The Incrementalist

When we look at a clock – digital or analog – we see the seconds, minutes and hours passing. The day starts and end, regardless of what we do. The clock tells us we have 24 hours in a day.

Of that, we need about 7 to 8 hours of sleep, 1 hour for a lunch break, and a few more hours for daily routines, errands and so on. We have distractions and interruptions. Also, we’re human: our energy and focus ebb and flow throughout the day. 

The maximum time you have for your Most Important Tasks is around 8 hours per day. Your MIT is your core work or your high-value, high-leverage activity. This contributes directly to your success. It helps you create the most important, desired results. 

In this episode, I discuss how to set your priorities, which starts with the Brain Dump, continues with the Priority Matrix (Eisenhower Complex), and ends with blocking time and matching your tasks with your energy and focus levels, your environment, and your circumstances. 

I cover Essentialism, which involves distinguishing the vital few from the trivial many, and making the necessary trade-offs to tackle what  truly matters. 

I explain why you need to align your actions with your One Thing, which is what you can do, such that by doing it, makes everything else easier or unnecessary. 

Resources Cited: 

• Greg McKeown - Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less 
• Gary Keller and Jay Papasan - The One Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results 

Music by: 

• Sebastian Brian Mehr

Dyan Williams
Check out the book: The Incrementalist, A Simple Productivity System to Create Big Results in Small Steps
Visit website: www.dyanwilliams.com
Subscribe to productivity e-newsletter

Like good habits, bad habits also give you a dopamine hit. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is often called the feel-good hormone. Dopamine fires when you get the thing you crave, and when you anticipate getting that thing. 

A dopamine hit is not the same as true happiness, say Dr. Jud Brewer, director of research and innovation at Brown University Mindfulness Center, a psychiatrist and an expert in mindfulness training for treating addictions. To break everyday addictions and bad habits, he recommends you step out of the reactive pattern and just be present with whatever comes up. Use your natural curiosity to learn about the habit loop while you're in it and become aware of the results of your actions. 

There are 4 laws of behavior change, says author, speaker and entrepreneur James Clear. If you want to build a habit, you make it Visible, Attractive, Easy and Satisfying. If you want to stop a habit, you invert the laws. You make it Invisible, Unattractive, Difficult and Unsatisfying. 

You might think you have to replace the habit with another to break it. But this is really a last resort. You can untangle the bad habit if you stay mindful, get curious, and invert the 4 laws of behavior change. 

"Learn how your mind works, so you can work with it." – Dr. Jud Brewer

"You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems." – James Clear

 Resources Cited:

• Jud Brewer - The Craving Mind: From Cigarettes to Smartphones to Love - Why We Get Hooked and How We Can Break Bad Habits
• James Clear - Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones

Music by:

• Sebastian Brian Mehr

Here's to breaking bad habits,

Dyan Williams
Check out the book: The Incrementalist, A Simple Productivity System to Create Big Results in Small Steps
Visit website: www.dyanwilliams.com
Subscribe to productivity e-newsletter

A habit starts with a conscious decision and becomes automatic through a 3-step loop (cue, behavior, reward). Building good habits allows you to make changes without relying on willpower and motivation. 

In this episode, I discuss how motivation, ability and prompts drive behavior, using Professor BJ Fogg's B=MAP formula. I also cover the ABC (Anchor, Behavior, Celebration) method to create new habits and sustain momentum.  Make the new behavior tiny with the starter step and by scaling back. Excellence comes from the actions you do habitually, consistently, repeatedly - not from once-in-a-while acts.  Being the best version of yourself and having self-mastery stem from your habits. 

Resources Cited:

• Charles Duhigg - The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business
• BJ Fogg - Tiny Habits: The Small Changes that Change Everything
• David T. Neal, Wendy Wood, and Jeffrey M. Quinn, Duke University, Habits - A Repeat Performance, Current Directions in Psychological Science, Volume 15, Issue 4, August 1, 2006
• Magic Weighted Blanket

Music by:

• Sebastian Brian Mehr

Happy habit-building,

Dyan Williams
Check out the book: The Incrementalist, A Simple Productivity System to Create Big Results in Small Steps
Visit website: www.dyanwilliams.com
Subscribe to productivity e-newsletter

Welcome to The Incrementalist podcast! Hosted by Dyan Williams - a productivity & purpose coach and solo lawyer - this show offers simple techniques and tools to focus on your top priorities and design a well-lived life. You will learn how to use the Incrementalist approach to turn your ideas into action, maximize focus, and make time for what truly matters.
 
We'll cover practical ways to implement big changes or finish a big project in small steps. The change or project may relate to your work, your family, your relationships, a creative endeavor, or any other domain of life.
 
Stop using lack of time, energy, focus, skills, motivation and fear as an excuse. Tiny habits and small tweaks are enough to get you moving in the right direction. You can do great work, make great things, and stretch your limits, gradually and slowly. Incremental progress helps you gain control, master your craft and integrate all that matters to you. 

Dyan Williams
Check out the book: The Incrementalist, A Simple Productivity System to Create Big Results in Small Steps
Visit website: www.dyanwilliams.com
Subscribe to productivity e-newsletter