Today's Challenge

Full transcript here 👋 Hey, good morning, good afternoon, good evening. This is your life. This is your chance. Listen.

The word for today is summer. Hopefully, I’ve posted this episode while it’s still summer. I’ve definitely run into a wall with posting episodes, partly due to a new puppy named George [George barking]. The good thing about reaching your limit, though, is that you realize what you’re capable of, just like I described in episode “67 - Age.” Speaking of age, three kids rode by on bicycles yesterday while I was out taking George for a yard break, and it made me remember the feeling of freedom that summer could bring as a kid. Cycling around our neighborhood was one of my favorite experiences, but it was way more fun with friends. Maybe I can convince my middle aged neighbors to feel the freedom again with me. Seeing those kids zoom by inspired me to get my bicycle back functional. I mangled the handlebars when I ran into the side of a truck, but that’s a story for another day. I followed through yesterday and ordered a replacement set of handlebars that I’m not sure will fit. However, sometimes action is better than hesitation. Not being sure of the correct size has delayed me fixing my bicycle for the past five years. It’s time to strike while the summer’s hot!

Today’s concrete challenge is to plan one summer-style activity. Do you want to get in a pool, create a backyard slip ‘n’ slide, or just sit in the shade with a popsicle? Whatever it is, write it down and a time that you will do it.

If you want to commit, say the following phrase: “I will take advantage of summer.”

I’ll keep the music playing while you get it done, and don’t miss the soundtrack at the end of this episode.

Before you go, repeat the following soundtrack, “I am the kind of person who seizes the moment.”

Let me know if this made a difference in your day by leaving a comment in your podcast app or at concrete.win/today.

Check back tomorrow for a new challenge. Until then.

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/today/donations

Full transcript here 👋 Hey, good morning, good afternoon, good evening. This is your life. This is your chance. Listen.

The word for today is finish, but without being Nordic. I’ve mentioned Jon Acuff kind of a lot on this podcast, but it’s because his book, Finish, made a big impression on me. I love that he calls out the difficulty that most people have in completing goals. I’m one of those people who have difficulty making it across the proverbial finish line. The strange thing, though, is that it’s not difficult for me to make it across the literal finish line. I’ve run up to 15 miles at a time, and I’ve never wanted to quit, especially when close to the finish line. However, I’ve never run a full marathon. Here’s some quippy marathon wisdom: “Marathons are a 10k race (6.2 miles) with a 20 mile warm up.” Lots of people hit their physical exertion “wall” around mile 20, so pith aside, maybe I would question whether finishing is worth the effort after mile 20. There’s only one way to find out. I just messaged my friend to see if he wants to do one with me at the end of the year. Okay, back to the topic at hand. When I visited my cousin’s house, he gave us a brief tour of the renovations they had made. Some were professionally done, and others were DIY jobs. One area stuck out to me, though. In the laundry room, he showed the tile he had installed, and he mentioned that the corner looked kind of bad because it was all he could do to make himself finish it. I’m sure, to him, the corner looked bad, but to anyone else it was just a tiled corner. It’s kind of a family joke to admit that we’re all pretty bad at the last 10%. I’m super proud of his crappy tile work, because it was finished. That’s more than a lot of people can say about DIY projects.

Today’s concrete challenge is to write down your next step in finishing a project. In episode “29 - Brave,” I mentioned that I would contact the woodworker that would build our bathroom drawer to help finish that renovation. I definitely contacted him, and he definitely hasn’t built the drawer yet. I guess I know what my next step is.

If you want to commit, say the following phrase: “I will write down my next step.”

I’ll keep the music playing while you get it done, and don’t miss the soundtrack at the end of this episode.

Before you go, repeat the following soundtrack, “I am the kind of person who takes the next step.”

Let me know if this made a difference in your day by leaving a comment in your podcast app or at concrete.win/today.

Check back tomorrow for a new challenge. Until then.

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/today/donations

Full transcript here 👋 Hey, good morning, good afternoon, good evening. This is your life. This is your chance. Listen.

The word for today is water, and it may seem evident where I’m going with this. You should drink water, instead of sugary or alcoholic or caffeine-filled beverages. Well, that may be true, but I’d instead like to tell a story. Two young fish were swimming happily along in the ocean... (stop me if you’ve heard this one before). An older fish swims by in the opposite direction and says, “Morning, boys. How’s the water?” The two young fish swim on and eventually one turns to the other and asks, “What the hell is water?” You might have your own interpretation of this story, but David Foster Wallace summarizes his tale by saying, “The point of the fish story is merely that the most obvious, important realities are often the ones that are hardest to see and talk about.” I think that’s part of why I started this podcast. If you don’t fast forward through the intro, you might notice that each episode starts with a call to attention: “This is your life. This is your chance.” It’s a call to look for the water around you and realize that you have some control over large AND small aspects of your life. If you listen to the commencement speech, where the fish story originated, Foster Wallace goes on to say, “Twenty years after my own graduation, I have come gradually to understand that the liberal arts cliché about teaching you how to think is actually shorthand for a much deeper, more serious idea: learning how to think really means learning how to exercise some control over how and what you think. It means being conscious and aware enough to choose what you pay attention to and to choose how you construct meaning from experience. Because if you cannot exercise this kind of choice in adult life, you will be totally hosed.”

Today’s concrete challenge is to write down some thoughts about the water around you. What have you been experiencing but not registering? What is that “most obvious, important reality” in your life? Foster Wallace gives us a hint in identifying it. Usually, it’s that thing that’s difficult to talk about.

If you want to commit, say the following phrase: “I will describe the water around me.”

I’ll keep the music playing while you get it done, and don’t miss the soundtrack at the end of this episode.

Before you go, repeat the following soundtrack, “I am the kind of person who stops to reflect.”

Let me know if this made a difference in your day by leaving a comment in your podcast app or at concrete.win/today.

Check back tomorrow for a new challenge. Until then.

References:

This is Water by David Foster Wallace (Full Transcript and Audio)

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/today/donations

Full transcript here 👋 Hey, good morning, good afternoon, good evening. This is your life. This is your chance. Listen.

The word for today is rep. Just so we’re clear, rep is short for repetition. I’m not cool enough for it to be an abbreviation of reputation. We’ve looked, in episode “62 - Repetitive,” at how to use repetition to learn new skills, but today I want to illustrate a small trick I’ve used to get myself to do repetitive exercises. In December of 2019, I purchased a 40 lb. weight from a local sports store, thinking that I would exercise when I worked from home. I didn’t do much with it until April of 2020, after the pandemic put us into a Groundhog Day scenario. This was my first time doing any kind of regular weight lifting, so I didn’t know exactly how to progress. I set a goal of 10 reps and added one rep per day. The level of challenge seemed right, but where was it leading? Would I continue to add a rep per day until I busted out of every shirt I own? Thankfully, lack of motivation came to the rescue. I kept it regular through most of the summer in 2020, but at some point, the mental part of it caught up with me. I stopped wanting to begin rep one, much less rep 40-something. The 40 lb. weight sat sadly by my back door for months, forlorn in its disuse. Recently, I moved it to our carport, because, in episode “40 - Obstacle,” I talked about how making something harder to ignore can help you follow through. My goal in moving it there was initially to lift it any time I come in the carport door, but that’s, again, a little too high an expectation. Instead, I’ve committed to lifting it once a day when I return from a run, starting with 10 reps and adding one each day. It might seem like I’m headed down the same deadend, but here’s the kicker. When I get up to 20 reps, I reward myself by taking the goal back down to 10. Yes, it won’t build muscle in the same way that making myself power through ever-higher reps would, but I’ve learned from last year. Slow is better than none.

Today’s concrete challenge is to start or continue lifting any kind of weight. Consistency in lifting weights strengthens more than just the activated muscles. It helps your body burn fat more effectively and helps your bones and joints stay strong. Think back to episode “94 - Stretch” and how our bodies are antifragile, becoming stronger and better through use.

If you want to commit, say the following phrase: “I will make a plan to stay motivated in lifting any kind of weight.”

I’ll keep the music playing while you get it done, and don’t miss the soundtrack at the end of this episode.

Before you go, repeat the following soundtrack, “I am the kind of person who stays strong.

Let me know if this made a difference in your day by leaving a comment in your podcast app or at concrete.win/today.

Check back tomorrow for a new challenge. Until then.

References:

5 Health Benefits of Lifting Weights and How to Do It Safely

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/today/donations

Full transcript here 👋 Hey, good morning, good afternoon, good evening. This is your life. This is your chance. Listen.

The word for today is maintenance. Yesterday, we looked at pressing reset on weekly tasks, but some to-do’s are more sporadic. For example, when’s the last time you got an alignment on your car? I can’t remember when it was for my car, but, according to tirebuyer.com, you should get an alignment once or twice per year. I remember, as a teenager, being constantly frustrated when I would take my car for service and they’d say that my tires were wearing out on the edges, due to misalignment. As we looked at in episode “56 - Upstream,” if you don’t want downstream problems, it helps to think a few steps ahead. Maintenance like wheel alignments, balance, and rotation can be the difference between getting to your destination safely or a roadside emergency or worse (Do you know how to change a tire? Do you know if your spare is inflated?). But don’t think that you’re exempt from this analogy just because you don’t own a car. What are some life maintenance tasks that happen throughout the year? Adulthood brings a whole raft of them, such as paying taxes, paying bills, voting, doctor visits for yourself and those you care for (including dental and vision), car maintenance, home maintenance, etc. Even if you’re still in school, you have exams to think ahead about, and hopefully you have some household responsibilities that require planning. I’ve always been interested in aligning all of the disparate tasks into groups of monthly, yearly, and miscellaneous and scheduling them together. For example, January could be the checkup month of the year. Doctor’s physical exam, dental exam, car alignment, HVAC checkup, etc. Why haven’t I done it, then? Because it takes effort and upstream thinking, which are difficult. I guess that’s part of why I’m writing this episode. If I want to commit, I will say the following phrase, “I will clump maintenance activities together in order to make sure they’re done.”

Today’s concrete challenge should be obvious.

If you want to commit, say the following phrase: “I will clump maintenance activities together in order to make sure they’re done.”

I’ll keep the music playing while you get it done, and don’t miss the soundtrack at the end of this episode.

Before you go, repeat the following soundtrack, “I am the kind of person who thinks upstream.”

Let me know if this made a difference in your day by leaving a comment in your podcast app or at concrete.win/today.

Check back tomorrow for a new challenge. Until then.

References:

How often you need a tire alignment

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/today/donations

Full transcript here 👋 Hey, good morning, good afternoon, good evening. This is your life. This is your chance. Listen.

The word for today is reset. Sometimes it feels great to be able to press reset on electronics and watch everything come back up the way it’s supposed to be. How often do you take a day to press reset on life? If you’re not familiar with Shabbat, also called the Sabbath, it’s a Jewish tradition of setting aside one day out of seven to stop buying, stop selling, stop working, and stop striving. I’m guessing there are probably similar practices in all major religions because slowing down periodically is good for the soul. Today is Sunday, and I enjoyed hair trimming, bathroom cleaning, clothes washing, and all the other tasks that get pushed to the weekend. It feels really good to be able to press reset on weekly tasks. If you feel like all of your responsibilities are piling up, try instituting a reset day. As we talked about in episode “82 - Schedule,” it’s also handy to go ahead and allot each reset task a specific time slot in that day.

Today’s concrete challenge is to make a list of weekly reset tasks. What are the things that pile up in your mind and make you feel overwhelmed each week? You’ll feel great when that list is out of your mind and contained on a piece of paper or screen.

If you want to commit, say the following phrase: “I will write down or type out a list of weekly reset tasks.”

I’ll keep the music playing while you get it done, and don’t miss the soundtrack at the end of this episode.

Before you go, repeat the following soundtrack, “I am the kind of person who thinks ahead.”

Let me know if this made a difference in your day by leaving a comment in your podcast app or at concrete.win/today.

Check back tomorrow for a new challenge. Until then.

References:

Episode 6: The Day of Rest — The Happiness Lab

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/today/donations

Full transcript here 👋 Hey, good morning, good afternoon, good evening. This is your life. This is your chance. Listen.

The word for today is good, and we’re respectfully declining. [smacks lips “Mmm… no thanks] You might be wondering what’s wrong with the word “good.” Aren't good relationships, a good home, and a good life all good things, after all? I’m not trying to make you believe that those are not good and worth having, but Jim Collins, author of Good to Great, writes that “the enemy of great is not bad, the enemy is good.” When we stop pushing to become better, we settle for good. Note that I did not say that you need to push others to be great or to leave a good relationship. As you probably know, you can only control yourself, so if you want a better relationship, home, or life, you have to start with you. I recently mentioned the John Milton quote about our minds creating our reality, and sometimes all that’s missing is an appreciation of what we have, as George Bailey found in the film, It’s a Wonderful Life. At other times, you may have to actively work on becoming a great student, friend, partner, employer, or employee. Don’t settle for good if you believe that great is possible. I will also mention that, statistically, some of you are in an objectively bad relationship or home. In these situations, no amount of self improvement will fix the problem. If you feel that you are being abused in any way, please call 800-799-SAFE.

Today’s concrete challenge is to picture “great.” If you woke up tomorrow and suddenly found yourself in a great life, what would it look, sound, smell, and feel like? Write down a short description of what you’d see around you if you woke up to a great life.

If you want to commit, say the following phrase: “I will jot down a short description of what it would be like.”

I’ll keep the music playing while you get it done, and don’t miss the soundtrack at the end of this episode.

Before you go, repeat the following soundtrack, “I am the kind of person who deserves a great life.”

Let me know if this made a difference in your day by leaving a comment in your podcast app or at concrete.win/today.

Check back tomorrow for a new challenge. Until then.

References:

Miracle question - Wikiversity

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/today/donations

Full transcript here 👋 Hey, good morning, good afternoon, good evening. This is your life. This is your chance. Listen.

The word for today is leverage. I relistened to Dan Heath’s book, Upstream, last week, and one phrase stuck out to me. Heath writes that when you’re thinking about and planning a strategy for what could be a decades-long change effort, the best place to start is by “look[ing] for a point of leverage.” I love this advice because it feels like a hint in a video game. If you’ve ever played a text-based adventure or a mystery game like The Room, you know the frustration of not knowing where to look or how to proceed. Often, a simple hint, like “look for a point of leverage,”will prompt you to go over to the water pump and find the next clue. The same process is possible in our daily lives. We have hopes and dreams, but sometimes we’re not sure how to begin. Is saving $25 per month even worth the effort? Is an afternoon walk going to do anything to help my weight? I think Dan Heath would argue, “Yes and yes,” but he might also tell you how leverage is surprising. If you’ve ever seen how an actual lever can help you lift an impressively heavy object, you’ll understand how starting small in the right area can help you make a gradually larger impact in your life and the lives of those around you. If you’re not familiar with the amazing reality of levers, see the video in the References area of our show notes.

Today’s concrete challenge is to identify a point of leverage in your life. At Coach.me, they consider this point of leverage to be a keystone habit. What’s a tiny action that you can perform consistently in order to create space in your life for larger habits?

If you want to commit, say the following phrase: “I will identify and start a keystone habit in my life.”

I’ll keep the music playing while you get it done, and don’t miss the soundtrack at the end of this episode.

Before you go, repeat the following soundtrack, “I am the kind of person who leverages leverage.”

Let me know if this made a difference in your day by leaving a comment in your podcast app or at concrete.win/today.

Check back tomorrow for a new challenge. Until then.

References:

Why Levers are AWESOME- Smarter Every Day 74

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/today/donations

Full transcript here 👋 Hey, good morning, good afternoon, good evening. This is your life. This is your chance. Listen.

The word for today is job. When I was about 22 years old, my uncle asked me if I wanted to do some eBay selling for his small business. I had played around with selling on eBay the previous couple of years and had some success, but here’s the thing about eBay and maybe selling in general. Small sales are tedious and big sales are addictive, especially when I earned the same percentage on both. With that stark contrast, it’s no wonder that my uncle found me spending most of my time picking through the items he wanted to sell, looking for the ones that would fetch the highest price. Yes, it was completely hedonistic, and it’s part of what embarrasses me about what happened next. My uncle asked me to purchase a printer, so I got that done without much trouble. However, it was defective, and he asked me to ship it back for a refund. I eventually shipped it back, and then my uncle got a message from the seller. I hadn’t added much, if any, padding around the printer, so it had gotten destroyed in the shipping process. He should have taken it out of my pay, but I don’t think he did. I tell this story to illustrate how job crafting can go awry. When we pick only the parts of a job that we enjoy and neglect the rest, we’re not being fair to our employer. I could blame it on the incentive structure, but it was truly just me not doing a good job.

Today’s concrete challenge is to do a good job for your employer. Write down one task or area where you need to focus some energy. It might be dressing up a little more, submitting timesheets or TPS reports on time, or any other part of your job that you could elevate.

If you want to commit, say the following phrase: “I will identify one part of my job to elevate.”

I’ll keep the music playing while you get it done, and don’t miss the soundtrack at the end of this episode.

Before you go, repeat the following soundtrack, “I am the kind of person who does a good job.”

Let me know if this made a difference in your day by leaving a comment in your podcast app or at concrete.win/today.

Check back tomorrow for a new challenge. Until then.

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/today/donations

Full transcript here 👋 Hey, good morning, good afternoon, good evening. This is your life. This is your chance. Listen.

The word for today is incentive. Okay, put yourself in this scenario and think about your options. Your job is to oversee chores at a place where eight teen boys are temporarily away from their family, most of the time as a consequence for their poor behavior. You start your shift at 7AM and have until 2PM to get the guys to complete basic household chores, such as sweeping and mopping common rooms and cleaning their suite’s bathroom. Don’t forget to factor two meals into those seven hours and the fact that none of these guys care about cleaning their space. How do you make sure chores are completed? At first, I tried to plan fun outings in the afternoon and only allow the guys that finished their chores to attend. This worked fairly well, but what do you do with kids that don’t succeed? They have to stay home with one of only two on-duty staff members. I actually had to work on my own many times, so I was forced to improvise. How could I get all eight guys to complete their chores without me nagging or trying to force them? I used $15 of my own dollars each week to buy one $10 and one $5 gift card that I would award the top two cleaners. This small investment leveraged the power of incentive on a few different levels. First, the guys had to outwork the others, which meant cleaner areas than ever before. Second, my role changed from enforcer to benefactor, which was 100% better. Last, and maybe most importantly, the guys went home with the power and pride of being able to buy treats for themselves and others. These were kids who often came from little means, so the gift cards were truly motivating for most of them. You might handle the situation differently, but I believe incentives made my task possible, given the constraints.

Today’s concrete challenge is to write down one difficult task of yours or one that you oversee. Pair it with an incentive that could motivate those involved. I’ve jokingly told my wife that we should look up the cost of hiring a professional for home projects, halve that number, and let ourselves spend that amount as a reward for completing the project ourselves. My wife still isn’t sold on the idea, but maybe that’s why we have lingering home projects that are mostly, but not fully, finished.

If you want to commit, say the following phrase: “I will pair one incentive with one hard task.”

I’ll keep the music playing while you get it done, and don’t miss the soundtrack at the end of this episode.

Before you go, repeat the following soundtrack, “I am the kind of person who gets creative.”

Let me know if this made a difference in your day by leaving a comment in your podcast app or at concrete.win/today.

Check back tomorrow for a new challenge. Until then.

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/today/donations