December Predicts January Stress: Strategies for a Smooth Start to the Year Did you know that December can predict your stress levels in January? Here’s how to start the year on the right foot. December is unique: fewer working days, more festive events, and the pressure to close the year on a high note. It’s also common to neglect personal care, impacting our sleep and exercise routines, along with a psychological effect – feeling more tired as vacations approach. 📅 Planning for a Peaceful January Organize Your Agenda: Ensure your January schedule is well-planned and prioritized. This will allow you to enjoy your holidays peacefully and avoid chaos upon your return. Maintain Balance: While it’s tempting to indulge in holiday excesses, remember the importance of balance to enter January refreshed. Maintain minimal exercise routines and some self-control during the holidays. 🔍 The Impact of Good Planning Stress Reduction: Having January organized in advance can prevent the increase in cortisol levels due to falling behind and post-holiday stress. Avoid Physical Regrets: Planning helps you avoid regretting holiday excesses and lack of physical activity. 🚀 There’s Still Time Every day counts. Spend some time planning January with intention and coherence. This way, you can fully enjoy December, knowing your return will be more manageable and less stressful.
Category Archives: Personal productivity
Sep
The power of disconnecting: Cultivating creativity and effectiveness. Recently, I had a young friend of my son over at our house. At 25, he’s a pilot with strong values. He’s friendly and open, but there’s a hunger for growth in his reflections, accompanied by humility, which is always a good sign. However, despite his promising future, I noticed a certain restlessness in him, perhaps even an excess of it. He confessed to me that he doubted whether he should achieve more in life. He shared his concerns with me repeatedly, and I sensed that he was somewhat consumed and excessively worried about the future. Interestingly, he told me that his own family often told him that he overthought things and needed to learn to relax. Naturally, he asked for my opinion, and I offered it to him with clarity: “You have a whole life ahead of you, at least around 45 years of opportunities. You must learn to enjoy the moment. But, when you do reflect, make sure your thoughts are effective and productive.” I suggested what I usually advise both myself and others when facing similar concerns. Regarding the restlessness that overwhelms us, I always recommend two actions: Record your thoughts: Write down all those ideas that pass through your mind. It can be in a notebook or a digital file. This will help you shape and clarify your thoughts. What isn’t written down doesn’t exist. Schedule time for reflection: Allocate an hour each week to continue your reflections. This will allow you to see how your thoughts and actions evolve over time and if you gain new perspectives. Nothing beats frequency and consistency over time. I advised him to avoid constant rumination about his concerns the rest of the time. He needed to relax and disconnect, especially concerning that particular topic. To do this, he had to ensure that, no matter how busy his schedule was, he found moments to take his mind off his worries. By acting this way, we discover that disconnection is a powerful ally for stimulating creativity and effectiveness. Now, it’s essential to understand why this works. When we work on something and give it a minimum structure in our conscious mind, by relaxing, we allow that information to pass into the subconscious. From that point on, our mind continues to work on it subconsciously. That’s why, at times, completely unexpectedly, a brilliant idea emerges from the depths of our mind during a walk, in the shower, or while driving. However, for this process to be effective, it’s essential to follow the steps 1 and 2 mentioned earlier. Furthermore, it’s crucial to have hobbies or activities that disconnect us completely from our work responsibilities. It can be anything from playing sports, painting, reading, cooking, meditating, or enjoying nature. The key is to find an activity that transports you to a state of relaxation and creativity, where you can set aside your concerns and allow your mind to work in the background. Learning to disconnect is essential for cultivating creativity and effectiveness in our lives. Taking time to reflect effectively and then allowing our minds to work in the background can lead us to discover innovative solutions and strike a balance between reflection and action. So, the next time you feel overwhelmed by worry and anxiety, remember the importance of disconnecting and giving your mind space to create and thrive. What’s that activity that truly allows you to disconnect?
Sep
Have you conducted the 4 key reflections upon the return from summer break? For many, September resembles January in the sense that it’s a good time for reflection and goal-setting. It makes perfect sense as we arrive filled with energy and good intentions. Moreover, we have less than 4 months to achieve our annual goals and objectives. Ensuring effectiveness from the very beginning is paramount. That’s why we invite you to ponder over these 4 questions as a formula to guarantee it: • Do you have a clear grasp of your priorities for the upcoming months, have you written them down, and have you aligned them with your manager? Or have you spent hours responding to and reading overdue emails instead? • Have you planned your schedule in a way that aligns it as closely as possible with these priorities? Or are you saying yes to every invitation that comes your way? • Have you designed a plan to maintain your energy at an optimal level until the year-end sprint? Or do you believe you don’t need it because you feel fresh after the summer? • What is the primary goal you must achieve before the year’s end, and what steps will you take to accomplish it? Or do you consider all goals to be equally important? Remember that it’s always a good time to reflect on the keys that enhance our personal productivity. That’s why we also recommend “LEAD YOURSELF” the book of the FASE Method.
Sep
The most common failure in personal productivity. The most common failure in personal productivity is the misalignment between CEOs’ priorities and their daily habits when it comes to personal organization and time management. Many directors have clear priorities but struggle to integrate them into their daily schedules. When we ask them if they have a clear vision of their goals, most of them respond with a resounding “YES.” However, when we inquire if they have written these goals down, again, most answer in the affirmative. They admit to setting annual goals regularly. Our response? That’s insufficient for effective planning and prioritization since annual goals are often too general. Therefore, we recommend transforming them into quarterly or monthly goals. When we ask if their agendas align with these priorities, the majority say “NO.” Those few who initially claim alignment often change their response to “NO” after closer examination of their calendars. Why does this happen? The reason is that we allow other people to dictate our schedules, when it should be the other way around. Based on my monthly or quarterly goals, I plan and protect my agenda to better align with my priorities, key meetings, and people necessary for achieving those objectives. This requires deep reflection and focused effort. We refer to this approach as “consistent intentionality.” Align your schedule with your priorities to create effective planning. Based on my monthly or quarterly goals, I plan and protect my agenda to better align it with my priorities and key meetings and people related to those objectives. This requires deep work and reflection and is what we call “consistent intentionality.” The second aspect involves being assertive and saying “NO” to activities, meetings, calls, etc., that do not align with your goals. While some commitments may be unavoidable, most can be politely declined or delegated to another team member. Saying “no” assertively will improve the quality of your “yes.” Finally, it’s important to remember that every time we say “yes” to something, we take away quality time from our goals. Therefore, the quality of our “yes” is closely connected to the quantity of our “no. Discover the consistent intentionality in your calendar and focus on it relentlessly. This is what will set you apart from letting others lead you. Prioritize your goals and shield yourself from the inertia imposed by others.
Aug
In just a few weeks, most of us will be on vacation, and some of you may already be enjoying your time off. It’s crucial to take this opportunity for disconnection and to live life to the fullest. Many of our clients often seek book recommendations, but our suggestion is that there’s no better book than the one we write about ourselves, and what better time to do it than during our vacation? The surprised look on their faces when they hear this recommendation is priceless. This idea aligns with the reflection shared in our newsletter and our most recent post about the question: “Float or sail? Focus on your work life.” The post has generated numerous comments from friends and clients. To sail means to pause and contemplate from time to time, set goals, and make plans. Moreover, sails empower us to act effectively on those plans. On the other hand, to float implies missing some key elements needed to sail: inadequate thinking, being frozen and unable to take action, or taking unproductive actions. Some people ask us what it means to think from a perspective. We encourage them to take pen and paper and write about themselves—the kind of book that everyone should have about their life journey and the lessons they’ve learned. Remember, if it’s not written down, it doesn’t exist. This time of year is perfect for pondering how you’ve been progressing toward your 2023 goals. While many people conduct a mid-year review with their managers, we urge you to delve deeper and truly analyze and learn from these past few months. It’s like writing a chapter about your personal development over these six months. Consider what successes you’ve achieved in the first half of the year and what didn’t go as well and why. Reflect on the learnings you’ve gained and how you can apply them in the next six months. It’s essential to take a step back and meditate on the moments that have led you to where you are today. In a non-stop world where people keep moving from one thing to another without pausing to think, it’s akin to a hamster in a wheel, going on and on and on—and it can be dangerous. Remember that the journey towards your goals is not a straight line and may require adjustments along the way. Reflection, assessment, and simplification enable you to make those changes and stay focused on what truly matters. If you feel like you’ve made no progress, don’t feel disheartened. The fact that you’re contemplating it and evaluating your situation is already a significant step forward. Utilize this time to set new goals and approach the next semester with a fresh mindset and a clear plan. However, keep in mind that this process isn’t just about looking back; it’s also about looking forward to the future. Use your observations to create a clear action plan and set milestones for achieving those goals. Set realistic deadlines and concentrate on actions that will lead you to success. Overall, consider your level of personal effectiveness and whether you’re planning as effectively as possible. Without taking action, all the reflection and planning will yield zero results. So, start writing the first chapter of your book, which will have a profound impact on your PSP: Personal and Professional Satisfaction. See you in September! Enjoy your summer.
