Tag: “Habits”

You have probably heard of the famous experiment that was conducted a few decades ago in a laboratory at Stanford University: a few children were left alone in a room and were told that they could have a candy at that time or wait until the experimenter came back, in which case they could have two candies. The experiment did not end there, since the social and cognitive skills of these children were tested some years later. The result was that, at least academically, the ones who had delayed instant gratification obtained better scores and were more popular than those who had not.

Dwight D. Eisenhower, thirty-fourth president of the U.S., thought that we should devote attention and time to our activities in accordance with their importance and urgency. He said, rightly, that we are too inclined to focus on the things that are both important and urgent, generating a reactive behavior based on what has to be done right now, instead of focusing on the things that are important and not urgent, which would be the basis of a more strategic behavior based on long-term goals.

Some time ago I heard a very interesting podcast in which Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit, was interviewed by David Allen, author of Getting Things Done, in an attempt to delve deeper into the intersection between the management of habits and personal productivity.

I am absolutely convinced that the main reason why many people are not well organized and continue to live burdened by the pressure of their work and personal tasks, is that they fail to establish the necessary habits needed to keep everything in life under control.

The Daily Review is a resource to sort the ideas generated during the day and arrange your work plan. First, you have to review your Calendar to have in mind the commitments for the next day, checking all the necessary stuff to ensure you are not forgetting anything. This is key to not appear at a meeting without an important document or information, to not feel a little bad for not mentioning a significant detail that emerged during the previous evening.