We’ve all been there. The task is simple. You’ve done it many times, though not for a while. And now it’s taking forever. Sound familiar? My task was to compress video for a website. But no matter how I changed the options, I couldn’t get the same outcome I had…

The survival test: savings equal to three pay checks. Do you pass the test? A 2019 study by Charles Schwab suggests most people don’t. They live from pay check to pay check — anecdotally, two pay checks from the street. But it’s not the only test you need to pass. …

Ever had trouble getting a new routine to stick? We all do. Change is hard, but we often make it more difficult than it needs to be. Here’s why: You can never create a new routine. You see, building a routine is not like building a house. To build a…

Consistency is king. Nothing destroys trust quicker than missing a commitment. Even if that commitment is an expectation you never signed on for. Let’s take publishing articles, but you can substitute any output. If you publish on a regular frequency your customers will expect you to continue that — forever. …

Once upon a time, the output and the outcome were one and the same. No longer. Taking writing an email. It’s not the outcome, it’s the medium. It’s the spade, not the hole. What outcome is sought from an email? Persuasion. Will your email persuade? Maybe. Will writing the email…

Productivity screams at us from everywhere. We’ve all been brainwashed to think that the more productive we are, the better the outcome. That we should squeeze the last second from our valuable time. It held in the industrial era, but no longer. For creators — which means any knowledge-worker —…

We all make lofty resolutions — and they set us up for failure. That’s because we set resolutions without systems. The problem is that anything without a system will only succeed through willpower. And willpower has limits. Take creating an article and publishing it every day. That’s actually two daily…

Only 2% succeed and 98% fail. It’s a common quote. It’s also complete baloney, not to mention discouraging. At the end of this article, I hope you’ll agree and think, “I’ve never thought of it that way before.” Let’s begin. Everyone is effective at something. Even if it’s only putting…

You use mental models every day. Mental models are just your representation of the world. Or a part of the world. Or just the order of actions to get the best cup of coffee. Your models cover everything. One is the best route to your office — a mental map…