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Browsing Tags solution focus

Mindfulness: Think and Feel Better

September 7, 2014 · by Bob Faw

Would you like to be calmer in the face of work and family stress?

Would you like to be more content with life as it is, and less affected by the imaginary dangers that play in your mind?

meditating caveman for PPTWould you like to make better, more rational decisions?

I’m going to give some of my thoughts, and those of Sam Harris, a renowned philosopher and neuroscientist.

Increasing mindfulness does all three of these things. Mindfulness is being able to calmly face the exaggerated threats our mind creates without fighting, fleeing or freezing. That means to not have to suppress our unwanted urges, run from our own emotions, or deny our own thoughts and feelings. Instead, noticing our thoughts and feelings with equanimity, allowing these urges to “float” by instead of choosing to react to them. Then choosing the “right” action toward what is best for oneself, instead of merely away from momentary discomfort and toward comfort.

I created the ACT Team to give people an easy step in this direction. These represent aspects of our brain that embody certain fearful urges Slide1and motivations. Seeing them as somewhat separate allows us some mental distance, and increases the ability to choose “right” action instead of simply react to their promptings. This also allows us to see ourselves as more than our thoughts, our feelings and our urges. In addition, it allows us to influence our own motivations a bit more objectively, instead of be a victim to them.

The fearful urges and motivations we feel in a given moment distort our sense of what is real, creating reactionary “inner movies.” Inner movies are our brain’s guess of what is real combined with our biases, fears and hopes. It plays them out in our minds like a visual, auditory or sensed movie. Most of the time we’re caught up in the inner movies of life, not realizing that they are simply movies, not reality. Mindfulness is being able to look past the movie to see what is really there, with less bias from our fears, hopes and biases. This is what I argue that “enlightenment” truly is—seeing reality more clearly. More mental light is now shining on what is actually happening, and less on the internal distortions. For example, we may have an inner movie that our child is “shaming the family” by choosing career we dislike, when the reality is that she is usually simply being attracted to what she finds interesting and enjoyable. You can see how much unnecessary conflict this kind of inner movie causes for ourselves, and for those around us.

Sam Harris explains mindfulness well in his book “Waking Up”.

He states:

My friend Joseph Goldstein…likens this shift in awareness to the waking upexperience of being fully immersed in a film and then suddenly realizing that you are sitting in a theater watching a mere play of light on a wall. Your perception is unchanged, but the spell is broken. Most of us spend every waking moment lost in the movie of our lives. Until we see that an alternative to this enchantment exists, we are entirely at the mercy of appearances…

We crave lasting happiness in the midst of change: Our bodies age, cherished objects break, pleasures fade, relationships fail. Our attachment to the good things in life and our aversion to the bad amount to a denial of these realities, and this inevitably leads to feelings of dissatisfaction. Mindfulness is a technique for achieving equanimity amid the flux, allowing us to simply be aware of the quality of experience in each moment, whether pleasant or unpleasant. This may seem like a recipe for apathy, but it needn’t be. It is actually possible to be mindful—and, therefore, to be at peace with the present moment—even while working to change the world for the better.

(Sam Harris teaches how to achieve mindfulness through various exercises in “Waking Up”. He has audio guides to this kind of mediation on his website. He manages to extract the powerful insights of Buddhist meditation from the mythology, so that it’s relevant to everyone regardless of your beliefs.)

Happiness. Bliss. Serenity. Mental Health. There are many worthwhile goals of mindfulness meditation. A very small segment of people find sitting for days, weeks, months or even years at a time appealing. The goal for most of us though, as Harris describes it, is increasing happiness. Not reaching some magical state of nirvana, enlightenment, etc.

What is the next step you will take to becoming more mindful?

To make better decisions?

To be more content with life as it is, and less affected by the imaginary dangers of your inner movie?

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Energize Brainstorming – for real innovation

February 20, 2014 · by Bob Faw

How can you harness the power of a team’s creativity?treamworkUnited business team celebrationEnergize Brainstorming is one of the highest rated tools we teach in our Energize Universities. Your brainstorming process must be good to counterbalance the recent research that shows how average brainstorming doesn’t work well. Here I’ll share Energize Brainstorming techniques that galvanize true innovation.

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There are a few major factors necessary for a truly innovative brainstorming session.

  • Energizing atmosphere: The environment, team culture, leadership style and even tone of voice you use should encourage people to speak very freely about ideas, with no fear of being attacked or hearing sarcasm. You want to activate the most creative part of their minds, what we call the Artist. Direct their inner movies to energize creativity in a way that helps them feel safe, have fun, and enjoy exploring wild ideas together.
  • Clear focus: The group does best with goal clarity. It helps to have a memorable, compelling goal statement that inspires action. They also need to know what criteria the end solution must achieve, and what limits the end solution cannot exceed. Provide the absolutely needed criteria and limitations, but no more than you have to. This allows freedom to explore and create, with a helpful focus. In addition, positive goals release more brain chemicals that provide motivation to create. Paradoxically, clear limits (stated positively) can help people get really creative about how to work within those parameters.
  • Diverse perspectives: It helps to get representatives (of each stakeholder group in the solution) to be part of creating these important criteria and limitations. This way your goal is strategic in scope, and can dramatically increase the likelihood of coming up with a solution that works well in real life. Sometimes we interview stakeholders about the clear compelling goal ahead of time and bring some of their ideas for the solution, and even on what to change about the criteria and limits. We invite people that have to put the solution into action, and those who will be affected by the solution. The brainstorms can really benefit as well with diverse participants with a potentially helpful perspective to your desired goal. They don’t have to be part of the decision making later, but you can include them just in brainstorming.

More on each of the Energize Brainstorming Guidelines:

  1. Focus on clear goals: Post the goal (compelling goal statement, with the criteria and limitations) where everyone can easily read it during the entire brainstorm. This keeps people brainstorming towards the goal. You can also use this to refresh their minds’ focus periodically.
  2. No critical remarks allowed: Any negativity during the brainstorming can be counterproductive to the energizing atmosphere. If you wish the group would be more specific on an area; instead of telling them not to be so vague, reframe it to tell them where you’d like them to be more specific.
  3. Evaluation comes later: After brainstorming you should only focus on the ideas most likely to work, rather than wasting time critiquing the ones you won’t use anyway. A quick group multi-vote after brainstorming helps cull out the the ideas most likely to be used. Give each person the ability to choose the three ideas she/he thinks will most likely meet the goal (and its criteria and limitations) best. They can check mark on paper, or post dots, etc. Then you can take the top ideas to the next level of decision-making. This prevents wasting time, or lowering morale, by being negative about the low check marked ideas. To make sure people don’t miss a brilliant, but misunderstood idea, give people a chance after the mutli-voting to convince the rest of the team of any lowly checked ideas they think should be in the top idea list.
  4. Start solo: This is very important. Everyone involved should privately list as many ideas as they can before any discussion is started about possible solutions. This will gain far more diverse perspectives. If you brainstorm out loud together, groups tend to stick to the first idea or two, or follow the leaders or experts rather than think for themselves. Once a solo round is over, you can encourage people to add new ideas, build upon previously posted ideas, or add ideas that completely oppose any ideas up there. Multiple rounds often gain more insight and depth.
  5. Quantity is desired: Encourage people to post lots of ideas. That generally loosens up their concerns about only posting their best ideas. A good quantity is more likely to inspire multiple perspectives, and something truly new and useful.
  6. Wild ideas are helpful and encouraged: I often add crazy, silly, and even downright stupid ideas to the first brainstorm round. This encourages people to stretch their thinking, post half-baked ideas, share thoughts from other fields of expertise, etc. Much innovation requires some completely new ideas. Even the bad wild ideas might inspire great wild ideas in future rounds. I actively applaud and praise the crazy ideas to inspire people to post “risky” ideas.
  7. Adding to ideas is okay: People often limit themselves to discrete ideas or stop themselves from duplicating. However, many times an idea already thought of may ignite ideas for an even more sophisticated approach. This is one of the real advantages of multiple rounds of brainstorming.
  8. Facilitator keeps group on task and creative. Ask “What else?”: We like wild ideas, and yet people can go so far astray that the ideas have little value over time. Never criticize the ideas that are off topic, of course. Instead, periodically ask, “What else can we do to achieve ___ goal, that fulfills these criteria ___, and fits within these limits ___.” That refreshes their minds about what the target is. A facilitator should also remind people to stay positive, and that all ideas are welcome should any negativity occur. I do this even when people disparage their own ideas.
  9. Record everything: Ensuring that all ideas are up where everyone can see them helps in many ways. It prevents needless repetition of ideas, it helps people build off of what is there, and it inspires people with new ideas. There are many great ways to do this. The best way I know of at this point is giving everyone index cards and a sharpie marker. Tell each person to write as many ideas as they can that might help achieve the goal (state the full goal with its criteria and limitations); Write only one idea per card–this enables highly “voted’ ideas later to be moved to the top and the others to be moved away. Have people post their own ideas–I use sticky boards made of display boards with repositionable adhesive spray on them.

I hope you find these ideas helpful.

Please post below any other ideas or experiences you’ve had with successful brainstorming.

Bob

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When You Criticize Someone, You Make It Harder for that Person to Change

December 23, 2013 · by Bob Faw

Daniel Goleman’s post in Harvard Business Review blog network

80-dan-goleman

Wonderful article illustrating the problems with negative feedback and how it limits motivation and creativity. He also talks about some fantastic brain research showing the positive advantages of talking about positive future states.

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Focus can change ho-hum to fulfilling

December 9, 2013 · by Bob Faw

IMG_0226

All around us is both dreary, dull and irritating things, as well as amazing, exciting and beautiful things. We have to intentionally focus on the amazing, excitement and beauty around us to counteract the Negativity Bias, and challenges of everyday life.

I started a practice around ten years ago of looking for the beauty in as many situations as possible. I’m blown away at how much beauty is actually around me! Free! To be enjoyed just by looking for it. The flowers in my neighbor’s yard, the kindness of an elderly woman helping her ailing husband so gently, the joy children are feeling as they chase soap bubbles, the nuggets of wisdom in someone I once saw as an enemy, and so much more. The quality of my life has improved the more habitually I’ve done this.

For more Positive Psychology tips like this one listen to Shawn Achor. He’s amazing.

Plus ten simple things you can do that will make you happier-backed by science.

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Get Creative with a Positive Focus

December 6, 2013 · by Bob Faw

(Bob’s goofy caveman comes out in the outtake)

Supporting research: http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/news/releases/a-positive-mood-allows-your-brain-to-think-more-creatively.html

Learn more at Influencing Your Inner Movie – The Thinker and the Caveman (10 minute video by the Matchbox Group)

 

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Rebalancing our negativity bias

November 14, 2013 · by Bob Faw

I explain some of the most helpful research I’ve read, with some tips… followed by a goofy outtake

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“Energize” from a CEO’s perspective – radio interview

July 22, 2013 · by Bob Faw

Bob Faw, interviewed on NEDD Radio by Tom Raffio, head of Northeast Delta Dental

Interview about Energize – NEDD Radio

Energize Performance

Energize Performance

NEDD_Radio_Logo_400

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Feedback biting you in the …backside? Try feedforward

July 13, 2013 · by Bob Faw

Feedforward is usually far easier to give than feedback. Most of the time it is more helpful: specific, clear, actionable, and positive. Learn what it is, and how to do it well. Improve relationships at work and home. Achieve success more easily.

This video is Bob Faw teaching how to use feedforward, in performance management, and elsewhere in life.

 

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Energize Action Worksheet

April 27, 2013 · by Bob Faw

If you have the book, this will help you transform.
Ignite your passion & performance
with energizing ideas and plans

Click on the images below to download a copy of the Energize worksheet:

worksheet icon

PDF

worksheet icon

Word Doc

 

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Get your A.C.T. together

April 27, 2013 · by Bob Faw

When you have the whole A.C.T. team (Artist, Caveman and Thinker) working together, you are at your best. You can tell you are in this space when you have the following characteristics:

  • You feel calm about whatever challenge you’re facing, but energized enough to make a difference. This means your Caveman is calm.
  • You can see more than one perspective on the challenge; it’s not just “my way or the highway”. Understanding multiple points of view shows your Thinker is engaged.
  • You use new approaches to the challenge and even want to try new things. This means your Artist is energized.

GetYourACTTogether copy When you have your “A.C.T.” together, you can make your best decisions. You will be flexible, “change-ready,” have less stress, and be a more positive influence on other people. You’ll also be increasingly likable the more you are in this mode. The faster you can get your A.C.T. team to work together, the more you’ll enjoy your circumstances. You’ll increase passion and performance for a fulfilling and successful life.

Read more excerpts or buy the book.

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