Hey y'all,
Three updates before we dive in.
1. We raised £75 for the Against Malaria Foundation thanks to the folks who filled out the survey. I’m going to round it up to £100. That’s enough to buy around 68 nets, which each will last 4-5 years for the recipient. Thank you, everyone!
2. We published a new video this week: Why Energy is the "Secret Sauce" to Better Time Management.
Any videos you want to see next? Reply to this email and let us know!
3. Third, I’ve published my previous newsletter Beating Zoom Fatigue on my blog as I know some of you wanted to share it with your coworkers, so there ya go!
Onto OPW.
Getting Stuff Done Calls
When it comes to making positive change, I’ve found that closing the gap between intentions and actions is an ongoing challenge.
So many of us want to build better habits, or learn a new skill, but life often gets in the way.
I jokingly refer to this as our Ideal Self and our Actual Self.
The Ideal Self is the one who wakes up early, works out, reads a book, and eats a spinach omelette for breakfast.
The Actual Self is the one who hits snooze, skips the workout, and reads work emails while eating a bowl of Frosted Flakes.
Look, I’m not saying getting some extra sleep or enjoying a bowl of sugary breakfast cereal is negative. I’m saying that often our intentions don’t match up with our actions.
If there’s anything I’ve learned about changing behavior over the past decade, it’s this: enlisting the support of others is the only real habit hack out there.
That's why I feel so excited about a new tool I recently discovered, one whose purpose is to encourage accountability, create shared discipline, and ultimately to help bridge the gap between intention and action.
It's called a Getting Stuff Done Call.
Yep, it does exactly what it says on the tin. You have a call. With another person. And you get stuff done on that call.
It’s that simple.
And before you shrug it off as silly, hear me out.
There is something magical that can happen when we make ourselves accountable to another person. Immediately, our psychology spins into action. Our identity is at stake, and we feel the pressure to meet this expectation. This is called the "consistency bias."
Think about something you’ve been putting off. Maybe it’s your taxes or creating a family photo album. Perhaps you want to spend more time studying for the online course you're enrolled in. The beauty of these calls if you can use the system for practically anything.
Here's how a Getting Stuff Done Call works:
Find 1-4 other people for your group and schedule a one-hour call
During the 60 minutes, follow this structure
Plan: Take 5 min at the start for each person to share their goal
Progress: Spend 50 minutes working
Reflect: Spend 5 minutes recapping how it went at the end
While it might seem odd or even silly to schedule a call with someone just to work, the shared accountability you create is powerful.
I’ve personally seen the benefits. In the past few weeks, I've used these calls to:
Redesign a deck that I had been procrastinating on for ages
Finish my company's year-end reporting
Wrote a 1,500 word rough draft of a blog post
Could I have done this on my own time? Yes. Did having someone there to support me help? Yes. A lot.
These calls are especially powerful when you use the time to focus on that task or project you've really been putting off.
I hope you find this idea useful, and if you try it out, let me know how it goes!
Practical Wisdom
If reading this idea made you feel like you could use it too, here are a few best practices.
Eliminate Distractions. I know I've said it before, but carefully creating an environment that is conducive to focus is important. Whether that means putting your phone in another room, letting housemates know you're busy, or walking the dog beforehand, give yourself the best chance at having uninterrupted focus.
Get Energized. Before joining your call, check your energy and see if you need a boost. Whether it's a few deep breaths, a fresh cup of coffee, or a snack, make sure you're in an energetic state to make the most of the time.
Celebrate Victories. At the end of the call, take a moment to share what you accomplished. It's important to acknowledge progress, however small, as this reinforces the positive behavior loop. Plus, it just feels good!
Advanced: Set up a system. In many areas of life (e.g. school, job) there are systems of accountability that keep us on track. Yet many of us don't have systems for personal goals (e.g. exercise, learning,). Think of these calls as one way to create a support system to keep you accountable.
Words of Wisdom
"You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”
— James Clear