Tiny-little-practices-that-make-a-difference — Choosing and then doing the one f*cking thing . . .

Here is a practice to develop your grit. I love this practice for getting engaged in what is meaningful, reducing brain fog, and wrestling effectively with the tyranny-of-the-lists. Choose the one fucking thing . . . and then hold yourself accountable to doing that thing—earlier is better than later. 

Yes, I’m swearing here to call in your warrior aspect. I revel in the way using this word can unleash a spurt of empowering anger, as long as it is not overused in our everyday language. (I used to say to my kids when they would start to sling swear words around willy-nilly, “Save the swear words for when you need the emphasis.”) The sword-like quality of good clean anger is a great ally when being decisive and getting things done is called for.

While sipping your morning coffee or tea, scan out across all the ways that your life is calling to you and then ask yourself, “If all else takes over and my day gets away from me, What is the one fucking thing I’m going to do today?” 

Criteria for determining your one fucking thing:

First and foremost — Make it small and doable. For the purposes of this practice, don’t choose a whole fucking project. Then fulfill two of the criteria below:

It falls into the important but not necessarily urgent category

It furthers something you care deeply about

Accomplishing it will give your spirits a lift

It will make things better later

Perhaps you have been avoiding it and therefore it is weighing you down

It is fun and you aren’t allowing it for yourself

A great addition to this practice is to find a trusted friend who will gently or fervently ask you, “What is your one fucking thing today?” This also makes it more fun!

If you are living under the tyranny-of-the-lists, and you’re up for a radical move, try tucking your list away for a few days or a week, and just focus on the one fucking thing. Once you get the hang of identifying your one fucking thing, you will most likely find that it has an almost magical quality. In systems theory it is referred to as a strange attractor, it generates engagement and a flow that will allow you to intuitively accomplish what you are using those lists to manage. Three things to do today and then the one fucking thing, is the task management system that has allowed me to enjoy being an entrepreneur, after years of living and working less successfully under the tyranny-of-the-lists.

My one fucking thing for today is to get this blog post completed. I plan to celebrate this accomplishment by taking my four fabulous grandchildren to build sandcastles at the beach. 

Oh and the next tiny little practice is celebration . . .

Wolf and Woman
- Nikita Gill

Some days
I am more wolf than woman
And I am still learning
how to stop apologizing
For my wild

Getting behind the younger generation this week

Lyedie here, From my blue chair.

Are you getting behind the younger generation this week?

They are speaking up. They are rising up. They are transforming their grief into activism. They need and deserve our steadfast support.

I thought I was going to take the Daily Activist’s Log down today, but I can’t bring myself to do it. The timing is all wrong. Strengthening our activism is more important than ever and the voices of students in Parkland, Florida have sparked my activism this week.

Reading the news, my resolve has kindled up once again — inflamed by the oxygen in the voices of:

• Emma Gonzalez, David Hogg, Cameron Kasky and Sam Zeif demanding the right to be safe in school.

• Chase’s teacher who is carefully tracking who is falling through the cracks in her class’s social life and then working to break the code of disconnection early and often.

• Heather Sher boldly describing the damage an AR -15 does to the human body.

• Arthur Brooks naming contempt as a problem in American politics.

• Michael Ian Black identifying the emotional suffering of boys in our culture.

In the last 10 days each of these people took up a role in repairing and strengthening the cloth of our democracy, the democracy that we grew lazy about protecting.

Whose voices kindled your resolve this week? What is your thread in the cloth of being a citizen in our democracy? However small or grand your thread might be, make it stronger, more effective, more beautiful.

My thread is delicate and strong and expresses itself in this blog and in the way I get behind my clients in my coaching work every day. This spring I will put the Fulfillment Journal up alongside the Daily Activists Log. My guiding star for this week is activism on behalf of fulfillment.

Please keep strengthening the muscle of your activism. And always remember to make breakfast. Make love. Make some trouble on behalf of beauty, truth, and goodness.

Thank you for everything you do to keep putting power in the hands of love.

Blessings, Lyedie

Getting More Productive: Tip #2 - Taking pleasure in the doing . . .

Before I close up my week and slip into the long weekend, I want to keep my promise to offer a tip  on productivity. For this one I’m sharing a childhood memory and a poem with you. May these two offerings enhance your celebrations of Labor Day. I'd like to focus on the beauty of summer and the power of being present in a productive moment.

One of my treasured childhood memories is of working alongside my grandmother at her clothesline on a summer day. Here is a snippet of memoir written back in 1995.

My Nana kept clothespins in a ruffled apron made of blue-green chintz in her laundry room. She’d tie that apron around my waist and then we’d go out together. She’d carry the big basket filled with wet laundry and I’d trundle along behind her, apron pockets loaded with clothespins bumping against my knees.  I followed her out, out through the shade of the Linden trees and down a little hill.

There, behind the barn, was an expanse of yard where she and my Papa had strung multiple cotton lines across a wide span. My job was to hand her clothespins from the deep pockets of the apron.  The sheets would take on the scent of grass and sun as she shook them out in the air.  One by one I’d hand her a clothespin and watch how expertly she worked.

I reveled in standing next to her between layers of wide white sheets.  We stood there together amidst a flutter of white, laughing and talking. I’d watch her every move as she stretched each huge cotton rectangle taut along the line and set the pin carefully in the corner. The order was important: sheets, then pillowcases, then the kitchen towels. 

I loved everything about Nana and her clotheslines, and summer. Working alongside my Nana was like being inside of a hug.

And a poem . . . .

Daily

These shriveled seeds we plant,

corn kernel, dried bean,

poke into loosened soil,

cover over with measured fingertips

These T-shirts we fold into

perfect white squares

These tortillas we slice and fry to crisp strips

This rich egg scrambled in a gray clay bowl

This bed whose covers I straighten

smoothing edges till blue quilt fits brown blanket

and nothing hangs out

This envelope I address

so the name balances like a cloud

in the center of sky

This page I type and retype

This table I dust till the scarred wood shines

This bundle of clothes I wash and hang and wash again

like flags we share, a country so close

no one needs to name it

The days are nouns: touch them

The hands are churches that worship the world

Naomi Shihab Nye

An Ode to Productivity

To Be of Use
The people I love the best
jump into work head first

without dallying in the shallows
and swim off with sure strokes almost out of sight.
They seem to become natives of that element,
the black sleek heads of seals
bouncing like half submerged balls.

I love people who harness themselves, an ox to a heavy cart,
who pull like water buffalo, with massive patience,
who strain in the mud and the muck to move things forward,
who do what has to be done, again and again.

 I want to be with people who submerge
in the task, who go into the fields to harvest
and work in a row and pass the bags along,
who stand in the line and haul in their places,
who are not parlor generals and field deserters
but move in a common rhythm
when the food must come in or the fire be put out.

 The work of the world is common as mud.
Botched, it smears the hands, crumbles to dust.
But the thing worth doing well done
has a shape that satisfies, clean and evident.
Greek amphoras for wine or oil,
Hopi vases that held corn, are put in museums
but you know they were made to be used.
The pitcher cries for water to carry
and a person for work that is real.

 by Marge Piercy

Getting More Productive: Tip #1 and Four Simple Truths

Do you find yourself longing to be more productive?

Well, you are not alone. This longing is shared by many of us as we navigate the complexity of modern life. There is no one secret to becoming more productive ­­-- I have no formula for success to offer. What I've found is that for each of us the path to being truly productive is an evolving set of practices, an ongoing personal adventure. Alongside developing clarity on the big picture, I help people put their shoulders to the wheel and develop truly productive life habits and structures. Today I'm offering you a high leverage tip that magnetizes productivity, and reminding you of a few habits that you already know are the very foundation of a highly productive life.

The Four Simple Truths: (The ones that you already know)

1. Get enough sleep

2. Eat well

3. Exercise often

4. Contemplate daily

Tip #1 –Determine One Thing That Will Make a Difference

Take a look at your long list of to-dos and ask yourself:

What is the one thing that will make the difference if I get it done today?

Choose one thing that will have an impact, that is feasible to accomplish today.Write that down in bold letters across the top of your list, then orchestrate your day to accomplish that one task and let the rest of your to-dos follow suit --  believe me they will! Drive your day with the one thing that will make a difference, keep putting your time, attention and energy on it. When you get it done shout out, “Yes!”

Check in with your list at the end of the day and take note of all your accomplishments. Celebrate your wins and let them give you energy. Then determine what the "one thing" is for tomorrow and put that at the top of the list, big and bold,  before you close up the day. Set it up so the “one thing” greets you in the morning when you start your day.Do the "one thing" on a daily basis and keep repeating.The "one thing" will serve as a magnet, attracting your accomplishments with each daily, “Yes!” that you shout out. You will be amazed at the momentum that putting this simple tip into practice will produce.

This simple tip addresses focusing your attention in the midst of distraction and complexity. Your own productivity challenge may call for a different approach. Contact me for a free initial coaching consultation.To learn more about productivity read on.

So, what do I mean when I use the term productivity? Well, I don’t mean just getting things done. Productivity is the result of using your time, energy and attention in concert such that you are sustainably making progress on the things that support your well-being and bring meaning to your life. Productivity is the driver of fulfilling our promise. Being truly productive creates momentum. It gives us juice!

In the weeks to come I’ll offer more tips on working with time, energy and attention more effectively. But now I want to explore the four simple truths.They are the foundation of a sustainably productive life. They are “no brainers” but many of us have trouble maintaining at least one of them and when we get stressed they tend to fall away leaving us depleted, unfocused and moody. A productive life is built on a solid albeit simple foundation. Nothing will get you more productive than getting these four in place. Nothing will challenge their dynamic equilibrium more than success. So, let go of doing it perfectly, be kind to yourself, and enjoy the ride!

Invite yourself to continually work the four simple truths into your life habits:

Get Enough Sleep – Work with your bio-rhythms and make it a priority

• Refrain from caffeine in the second half of your day

• Sleep clean -- in a room free of the distractions of TV, tablet, and phone

• Invest in an old-fashioned alarm clock and charge your phone in another room

• Take naps if at all possible (10-30 minutes is optimal. Too long and you will wake up groggy)

Eat well – Keep it simple and delicious

• Eat early and well over the course of the day

• Include lots of leafy green vegetables in your diet

• Get enough protein

• Limit your sugar intake

• Drink plenty of water

Exercise Regularly- Moderation is key to keeping it daily

• Greet the day with a quick walk or run (10- 20 minutes)

• Take a short walk during your lunch break

• Ride your bike or walk, if possible

• Build upper body strength somehow – lift weights, stack wood, carry children

• Take an exercise class or go to the gym regularly

Develop a Contemplative Practice – Build your Jedi brain capacity and reduce the allostatic load of modern life

• If you already have one: Commit to it and deepen it.

• If you haven’t established one yet: Investigate a way to “meditate” that is right for you.There are many methods available for busy people with busy minds from many traditions.

My next posts will introduce the productivity triad of Time, Energy, and Attention. I’ll be offering you ways to boost and harmonize these three critical elements to achieve true productivity.In the meantime, try focusing your attention by using Tip #1 to hone in on the one thing that will make the difference, and shore up the very foundation of your productivity by inviting yourself to implement the four simple truths.

If you feel called to action and you want to work closely with me in a program that I design just for you, click here to schedule a free initial consultation.

I hope that you are enjoying these glorious summer days as much as I am!

Warmly, Lyedie Geer

Leading With Grit and Grace

In the field of Leadership, the rise of the feminine is causing a deep rumble. Emotional intelligence is gaining perceived value. Communication skills, and the capacity to build shared meaning and purpose in our places of work, are more widely recognized as critical to success. Women are taking up leadership more firmly, with more compassion and more radiance than ever before.

We are “leaning in” at work, as Sheryl Sandberg describes, and we are still carrying the lion’s share of responsibility for the quality of life for our families. “A record 40 percent of all households with children under the age of 18 include mothers who are either the sole or primary source of income for the family,” the Pew Research Center reported in May of 2013, as it released data that certainly won’t surprise many Americans but underscores some dramatic shifts over recent decades.The juggling act that each of us performs in our own private lives is actually a societal and cultural developmental edge. We are on the front lines of a massive experiment in life with less-clearly defined gender roles; the stakes are high, the gains and the losses are very real, and there doesn’t appear to be any going back.

Particularly when working with women, I help them to step forward into the challenge of this experiment in their work and personal lives. Using developmental models, I map out the stages of life and help you to find your place so that you can broaden your perspective on the unfolding narrative. With current and ancient wisdom concerning the masculine and feminine applied to leadership theory, I help you hone your directive/assertive and supportive/receptive aspects and to bring them into a powerful balance. I point you in the direction of what is essential and true to you. While I draw on the successes and failures of my own life, I rely on Integral methodology and many years of research and personal development to help women find their way.

• How do you navigate the demands of your work and personal life without succumbing to Superwoman Syndrome?

• How effectively do you stand up for what you know?

• Do you know when to stand down?

• How tenacious is your follow through?

• Does being authentic and strategic feel at odds to you?

• What do you listen for?

• Do you know how and when to give direction and support?

• Are you able to initiate and foster real and fruitful dialogue?

• How much quiet do you allow yourself?

• Have you discovered the value of silence?

Together we explore questions such as these along with the specific ones you bring to the table.

Together we hold the paradoxes until the contradictions begin to shift and wane, giving rise to the opportunity for transformation.

Together we discover more and more about your leadership style, and what is essential to you; we build your capacity to lead your life with grace and grit.

Artistry

Working the creative process—getting to know it better and use that knowledge effectively—is at the heart of the work I do with artists and creative entrepreneurs. Finding and forging new ways to place work in the marketplace and promote it successfully—taking the work to the next level of recognition—is a critical part of the challenge that artists generally bring to our work together. Here are some examples that might also be relevant for you:

• Responding to the call of the work

• Opening more fully and consistently to “the muse”

• Being guided by inspiration and grounded in practicality

• Managing time in a way that supports creativity

• Developing the capacity for discipline that is required to manifest anything

• Cultivating a devoted following and finding powerful representation

• Wrestling earnestly with issues of sustainability and emergence

At the outset, I ask simply that you begin to see your self as an instrument of creativity, an instrument that is somehow longing to fulfill an essential promise. Everything we take up in our work together—from the practical, to the sublime, to the seemingly ridiculous—flows from that.