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Category: Framework

  • Can Politics Make You Happy?

    This blog is steadfastly non-political for a reason – it doesn\’t seem like a path to happiness, and often is quite the opposite. Yet, when I look at people at these rallies and see their hopeful, smiling faces, I wonder if perhaps this is a road to happiness. Seeing throngs of smiling people, one could draw the conclusion that politics is a clear way to make a large group very happy, joyful even. We feel like we\’re part of something huge, something generational, especially during this election.

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    Women in Ireland cheering Obama Credit: Wikipedia

    Of course, after tomorrow, whenever we find out the result of the US election, there will be a recoiling, a convulsion of a large number of people. They\’ll feel like the other half is nuts, crazy, or worse, evil. They might feel robbed, especially if like in Bush v. Gore, it\’s close. These faces will have turned 180 degrees in a day, raising the question: Can politics make you happy? My answer is an emphatic no. Let\’s explore.

    Happiness is found in gradients and is explored effectively by reviewing Maslow\’s Pyramid, shown below.

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    Maslow\’s Hierarchy of Needs – Credit: Psychology Today

    A review of the Pyramid is in order:

    Maslow called the bottom four levels of the pyramid \”deficiency needs\” because a person does not feel anything if they are met, but becomes anxious if they are not. Thus, physiological needs such as eating, drinking, and sleeping are deficiency needs, as are safety needs, social needs such as friendship and sexual intimacy, and ego needs such as self-esteem and recognition. In contrast, Maslow called the fifth level of the pyramid a ‘growth need’ because it enables a person to ‘self-actualize’ or reach his fullest potential as a human being. Once a person has met his deficiency needs, he can turn his attention to self-actualization; however, only a small minority of people are able to self-actualize because self-actualization requires uncommon qualities such as honesty, independence, awareness, objectivity, creativity, and originality.

    https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/hide-and-seek/201212/our-hierarchy-needs

    Politics is suspiciously absent in that list, at least at first blush. But a deeper look shows that political strategy is readily apparent when viewed through this framework.

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    In Too Far? Credit: Credit: Reuters

    The pyramid works from bottom-up – you can\’t go to the next higher stage before you accomplish the base stages. The lower stages map to the primal areas of our brain and our needs. So, where do you think politics starts? At the top, with self-actualization or recognition? Nope! They go for the base needs, which makes entirely good sense as a strategy. Let\’s walk the pyramid:

    Physical: Air, food, health, shelter – there is a real belief that these things will be taken away if we don\’t vote correctly.

    Security: This is a favorite. If one side can cause you to fear for your security, then bam, they got you. What are you afraid of? That\’s probably where your party has you pegged.

    Social: This is where social media comes in. Who goes to Twitter to look for the opposite opinion? No one, at least not immediately. The appeal of these social networks is that we can find inclusion. That lets us go to the next level.

    Ego: Nothing says politics like Ego. If one can feel elite, that they\’re making a big sacrifice or part of a bigger battle, then Ego can be satisfied. This is where it can get dangerous if adherents go sacrificial, or get violent for the cause.

    That leaves us with Self-Actualization. It is my view that this is where politics fail fabulously. Politics is a game, a win-or-lose proposition. Self Actualization is about finding your inner purpose, your truest self, and doesn\’t fit into that simplistic competitive domain. Happiness and fulfillment are iterative, incremental, and ebb and flow as you move higher into yourself.

    In addition to the qualities noted in the above diagram, self-actualization is also often marked by “peak experiences.” Mystical or spiritual experience is most definitely an example of a “peak experience.” The need for self-actualization is described as the “desire to become more and more what one is, to become everything that one is capable of becoming.

    https://www.religioustolerance.org/maslow-hierarchy-of-needs-world-religions.htm

    Therefore politics is a double-hit on happiness: if you win, and you\’re totally devoted to this world, it cannot take you to peak experience. If your side loses, you become existentially terrified, since the bottom planks that form your basic survival are now under attack. We see this a lot with the dressing of people in outfits from the dystopian show \”A Handmaid\’s Tale\” – it\’s a devastating feeling that you\’re under imminent attack. On the other side, they show burning buildings and cities \”under siege\”. Both are as effective as they are hyperbole designed to upset you. By taking away the lower planks, they scare you into this strange center place – you belong (mid pyramid) but you\’re constantly under siege and unable to achieve self-actualization, which is where true, durable happiness exists.

    We see this a lot with the dressing of people in outfits from the dystopian show \”A Handmaid\’s Tale\” – it\’s a devastating feeling that you\’re under imminent attack. On the other side, they show burning buildings and cities \”under siege\”. Both are as effective as they are hyperbole designed to upset you. By taking away the lower planks, they scare you into this strange center place – you find belonging (mid pyramid) but the base of your happiness is constantly under siege. By making politics the end-all-be-all, we\’re unable to achieve self-actualization, which is where true, durable happiness exists.

    I\’m not trying to discourage political activism. Far from it – I think we all should be engaged in the issues of our day. I am. I vote, I debate, and I care. However, I stand guard over my fears and shield myself when the political apparatus come for my security. I know they\’re going to and I have to seek solace from that input to ensure they don\’t compromise who I am.

    I\’m suggesting balance. Repeat these terms and see if you can convince yourself of their veracity:

    I am not my candidate.

    I am not powerless.

    I am not under attack (really!)

    Democracy isn\’t at stake (I promise!)

    The presidential election isn\’t the end of the world.

    Those statements should not be controversial. If my side wins, great. If my side loses, I\’ll be sad, roll up my sleeves, and get to work for the next election in two short years. Check out this quote from Scott Rasmussen:

    \”There will be differences, of course, because elections matter. They have consequences. But it’s important to remember that politicians aren’t nearly as important as they think they are.\”

    Scott Rasmussen, Deseret News

    The soul of our nation is at stake? Think again, another article by Mr. Rasmussen:

    “It is the recognition and respect of our fellow human beings, humanity and dignity, that helps us transcend “us” and “them” tribalism and forms the foundation for a more perfect union.”

    Scott Rasmussen, Deseret News

    Mr. Rasmussen is right on both counts. Our nation\’s soul is an amalgam of what we are, who we are, and how we treat each other. Mixing religion with politics is a quagmire. It\’s a mistake to believe that you know who God would vote for. Sure we pray for guidance, but The Creator of the Universe cannot be thwarted by an election. He/She/It has methods beyond our understanding. Don\’t fear for God – he can take care of himself.

    Back on earth, one must marvel at the genius of the American system (and its craziness) with its three-pillar structure. Pitting three branches of government against one another was brilliant, and gives citizens many opportunities to engage. Engage we should, with a guarded heart. Know that these forces are pulling at your foundations, trying actively to upset you, to pull away from your security. Guard against making more out of it than it is. Our personal journey towards self-actualization should not depend on who is sitting in the White House. Said another way – politicians make terrible gods, and politics is empty religion.

  • Positive Psychology – A Review of Assessments and the Best One Out There

    I\’m always on the hunt for new models that will help along the ideas of Positive psychology. What is Positive Psych? Well, it is really one of the most exciting things happening in psychology today. Perhaps you noticed that the number of books based in this area has exploded. Part of the reason for that is researchers like Angela Duckworth and Dr. Martin E. P. Seligman have spearheaded what makes people happy and how that relates to grit. Positive Psychology is a real science and full of innovations.  Part of those innovations is assessments, which are numerous and often not terribly scientific.  So I found three of the more interesting sites and compared them below.

    1. The Wheel Of Well-Being (WoW) 

    Site: https://www.wheelofwellbeing.org/

    Upside: Design is fun. Gamification and community involvement is clever. 

    Downside: Might be a zombie site, functionality isn\’t working

    Summary: Check out that wheel…nice, right? Now, before you visit the site, know that it looks a bit run down. It could be a zombie. I reached out to them and got some out of office stuff, and the sponsor link also goes to a dead page. This is, of course, a shame, since it had a great scheme.

    \"\"Reading this from the earth icon clockwise, we have Planet, Body, Mind, Heart, People, Place. This site leverages its community to suggest things to do with this wheel. If you like one, put it on your wheel and then it\’ll track each segment, or at least it used to.  So say someone suggested taking a walk. Well, you would agree to do that, and then track it on the wheel. The theory is obviously that if we do enough in each of area, we feel better.

    Despite the lack of functionality on the site, I think it\’s a good model and one that we could easily simply print out as a reminder.

    2. Via Survey

    site: http://www.viacharacter.org/www/Character-Strengths-Survey

    Upside: Robust website. Active community and coaches that are trained.

    Downside: To get the real reports you have to shell over 20-80 bucks USD, which is too bad, but considering the fate of WoW up there, perhaps a paywall isn\’t such a bad idea.

    Summary: 

    This one is really in-depth, giving us 120 questions that range the gamut of \”are you a curious person\” to \”are you a spiritual person\”. I liked its output – when I finished it gave me a report of the 24 areas, or character strengths, that I have, in descending order. #1 for me? Creative. Interesting, but not particularly insightful. Much shorter tests have given me similar feedback. I did like how they stacked all 24 dimensions, and at the bottom (Regulation?) is not my weakness, per se, but a trait that I might have to work a bit harder to exhibit. I\’d say read the site, and if you like it, then take the test. And if you\’ve ever wondered which mlp character are you, you can visit lizzardco.com.

    3. University of Pennsylvania

    site: https://www.authentichappiness.sas.upenn.edu/testcenter

    Upside: a plethora of tests that will keep you busy until the wee hours.  They\’re all free, and they record the scores for you. There\’s also a Facebook integration that is a little mysterious, but fully optional.

    Downside: there are almost too many tests. I mean, which one should I take, the General Happiness one or the PERMA test, that tests \”flourishing\”?  There doesn\’t appear to be any guidance about which one to take, so it can be overwheming.

    Summary:

    Yeah, I saved the best for last. You know when you start looking into a new topic, like swing dancing, and then find that there are entire worlds that are into it and have broken into tribes, and then there are those tribes that are running the show? Well, that\’s what UoP is doing with happiness research, and their testing center will overwhelm all but the most determined.    The quality of the questions is high and entertaining. I really like this one:

    –  
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    Couldn\’t help myself – I think Charlie would probably score himself pretty high. High…get it? 
    Anyway, the output of these assessments is a number and a chart, such as this:
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    Apparently, I\’m authentically happy. yay!
    I\’m really stoked about this site and recommend everyone check it out. Pick an assessment and have fun with it. They\’re all free, and you\’ll get a good sense of what Positive Psychology is through their videos and research. They even have conferences if you want to dig in and meet this amazing tribe. I know I do!

  • Week 08 – Introducing SparcCards

    \"SPARCCARDS\"

    Hello Gentle Readers to Week 8!  We\’ve got a nice surprise for you this week, another tool to help make the journey a bit more fruitful – SparcCards. SparcCards are the latest tool we\’ve developed to help you connect techniques that are proven to make life more fulfilling in an easy to read synopsis.  Think of them as plays out of a playbook, ideas culled from the best the world has to offer that you can flip through to help you find what you\’re looking for in new, innovative ways, completely free.

    The idea comes from the various readings that myself and others in my network have done, plus experiences we\’ve had.  Dan Gilbert, author of Stumbling on Happiness, states that using someone else as your proxy leads to greater results. That is, leveraging folks who\’ve been where you want to go is the best way to determine your path. We\’ve distilled all the learning and awesomeness into snippets that you can print out and read in a few minutes.

    Its super simple to use this system. Just remember any good radar system \”Search, Track, Filter, Engage\”  – or for short, the STEF model.  (Yes, I switched the order of the letters.  You can\’t say STFE…I mean, stiffe? That doesn\’t work, does it?)

    Lets check out an example self-dialog with our friend Beatrice, who is deciding what she wants to do this year:

    ~~~

    Beatrice Questioner Gremlin:  \”What am I going to do with this year?”

    Beatrice Leader Gremlin:  “I leveraged Mind Mapping (SC03) and it uncovered three ideas: donut shop, complete that book, and start my masters degree.”

    Beatrice Questioner Gremlin:  “I don’t know a lot about donut shops, so I’ll do some more investigation by asking a friend who opened a restaurant last year and see what her experiences were like (SC01 – Interviewing Sherpas (SC01).

    Beatrice Leader Gremlin: “I extracted the three items into a list (TR01- Prioritized List). The top two at least for now are the donut shop and the masters degree.

    Beatrice Detail Gremlin: But I need more information!  I’m going to visit some of the sites that I think I might use (TR02 – Check out the Space). And there’s this donut shop in a neighboring town. Maybe I can learn something by going there. Maybe I’ll take a few days off and visit that college I was thinking about.

    Beatrice Leader Gremlin: “I’m choosing the Masters Degree (filtering).  I loved that college! The donut shop sounded tough after talking to my friend, and the site isn’t what I hoped for.  I can work on some aspects of the donut shop, but for Q1 I’ll be focusing on getting into my degree program. The book is just going to have to wait. 

    Beatrice Worry Gremlin: But I’m terrible at follow up.

    Beatrice Leader Gremlin: I better use my cellphone to remind me to register…. (TR03 – Annoying Robot) and I’ll use a memo book to track progress (TR04 –Write Down Weekly Goals).”

    ~~~

    Make sense? SparcCards are best used in combos, as they amplify each other.

    Check out the latest Card, SCO4 – Seek Diversity for Strength. If you go to the SparcCards menu, you\’ll see a few more of them. The intention is to get a nice library of these cards going, so if you have any suggestions for a card (Search or Track), please let us know by commenting below.

    Enjoy!

     

     

     

  • Week 7 – Can LifeSparcs Make a Diet Work?

    I hesitated to write this one, since it has to do with dieting and I just started and I feel like its bad luck to talk about it \”going well\” too soon. Yet, here I am doing it anyway.  That\’s right – I\’m on a diet, but more interestingly, LifeSparcs techniques are helping me, and they might help you.

    Let me back up. The STEF model, Search – Track – Engage – Filter. I discussed that here, but in short its a mental model to approach life in an open and iterative way. So how did that help me get on this diet and start seeing success?  Lets take it one step at a time:

    Search – Well, this one is easy when it comes to dieting.  You put on a pair of pants that used to fit, and then…well…they\’re a little tight. Then that picture of you shows a profile that you might not think fits you. Maybe even the belt needs another notch. This feedback is blips on your search radar.  They tell you something is up. To pay attention.

    Tracking – Here we\’re tracking our weight, trying to exercise, trying everything.  LifeSparcs deals with staying motivated, but it wasn\’t working for me. No matter how much I\’d try, staying motivated enough to count every calorie AND hit the gym for hours per week were just beyond my abilities. I found that tracking in this way was far too detailed for my personality type. I needed something else. I had to move back up to Search.  

    Search#2:   Searching is about being open, and somehow I found this book: Why We Get Fat, by Gary Taubes. The audaciously titled work was available at the library, so I took a shot.   It blew my mind.  Now, I knew carbs were a commonly stated culprit of weight gain, but the strength of what Mr. Taubes presented his data, plus my own readiness to accept the information, made for an incredible shift for me. I realized that counting carbs would be much easier than counting calories. After the holidays I dove in to a low carb diet that eventually morphed from Paleo-esque to Keto.

    Tracking #2 – I was initially tracking the Paleo diet, but it seems rather restrictive since it disallows cheese. Sorry, but if I\’m not going to do bread, I need some dairy. I was also tracking the other low carbs and found the Ketonic diet. I decided after some reading to Engage.

    Engagement –  Now I\’m doing it. I\’m doing the day to day execution, but now I\’m armed with two powerful techniques.  First – a great app called CarbManager, is simply priceless (well, its actually 4 bucks…don\’t be cheap).  Then I saw Ketone strips. This was HUGE for me, because I want to be graded by an objective measure. For those who don\’t know, these strips measure the ketones in your pee. If you test positive, that means you\’re burning energy from your liver, and not the easy carb-based energy sources that keep you from losing fat.  Better tracking = more success!   Say you\’re at a restaurant and you eat what you think is okay, but who knows what sort of carbs that plate of pasta had?  Well, with these strips you can see if your transgressions knocked you out of Ketosis ( sounds scary, but isn\’t).  Its like a report card, but in a good way. Superbowl Sunday knocked me out, but in a day or two I was back in. This is far better than using a scale for feedback since body weight is so variable.

    In this discussion you can hear a lot of Filtering. I filtered old ideas (calorie counting) for new ones ( carb counting). Filtering is a core concept of STEF model, and possibly one of the hardest. Future posts will talk about how best to filter.

    Now I\’m in engagement. Engagement is the day to day struggle. Its the SPARC model, where we iterate our weeks, reward our good behaviors, and blend our life goals into our daily plans.  The Keto diet is now part of that for me.

    I\’ll start sharing weight loss numbers as the become more impressive, but for now, I\’m searching for some good exercises that I can combine with my new eating style.  I\’m tracking now to doing the Seattle Rock and Roll 1/2 marathon….but more on that later!

    Any low-carbers out there? What foods do you eat? Good recipes?  There\’s only so much eggs a man can eat! 🙂

    Till next time,

    -Joe Fecarotta
    LifeSparcs.com
    HappyWisdom.com

    For review, the SPARC Process is shown below. Answer the questions for yourself and win!

    Week 7 – Health Focus!
    Situation – What is your health situation like?
    Possibility – How could you turn it around, even just a bit, this week?
    Action – A list of actions that you think you could finish to start you down a healthier path
    Renewal – How can you reward yourself for trying to be more healthy? Movies? Buying a new book? Hanging with friends?
    Collect and Coach – What have you tried? What books have you read? Articles?  Good sources? Friends?  Who has done this weight loss thing in your network? Have you spoken to them?
    For more on SPARC process, visit LifeSparcs.com

  • Is Goal Achievement is Like a Weapon System?

    No one is more excited when a new productivity book comes out than me.

    But I understand not everyone is obsessive about the same things.  Thus, I\’m introducing a new tool that you can add to your arsenal, so when life modulates you are ready.

    But let\’s step back…Quiz time! What is this?

    \"\"

    This is not a weaponize R2D2, but it is a robot.  This is the Phalanx Weapon System, or known as CIWS  ( close in weapon system).   I used to work on this system when I was in the Navy. It\’s mission is to defend ships from being pummeled. Its called a \”terminal defense\” system since if it fails, your goose is cooked.  Last line of defense.

    CIWS is a fully autonomous weapons system. It has a search and track radar and a sophisticated computer system to determine valuable targets. Then it throws depleted uranium rounds in the air at around 50 rounds per second. Per second.

    Why do I tell you this wonderful yarn?  Well, think about this process:

    \"\"

    This is the process that CIWS goes through, and it provides an interesting metaphor for our lives. Are we not always searching, tracking, and engaging? I certainly hope you are!

    The issue is that life comes at us fast, and often we\’re not prepared.  And who, other than the obsessive few, have time to read the deluge of books and articles and watch the videos and listen to the podcasts that could help you prepare for life? Introduce SparcCards© – ta da! Cue the fanfare!

    SparcCards are designed to help you through this process. They\’re based on the burgeoning fields of Positive psychology, Agile, Lean, Performance management, Appreciative inquiry and beyond. Each card will be distilled awesomeness focused on techniques that will allow you to vary your approach if you get stuck. For example, Journaling is a good example of a Search SparcCard – you can journal to see what your hopes and dreams are, etc. Well, many of us cannot or do not maintain a journal. What will they do? They\’ll need different techniques based on an individuals personality and their situation.

    There are, for now, two types of cards – Search and Track.  Search cards enable you to scan the horizon of your life and find targets in 360 degrees. These cards will then connect to Tracking cards, which, once an opportunity has risen in your priority matrix, you get serious about it. These cards will be more about implementation and habits and such.  In CIWS, you would be switching to a radar that shot out a tiny, pencil thin beam, so you have little ambiguity about the incoming target. You have all the details, and you\’re ready.  Then you engage, putting the target into the LifeSPARC process and making it happen.

    Recently I did a presentation and video on this topic, which I\’ll be posting here in the next few days.  But until then, here\’s a few of the Sparc Cards, totally free of charge. They\’re intended to be printed, two to a page.

    More cards will be coming in the near future. If there\’s some work of self improvement that you think would make a good target for a SparcCard, let me know in the comments below.

     

  • The Key to Successful Goal Achievement is Iterating

    \"fizzfactory_by_halakimok-d5y4f0v\"

    it·er·a·tion 

    ˌitəˈrāSHən/

    noun

    1. the repetition of a process or utterance.
      • repetition of a mathematical or computational procedure applied to the result of a previous application, typically as a means of obtaining successively closer approximations to the solution of a problem

    ~~~

    As you may know, LifeSparcs.com was built on the concepts borne in part from the software processes collectively called Agile. For those unaware, there’s a whole industry devoted to making things in small chunks. There’s a manifesto, principles, certifications, and well-attended, wonderfully geeky conferences. Anything from cars to iPhones are created using some sort of iterative process.

    Why was this Agile thing borne out of the software industry? As the saying goes, Software is Hard, and in 2001 a bunch of folks gathered in a snow lodge in Utah and codified Agile, realizing that with the level of complexity increasing, moving forward iteratively was the only way to get there from here. That is, that you take whatever problem you\’re trying to solve, break it in chunks, break those chunks down, and work them in time-boxes we call sprints or iterations.

    In the SPARC process, we divide the year in 52 time boxes we call iterations, with a second loop dedicated to reviewing quarterly (at a minimum).  This system is based on double-loop learning, a concept pioneered decades ago by Chris Argyris.

    With SPARC, you assume what both what you want and where you are.  You plan it, do, check, adjust, and also review your initial assumptions.  You learn about what you’re doing AND learn about how you learn.

    \"double-looop\"

     

    But how does this manifest itself? Let’s take a look:

    In the LifeSparc Process, each week iteration consists of the following elements:

    1. Determining your Situation. What is your current reality? Is this going to be a great week or is Uncle Igor coming over for the week, and you expect a low level of progress towards your goal?
    2. What’s the Possibility that this week holds? This flips the script, moving immediately to a positive frame of mind. If this was the PERFECT week, what would happen?
    3. Actions are critical, even if they’re imperfect actions. Sunday night, try to come up with a few of them towards one to three goals you might be pursuing. Keep in mind this simple question – how do you know when you’re done with that action?
    4. Reflect & Renew – Towards the end of the week, or maybe even sooner, it might be necessary to renew yourself. The actions in this SPARC process are going to be difficult or you would have done them already. Studies show that will power is a limited resource, but one that can be replenished. Perhaps its gardening? Maybe a quick walk? Watching your favorite show at the end of the day? Getting away from Uncle Igor for a few hours?
    5. Collect & Coach – Ideally during the week you were tracking and counting the actions and things you set out to do, e.g. going to the gym, distance you walked, lines of code you wrote, pages you read, etc. If you didn’t track it, try to recall it here. How many of your actions did you get completed? It’s very important to celebrate every single one.  Finally, how did you get help ( Coaching)?  In his book, Stumbling on Happiness, Daniel Gilbert reports that those who seek the advice of experienced people in the domain they’re after often find greater happiness than those that do not.

    It doesn’t matter if you do the SPARC process in your mind, on a bullet journal or one of the memobooks I created for the effort. The tool is irrelevant. Make it simple for yourself. Leave the book out, so you see it every night. Understand the process is a tool, not a set of chains to bind you.

    What do you use to track your goals? You are tracking something, right? If not, why not?

  • How to Craft Great Resolutions in 3 Simple Steps

    Here it is, the end of the year, and people like me (insufferable life coaches and the such) are coming out with ways to make your 2017 your BEST YEAR EVER! Usually we pin the timing on the New Year, but we all know that long before the flowers re-emerge from the earth our lists will be long forgotten. Yet, most studies show if we write down our goals they\’re far more likely to actually happen. By following this technique you can quickly create goals that will stick.

    The end of the year is actually a good time to do this sort of thing. Retrospection is natural during this time and this is the time when the historically unvacationed US workforce gets a small slice of time off.  Between the gift buying and family visitations, both planned and unplanned, find yourself an hour or so in a quiet place, grab some fruit cake, eggnog, paper and crayons, and give this a go!

    1. Select Your Top Values

    Values are first.  If you can\’t define them, you\’ll always be searching without a north start to guide you. First, list your values. What\’s a value?  Don\’t be surprised if you don\’t know – many people I speak with can\’t really tell you succinctly what they value.  Some of mine are Authenticity, Curiosity and Growth, with a priority on Authenticity.  If you need a list of them, James Clear has a good start here.  The important thing is that you have to pick five or less; it\’s harder than it sounds, so if you need to jump to #2, go for it, but make sure you come back. Iteration is common in the complex space. If you\’re in the market for affordable speakers, you can check Shoppok site to find a wide selection of options from local sellers.

    Now once you have your values set, get yourself a nice clean piece of paper, write 2017 in the middle of the page. Then, radiating around that bubble, start writing those values. That\’s right folks, we\’re MIND MAPPING!

    2. Mind Map Your Top Values

    What is mind mapping you say? Mind mapping is an incredibly useful, brain-friendly technique to get stuff out of your brain. Its a thinking aid, and when we\’re trying to advance our lives and grow, there\’s no better tool.

    Some characteristics of Mind Mapping:

    • The main idea, subject or focus is crystallized in a central image.
    • The main themes radiate from the central image as \’branches\’.
    • The branches comprise a key image or key word drawn or printed on its associated line.
    • Topics of lesser importance are represented as \’twigs\’ of the relevant branch.
    • The branches form a connected nodal structure

    Here\’s an excellent example, from Mind Tools, on the topic of Time Management.

    \"Image

    The Mind Map is made even more powerful by the use of all the left and right brain-thinking tools, which enhance the clarity, structure and organization of your thinking. And because the Mind Map constructively uses the tools of Imagination, Association and Location, as well as the tools of the left and right brain, you can consider the Mind Map the ultimate thinking tool that incorporates all the significant and potent ways of thinking into its own structure.

    Now, that one was hand-drawn, and I know that voice in your head is saying \”I CAN\’T DRAW!\”  Before you bail, check this out – there\’s software for this and its generally free to do a few maps and easy easy to use.  Take a look-see:

    \"Mindmap It\’s not as compelling but it does the job, right? The software I used for this was Mind Vector, and I have to say its pretty nice.  Now, one could argue that you\’re not using the right-half of your brain when using a computer, but I saw it takes all sorts of solutions, and if this one works for you, go for it.  One strategy is to do your first couple on paper, and then when you want to \”get serious\” pop it in a tool. It\’s of course cloud enabled and all that so you can share it with family or friends, which is cool if there are goals that are shared.

    3.  Find the pattern

    Once you\’ve got your first mind map done, do it again and again.  Buzan says it takes 3-5 iterations of your mindmap to come out with a good one, one that really resonates with you.  There are computer tools but paper and pencil, or better, crayons, markers, paper and pencil, are usually more engaging.

    When you finish your mind map, you might see some sort of emerging pattern. A topic that crosses branches.   For example, if one branch says you\’d like more public speaking engagements and the other says you need more money for your fishing expedition to Alaska, maybe you can combine those into \”Do a public speaking engagement on Fishing in Alaska, charge $10 bucks for your e-book that you sell there.\”  Wait, I don\’t have an e-book.  Well, you can write an e-book.

    Wait, what is that?  Write an e-book?  That sounds a lot like a goal!

    Goals have a discrete end. They\’re something that can be less than a year in duration, since longer goals can be demotivating, but can roll up to something really meaningful. John Campbell has said to not focus on goals, but on growth, so for example, don\’t make \”creating an e-book\” a destination, but a milestone on a path of growth.

    Once you pick out those goals, you\’ve started front loading the SPARC process, and you\’re way closer to making these things a reality. In the next installment, we\’ll go through the stages of Situation, Possibility, Action, Reflection, and Collection. Until then, please share any goals or mind maps you might have created below!

    (BTW, Congrats to the Seattle Sounders in winning their championship! – GOOOALLLL! )

  • Get ready for the week in fifteen minutes with SPARC

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    We all want to have a plan for our week, to reach for new heights, and accomplish amazing things while not hating ourselves.

    One of the best ways to reach higher is to plan for it, and it is with this spirit I created LifeSparcs.com and the SPARC process.

    SPARC is the specific process I developed to help people live more happy lives. Nothing too grandiose! ( Click here if you want to read more about the genesis of this process and see the LifeSparc memobook).  But its not about the tool, its about the process. So, for this posting, we\’ll be using the basics – pen and paper.

    Sunday is the day that I recommend you plan your week, but since I\’m posting this on a Monday that works too ( Be Agile!).

    If you haven\’t done the work to decompose your thoughts into actions, we\’ll have to take a brief detour.  Close your eyes and look into your mind.  What\’s that one thing you really want, one you might have thought you should have by now, and don\’t.  Is it that dream trip to Ireland?  Is it a new car?  A new romantic relationship?  Get more fit? Whatever it is, open your eyes and write it down.

    Now, take a piece of paper and draw a line down the center of it, vertically, and then draw one horizontally, dividing the paper into four quadrants.  Now in the top left corner write Situation and Possibility.  In the remaining quadrants write  Action, Renew, and Collect & Coach in each quadrant respectively.  This is shown below.  Do this all in pen.
    Okay, now, google what week it is. Currently as I write this its the 45th week of the year.  Every \”iteration\” we do in SPARC is exactly one week. This sort of cadence will make things easier.  In the top right corner of the paper write this number, with the year next to it, e.g. 45th year of 2016.

    Let\’s say you really want to focus on fitness before the holidays, since you know that\’s going to be rough. Put into a statement, and write that down in the Situation/Possibility area. In this example I\’ll write the following:

    Situation: \”I want to get into the gym and eat right now to prepare for my inevitable transgressions that are ahead of me\”

    Great, now you have it down on paper.  But so what? You go to the gym…big whoop! We have to figure out what possibility this will enable…the why behind the need.

    Possibility: \”If I can do this, maybe I won\’t transgress as much, and I can look a bit more buff,and maybe be able to participate in some activities that will make it easier to burn off those calories. \” 

    But wait…is that really why? NO!  Try again:

    Possibility: \”If I can get to the gym, I\’ll feel so much better about myself, and maybe not gain ten pounds like I did last year and feel embarrassed\” Better! You\’ve got feeling in those statements.

    \”Emotions drive us, not logic. Get your feels out there in the possibility section.  There of course can be more than one statement in this area, but they should be motivating, not a downer.

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    By now, your paper should look like mine does to the left. Looking down at the next sections, you\’ll see Action, Renew,  and Collect.  Think about them together.  What actions am I going to do to successfully attain the Possibility?  I can\’t just write \”go to gym\”  or \”eat less\”  – these are too vague. Try to find something you can count, something that you can control.

    How about , \”Go to the gym three times\”?   That might work, but not if you haven\’t been in three months.  (don\’t look this way…stop looking at me…)

    Go to the gym twice.  Okay, very modest.  What if we added, eat protein for breakfast instead of cereal?   ( this betrays my affinity for the Paleo eating style).   Okay, one more.  How about – do a 400 meter run practice.  I\’ve done this practice before – I get on a track and burst around it like Usain Bolt (when he was toddler).

    There we have it- three Actions:

    1. Go to the gym twice
    2. Eat protein for breakfast instead of cereal
    3. 400 meter run practice

    But what about the R? Renewal is imperative for humans, since we are more successful in general when we can wrap an unpleasant task with one we look forward to.  Carrot, not stick.  So for this week, of the huge list of things I do for fun ( you have that list, right?) which will I pick? I think there\’s some amazing movies coming out soon, namely Arrival (awesome!).   I\’ll see that one as a reward for doing these items.  Now, what if I don\’t get all three done by Thursday? Well, I say you do the movie anyway, since you\’re working on hard stuff here.  We need to refill the tank before it runs out, not after.

    Um, that\’s it!  Congrats, your planning is DONE.

    Your page might look something like this:

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    Now you might laugh, since that process appears too simple. But as with any good process the challenge is in the doing. This also becomes more difficult when you have a few of these.  Say you\’re also trying to fix the sink, and you know the family is coming over on Thanksgiving and you\’re running out of time. Get out a new piece of paper, and go through this same process. Hopefully you can pin this on something more motivating that fear of embarrassment.  As for collect and coaching, we\’ll fill that in as we move through the week.

    I\’ll post again this week as I progress on these totally random items that might be mine or not :).  Please feel free to share some of your work below in the comments!

    – Joe

     

  • DIG Your Life – Get your Goals on Paper

    We\’re getting close to the new year!  Are you looking forward to setting new goals? Or is it dreary and awful?  As we approach the end of the year, it\’s traditionally time to start thinking about goals, though it\’s always a good time to do so. That is, unless you plan on not achieving them.  If so, never mind.

    DIG stands for Discover, Implement and Gather, and I use the mnemonic as a framework to live, plan, and evaluate my life.  In the next few posts, I\’ll be going into each of these in some detail, but for now lets just touch at the surface what I mean by them.   By remembering DIG you will be able to see yourself in a process, feel grounded that you have a path forward, and that you have some mechanism to claim your life as your own, not someone else\’s.

    Discover – This process is about dreaming. What are the goals you’re after? What is stopping you?  One thing I\’ve used for the discovery process that really works, especially for those folks who are more visual than not, is mind mapping.  Mind mapping is the art of taking ideas and writing about them spatially.  Just a couple of tips here.  Keep the bubbles small (one or two words) and don\’t try too hard to make sense of it. This isn\’t an outline.  Draw pictures, be silly, be outlandish.  And shoot  high! According to Gretchin Rubin, studies show that those big goals tend to motivate people more than smaller, more achievable goals. Jim Collins calls this concept BHAG – Big Hairy Audacious Goal.  

    Create that mindmap without goals in mind at first – just radiate out what you feel, in images and symbols. The idea is that we\’re tapping something deeper and non-linear in our minds.

    Here\’s a video by one of the originators of Mind Mapping – Tony Buzan.

     

    Implement –  is about execution – now you gotta do it. It is where we see LifeSparcs, the journal/app, being used. Week by week, tough task by tough task, we get there.  Yet, for rebels like me, scheduling doesn\’t work – I rebel against the notion itself.  Therefore for us rebels, create that list, free of dates, and put stars or something to indicate priority. Then when you review the list, you can do whatever you choose of it since you already prioritized it. 

    Gather – Despite doing this every week ( this is the C in SPARC), its also a good practice to have a bigger picture review with yourself or your coach.  The forest now, not the trees.  How are you feeling the thing you’ve been trying? Has the weight loss gone okay?  How about that book you\’re writing? Have you gotten much feedback?  Is it time to try that new thing?  Or, should you give it another go? Another chunk of the LIfeSparc effort, to see if it\’s YOUR thing.  Gather is a chance to say, we’re doing okay.  We’re gonna be alright. This is the chance for us to enjoy the music of life, regardless of the outcome of what we’ve done.

    Action Step: Try mind mapping!  Get out a few pieces of 8×11 white, unlined paper, and have at it.  Doing this step will line you up well for the next part of the process – Implement.

    P.S.  here\’s a great example of a very creative mindmap.  Shoot high!  Use color.  Use paper and and color colored pens. Most importantly, get ready to do a few of them as you get closer to …you.  🙂

     

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