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5 Unusual Tricks For Actually Reaching Your New Year's Goals

5 Unusual Tricks For Actually Reaching Your New Year's Goals
With the new year rolling around, most of us are planning ways to improve our health, set some big goals, and finally achieve things we have been putting off for a while. But when you look at the statistics, almost 80% of people will fail by the springtime, and after a year, only a smaller percentage of people are still involved with their goals at all. So here’s how to be that tiny percentage of people that are still going strong a year later. #1 Follow intrinsic motivation… rather than forcing yourself. Let me ask you this: do you think the typical person who just begins working out during the new year will still be exercising if: They’re intrinsically motivated (they like it)They’re forcing themselves to do it by using rewards (money/food), punishments, etc. Can you guess which one? The first! Although your friend may be slimming down quicker than you after spending 5 hours a week pounding it out in the gym, see if they’re still exercising in 1-2 years when it really matters.

10 Laws of Productivity You might think that creatives as diverse as Internet entrepreneur Jack Dorsey, industrial design firm Studio 7.5, and bestselling Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami would have little in common. In fact, the tenets that guide how they – and exceptionally productive creatives across the board – make ideas happen are incredibly similar. Here are 10 laws of productivity we’ve consistently observed among serial idea executors: 1. A bias toward action is the most common trait we’ve found across the hundreds of creative professionals and entrepreneurs we’ve interviewed. 2. When our ideas are still in our head, we tend to think big, blue sky concepts. 3. Trial and error is an essential part of any creative’s life. To avoid ‘blue sky paralysis,’ pare your idea down to a small, immediately executable concept. 4. When working on in-depth projects, we generate lots of new ideas along the way. 5. 6. Part of being able to work on your project a little bit each day is carving out the time to do so. 7.

The Complete Flake’s Guide to Getting Things Done Are you smart and motivated and passionate, and have lots of cool things you’d like to get done, but somehow when it comes to doing them, you just . . . don’t? Are you great at ideas but lousy at execution? Talk a good game but don’t get any results? Spend a lot of time thinking about where you want to go, but not much time actually moving your ass down the road that would take you there? You, my friend, are a flake. Congratulations. Most of us are creative and smart. What we lack is focus. That, and we lack this “drive” thing. If you are a flake, you need to learn how to get things done. We live in a world made of stuff, so it gets pretty painful when we blow stuff off. What Do You Want Out of It? You’re not going to get a damned thing done until you actually know what you want to get out of it. I know this is making your eyes roll into the back of your head. That’s a good thing to do, but I’m not talking about that. Do you want to do it to make some money? Getting Real Step 1. Step 2.

GTD Cheatsheet – An Intro on the GTD system The system created by David Allen in his popular book Getting Things Done focuses on freeing up your mind’s RAM (or resources). The GTD system simply takes all or our mental and physical “stuff” in our lives and organizes it into a system where we can easily: 1) Act on it or 2) Store it and retrieve it later. The GTD Cheatsheet is a small, condensed version of GTD. 1. 2. 3. The Brain Hacks Top Founders Use To Get The Job Done Katia Verresen's new client had a big problem: He needed to find three to four extra hours in his day. This, of course, seemed like an impossible feat for an oversubscribed startup founder, but his ability to fundraise and recruit the best talent depended on it. By the time he met Verresen, executive coach to many such founders, he was drained, pessimistic, dreading every week before it started. Even though tech culture champions sleeplessness, overtime and burnout, Verresen has seen how this mindset can lead to failure. But the proof is in the pudding. Her method has turned Verresen into one of the most sought after coaches in the business. Filling Your Buckets Maintaining and using energy wisely might seem like obvious advice, but it’s hardly ever heeded. Instead, she encourages her clients to visualize three types of energy as buckets that need to be filled: Physical Energy: The foundation of everything you do. Entrepreneurism as Endurance Sport Then she goes granular.

How To Motivate Yourself: 3 Steps Backed By Science You make goals… but then you procrastinate. You write a to-do list… but then you don’t follow through. And this happens again and again and again. Seriously, what’s the problem? Why are we so good at thinking of what to do but so terrible at actually doing those things? The problem is you’re skipping an essential step. The Mistake Every Productivity System Makes Productivity systems rarely take emotions into account. We can’t ignore our emotions. And we can’t fight our feelings. Via The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can’t Stand Positive Thinking: …when experimental subjects are told of an unhappy event, but then instructed to try not to feel sad about it, they end up feeling worse than people who are informed of the event, but given no instructions about how to feel. So what does the unavoidable power of feelings mean for motivation? In their book Switch, Chip and Dan Heath say that emotions are an essential part of executing any plan: Focus on emotions. 1) Get Positive It’s optimism.

The Four Elements of Physical Energy and How To Master Them I have a FitBit (glorified pedometer if I ever saw one), and since getting it, my exercise goal each day is to hit 5,000 steps. On work days, I generally hit 2,000-3,000 each day consistently, meaning I only need to take a walk around the block twice when I get home to meet my goal. Recently, due to winter, I mostly was just pacing back and forth in my apartment while watching Netflix. A process that could take me up to two hours to get those extra 5,000 steps in (it's a small apartment). I find that having a goal for step count rather than exercise is easier, because some days I just don't *feel* like exercising (like Saturdays, when I am running around doing errands), and typically on those days, I get a bunch of steps in anyways. I combine this method with Jerry Scienfeld's method of "Don't Break the Chain," which REALLY helps come Sunday when I'm not doing anything or going anywhere, and therefore really do need to concentrate to get my 5k steps in.

Self-Massage Moves for Back and Neck Pain By Michele BenderPhotos by Itzy Ramirez You don’t need an appointment, a spa or even another person to reap the benefits of a massage. “When it’s not possible to get a professional treatment, you can relieve everyday aches and tension on your own,” explains Elizabeth Bryan Bragg, a licensed massage therapist at Shift PT in New York City. “Massage assistance equipment such as Theracane, Backnobber and foam rollers are great tools to use for myofascial release and relaxation of tired, knotted muscles,” adds Scott Danberg, director of fitness at the Pritikin Longevity Center & Spa in Miami. Related: 5 More Moves to Send Back Pain Packing Try these five self-massage techniques to beat neck and back pain. Soothe: Back of the neck pain Twist two or three scarves into a thick braid-like shape, suggests holistic psychotherapist Patty Schein.Stretch the braided scarves and place them behind your neck, holding one end in each hand. Soothe: Upper back pain Soothe: Side of the neck pain

Exercises for Sciatica - the one VITAL exercise This web page will outline the exercises for sciatica that actually work. You also need to know the exercises that can potentially cause harm too. Why? Many people suffer with sciatica, and many people search for help only to find that their pain remains or at times becomes worse. The first step in any program is to find out specifically what is causing your pain. So before we begin, let's go through the most common causes of sciatica and there solutions. Cause #1 - Disc Herniations You will see on many sites that disc herniations are a common cause of sciatica. And if you have a herniated disc, fixing the disc is also not the best thing to do. Cause #2 - Spinal Stenosis This is in fact very rare and is when the spinal canal's internal size decreases. Cause #3 - Spinal Slippage Also called spondylolithesis, and in fact is quite common. Once more this is a very rare situation and for those with minor slippage, pain is less likely from the actual joint involved. Cause #4 - Spinal Imbalance

Exercises for Posterior Tibial Tendonitis The tibialis posterior muscle runs down the tibia bone at the front of your lower leg, wraps around your inner ankle and attaches at the bottom of your foot. Posterior tibial tendonitis is an inflammation of the tibial tendon, and is a common injury among runners and soccer players. Posterior tibial tendonitis can be caused by shin splints, trauma such as a fall or from misalignment due to poor arch support or improper walking technique. If you suspect you have posterior tibial tendonitis, seek medical attention. Several exercises may help. Often, improper weight distribution as you walk can cause a misalignment of the posterior tibial muscle. Strengthening the muscles and tendons all around the ankle will help treat the injury and offer support. Slowly circling your ankles will help restore some mobility to the injured area. The inner ankle lift uses light 5-lb. weight, so if your injury has not progressed to the point that you can incorporate any resistance, skip this for now.

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