How not working can be more productive than working
Here’s a paradox. Did you know that sometimes the best way to get work done is not to work? It sounds counterintuitive, right? How can you get work done by not working? By now, you’re probably thinking I’m delusional. But when you work more hours than usual you may neglect your health. You think you’ll...
Inspiration for creative types
Several blog posts ago, I mentioned how music can help energize you and totally change your mood. I would add that it can also inspire you to create something that did not exist before. I was recently lucky enough to see Hamilton, the new hiphop musical that’s all the rage on Broadway. One person, Lin-Manuel...
It’s okay to be obsessed
On Quora.com, a reader wanted to know what goes into the making of a great entrepreneur like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Elon Musk, or Richard Branson. Justine Musk shed light on what it takes. As a former wife of one of the “extreme entrepreneurs” mentioned, she should know. “Be obsessed,” she wrote three times. “If...
Work habits of the creative class
Rene Descartes, the French philosopher, slept 10 hours a night. He would wake mid-morning, linger in bed thinking and writing. By 11:00 a.m., he was usually done with work for the day. Unlike many other creatives, he believed idleness was important for good mental work. It’s a position I endorse. Apparently he made sure never...
Should you ditch your job?
On a recent episode of “Real Biz with Rebecca Jarvis,” I heard Tim Ferriss, author of The 4-hour Work Week, spell out five things to consider if you’re wondering whether to quit your job. Create a dreamline. This is basically a timeline of your goals and dreams. What do you want to have, do, and...
On another person’s inner voices
I recently heard something that gave me pause. At a panel on freelancing at the Asian American Journalists Association meeting in Washington, DC, a writer who has a nonprofit job by day, but does travel writing on the side implied that she wasn’t a full-time travel writer, although she loved doing it, because it wouldn’t...
On the power of music
If you’ve ever had one of those days or weeks when you feel blah or a shadow of your more energetic, productive self, consider the power of music to speak to your inner core. Not only can it wake you up and change your outlook, it might even get your inspiration flowing again. If you’re...
Listening to nudges leads to new path
Andrea Kay has always been a visual artist. But it was never her main work. By day, she is a career consultant, writer of a syndicated career column, and author of 6 career-related books, including Life’s a Bitch and Then You Change Careers. She is also a radio host and appears on TV. About 10...
Elements of a quarter-life breakthrough
Two years ago, Smiley Poswolsky was wrestling with a brutal quarter-life crisis. When he went home and told his roommate that he hated his job and wanted to move across the country, write, and support social entrepreneurs who were going after their dreams, his roommate would say something like, “Dude, everyone hates their job. That’s...
The case against playing it safe
Avoiding risk in your work life could be harmful to your health. We’re so focused externally on what’s going to sell, what’s hot, what will move, and what somebody else wants that we don’t listen to ourselves. We lose touch with who we really are and what we can give, said career coach Tama Kieves....
The evolution of an innovator
Innovators don’t accept things as they are. For them, there’s always a better way of doing something. They’re not afraid to reject traditional approaches to work. When they know something isn’t a good fit, they may reinvent themselves a few times, as they home in on what they really want to be doing. Take Letitia...
Where willpower and fatigue intersect
One month into the new year might be time to revisit those new year’s resolutions. How are they working for you? If, like me, you’re not thrilled with your performance so far, it could be you’re pushing yourself too hard, trying to do too much at once. I recently watched an interesting talk on will...