The World’s Greatest Productivity Tool

Summary: I’ve been running a secret experiment. Only my wife - and a few of my closest colleagues – know about it. But now the test results are in… and I have very important news to share with you. It all starts with Jerry Seinfeld… Recently I was reading about how Jerry became a great comedian. According to Jerry, the secret to great comedy is writing comedy every day. Ok, so no great surprises, right? But how does one attain the discipline to do it every day – without fail? Jerry’s advice: He recommends a wall calendar with the full year on a single page. Each day that Jerry worked on his comedy he'd put a big, bright red X on the calendar. Soon enough, there was a chain of big red X’s. He found NOT breaking the chain became its own reward. He didn't have to motivate himself to do the work. He didn't need to reward himself at the end. Simply the act of doing was the reward. Hmm... I thought “that's interesting.” Then I thought, “why not experience this for myself”? So I have. And I have been doing so for nearly two weeks. Conclusion: I am blown away at how effective it is. My friend, it’s a life changer. Given all the tools and books I’ve read on productivity – and all the nifty software that’s out there to stay organised - this trumps them all. Of course, I’m not seeking to be a great comedian. I have different pursuits. Which is why my list has… 1. 30 mins of bullet writing 2. Exercise 3. Visualisation 4. Journal 5. Bodily measurements (more accurate than weighing) What I’ve Discovered * It gets my butt into the gym when I don’t want to. Example: I was running late one day... and didn't get to exercise. That was until I looked at the clock and it was 9.30pm. If I wanted the red X, I had to train. So I did. I haven’t trained that late for 20 years. Normally, I would have chalked it up to bad scheduling... and gone to bed. * I’ve noticed my mind craves the satisfaction of the red X. It really IS its own reward. * I fell sick with a cold last week. One day I felt particularly rotten. So I didn’t exercise. Which means I didn’t get to chalk up an X. But I found the desire to string together an unbroken series of X’s got me back on the horse… and as I write this I am about to hit 5 in a row with absolute ease. Turns out Seinfeld hit on something really awesome. I have pinned my calendar on the fridge. This way I get to see it many times per day. It’s a handy reminder. And it’s working a treat. Go ahead and give it a shot. See for yourself. Until next time, Alexi   To learn more about The World’s Greatest Productivity Tool,   check out this cool page...