Last week I attended a course on Attracting, Hiring and Retaining the Best People. It was session 1 of 3 organized by StartupDigest University, the insider’s guide to the startup world. This week was session 2 and the topic was Top 5 HR Mistakes & Compensation 101.

“Right now there is a war on talent. The entire technology sector is hiring, virtually every startup (alive) is hiring, and VC’s are even creating newsletters to help their startups hire. Hiring is the most important function of a startup founder/CEO. With the talent war raging, it is clear that finding and hiring the best people is one of the most challenging aspects of an entrepreneur’s job. Developers are elusive and expensive, and it’s hard to find a business or marketing person among the noise.” ~ StartupDigest

This evening had 2 great speakers which filled the event with tactical knowledge and inspiration rather than just inspirational rhetoric. There was no bullshit. The folks in the room were A-players, smart and were thirsty for education which would serve as the arsenal of hiring tips and tricks.

Here’s what happened.

Brian Helmick, Founder & Managing Partner at Algentis

Brian Helmick, Founder & Managing Partner at Algentis

About Brian:

• Brian Helmick is the founder of Algentis, an HR Software & Services firm that simplifies operations for small and medium-sized businesses by assuming the burden of HR administration.
• Algentis provides a technology-enabled service offering which seamlessly integrates HR compliance, payroll, benefits, and insurance.
• Algentis helps startup clients with all the headaches associated with HR, so entrepreneurs can focus on the core aspects of their business.
• Website: http://algentis.com/

The presentation notes covered 5 HR mistakes:

1. Misclassification of Workers

• There are strict IRS guidelines and the choice isnt yours. Learn those guidelines or speak to a specialist.
• Most startups break this law.
• If an employee is made to work strict 9-5 hours on a computer provided by the employer then they are labelled as an “employee”. Else, a contractor. Some employers get around this label by adding computer expense into employee’s salary vs providing them the tool/s.

2. Errors in Hiring

• Improper interview questions – personal type like age, race, state etc. this can lead to being sued should the unsuccessful candidate believe it was due to these personal questions they were not hired.
• Hiring for skills and not fit. Companies change so hire for fit to make sure to retain great employees.
• Ask for candidate references and then ask the references for another degree of references. You need to really know how this person is and not what their friend (reference) scripted.

3. Improper Documentation

• Don’t use your friends legal documents. They are not fit for your purpose.
• Average cost to defend against an employee claim is $150K.
• On average, most HR issues are not seen until the company hits the magic 20 employees.
• Poor documentation of performance, attendance & misconduct. When you document make sure it is stored in a safe & secure place.
• Wrongful termination award is $125K.
• Do quarterly reviews – to speed up the process get the employee to do self reviews and no more than 3 questions with a scale.

4. Errors with Employee Terminations

• Too slow to fire – always. Nobody ever complains about firing somebody too quickly.
• An under-performer is incredibly costly financially, your time and morale.
• A lot of this is due to the “termination discussion” which is not fin and mostly emotional.
  • Start with the conclusion and keep it short.
  • Make it clear that the decision has already been made.
  • Be sensitive of the other person’s feeling – do not let it get personal.
  • Severance is highly recommended to minimize getting sued especially if the employee is volatile. But do not make this a policy since it can be used against you.
  • If the employee threatens to sue you. End the conversation and contact your lawyer.
  • Finally, always give the final paycheck on the employee’s last day.

5. Unsuitable Benefits & Insurance

• Workers compensation insurance of at least $100K is legally required.
• Choosing benefits:
  • Basic = Medical only
  • Basic plus = Dental, Vision and FSA
  • Premium = Medical, Vision, FSA, Transportation, Unexpected life events and 401K.
• Having a good plan helps with recruiting.

Compensation 101

Before you begin, always work out your strategy e.g. low cash and high equity reward or high cash and low equity. Don’t shy away on spending if you find the perfect person.

There are 3 components:

1. Cash
   • Easiest for both to value.
   • Cash bonuses have mixed review – they are not properly valued by employees if at 10-15% of their base salary. Best to give this as merit instead.
   • Studies have shown that behavior changes at 25%+ of base salary. Which is why it works so well in Sales and Financial Services industry.
2. Benefits & Rewards
   • Small personal incentives like a restaurant / theater voucher or a letter to spouse are most powerful.
   • They help build the company culture and show that the employer cares. Yet are cheaper to implement then a 10K bonus.
3. Equity
   • Common terms:
     

     Vesting	3-5 years
     Cliff	1 year
     Expiration	90 days after employee leaves
     Buy back	Company to buy back the options

   • Equity split for non-founders:
     

     COO	2-5%
     Cxx	1-3%
     VP of Eng.	2-4%
     Other VPs	1-3%
     Directors	2-5%
     COO	0.75-1.5%
     Key Eng. Roles	0.25-1.5%

Taso Du Val, Co-Founder and CEO of TopTal

Taso Du Val, Co-Founder and CEO of TopTal

About Taso:

• As an early and lead engineer at Fotolog (Acquired by Hi-Media for $100m), Slide (Acquired by Google for $224m), and his own companies, Taso brings unprecedented top management and engineering experience to TopTal.
• While running a small consulting firm, he recognized that while many of his co-workers overseas were just as good as his friends and colleagues at Google, Facebook, and other companies with notable top engineering talent, it was simply impossible to find them.
• TopTal was created as a solution to the sky-rocketing demand for top engineers in Silicon Valley, US, and Europe despite the shrinking local graduate rates of such engineers.
• Website: http://toptal.com/

The presentation notes:

• There are 4 types of labor outsourcing:

1. Traditional outsourcing – using consulting firms.
2. Democratized outsourcing – providers of a virtual marketplace for freelancers and freelance agencies to negotiate work contracts with businesses that hire independent professionals and agencies.
   • Companies in this space include: elance, odesk etc.
3. Crowdsourcing - Crowdsourcing is the act of outsourcing tasks, traditionally performed by an employee or contractor, to an undefined, large group of people or community (a crowd), through an open call.
   • Companies in this space include: crowdflower, mechturk etc.
4. Top sourcing – sourcing company full of expertise and knowledge to help businesses cut procurement costs.
   • Companies in this space include: toptal etc.

• Managing remote labor:
  • Learn to manage your local staff well before managing remote staff.
  • Communication is VERY important.
  • Product is the most important thing. Period.
  • When your remote talent is better than your best developer, you know you’re doing it right.
  • Use Skype excessively (24/7).
  • If 2 days go by without communication, fire instantly.
  • Expose them to Silicon Valley (TechCrunch, Quora etc).
  • Use PivotalTracker or similar Project Management tools.
  • Daily Scrum (development) works very well.
• A note on communication with foreign hires:
  • Proper English != Communication
  • Bad English != Bad Communication

Isnt this educational and inspirational! Great content from great founders that know what it takes to hire the best people. So this was part 2 of 3 and I will be posting links to full videos of the event later in the week – so come back to check this blog for more updates.

Happy hiring!

This post is also posted on my other blog “The Road to Silicon Valley”.
URL: http://www.theroadtosiliconvalley.com/jobs/attracting-hiring-retaining-best-people/

~ Ernest

Linked mentioned in this post

• StartupDigest: http://startupdigest.com/
• Algentis | HR Outsourcing | Payroll | PEO: http://algentis.com/
• TopTal – Direct access to the top developers: http://toptal.com/

So recently I was invited to a 3 evening course at StartupDigest University via Hacker Dojo on Attracting, Hiring, and Retaining the Best People. Today was day 1. More to come over the next 2 weeks. StartupDigest is the insider’s guide to the startup world and the evening was hosted by Gagan Biyani, Co-Founder of Udemy, where all the videos of the presentations will be hosted later on.

Gagan Biyani, Co-Founder of Udemy

“Right now there is a war on talent. The entire technology sector is hiring, virtually every startup (alive) is hiring, and VC’s are even creating newsletters to help their startups hire. Hiring is the most important function of a startup founder/CEO. With the talent war raging, it is clear that finding and hiring the best people is one of the most challenging aspects of an entrepreneur’s job. Developers are elusive and expensive, and it’s hard to find a business or marketing person among the noise.” ~ StartupDigest

This evening had 2 great speakers which filled the event with tactical knowledge and inspiration rather than just inspirational rhetoric. There was no bullshit. The folks in the room were A-players, smart and were thirsty for education which would serve as the arsenal of hiring tips and tricks.

Here’s what happened.

Immad Akhund, Co-Founder and CEO of HeyZap

Immad Akhund ~ Co-Founder and CEO of HeyZap

About Immad:

• Immad Akhund is the CEO of HeyZap and an engineer.
• Having studied Computer Science at Cambridge University and co-founded 3 successful start-ups.
• He was previously a co-founder and the CTO of Clickpass.com (acquired by Yola.com).
• Clickpass partnered with Plaxo, Scribd, Disqus and others to power their sign-on through OpenID.

The presentation notes:

• Recruitment is a Marketing Exercise. You must market yourself and your company over and over so it gets into people’s head that you are a good company.
• Ask yourself “Why should this hire give several years of their life to your vision?”. Remember that you aren’t the only making favors here.
• Hire Generalists over Specialists.
• Spend time on your jobs page to make it Marketable. It should lure talent in. See http://www.heyzap.com/jobs
• Use all the available channels to get talent. Being: Internal, Online, Offline, Campus and New clever ways like running random competitions for others in the social space to re-tweet your job ads.
• Give employees a hiring bonus $2-10K to show you care.
• Good people have at least 5 friends that are like them. If you find an A-player tap into their social grid since there is a high chance their 5 close friends will also be A-players.
• Add “We are hiring” to all your blog posts.
• Online communities like HackerNews, Reddit, StackOverflow, GitHub et al are one of the best sources of A-players.
• Organize ”open house” like Startup Crawl to allow A-players to come and have an open chat with you.

Auren Hoffman, Founder and CEO of Rapleaf

Auren Hoffman ~ Auren Hoffman, Founder and CEO of Rapleaf

About Auren:

• Auren Hoffman is the CEO of Rapleaf and an angel investor.
• Rapleaf helps B2C companies give their consumers a better experience by providing automated search services for each consumer.
• Auren is also a non-employee cofounder of BrightRoll and a co-founder of AdRocket.
• From 2003-2006, Auren served as Chairman of Stonebrick Group and Chairman of the Connector Group (Silicon Valley 100).
• Previously, he founded and sold three Internet companies before age 30: BridgePath (sold in 2002), Kyber Systems (sold in 1997), and GetRelevant (sold in 2002).
• He writes a blog called Summation ~ http://blog.summation.net/

The presentation notes:

• 3 ways to find an A-player:
  1. Having worked with them,
  2. Knowing someone who vouches for them and
  3. Reflective interview process.
• Resumes are bad since they are nothing more than marketing and act as a selling document.
• As the interviewee, you should always show up on time. Be respectful of the candidates time too.
• Once you get comfortable about their specific skill there is no need to further drill it. Move onto other questions.
• Get the candidate to teach you something. If you see they have a specific interest / hobby like chess, ask them to teach it to you (crash course) in the interview. Few people can “simply” explain complex concepts. Yet being able to explain a complex concept in simple understandable terms by breaking it down and even drawing it on the board is an important quality of an A-player. Every complex concept can be explained easily by an A-player.
• Ask insightful and hard questions which are interesting for the candidate. Ask about:
  • Their thesis,
  • Current events like WikiLeaks and the ethical dilemmas created,
  • Drill into something they stipulated they are good at and see if their depth of knowledge reflects it,
  • Ask curious questions like: “How do you think LinkedIn generates the n-th degree contact/s?” Even if you don’t have the answer observe how they tackle the problem.
• Don’t ask typical questions most interviewees ask. Come up with something clever that is specific to the candidate and see the fire it ignites in their desire to get to the answer. If you get a call or email after the interview with the answer then this is a great indication of the desire and fire that burns in A-players.
• Don’t talk more than 25% of the interview. You want them to do the talking since you need to get the answers to your single question – “is this an A-player”.
• Try to determine how Smart the person is by accessing:
  • Are they curious?
  • Do they ask the right questions?
  • Do they engage in further deeper discussions?
  • How well do they take feedback?
  • Are they unsatisfied with mediocre answers?
• You can even get the candidate to do a presentation on their topic of choice and see how they can explain and simplify it enough so it’s crystal clear and educational. Make sure the topic is hard so you can see their thought processes. Then ask yourself the questions above whether this candidate is smart.
• Overall, you need to determine whether you would enjoy working with this person. At the beginning stages of your company you are the company culture and bringing in a new employee may change or enhance it.
• You get to choose the people at your company. Therefore choose wisely.
• Choose 3 key criteria you want in the people you hire and stick to them.
  • Rapleaf has the following:
    

    A. Scary smart B. Gets things done C. Nice & friendly

  • Notice how there is no technical skills listed. Remember, top 3 only since in a Venn diagram too many circles creates too many overlaps which are too small. You want a nice chunky even spread.

• Finding a Co-founder is always hard. So when you think you found one do something together to determine “compatibility” - something like a blog post together or running an event. This will help you see whether this person is trustworthy, follows up with their word and has passion for their work. The try before you buy approach. But always remember, that no matter what, even the 1st employee should be called a “co-founder”, looked after with good equity and be treated as such to help your vision come to life and ultimately success.

Isnt this educational and inspirational! Great content from great founders that know what it takes to hire the best people.
So this was part 1 of 3 and I will be posting links to full videos of the event later in the week – so come back to check this blog for more updates.

Happy hiring!

This post is also posted on my other blog “The Road to Silicon Valley”.
URL: http://www.theroadtosiliconvalley.com/jobs/attracting-hiring-retaining-best-people/

~ Ernest

Linked mentioned in this post

• StartupDigest: http://startupdigest.com/
• Heyzap › Powered Up Products for Game Developers and Publishers: http://www.heyzap.com/
• Immad Akhund’s blog: http://www.immadsnewworld.com/
• Rapleaf – Personalizing the consumer experience: http://www.rapleaf.com/
• Auren Hoffman’s blog: http://blog.summation.net/

I have been very busy over the last few months building up the content of my 2nd blog. It is called “The Road to Silicon Valley“. The Road to Silicon Valley chronicles my early days of arriving in California (from Australia) with nothing more than a suitcase of clothes & gadgets. The Road to Silicon Valley’s aim is to help newbies to Silicon Valley find everything they need to know about getting here, settling in both financially & personally, the psychology of such a big move including the daily experiences of being in a rapidly changing & face paced high-tech environment.

Since high school (back in Sydney, Australia), I have always dreamt of one day working in Silicon Valley. A region in California to the south of San Francisco that is noted for its concentration of high-technology industries like Google, Apple, Microsoft et al. Silicon Valley is the place made from dreams, where people change the world and bring life into innovative ideas. Here, failure is called education, change is called progress and the employee is truly no.1. It is also the place where one can connect with amazing talent and have plenty of experiences like no other. This is Silicon Valley. It’s all here, and so am I.

Drop by and let me know what you think. I’m sure you will find plenty of useful & insightful articles.

The website is located here: http://www.theroadtosiliconvalley.com/

2010 wrap up

Check out what’s lined up for the rest of the year on my experiments in Personal Development, Productivity & Inner Peace.

Stuff on:

• How failure and success meet,
• How to spot common human emotions,
• What causes professional excellence, financial success and accelerated results,
• How to change your state by changing your thoughts,
• and many more…

Stay tuned. Plenty of great content!

~ Ernest

Not enough time in a day… is a common mantra in our society. But what if we could change this and gain extra 3 hours in a day to do more, become more, have more energy, and achieve those goals sooner. Does all of this come for free? of course not. There is always a level of sacrifice. However the pain can be eased and turned into a benefit. Let me explain.

To have more time in a day (without reorganising where you spend your time) is to sleep less. It’s that simple.

So how do you sleep less (5 hours per night) and have more energy to do more?

I set to find out the answer to this back in September 2009 when I published my 1st self experiments on sleeping less and having more energy. My usual habit was 8/9 hours per night of sleeping and I wanted to recoup a maximum of 3 hours per day. Basically sleep 5 hours per night without reducing the quality of my sleep and still feeling full of energy both physically and emotionally. Since then alot has changed and I use various tools to help me achieve this perfect balance of feeling great and sleeping less.

And now, for my perfected formula.

Prepare – stuff you need

• 10,000-lux Therapy light – $90 (NatureBright SunTouch Plus Light and Ion Therapy Lamp)
• Sleep monitor – 99c (I use this 99c Sleep Cycle iPhone app).
• Caffeine – I prefer tea but coffee is fine too – $10

How it’s done – step by step

Follow this consistent pattern for the next 2 weeks and I guarantee you that you will sleep less and have more energy.

Before you sleep

• Setup a consistent sleep and wake time. Going by the sleep cycle graphs your best sleep time is between 12am-3am. Therefore set your sleep time around 12am and wake time around 5am. I typically get ready to sleep around 11:40pm each night. So by the time you snooze away it will be 12am.
• Learn to still your mind (rid the monkey mind) through meditatation so that you can fall asleep faster. Meditation is all about stilling and relaxing your mind – being in the present moment. When your mind is free & relaxed your body will learn to follow, to relax. And if you are laying down while doing this you will fall asleep faster.
• Excercise throughout the day to raise your body temperature. What goes up must come down. Your body temperature always spikes with excercise and will drop at night and yield very good “deep sleep”. Remember, it’s the quality not quantity of your sleep that counts in feeling & being rested.
• Find the times your mind switches into REM state. You do not want to wake up in deep sleep. Only REM. You can manipulate your wake up time or use a number of handy sleep aid applications (like sleep cycle which I use) which monitors your sleep cycle and wakes you up in your REM state. Another way to tell is if you wake up in the morning directly from a dream. This is REM state, the dreaming phase when you mind is close to being awake.

After you wake up

• First thing you do when you open your eyes is Jump out of bed with energy. This anchors waking up with energy. It is a form of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) called anchoring and works wonders.
• Jump around for a minute or 2 spinning your arms and doing the Anthony Robbins lift. This gets the heart pumping, blood moving throughout your body quicker (you did sleep for couple of hours) and increases your breathing rate. This should definitely wake you up! Do this in intervals for the next hour if you feel tired again.
• Sit in front of the 10,000-lux Therapy light for around 1 hour. See my previous post on best practise methods of using this lamp. I like to educate myself by reading a book during this period but you can also check your emails, catchup on the news, trade shares (if you are on the west coast) or write code (hack away). Do something that is productive since the morning energy is best used on productive tasks.
• Make yourself a nice cup of tea or coffee. Make sure there is caffeine in it. Caffeine is best taken early in the morning to stimulate your nervous system and helps with waking you up & bringing alertness. You can also drink Yerba Mate to give you a morning energy kick.
• Now that you have extra 3 hours in a day – Keep yourself busy. Don’t sit around doing nothing since this is demotivating and unproductive. If you do nothing you will fall asleep again. You are waking up for a purpose so take advantage of this extra time. Read an educational book, write code, trade shares etc…
• And don’t forget a good breakfast. A healthy and energising breakfast in the morning sets your mental and phsyical body up for the day. Which is why breakfast is called the most important part of the day. Read through my perfect breakfast program if you need a refresher on what to eat or are looking for something with a good kick.

Is this a lot? Of course not. Once it becomes a habit you won’t even have to think about what to do next. It will all flow together smoothly and be part of your daily routine.

Benefits:

• Awake while the rest of the world sleeps – just knowing this is motivating since it gives you a head start to the day.
• Peace – the world is quiet and you can concentrate and gather your thoughts easier. It’s a good time to do work that requires a lot of concentration. I like to read in the morning. My mind is open to learning new things and soaks up everything like a sponge. If you have always wanted to accelerate your learning then this is a good reason – give it a shot.
• Better digestion – if you look at the chart below you will see that bowel movement occurs naturally around 8am each day. Because you are awake and your body knows, this part of your body’s cycle can advance. If you are sleeping your whole body is asleep and no bowel movements. Removing waste is an important biological process and if interrupted throws your metabolism out leading to bloated stomach and more waste in your body. I have an unproven theory here that allowing this natural cycle to work helps with weight loss because your bowel is emptied each day.

Some features of the human circadian biological clock - Wiki

• Last but not least, MORE TIME to do more stuff. You need to make sure that the extra time you have is spent wisely doing something productive. Doing something productive is encouraging and motivating. Seeing goals get ticked off makes you feel good and ultimately paints a positive picture “do more to feel good” – the reward centers in your brain secrete more serotonin and you overall feel better and better each day to wake up early and get going. Once you start waking up early a powerful association of getting stuff done and feeling good gets cemented into your nervous system.

If you are already sleeping less and doing more I would love to hear about it. Use the comments below to share how you did it and benefits you received from it.

Here’s to sleeping less and doing more!

Ernest

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In the 1st post for 2010 I hit it off with a wake up call for you to take control of your life and be a leader.

“Take control of your raft and steer your way forward, don’t let the current carry you in its own direction.” – Ernest Semerda

The message is clear – Take a hold of your life (raft) and steer it towards your goals, visions and aspirations. Don’t let the sinking feeling hit you mid year because you failed to focus on your goals. Or worse, that all the goals you have achieved are someone else’s. If you need help with creating a set of solid goals and making a lasting difference in your life then I recommend you re/visit my past post on this topic. If you have already read that post and are now looking for more strategies to get you moving at an ever quicker pace then read on.

Managing daily chaos effectively

It’s best written then said since I can share this with more then the few that have asked me this question – How do I handle the ever increasing vastness pool of both daily personal and business emails, requests, ideas, stuff to do et al and still get things done… fast!

You may or may not have heard of David Allen, the author of leading productivity books and his Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity (commonly abbreviated as GTD) method. I have had the pleasure of working through his material some time ago to gain insight and alter my habits to increase my productivity and become more results orientated in both my personal and business life.

GTD rests on the principle that a person needs to move tasks out of the mind by recording them externally.

The process explained to get stuff done fast

The main principle is to get everything that is nagging you out of your mind and into a trusted external memory (file system or electronic form), so that you can stay focused on what you actually have to do now, rather than on various ideas, plans and commitments for later.

This allows you to systematically move through your to-do one by one without loosing focus. I will share my multi-tasking experience in a future post because these 2 go hand in hand.

So, the GTD process is a method for using those tools systematically together. The process can be broken down as follows:

1. Collect basket:
   1. Collect everything (stuff) that catches your attention.
   2. “Stuff” is a catchall word, which can refer to an email, something at the back of your mind, a note, a voice-mail, a scrap from a newspaper, etc., i.e. any item that has been collected.
   3. Then get it out of your mind and into a trusted external memory, e.g. by writing it down on paper or in a computer file and placing it into an in-tray.

1. Process basket:
   1. To gain control over the collected material, you need to empty the in-tray regularly.
   2. Emptying means deciding what to do with— not actually doing— by processing and organizing the items one by one.
   3. Processing a basket is easy:
      

1. Start at the top of your ‘in-tray’.

2. Deal with one item at a time.

3. Never put anything back into ‘in-tray’.

4. If an item requires action:

- Do it (if it takes less than two minutes), OR
- Delegate it, OR
- Defer it.

5. If an item does not require action:
- File it for reference, OR
- Throw it away, OR
- Incubate it for possible action later.

An example: The to-do item “plane tickets for Sydney” was initially in the Project Plan “Travel to Sydney”, reminding you to order the tickets; now you are Waiting for them to arrive by post; if they don’t arrive, it will become a Next Action to call the company about the tickets; after you have used them, you may store the tickets as a Reference, so that later you could potentially use them as proof of expenses made.

Simple right? At first it may feel awkward because it is outside the norm. Change always feels different and sometimes scary. But with time and practice this will become a new habit of yours and you will wonder how you ever lived life without it.

Why you must change – your brain only stores 7-plus-or-minus-two items

Anxiety is linked to future thought patterns. Especially when those thought patterns get buried (forgotten) and you get that uncomfortable feeling you forgot something important. Stress & anxiety have a natural tendency to affect the conscious mind throwing logic and decision-making out the door. All this happens because short-term memory is of limited capacity, usually 5-9 items (“7-plus-or-minus-two“). Beyond this capacity, new information can “bump” out other items from short-term memory. This is one form of forgetting.

Therefore, getting everything out of your mind and into a trusted external memory is paramount.

Hence the benefit of this fantastic approach. You will feel much less stressed by the need to remember all that “stuff” and at the same time will know that it isnt lost, just filed for later processing.

Practical application to real life examples

So I hear you screaming for examples, your excited, and ready to apply this right now. Here are some ways you can do this right away:

• Change how your inbox is setup:
  

  	Here is a snap shot of my work Outlook Inbox.I have these folders closed for privacy reasons but you can already see a common pattern. All my emails arrive in the Inbox – standard. But it’s what I do next that’s more important! What I do is try to clear them out by applying the GTD rules outlined above. Some will be done instantly and others will be filed into my Next actions, Waiting For or one of the Archive folders. Simple right. If I get asked about an email which required my team members getting involved then that email will be in my “Waiting for” folder since I would have had to contact the other party/s and am now waiting for their reply. How about an active project to retrieve some material from few weeks back. No problem. It’s in the “Projects” folders filed under the name of the actual project.
  Each morning I review the “Next actions” and “Waiting for” folders to “create action” – stuff that will keep me busy moving forward. I may find that I need to chase someone up, send a reminder email, finish off a task or organise a meeting etc… it all just flows.

• But there’s more: Your computer folders can also be setup and managed as your inbox. Doing this helps you solidify this new habit sooner since all your organisation (inbox, folders etc) is done using the same process.
• Offline: Put an “in-tray” on your desk and always throw all notes into. It doesnt matter what type of note, whether it’s sticky notes with things to do, ideas you scribbled on paper, paperwork you were handed to do etc. Try to move away from sticky notes on your monitor – these now belong in your in-tray. Let’s face it, sticky notes are useless when stuck to your monitor and serve only to distract you and clutter your desk (and mind).

In conclusion

The strategy outlined above is simple, effective and anyone can start use it today. However what is required is a change in your habits, which takes time. People want instant change but unfortunately it takes time as I outlined in my post on developing new habits. Change requires effort and persistence, it also requires moving away from your comfort zone and accepting that the current habit may not be the best. And this is where it stops for the masses since humans are creatures of comfort and not many are willing to change unless something major happens in their life. Those that have learnt that the world is constantly changing and they should too will experience the power of accelerated productivity from the technique I outlined above.

If you are already following this new process please share it with other readers and tell us how it’s working for you in the comments section below. If you have further questions about the application and/or methods then please post a message in the comments section below and I will answer it immediately.

I love questions, so ask away!

Have a blast with this new approach and remember it’s here to help you to be more productive and get stuff done fast!

Ernest

Links mentioned in this post

• Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
• David Allen Books
• Get off your @$$ – be the leader of your life!
• The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two

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This tea rocks! If you had enough of caffeine jitteriness or its addictive tendencies, want to quit adding sugar to your tea or not a big fan of green tea but would love something that has both the power of black tea and the health benefits of green tea then look no further then Yerba Mate. It’s refreshing and energizing and has a nice list of health benefits.

“I reached the place of our vibouac by sunset and drinking much mate, soon made up my bed for the night. The wind was very strong and cold, but I never slept more comfortably.” – Charles Darwin, Voyage of the Beagle, 1936

What is Yerba Mate

Yerba Mate is a green leafed shrub, original of subtropical South America. It’s popularity is due not only to it’s exotic taste, but to it’s potent health benefits. It has been the drink of choice of the Guarani Indians in early colonial periods. More on Wikipedia here.

Health Benefits of Yerba Mate Tea

Here are a good bunch of great reasons you should be drinking this tea:

• It’s rich in vitamins, minerals and full of antioxidants – yerba mate offers a higher concentration of polyphenols to pack a punch in the fight against free radicals,
• Works as an appetite suppressant,
• Due to its thermogenic compounds it helps you burn more fat by elevating your metabolism,
• 100% of the caffeine in a cup of coffee but no side effects like the jitters or yellow teeth stains &
• Promotes cell survival better than red wine or green tea. - Hard science sources

How does it look

Pictures speak louder then words. Here are some of the pictures I took of the tea.

Where to get it?

Yerba Mate is a lot harder to acquire in store due to lower awareness of this great tea. However there are few places online which sell Yerba Mate for basically next to pennies. Amazon as always has a good selection – notice the special Yerba Mate tea gourd for drinking this tea:

If you are in Australia, “Natures Green Gold” proudly introduces South America’s secret of well being and vitality to Australian homes. Visit their website for Australian locations to pickup Yerba Mate: http://www.naturesgreengold.com/. Thanks to Nathan Hesse for sending me this link to help our Australian readers in acquiring this fantastic drink locally.

Tim Ferriss

Timothy Ferriss, an American author and public speaker speaks highly of Yerba Mate and it’s benefits in how it had helped him write his 1st NY Times Best Seller book called The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich.

“2. Biochemically Fine-Tune. I found by accident that my best sessions all followed a specific ratio: 3 cups of yerba mate tea for each glass of wine consumed.” – Tim’s blog

Further reading

If you would like to learn more about Yerba Mate Tea then I highly recommend you read the links below. There is a wealth of information there. Alternatively send me a message and I will happily respond to your questions.

I love questions, so ask away!

Ernest

Links mentioned in this post

• Stories submitted by Yerba Mate loyal customers:
  http://www.yerbamatetea.com/yerbamatetestimonial.htm
• Yerba mate contains 24 vitamins and minerals, 15 amino acids, and 11 polyphenols, a group of phytochemicals which act as powerful antioxidants. Find out more about this here:
  http://www.mymateworld.com/yerba_mate_health_benefits.htm
• Yerba Mate Cruz de Malta x 500 g Argentina Tea 1.1 lb:
  http://ernestblog.com/yerba-mate-cruz-de-malta-500g-argentina-wonder-tea
• Natures Green Gold proudly introduces South America’s secret of well being and vitality to Australian homes:
  http://www.naturesgreengold.com/

Stories submitted by Yerba Mate loyal customers:

“I drink Yerba Mate every morning. It is my way of waking up and greeting the day. It gives me an energy that is not a ‘hyped up’ feeling but rather like a natural energy that comes from a healthy lifestyle.”

Nancy Smith, Registered Nurse, Reno, Nevada More…

“When I sit down to paint yerba seems to give me the mental clarity and focus that I need in order to create to my fullest potential.”

Scott Cranmer, Artist, Audubon, New Jersey More…

“When my doctor suggested I give up black tea and coffee a year ago, I switched to drinking Green Tea for the perceived health benefits. However, I found it somewhat unsatisfying as a morning beverage. Luckily, I discovered Yerba Mate and I’ve never looked back. I began ordering my yerba mate from Nativa for their great services and prices (just one third of what I was paying here in BC). Since switching to yerba mate, I experience none of the jittery side effects of coffee, sleep very well and just generally feel great!”

Jim Sutton, Family Therapist, Vancouver, British Columbia More…

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If you are a fan of the TV Series Lie to Me (like me) you are going to love this book by Dr. Paul Ekman – Telling Lies: Clues to Deceit in the Marketplace, Politics, and Marriage, Third Edition. This book is the science behind Lie to Me. From breaking the law to breaking a promise, how do people lie and how can they be caught. All 20 years of Ekman’s knowledge in this field is encapsulated inside this fantastic book.

When people lie, their most evident, easy-to-see expressions, which people pay most attention to, are often the false ones. ~ Telling Lies

Who is Dr. Paul Ekman

Dr. Paul Ekman is a psychologist who has been a pioneer in the study of emotions and their relation to facial expressions. He is considered one of the 100 most eminent psychologists of the twentieth century. The character Cal Lightman of the television series Lie to Me is loosely based on him and his work. More on Ekman is detailed here: http://www.paulekman.com/ – Cutting edge behavioural science for real world applications

The Truth is Written All Over Our Faces – Lie to Me

Lie to Me – the TV series

Lie to Me, is about Dr. Cal Lightman (Tim Roth) and his colleagues in The Lightman Group accepting assignments from third parties (commonly local and federal law enforcement), and assisting in investigations, reaching the truth through applied psychology: interpreting microexpressions, through the Facial Action Coding System, and body language.

Me (Ernest) reading Telling Lies - "I give this book 5/5 stars!"

The Book: Telling Lies: Clues to Deceit in the Marketplace, Politics, and Marriage, Third Edition

Ok so you can tell I enjoy Lie to Me for all the WEALTH of educational, useful and practical material this show offers. The book Telling Lies: Clues to Deceit in the Marketplace, Politics, and Marriage, Third Edition is a companion to the show’s science. It digs deep into the research behind the accepted theories and introduces the reader to work Ekman done with the Secret Service, FBI, CIA etc… There are also extras which are not in the show like the difference between “manipulators” and “illustrators”.

Manipulators are hard to control and people cannot stop doing them for very long, especially when they are relaxed. They include all those movements in which one part of the body grooms, massages, rubs, holds, pinches, picks, scratches, or otherwise manipulates another body part.  For example; covering the eyes was common among patients who felt shame. Also people have a tendancy to move forward with interest or anger and backward with fear or disgust.

Illustrators however are called by the name because they illustrate speech as it is spoken. The best clue to deceit is when the number of illustrators changes from the norm. For example: people tend to illustrate more then usual when they are furious, horrified, very agitated, distressed, or excitedly enthused. Also the opposite applies. Knowing one’s common illustrators will help you understand what state of mind they are in.

Emblems however are common signs like the finger or the shrug which everyone knows what these mean. Emblematic slips happen subconsciously in response to emotion. Where emblems occur in presentation area (between the waist and the neck area) emblematic slips are never performed in the presentation area. Best indicator is to remember that when “emblematic slips” increase, illustrators decrease.

These indicators are part of the detecting deceit from Words, Voice, or Body group. If you are suspicious of a lie, pay more attention to the voice and body. The voice, like the face, is tied to the areas of the brain involved in emotion and is a great indicator. You might want to check out The Invention of Lying which gives viewers a comical yet revealing truth about the influence of lying and it’s impact on our society.

More to come

“The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist. And like that, poof. He’s gone.” ~ Verbal / Keyser Soze – The Usual Suspects

I started learning about clues to deceit et al some time ago because I was interested in catching lie’s people tell to take advantage of someone. Having been a victim several times, I decided to take action. Since then I have a number of interesting books on body language, micro expressions and practised on Dr. Paul Ekman’s Facial Action Coding System (FACS) software to improve my cognition in categorizing facial behaviors based on the muscles that produce them.

I wanted to know with more accuracy who is “full of it” and who is telling the truth.

I plan to blog more about deceit, body language and micro expressions in the coming months. I believe understanding the people around you is an important trait which one can masture to help with building better rapport, friendship, relationship and to be in a position to stop liars from misleading you. Wouldn’t it be great to know if that sales man just wants a quick sale and isn’t interested in your needs or whether that deal is shonky, and / or misleading.

Essentially, this knowledge helps you make better informed decisions about practically anything in your life. That’s something worth knowing!

I love questions, so ask away!

Ernest.

Links mentioned in this post:

• Dr. Paul Ekman’s website: http://www.paulekman.com/
• Book reviewed: Telling Lies: Clues to Deceit in the Marketplace, Politics, and Marriage, Third Edition
• TV Series (Lie to Me) based on the book: Lie to Me
• Movie about what the world would be like without lies: The Invention of Lying
• The Usual Suspects (Special Editon)

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If you ever wondered why people feel grumpy, low on energy and depressed during winter season, long hours in the office or why 1 in 5 people in the UK suffer from Depression then read on.

Back in September last year (2009) I covered light therapy as one of the methods used in controlling your sleeping cycle and having more energy. Since we are now officially in winter (USA timezone) I have switched on an alternative source of 10,000 lux – the NatureBright SunTouch Plus Light and Ion Therapy Lamp. Every morning for 1 hour I sit in front of a 10,000-lux lamp (as shown below) educating myself while receiving the required daily intake of light to help lift my mood, stabilize my rhythms and invigorate my body. By the time the 1 hour is up I feel refreshed, full of energy and fully awake.

Me (Ernest) getting my daily 1 hour of 10,000-lux of Light. The only source of light in this picture is the 10,000 lux lamp - very bright!

Benefits of light therapy

Light therapy is a replacement for those of us who do not get at least 1 hour of sun light (10,000-lux of light) everyday. And that is just about everyone who works in an office, drives to work and works though lunch. Most indoor office light only gives out 300-lux of light. A candle in a dim room gives out 3-lux of light; for comparison. Outdoors on a sunny day is 500- 1,000 times brighter than office or room lighting. Not forgetting that during winter the amount of available natural light is reduced due to shorter days and more cloud cover.

10,000-lux of light has the power to:

• help Lift your spirits,
• balance your body clock,
• lift your mood,
• stabilize your internal rhythms,
• invigorate your body systems leaving you feeling rested, refreshed, and nourished all over and
• it can reduce the nagging symptoms of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). If you want to know whether you are suffering from SAD click here for a quick free test.

How the lamp works

The Sun Touch Plus emits energizing, healing rays, using 10,000-lux Sky Effect light while simultaneously releasing streams of negative ions. It creates the same fresh air you feel by a waterfall or from an ocean breeze.

Scientific researchers have discovered a new light receptor in the eye’s retina that interprets signals from light rays, and sends the information to sections of our brain that stimulate hormone secretion and body rhythms. The Sun Touch Plus’ Sky Effect lamps emit the optimal blue light (white light is made up of colours – think of a rainbow) that best stimulates these receptors, which send signals to neurological receptors, energizing important centers in the body. (Amazon)

The trick is to make sure that the light enters your eyes from the top– just like the sun light would on a sunny day. I achieve this by lifting the device on some books to raise it higher and then proceed to read a book which is laying flat on the table in front of the device. Time goes by very quick, and by the time the auto timer on the device turns off the light I feel amazing and ready to tackle another amazing day. Who would have thought that a $100 device could make such a huge difference!

Where to get the lamp

I use the NatureBright SunTouch Plus Light and Ion Therapy Lamp from Amazon. For those that know me well will know that I do a lot of research before committing to any investment. In future posts I will explain how this therapy has played a major role in reshaping my everyday life. For now if you are interested grab it from Amazon here.

If you found this post useful and / or have or are using light therapy then share your experiences with everyone by posting a comment below.

Sources / mentions in article:

Still not convinved? Here are some comments from users of NatureBright SunTouch Plus Light and Ion Therapy Lamp from Amazon

I wouldnt’ have believed it if I hadn’t tried it, February 28, 2008

By Super Happy Gal

I’m a 34 year old woman. I’ve used this light faithfully for about a month. Until about day #12 I would have told you it was a hoax. But the light said it could take up to two weeks before you could see results. So I stuck with it and I will tell you that it really works. It’s a subtle but big difference (i.e. it doesn’t change your personality, just your energy and mood) in my mood and energy level. I will use this at the beginning of every winter, into spring. I get really tired with low energy in winter. My energy level has gradually increased until I am my regular, energetic self. I’ve told all my sisters to get one. I work as a nail technician and have told my clients to get one. Everyone is wondering if I get some kind of kickback from Naturebright. I tell them that I should be, but I’m not. I use my husband as the real critic and he swears it has made me a lot more energetic with a more even mood. So there you have it. Also, I looked at the Mayo-clinic websight and their research seems to support the light therapy. My dad is a psychologist and all the research he’s read supports light therapy. Just make sure you get a 10,000 lux lamp. I really like this one, though because of the optional ion thing. Even though I have no feedback on that because I haven’t used that yet. I wanted to try one thing at a time so I would know the difference. This is getting long. Anywho, I would definitely recommend this lamp for its effectiveness and reasonable price. See ya! Read more.

Bye Bye Winter Blues!, January 7, 2008

By J. Bowley “J B” (Westerly, RI)

I have had winter SAD for a long time and if I knew the enormous difference this thing would have made I could have saved myself many seasons of suffering. Within a few days my mood has done a complete 180! I feel like “my old self” again! Thanks Naturebright your product has changed my life and I dont ever want to go without it again. Read more.

A miracle!, December 4, 2009

By J. Davies (Chicago, IL USA)

I cannot believe how wonderful this product is. If I knew, I would have bought it years ago! I have suffered from SAD for years, since college, getting progressively worse each year. Last winter was the longest, grayest and coldest in memory in the Chicagoland area. We followed with a cool gray summer and long, cool gray fall. I was at my wits end. Amazon had a price on lamps that was reasonable compared to any lamps sold in years past. In just a few short days I feel amazing! I use the lamp for 30 minutes in the morning while checking emails, and again for 10 minutes in the late afternoon. It is dark here around 4:30pm with the worst yet to come. It has been gray 9 out of 10 days on average. I usually NEED a nap around 3pm and the length was increasing from 30 minutes to over an hour. I have not taken or felt the need to take a nap since using the lamp. Also, I would usually be crashing by 8pm, struggling to keep my eyes open until 10:30, not any longer. I wake up refreshed at 4:30am-my usual summer time-I am a morning person ; ) I have had more energy and enthusiasm and feel much more like myself. I am getting a lamp for my mother and recommending it to anyone who asks about my improved mood and energy level. I can’t say enough positive things about this product and I never write reviews. I can only say try this lamp. Oh…I do not mind the negative ion therapy. It doesn’t smell bad, as others wrote, kind of like the smell after a good rain. The unit is the perfect size to sit on a desk and seems quite sturdy. I terrific value for my mental well being!!! Read more.

I Wish I Would Have Bought This Years Ago, November 16, 2009

By M. Unruh “Missouri girl” (Kansas City, MO USA)

I have suffered from Seasonal Affective Disorder for over seven years. It is usually a fairly insidious onset until by January or February I am not getting out of bed and sleeping for over 12 hours a day. I have literally tried everything: medication, behavioral therapy, and multiple lifestyle changes. I wish I would have purchased this years ago.

I have had this for five days and there is a huge difference in my energy, mood, and circadian rhythm. I use it for thirty minutes when I first wake up. Since waking up with SAD is very difficult, I will place it on my coffee table and will watch the morning news while using the lamp (my biggest battle is getting out of bed to the couch, which isn’t too bad). Then I will use it between 5-6 p.m.

As for some of the prior reviews, I can agree that there is a smell associated when the ion therapy is in use. However, it does not bother me that much. It smells much like a new plastic item does, but I think that scent decreases with use. Read more.

Wide awake, November 11, 2009

By N in maine (maine)

It is 6am in the (soon to be) frozen north and pitch black outside but I am wide awake and full of energy. I love my light box. It is light and easy to use. I understand the bulbs get very hot but you would never know it because they are behind the frosted screen so it is also safe. The product is excellent and my biggest concern before buying it was whether light therapy works or not. I can tell you it works great with me. I have never used the ion-function so I can’t tell you about that. Before using it make sure you read the instructions and check out websites that can tell you how light therapy works. If the light is not close enough to you or if you use it the wrong time of day then it will not work.  Read more.

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I’m not going to bore you with the same aged material about goal setting and how important it is to your success or go into detail about a long rumoured Harvard study which found “that the 3% of the population which makes the effort to write down their goals makes over ten times as much as the other 97% combined”. Or was that the Yale study which also didn’t take place.

“Change your life change your future.” – Jim Rohn

What I will talk about is changing your future with a good solid plan for the year ahead. Putting together a set of steps  which you can follow to take you to the next level. Without a direction how do you know where you are going? where are you going? maybe you are drifting by with the rest. Time to take control of your future!

“Take control of your raft and steer your way forward, don’t let the current carry you in its own direction.” – Ernest Semerda

Planning the year ahead is the same habit every successful leader / company takes time aside annually to layout the strategic direction for the new year. The aim is to re/focus efforts (both resources and financial), create a road map how to move forward to stay ahead of competition and keep the wheels moving. This IS the biggest study that this system actually works and creates long-lasting results. Planning works. It has worked for companies ranging from 1 to thousands of employees generating up to billions of dollars per year. It has been underneath our noses, you may have even played a role in it, so why shouldnt it work for you. Let’s make it work for you.

The aim is to bring focus to the year ahead. What do you want to do this year in your personal and business life in 2010?

We all want more out of life, yet how many of us are willing to change in order to make a difference. Change requires effort, sacrifice and breaking through the fear barrier. As an unknown proverb once said “fall down 7 times get up 8 times!” in order to succeed. This means moving outside your comfort zone and building new habits. It takes time and rarely yields instant gratification. But I’m sure you have heard this quote before, “all good things come to those that wait”. It’s not wait do nothing, but that gratification comes over time to those who persist, put in effort and energy into change.

“Rome was not built in one day.” John Heywood

Where to start – it’s simple

1. You have 12 months (1 year) to make a difference in your life. Need motivation? I’m sure you can recall an event, a person or something unjust which happened to you in 2009. Get Angry! Feel the Disgust – today is the day you say “enough is enough” and you make a life changing event.

2. Start with a Mind Map. It’s the closest approach to how you mind works when brainstorming. Dont bother with bulleted notations for brainstorming – your mind is not linear in thought. It’s chaos in there. Let’s get it down on paper. Click here if you want to read more about mind maps.

3. Once you have the Mind Map done, pull out “Core Project” areas you want to focus on. Make sure each Core Project area is realistic – challenges should match skills, i.e. the task should be neither too difficult, which would produce stress and anxiety, nor too easy, which would produce boredom. You may call these Core Projects “Goals” if it helps to maintain uniformity with your earlier approach.

4. Expand on each Core Project and write it’s “Milestones”. Each Milestone must have a due date and be very specific without leaving much room for interpretation. For example, writing “I want more money by July 2010″ might yield you an extra 1% raise in your financial position. But if you write “I will have an extra $20,000 by March 2010″ then this is specific and your subconscious mind has something solid to work with. Think of your subconscious mind like a Genie. You have to be very careful what you wish for, because you are damn sure going to get it.

5. Now break down each Milestone into Actionable steps (how & what you plan to do). Let’s use the $20,000 example; ask yourself how do you intend on making that additional $20,000 by the due date. Some actionable steps might be:

• Sell a product online. This may be by creating an iPhone / Android applications or through Affiliate Marketing in a niche market. If you have the skills then you might do this yourself or maybe you need to educate yourself in this area before you can begin or hire someone with the right skill set.
• Meet that sales target at work, work out a deal with your employer that for a sale of x amount by the due date you will get compensated the required money. If you can give value to your employer which is above what they are to pay you there is no reason the employer would refuse. You and they make money. It’s only fair.
• Provide a specialised service (that’s of value to your target market) and set up a subscription service ie. $9.99 for access. This means you will need 2003 subscribers to reach your target figure. What will this service be, how do you intend to make it unique, how will you build your subscribers list and why should they subscribe (give money) to you.

These are just some of the questions you need to be asking yourself and working on their solutions to meet your target.

6. Have fun. You need to enjoy what you are doing. When you are doing something you enjoy and it is realistic you will experience Flow. The pleasurable state that people experience when they are absorbed in an activity that demands their full attention, but such that they feel in control, i.e. able to effectively move towards their target, however far away this still may be.

7. Put your targets where you can see them daily. You want to be reminded constantly to generate “urgency” for completion. You want to make sure that you review the list on a daily basis and have it in sight all the time, say on the bathroom mirror (to see the list each morning), on a whiteboard, to do list etc…

8. Dont forget point 1. This is very important to keep you going (motivated). There is a reason why you must change / make a difference in your life.

“Gambaru” translated from Japanese means “Never give up! Even if there is no chance of winning!”

Feel happy

When you have achieved a goal or set a milestone it will make you feel happy. You want to be happy, right. You want a sense of accomplishment, right. When you get to your golden days you want to be able to tell your kids you made a difference not only in your life but the life of other people you connected along the way, right.

Not enough time in a day – an excuse?

The same old excuse plagues many. If I told you that I can show you how to recover 3 hours daily without sacrificing your work or personal life would you once and for all eliminate this excuse of “not enough time in a day” and get moving on making a massive change in your life? What if I explained how to get another 2 hours on top of the 3. In total around 5 hours per day to focus on your goals. That’s 25 hours extra per working week! No gimmicks, no painful sacrifices (well maybe some pending how you look at them) but in the end you will be more, have more and get more pleasure out of life. I will share these learnings in a February post (if not earlier).

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I hope this post has inspired you to start making a difference in your life today. It’s never too late and now is the best time to start making a difference. What are you waiting for – do it now!!

May the rest of your life be the best part of your life! – José Silva

Ernest

“Anything you do with repetition and emotion will become your reality. If you’re not satisfied with your current experience, examine your habits.” says Dr. Andrew Weil.

The Research that it takes 21 days (3 weeks) to form a habit has been around for some time now and is widely accepted part of self-help programs. Some have challenged this quick habit change, bringing to light valid points on variation among people. No doubt not everyone’s mental states are the same and it’s also unlikely everyone will follow a strict routine to change their habit thus smearing the “21 days” goal. This is why I call this the “21 day challenge” because I believe that with repetition, emotion, focus, and a plan (goals & review) one can achieve a habit change in 21 days.

Do this

Devote 30 minutes a day to the formation of your new habit, and do this faithfully for 21 days. By the end of your 21 day challenge, it should actually be harder not to engage in the new behavior than it would be to continue doing it.

Where it all began

The 21-day concept was first introduced by Dr. Maxwell Maltz, in a book titled, Psycho-Cybernetics, A New Way to Get More Living Out of Life. Dr Maxwell Maltz, noticed that it took 21 days for amputees to cease feeling phantom sensations in the amputated limb. From further observations he found it took 21 days to create a new habit.

The science behind this goes like this;

“Brain circuits take engrams (memory traces), and produce neuroconnections and neuropathways only if they are bombarded for 21 days in a row. This means that our brain does not accept “new” data for a change of habit unless it is repeated each day for 21 days (without missing a day).” – Psycho-Cybernetics, A New Way to Get More Living Out of Life

Without missing a day? Yes. Because your conscious mind creates the belief and the subconscious mind then executes the belief – it is important to keep on “fueling that fire” until it is self sustaining.

Why this Knowledge is so Powerful?

We all want to change something about our self to some degree. Whether it is to give up or change something in our life we are always striving to reach that next level. What I am suggesting here is that all you have to do is give it 21 days (3 weeks) of 100% effort and it will become a new habit.

For example:

• Reduce your consumption of sugar for 21 days. You will be amazed what this will do to your taste buds and figure! Sugar, especially high fructose sugar is a major player in the increase of diabetes in our population. High fructose sugar is in most produce – see the label on your drink.
• Meditate for 21 days. Who says you can’t still your monkey mind and bring inner peace. The wonders of meditation are immense in eliminating stress & anxiety, giving you the power of clear focus & better decision making et al.
• Get up before 6am every day. This will give you plenty more hours in a day to enjoy with your family / loved ones and / or work on that business idea. Here are a number of steps I take to help me sleep less and have more energy.
• Eat greens (salads) for lunch for 21 days and feel better, stronger and fitter!

The list is endless. Find something needing change in your life and apply the 21 day challenge today.

Sustaining Motivation

This is the hardest part of any change. How to sustain motivation to continue throughout the 21 days. Here are some great points to keep you moving.

1.    Daily Review your list of reasons for quitting or changing.
2.    Create mental pictures of yourself as having already succeeded with your habit change.
3.    Make affirmations, positive self-statements about your habit change. For example, “I am filled with so much health and vitality now that I exercise four times a week.”
4.    Reward yourself. Make up a list of self-rewards. Reward yourself verbally.
5.    Remember to take one day at a time. If you do backslide, don’t label yourself as having failed. Get out your list or reasons for quitting or changing and begin again.

So, what is your 21 day challenge?

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