Doing What Works

Maybe it isn’t the task you dread. Maybe it’s the setup, or thinking something will take longer than it does. We’ll pump you up to power you through in this edition of Doing What Works.

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Derek Sivers says a workout is as problematic as you make it out to be.

Becoming You author Suzy Welch says getting fired is often the exact right career move.

Minimum viable progress is still progress! Oh, boy. Is it ever.

Being wrong gets a bad rap and, given our producer thinks this exploration of that topic is the best installment of Doing What Works yet, we hope you enjoy this encore edition of the show!
 
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Have you been inserting trash bags the wrong way?
 
Ten thousand ways that won’t work is what some of us call…not failing!
 
How Not to Be Wrong is the right book to read if you really, really hate being wrong.

Common ground is magical but elusive. Katie and I will help you find it in this edition of Doing What Works.

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Bruce Littlefield suggests you write down one thing that happened every day.

Scott Adams suggests you be useful, and remember we watch different movies on one screen.

Mind blown? So was Kramer’s!

Storyworthy’s Matt Dicks says every time you tell a story it becomes less true.

Rory McIlroy guards against watching media accounts of his recent Masters win.

Everything’s derivative, but not everything needs to be attributed. Still with us? You’ll enjoy this edition of Doing What Works!

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“To My Grown-Up Son,” by Alice E. Chase, played in my head constantly as Katie grew up.

I once accidentally stole a passage from Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.

“I’ll have what she’s having” is from When Harry Met Sally…

Just Do It!

If you gave credit every time it was due you’d be insufferable. Aim for the golden mean.

Dan Savage is an oft-quoted, oft-attributed source.

“Two men looked out through prison bars. One saw mud. The other, stars.” This edition of Doing What Works is an ode to Maureen’s penchant for stargazing.

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Seth Godin, Tim Urban, and Scott Adams are a few of my favorite people to keep up with.

Jane Brody says people often look at questions as attacks.

The Let Them Theory is a useful way of looking at the world.

It was never between you and them.

You might not know if you want to be friends with someone after a few seconds of meeting, but you probably know if you don’t! This edition of Doing What Works is permission to trust that feeling.

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Jane Brody suggests you trust your knee-jerk impressions of people.

Don’t be so open-minded your brains fall out!

You don’t want to live in the past, but why not mine it for its treasures? We’ll be your guide in this edition of Doing What Works.

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Are you drifting through life?

Work can be a form of procrastination.

Urgent versus important!

It’s only too late if you don’t start now.

Successful people live by this question.

Being willing to try things is great. Being sure the next thing is the secret to life might mean closets full of gadgets you never use. This is the smart shopping edition of Doing What Works.

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Confirmation bias is the tendency to process information by looking for, or interpreting, information that is consistent with your existing beliefs.

A low-probability, high-consequence event is a risk you don’t necessarily want to take.

Derek Sivers says if you trust the source you don’t need the argument.

We contain multitudes.

Garrison Keillor says what keeps us going is the hope tomorrow will be different.

Maybe finding the perfect anything -- the job, the apartment, the person -- isn’t the point. Maybe the point, as we suggest in this edition of Doing What Works, is to get better at adjusting your sails as you go.

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What’s standing between you and the life you want?

Callings author Gregg Levoy has had to cultivate patience on the order of years for callings to come through.

You wake up the brain by quieting the thinking mind.

There’s no settling down without some settling for.

Choose the bigger life.

Not sure what you want to do with the rest of your life? There are ways of finding out! We show you a few of them in this edition of Doing What Works.

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We are blind to our own brilliance.

The Riverview Theater is a delightful venue in Minneapolis.

If you have difficulty deciding on a career path, you might be a scanner.