10 Simple Actions to Increase Effectiveness
In Silicon Valley, everything is hardware, software, or both.
Your body is no different.
Your body is your hardware and your mind is your software.
Hardware:
Most people treat their body the equivalent of dropping their laptops from the top of their office buildings or accidentally dropping their smartphones in the toilets. Unfortunately, it’s more difficult to replace your body than it is a device, so here are some simple maintenance techniques.
Maintaining your hardware (Body):
Drink water:
Your body needs water to function at all, let alone at its best. One way to kick start your day is to keep a glass of water by the bed-stand and drink it fully first thing in the morning to supply your body with the flow of nutrients it needs.
Have good posture:
You just straightened up, didn’t you? If you haven't, go ahead and do so now. It improves your circulation of blood flow and increases your ability to breathe easily and deeply.
Eat well:
Eating well is hard for a lot of people because they wait until the moment comes to decide what to eat. Chances are, that decision comes after some stress from work, the annoyances of traffic, and hard conversations at work. When you finally get to that moment of decision, you’re setting yourself up for failure. Instead, pack a healthy lunch ahead of time, or better yet, meal prep the entire week’s meals on Sunday night and save time and money while improving your health and optimizing your productivity all simultaneously.
Exercise regularly:
You already know this. Find small opportunities to move throughout your day to keep the body alive and energized.
Stretch often:
Do some light stretches throughout the day to keep yourself limber and to keep the body awake and active.
Software:
After any regular use of your computer or phone, you end up with all sorts of tabs and windows open, diminished battery life, downloaded files, and an onslaught of new emails and notifications.
If you continue to operate your device like this, at best you’ll have a slowed system, and a worst it may all crash. Don’t let yourself crash.
Here are some simple ways to maintain your software (Mind):
Get enough sleep:
Most people don’t get enough sleep. Creating a daily routine where you are going to bed and waking up at the same time every day ensures that you will have the time and space to replenish your much needed battery power.
Meditate regularly:
If you don’t have a meditation practice, I urge you to try it again in small doses or at least carve out some space in your every day to just sit and think without distractions. Start with just 5 minutes a day. Scrolling through Facebook doesn’t count as doing nothing.
Set Goals:
Waking up each day with a purpose and knowing what you want helps you plan your day or spend your time working on it what’s important and actually making progress. In turn, this keeps you motivated and inspired.
Read regularly:
Aim for at least one book a month. If you read just 10 pages a day, you can finish an entire 300 page book in a month. Small efforts add up to big outcomes.
Have a Brain Dump:
It seems that the greatest of ideas spontaneously arise in our minds all the time, and usually while something else important is happening. Instead of bifurcating your attention and trying to save mental space for both, simply jot the ephiphany down in a dedicated Brain Dump space where you can return to it later. This will help you deal with that interesting thought while allowing you to save the space in your mind for the task at hand.
For help integrating these relatively small, yet immensely important items into your routine, please download the FREE Habit Builder, available for download in the pop-up box. If you’ve accidentally closed it on impulse, please reach out at the email below and I’ll send you a new one.
With gratitude,
Dennis McGinley
STRIVENT - Founder, Performance Coach
