Jerry Seinfeld on Mastering Life

Any Seinfeld fan knows that Jerry’s character is well-versed in being “Master of His Domain.” Now, real-life Jerry Seinfeld is passing on words of wisdom about “mastering life,” particularly when it comes to putting in the work (whatever ‘the work’ may mean to you), and why so many of us avoid it through chronic procrastination.

In a new article featured on Inc.com, Jerry’s wisdom has been combined with the science behind procrastination. It turns out, it is associated with our brain’s limbic system, which scientists believe is one of the oldest parts of the human brain. The limbic system controls our behavioral and emotional responses to our primal instincts. Are we cold? Cover up. Are we hungry? Eat. Are we in danger? Run. It is an expert at dealing with the present moment, which is why procrastination is one of its best tools. Ultimately, your limbic system is asking your brain; “Will this cause pain or discomfort? If so, let’s just put that off for later.” It’s the reason why we stay in bed instead of getting up to exercise. The reason we put off cold-calling instead of hearing yet another rejection. The reason we don’t assertively ask for that raise, even though these things would be the best for us. As Seinfeld has termed it, it’s “The Confront”.So how do we re-wire our brains to take on “the confront” every day? Turns out, our limbic systems can respond to a little reboot.

First, shift the focus from the future to the present. As mentioned, the limbic system responds to the now. Take the difficult task (the confront), and try to make it as enjoyable as possible. If exercise is your goal, find something you actually enjoy doing. Walking in nature, golfing, swimming, etc. can be great alternatives to slogging through another treadmill session. If your goal is work related, make a checklist. Ticking off those little boxes gives a dopamine rush that will satisfy the most stubborn procrastinators. Second; change the goal. Take a larger goal and scale it down to something that is manageable on a daily basis. Here, Seinfeld gives the example of his early career, when his goal was to write one joke every day. When he did that, he would mark off the calendar so he could see his progress. Pretty soon, that old limbic system starts to understand that these “confronts” aren’t so scary. And lastly, use the 5-minute rule. Make a deal with yourself to do at least 5 minutes of the project. Once on a roll, you’ll likely get a lot more done than just the 5 minutes you bargained for.

Check out the full article here for more wise words and real-world examples of a limbic system reboot, and how to “Master your life”.

How Managers Can Help Teams Focus

It’s no secret that we are constantly bombarded with distractions. Unless we are asleep or perhaps making space to meditate, our world is filled with things that want to sap our attention away from what we should be focusing on. Until recently, however, no one understood how profound these distractions are.

A new article at HBR.org by David Allen and Justin Hale profiles the research of the Crucial Learning resource center, which conducted a study of 1,600 employees and managers to assess focus. What they found was that nearly two-thirds of all employees rarely if ever do an hour of deep, focused work without distractions creeping in. Shockingly, one-third of participants said that they could only focus on a task for a maximum of 10 minutes before becoming distracted. The detrimental effects of these constant distractions are far reaching. They include feelings of overwhelm, stress, lack of motivation and/or energy, and unfulfillment. At the end of the day we likely all say we’ve been very busy, but how many of us have really been productive?

So what do managers and those in leadership do to help employees stay focused and prioritize tasks effectively? The authors lay out 7 helpful tips that will be able to help productivity and focus from the moment employees check their first email in the morning to wrapping up at close of business. And they should know. They are, after all, the authors of Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity. Check out the full article here and see if the tips will apply to your team!

Procrastinator-In-Chief

Many of us have experienced at least one bout of nagging procrastination in our lives. Luckily, most are successful in spite of this trait. Some, however, are what we call ‘serial procrastinators’. No matter how hard they try, it seems that some things just keep getting pushed further down the to-do list. So the question remains: why? Why do procrastinators keep putting things off? After a lifetime of work, why does this behavior keep repeating?

HBR’s new article from clinical psychologist Alice Boyes examines not just the whys, but exactly how to adjust this habit. She posits that once we understand the root causes of this behavior, it’s possible to change our behavior. If we can rearrange our priorities, we can achieve our goals while staying sensitive to our own emotional needs. Read the full article, or give a listen to the half-hour interview with Ms. Boyes here.