Author: richbowdler

What is the worst advice in the world?

Bad advice.

And what constitutes bad advice?

Whatever it is that you’re trying to do, seek advice from somebody (or several people) who have done the exact thing it is that you’re trying to do.

 

Whether that’s raise money hire a founding team, find a co-founder or grow your business, go down a customer development route and find VC backing, raise funds another way… whatever it is, seek advice from other person, or multiple people who have done the very things that you are trying to accomplish.

Anything else is just stupidity and seeking bad advice there are plenty of people out there who will give you advice, give you coaching, give you mentoring, and have not done the thing that you are actually trying to do.

But when it comes down to it, that’s just opinions.
It’s not useful advice. It is opinions.

 

We all know what the Big Lebowski has to say about opinions

 

And if you are the giver of advice, as a coach, mentor, leader, then you have a moral obligation to call yourself out if you have not done the thing that your coachee / mentee is trying to accomplish.

This is a matter of integrity.

So that’s it!
Find, and use, advice from people who have done what it is you’re trying to do.
End of.

 

 

 

What is your ONE THING for the week?

What is your ONE THING for the week?

 

Focus on just ONE THING.

Make it big enough that it warrants having a whole week to complete it.
If the project is too big, then break it into smaller pieces.
But focus on JUST ONE THING.
Track how much time you spend doing that ONE THING.

I’d recommend a simple time tracking app that collates this for you at the push of a button.
I use a web app called paymo.

(Click the image to visit their site)

 

 

Then look at it.
You might be surprised by what you find.

Here’s my ONE THING time tracking so far for October.
:-/

 

 

And how it compares against the other work that I have needed to get done:

 

If you’ve come from a professional services or consulting background, then this is all probably second nature to you.
But if NOT, then tracking time spent on your ONE THING is a really useful practice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just plain writing – what’s my new weapon of choice?

iA writer.
It’s just plain writing.
Any other content on here? Nope.
The interface is beautifully simple. There is only writing.
Perhaps I can record directly with the dictaphone straight into iA writer?
If that’s possible which looks like it really is and I can just speak possibly now that I am experimenting with speaking with increasing conversational tone is then the rate at which it is writing and the accuracy with it with which it is pumping out is fucking phenomenal.
So this is my new weapon of choice for creating written content.

How to select and keep to your morning routine?

I keep to my morning routine 3-5 days per week.

BUT for one “tiny habit” (see BJ Fogg) which I’ve identified as the most important compounding habit for me, I use a loss aversion technique (courtesy of Nir Eyal ) to make sure I tickle my tiny habit every single day.

 

The habit:

Ingraining into long-term memory, key knowledge and concepts using spaced-repetition software.

I started using the Nir Eyal technique on April 1st.

See if you can spot the difference:

 

If you miss, then burn £20. This might be illegal? And if you do happen to miss, just make sure you NEVER miss twice.

I’ve laid out my knowledge in a hierarchy of interconnected memory palaces.

 

I’m placing a bet on knowledge acquisition and retention being a determining factor in living a rich and fulfilling life.

I’ve extrapolated from that end state, the single keystone behaviour that I believe will help bring it about…

A daily dose of looking at spaced repetition software to prompt me to review fundamental concepts stored in various palaces, enforced with the threat of burning a meaningful sum of money if not carried out.

This could be for as little as 30 seconds.

I’ll post the results when I’m old.

“Got-a-minute?” Leadership

Interrupting your team on an ad-hoc basis is stupid and arrogant.
You may even feel some sense of power and entitlement, if you are the leader. ( / waves faux-importance jazz hands).
What you may not have stopped to appreciate is that you are not being big, clever or powerful.

You are being stupid.

You are unwittingly slashing the focus and effectiveness of the people around you who are helping to build YOUR vision.

Stupid.

Instead, have scheduled time where you are available, AND where your team are available, for interaction.
Focus yourself AND your team on your respective ONE THINGs.

Smart.

 

(^^^edit: Note to self)