The short, random wisdom thread (needs mentioning, but not a thread!)

[ChrisV]

Share your little snippets of insight!

I wanted to create a little thread where people can post their small insights as they come across. Ones that are valuable, but not big or thorough enough to justify posting a full thread.

I think business is a constant learning experience, and we’re always figuring out better ways. I sometime think of little insights that I want to share on here, but think “I’m going to post a full thread for that? meh."

So I figured it would be a good idea to get a little thread going for snippets like those. Almost like a journal.

The first, I touched on in another thread. Which is: Average and finished beats perfect and incomplete. I have a habit of perfectionism. I can sit and work making every detail perfect then lose sight of the forest to the trees. Finished beats perfect.

So what are your little insights? Post them here, or post them here as you think of them.

 

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[ChrisV]

On Learning: when you learn something: put it into practice immediately. Our cognitive memory is terrible, but out experiential memory is great.

Imagine the following scenario. You’re learning new directions to a new class you signed up for. Your friend sometimes goes with you knows where it is. You ask him how to get there, he tells you, you write it down, and read the paper 10x to memorize it. But you let him drive. You know where the place is. You memorized it.

But then one week he has to give a talk somewhere, so he won’t make it. You take your little memorized directions and try to make it there. You’re almost certainly going to get lost.

What would have been a better decision. Once he gave you the directions, you should have said “Let me drive, I want to learn the way.” then driving that route would havre been second nature.

When I was learning programming at first I just took notes, did the quizzes, etc. But then when I had to do it on my own, I got lost a lot. So I took a new approach. Rather than just taking notes and memorizing, whenever I learned a new technique, I would put it into practice immediately. I would do it over and over until I could practically do it with my eyes closed. Seriously, you have to do things over and over until you’re bored. Boredness is a signal that you’re not benefiting anymore.

Things need to be ingrained in your mind. You create different neural pathways when you do something. You don’t even necessarily have to intellectually know something to have the neural pathways. It’s like when you dial a phone number. You can often dial the phone number just fine, but when someone asks you you’re like ‘uhhhh, let me go look at a number pad.’ Or the same with directions sometimes.

You have a muscle memory where you know exactly what you’re doing.... but you can’t intellectualize it. And the opposite can happen; you can intellectualize something, but have no idea how to actually do it. Don’t make that mistake!

 

[MJ DeMarco]

On Learning: when you learn something: put it into practice immediately. Our cognitive memory is terrible, but out experiential memory is great.

In the same respect, when trying to remember something or commit to it, WRITE IT DOWN on paper. No, a digital note doesn't count.

 

[ChrisV]

In the same respect, when trying to remember something or commit to it, WRITE IT DOWN on paper. No, a digital note doesn't count.

Yep!

Scientific American: A Learning Secret: Don’t Take Notes with a Laptop

NPR: Attention, Students: Put Your Laptops Away

Also, notes definitely have their place. My example may have sounded like it was poo-pooing note-taking, but that’s not how I meant it. It’s just that doing is very important since it commits it to muscle memory. Note taking is very important too. Both methods have their place.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

If you're a small business where communication is essential, use autoresponders to tell potential clients you might be away for a week or so.

Been in contact with a potential vendor and suddenly he dropped off the face of the planet. Communication stopped.

My guess is he took the holidays off. Or his service sucks.

Not sure, but I hope it is the former, not the latter.

A simple, "Hey, I'll be out of the office for the Holidays until Jan 2" would work fine.

Now I'm left to wonder...

 

[ZF Lee]

If you're a small business where communication is essential, use autoresponders to tell potential clients you might be away for a week or so.

Been in contact with a potential vendor and suddenly he dropped off the face of the planet. Communication stopped.

My guess is he took the holidays off. Or his service sucks.

Not sure, but I hope it is the former, not the latter.

A simple, "Hey, I'll be out of the office for the Holidays until Jan 2" would work fine.

Now I'm left to wonder...

I don't think they might know how to install autoresponders in the first place.

For us, its nothing difficult. Just click, click, click, type, done. But to some folks, especially those from old-school, its just as hard as rocket science.

Where I come from, most folks use Gmail to sent all the stuff. Not exactly the best platform for business use. Very inefficient as well, as they use 2-3 'email monkeys', who may as well be untrained interns paid peanuts.

As my upcoming VA gigs might include email assistance, I will make it a point to ASK THEM if they even use autoresponders at all.

Once can also do autoresponders for certain actions, such as the sale of a certain product, the touch of a dislike button, etc. But that's another story (and another service to offer)

 

[James Cozens]

Great idea! There are a few concepts/pearls of wisdom I've picked up that I have to read through every day so I remember to do them. I think it comes down to the fact that our memory IS terrible and must be constantly reminded. My list grows longer with each book I read.

FOCUS
Stop crying, take responsibility
Build confidence reference points
Don't give control to other people. Do things my way
Stop unhealthy food. Avoid sugar, white flour, excess dairy, artificial sweeteners
Stop social media for social reasons
Keep everything organized. The state of your desktop is the state of your mind
Plan weeks out in advance. Say no to everything not on the plan
Be grateful for what I have
Persist no-matter what
Sacrifice everything except food, sleep, exercise and family
Avoid all distractions
Have a week off every quarter
Read everyday
Think everyday: what can I do now to reach my long term goals
Look at my accounting every day
Interact with successful people every day (Fastlane forum)
At the end of every day, plan the next day
Don't fixate on the goal. Fixate on each STEP. Look up occasionally
The only person who can EXECUTE anything is me and execution is EVERYTHING
If my feedback loop is rewarded, I won't have any confusion over what I want to do
Do what you hate until you can do what you love
Learn, work and act quick
Separate self from time
Know I'm the best, BE the best at what I do
Find money making process and scale it
Discomfort = Growth
Meditate every single morning for 15 minutes
Check war map daily

 

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[ChrisV]

FOCUS
Stop crying, take responsibility
Build confidence reference points
Don't give control to other people. Do things my way
Stop unhealthy food. Avoid sugar, white flour, excess dairy, artificial sweeteners
Stop social media for social reasons
Keep everything organized. The state of your desktop is the state of your mind
Plan weeks out in advance. Say no to everything not on the plan
Be grateful for what I have
Persist no-matter what
Sacrifice everything except food, sleep, exercise and family
Avoid all distractions
Have a week off every quarter
Read everyday
Think everyday: what can I do now to reach my long term goals
Look at my accounting every day
Interact with successful people every day (Fastlane forum)
At the end of every day, plan the next day
Don't fixate on the goal. Fixate on each STEP. Look up occasionally
The only person who can EXECUTE anything is me and execution is EVERYTHING
If my feedback loop is rewarded, I won't have any confusion over what I want to do
Do what you hate until you can do what you love
Learn, work and act quick
Separate self from time
Know I'm the best, BE the best at what I do
Find money making process and scale it
Discomfort = Growth
Meditate every single morning for 15 minutes
Check war map daily

Jeez louise. This list is amazing. Basically every one is a home run. I might print it and stick it next to my 40 rules printout as a reminder.

+Rep!

 

[Primeperiwinkle]

I need to make a war map.

 

[Thomas Baptiste]

My insights this past year:

People only go as far as you let them. Give them an inch, they will take a yard. Know when to say 'no'.

Regret is stronger than appreciation. Never take the opportunities you have for granted. You'll only miss the water when the well runs dry.

Time is king. Never spend too much of it on things/people that bring little to no benefits.

Action speaks louder than words. People respect action x10 more than they respect words.

Be prepared for failure while working towards success. Always be prepared to change the way you do things. If you want to see a change, you can't keep doing the same things you've always done. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over while expecting a different result.

Get on the road to fitness. Fastane wealth = net profits/assets. Your health is your most important asset. Hit the gym. Start working out/ exercising and eat right. Make it a regular habit and see the effects in all other aspects of your life.

 

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[ChrisV]

Now I'm left to wonder...

This is actually one of the first things that Apple teaches in their design classes. When designing an App, product or user experience (yes, an email is part of the user experience) people want feedback. If you put in an order, and there’s no confirmation, people are like ‘wtf, did it go through?’ They some type of indication that their action has results. When delete an email, it needs a sound, an animation, a checkmark, whatever.

When people do something, then get no feedback, they get confused.

I think they cover it here: Designing Intuitive User Experiences - WWDC 2014 - Videos - Apple Developer

If not it’s in one of these design videos: Design and Development Videos - Apple Developer

 

[ZCP]

Check war map daily

Damn. Was about to go to bed. F*ck, now I want to stay up all night making a war map!
Got an example or a resource?? Why doesn't my business have a war map?!?!

 

[James Cozens]

Damn. Was about to go to bed. f*ck, now I want to stay up all night making a war map!
Got an example or a resource?? Why doesn't my business have a war map?!?!

Haha it's a new thing for my business too. I basically just printed out a 12 page calendar and stuck it to my wall.
This is for 2019 so not much written on it yet. Am planning 2019 out over the next 4 days which will include a process flowchart in the empty space to the right

 

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[ZCP]

some links as i find them....
Building a Battle Plan

 

[Andy Black]

Haha it's a new thing for my business too. I basically just printed out a 12 page calendar and stuck it to my wall.
This is for 2019 so not much written on it yet. Am planning 2019 out over the next 4 days which will include a process flowchart in the empty space to the right

View attachment 23020

Ooo. Good idea putting up printouts on the wall. I was only yesterday thinking my monthly planner whiteboard was a waste of time because I’ve not updated it since the summer - because the sections on it aren’t how I want them. So now I’ll knock something up in excel, print, and blue-tak to the wall.

 

[James Cozens]

Ooo. Good idea putting up printouts on the wall. I was only yesterday thinking my monthly planner whiteboard was a waste of time because I’ve not updated it since the summer - because the sections on it aren’t how I want them. So now I’ll knock something up in excel, print, and blue-tak to the wall.

Definitely use blue-tak... the wife was NOT happy about my 30 drawing pins

 

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[Andy Black]

Definitely use blue-tak... the wife was NOT happy about my 30 drawing pins

Yeah, even the blue-tak isn’t going to go down well with my Mrs. I may blue-tak the sheets to the whiteboard that’s already hanging there. Or get a big cork board...

I’ve also been meaning to get a big perspex sheet on a wall so I can doodle on it. The kids would love it too.

(Sorry @ChrisV ... hope this isn’t derailing. @ZCP ... maybe you can start another thread about your learnings for a battle plan?)

 

[jon.M]

In copywriting... some people feel the need to write like Stephen King.

Long-winded & vivid descriptions.

That's often a waste of time. If you do it for no apparent reason and you're bad at it. Every word you spend on descriptions is a point where you can lose a reader.

Get to the point instead. Write like you talk to a friend -- not as if you recite some great literary work.

And if you insist on doing storytelling, read up on it first. Hero's journey, archetypes and what not. Russel Brunson's got some good stuff for incorporating stories in your sales copy.

Also, I heard this once -- I don't remember where, but it's nice to keep mind:

"The greatest story ever told:

A man in a hole, and how he got out of it."

 

[Thomas Baptiste]

In copywriting... some people feel the need to write like Stephen King.

Long-winded & vivid descriptions.

That's often a waste of time. If you do it for no apparent reason and you're bad at it. Every word you spend on descriptions is a point where you can lose a reader.

Get to the point instead. Write like you talk to a friend -- not as if you recite some great literary work.

And if you insist on doing storytelling, read up on it first. Hero's journey, archetypes and what not. Russel Brunson's got some good stuff for incorporating stories in your sales copy.

Also, I heard this once -- I don't remember where, but it's nice to keep mind:

"The greatest story ever told:

A man in a hole, and how he got out of it."

I totally agree. This goes for communication in general. It's better to keep it simple most of the time.

 

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[JG17]

Great idea! There are a few concepts/pearls of wisdom I've picked up that I have to read through every day so I remember to do them. I think it comes down to the fact that our memory IS terrible and must be constantly reminded. My list grows longer with each book I read.

FOCUS
Stop crying, take responsibility
Build confidence reference points
Don't give control to other people. Do things my way
Stop unhealthy food. Avoid sugar, white flour, excess dairy, artificial sweeteners
Stop social media for social reasons
Keep everything organized. The state of your desktop is the state of your mind
Plan weeks out in advance. Say no to everything not on the plan
Be grateful for what I have
Persist no-matter what
Sacrifice everything except food, sleep, exercise and family
Avoid all distractions
Have a week off every quarter
Read everyday
Think everyday: what can I do now to reach my long term goals
Look at my accounting every day
Interact with successful people every day (Fastlane forum)
At the end of every day, plan the next day
Don't fixate on the goal. Fixate on each STEP. Look up occasionally
The only person who can EXECUTE anything is me and execution is EVERYTHING
If my feedback loop is rewarded, I won't have any confusion over what I want to do
Do what you hate until you can do what you love
Learn, work and act quick
Separate self from time
Know I'm the best, BE the best at what I do
Find money making process and scale it
Discomfort = Growth
Meditate every single morning for 15 minutes
Check war map daily

Thank you. That is all.

 

[Primeperiwinkle]

Haha it's a new thing for my business too. I basically just printed out a 12 page calendar and stuck it to my wall.
This is for 2019 so not much written on it yet. Am planning 2019 out over the next 4 days which will include a process flowchart in the empty space to the right

View attachment 23020

You mean a war map isn’t a big colorful map that has Mordor on one end and a bunch of very determined Hobbits at the other end all discussing CENTS and the importance of keeping the Productocracy safe from the eeeeeeevil Scripted bad guy?!? Darn it.

Anyhoo, this might help anybody who wants a giant white board. Be sure to read the comments too.

https://lifehacker.com/cover-a-wall-with-a-giant-whiteboard-for-under-15-1587162959

I’m pretty sure this is it. EUCATILE 32 sq. ft. 96 in. x 48 in. Hardboard Thrifty White Tile Board-HDDPTW48 - The Home Depot

 

[ChrisV]

In the same respect, when trying to remember something or commit to it, WRITE IT DOWN on paper. No, a digital note doesn't count.

While on the subject of notes, here’s the absolute magic way to take them.

Take a piece of paper and divide it in half. On one side of the paper is a question, on the other side is the answer. That way you can cover up the “answer” side and your notes double as Flashcards, which are proven to be one of the single most effective ways of learning.

From a BBC article on which learning methods are proven effective, vs those proven ineffective:

HOW THE TECHNIQUES FARED

• Elaborative interrogation - being able to explain a point or fact - MODERATE
• Self-explanation - how a problem was solved - MODERATE
• Summarising - writing summaries of texts - LOW
• Highlighting/underlining- LOW
• Keyword mnemonics - choosing a word to associate with information - LOW
• Imagery - forming mental pictures while reading or listening - LOW
• Re-reading - LOW
• Practice testing - Self-testing to check knowledge - especially using flash cards - HIGH
• Distributed practice - spreading out study over time - HIGH
• Interleaved practice - switching between different kinds of problems - MODERATE

Link: BBC: Revision techniques - the good, the OK and the useless

Flash Cards fall under “practice testing.” You take your notes, that are cut in half. Cover the answer side, then move it down line by line as you test yourself. Then review them using the “Spaced Repetition” (Distributed Practice) Method, and you have pure magic:




One of the most popular Online Courses available: Learning How to Learn: Powerful mental tools to help you master tough subjects | Coursera

 

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[ChrisV]

An interaction I had with a local owner of a great pizzaria near me

Me: “Can I grab a white slice?”
Him: “Sure”
Me: “just not too hot, last time I grabbed it literally burned my mouth.”
Him: "Oh jeez, sorry about that,” and with an obvious agitation with his worker said, “The guy probably forgot,” where you could tell he’s obviously had issues with their carelessness
Me: “Yea, whenever the other guy does it, it’s wayyyy hot. He’s done it twice. The last time I literally heard it sizzling next to me”
Him: “Yea, it’s ridiculous. What does he care? He gets paid either way. He doesn’t care if people burn their mouths and don’t come back.”
Me: I laughed. “Well not if the business goes under or he gets fired."
Him: “Eh, he’ll just find something else. He doesn’t care, his names not on the door.”
Me: “Well... maybe that’s why his name isn’t on the door”
He laughed, and the pizza was the perfect temperature.

 

[ShamanKing]

Haha it's a new thing for my business too. I basically just printed out a 12 page calendar and stuck it to my wall.
This is for 2019 so not much written on it yet. Am planning 2019 out over the next 4 days which will include a process flowchart in the empty space to the right

View attachment 23020

This is freaken awesome. Currently I have a huge calendar but only with the current month. I think your idea will definitely allow me to look even further into the future versus just thinking about it.

rep++

 

[ChrisV]

If you admire someone's art, learn everything about that persons taste as possible. It will tell you exactly how to reverse engineer what they're created and you can add those lessons to your personal pallette.

One example, I'm a huge Metallica fan. One of their biggest influences? Bach. To non-Metallica fans, that will be surprising... but for anyone familiar with Ride The Lightning, MoP, ...And Justice for All, that will make sense right away. (Example at 3:50) Their original bassist Cliff Burton was a huge fan of a wide variety of music like Bach and Black Sabbath. And that marriage of classical music and heavy metal is what made Metallica so unique. But by understanding an artists' influences, you can easily reverse engineer their formulas.

Another example is.. it's no secret I'm a huge Steve Jobs fan. I went through his biography for the sole reason of understanding his influences. He discusses how he was hugly inspired by Eichler Homes

Unlike most kids who grew up in Eichler homes, Jobs knew what they were and why they were so wonderful. He liked the notion of simple and clean modernism produced for the masses,” writes Isaacson, regarding the Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired homes of Jobs’s boyhood suburb.

“Eichler did a great thing,” said Jobs. “I love it when you can bring really great design and simple capability to something that doesn’t cost much,” noting that this philosophy was the “original vision for Apple.”

Steve Jobs Biographer: Apple Founder Was Driven By Simplicity, Mystical Thinking, And Occasional LSD Use

https://gizmodo.com/the-house-that-first-inspired-steve-jobs-5854889

He also had a huge love of Zen design, which is so obvious in his products:



So if you ever want to understand someone's "formula" look at their influences.

 

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[ChrisV]

As a follow-up to my last post, Steve Jobs had an amazing theory on creativity that Science is now finding out is 100% correct. The idea is that all the different things you've been exposed to act as a 'bag of experiences that you pull from when you're creating things

"If you're gonna make connections which are innovative ... you have to not have the same bag of experiences as everyone else does," he said, echoing research on creativity, "or else you're going to make the same connections [as everybody else], and then you won't be innovative, and then nobody will give you an award."

According to the psychology studies, the most creative people pursue an expansive range of experiences, which gives them the fuel for ideas. The more varied the inputs, the more original the outputs.

Business Insider: In 1982, Steve Jobs presented an amazingly accurate theory about where creativity comes from

Steve Jobs - Speech to the Academy of Achievement June 1982

I take this a step further in that whenever I see a piece of art I really like, I try to recreate it almost exactly. Because there are many lessons in trying to create something, and when you do that, you add all those techniques to your toolkit, which you can use on anything. I also mentioned in my Networking thread that I like to reach out to artists, authors, researchers, etc that admire because you can ask them questions and extend your knowledge even further.

 

[Dramolion]

If you wanna be an artist, you're gonna have to create something new/original.
Copying others' work isn't going to get you very far.

 

[Deleted65172]

As a follow-up to my last post, Steve Jobs had an amazing theory on creativity that Science is now finding out is 100% correct. The idea is that all the different things you've been exposed to act as a 'bag of experiences that you pull from when you're creating things





Business Insider: In 1982, Steve Jobs presented an amazingly accurate theory about where creativity comes from

Steve Jobs - Speech to the Academy of Achievement June 1982

I take this a step further in that whenever I see a piece of art I really like, I try to recreate it almost exactly. Because there are many lessons in trying to create something, and when you do that, you add all those techniques to your toolkit, which you can use on anything. I also mentioned in my Networking thread that I like to reach out to artists, authors, researchers, etc that admire because you can ask them questions and extend your knowledge even further.

Quite a lot of things I agree with in there!
As writers we are often advised to copy pieces of more famous writers - it doesn't sound very interesting or useful, but the act of copying every sentence, every word, of an author can give interesting glimpses into their structure, use of words, rhythm, and more. I guess it is just a variation of "to learn something, do it".

Also, in terms of having a reservoir of ideas, that's pretty much what I believe. And it's easy to see, when we watch a movie, or see a scene on the street, and then three weeks later we find ourselves using details from that into our writing - or the amplitude of ideas that can spark from a different piece of art.

Correlated but different, I find interesting that studies have shown that exercising the body (or really, any movement done) helps restore and replenish the willpower and creative parts of the brain - a bit like hitting refresh. Which is why many authors go for walks in the middle of the day - tho it helps anybody who does deep thinking, such as mathematicians, or professors, etc. Quite neat, really.

 

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[ChrisV]

Here's on that was major for me:

If you ever have trouble while trying to follow a piece of advice, there's often a deeper problem.

For instance, if you see a diet program that's basically 'calories in, calories out' and you try, but struggle and fail, there's probably another issue under that. It may be self-control, it may be emotional eating. If you try to save money, but spend compulsively, that too may be self control or addictive tendencies. Often you have to figure out that underlying problem in order to move forward.

 

[ChrisV]

Nothing is impossible unless it defies the laws of physics.

This can't be overstated.