1 00:00:00,680 --> 00:00:05,400 Speaker 1: Today's show is an unusual one because the wonderful Shelley Johnson, 2 00:00:05,600 --> 00:00:08,680 Speaker 1: host of This Is Work, interviewed me for. 3 00:00:08,680 --> 00:00:11,200 Speaker 2: Her podcast and has kindly let. 4 00:00:11,039 --> 00:00:14,840 Speaker 1: Me share the interview with you. In this chat, we 5 00:00:15,080 --> 00:00:21,400 Speaker 1: explore some of the counterintuitive strategies to achieving genuine productivity, 6 00:00:21,800 --> 00:00:24,920 Speaker 1: the kinds that don't leave you feeling burnt out by 7 00:00:24,960 --> 00:00:29,600 Speaker 1: the day's end. You will learn why stopping mid sentence 8 00:00:29,880 --> 00:00:33,360 Speaker 1: might be your productivity superpower, how splashing cold water on 9 00:00:33,400 --> 00:00:36,800 Speaker 1: your face could save your afternoon slump, and why most 10 00:00:36,800 --> 00:00:39,320 Speaker 1: of us are spending seven hours a day on what 11 00:00:39,400 --> 00:00:44,680 Speaker 1: I call counterfeit productivity. So whether you're struggling with energy dips, 12 00:00:44,760 --> 00:00:47,839 Speaker 1: battling burnout, or simply trying to focus on what truly 13 00:00:47,920 --> 00:00:52,360 Speaker 1: matters in your work, this conversation will give you some practical, 14 00:00:52,479 --> 00:00:55,560 Speaker 1: science backed strategies that you can implement today. 15 00:00:57,720 --> 00:01:00,560 Speaker 3: Amantha, thank you for coming back on the show. It's 16 00:01:00,600 --> 00:01:01,960 Speaker 3: great to have this conversation with you. 17 00:01:03,120 --> 00:01:05,240 Speaker 1: I'm really excited to be here. I loved our last 18 00:01:05,240 --> 00:01:08,720 Speaker 1: conversation oh so deep. We went so many different places. 19 00:01:08,760 --> 00:01:12,759 Speaker 1: But today today I. 20 00:01:12,080 --> 00:01:17,280 Speaker 3: Have been thinking about your work and the combination of 21 00:01:17,319 --> 00:01:19,959 Speaker 3: your focus on productivity as well as health, and I 22 00:01:20,000 --> 00:01:23,320 Speaker 3: think it's really interesting the link between those two things, 23 00:01:23,800 --> 00:01:26,000 Speaker 3: how important one is for the other. 24 00:01:26,160 --> 00:01:27,759 Speaker 4: So we're going to go there today. We're going to talk. 25 00:01:27,680 --> 00:01:30,520 Speaker 3: About how we build these health habits, how we be 26 00:01:30,680 --> 00:01:34,000 Speaker 3: more productive. It's just something we all want. And I 27 00:01:34,040 --> 00:01:36,000 Speaker 3: want to start off with a question I have for 28 00:01:36,040 --> 00:01:42,520 Speaker 3: you around sometimes productivity is counterintuitive, like the things that 29 00:01:42,520 --> 00:01:45,520 Speaker 3: we think will make us productive sometimes don't, and the 30 00:01:45,560 --> 00:01:48,320 Speaker 3: things that make us productive that we're like, wait, what 31 00:01:48,520 --> 00:01:53,680 Speaker 3: does that actually work. What's the most counterproductive productivity tip 32 00:01:53,760 --> 00:01:54,480 Speaker 3: that's helped you. 33 00:01:56,360 --> 00:01:58,640 Speaker 2: I would say. 34 00:02:00,760 --> 00:02:03,120 Speaker 1: It would be I've heard it referred to as the 35 00:02:03,160 --> 00:02:07,360 Speaker 1: Hemingway trick, and other people refer to it as parking 36 00:02:07,360 --> 00:02:09,720 Speaker 1: on a downhill slope. And I think I first heard 37 00:02:09,760 --> 00:02:12,799 Speaker 1: it from Adam Grant or Rachel Botsman. It's something they 38 00:02:12,800 --> 00:02:16,919 Speaker 1: both use. And what it involves is when you're wrapping 39 00:02:17,040 --> 00:02:20,720 Speaker 1: up your work for the day, Intuitively, you kind of 40 00:02:21,080 --> 00:02:23,480 Speaker 1: you want to find closure, you want to finish the 41 00:02:23,520 --> 00:02:27,640 Speaker 1: task that you were doing. But when you start your 42 00:02:27,680 --> 00:02:30,600 Speaker 1: work again in the morning, if you finish something and 43 00:02:30,639 --> 00:02:34,639 Speaker 1: you're starting afresh on a brand new task, that is 44 00:02:34,680 --> 00:02:38,160 Speaker 1: a big cause of procrastination. And so the Hemingway trick 45 00:02:38,560 --> 00:02:43,639 Speaker 1: involves actually stopping when you're halfway through something. Why it's 46 00:02:43,639 --> 00:02:47,000 Speaker 1: called the Hemingway trick is that Ernest Hemingway used to 47 00:02:47,080 --> 00:02:51,080 Speaker 1: stop writing mid paragraph or even mid sentence, so that 48 00:02:51,160 --> 00:02:53,680 Speaker 1: it made starting again the next day really easy and 49 00:02:53,720 --> 00:02:56,120 Speaker 1: really easy to get into float. So, for example, how 50 00:02:56,160 --> 00:02:59,520 Speaker 1: I'm using it literally right now, I'm on deadline for 51 00:02:59,840 --> 00:03:04,440 Speaker 1: my fifth book, and every morning I spend the first 52 00:03:05,160 --> 00:03:08,920 Speaker 1: one to three hours writing and researching, and so when 53 00:03:08,919 --> 00:03:13,160 Speaker 1: I wrap up my writing mid morning, I will never 54 00:03:13,200 --> 00:03:15,360 Speaker 1: finish at the end of a chapter. I will always 55 00:03:15,360 --> 00:03:18,839 Speaker 1: finish halfway through something, and it makes starting again. 56 00:03:18,840 --> 00:03:22,720 Speaker 2: Really really easy in the morning. It sounds as you're talking. 57 00:03:22,720 --> 00:03:24,600 Speaker 3: If people can see my face, I'm like smiling, but 58 00:03:24,720 --> 00:03:26,040 Speaker 3: inside I'm cringing, like I. 59 00:03:26,040 --> 00:03:29,320 Speaker 4: Feel like I've got goose bunds, just thinking about like, no, 60 00:03:30,000 --> 00:03:33,080 Speaker 4: you can't, you can't finish midway through a sentence. 61 00:03:34,600 --> 00:03:36,720 Speaker 3: Did that first start make you feel weird? Like were 62 00:03:36,760 --> 00:03:38,840 Speaker 3: you feeling as uncomfortable as I am, because I've like 63 00:03:38,880 --> 00:03:40,440 Speaker 3: got that hebe Gebi's feeling. 64 00:03:40,440 --> 00:03:43,400 Speaker 4: I'm like, no, you must finish that particular task. 65 00:03:44,080 --> 00:03:48,600 Speaker 1: I'll tell you what it is weird. But when you 66 00:03:48,680 --> 00:03:52,080 Speaker 1: feel just how good it feels in the morning, because 67 00:03:52,160 --> 00:03:55,839 Speaker 1: I find starting something very hard. I mean, jen Ai 68 00:03:56,040 --> 00:04:00,440 Speaker 1: makes it easier to prompt you in different directions, but 69 00:04:01,520 --> 00:04:04,560 Speaker 1: writing can often feel like hard work when you're on 70 00:04:04,600 --> 00:04:07,720 Speaker 1: a deadline and I try to write a thousand words 71 00:04:07,720 --> 00:04:12,040 Speaker 1: a day, and if I was writing like a project 72 00:04:12,080 --> 00:04:15,000 Speaker 1: that didn't involve a lot of research, it's an easier 73 00:04:15,040 --> 00:04:17,520 Speaker 1: target to hit because you know, I've got lots of 74 00:04:17,520 --> 00:04:20,320 Speaker 1: practice writing, and I find it, you know, perhaps easier 75 00:04:20,320 --> 00:04:22,880 Speaker 1: than most people, simply because I practice a lot, but. 76 00:04:24,400 --> 00:04:25,080 Speaker 2: I just love it. 77 00:04:25,120 --> 00:04:28,240 Speaker 1: Every morning I'm like, oh great, I'm straight in and 78 00:04:28,279 --> 00:04:31,800 Speaker 1: I'm like, this is where I finished and it wasn't finished, 79 00:04:32,000 --> 00:04:34,240 Speaker 1: and it's just so easy to get started. 80 00:04:35,160 --> 00:04:37,839 Speaker 3: Well, I love that because that is counterintuitive. 81 00:04:38,000 --> 00:04:39,039 Speaker 4: I wouldn't think to do that. 82 00:04:39,120 --> 00:04:42,080 Speaker 3: I would think that that would make me feel like 83 00:04:42,120 --> 00:04:45,719 Speaker 3: I hadn't finished my day the day before. And so 84 00:04:46,080 --> 00:04:48,559 Speaker 3: just knowing that that is a technique that can work, 85 00:04:48,640 --> 00:04:51,080 Speaker 3: that can get you over because I absolutely know that 86 00:04:51,120 --> 00:04:53,480 Speaker 3: feeling of starting something. 87 00:04:53,240 --> 00:04:54,560 Speaker 4: Feels like that big lift. 88 00:04:54,680 --> 00:04:57,000 Speaker 3: That's the resistance we feel in the morning, especially if 89 00:04:57,000 --> 00:05:00,160 Speaker 3: it's something like weighty, like writing, for example, if or 90 00:05:00,240 --> 00:05:04,320 Speaker 3: thinking about a chapter you're writing. It can feel really 91 00:05:04,400 --> 00:05:09,360 Speaker 3: heavy just going from like the blank page staring at 92 00:05:09,400 --> 00:05:11,640 Speaker 3: you with the cursor just blinking, going oh my gosh, 93 00:05:11,680 --> 00:05:15,239 Speaker 3: here we go to like actually starting where you've already 94 00:05:15,279 --> 00:05:15,880 Speaker 3: got a roll on. 95 00:05:17,480 --> 00:05:19,200 Speaker 2: Yeah, it's like it's the best. 96 00:05:19,320 --> 00:05:22,640 Speaker 1: So that right now is I would say the number 97 00:05:22,680 --> 00:05:27,200 Speaker 1: one productivity strategy that is helping me get shit done. 98 00:05:28,240 --> 00:05:28,680 Speaker 4: Love it. 99 00:05:29,200 --> 00:05:30,960 Speaker 3: I'm going to try it, even though it's making me 100 00:05:30,960 --> 00:05:32,440 Speaker 3: feel weird just talking about it. 101 00:05:33,200 --> 00:05:33,920 Speaker 4: I need to try this. 102 00:05:34,400 --> 00:05:37,320 Speaker 3: So I want to know, just speaking of your writing, 103 00:05:37,520 --> 00:05:42,599 Speaker 3: and one thing I'm finding at the moment for me personally, 104 00:05:42,640 --> 00:05:44,640 Speaker 3: but I know a lot of our listeners who are 105 00:05:44,720 --> 00:05:47,719 Speaker 3: knowledge workers who are working either from home or in 106 00:05:47,760 --> 00:05:50,919 Speaker 3: an office. One thing I'm hearing a lot is that 107 00:05:50,920 --> 00:05:53,280 Speaker 3: people want more creativity. They want to be able to 108 00:05:53,320 --> 00:05:57,480 Speaker 3: be more creative. What are some things that you've been doing, 109 00:05:57,560 --> 00:06:00,080 Speaker 3: especially in your writing process, Because writing is such a 110 00:06:00,120 --> 00:06:03,440 Speaker 3: deep work and if people haven't spent time, like you've 111 00:06:03,480 --> 00:06:06,960 Speaker 3: written so many books, you're onto your fifth book, the 112 00:06:07,120 --> 00:06:09,120 Speaker 3: level of depths that goes into it, as well as 113 00:06:09,120 --> 00:06:10,640 Speaker 3: creative energy is massive. 114 00:06:10,720 --> 00:06:11,359 Speaker 4: It's huge. 115 00:06:11,640 --> 00:06:15,480 Speaker 3: Are there things that you're doing to help build that 116 00:06:15,560 --> 00:06:16,680 Speaker 3: level of creativity? 117 00:06:16,720 --> 00:06:17,320 Speaker 4: In your work. 118 00:06:18,920 --> 00:06:21,400 Speaker 1: Something I've been doing a lot in the last few 119 00:06:21,440 --> 00:06:27,240 Speaker 1: months is using voice mode on chat GPT and essentially 120 00:06:27,320 --> 00:06:29,840 Speaker 1: going for a walk. It feels like going for a 121 00:06:29,920 --> 00:06:34,680 Speaker 1: walk with a buddy or a collaborator. And what my 122 00:06:34,760 --> 00:06:39,000 Speaker 1: process is is I probably do this once every day 123 00:06:39,080 --> 00:06:42,760 Speaker 1: or two, where I'll be nutting something out, Like at 124 00:06:42,800 --> 00:06:47,080 Speaker 1: the moment, I'm struggling with how to structure the book, 125 00:06:47,400 --> 00:06:51,800 Speaker 1: like i'd when I put in the book proposal to Penguin, 126 00:06:51,800 --> 00:06:54,320 Speaker 1: I had a pretty clear idea, but as I'm probably 127 00:06:54,360 --> 00:06:58,200 Speaker 1: about I'm thirty thousand words in now or thereabouts, I'm like, 128 00:06:58,920 --> 00:07:01,320 Speaker 1: I don't know if this structure is working, and that's 129 00:07:01,360 --> 00:07:04,720 Speaker 1: a creative problem to solve in my mind. So what 130 00:07:04,760 --> 00:07:07,320 Speaker 1: I'll do is, and I've done a few walks where 131 00:07:07,360 --> 00:07:09,480 Speaker 1: I've been trying to nut this out, is I will 132 00:07:10,160 --> 00:07:15,440 Speaker 1: prompt the AI to think in a certain way, Like 133 00:07:15,520 --> 00:07:19,960 Speaker 1: sometimes I'll prompt it to, you know, think like certain 134 00:07:20,560 --> 00:07:22,600 Speaker 1: writers that have structured. 135 00:07:22,200 --> 00:07:23,720 Speaker 2: Their books in really interesting ways. 136 00:07:23,720 --> 00:07:27,239 Speaker 1: Sometimes I'll just prompt it to think like a fellow 137 00:07:27,320 --> 00:07:28,840 Speaker 1: organizational psychologist. 138 00:07:29,440 --> 00:07:30,440 Speaker 2: So sort of depending on what. 139 00:07:30,400 --> 00:07:32,200 Speaker 1: Persona I think is going to be most useful for 140 00:07:32,360 --> 00:07:36,760 Speaker 1: my little brainstorm and I will on voice mode, and 141 00:07:37,400 --> 00:07:39,480 Speaker 1: you know, for listeners that haven't used voice mode before, 142 00:07:39,560 --> 00:07:41,520 Speaker 1: it's really easy to do if you just download the 143 00:07:41,560 --> 00:07:45,120 Speaker 1: chat GPT app and then you press the little icon 144 00:07:45,200 --> 00:07:48,480 Speaker 1: that looks like a sort of a sound wave kind 145 00:07:48,520 --> 00:07:51,400 Speaker 1: of icon, and you just start talking and you have 146 00:07:51,440 --> 00:07:52,120 Speaker 1: a conversation. 147 00:07:52,720 --> 00:07:53,400 Speaker 2: And I have. 148 00:07:53,440 --> 00:07:55,600 Speaker 1: Found that really really helpful. I will have like a 149 00:07:55,640 --> 00:07:59,880 Speaker 1: half hour long conversation as I walk around the streets 150 00:07:59,880 --> 00:08:03,600 Speaker 1: of my local area just chatting, and I feel a 151 00:08:03,640 --> 00:08:05,440 Speaker 1: bit stupid, but then I'm like, well, if people are 152 00:08:05,440 --> 00:08:07,280 Speaker 1: seeing me chatting, they'll probably just think I'm talking to 153 00:08:07,320 --> 00:08:10,280 Speaker 1: someone on the phone, So it's all good and that 154 00:08:10,720 --> 00:08:14,000 Speaker 1: really helps me nut things out and play around with ideas. 155 00:08:15,200 --> 00:08:17,880 Speaker 1: It's like I do like to do that with real people. 156 00:08:17,920 --> 00:08:20,520 Speaker 1: And funnily enough, yesterday I texted a couple of mates 157 00:08:20,560 --> 00:08:25,200 Speaker 1: who I really respect their thinking and I wanted to 158 00:08:25,200 --> 00:08:27,720 Speaker 1: get and I'm like, hey, can we meet for a coffee? 159 00:08:27,760 --> 00:08:29,520 Speaker 1: I just want to bounce around some ideas with you, 160 00:08:29,880 --> 00:08:31,520 Speaker 1: and one of them I still haven't heard back from. 161 00:08:31,560 --> 00:08:33,640 Speaker 1: So it's like the AI is always there and that's 162 00:08:33,720 --> 00:08:34,720 Speaker 1: really handy. 163 00:08:35,200 --> 00:08:38,520 Speaker 3: Very reliable and consistent and timely with their responses. 164 00:08:39,080 --> 00:08:41,439 Speaker 2: Yeah, exactly and told to. 165 00:08:41,360 --> 00:08:43,520 Speaker 3: Me about the book you're writing, because it's interesting, like 166 00:08:44,280 --> 00:08:47,400 Speaker 3: your focus. You've done so much in the space of work, 167 00:08:47,440 --> 00:08:49,880 Speaker 3: what's this next book focusing on. 168 00:08:51,160 --> 00:08:54,400 Speaker 1: So something I found last year in twenty twenty four 169 00:08:54,800 --> 00:08:59,560 Speaker 1: is that in I Reckon, almost every conversation I had 170 00:08:59,720 --> 00:09:04,720 Speaker 1: with clients of Inventium, there was change, fatigue, there was exhaustion, 171 00:09:05,040 --> 00:09:09,600 Speaker 1: there was burnout. There was a lot of retrenchments, where 172 00:09:09,800 --> 00:09:13,400 Speaker 1: inevitably what happens after retrenchments, particularly large scale ones, is 173 00:09:13,440 --> 00:09:16,200 Speaker 1: that the people that are left in the organization have 174 00:09:16,280 --> 00:09:21,240 Speaker 1: to do quite a lot more work and that's really hard. 175 00:09:21,360 --> 00:09:26,160 Speaker 1: And so I was hearing this in conversation every single week, 176 00:09:26,280 --> 00:09:31,920 Speaker 1: and also for myself, I completely utterly hit burnout several 177 00:09:31,960 --> 00:09:36,320 Speaker 1: times last year, and it felt like it was this 178 00:09:36,480 --> 00:09:40,440 Speaker 1: universal problem and not one that was getting better, And 179 00:09:40,480 --> 00:09:45,720 Speaker 1: so I became really interested in how could we overcome this. 180 00:09:45,960 --> 00:09:46,959 Speaker 2: It felt like a. 181 00:09:46,960 --> 00:09:52,080 Speaker 1: Chronic depletion epidemic, and I thought, what are the ways 182 00:09:52,120 --> 00:09:55,480 Speaker 1: that we can do this? And the book is essentially 183 00:09:55,520 --> 00:10:00,679 Speaker 1: about energy and overcoming this chronic depletion and obviously at 184 00:10:00,720 --> 00:10:02,160 Speaker 1: its most extreme, burnout. 185 00:10:02,640 --> 00:10:04,439 Speaker 2: So that's what the book is all about. 186 00:10:05,640 --> 00:10:07,720 Speaker 3: It's so interesting to me if I just think about 187 00:10:07,720 --> 00:10:11,640 Speaker 3: your last couple of books, so time Wise, which is 188 00:10:11,640 --> 00:10:13,720 Speaker 3: all about productivity and all the things you've learned from 189 00:10:13,760 --> 00:10:17,560 Speaker 3: your amazing guests on how I work and your own 190 00:10:17,600 --> 00:10:20,079 Speaker 3: insights into that whole space. And then if I think 191 00:10:20,080 --> 00:10:23,000 Speaker 3: about health habit where you're thinking about, okay, what is 192 00:10:23,040 --> 00:10:25,640 Speaker 3: it that makes feel healthy and well? And then like 193 00:10:25,679 --> 00:10:30,520 Speaker 3: this next step into the space of what is it 194 00:10:30,520 --> 00:10:33,720 Speaker 3: that like gives people energy and how do we navigate 195 00:10:33,720 --> 00:10:36,680 Speaker 3: this burnout? And I'm almost like thinking about it going 196 00:10:37,480 --> 00:10:41,679 Speaker 3: if you and tell me if I'm totally off base here, 197 00:10:41,800 --> 00:10:43,319 Speaker 3: please Amani, because you're. 198 00:10:43,160 --> 00:10:45,000 Speaker 4: Like you might be like this is you're just butchering 199 00:10:45,040 --> 00:10:47,520 Speaker 4: my work, but like, as I'm. 200 00:10:47,400 --> 00:10:51,640 Speaker 3: Reverse engineering it, I'm thinking about Okay, if we think 201 00:10:51,679 --> 00:10:54,800 Speaker 3: about it as a pyramid, it's like your energy levels 202 00:10:55,600 --> 00:10:58,160 Speaker 3: are those things that sustain you to do difficult things 203 00:10:58,160 --> 00:11:00,280 Speaker 3: in the long term, like that feeling of energy that 204 00:11:00,320 --> 00:11:02,719 Speaker 3: you get from work or the depletion like I think 205 00:11:02,760 --> 00:11:05,840 Speaker 3: for anyone who's listened who's had kids, like I remember 206 00:11:05,840 --> 00:11:09,199 Speaker 3: that feeling early days, I reckon I've only just started 207 00:11:09,240 --> 00:11:12,439 Speaker 3: to get past and of the depletion you have when 208 00:11:12,480 --> 00:11:15,199 Speaker 3: your kids are waking up every night, and like you're 209 00:11:15,240 --> 00:11:17,400 Speaker 3: trying to juggle your full time job and your roll 210 00:11:17,440 --> 00:11:20,680 Speaker 3: as a parent and all that stuff, the energy you 211 00:11:20,720 --> 00:11:24,560 Speaker 3: need to be healthy, like to actually exercise to do 212 00:11:24,720 --> 00:11:27,200 Speaker 3: and like we know they're all connected, right, Like exercise 213 00:11:27,240 --> 00:11:29,160 Speaker 3: gives us energy and all those things, or eating healthy 214 00:11:29,200 --> 00:11:31,760 Speaker 3: gives us the energy we need. But then all of 215 00:11:31,760 --> 00:11:36,120 Speaker 3: that stuff enables us to be productive. As I'm just 216 00:11:36,160 --> 00:11:38,640 Speaker 3: sounding this out, does that resonate with you in any 217 00:11:38,679 --> 00:11:41,280 Speaker 3: way or you're like no, no, set all right down. 218 00:11:42,480 --> 00:11:43,880 Speaker 2: No, it does. It does. 219 00:11:44,000 --> 00:11:48,760 Speaker 1: And for me, I'm obsessed with what I refer to 220 00:11:49,000 --> 00:11:51,920 Speaker 1: was what is the minimum viable dose or the MVD, 221 00:11:53,080 --> 00:11:55,280 Speaker 1: because I think so much of what is out there 222 00:11:55,840 --> 00:11:58,840 Speaker 1: is just quite unattainable for a lot of people. It 223 00:11:58,920 --> 00:12:03,760 Speaker 1: is just not feasible to spend an hour exercising every 224 00:12:03,840 --> 00:12:08,120 Speaker 1: day like that is really hard, and particularly particularly when 225 00:12:08,160 --> 00:12:11,080 Speaker 1: you've got young kids as well, Like I mean, how 226 00:12:11,120 --> 00:12:11,880 Speaker 1: do you even leave the. 227 00:12:11,800 --> 00:12:15,720 Speaker 2: House, let alone naturally expend. 228 00:12:15,480 --> 00:12:17,200 Speaker 3: Energy get out of the house, Like this morning, I'll 229 00:12:17,280 --> 00:12:19,000 Speaker 3: just tell you this morning, trying to leave the houses. 230 00:12:19,120 --> 00:12:20,960 Speaker 4: We got on late because studying my. 231 00:12:21,000 --> 00:12:23,080 Speaker 3: Daughter couldn't find a glasses. I'm like, I don't understand 232 00:12:23,080 --> 00:12:25,199 Speaker 3: that this happens every single day. Every single day we 233 00:12:25,240 --> 00:12:27,640 Speaker 3: can't find the glasses, and then we're just like all 234 00:12:27,679 --> 00:12:29,920 Speaker 3: these juggles of things. I'm like, you get out of 235 00:12:29,920 --> 00:12:31,720 Speaker 3: the house, you know, I've run a marathon, Like when 236 00:12:31,720 --> 00:12:34,439 Speaker 3: would I get time to do an hour of exercise 237 00:12:34,960 --> 00:12:37,040 Speaker 3: in addition to my however many hours. 238 00:12:36,760 --> 00:12:38,280 Speaker 4: Of work you do and all the things. 239 00:12:38,679 --> 00:12:38,920 Speaker 2: Yeah. 240 00:12:39,000 --> 00:12:43,280 Speaker 1: Yeah, So I think about this like I try to 241 00:12:43,480 --> 00:12:45,800 Speaker 1: when I'm writing, you know, I kind of I have 242 00:12:45,880 --> 00:12:49,320 Speaker 1: a few different people in mind that are almost. 243 00:12:48,880 --> 00:12:51,800 Speaker 2: Like the avatars. 244 00:12:51,240 --> 00:12:54,439 Speaker 1: Or you know, the icps, if you like to speak, 245 00:12:54,480 --> 00:12:58,080 Speaker 1: marketing of who I'm writing for, and I think about 246 00:12:58,120 --> 00:13:01,120 Speaker 1: their world and their life and anything that is going 247 00:13:01,160 --> 00:13:03,760 Speaker 1: to take a lot of time to boost their energy. 248 00:13:04,440 --> 00:13:05,880 Speaker 2: I'm just like nah. 249 00:13:05,920 --> 00:13:07,719 Speaker 1: And as I'm researching it, like I mean, I go, 250 00:13:08,080 --> 00:13:12,840 Speaker 1: I go down so many dead ends where I'll you know, 251 00:13:12,920 --> 00:13:15,760 Speaker 1: sort of get to the end of reading a few 252 00:13:15,760 --> 00:13:19,560 Speaker 1: pieces of research and I'm like, oh, man, that intervention 253 00:13:19,760 --> 00:13:22,199 Speaker 1: lasted for six weeks and that was an hour a day. 254 00:13:22,240 --> 00:13:25,200 Speaker 2: That is not realistic. I can't write about that. So 255 00:13:25,280 --> 00:13:26,880 Speaker 2: instead I'm like, where are. 256 00:13:26,720 --> 00:13:29,960 Speaker 1: Those things that will give us those quick bursts of energy? 257 00:13:30,400 --> 00:13:34,640 Speaker 1: That are just really doable for the average person who 258 00:13:34,679 --> 00:13:38,520 Speaker 1: is chronically depleted and presumably very very busy and time poor. 259 00:13:39,720 --> 00:13:41,480 Speaker 3: Okay, So I want to dig into that for a 260 00:13:41,559 --> 00:13:45,200 Speaker 3: sec because I love what you said about some of 261 00:13:45,240 --> 00:13:49,040 Speaker 3: the things that we hear are just completely unattainable or unrealistic. 262 00:13:49,080 --> 00:13:51,200 Speaker 4: And there's that trend. 263 00:13:51,240 --> 00:13:53,040 Speaker 3: I don't know if it's still going around, but it 264 00:13:53,120 --> 00:13:56,520 Speaker 3: was definitely very present in like twenty twenty three, where 265 00:13:56,559 --> 00:13:59,960 Speaker 3: the morning routine started to really ramp up and everyone's like, 266 00:14:01,400 --> 00:14:04,600 Speaker 3: everyone's like, you have to do this morning routine and 267 00:14:04,640 --> 00:14:06,640 Speaker 3: it will take you three hours, and you must meditate 268 00:14:06,679 --> 00:14:09,800 Speaker 3: for fifty minutes, and you must have an ice plunge, 269 00:14:09,880 --> 00:14:13,199 Speaker 3: and then you have to have three boiled eggs. If 270 00:14:13,200 --> 00:14:15,400 Speaker 3: you don't have three, you didn't get enough protein. Like 271 00:14:15,640 --> 00:14:19,160 Speaker 3: it's just so extreme, and I like, look at it, 272 00:14:19,200 --> 00:14:21,600 Speaker 3: and the people who talk about morning routines like these 273 00:14:21,640 --> 00:14:24,960 Speaker 3: like solopreneurs that are out there just being like, this 274 00:14:25,240 --> 00:14:27,800 Speaker 3: is how you sell stuff and this is if you 275 00:14:27,840 --> 00:14:29,880 Speaker 3: want a win, this is how you win every day. 276 00:14:29,920 --> 00:14:32,520 Speaker 3: And I'm like, oh my gosh, I can't even. 277 00:14:32,320 --> 00:14:33,720 Speaker 2: They're man with no kids. 278 00:14:35,120 --> 00:14:38,480 Speaker 3: They are they always are, But what are your thoughts 279 00:14:38,480 --> 00:14:41,880 Speaker 3: on on some of those like common things we see 280 00:14:41,920 --> 00:14:45,360 Speaker 3: out there around the morning routines. And I mean, for me, 281 00:14:45,520 --> 00:14:48,520 Speaker 3: I'm like, I don't feel like I'm a morning person 282 00:14:48,520 --> 00:14:51,120 Speaker 3: at all, Like I'm a sloth in the morning. 283 00:14:51,160 --> 00:14:53,200 Speaker 4: I'm just like I'm dye. I just wake up. I'm like, 284 00:14:53,480 --> 00:14:55,320 Speaker 4: I feel like someone's just hit me in the face. 285 00:14:55,480 --> 00:14:57,000 Speaker 4: Like what are some of. 286 00:14:57,000 --> 00:14:59,080 Speaker 3: Those things you see that are unattainable? And then what 287 00:14:59,240 --> 00:15:02,880 Speaker 3: is that their minimum what did you call it? Minimum dose? 288 00:15:03,360 --> 00:15:06,320 Speaker 2: Minimum viable dose? And these things? 289 00:15:06,440 --> 00:15:12,480 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, so I yeah, I mean morning routines that 290 00:15:12,640 --> 00:15:16,840 Speaker 1: go on for hours. Really, they do irritate me because 291 00:15:17,920 --> 00:15:19,360 Speaker 1: like who's got time for that? 292 00:15:20,960 --> 00:15:23,360 Speaker 2: You know, like, yeah, who's got time for that? 293 00:15:24,600 --> 00:15:28,080 Speaker 1: Unless you are young and you have no kids, and 294 00:15:28,280 --> 00:15:32,480 Speaker 1: you're like and they you know, they're typically it's cliche 295 00:15:32,600 --> 00:15:35,840 Speaker 1: to say stereotyping to day, but they're generally men in 296 00:15:35,880 --> 00:15:41,160 Speaker 1: their twenties and maybe in their thirties. And I look, 297 00:15:41,280 --> 00:15:46,640 Speaker 1: I do like rituals, and what I like about rituals 298 00:15:47,200 --> 00:15:50,280 Speaker 1: and also habit stacking, where we're kind of doing one 299 00:15:50,360 --> 00:15:53,880 Speaker 1: thing and then learning to automatically associate that with doing 300 00:15:53,920 --> 00:15:57,200 Speaker 1: the next thing, is it just reduces cognitive load. So 301 00:15:58,080 --> 00:16:00,920 Speaker 1: I like mourning rituals from that perspect but I don't 302 00:16:01,000 --> 00:16:04,960 Speaker 1: like ones that are unrealistic. So I find that a 303 00:16:05,000 --> 00:16:06,800 Speaker 1: lot of people, because of the space that I'm in, 304 00:16:07,320 --> 00:16:10,480 Speaker 1: I will often get asked, what's your morning ritual? And 305 00:16:11,320 --> 00:16:15,040 Speaker 1: I don't have one that I do every single day, 306 00:16:15,200 --> 00:16:17,960 Speaker 1: But I do have some rituals that I do most 307 00:16:18,040 --> 00:16:22,000 Speaker 1: days because I think that that's attainable. So for me, 308 00:16:22,480 --> 00:16:29,440 Speaker 1: I would most days, I would exercise for about thirty 309 00:16:29,480 --> 00:16:31,080 Speaker 1: to forty minutes first thing in the morning. 310 00:16:31,160 --> 00:16:33,840 Speaker 2: And unlike you, Shelley, I'm very much a morning person. 311 00:16:35,240 --> 00:16:35,960 Speaker 4: Are you a lark? 312 00:16:36,120 --> 00:16:36,880 Speaker 2: Is that a lark? 313 00:16:37,040 --> 00:16:37,240 Speaker 3: Yeah? 314 00:16:37,320 --> 00:16:38,880 Speaker 2: Yes, that is my time. 315 00:16:39,840 --> 00:16:41,840 Speaker 3: Do you and you wake up? I've heard you talk 316 00:16:41,840 --> 00:16:44,000 Speaker 3: about waking up at a certain time every day. 317 00:16:44,840 --> 00:16:45,120 Speaker 2: Yeah. 318 00:16:45,280 --> 00:16:49,040 Speaker 1: So I will wake up at about six am every day, 319 00:16:49,760 --> 00:16:54,120 Speaker 1: and I give like, if it's the weekend, I'm like, oh, 320 00:16:54,280 --> 00:16:56,200 Speaker 1: it'd be nice to lay in bed a little bit more. 321 00:16:56,640 --> 00:17:00,640 Speaker 1: I typically wouldn't do that past about six thirty, which 322 00:17:00,680 --> 00:17:05,919 Speaker 1: I feel like sounds very rigid of me. But the 323 00:17:06,000 --> 00:17:08,520 Speaker 1: reason why I do it is because if I do, say, 324 00:17:08,520 --> 00:17:12,080 Speaker 1: sleep until eight am, and then I do that on 325 00:17:12,119 --> 00:17:14,520 Speaker 1: Saturday and Sunday, and then Monday, I'm like, well, it's 326 00:17:14,520 --> 00:17:16,320 Speaker 1: a workday, I'm going to wake up at six am. Again, 327 00:17:16,640 --> 00:17:20,680 Speaker 1: I'm essentially giving myself what researchers call social jet lag, 328 00:17:21,000 --> 00:17:23,720 Speaker 1: where it's like I've flown to New Zealand and then 329 00:17:23,920 --> 00:17:27,159 Speaker 1: back again, and I've arrived home on Monday morning, and 330 00:17:27,200 --> 00:17:29,639 Speaker 1: I'm like, oh, it's a two hour time difference. This 331 00:17:29,680 --> 00:17:32,199 Speaker 1: is totally throwing out my body clock. But most of 332 00:17:32,240 --> 00:17:34,920 Speaker 1: us think nothing of it because we're not traveling, we're 333 00:17:34,960 --> 00:17:38,920 Speaker 1: just in our home. But the impact that that has 334 00:17:39,000 --> 00:17:42,640 Speaker 1: on your energy and on your ability to think clearly 335 00:17:42,840 --> 00:17:47,600 Speaker 1: and function at your best is really huge. And so 336 00:17:48,200 --> 00:17:51,720 Speaker 1: for me, the idea of sleeping in an extra couple 337 00:17:51,720 --> 00:17:56,400 Speaker 1: of hours feeling versus feeling really good throughout the day 338 00:17:56,600 --> 00:18:00,359 Speaker 1: for those first few days of the week, it's like 339 00:18:00,400 --> 00:18:02,680 Speaker 1: that's not a good trade off for me. Other people 340 00:18:02,760 --> 00:18:05,200 Speaker 1: might be like, the sleeping is worth it to feel 341 00:18:05,200 --> 00:18:07,879 Speaker 1: a bit crappy on Monday and Tuesday and kind of 342 00:18:07,880 --> 00:18:10,240 Speaker 1: getting into the rhythm on Wednesday, But for me, it's 343 00:18:10,280 --> 00:18:13,120 Speaker 1: not a good trade off. So that's why I typically 344 00:18:13,160 --> 00:18:14,359 Speaker 1: wake within a half hour window. 345 00:18:15,280 --> 00:18:18,800 Speaker 3: I also think it's interesting like when people talk about 346 00:18:18,840 --> 00:18:23,000 Speaker 3: the reason why they do a certain thing, like when 347 00:18:23,280 --> 00:18:25,160 Speaker 3: I saw you post about it on LinkedIn, actually about 348 00:18:25,200 --> 00:18:28,080 Speaker 3: the half an hour wake up and the impact that 349 00:18:28,160 --> 00:18:31,840 Speaker 3: can have on your energy levels. And I know for myself, 350 00:18:31,880 --> 00:18:34,480 Speaker 3: like I have a pretty consistent wake up time, manly 351 00:18:34,480 --> 00:18:35,879 Speaker 3: because the kids wake me up at the same time 352 00:18:35,920 --> 00:18:40,879 Speaker 3: every day. But I agree that if you know why 353 00:18:41,200 --> 00:18:44,919 Speaker 3: you're doing something and you know the trade off, like 354 00:18:44,960 --> 00:18:46,560 Speaker 3: you said, the trade off for you if you had 355 00:18:46,600 --> 00:18:48,679 Speaker 3: an extra two hour sleep in on a Saturday, but 356 00:18:48,720 --> 00:18:51,479 Speaker 3: on Monday you feel like crap, well, that is not 357 00:18:51,520 --> 00:18:54,000 Speaker 3: a good I'm not happy with that decision. I'm not 358 00:18:54,000 --> 00:18:55,760 Speaker 3: happy with the impact that has on my body and 359 00:18:55,800 --> 00:18:57,480 Speaker 3: my ability to do the rest of my week. 360 00:18:59,280 --> 00:19:00,640 Speaker 4: I love knowing that why. 361 00:19:00,680 --> 00:19:03,040 Speaker 3: And for me, like even just thinking about you talking 362 00:19:03,040 --> 00:19:08,000 Speaker 3: about this minimum viable dose. One thing that's really helped 363 00:19:08,040 --> 00:19:10,239 Speaker 3: me with my energy levels because I've never been a 364 00:19:10,280 --> 00:19:14,200 Speaker 3: big exercise I like, I've always found it hard has 365 00:19:14,320 --> 00:19:17,200 Speaker 3: just been doing a twenty minute thing on my app 366 00:19:17,320 --> 00:19:22,600 Speaker 3: on my phone. I have the kick app and those 367 00:19:22,640 --> 00:19:26,840 Speaker 3: twenty minutes or the like, I'm that's doable. I can 368 00:19:26,840 --> 00:19:30,479 Speaker 3: commit to that consistently. What I can't commit to is 369 00:19:30,520 --> 00:19:34,439 Speaker 3: like the like rigorous steps that take three hours that 370 00:19:34,480 --> 00:19:37,800 Speaker 3: you're like, oh gosh, this is completely over the top, 371 00:19:37,840 --> 00:19:39,960 Speaker 3: and what is the return on that? Whereas I feel 372 00:19:40,000 --> 00:19:43,719 Speaker 3: the return on that twenty minutes consistently every day for 373 00:19:43,760 --> 00:19:47,720 Speaker 3: an extended period rather than these like six weeks of 374 00:19:47,760 --> 00:19:50,360 Speaker 3: like intensive stuff that you end up just dropping off 375 00:19:50,400 --> 00:19:51,640 Speaker 3: because it's not sustainable. 376 00:19:52,280 --> 00:19:55,720 Speaker 1: Yeah, absolutely, something that helps me with that, because I 377 00:19:55,720 --> 00:19:59,480 Speaker 1: also think the idea of doing something every day has 378 00:19:59,520 --> 00:20:02,520 Speaker 1: its pro cons. Like in a sense, if you say 379 00:20:02,520 --> 00:20:06,160 Speaker 1: to yourself, I exercise every day, then there's no decision 380 00:20:06,240 --> 00:20:09,680 Speaker 1: to be made, like you can't argue with yourself, oh, 381 00:20:09,800 --> 00:20:12,840 Speaker 1: you know, should I exercise today or not? Well, you do, 382 00:20:13,400 --> 00:20:17,000 Speaker 1: but where that can go awry and psychologists call it 383 00:20:17,040 --> 00:20:19,480 Speaker 1: the what the hell effect, where you're like, I'm going 384 00:20:19,560 --> 00:20:22,159 Speaker 1: to exercise every day, or I'm going to eat healthy 385 00:20:22,240 --> 00:20:25,159 Speaker 1: every day, or you know, avoid sugar or whatever your 386 00:20:25,240 --> 00:20:28,480 Speaker 1: kind of goal is. And then let's say you're going 387 00:20:28,520 --> 00:20:32,679 Speaker 1: really well, but on day six, the day is chaos. 388 00:20:33,040 --> 00:20:36,879 Speaker 1: It turns to crap, and you know, you either I 389 00:20:36,920 --> 00:20:39,080 Speaker 1: don't know if you're trying to quit sugar, you have 390 00:20:39,119 --> 00:20:41,520 Speaker 1: all this chocolate at night, or you just don't have 391 00:20:41,560 --> 00:20:43,920 Speaker 1: time to exercise and then you think, oh, what the hell, 392 00:20:44,119 --> 00:20:45,800 Speaker 1: I may as well not exercise, or I may as 393 00:20:45,840 --> 00:20:48,840 Speaker 1: well just you know, go back to chocolate. But what 394 00:20:48,920 --> 00:20:50,920 Speaker 1: research has found is that if we can give ourselves 395 00:20:51,080 --> 00:20:54,440 Speaker 1: hall passes, and you know, like people might have heard 396 00:20:54,560 --> 00:20:58,359 Speaker 1: the term hall pass in relation to cheating on your 397 00:20:58,359 --> 00:21:02,359 Speaker 1: partner in a marriage, but this is in the context 398 00:21:02,520 --> 00:21:06,679 Speaker 1: of behavior behavior change. So research has found that if 399 00:21:06,720 --> 00:21:08,920 Speaker 1: you give yourself a couple of hall passes a week, 400 00:21:09,240 --> 00:21:11,000 Speaker 1: So if you're trying to do a daily habit like 401 00:21:11,119 --> 00:21:14,080 Speaker 1: exercise every day, but say to yourself, I'm going to 402 00:21:14,160 --> 00:21:17,600 Speaker 1: give myself two hall passes a week. So basically, if 403 00:21:17,640 --> 00:21:20,719 Speaker 1: there are two days during the week where I just 404 00:21:20,880 --> 00:21:25,080 Speaker 1: I just can't do it because you know, stuff happens, 405 00:21:25,800 --> 00:21:28,160 Speaker 1: then that's okay and you can feel okay about that. 406 00:21:28,600 --> 00:21:30,760 Speaker 1: And if we do that, if we adopt the hall 407 00:21:30,800 --> 00:21:34,840 Speaker 1: past strategy, ironically, it makes us more likely to achieve 408 00:21:34,880 --> 00:21:37,920 Speaker 1: our goals and also it makes us a lot more 409 00:21:37,920 --> 00:21:41,200 Speaker 1: resilient in that we're able to bounce back from those setbacks. 410 00:21:41,400 --> 00:21:42,240 Speaker 2: If we do have a day. 411 00:21:42,119 --> 00:21:44,720 Speaker 1: Where we don't exercise, we're much more likely to get 412 00:21:44,760 --> 00:21:48,240 Speaker 1: back on the wagon the following day. So hall passes, 413 00:21:48,600 --> 00:21:52,240 Speaker 1: I very much recommend it as a good strategy to 414 00:21:52,320 --> 00:21:54,919 Speaker 1: use if you're trying to create a new habit. 415 00:21:55,920 --> 00:21:58,199 Speaker 3: And you're so right, it's like that throw in the 416 00:21:58,200 --> 00:22:01,200 Speaker 3: towel if you like, I think I think about Easter right, 417 00:22:01,240 --> 00:22:02,119 Speaker 3: We've just at the. 418 00:22:02,080 --> 00:22:04,960 Speaker 4: Time this recording is the Easter long weekend just gone. 419 00:22:06,000 --> 00:22:07,880 Speaker 3: And like if you're on a health if you're trying 420 00:22:07,880 --> 00:22:10,479 Speaker 3: to not have too much sugar, but over the weekend 421 00:22:10,600 --> 00:22:13,960 Speaker 3: you go on fifty Easter egg hunts with your family, 422 00:22:14,760 --> 00:22:17,919 Speaker 3: You're like, the temptation is, well, I've just actually ruined 423 00:22:17,960 --> 00:22:21,880 Speaker 3: three months worth of work, So I don't like throwing 424 00:22:21,920 --> 00:22:23,320 Speaker 3: in the towel and the what the hell? I can 425 00:22:23,359 --> 00:22:28,679 Speaker 3: definitely relate to those kind of sentiments. I want to 426 00:22:28,680 --> 00:22:31,959 Speaker 3: know whether there's been things that you've done in that 427 00:22:32,920 --> 00:22:36,880 Speaker 3: minimum viable dose that have been helpful. So you talked 428 00:22:36,920 --> 00:22:39,320 Speaker 3: about getting up at the same time, what other habits 429 00:22:39,359 --> 00:22:41,840 Speaker 3: have you kind of stacked up that some of our 430 00:22:41,880 --> 00:22:45,760 Speaker 3: listeners who are time poor, who are very busy, and 431 00:22:45,760 --> 00:22:48,199 Speaker 3: we're going to talk about busy in a sec what 432 00:22:48,280 --> 00:22:49,199 Speaker 3: are things that help you? 433 00:22:49,240 --> 00:22:55,320 Speaker 1: Amanther, I find that state changes always help me a lot. 434 00:22:55,600 --> 00:22:59,359 Speaker 1: I am at my computer, at my desk for a 435 00:22:59,440 --> 00:23:03,760 Speaker 1: large part of days if I'm not out with clients 436 00:23:03,840 --> 00:23:06,920 Speaker 1: or in podcast, udioor keynote speaking. But like, I spent 437 00:23:07,000 --> 00:23:11,360 Speaker 1: so many hours at my desk, and if I am 438 00:23:11,440 --> 00:23:15,320 Speaker 1: starting to lack in energy, one of the best things 439 00:23:15,520 --> 00:23:18,359 Speaker 1: I found that helps is just changing my state. So 440 00:23:18,520 --> 00:23:20,840 Speaker 1: changing my state might be as simple as standing up 441 00:23:21,040 --> 00:23:24,240 Speaker 1: and stretching for a few minutes, And there's great research 442 00:23:24,280 --> 00:23:27,919 Speaker 1: to show that that's a really effective way to improve energy. 443 00:23:28,040 --> 00:23:29,760 Speaker 1: Like you don't even have to get your heart right up, 444 00:23:29,920 --> 00:23:31,960 Speaker 1: just do a few stretches and sit back down again. 445 00:23:33,119 --> 00:23:35,520 Speaker 2: I actually put. 446 00:23:35,320 --> 00:23:39,359 Speaker 1: Out a call on LinkedIn to go people, what do 447 00:23:39,400 --> 00:23:40,959 Speaker 1: you do when you're running out of energy? And I've 448 00:23:40,960 --> 00:23:43,320 Speaker 1: got some really interesting suggestions. And I love doing that 449 00:23:43,400 --> 00:23:46,399 Speaker 1: because then I'll go away and hunt down or was 450 00:23:46,440 --> 00:23:49,680 Speaker 1: it actually science to support what people are doing? And 451 00:23:50,040 --> 00:23:53,639 Speaker 1: I remember Don Price, who I know has been on 452 00:23:53,680 --> 00:23:58,600 Speaker 1: your show several times. He suggested splashing cold water on 453 00:23:58,640 --> 00:24:02,560 Speaker 1: your face, Like, oh, that sounds really good, because I 454 00:24:02,560 --> 00:24:05,600 Speaker 1: had been researching cold showers and what is the minimum 455 00:24:05,760 --> 00:24:08,920 Speaker 1: amount of cold water immersion? Because like, there's no way 456 00:24:08,960 --> 00:24:10,600 Speaker 1: I'm doing an ice bath, but I can have a 457 00:24:10,600 --> 00:24:12,240 Speaker 1: cold shower for a few seconds at the end of 458 00:24:12,240 --> 00:24:14,399 Speaker 1: a hot one, and I'm like, I wonder if cold 459 00:24:14,440 --> 00:24:17,320 Speaker 1: water has a similar impact, And it turns out it does. 460 00:24:17,560 --> 00:24:21,000 Speaker 1: And so that's another example of just a really really 461 00:24:21,080 --> 00:24:23,720 Speaker 1: great but easy to do and quick to do state 462 00:24:23,840 --> 00:24:26,640 Speaker 1: change where if you're feeling like your energy is waning, 463 00:24:27,200 --> 00:24:30,080 Speaker 1: just go to the bathroom, splash some water on your face, 464 00:24:30,119 --> 00:24:34,240 Speaker 1: cold water, and it will actually improve your energy, and 465 00:24:34,280 --> 00:24:35,760 Speaker 1: you'll come back and you can sit at your desk 466 00:24:36,280 --> 00:24:39,120 Speaker 1: and you will feel very different to how you did 467 00:24:39,160 --> 00:24:40,000 Speaker 1: when you left your desk. 468 00:24:40,760 --> 00:24:43,720 Speaker 3: I think when you're talking about the cold water, I 469 00:24:43,720 --> 00:24:47,480 Speaker 3: can vividly remember my mom. She like, I'm one of 470 00:24:47,520 --> 00:24:49,960 Speaker 3: five kids, and we would do these big family holidays 471 00:24:49,960 --> 00:24:52,919 Speaker 3: and we would drive for a really long time to 472 00:24:53,000 --> 00:24:55,480 Speaker 3: like Queensland from Newcastle and at the time be like 473 00:24:55,560 --> 00:24:59,040 Speaker 3: a twelve hour plus trip with five kids, and I 474 00:24:59,080 --> 00:25:02,000 Speaker 3: remember Mum in the driver's seat. We would get twenty 475 00:25:02,080 --> 00:25:05,159 Speaker 3: minutes out of Newcastle, Lamantha like we're hardly on the 476 00:25:05,240 --> 00:25:07,679 Speaker 3: road at all, and she would get a bottle of 477 00:25:07,720 --> 00:25:10,119 Speaker 3: cold water and tip it over her head and like, 478 00:25:10,880 --> 00:25:13,359 Speaker 3: and I would have been like early high school at 479 00:25:13,400 --> 00:25:15,720 Speaker 3: this point, I'm like, we are in for a bad time, 480 00:25:16,200 --> 00:25:19,720 Speaker 3: Like she's doing a state change twenty minutes into a. 481 00:25:19,720 --> 00:25:22,520 Speaker 4: Twelve hour drive. This is not good. This is not 482 00:25:22,560 --> 00:25:23,960 Speaker 4: a good time, but I do. 483 00:25:24,960 --> 00:25:28,000 Speaker 3: It's funny how when you hear other people's strategies, it 484 00:25:28,040 --> 00:25:30,240 Speaker 3: gives you these ideas. And that's partly what I would 485 00:25:30,280 --> 00:25:33,399 Speaker 3: love listeners to take away from today is going okay, 486 00:25:33,760 --> 00:25:38,080 Speaker 3: as you're hearing these strategies, Amantha's suggesting try some stuff 487 00:25:38,119 --> 00:25:39,760 Speaker 3: this week because. 488 00:25:39,840 --> 00:25:40,960 Speaker 4: You need to know it. 489 00:25:41,080 --> 00:25:43,200 Speaker 3: Not every single thing will work for you, but some 490 00:25:43,280 --> 00:25:46,120 Speaker 3: of this will, and going okay, what is my little strategy? 491 00:25:46,160 --> 00:25:48,560 Speaker 3: Is it stretching in between? Is it standing up? Is 492 00:25:48,600 --> 00:25:50,760 Speaker 3: it actually going outside for a bit? Or is it 493 00:25:50,800 --> 00:25:53,480 Speaker 3: the cold I swore the water on the face. Do 494 00:25:53,680 --> 00:25:57,560 Speaker 3: the something quick that can help test? What's going to 495 00:25:57,600 --> 00:25:59,719 Speaker 3: give me that lift in energy? 496 00:26:00,040 --> 00:26:00,399 Speaker 4: I want it. 497 00:26:00,400 --> 00:26:04,760 Speaker 3: This might seem like a silly question, but sometimes when 498 00:26:04,760 --> 00:26:08,480 Speaker 3: we talk about this idea of energy, I just love 499 00:26:08,520 --> 00:26:11,280 Speaker 3: if you could explain, like when you think about what 500 00:26:11,320 --> 00:26:13,920 Speaker 3: does energy look like when we've got it and what does. 501 00:26:13,840 --> 00:26:15,280 Speaker 4: It look like when we don't have it? 502 00:26:15,320 --> 00:26:18,640 Speaker 3: Because I think it can be like this ethereal concept, 503 00:26:19,200 --> 00:26:21,439 Speaker 3: what does energy mean to you when we have it? 504 00:26:21,480 --> 00:26:22,520 Speaker 4: And when we don't. 505 00:26:23,840 --> 00:26:24,199 Speaker 2: Well. 506 00:26:24,359 --> 00:26:27,679 Speaker 1: I would say it's easy to think about when we 507 00:26:27,760 --> 00:26:30,600 Speaker 1: don't have energy, because I think there are several times 508 00:26:31,400 --> 00:26:36,080 Speaker 1: during someone's typical day where they're feeling it really common 509 00:26:36,119 --> 00:26:38,600 Speaker 1: experience to wake up and. 510 00:26:40,080 --> 00:26:40,880 Speaker 2: Have been in. 511 00:26:40,800 --> 00:26:43,600 Speaker 1: Bed for eight hours, like that's how much sleep we're 512 00:26:43,640 --> 00:26:46,560 Speaker 1: meant to get, right, but we wake up and we're like, 513 00:26:46,880 --> 00:26:48,359 Speaker 1: I feel like I haven't slept, I feel like my 514 00:26:48,400 --> 00:26:50,919 Speaker 1: sleep was not of good quality, and I feel exhausted, 515 00:26:51,240 --> 00:26:52,120 Speaker 1: and I don't feel. 516 00:26:51,880 --> 00:26:52,760 Speaker 2: Ready to start the day. 517 00:26:53,640 --> 00:26:57,679 Speaker 1: Sleep researchers call it sleep inertia. It's very very common. 518 00:26:57,720 --> 00:27:00,000 Speaker 1: I think that's the first point where people lack the energy. 519 00:27:01,119 --> 00:27:04,399 Speaker 1: I think that the second common point, and like, and 520 00:27:04,440 --> 00:27:06,680 Speaker 1: tell me if you can relate to this is like 521 00:27:07,119 --> 00:27:10,280 Speaker 1: it's nine o'clock or thereabouts, time to start the workday, 522 00:27:10,800 --> 00:27:15,320 Speaker 1: and you're just like, I just I don't feel motivated. 523 00:27:15,359 --> 00:27:17,160 Speaker 1: I don't know how I'm going to get into flow. 524 00:27:17,920 --> 00:27:21,560 Speaker 1: I just I feel really unfocused. That's another point where 525 00:27:21,840 --> 00:27:26,679 Speaker 1: energy is really low. Typically, then you know, as we 526 00:27:26,760 --> 00:27:29,840 Speaker 1: head towards lunch, generally for a lot of people, the 527 00:27:29,920 --> 00:27:32,800 Speaker 1: sort of the nine to twelve period not too bad. 528 00:27:33,960 --> 00:27:38,000 Speaker 1: Sometimes we are feeling a little bit distractable in that 529 00:27:38,040 --> 00:27:40,399 Speaker 1: mid morning time where we go get a coffee or 530 00:27:40,440 --> 00:27:43,480 Speaker 1: take a little break. But then after lunch is when 531 00:27:43,520 --> 00:27:49,280 Speaker 1: another big energy are energy sort of like you know, 532 00:27:49,480 --> 00:27:53,080 Speaker 1: exhaustion milestone I guess happens. Psychologists call it the post 533 00:27:53,160 --> 00:27:56,399 Speaker 1: lunch dip. For the rest of us, it's like it's 534 00:27:56,480 --> 00:27:58,639 Speaker 1: that time at about two or three in the afternoon 535 00:27:59,040 --> 00:28:03,520 Speaker 1: when you're your lunch choices have potentially led to a 536 00:28:03,560 --> 00:28:08,480 Speaker 1: blood glucose crash, and you're feeling pretty ordinary and you're 537 00:28:09,119 --> 00:28:12,240 Speaker 1: heading for some sort of sugary snack. 538 00:28:12,119 --> 00:28:14,959 Speaker 2: To give you a short lived boost of energy. 539 00:28:16,040 --> 00:28:18,639 Speaker 1: You're probably not thinking at your best in the afternoon, 540 00:28:19,160 --> 00:28:20,560 Speaker 1: and then of course at the end of the day 541 00:28:20,560 --> 00:28:22,520 Speaker 1: there's that exhaustion and particularly you know. 542 00:28:22,440 --> 00:28:24,800 Speaker 2: If you've got things to do, if you've got. 543 00:28:25,600 --> 00:28:29,359 Speaker 1: Kids to keep alive and feed and bathe and all 544 00:28:29,400 --> 00:28:31,320 Speaker 1: that sort of stuff, and you're just like, ah, I 545 00:28:31,359 --> 00:28:33,399 Speaker 1: can't I don't know the energy for this. Or maybe 546 00:28:33,400 --> 00:28:36,000 Speaker 1: you're someone that has plans at night and you think 547 00:28:36,000 --> 00:28:38,800 Speaker 1: to yourself, I really wish I was having a night 548 00:28:38,880 --> 00:28:43,320 Speaker 1: in tonight instead. It's another really common source of just 549 00:28:43,400 --> 00:28:46,920 Speaker 1: lacking energy. And then even later on when the day 550 00:28:47,040 --> 00:28:49,400 Speaker 1: is over and if you are a parent, the kids 551 00:28:49,440 --> 00:28:52,080 Speaker 1: are in bed and you just find yourself glued to 552 00:28:52,160 --> 00:28:55,600 Speaker 1: social media because that is all your brain can handle, 553 00:28:56,360 --> 00:29:00,640 Speaker 1: that sort of passive distraction. Like to me, those are 554 00:29:00,680 --> 00:29:03,440 Speaker 1: the points that I hear again and again that that's 555 00:29:03,480 --> 00:29:05,200 Speaker 1: where we're feeling depleted on a. 556 00:29:05,160 --> 00:29:09,560 Speaker 3: Typical day, even just hearing you say the social media 557 00:29:09,640 --> 00:29:14,280 Speaker 3: like kind of like the distracted scrolling. I find I 558 00:29:14,320 --> 00:29:17,840 Speaker 3: get into that habit when my energy is low, where 559 00:29:17,840 --> 00:29:20,960 Speaker 3: I'll just like mindlessly scroll, And like last night I 560 00:29:21,040 --> 00:29:25,440 Speaker 3: found myself doing that. I was like, really wrecked. It's 561 00:29:25,440 --> 00:29:29,000 Speaker 3: just been it like hectic couple of weeks, and I 562 00:29:29,040 --> 00:29:31,640 Speaker 3: was like, and I don't find I often do that 563 00:29:31,680 --> 00:29:34,840 Speaker 3: at night, Like I was just like scrolling, scrolling, scrolling, 564 00:29:35,280 --> 00:29:37,920 Speaker 3: And then I found the weird thing was I was 565 00:29:37,960 --> 00:29:41,640 Speaker 3: so tired, but then I could not go to sleep 566 00:29:42,040 --> 00:29:45,400 Speaker 3: for so long, and I'm I like, it's weird. The 567 00:29:45,960 --> 00:29:49,040 Speaker 3: going back to this counterintuitive thing about energy. You can 568 00:29:49,080 --> 00:29:53,000 Speaker 3: be really depleted and have low energy and do and 569 00:29:53,120 --> 00:29:56,600 Speaker 3: like do these mindless things, but then they actually triggered 570 00:29:56,640 --> 00:29:58,800 Speaker 3: the reverse impact where you can't then get to sleep 571 00:29:58,920 --> 00:30:01,440 Speaker 3: or you don't have that deep What are your thoughts 572 00:30:01,440 --> 00:30:05,800 Speaker 3: on the link between those kind of activities that we're 573 00:30:05,800 --> 00:30:09,080 Speaker 3: doing to distract ourselves and actually how they exacerbate the 574 00:30:09,120 --> 00:30:10,600 Speaker 3: exact thing we're trying to avoid. 575 00:30:11,240 --> 00:30:12,040 Speaker 2: Yeah, so. 576 00:30:14,120 --> 00:30:17,760 Speaker 1: Scientists would call this tired but wired, and it's really 577 00:30:17,760 --> 00:30:22,680 Speaker 1: common where you're feeling exhausted but your brain is feeling wired. 578 00:30:24,360 --> 00:30:24,520 Speaker 2: You know. 579 00:30:24,520 --> 00:30:28,760 Speaker 1: I find like screens are bad for this. I think 580 00:30:29,280 --> 00:30:31,680 Speaker 1: most of us now know that the blue light that 581 00:30:31,800 --> 00:30:36,000 Speaker 1: is emitted from our phones and screens suppresses melatonin, which 582 00:30:36,040 --> 00:30:38,160 Speaker 1: is the hormone that we. 583 00:30:38,520 --> 00:30:40,600 Speaker 2: Need to actually get to sleep. 584 00:30:41,120 --> 00:30:43,840 Speaker 1: And so you know, a good rule is to get 585 00:30:43,840 --> 00:30:47,000 Speaker 1: off your screen at least an hour before the time where. 586 00:30:46,760 --> 00:30:49,960 Speaker 2: You would like your body to be asleep. So that 587 00:30:50,080 --> 00:30:50,920 Speaker 2: is really helpful. 588 00:30:52,280 --> 00:30:54,920 Speaker 1: But I think, you know, like for me in my 589 00:30:55,000 --> 00:30:58,360 Speaker 1: own life, I just know I need that hour before 590 00:30:58,360 --> 00:31:02,720 Speaker 1: bed where I'm just doing very passive, relaxing things. I'm 591 00:31:02,720 --> 00:31:05,400 Speaker 1: sure I would be well served to start a meditation habit, 592 00:31:05,480 --> 00:31:08,040 Speaker 1: but it is just like it is still beyond me. 593 00:31:08,080 --> 00:31:10,720 Speaker 1: I feel like I do other things that are meditative. 594 00:31:12,080 --> 00:31:14,880 Speaker 1: But you know, certainly a lot of friends of mine, 595 00:31:14,920 --> 00:31:16,959 Speaker 1: a lot of people that I've interviewed on how I work, 596 00:31:17,440 --> 00:31:19,800 Speaker 1: so many of them have some sort of a meditation habit, 597 00:31:19,960 --> 00:31:23,280 Speaker 1: and it is a really great way to calm down 598 00:31:23,600 --> 00:31:25,680 Speaker 1: your brain and slow down your heart rate. 599 00:31:27,320 --> 00:31:28,680 Speaker 2: I don't know for me, like I'm. 600 00:31:28,520 --> 00:31:33,480 Speaker 1: An AURA ring wearer, so I you know, tracking various 601 00:31:34,320 --> 00:31:36,959 Speaker 1: you know, various markers. And I know for me, like 602 00:31:37,000 --> 00:31:40,480 Speaker 1: on those nights where I don't wind down, or maybe 603 00:31:40,480 --> 00:31:43,240 Speaker 1: I've gone out and it's been like a really stimulating 604 00:31:43,280 --> 00:31:48,400 Speaker 1: conversation with friends, and I come home like feeling really wired, 605 00:31:48,520 --> 00:31:52,880 Speaker 1: but in a positive emotion way, as opposed to we've 606 00:31:52,920 --> 00:31:57,240 Speaker 1: just been in a you know, in a doomscroll loop 607 00:31:57,440 --> 00:32:01,280 Speaker 1: on TikTok or Instagram, and I will look at my 608 00:32:01,320 --> 00:32:03,480 Speaker 1: AURA score the next day and it's like, oh, your 609 00:32:03,520 --> 00:32:07,160 Speaker 1: resting heart rate was up when you went to bed. 610 00:32:07,240 --> 00:32:08,880 Speaker 2: So I very much. 611 00:32:08,760 --> 00:32:10,920 Speaker 1: Notice it in the quality of my sleep because it'll 612 00:32:10,920 --> 00:32:12,800 Speaker 1: affect the quality of my sleep when I'm. 613 00:32:12,640 --> 00:32:13,800 Speaker 2: You know, tracking it. 614 00:32:15,240 --> 00:32:16,920 Speaker 1: But I always try to build it in an hour 615 00:32:16,960 --> 00:32:19,840 Speaker 1: before bed where I'm just doing something really passive, like 616 00:32:19,920 --> 00:32:20,520 Speaker 1: reading fiction. 617 00:32:21,920 --> 00:32:22,720 Speaker 2: That's a really. 618 00:32:22,520 --> 00:32:25,920 Speaker 3: Good discipline too, Like I the hour before bed, I. 619 00:32:25,960 --> 00:32:29,320 Speaker 4: Reckon that feels that feels long for me, Like I'm. 620 00:32:29,200 --> 00:32:32,560 Speaker 3: Like, but also I read. 621 00:32:32,360 --> 00:32:35,640 Speaker 4: All my books on my phone, so. 622 00:32:35,560 --> 00:32:38,200 Speaker 3: I'm a massive fiction reader, but I have Kindle on 623 00:32:38,200 --> 00:32:40,720 Speaker 3: my phone, and so when I'm going to bed this, 624 00:32:40,880 --> 00:32:42,960 Speaker 3: I know, this is so bad, Like I know everything 625 00:32:43,000 --> 00:32:44,080 Speaker 3: in me is like it. 626 00:32:44,120 --> 00:32:44,760 Speaker 2: Is the worst. 627 00:32:44,840 --> 00:32:47,280 Speaker 3: But it's so practical, Like I'm like, I don't have 628 00:32:47,320 --> 00:32:49,360 Speaker 3: to like buy the book. I just have it on 629 00:32:49,400 --> 00:32:52,560 Speaker 3: my phone whenever I want it, and I would sit, 630 00:32:52,960 --> 00:32:55,680 Speaker 3: you know, for an hour every night, just like in 631 00:32:55,720 --> 00:32:58,920 Speaker 3: bed with my phone up to my face, just reading. 632 00:32:59,080 --> 00:33:02,479 Speaker 3: And I'm I'm always amazed that i still wake up 633 00:33:02,480 --> 00:33:02,880 Speaker 3: every morning. 634 00:33:03,120 --> 00:33:03,920 Speaker 4: I'm so tired. 635 00:33:04,480 --> 00:33:07,280 Speaker 2: Oh my god, I really I hate that for you. Shelly. 636 00:33:08,720 --> 00:33:10,240 Speaker 2: Do you own an actual kindle? 637 00:33:11,440 --> 00:33:13,920 Speaker 4: No? No, would that be better? 638 00:33:14,560 --> 00:33:17,200 Speaker 2: I think you need to get an actual kindle. 639 00:33:17,480 --> 00:33:20,280 Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, So from most of the research that I'm across, 640 00:33:20,760 --> 00:33:23,200 Speaker 1: the light on the kindle, particularly if you're in dark 641 00:33:23,240 --> 00:33:26,640 Speaker 1: mode on the kindle, as i am, so I would 642 00:33:26,760 --> 00:33:30,640 Speaker 1: mostly read my kindle in bed at night, but I'd 643 00:33:30,680 --> 00:33:33,000 Speaker 1: never read my phone at night, just because the light 644 00:33:33,080 --> 00:33:37,280 Speaker 1: that it's emitting is very different. One light is telling 645 00:33:37,320 --> 00:33:39,440 Speaker 1: you to stay awake, another is not. 646 00:33:39,760 --> 00:33:41,160 Speaker 4: Is your phone out of your bedroom? 647 00:33:41,360 --> 00:33:41,880 Speaker 2: Yeah it is? 648 00:33:41,960 --> 00:33:44,520 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, for years it charges in the corridor. So 649 00:33:44,520 --> 00:33:47,880 Speaker 1: we've got a little charging station, there's no phones allowed 650 00:33:48,000 --> 00:33:48,680 Speaker 1: in the bedroom. 651 00:33:49,920 --> 00:33:52,400 Speaker 4: That again, this is a discipline, And it's really interesting. 652 00:33:52,440 --> 00:33:54,720 Speaker 3: I mean thinking about this word discipline a lot lately 653 00:33:54,760 --> 00:33:58,040 Speaker 3: because we've been working with teams, some really high performing 654 00:33:58,080 --> 00:34:00,520 Speaker 3: teams who discipline is a really import and part of 655 00:34:00,520 --> 00:34:03,920 Speaker 3: how they perform well. And then just thinking about you going, okay, 656 00:34:03,960 --> 00:34:05,240 Speaker 3: I've got this hour before bed. 657 00:34:05,560 --> 00:34:07,360 Speaker 4: I'm like, oh, that's a long time. 658 00:34:07,600 --> 00:34:11,759 Speaker 3: And then and then the phone's in the corridor again, 659 00:34:11,800 --> 00:34:13,960 Speaker 3: another discipline that you've been doing for years, and then 660 00:34:14,000 --> 00:34:16,319 Speaker 3: waking up within half an hour. But these are like 661 00:34:16,719 --> 00:34:19,520 Speaker 3: they're simple, but they're not easy, Like it is a 662 00:34:19,560 --> 00:34:22,960 Speaker 3: full habit change, Like I'm thinking about how I and 663 00:34:23,000 --> 00:34:25,360 Speaker 3: I'm going to do. I actually haven't getting to publicly 664 00:34:25,360 --> 00:34:27,120 Speaker 3: commit to getting a kindle and getting off my phone 665 00:34:27,120 --> 00:34:28,839 Speaker 3: because I know when I've got my phone right here 666 00:34:29,120 --> 00:34:32,280 Speaker 3: as I'm sleeping, I can I just like beate myself. 667 00:34:32,280 --> 00:34:34,200 Speaker 4: But I'm not. I haven't made any changes. 668 00:34:35,760 --> 00:34:39,160 Speaker 1: Well, that's the thing I mean, because you talk about discipline, 669 00:34:39,480 --> 00:34:42,720 Speaker 1: but for me, because I've been doing these things for 670 00:34:42,840 --> 00:34:47,719 Speaker 1: so long years, there's no discipline involved. It's more it 671 00:34:47,760 --> 00:34:50,919 Speaker 1: feels weird when I don't do those things like very 672 00:34:50,960 --> 00:34:55,200 Speaker 1: occasionally I will sleep with my phone next to me, like, 673 00:34:55,239 --> 00:34:58,920 Speaker 1: for example, if my daughter is at a sleepover and 674 00:34:58,960 --> 00:35:02,480 Speaker 1: I feel an obligation to just have my phone not 675 00:35:02,600 --> 00:35:05,439 Speaker 1: on silence, but just just in case, because it would 676 00:35:05,440 --> 00:35:07,799 Speaker 1: be a crappy experience for the other parents if they 677 00:35:07,840 --> 00:35:10,560 Speaker 1: needed to get hold of me, and they never do, 678 00:35:10,920 --> 00:35:13,399 Speaker 1: Like it's kind of irrational, but I feel like it's 679 00:35:13,400 --> 00:35:16,640 Speaker 1: a responsible thing to do. Or very occasionally where I've 680 00:35:16,640 --> 00:35:19,040 Speaker 1: got a really early morning and i want double alarm, 681 00:35:19,120 --> 00:35:22,520 Speaker 1: so I've got an old school alarm clock that I 682 00:35:22,880 --> 00:35:25,880 Speaker 1: you know that there's no scrolling on that alarm clock, 683 00:35:26,320 --> 00:35:27,759 Speaker 1: and that is there to help me tell the time 684 00:35:27,800 --> 00:35:29,680 Speaker 1: and wake me up if I need to wake up 685 00:35:29,680 --> 00:35:31,600 Speaker 1: at a certain time. But sometimes I'll bring the phone 686 00:35:31,600 --> 00:35:34,000 Speaker 1: in just for double alarm in case something goes wrong 687 00:35:34,040 --> 00:35:38,160 Speaker 1: with the power. But otherwise they just take no effort 688 00:35:38,360 --> 00:35:41,080 Speaker 1: because there are things that I've been doing forever, like 689 00:35:41,120 --> 00:35:43,319 Speaker 1: it really doesn't take a lot of effort to wake 690 00:35:43,360 --> 00:35:45,759 Speaker 1: within a half hour window, because my body finds it 691 00:35:45,800 --> 00:35:48,920 Speaker 1: hard not to wake within that window because I've been 692 00:35:48,920 --> 00:35:51,600 Speaker 1: doing it for so long, and it just feels really 693 00:35:51,800 --> 00:35:55,560 Speaker 1: unnatural and strange to sleep with my phone in my bed, 694 00:35:55,719 --> 00:35:58,480 Speaker 1: like it's you know, it's it's like I don't know, 695 00:35:58,600 --> 00:36:02,560 Speaker 1: as if I'm sleeping with the world's brightest TV. 696 00:36:02,480 --> 00:36:05,640 Speaker 2: Right next to me, like that just that would feel weird, right. 697 00:36:05,640 --> 00:36:08,600 Speaker 1: So I think the more you do it, the less 698 00:36:08,600 --> 00:36:09,839 Speaker 1: discipline it requires. 699 00:36:10,440 --> 00:36:11,480 Speaker 4: That's a really good call out. 700 00:36:11,520 --> 00:36:15,040 Speaker 3: Actually, as something as your first kicking off a new habit, 701 00:36:15,120 --> 00:36:17,000 Speaker 3: it will feel like a discipline, but or over time 702 00:36:17,040 --> 00:36:20,200 Speaker 3: it just feels normal. And I love that because I'm 703 00:36:20,200 --> 00:36:22,440 Speaker 3: like thinking about that, going Okay, cool, That's what I 704 00:36:22,480 --> 00:36:23,920 Speaker 3: need some of those things in my life. 705 00:36:24,080 --> 00:36:26,759 Speaker 4: I want to take. I want to take a quick break. 706 00:36:26,800 --> 00:36:28,319 Speaker 3: When we come back, I want to ask you about 707 00:36:28,320 --> 00:36:31,239 Speaker 3: this idea of busy because I think one thing that 708 00:36:31,280 --> 00:36:33,319 Speaker 3: you do really well is you're thinking about how do 709 00:36:33,360 --> 00:36:37,320 Speaker 3: we be productive and effective, and often that runs counter 710 00:36:37,400 --> 00:36:38,400 Speaker 3: to busy culture. 711 00:36:38,560 --> 00:36:40,040 Speaker 4: So when we come back, we'll dig into that. 712 00:36:48,360 --> 00:36:52,080 Speaker 3: So, Amantha, one thing that I feel like everyone has 713 00:36:52,120 --> 00:36:54,040 Speaker 3: been complaining all about our clients so we work with 714 00:36:54,160 --> 00:36:58,120 Speaker 3: have been complaining about is everyone's busy, but they're not 715 00:36:58,160 --> 00:37:00,160 Speaker 3: doing the we don't think they're doing the right world work, 716 00:37:00,280 --> 00:37:02,000 Speaker 3: or we're not working on the highest value things. We're 717 00:37:02,000 --> 00:37:05,239 Speaker 3: still not achieving our strategy. And I think this very 718 00:37:05,280 --> 00:37:10,240 Speaker 3: much links into productivity and how we be productive versus busy. 719 00:37:10,760 --> 00:37:14,000 Speaker 3: Can you talk to us about how we can shift 720 00:37:14,400 --> 00:37:18,160 Speaker 3: our mindset from being always on the hustle the busyness 721 00:37:18,280 --> 00:37:21,480 Speaker 3: versus working on what is really important? 722 00:37:22,560 --> 00:37:22,799 Speaker 4: Wow. 723 00:37:25,000 --> 00:37:28,360 Speaker 1: A new I guess ritual that I have started recently 724 00:37:29,280 --> 00:37:31,640 Speaker 1: is at the start of every month. And this is 725 00:37:31,640 --> 00:37:34,000 Speaker 1: going to sound really simple, but it has helped me 726 00:37:34,120 --> 00:37:36,759 Speaker 1: so much. Is that the start of every month, I 727 00:37:36,760 --> 00:37:41,440 Speaker 1: will think what are the big chunks of work that 728 00:37:41,480 --> 00:37:42,120 Speaker 1: I want to do? 729 00:37:42,440 --> 00:37:43,799 Speaker 2: So really, what are my. 730 00:37:43,880 --> 00:37:48,120 Speaker 1: Big deep work projects that I'm working on? And right 731 00:37:48,120 --> 00:37:50,640 Speaker 1: now the manuscripts are given. That is an everyday task 732 00:37:50,680 --> 00:37:53,640 Speaker 1: that doesn't require thinking. It's just a non negotiable, even 733 00:37:53,680 --> 00:37:58,160 Speaker 1: on weekends. It's literally every single day I write. But 734 00:37:58,320 --> 00:38:01,239 Speaker 1: when it comes to my inventing and work, I think 735 00:38:01,239 --> 00:38:02,839 Speaker 1: about what are the things that are going to get 736 00:38:02,880 --> 00:38:05,520 Speaker 1: me closer to my goals to the company goals, to 737 00:38:05,600 --> 00:38:07,520 Speaker 1: the things that are going to make an impact. And 738 00:38:07,640 --> 00:38:13,560 Speaker 1: I'll typically write down it's typically about four or five things, 739 00:38:13,600 --> 00:38:16,880 Speaker 1: like it might be plan a launch strategy for this 740 00:38:16,960 --> 00:38:22,960 Speaker 1: new product, or you know, finish developing this program, about blah. 741 00:38:23,080 --> 00:38:26,520 Speaker 1: So things that are quite meety, they're probably going to 742 00:38:26,560 --> 00:38:30,719 Speaker 1: be about, you know, two days worth of deep work each, 743 00:38:30,800 --> 00:38:34,640 Speaker 1: let's say thereabouts, and I will have that. 744 00:38:34,920 --> 00:38:36,720 Speaker 2: I will pin that as a note. 745 00:38:37,000 --> 00:38:39,719 Speaker 1: I use Apple notes, although I'm sort of between notion 746 00:38:39,840 --> 00:38:41,920 Speaker 1: and Apple notes at the moment, so just my note 747 00:38:41,960 --> 00:38:43,560 Speaker 1: take is a little bit of a mess right now. 748 00:38:44,200 --> 00:38:49,120 Speaker 1: And for the most part, I will timebox, so I'll 749 00:38:49,120 --> 00:38:51,960 Speaker 1: make meetings with myself to do the things that are important. 750 00:38:52,440 --> 00:38:54,359 Speaker 2: But then if I haven't done that, and. 751 00:38:54,320 --> 00:38:57,719 Speaker 1: I've got a day where you know, I've got a 752 00:38:57,800 --> 00:39:01,000 Speaker 1: spare two or three hours that is not account by. 753 00:39:00,920 --> 00:39:04,200 Speaker 2: Book writing or by meetings or by. 754 00:39:05,480 --> 00:39:08,080 Speaker 1: Needing to help my team with things, I will go 755 00:39:08,120 --> 00:39:12,640 Speaker 1: to that monthly goal list or task list and I go, Okay, 756 00:39:13,160 --> 00:39:15,799 Speaker 1: what do I need to make progress on? What am 757 00:39:15,840 --> 00:39:18,360 Speaker 1: I feeling like I've got energy for today? 758 00:39:18,560 --> 00:39:18,640 Speaker 3: Like? 759 00:39:18,760 --> 00:39:21,120 Speaker 1: Is it a creative task? Is it an analytical task? 760 00:39:21,239 --> 00:39:23,080 Speaker 1: And I will pick one of those things, and I'm like, Okay, 761 00:39:23,120 --> 00:39:25,520 Speaker 1: today I'm going to make progress on this. I'm going 762 00:39:25,520 --> 00:39:28,279 Speaker 1: to dedicate a couple of hours to moving forward on 763 00:39:28,320 --> 00:39:29,640 Speaker 1: this particular goal for the month. 764 00:39:30,120 --> 00:39:33,680 Speaker 2: It sounds so simple and obvious, but I found that. 765 00:39:33,760 --> 00:39:37,560 Speaker 1: It helps me so much because I think, and particularly 766 00:39:37,960 --> 00:39:41,239 Speaker 1: when you're a leader in a business, the easiest thing 767 00:39:41,640 --> 00:39:44,200 Speaker 1: is just to be reacting to what everyone else needs 768 00:39:44,280 --> 00:39:46,720 Speaker 1: and to completely lose sight of your own goals, because 769 00:39:46,719 --> 00:39:49,759 Speaker 1: that feels like you're doing a good job. Like if 770 00:39:49,800 --> 00:39:53,919 Speaker 1: I'm helping my team troubleshoot various things or helping them 771 00:39:54,400 --> 00:39:58,280 Speaker 1: develop a program for a client and I'm helping reduce 772 00:39:58,320 --> 00:40:00,520 Speaker 1: their stress, I feel really good about my and I 773 00:40:00,560 --> 00:40:04,279 Speaker 1: feel like, yeah, today was a good day. But if 774 00:40:04,320 --> 00:40:07,120 Speaker 1: I did that every day and I didn't go back 775 00:40:07,160 --> 00:40:11,000 Speaker 1: to what am I trying to achieve? And sometimes there'll 776 00:40:11,040 --> 00:40:13,480 Speaker 1: be things that I'm working on solo, so there's nothing 777 00:40:13,480 --> 00:40:15,880 Speaker 1: to react to. It's purely just me in charge of 778 00:40:15,880 --> 00:40:19,120 Speaker 1: whether progress gets made or not. It's so easy to 779 00:40:19,200 --> 00:40:22,600 Speaker 1: lose sight of those goals, and so I have a 780 00:40:22,640 --> 00:40:23,240 Speaker 1: simple list. 781 00:40:23,719 --> 00:40:24,520 Speaker 2: It is pinned. 782 00:40:25,080 --> 00:40:28,319 Speaker 1: I look at it several times a week when I'm 783 00:40:28,320 --> 00:40:31,359 Speaker 1: feeling a little bit distracted or unfocused, or like I've 784 00:40:31,360 --> 00:40:33,200 Speaker 1: got this block of time, how should I be using it? 785 00:40:33,440 --> 00:40:34,879 Speaker 1: The easiest thing to do is just to go into 786 00:40:34,920 --> 00:40:37,520 Speaker 1: my inbox and go, I'm just gonna like stuff around 787 00:40:37,560 --> 00:40:40,440 Speaker 1: in my inbox and have that false sense of productivity, 788 00:40:41,120 --> 00:40:42,719 Speaker 1: and I can easily just get stuck in there for 789 00:40:42,760 --> 00:40:46,080 Speaker 1: an hour and emerge like not having actually been that productive. 790 00:40:47,200 --> 00:40:51,640 Speaker 1: So that has been one of the single biggest helpers 791 00:40:51,840 --> 00:40:53,000 Speaker 1: in the last few months. 792 00:40:53,520 --> 00:40:56,719 Speaker 3: And just hearing you unpack that, to me, I think 793 00:40:56,719 --> 00:41:01,200 Speaker 3: about two things. It's like counterfeit productive, like when you're 794 00:41:01,200 --> 00:41:04,960 Speaker 3: in the reactive mode, it's this is the worst part 795 00:41:05,000 --> 00:41:08,919 Speaker 3: about it. You feel you're being productive. So it's the illusion, 796 00:41:09,120 --> 00:41:14,000 Speaker 3: like I feel I've like done all this stuff, I've 797 00:41:14,040 --> 00:41:16,239 Speaker 3: like been drawn into I've like smashed out a whole 798 00:41:16,280 --> 00:41:18,759 Speaker 3: bunch of emails, I've like connected with a whole bunch 799 00:41:18,760 --> 00:41:21,719 Speaker 3: of my team on like stuff that you know has 800 00:41:21,719 --> 00:41:25,800 Speaker 3: felt really urgent, But is the importance there if you 801 00:41:25,840 --> 00:41:28,120 Speaker 3: went through an analyze it, like some of the things maybe, 802 00:41:28,120 --> 00:41:29,319 Speaker 3: but some of the things definitely not. 803 00:41:30,120 --> 00:41:32,080 Speaker 4: And then you go, oh, okay, I. 804 00:41:32,120 --> 00:41:34,319 Speaker 3: Feel I've been productive today, but that list of the 805 00:41:34,360 --> 00:41:38,800 Speaker 3: most important things is still sitting there with no momentum. 806 00:41:39,280 --> 00:41:40,280 Speaker 2: Yeah. 807 00:41:40,360 --> 00:41:44,160 Speaker 1: Yeah, it's I love that term catafeite productivity. 808 00:41:44,320 --> 00:41:44,799 Speaker 2: That's cool. 809 00:41:45,040 --> 00:41:48,160 Speaker 1: I call it like false productivity where you feel like 810 00:41:48,160 --> 00:41:51,600 Speaker 1: you're being productive. It's just it's a flawed belief that 811 00:41:51,680 --> 00:41:56,080 Speaker 1: you are, but it feels so good. You know, It's 812 00:41:56,120 --> 00:42:00,480 Speaker 1: like it feels really good archiving emails and you know, 813 00:42:00,600 --> 00:42:03,799 Speaker 1: writing quick responses to things and like getting down to 814 00:42:03,880 --> 00:42:06,959 Speaker 1: inbog zero or something like that. You know, the way 815 00:42:07,480 --> 00:42:13,320 Speaker 1: email has been designed, it's gamified, and so it's really addictive, 816 00:42:13,880 --> 00:42:17,560 Speaker 1: and I must say, like it's still my achilles heel. 817 00:42:18,120 --> 00:42:18,800 Speaker 2: But I do. 818 00:42:19,040 --> 00:42:21,399 Speaker 1: I am one thing that's actually helped me in terms 819 00:42:21,440 --> 00:42:26,080 Speaker 1: of stay out of my inbox more is I mean, 820 00:42:26,080 --> 00:42:28,080 Speaker 1: aside from all the obvious things in terms of just 821 00:42:28,360 --> 00:42:30,879 Speaker 1: you know, Superhuman is the email client that I use. 822 00:42:31,320 --> 00:42:34,279 Speaker 1: I have it closed for most of the day. I 823 00:42:34,320 --> 00:42:38,200 Speaker 1: also have we also use Microsoft teams that invent hum 824 00:42:38,400 --> 00:42:40,399 Speaker 1: and we'll you know, communicate a bit on chat. I'll 825 00:42:40,440 --> 00:42:42,840 Speaker 1: generally have that closed. I'll open it a handful of 826 00:42:42,840 --> 00:42:48,560 Speaker 1: times a day. But my amazing EA Gem she's in 827 00:42:48,600 --> 00:42:52,440 Speaker 1: my inbox during the day, multiple times a day, and. 828 00:42:52,719 --> 00:42:54,480 Speaker 2: She's responding to things. 829 00:42:54,600 --> 00:42:59,680 Speaker 1: She's even like drafting email responses from me for me 830 00:42:59,760 --> 00:43:03,719 Speaker 1: to approve or edit and then send. Like essentially, the 831 00:43:03,719 --> 00:43:06,880 Speaker 1: more she's in my inbox, the easier my life is. 832 00:43:07,400 --> 00:43:10,560 Speaker 1: And I'm kind of training myself to go if I'm 833 00:43:10,600 --> 00:43:14,480 Speaker 1: in my inbox too much. I'm probably making gem feel 834 00:43:14,560 --> 00:43:17,160 Speaker 1: like I'm not valuing the stuff that she's doing in 835 00:43:17,200 --> 00:43:20,000 Speaker 1: my inbox, which is amazing, and so kind of thinking 836 00:43:20,000 --> 00:43:23,560 Speaker 1: about how my behavior impacts someone else negatively has actually 837 00:43:23,600 --> 00:43:26,840 Speaker 1: been quite a good motivator, you know, out of my 838 00:43:26,960 --> 00:43:28,600 Speaker 1: need to be helpful. 839 00:43:29,440 --> 00:43:30,919 Speaker 2: So that's it, and it's kind. 840 00:43:31,040 --> 00:43:34,040 Speaker 3: I do think that last line of the need to 841 00:43:34,080 --> 00:43:38,080 Speaker 3: be helpful. I think that sometimes is where this pattern 842 00:43:38,160 --> 00:43:41,560 Speaker 3: towards busy and reactive comes in, because we feel we're 843 00:43:41,560 --> 00:43:42,120 Speaker 3: being helpful. 844 00:43:42,160 --> 00:43:44,600 Speaker 4: And like, I'll. 845 00:43:44,440 --> 00:43:46,040 Speaker 3: Speak for myself, I won't speak for you, but my 846 00:43:46,160 --> 00:43:49,480 Speaker 3: ego likes that. Like I liked to feel like really 847 00:43:49,560 --> 00:43:52,600 Speaker 3: needed and really like, oh yeah, like I really helped 848 00:43:52,840 --> 00:43:54,040 Speaker 3: helped a lot of people today. 849 00:43:54,280 --> 00:43:57,719 Speaker 4: But I'm like, but did I actually help make an impact? 850 00:43:57,760 --> 00:43:59,600 Speaker 3: And I've been coming back a lot, and I know 851 00:43:59,640 --> 00:44:01,600 Speaker 3: you've done like a bit of work on this around 852 00:44:02,480 --> 00:44:06,000 Speaker 3: really understanding when you think about the work, what is 853 00:44:06,040 --> 00:44:10,240 Speaker 3: the impact of that work and does that impact actually 854 00:44:10,280 --> 00:44:15,000 Speaker 3: push the business forward, push the organization forward, or is 855 00:44:15,040 --> 00:44:18,560 Speaker 3: it just perpetuating this cycle of the false productivity that 856 00:44:18,600 --> 00:44:23,759 Speaker 3: you mentioned. I know I am speaking of productivity. I'm 857 00:44:23,760 --> 00:44:27,560 Speaker 3: looking at the big glaring clock that says there's three 858 00:44:27,560 --> 00:44:30,840 Speaker 3: minutes left that we have in the last few minutes 859 00:44:30,880 --> 00:44:34,319 Speaker 3: we have. I would just love are there any other 860 00:44:34,400 --> 00:44:38,960 Speaker 3: things that you would love listeners to know about what 861 00:44:39,040 --> 00:44:44,080 Speaker 3: it means to be not just productive but healthy and 862 00:44:44,560 --> 00:44:46,640 Speaker 3: build this kind of productive way of working in a 863 00:44:46,640 --> 00:44:47,600 Speaker 3: sustainable way. 864 00:44:49,719 --> 00:44:52,880 Speaker 1: I think a really good but painful exercise to go 865 00:44:52,960 --> 00:44:56,200 Speaker 1: through is to actually track how are you using the 866 00:44:56,280 --> 00:44:59,719 Speaker 1: minutes in your day. I think that most people will be. 867 00:45:01,000 --> 00:45:03,279 Speaker 2: There's a lot of great software that can make it 868 00:45:03,320 --> 00:45:04,040 Speaker 2: easy to do. 869 00:45:04,800 --> 00:45:08,799 Speaker 1: I quite like riseris I it makes it really easy, 870 00:45:08,840 --> 00:45:11,279 Speaker 1: particularly if you're a computer based worker, just to go 871 00:45:11,320 --> 00:45:15,400 Speaker 1: where is my time going? And then to look at 872 00:45:15,440 --> 00:45:18,680 Speaker 1: that and go how does that actually fit with my 873 00:45:18,920 --> 00:45:23,160 Speaker 1: job and my goals and ultimately the things that I 874 00:45:23,239 --> 00:45:26,560 Speaker 1: can do that will have the biggest impact, and often 875 00:45:27,200 --> 00:45:31,200 Speaker 1: there is very little relationship between those things. The average 876 00:45:31,400 --> 00:45:36,720 Speaker 1: knowledge worker is spending about three hours in their inbox. Generally, 877 00:45:36,760 --> 00:45:40,680 Speaker 1: that's not three productive hours, it's three faffing about hours. 878 00:45:41,239 --> 00:45:46,360 Speaker 1: They're spending about four hours a day in meetings, and 879 00:45:46,400 --> 00:45:48,799 Speaker 1: if you think about that, that's seven out of eight 880 00:45:48,840 --> 00:45:51,759 Speaker 1: hours that we're working. Where on Earth is the deep 881 00:45:51,840 --> 00:45:56,759 Speaker 1: work happening for most people, it's simply not, so be like, 882 00:45:56,800 --> 00:45:58,759 Speaker 1: start to be aware, and you know, you could just 883 00:45:58,800 --> 00:46:00,840 Speaker 1: set up an Excel spreadshet and track your time in 884 00:46:00,840 --> 00:46:03,719 Speaker 1: fifteen minute increments and look at where your time is 885 00:46:03,760 --> 00:46:07,799 Speaker 1: actually going and compare that against what is your job 886 00:46:07,880 --> 00:46:10,040 Speaker 1: and what are your goals and if there's a disconnect, 887 00:46:10,400 --> 00:46:12,440 Speaker 1: now you know where you can start to make some changes. 888 00:46:14,120 --> 00:46:16,600 Speaker 3: That is amazing And I think there are so many 889 00:46:16,640 --> 00:46:20,040 Speaker 3: practical tools that you've given people on this episode. 890 00:46:20,239 --> 00:46:21,440 Speaker 4: What I want you to do. 891 00:46:21,480 --> 00:46:23,960 Speaker 3: If you're listening and you're like, oh, yeah, there's a 892 00:46:24,000 --> 00:46:29,640 Speaker 3: lot here that I can take away, try two things 893 00:46:29,719 --> 00:46:31,560 Speaker 3: in the next week. So for me, I'm going to 894 00:46:31,600 --> 00:46:33,239 Speaker 3: buy I'm going to go on Amazon after this and 895 00:46:33,360 --> 00:46:36,200 Speaker 3: get the Kindle so that I can actually just salt 896 00:46:36,239 --> 00:46:37,680 Speaker 3: my bedarime routine. 897 00:46:37,719 --> 00:46:38,960 Speaker 4: Now do I sleep out? 898 00:46:40,040 --> 00:46:41,879 Speaker 3: And I'm going to do that what you suggested, get 899 00:46:41,960 --> 00:46:44,600 Speaker 3: rives and analyze the minutes in the day, because that 900 00:46:44,719 --> 00:46:47,279 Speaker 3: is pretty terrifying when you think about seven hours of 901 00:46:47,320 --> 00:46:50,800 Speaker 3: your day no deep work, No wonder people are exhausted 902 00:46:50,800 --> 00:46:52,719 Speaker 3: because they're finding the deep work at night or on 903 00:46:52,760 --> 00:46:56,080 Speaker 3: the weekends, or they're still like trying to find those 904 00:46:56,080 --> 00:46:58,480 Speaker 3: spaces to do it. It's just they're not in their 905 00:46:58,520 --> 00:47:02,080 Speaker 3: normal course of work, and I want you to take action. 906 00:47:02,239 --> 00:47:07,399 Speaker 3: If you've taken any steps, messages, connect on LinkedIn. I 907 00:47:07,440 --> 00:47:09,719 Speaker 3: love hearing about what people are doing. We're going to 908 00:47:09,760 --> 00:47:13,120 Speaker 3: put a link in to inventing Amantha's business into the 909 00:47:13,120 --> 00:47:15,719 Speaker 3: show notes. As well as Amantha's LinkedIn, you can follow her. 910 00:47:15,760 --> 00:47:19,920 Speaker 3: She posts so much good stuff. Amantha, anything else for 911 00:47:20,000 --> 00:47:22,399 Speaker 3: our listeners that you want to close out with. 912 00:47:24,040 --> 00:47:26,800 Speaker 1: I just think start to be more mindful about where 913 00:47:26,840 --> 00:47:29,520 Speaker 1: your time is going. We are all busy, we are 914 00:47:29,600 --> 00:47:33,040 Speaker 1: all time poor, but actually start to pay more attention 915 00:47:33,360 --> 00:47:34,640 Speaker 1: to where you're spending your time. 916 00:47:35,880 --> 00:47:36,440 Speaker 4: Beautiful. 917 00:47:36,560 --> 00:47:38,680 Speaker 3: Thank you so much for making the time to come 918 00:47:38,680 --> 00:47:41,680 Speaker 3: on the pod today. And if you enjoyed this episode, 919 00:47:41,680 --> 00:47:43,320 Speaker 3: I'd really encourage you to share it with a friend 920 00:47:43,400 --> 00:47:45,920 Speaker 3: and give us a five star rating on Spotify or Apple. 921 00:47:46,520 --> 00:47:49,600 Speaker 3: Thanks so much Amantha for hanging out ah My Pleasure. 922 00:47:50,560 --> 00:47:54,320 Speaker 1: If you have enjoyed this chat with Shelley, be sure 923 00:47:54,400 --> 00:47:57,280 Speaker 1: to check out her podcast, This is Work. 924 00:47:58,280 --> 00:47:58,839 Speaker 2: If you like. 925 00:47:58,800 --> 00:48:02,080 Speaker 1: Today's Joe, make sure you hit follow on your podcast 926 00:48:02,120 --> 00:48:05,520 Speaker 1: app to be alerted when new episodes drop. How I 927 00:48:05,600 --> 00:48:08,760 Speaker 1: Work was recorded on the traditional land of the warringery people, 928 00:48:08,880 --> 00:48:11,239 Speaker 1: part of the Kolhan nation. A big thank you to 929 00:48:11,280 --> 00:48:13,160 Speaker 1: Martin Nimma for doing the sound mix.