed their parent’s success, followed by their
retirement plans going out the window when the recession hit. It’s not
necessarily that millennials truly expect the ideal situation, but we
demand more because we’ve seen how quickly our parents lost everything
they spent their best years working for. Millennials balance. They want
to work to live and not allow work to become the center of their
existence.
4. Perception: Needy Reality: Fair enough.
Millennials grew up during the advent of
social media. Platforms like Facebook and Twitter and before them,
Myspace, allowed Gen Y to receive constant feedback or praise about
virtually every decision they made. In the workspace this can be
problematic so for millennials it’s worth considering whether or not
you’re asking questions to learn or craving the approval our generation
is accustomed to getting.
5. Perception: Lacking good communication skills Reality:False.
Millennials are arguably the most socially active
and communicative of any generation. Gen Y maintains and builds
relationships in a wide variety of ways, including virtual and face to
face, however, millennials tend to be much better at virtual
communication than the traditional approaches baby boomers tend towards.
