Nicholas Bate

January/February 2019 Redux 8

1. The Simplest of Productivity Boosters including don't become so efficient you lose effectiveness.
2. Basics 7 including Standing Out in a Crazy World
3. Immersion 101
4. Beyond The Gilets Jaunes. 1, 2 and 3.
5. Jagged Thoughts for Jagged Times including:

   1819: A poor workman blames his tools.

   2019: A poor business person blames their e-mail and conference calls.

6. Why We Love The Beatles including:... It was years after their initial meeting at a church fete before they ever became 'The Beatles'. Years in Hamburg. Years before they found the drummer they needed. Years stuck in the back of a van. A year stuck in a damp, rat-ridden Liverpudlian cellar. ...
7. 100 Words.... A change of light, a change of mood....
8. Brilliant at the Basics of Business.

Bonus 1: Latest book: You, Only Better

Bonus 2: The Essential Posts of 2018

Bonus 3: The Essential Posts of 2017

Bonus 4: The Essential Posts of 2016

Bonus 5: The Essential Posts of 2015

Bonus 6: The Smart Bloggers 

22 Brilliant at The Basics

1. Have a plan. For the day, for the week, for the month. The universe will handle any bigger picture.
2. Spend time every day in nature. Planet Earth? How could you miss a moment relishing its staggering beauty.
3. Make your own coffee. It's cheaper, it's better and it's therapeutic.
4. Make your own bread. See 3, except it's not cheaper.
5. Always have two books on the go: one a classic novel, the other a new non-fiction.
6. Manage your moods. Boost the good ones. Let go of the poor ones.
7. Write every day in your journal. Stop resisting, you'll find it helpful.
8. Make the digital interrupt a still useful but much, much smaller part of your life. See 1 and 2 and 4.
9. Save, then spend.
10. Get resilient. Run, climb trees and lift logs.
11. Don't do complaining; it'll only spoil your day and lose you the best of friends.
12. Slow down to the speed of thought.
13. Become happy through mastery rather than stuff.  The latter can be lost; the former only gets stronger.
14. Go hiking.
15. Cook from scratch.
16. Be polite, punctual and persistent.
17. Be more.
18. Help others who are less fortunate.
19. Create helpful routines: sleep, walking, the journal and times to read.
20. Take it one day at a time.
21. Encourage mental dexterity by deliberately memorising and reading outside the comfort zone.
22. Learn how to ride a horse, sit by the camp fire more often and notice what a bird's song tells you about the up-coming weather.

Bonus: How to be Brilliant.

Bonus 1: Hunter-Gatherer 21 Century, Two Score & Ten; Bonus 2: 22 Things to do on Planet Earth; Bonus 3: 22 Ways to Feel Better, More of the Time.

Bonus 4: 22 Things They Still Don't Teach You at Business School; Bonus 5: 22 Stupid Things Large Organisations Do; Bonus 6: Slow 22

Bonus 7: 22 Reasons Your 2017 is Going To Be Awesome; Bonus 8: The Fundamental Problems with Powerpoint. Still. 22

Bonus 9: 22 Ways to be an Awesome Conference Speaker; Bonus 10: Love Presenting Hate (Badly Used) PowerPoint

Bonus 11: The 22 Fundamental Errors Large Organisations Still Make; Bonus 12: Brilliant at the Basics of Business; Bonus 13: Routes to Less Stress 22

Bonus 14: That Other F Word; Bonus 15: What's Wrong with The Typical Corporate Selling Machine, 

Bonus 16: 22 Reasons 79% of any Workforce is Woefully Unproductive; Bonus 17: 22 Ways To Create a Small, Simple, Start-Up.

Bonus 18: 22 Ways to Get Better at Anything; Bonus 19: 22 Routes to Becoming Unstoppable.; Bonus 20: Re-boot 22

Bonus 21: 22 Ways to Better Results at the Gym; Bonus 22: 11 Ways to Fix that Presentation; Bonus 23: 22 Things to do on Vacation

Bonus 24: 11 Things to do in September; Bonus 25: 22 Things to do at Work; Bonus 26: 22 Ways to Reduce Stress; Bonus 27: 22 Things to Learn

Bonus 28: 22 Pretty Straightforward Productivity Boosters; Bonus 29: The 22 Steps to Getting What You Want in 2017

Bonus 30: The 22 Reasons Earth wins 'best planet ever, anywhere' award 2016; Bonus 31: The Less of Eleven

Bonus 32: 11 Ways Any Company Can Really Impress The (Potential) Customer; Bonus 33: 22 Ways To Build Your personal Brand

Bonus 34: 11 Things To Write in your New Moleskine Notebook; Bonus 35: 11 Ways to Better Quality Sleep; Bonus 36: 11 Ways to get a Fresh Idea

Bonus 37: 22 High Value (but just 10 minute) activities; Bonus 38: 11 Helpful Contrasts; Bonus 39: 22 Essentials for Thriving in the 21C Urban Jungle.

Bonus 40: 22 Healing Activities in A World of the Electron

Bonus 41: 22 Words; Bonus 42: 11 Reasons for Stories; Bonus 43: 22 Things Which Help You When You Are Down

Bonus 44: Hunter-Gatherer 21C, A Day in The Life

Bonus 45: 22 Reasons to Run

Bonus 46: 11 Decisions for a World of Craziness.

Bonus 47: 11 Simple Routes to Excellence

Bonus 48: 11 To Hunt & Gather

Bonus 49: 22 Reasons to be Cheerful

Bonus 50: 11 Tough Realities.

Bonus 51: 22 Things to Let Go Of

Bonus 52: 22 Possible Goals for 2018

Bonus 53: 22 Ways To Become More Effective

Bonus 54: 11 Flips of Perspective

Bonus 55: 22 Points of Attention

Bonus 56: 22 Mini Standards

Bonus 57: 11 Surprises.

Bonus 58: 22 Personal Eternal Truths

Bonus 59: Back to School 11

Bonus 60: 22 Good Reasons to Say No at Work

The Simplest of Productivity Boosters 1-50: 34

Every 90 minutes, take 10 minutes. To stand, stretch, sip water and ask: what's really, really important now?

1. concerning that which needs to be addressed
2. concerning investing
3. concerning the day
4. concerning what you do
5. concerning the 20 minute segment
6. concerning attention
7. concerning compass vs. clock
8. concerning what times when
9. concerning schedule ahead
10. concerning vital few vs. trivial many
11. concerning matching energy to task
12. concerning add one; subtract one
13. concerning Friday not Sunday
14. concerning pay-off not ease
15. concerning snooze
16. concerning the nap
17. concerning easy goals
18. concerning Less is More
19. concerning 'chip away'
20. concerning this day deliberately left blank
21. concerning stress management
22. concerning Have a System
23. concerning the art of batching
24. concerning Plan-Do-Review
25. concerning priorities.
26. concerning I want to do an excellent job
27. concerning have a plan
28. concerning: look up
29. concerning nuance
30. concerning The Monday morning plan
31. concerning back-to-back meetings
32. concerning what and when
33. concerning your efficiency
34. BONUS: How To Be Brilliant.

2CVs, The Beatles and The Assumptions We Make

and more.

Basics 7: Standing Out In A New Crazy World of Work

1. Remember: it's your last gig they are talking about. Or not. Make everything count. The CV is in a file somewhere.
2. Make everything count? The mail you send, the meeting you run, the pitch you give.
3. Quality not Quantity by saying no. With politeness. And persistence.
4. Be Brilliant at the Basics. On time. To the brief. No excuses.
5. Distinguish the task and the relationship. Never damage the latter. Get the former very clearly defined.
6. Be passionate. Be motivated. Be professional. Even when you don't feel like it.
7. Two primers: You, Only Better. How to be Brilliant. 

Surviving as an employee in Big Business.

7 Lists for 7 Days

Living in crazy times.

Daily Investments

Your 2019 KPIs

Finding More Time for Reading

How Father Christmas Does it.

Managing a Tough 2019

Beyond the 'to do' list

ideas

Goals Can Be Anytime

Reasons to Be Grateful

The Power Drugs

Freedom

Move!

The Power of The Timetable

Just Start

e-Mail Reflections

Percentages

The Enemies of Wellness

Fridays

To Knowing What To Do

Routes to Great Personal Energy

Solving a problem

The Basic Basics

Setting Your Personal Compass

Medicine Beyond Drugs

Handy Free Stuff

Daily Protocol 7

In Your Career

To Reading More Stories

Getting More Done

The Joy of Walking

Getting Your Novel Started

How To Tidy up The Flat

How to Get Better at Writing

How To Be Happy

How to s l o w down time.

The Joy of Chocolate 

Things Which Help When You Are Stuck

The Walk 7

Planning your Day 7;

How To Worry Less

R&R 7

Running 7; Meetings 7; Strategic Marketing 7; Leadership 7

Wellness 7; Coffee 7; Creativity 7; Confidence 7; Presenting 7;

Fast, Wholesome Cookery 7; Fitness 7; Productivity 7

Sales 7; Negotiation 7; E-Mail 7; Making a Decision 7

Writing 7; Career 7; Simple Meditation 7

Mindset 7; International Travel 7; Fitness on the Road 7

Parenting 7; Reading 7 ; Food Shopping 7

Brainstorming 7; Fitness at the Office 7

Strategic Planning 7; The Job Hunt 7; English Weather 7

Project Management 7; Personal Effectiveness 7

Re-Boot 7; Personal Resilience 7; Back to Work 7

Faster Reading with no Loss of Comprehension 7

Autumn 7; Saturday 7; Better Writing 7

Getting Stuff Done 7; Being Indispensable 7

Christmas 7

Things That Heal 7

The Perfect Day 7

immersion 101

What are the Secrets of Success? What are The Real Essentials? Sometimes you realise that if you just woke up, were intelligent, noticed the moments and were bold, had real grit, stopped thinking about escape hatches, and were resilient, perhaps things would become refreshingly different.After all, the totally tangible truths are simply priceless and remind you that whetever it takes in a Brave New World, there is no conspiracy maybe just simply one doppio espresso too many. After all, you say you want a revolution.  So be a superhero, take some time to pause and consider and realise that life is good: you just need The Simplest of Pleasures. And become truly wealthy by using the life tips. What if you were fearless and knew that you could solve any problem that you had? Reinvent. Be outrageous. Be professional. After all, AreYouSerious as genius often starts with quick wins, certainly avoiding nonsense, taking time to reflect, seeking answers and knowing what is to be done. Set your compass, do it and boost your productivity and hence wellness and hence creativity. Think Beatles, think blue Jeans, less PowerPoint. Write and be different. Grab your freedom and travel. Less marketing, more relaxing. Make that Parallel Universe happen: be more intelligent and let the good news happen. Remember: It Isn't Rocket Science.

Beyond the Gilets Jaunes 3

The little book-shop was staggeringly well-stocked for such a small town in the south of France. But it wasn't heated and the owner was wrapped in thick jumper and scarf and clearly wasn't well. There was a feeling that it was the end of an era. Outside the rain poured; it happens of course and water is needed, but the south doesn't handle it well.  The south prefers light, sun and the dry. The old lady had arrived to collect her book and was shocked at the price she was quoted; she'd clearly previously been told the paper-back price but only the hard-back was available. The owner was kind and released it to the lady at the lower price. She then ventured out into the cloud-burst, plastic book wrapping quickly improvised as a head-scarf.

Quiet returned to the store, book blurbs scanned and price-points considered. 

Jagged Thoughts for Jagged Times, 353

30 minutes invested in forward planning today, Friday will save hours next week and lower stress on Monday.  Easy.

David Seah

has the productivity forms you need.

The Bad News

remains the same.