There are two core abilities to thrive in the be economy:

1. Master hard things quickly.
2. Produce at an elite level; quality and speed important.

Above all, however, you need to produce!

You need to have a routine of deliberate practice; focus on a specific skill; get feedback so you can tune your attention to where is most productive.

Busyness (responsible to messages quickly) does not equal productivity. In fact, this is more in line with taylorism. Taylorism is when Frederick Taylor timed people doing their jobs at the beginning of the industrial revolution looking for high to make it more efficient.

Gallagher (science writer – ‘Rapt’) theory tells us that your world is the outcome of what you pay attention to!!!!

Flow – an activity with flow should have built-in goals, feedback rules, and challenges.

Humanity are happiest when in a state of flow.

Note that flow is generated by Deep Work.

Deep Work helps to extract meaning from any job.

Eudaimonia = philosopher Aristotle used it as a broad concept to describe the highest good humans could strive toward – or a life ‘well lived’.

You only have a finite pool of will power.

Batching – schedule time each day for shallow tasks wh. Socializing, emails, IM etc

When planning tasks in shallow and deep, categorize them into what are the end outcomes. Larger outcomes should equal deep Work .

Approach for Me: just a rhythmic approach, in that schedule a ,90 minute session each day to one single task. Extend this to six 90 minute sessions at the weekend. Which will equate to 11 sessions each week.

Create rituals and habits and follow this
Furthermore, never wait for inspiration.

My Deep Work ritual looks like this:
a. Glass of water and 4 minute meditation and stretch
b. Brown noise
c. iPad and laptop ready and charged
d. Work for 90 minutes without interruption or break.
e. Work at the table in the house with computer connected to the laptop.

f. When the 90 minutes is up, summarize what was completed.

Thinking time. Schedule 90 minutes on a Sunday to, wake up early and walk and talk or listen to podcast on the Riverside.

For some projects find someone to collaborate with!

The 4 Disciplines

1. Use 4Dx or the magic of thinking big to set amazing goals as well as deadlines for these goals.
2. You need to track the hours you work and the impact this has on? I.e. input and output.
3. When a result is acheived highlight it on the spreadsheet tracker
4. Finally, you need to review what you accomplished each week. After the review eek out what caused the better performance and identify what you could do better.

Down time – you need complete escape from work everyday. This increases seeing your tasks from a different angle. This is best served by embracing nature – leading to ART attention restoration theory. Try not to work in the evenings where possible. For example I will not do any deep work on Tuesday’s and Thursday’s. This also applies to shallow work any night of the week.

Shut down ritual – similar to the start up, except perform a review of what you accomplished and what you still need to do. At the end say something like ‘Shutdown complete’.

You need to train your brain to be able to do deep work. You need to practice resisting urges!

Schedule times to play games or browse online.

Practiced meditation – when walking to and from work, use this time to unpack a professional problem e.g. coaching or literacy. Break this think time down into task variables e.g. for planning a lesson think about the learning outcomes or instructional activities. Once the variables are identified, then associate a question linked to them. E.g. how will this activity use UDL. Finally review the results before moving on.

Memory training for a deck of cards- taken from the memory champion Ron White

1. Memorize 5 rooms in your home
2. Picture 10 large things in each room in order e.g. TV or sofa – in order of how you would scan a room. Two items can be from the hall way
3. Now associate each card in a deck with a memorable person or thing. They should have some connection to that card. E.g Emperor Palpatine could be the the king of Spades, with other Empire characters being associated with spades (dark energy).
4. After step 3 is memorized then associate the person with the object in each room, again in order. So if the front door of the house is opened first and the door is associate with Luke Skywalker, who is the ace of diamonds (sky and Lucy in the sky with diamonds) – use scenes

Craftsman approach.
Identify the core factors that determine success in happiness in my professional and personal life. Only adopt tools if it has positive impacts on these factors under these are where the negative impacts.

For me the happiness of my professional life would be autonomy using a technology, working with more adults but also working with kids from time to time. Furthermore, I would pursue a responsibility position and with many different projects on the go I have a flat leadership style. Regarding the personal life, it is being with my wife also in a hot country exercising regularly eating well and not drinking. Furthermore, again on personal life, is reading constantly learning I’m having a family and pets on a place to call home. The goal should be general like for example to be an effective teacher.

Goal = to be an effective teacher
Key Activities supporting these goals = research inquiry based learning / androgogy for adults / ISTE trainer / literacy workshops / use data on a regular basis to inform teaching / give less but more meaningful feedback / use UBD

Hours of work per week? Set a limit in hours and then work backwards to allocate time for each task eg. 60 hours per week

These are my key take-ways from the book, with links to other books I have read.

Time is like a currency, and everyday you get 24 hours to spend.

You have all the time you will ever need. However, every day you feel that something is undone, this because you are stretched. Do not stretch yourself – accomplish what is achievable.

Don’t wait for a signal or plan, simply jump straight into whatever it is – reminds me of launching the minimum viable product in The Lean Startup, by Eric Ries – https://theleanstartup.com/

Your time before and after work are not the prologue and epilogue. This time is invaluable, don’t waste it. Spend 1.5 hours each evening cultivating your mind – this block of time is sacred. Moreover, leave one day per week completely and utterly free – Sunday

Stop reading the news – it is produced in rapidity and is expected to be consumed in a similar fashion.

Noting a bunch of similarities to Deep Work(https://calnewport.com/writing/#books). When sitting idle, try to focus your mind on a subject or meditation. AB recommends stoic passages (Marcus Aurelius Meditations) or quotes and suggests the following reflecting on a single piece in the morning, throughout the day, and then in the evening. For this I choose to reflect on what Marcus said of his mother; don’t support either side, put up with discomfort, don’t make demands, and don’t tolerate slanderers!

Look for and consider cause and effect in the environment around you. From nature to industry, and from man to machine.

On literature he advises to read great novels, but in particular poetry, because: it uses the highest form of literacy; teaches the highest form of wisdom; and gives the highest form of pleasure. Further, he says to read on subject or area and specialize in that. Finally he says that don’t keep on reading and reading without serious reflection (45 mins) . It is better to have read one book well and thought about it, than ripping your way through a bunch of books and letting everyone about that! Is this post a paradox?

Don’t be boastful is your thinking to others, and don’t tie yourself too closely to your program of thinking and study. Finally, don’t keep rushing onto the next thing, particularly reading. It’s not a competition. Breath and relax.

The author ends with a warning about setting up new habits. In that, don’t tax yourself and set unrealistic goals. Instead, go as slow and comfortable as you can, which will build up your self confidence. Atomic Habits

Not all 48, but ones that stood out…

1. Use your enemies.

Turn them from wolves into sheep. Don’t trust your friends too much. It is ok to create enemies in order to keep your mind and body in focus.

2. Conceal your intentions.

To seduce people, make suggestions not directions – nothing is worse than the boredom of security.

Stop telling everyone how you feel, don’t be that open book. Rather set up conflicting signals.

Support an idea that is contrary to your objective – red herring.

Don’t talk to much, maybe respond with the famous words from King Louie “we shall see”.

5. Reputation
Protect your reputation with your life and spot holding others to make them vulnerable.

Create and maintain a reputation.

My reputation will be one of LISTENING

Consider what the reputation is of other people’s and attack it subtly

8. Let others come to you.
Think about the honey bear trap. Let the trap and watch them come to you.

9. Win through actions never through argument.
The truth is generally seen and rarely hesrd

10. Don’t associate with destructive people. A

11. Make yourself irreplaceable.
For example seek out week rulers and let them become dependent on you.

12. When asking for help from someone, appeal to their self-interests – NEVER bring up things that you have done for that person in the past.

Try to get in the other person’s head what is it that they want what is it that they are telling you their self-interest.

13. Play the fool or at least dumb down your intelligence.

14. Never appear to be hard working. Never recall a favor that you give me someone else except try to be the cuts paw so use yourself as the cat’s pole for them but knowing that what you’re doing.

15 plan things through, right to the very end when taking a direction or speaking up

16. When appearing in public you must practice so much that the process seems effortless. Don’t reveal the tricks. If you are calm, the audience is calm

17. Find the helpless child
You will know when you find this whenever you say something and that person acts like a child that is their weakness. They have not out grown this weakness since childhood take advantage of it.

18. Believe that you are owed great things and this will transpire. I.e writing out an affirmation everyday for DoT or dressing accordingly. Always act with dignity!!!!

19. Never seen to be in hurry – always come across calm. This is essential.

20. Disdain things you cannot have. Ignore your enemies. The less interested you seem the more powerful you become.

21. Use visuals more than just words. Words alone are weak. Think about Xiao and mechanised org charts or the R3 poster for the Apple event. He constantly referred to it. Symbols create powerful associations.

The truth is generally seen and rarely heard – Gracian.

22. Express disagreements with more subtly. Learn to blend in, over time chip away at your real goal. Don’t show you true colors otherwise you will be shunned like the black sheep is shunned by the flock.
Yeah honey. Or you become like the bee who stings in anger

23. Despise the free lunch – basically anything free has strings attached. Furthermore, do not be misery like Lori and be tight with money. It causes resentment

24. Find and destroy the stirrer in a group. Go after the shepherd

25. Never impose your will upon others. Instead, mirror them and win over their hearts and minds. Find out what makes them different and then hold the mirror up to this!

26. Preach the need for change, but do not reform too much at once. Particularly when you are coming into a new job you must show respect for the old ways, or people will revolt against you.

Play down your innovations, otherwise people will be become anxious – change management. Pay attention to what is going on around you; macro and micro.

27. Never flaunt your wealth! Appear imperfect. Only show your wealth inside your house.

28. After a victory, tighten your helmet. Don’t continue and push for too much. Change tactics.