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3 Circles of Behavior Echo-System —Innovative Behavior Model

EVERYTHING is a F*cking STORY, Explainer Video (Clean) “3 Circles of Behavior Echo-System”

The 3 Circles of Behavior Echo-System makes personal transformation and long-term goal achievement more approachable. Parts of this article are excerpted from my new book, EVERYTHING is a F*cking STORY.

“Everything must be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.”
~ Albert Einstein

“Older behavior models are confusing and represent human behavior in a linear fashion,” Grunburg explained. “The 3 Circles of Behavior Echo-System is a new model that shows human behavior as it actually unfolds – in an echo-system.”

Human behaviors vibrate. They echo and reverberate. “There’s a reason we say things like, ‘I like the vibe here,’ or ‘that really resonated with me.’ Environments, thoughts, and certainly our behaviors echo and reverberate, influencing each other.”

The following is an excerpt from the 2015 edition of The Pressure Paradox™. Its purpose is to illustrate the parameters of human behavior and psychology in their most simplistic form.

Analyze the diagram above carefully. In simple terms, it represents the entire context of human behavior, bookended and influenced by two worlds: our inner, invisible world (thoughts) and our outer, physical world (environment).

Since the dawn of man, great philosophers have promoted and taught that it is the “first world,” our thoughts (the inner world), that directly influences and impacts our outer world. In fact, in the late 1800s, William James proclaimed,

The greatest revolution of our generation is the discovery that human beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives
~ William James

[End of excerpt from The Pressure Paradox™]

the 3 circles of Behavior Echo-System — 3 Circles of Behavior Echo-System

Here is what has evolved significantly.

STORY! EVERYTHING’s thesis emphasizes the inner circle – the powerful idea that story is the primary means of cognitive function and analysis, conducting our decisions, actions, and behaviors, influencing our habits and skills, and forging our achievements and results. No prevalent Behavior Change Model represents the human thought process as a story.

Emotions and feelings: After further meditation and collaboration, the borders within the concentric circles must include a passageway – conduits between each influencing layer or component circle in a Behavior Change Model.

Thus, you should recognize emotions and feelings as conduits (membranes) within the echo-behavior system.

Further, emotions and feelings, without awareness, are TWICE as significant at any given moment upon one’s behaviors.

However, with some awareness and some emotional maturity/reflection, emotions and feelings, and their impact on one’s behaviors, are actually minimized, particularly over a given period of time.

Without emotional maturity, emotions and feelings have an immediate and significant impact on one’s behaviors.

With emotional maturity (the ability to pause and reflect upon the consequences of one’s behaviors), feelings and emotions have less of an immediate impact on one’s behavior.

Bidirectionality: The arrows between the major influencers have evolved to become bidirectional. This better illustrates how each primary component circle (environment, behaviors, thoughts) “echoes” back and forth in behavior, altering our emotions and feelings and influencing the other layers inside the eco-behavioral systems.

Non-linear: Two of the most prevalent behavior change models, Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), considered the gold standard, and Transtheoretical Model (TTM), represent human behavior in a linear fashion.

The Behavior echo-system model provides a new representation of how energy and information flow and how they reverberate relative to our behaviors and thoughts depending on their forcefulness. Further, a Behavior Echo-system underscores timeless principles like cause and effect and even karma.

Awareness: The 3 Circles of Behavior Echo-System articulates how, with awareness, we can proactively alter our behavior by changing our thoughts (stories) and/or environment.

The Environment: The all-encompassing environment is both the sensory input and the output in the Behavior Change Model – our results. The environment is something we can change, and it’s something that influences our thoughts, feelings, emotions, and behaviors.

Simplicity: Finally, the 3 Circles of Behavior Echo-System, by comparison, is a straightforward model. It follows Einstein’s basic commandment: “Everything must be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.” Simplicity tends to equate to practicality and use, increasing effectiveness.

OLDER BEHAVIOR MODELS DEPICT BEHAVIOR IN A LINEAR FASHION SIMILAR TO A BUSINESS FLOW CHART. Left -> Right? Right -> Left? Up -> Down?

Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT)

Transtheoretical Model (TTM)

The 3 Circles of Behavior Echo-System

This new behavior model provides anyone with the clichéd 30,000-foot overview to better guide them from being a reactionary participant to someone in a position of response-ability.

This Behavior Change Model illustrates how, over the long haul, environment, and story most significantly influence our behaviors, habits, and skills.

Important: The interaction among the three major influencers in this Behavior Echo-system – stories, habits/behaviors, and the environment – is not always linear. For instance, an environmental change might impact your story seemingly before affecting your behavior or emotions. Nonetheless, all components influence and affect each other perpetually in this Behavior Change Model.

Example: A person steps on a subway train at night in an unsafe part of the city. The change in environment and their situational awareness spark the narrative that their safety may be in peril. This is an example of the environment directly affecting someone’s story first. What action does the person take? They clutch their bag tightly.

Environment – (influences) -> Story –(influences) -> Action/Behavior.

With the 3 Circles of Behavior Echo-System model (and the three books taken as a whole), The Habit Factor, The Pressure Paradox, and now, EVERYTHING, the intention is to provide a better, more approachable behavior change model and framework that makes lasting, positive change and personal transformation easier.

This simply means that for any goal or ideal relative to personal transformation, the 3 Circles of Behavior Echo-System acts as a simplified checklist – a cheat sheet – for goal achievement and positive behavior change.

Important: All lasting behavior change requires these three major components to be congruent:

STORY (the inner circle)
HABITS/SKILLS (middle circle)
ENVIRONMENT (outer circle)

While skills/behaviors and thinking/mindset are self-explanatory when it comes to the environment, there may be some confusion. We’ll take a moment to examine the concept of environment.

Environment defined: In the 3 Circles of Behavior Echo-System, the environment represents both sensory input and the output – outcomes, and results.

Inputs are cues and triggers in this behavior model, including circumstances, events, and the physical environment – everything that provides sensory input to affect your feelings, emotions, thinking, and behaviors.

Examples include family, friends, physical surroundings, and random events (accidents, chance). Even your body provides environmental input. If something is outside of your thinking, emotions, and behaviors, it’s part of your environment.

Importantly, the environment also includes your outputs.

Your outputs are your results in a Behavior Echo-system – what you affect and produce.

Your outputs may be the consequences of your actions, decisions, behaviors, habits, and skills.

As we mentioned above, even your body is part of your environment. For example, a bodybuilder experiences results that reveal their skills, habits, and behaviors. Their body (environment) is transformed (output).

Everything we produce and affect in our environment becomes a stimulus (sensory input).

Thus, a perpetual Behavior Echo-System is in effect.

Here are some examples of the behavior-change echo system in action:

Outside -> in behavior change:

A comet strikes just outside your house! (Environment).

You feel the Earth shake. You’re instantly startled and scared! (Feelings/Emotions)

You run out of your house. (Behaviors/Actions) You begin to think, “The world is ending!” (Thoughts/Story)

Summary: The environment directs and influences your feelings and emotions, directly influencing your actions and behaviors, which direct and influence your thoughts and story.

Inside -> out behavior change:

You wake up one morning with the narrative that the world and life are hopeless. “It’s all ending soon anyway.” (Thought/Story)

These thoughts (your story) influence your feelings. You feel sad and hopeless. (Feelings/Emotions)

You call a friend later that morning. (Behaviors/Actions).

Your friend comes over to talk with you and comfort you. (Environment change).

Summary: Your thoughts and story direct and influence your feelings and emotions, which direct and influence your actions and behaviors, which cause an environmental change.

You may be thinking, “So what? Why should I care about any of this?”

Here’s why: Ironically, change is one of the great constants in life. One of the best ways to direct change is to set goals.

Who doesn’t want to at least attempt to achieve their full potential? This Behavior Change Model reveals the path to do so.

Arguably, many never attempt to achieve their full potential because there is no clear Behavior Change Model, map, or process showing the way.

This book and model are it.

A bold statement, perhaps, yet understanding the fundamental components (the major influencers) of behavior change and personal transformation – how this Behavior Echo-System works – provides anyone the ability to determine where (in which component influencer) to begin their journey. It tells you how to develop habits that bring lasting change.

Would you like to start by modifying your thinking?

A new Behavior Change Model can undoubtedly help you drive new emotions that will foster new actions – the beginning of new habits and skills. (Personal example below.)

We’ll get more into the nuts and bolts of new narratives in the chapter called “The Stories That Really Freakin’ Matter.”

Do you want to begin your journey of personal transformation by changing your environment? This could be as simple as rearranging your office or home furnishings, altering your refrigerator or pantry inventory, joining a support group, or finding a different peer group to associate with.

Or, you can begin with my personal favorite, intentionally tracking your behaviors to help form the new, positive habits that will ultimately change your narratives, stories, habits, and environment.

The lasting transformation is metamorphosis.

By definition, you should know how to develop habits and skills to achieve metamorphosis. Therefore, any time you desire, you can initiate transformation by beginning with any of the three component influencers in the Behavior Echo-system:

Thoughts/Stories
Behavior/Skills/Habits
Environment

What I find curious is that individuals not only have learning preferences and biases but also have preferences for initiating their own behavior change. Most of the time, they aren’t aware of it or any Behavior change model they should follow.

When I teach the 3 Circles of Behavior Echo-System, I’ll ask participants to reflect upon a recent behavior change effort, either successful or unsuccessful. A student who appeared excited by this model shared: “This is interesting! I tend to start with my environment. I bought a book recently.” Then, they laughed, “It’s sat on my bookshelf ever since.”

Some people prefer to initiate behavior change with their environment – a class, coach, course, teacher, support group, or even a book. Others tend to put the spotlight on the related personal narrative (their “Why?” story), as in why they must change their behavior and develop new habits. They know that a new story will drive compelling feelings and emotions followed by actions.

Finally, this critical message about transformation and personal metamorphosis bears repeating:

You should engage each major component (circle) and make them congruent for lasting transformation.

Ultimately, you should align and engage your story, skills/habits, and environment to foster legitimate, lasting change.

[From EVERYTHING is a F*cking STORY]

Postscript:

Alternative names that “3 Circles of Behavior Ech0-System” has been given: “Behavior Echo-Chamber*”, Behavior Eco-System**, Grunburg Behavior Model.

Note: The first two are innacurate labels and identifiers. This model is not an echo chamber. An echo chamber would represent a singular mechanism.

The 3 Circles of Behavior Echo-System is a “SYSTEM” of integrated components.

It’s also not an ECO system.

The objective is to represent the “system” and its component parts vibrating and influencing each other.

As for the third alternative name, The Grunburg Behavior Model, while easier to say it’s certainly less descriptive.

The purpose of the postscript is to address the inaccurate names that have already begun to be used. I greatly appreciate your understanding of the important distinctions.

Thank you!

~mg

“If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration.”
~ Nikola Tesla

At Least Five Reasons Mindfulness Is Overrated!

creativity, meditation, mindfulness

[By: Martin Grunburg] @thehabitfactor

As The Habit Factor® book was prepped for publication around 2009-ish, I reached out to a handful of influencers and “thought leaders,” hopeful they might read an excerpt and provide a testimonial.

One such thought leader (who shall remain anonymous) replied, “I do not believe in habits. I only believe in mindfulness.”

“Interesting,” I thought. “I just spent approximately five years writing about the force of HABIT, and this guy doesn’t believe in it.”

That’s almost like saying, “I don’t believe in the moon.”

“Mindfulness” —it’s THE BUZZWORD that won’t go away!

“Mindfulness” IS very trendy these days, almost as trendy as #HABIT ; ) (see chart below).

It appears many people—dare I say, MOST—seem to misunderstand the importance and use of mindfulness.

MINDFULNESS is a wonderful concept; however, what gets lost in all the hype is that it’s NOT a full-time job!
*A 100% is peak score and interest according to Google.* (above)

Just like the guru who said he “doesn’t believe in habits,” far too many people think they ALWAYS need to be mindful, as in, 7/24/365!

While that is a noble and perhaps fabulous idea (in theory), it’s horrible and impossible in reality and practice.

What Lao Tzu Didn’t Say

“If you are depressed, you’re living in the past. If you’re anxious, you’re living in the future. If you are at peace, you’re living in the present.” ~Lao Tzu (attributed)

Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?

Unfortunately, that isn’t from our buddy Lao Tzu.

We can take solace knowing that LT and other great philosophers weren’t likely pondering depression or anxiety 2,400 years ago.

However, I'll tell you what adds to one's depression and anxiety…thinking you need to be mindful all the time! Ha! Share on X

Have you ever felt like you’re letting your kids, spouse, friends, and even yourself down because you can’t stay in the blissful, present moment all the time?

If this sounds familiar, rest easy, my friend. You’re holding yourself to an impossible standard—one that was NEVER meant to exist. Not even by Lao Tzu himself.

Here’s a semi-shortlist of reasons and benefits —permission—to LEAVE the blissful present and NOT engage in mindfulness.

#1. Reflection is a pathway to wisdom.

It’s tough to be all-present while you’re reflecting. But don’t just take it from me—take it from our good buddy Aristotle, who said, “Wisdom is equal measure experience plus reflection.” As humans, we have the unique (and powerful) capacity to reflect, and we MUST use it.

Now, I’m not necessarily sure we can devote “equal measure,” but you’re encouraged to try!

Arguably, the source of ALL improvement is REFLECTION.

How does any person, company, or even product become better? Reflection! Specifically, by asking questions about what works and what doesn’t!

It’s important to remind ourselves that our past retains nuggets of gold, precious gems that can be fairly easy to dig up with just a bit of reflection, couched with quality questions.

Chances are good we should be reflecting more, not less.

Important: This is not a recommendation to dwell in the past and wallow in sadness or depression. Rather, inspect your past and find the many lessons it holds, then keep moving!

#2. Creativity demands imagination, visualization, and intention, NOT mindfulness.

"Visualization is the master skill of intent." Share on X

Spending time peering into the future requires that you leave the “mindfulness” present!

Take a moment to consider some of the greats—our heroes—the people we admire.

What do they do on a regular basis?

Consider Jobs, Edison, Disney, Lincoln, Curie, Musk, or MLK —the list is long.

What did they ALL do?

For starters, they had the habit of spending time, in some cases enormous amounts of time, camped out in their imagination. They peered into a future of possibilities; dreaming, wondering, and visualizing what might be!. Share on X

“The best way to predict the future is to create it!“
(Not an Abraham Lincoln quote)

To create any future, we must first peak into it—daydream, camp out, and envision the possibilities. This can happen only outside of mindfulness!

It’s not a stretch to say that each of the aforementioned greats pondered (visualized) a more ideal future, which fueled their present-day ambitions.

Consider Dr. King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech. No one is going to argue that he wasn’t present and very mindful of the challenging conditions of the moment, yet he eagerly and optimistically looked toward a brighter future—a vision of what could be!

#3. The FUTURE is where opportunity and (not coincidentally) perhaps a good investment might be found.

Spend too much time in the now—total mindfulness—and you just might miss out on the next tech stock darling or wealth opportunity.

Tesla’s recent stock catapult isn’t as much tied to present-day company value or performance as it is correlated to the company’s future potential. The same can be said for most other stocks and, frankly, the stock market in general.

The investing world is all about forecasting, not so much about rewarding mindfulness. Share on X

New, exciting ventures reside at the intersection of trends, tailwinds, and ambition.

For better or worse, Jeff Bezos (video below) saw a future where Amazon not only sold books but ultimately, everything customers might desire and shop for.

He used foresight, reflection, and imagination, as well as an understanding of technology trends, so that Amazon’s strategy could capitalize on such trends.

#4. Foresight helps lead people to better careers and build better companies

Once you’ve assessed your passions, affinities, and interests, it’s important to see how they may intersect with various industry trends.

Let’s say you’re a truck driver, and you notice that Tesla, as well as other automakers, are moving toward autonomous trucks. How do your truck-driving skills fit into the matrix and skillset requirement that will be desired in the future?

Such an exercise would have been beneficial for companies like Blockbuster and Kodak.

On the flip side, computer programming, artificial intelligence, blockchain, and wearable technologies are marketplaces that will see spectacular growth over the next decade.

How might YOU capitalize, a la Bezos, on any growing technology trend that utilizes your new skills?

#5. Creativity and problem solving are rarely about mindfulness

As I shared in The Habit Factor®, creative insight tends to arise when you are entirely or almost entirely MINDLESS—not mindful.

Creative insight strikes us most often when we are in "habit-mode," where there is little or no conscious thought. Share on X

Showering, jogging, napping, shaving, brushing your teeth, driving, etc.—all of these habit-like behaviors produce a mentally relaxed state, where the mind wanders. Thus, we exit the “blissful now”— we leave mindfulness and simply let go.

BAM! Creativity strikes!

Problem-solving rarely comes about as a forced, conscientious effort.

Creativity and insight are birthed from the Alpha and Theta brainwave spectrum.

>>>>POSTSCRIPT<<<<

How and why the “habit-loop” is almost useless for HUMANS…

Mindfulness and the RAT

ENTER HABIT and the P.A.R.R. Method for Habit Development
(Plan, Act. Record, & Reassess)

You knew I was going to bring this back to HABIT, didn’t you? ; )

So, when it comes to living a life by design versus by default, YOU possess a couple of innate and powerful human capacities: intention and reflection.

Rats and mice do not.

The widely regurgitated and much-touted “Habit Loop” Cue, Routine, Reward treats you as though you are a RAT.

You, my friend, are no rat!

Only The Habit Factor®, since day one (over a decade ago), was teaching this. Nearly all the other blogs, apps, and bestselling books that would follow advised following the “HABIT LOOP”, Cue, Routine, Reward in order to help you develop habits.

INTENTION and REFLECTION are abilities that are meant to be used for habit development. To utilize both, one must arguably (once again) leave mindfulness.

Intention is about the future; reflection is about the past.

By reflecting, we can and should assess our behaviors and decisions—what is working and what is not working.

The same is true when it comes to developing new habits. Share on X

By using intention and reflection, following PARR, we can more quickly and easily develop the good, positive habits that align with our goals and ideals.

Simply ask, “What is my intention?”

WHERE do I wish to go?

WHO do I wish to become?

What are my strengths, and what are my weaknesses?

What new habits and skills should I develop today that will serve my ideal future?

P.S.S:

To be clear, I’m not saying mindfulness isn’t important. I’ve practiced meditation for more than 20 years and know the power and importance of mindfulness.

Arguably, and perhaps ironically, it’s that very practice that has led me to this important observation: It’s NOT ALL about mindfulness.

In fact, it’s rarely ever ALL about any one thing.

~mg

New to The Habit Factor? Be sure to download your FREE habits and goals tracking sheet! If you’re in the U.S., TEXT the word “HABITS” to the number: 33444

You’ll get the template sent to you immediately with quick and easy-to-follow instructions about how to craft and align good, positive habits in order to achieve your goals more quickly.

Check out the Habits 2 Goals Mastery Program!
2+ Hours of life-changing video content, PLUS 15 powerful personal development exercises.

How To Focus Better — ADD/ADHD: The FOCUS Problem & The FOCUS Solution

Focus, goals, habits

[By: Martin Grunburg]

“The successful man is the average man focused.” ~Bruce Lee

“Most ‘unsuccessful’ people are just highly-distracted people.” Anonymous

It’s important to first share that The Habit Factor wouldn’t exist without my own focus challenges. While I’ve never been officially diagnosed with ADD or ADHD, I’ve always struggled with focusing my attention and, therefore (by extension), goal achievement.

Hence, the birth of The Habit Factor!

“What?” You may be saying.

That’s right… and strangely enough there are still “coaches” who insist you should ignore your weaknesses.

The list is endless when it comes to expertise developed from the ashes of one’s weakness. Just off the top of my head, Jim Kwik is a great example. Due to a brain injury he struggled with memory and learning, so he developed a speed-reading, memory-improvement and brain-optimization program.

So, if FOCUS is your big challenge (and it won’t be getting any easier in this “age of distraction”), let me share a few quick tips that continue to help me, and while I’m at it, it occurs to me that you may want to sign up for the FREE Focus and Discipline Webinar (replay).

Focus Precept #1: You Are ENERGY

Here’s another quote for you: “A five-watt lightbulb can barely light up a closet, yet that same energy focused into a laser beam can cut through steel.” ~ Unknown

Energy can either be dispersed in a multitude of different directions at any moment or, it can be channeled and focused like a LASER BEAM.

Whether the above statement is even entirely accurate or not should be of little concern. The power that comes from focus (concentrated energy) is ENORMOUS.

Consider it this way: If you are energy and your goal (out there) is going to require energy to be achieved, then the consistent, recurring behaviors (habits) you develop via concentrated focus will be your key to goal achievement.

Keep this in mind too: Habit is the most efficient form of behavior energy.

As your energy is likely to wane throughout the day, be sure to select your high-energy periods (this is unique for each person, some prefer evenings vs. mornings, etc.) where long stretches of focus are required.

Focus Precept #2: Before Focus Comes CONCENTRATION

To concentrate means: “to gather or collect people or things together in numbers or in a mass.”

Think of concentration as a collection of energy — resources (time, energy), knowledge, etc. In order to focus, concentration must come FIRST. The gathering of YOUR ENTIRE BEING is real concentration.

Gather your SELF — your energy — in order to improve the quality of your focus.

Bring whole, concentrated and quality energy to any given moment you can focus best.

Good energy includes, of course, a good diet, exercise and quality sleep!

Focus Precept #3: Before Concentration comes SELECTION

There is a relentless battle “out there” for your attention so it’s your responsibility to be constantly vigilant and protect your focus by CHOOSING carefully.

The Focus and Performance funnel looks like this: Energy -> Decide/Selection -> Prepare/Concentrate -> Focus -> Perform. Note that focus is near the bottom of the funnel, meaning you have to get the first few things right in order to realize quality focus.

What have you decided to focus upon?

BTW: When you say “no” to unimportant things, by default you begin saying “yes” to the things that are important.

What is the outcome you desire?

Are you CLEAR on that outcome?

Clarity begets selection, which precedes concentration.

Focus Precept #4: The Speed of Focus is SLOW

“Muddied waters left to stand become clear.”

Slow down — or better yet, STOP!

The speed of FOCUS is SLOW and/or stopped. A frenzied pace equates to little if any concentration.

One of the quickest ways to focus is to STOP moving and just sit there.

Look at the image above and you can quickly see how the PRACTICE of meditating is a gathering of concentration of resources, which is required to focus well.

Focus Precept #5: Time Blocking

If energy is your number-one resource (and all those “things” that make up quality energy), then it stands to reason that TIME is number two. By allocating time periods and setting minimum focus periods a la the Pomodoro method (see PARR and minimum success criteria), you concentrate the TIME you do have.

A good quote to remember is this:

“You will never have enough time to do everything you want, but you will always have enough time to do the most important things! ~ Brian Tracy

And that idea, of course, brings you back to selection!

Focus Precept #6: Environmental Distractions and Controlling Your Environment

WHERE you attempt to focus matters.

Take a good look around your work environment to ensure it is conducive to concentration.

Are there any noises, distractions? Where is your phone? Are notifications turned off on all devices? Can people easily interrupt you?

Consider playing classical music and/or try Brain.fm.

Is the environment cluttered?

Focus Precept #7: Keep Flying the Plane! The Cost of Interruptions

Here’s the productivity analogy you’ll never forget: Each time you interrupt your focus:
“You just landed the plane, stupid!”

Before a plane takes off toward its destination (goal), there is a great gathering and concentration of resources: gas, pilots, crew, mechanics, etc.

Then the plane hits the runway and, after expending a bunch of energy to get off the ground, it is finally flying at full speed — cruising toward its goal, and then…

BAM!

You lose concentration for a moment. You begin to wonder what the weather is going to be like this weekend. Or, what the score is. Or if your social media post is getting any love. Or…pick your distraction.

The thinking became a bit too hard, so you needed a “quick break.”

YEP! YOU LANDED THE PLAN, STUPID!

Now, the COST to re-gather the resources, re-concentrate the effort — pick up the pieces and begin again is akin to landing the plane and then having to take off once again. It comes at a tremendous cost to your energy and time. Your flight is now delayed, significantly postponing your time of arrival.

Each distraction likely equals at least 10 minutes in lost productivity just getting back to where you left off. It is probably much more than that.

Now the interesting thing is, there are really only two types of interruptions: those WE create for ourselves and those that are put upon us.

It’s fairly safe to say that for those who struggle with focus and concentration, 99% of interruptions are self-induced!

That is, we check our cell phone for a text. We check Facebook for an update. We check Instagram, our stocks, the weather, surf update, the game score. (See this post: Your Life Is Slipping Away in 15-Minute Increments.)

Wrapping It All Up!

Next time you struggle with focus, run through these precepts as a checklist for yourself. AND in order to ensure that you don’t land the plane, put your phone on AIRPLANE MODE! We like to call it CONCENTRATION MODE!

Some FOCUS resources:

Podcast: Is My ADD Ruining Me?

Season III 04: With Henry J. Evans “How to Focus Better”

The Habit Factor Book * Habit Factor® Book (Amazon Kindle)

The Habit Factor app (iOS, Android)

Write Room

TRELLO!

Brain.Fm

Pandora (Classical music and Indian Classical for meditation)

2018 Recap: Highlights & Lessons Learned

energy, goals, Health, P.A.R.R. Methodology, PARR Methodology, performance, practicing

[By: Martin Grunburg]

“The unexamined life is not worth living.” ~Socrates

It’s time to perform a quick review of 2018 highlights and lessons learned!

I have selected only my top three (the first that came to mind). BTW: If you’d prefer, you can just listen right here.

Speaking of highlights, the Habits 2 Goals podcast just had its record month for downloads in December 2018!

Below you’ll notice that I’m following a specific process, one I learned from my 10 years’ of experience in EO (Entrepreneur’s Organization), and it goes like this: State the event/experience, then how it made you feel, followed by why it was/is important.

Highlight #1: Reduced Body Fat

I blogged about this experiment/experience here (in detail), including picture-proof of the dunk-tank reading. The short story is that for the first 47-ish years of my life it seemed I could eat whatever I wanted, as much as I wanted, whenever I wanted. However that reality changed fairly quickly, and I found myself experimenting with some simple diet substitutions (new habits) and was able to reduce my body fat from 16.8% body fat to 13%.

How does it makes me feel?

Healthy, fit, strong.

“Health is the first wealth.” ~Emerson

I feel stronger and am running a bit faster and farther in my weekly runs. The idea that I was able to restore/return (in essence) my body composition (lean body mass and fat) to 2006 levels (at age 50) is very rewarding. Finally, I would even submit to you that doing it at 50 vs 35 is even more rewarding.

Why it’s important to me:

Beyond health, which really ought to be reason enough, I believe the real reward is the process and self-efficacy that comes with the achievement of this goal (article written in 2013). It’s also a tremendous affirmation and reminder that DISCIPLINE itself is a HABIT.

Furthermore, the experience is significant because: 1) Using the “substitution solution” and PARR, I’ve developed many supportive habits (aligned with my goal) allowing me with minimal effort to maintain the same composition/weight 9 months later. 2) This affirms the PARR methodology (for positive habit development) and much of the teaching and preaching I’ve been doing since The Habit Factor’s release (book) in 2010 and app in 2008!

More background on PARR (article) and video (HabitStrength™).

Highlight #2: Slacklining

Eva-Slacklining Lessons learned — Mitch (owner of line/rig) teaching my daughter, who’s trying for the first time to walk the line.

This may be the most bizarre highlight of the year…if not my life.

Chances are good that the vast majority of readers have no idea what slacklining is (see above picture). In short, walking across (approx. 50 feet or more) a two-inch-wide line. By the way, in many ways, once again, this isn’t so much about the specific skill or habit (in this case slacklining) as it is about the lessons learned.

How does it make me feel?

Healthy. Perhaps a bit younger and very, very sore ; )

I must have fallen a thousand times (since I began to learn in late June 2018), and in the very beginning just walking four or five steps without any assistance was near impossible.

Why it’s important to me:

First of all, when I started at the end of June I could barely walk four steps on the two-inch-wide line. However, there is some strange correlation for me between difficulty and addiction level. Today, I’m able to perform a few basic tricks on the line, including bouncing up to my feet from my butt, jumping on the line, turning around and walking backwards.

Furthermore, it’s been a great reminder to me that life is an experiment and to continue to push myself to try new “things” (skills and experiences) and grow!

Slacklining has been a fantastic study in the close association between skill and habit development, which means: 1) people need to regard HABIT development much the same as skill development and 2) once again, The Habit Factor’s method for habit development, PARR — Plan, Act, Record and Reassess — works for BOTH habit and skill!

Sidenote: An additional benefit is the impact on my surfing.

Early on I thought my surfing was going to make slacklining easier. Unfortunately, that was NOT the case. In contrast, it turns out, slacklining has given me significantly improved balance that has benefited my surfing!

Sidenote II: There appears to be a significant association between balance disorders and a handful of degenerative disease. Therefore, at least in theory anyway, reinforcing balance and equilibrium (training) MAY be helpful in ongoing wellness and health.

Above all, the theme of balance and equilibrium is reinforced often in the blog, the podcast and my books The Habit Factor and The Pressure Paradox.

The Butt Bounce

Walkin’ the line (and back)

Highlight #3: Skydiving

As part of a team-building company event, we decided we’d jump out of an airplane. I blogged about the experience in detail here.

How does it make me feel?

Stoked! Alive!

Why it’s important to me:

Unlike the other two highlights above, which took upwards of 6 months to cultivate (significant discipline, skill and habit development effort), the reward from jumping out of a plane was fairly immediate and the experience gratifying, as it was a great reminder how short life is.

Similarly, it also helped to affirm the importance of truly LIVING — trying new experiences, learning new things, etc. Finally, it helped to underscore the idea that no one ultimately cheats death, we can only cheat life!

Other highlights of the year worth mentioning include:

Wife and I celebrated 20 years marriage
Summer family trip to Europe (Copenhagen Sweden/Malmo, Paris)
Oldest daughter turned 18 (youngest is now 16!)
Meditation (blog)
Breathing workshop (will be writing and podcasting about this! Still experimenting ; )

***

There you have it! Hope you enjoyed the videos ; ) As you head into 2019, think of some ideas about how YOU can attack life as an experiment!

Here’s to a happy, healthy and prosperous 2019!

Best,

~mg

The WHY and HOW to Meditate for Beginners

creativity, energy, meditation

“All men’s miseries derive from not being able to sit in a quiet room alone.” ~Blaise Pascal

[By: Martin Grunburg]

Chances are you’ve heard that meditation is good for you. Or, perhaps you are already sold on its benefits but you haven’t yet crossed over — you haven’t actually done it. You’ve been fixated on your excuses, the reasons you haven’t tried to meditate, such as, “I don’t have enough time,” or “ I don’t know how.”

So, we’ll start right here, with this: The very best way to meditate is (drum roll please) to BEGIN.

That’s right (a la Nike) — JUST DO IT.

This comes from my 15-plus years practicing the art of meditation.

Practice and Experiment

First of all, so let’s assume you’ve actually started “doing it.” Here, then, is my number-one, top meditation tip of all: EXPERIMENT!

At its essence, mediation is a private, personal practice. Therefore, the advice, at least early on, is to try NOT to become tied to any ONE way, doctrine or discipline. Stay open-minded and experiment.

PRACTICE and EXPERIMENT.

That’s it: Practice and experiment.

I’m not saying don’t study or learn from other meditation disciplines. For instance, some friends are adamant about TM (transcendental meditation), and yes, there are perhaps hundreds of different techniques being taught.

While many of these are likely to offer tremendous value, they may also, in a sense, be part of the “noise” keeping you from starting.

How To Begin Meditation

“Sitting peacefully doing nothing, spring comes and the grass grows all by itself.” ~ Zen proverb

Sit quietly. Do nothing.

[Try this! Stop reading and go sit quietly for about five minutes]

Welcome back!

How’d it go?

Were you anxious? Was it strange? Uncomfortable? Fun? Relaxing? Did you gain any clarity?

Why To Begin Meditation

Consider these words from my friend and mentor Brian Tracy:

“Clarity accounts for probably 80% of success and happiness.”

Eighty percent of success and happiness!? Is that true??? Consider that statement and reflect upon your levels of success and happiness.

Brian adds: “Lack of clarity is probably responsible for more frustration and underachievement than any other single factor. That’s why we like to say that ‘Success is goals, and all else is commentary.’ We know that people with clear, written goals, accomplish far more in a shorter period of time than people without them. This is true everywhere and under all circumstances.”

Likewise, I’m fairly sure nobody knows if it’s 60%, 80% or 95% of “success and happiness,” but we do know it’s terribly hard (as in impossible) to hit a target that you cannot see!

So, perhaps TOP among all the other great benefits of mediation may be the clarity that arises from its practice.

“Muddied waters left to stand become clear.” ~Lao Tzu

The Unspoken Competition for “Busy-ness!”

How many times per day do you hear someone say, “I’m so busy!” or, “I’m too busy!”

Now, consider Coach Wooden’s clever insight: “Never confuse activity for accomplishment.”

The truth is most of us are very busy. We’re so busy doing things that will yield very little fruit in terms of lifetime value, and we’re frittering away our time on tasks that will mean nothing in 10 years.

Some people might actually be saying (not you of course) that they are “Too busy to take the time to meditate.”

Imagine that.

Business consultants often share that for every one minute of planning you’re likely to gain back 10 minutes of productivity.

Well, if that is true, I’ll offer that for every one minute of meditation you’re likely to make back 60+ minutes of lifetime effectiveness (more powerful than even productivity)!

The time to stop, pause and meditate is when you don’t think you have the time.

Lin Yutang put it this way:

“The busy man is never wise and the wise man is never busy.”

At first all these quotes may appear to be meaningless clichés or platitudes; however, I’d encourage you to meditate upon them. ; )

Insights

So here are a list of insights from my personal meditation experiments.

1) Don’t set a time limit and don’t try to be efficient.

My biggest mistake was thinking that I had to meditate for 20 minutes at first. Then, I thought I was able to get the same benefit from 12 minutes, so I reduced my meditation time with the goal of being efficient. Then, before I knew it, my time was down to 10 minutes, then eight, six, and even two. The crazy thing is I actually was getting a great benefit even from a quick two-minute reset. However, I’d lost one of the key tenets: Meditation is hardly about being efficient; it’s about the process — the practice, the experience. Today, my average time is upwards of 45 minutes per day

2) Keep a log.

Any serious practice involves tracking. Feel free to track your practice in the free app or use our free habit and goal-tracking worksheet. Remember that real practice demands Intention and Effort, and tracking/keeping a log is a great way to reinforce both!

3) Guided or unguided meditation? Experiment!

Some people prefer guided meditation that walks you through the breathing and where to put your focus and how to practice mindfulness. You might try this yourself or may even try an app that will guide you, such as Headspace.

4) To empty the mind or not?

Some experts on meditation suggest one of the main objectives is to quiet and/or empty the mind. Others will say it’s to be mindful. Do not be confused. It doesn’t have to be an either/or. I have recently started to keep a journal (in fact two) with me during the meditation. I have my old moleskin and my new HabitXP planner with me. The HabitXP has been a powerful tool for further clarity as it devotes space to both mantras as well as vision, mission and values.

The crazy thing about this to me is I’d meditated for years without ever having a journal with me. The thought never occurred to me, nor had it ever been recommended. Then, one day in a meditation, I was reflecting upon a quote by David Allen, “The mind is for having ideas, not holding them.” To empty the mind and stay more mindful, I now jot things down as they arise.

5) Eyes open or closed? Experiment!

6) Breathing and stretching: Yes and yes. I’ve found that naturally, out of my meditation practice, I’ll spend a good deal of time stretching. As for breathing, there are too many variations to mention here and so many great ways that you can use breathing and visualization together. In fact, in many meditation practices, breathing is the centerpiece to drive mindfulness and relaxation.

7) Silence, mantras and music? Experiment!

First of all, silence is absolutely golden and I LOVE silence. But recently, after years of total silence in my mediation, I began experimenting with different background music using Pandora channels along the lines of #meditation and #zen. Then one day (perhaps on the Zen channel) I heard an amazing sound emerging from my laptop. I jumped up to have a look at what it was. It was captivating…the powerful, magical sound that was emanating from my computer turned out to be the sitar, and I immediately began searching for more music like that. It sounds pretty cliché, I’m sure, but it couldn’t have been more unplanned and organic. Above all, it all came from begin open and willing to experiment.

Consequently, today, my meditation practice involves sitar music, two journals, stretching, and sitting quietly doing nothing.

Finally, Remember that meditation is a practice. True practice is never a one-time thing, or even a two-time or yearlong effort. True practice means practicing for years… perhaps even a lifetime!

The ONE Question You Should Ask Yourself Every Morning (Practice, Part 2)

goals, HabitStregth™, P.A.R.R. Methodology, PARR Methodology, practicing

[By: Martin Grunburg]

Once we know what practice really is (see Part I), we understand how in many ways life itself can be regarded as one long, extended practice session.

Then we recognize that we’re actually practicing all the time — perhaps just not too well.

As an example, writing this blog post is a form of practice. My surf session earlier today was practicing, as was my meditation this morning.

Riding a bike is practice. So is kindness, breathing, religion, what you eat, what you watch on TV and with whom you associate.

Sowing the Seeds with Practice

Some people realize this more quickly than others, while some never realize it at all!

I’m not saying what takes place on a daily basis is necessarily always good practice, but make no mistake, it is practice.

Every moment we are sowing seeds with our energy.

Therefore, the question shifts from what is practice, to what is practicing comprised of?

What are its guts — its component parts? What makes some sessions worthwhile and high quality and other practice garbage?

In other words, IF there were a formula for PRACTICE, to improve its quality, what would it be?

To achieve high-quality practice you need _____?____ and ____?_____ Or, ____?______ and _______?______ and _______?____?

Typically the fewer elements, the better the formula! ; )

At first blush, the challenge with any such formula is realizing that the concept exists in both the mental and physical spheres. For instance, one can certainly practice their thinking (or should)!

So, for instance, to suggest that the formula is “Intention + ACTION,” unfortunately, doesn’t fit too well, since action doesn’t really exist in the realm of thought.

Enter EFFORT

Thus, any formula for practice ought to take into account both the MENTAL and PHYSICAL realms. We can practice and refine the quality of our thinking, and we can practice and refine the quality of our actions.

So, we end up with this working formula:

INTENTION + EFFORT = PRACTICE

The quality of your intention PLUS the quality of your effort equates to the quality of your practice.

Since “effort” includes mental and/or physical exertion — and, better still, tends to imply continued or repeated effort — this formula becomes a process.

For instance, on a scale of 1-5 (for the component parts), if my INTENTION to learn piano is a 2 and my EFFORT is a 1.5, according to this formula, the result — the output quality of my practice — would only be a 3.5 (very low). [Keep in mind since it’s intention PLUS effort the practice quality scale must go up to 10.]

So, if this formula (for purposes of discussion) were true, then the next question would be, what is the best process to refine one’s practice?

Enter P.A.R.R. (again): Plan, Act, Record and Reassess

As it turns out, the processes to produce quality practice — to elevate one’s practice — and to develop positive habits are the same!

PARR is what The Habit Factor has taught all along to create and improve one’s HabitStrength.

Plan = INTENTION; Act (in this case effort); Record = reaffirming the intention; Reassess allows one to assess both the results and make any adjustments necessary for better practice and results next time.

Ben Knew How to Practice

Now, with “ALL LIFE IS PRACTICE” as the backdrop in mind, let’s revisit our buddy Benjamin Franklin and his 13 Virtues (above).

Here is what Ben wrote in his autobiography:

“I hope, therefore, that my descendants (YOU!) will follow this example and reap the benefits.”

What is he talking about?

Specifically, he was referring to his process of practice. The process he used to develop and refine his CHARACTER. His practice, as he referred to it, to improve his character — to refine the habits that would formulate his virtues.

He didn’t call it PARR, but that is precisely what he did!

Ben Planned, Acted, Recorded and then Reassessed.

He kept a journal and each week he would isolate JUST ONE habit (a to-be virtue) and track it! So, for instance, it might be Order or Humility. Week after week he’d rotate through the list and concentrate upon a new virtue. Then each day he would take the time to notate and comment in his journal if he had an infraction (something he thought went against his INTENTION).

That’s right: Ben practiced and refined his actions and/or thoughts (with effort) to develop the habits that would yield the desired VIRTUES.

What were his results?

I’ll let him tell you. These are his words from his autobiography,

“On the whole, tho’ I never arrived at the Perfection I had been so ambitious of obtaining, but fell short of it,” Ben wrote. “Yet as I was, by the Endeavor, a better and a happier Man than I otherwise should have been if I had not attempted it.” Then he goes on (again for emphasis!): “I hope, therefore, that my descendants will follow this example and reap the benefits.”

Time to start practicing! ; )

~mg

The ONE Question You Should Ask Yourself Every Morning (Practice, Part 1)

creative theory, discipline, habits, P.A.R.R. Methodology, practicing, preparation, Success

[By: Martin Grunburg]

What will I practice today?

That’s it.

That’s the question.

Most of us never give the idea of PRACTICE too much thought. Certainly most of us don’t give it enough thought. Unfortunately, we aren’t practicing anything.

Another day gone and another 86,400 seconds lost.

What are you practicing today?

God knows it took me the better part of 45-plus years to better understand the importance of practicing, and I’m still studying the value and influence.

WHAT IS PRACTICE?

Let’s start with the basics:

Here’s the dictionary definition:

1. The actual application or use of an idea, belief, or method as opposed to theories about such application or use.
“The principles and practice of teaching.” Synonyms: application, exercise, use, operation, implementation, execution.
2. Repeated exercise in or performance of an activity or skill so as to acquire or maintain proficiency in it.
“It must have taken a lot of practice to become so fluent.”

Here’s the etymology:

c. 1400, “to do, act;” early 15c., “to follow or employ; to carry on a profession,” especially medicine, from Old French pratiser, practiser “to practice,” alteration of practiquer, from Medieval Latin practicare “to do, perform,” from Late Latin practicus “practical,” from Greek praktikos “practical”

early 15c., practise, “practical application,” originally especially of medicine but also alchemy, education, etc.; from Old French pratiser,

PRACTICE IS INPUT

Here are some elements to consider:

Practice is input and performance/results are output.
It is learning, as real learning is experiential — an active pursuit demanding knowledge be put into practice.
Learning without practice is just theory. See the dictionary definition above: “the actual application of an idea, belief or method “as opposed to theories about application or use.”

THE FAMILY TREE OF PERFORMANCE

Practice is the Great-Grandfather of Performance

Practice, it could be said, is the father of discipline, while discipline is the father of habit and skill.

One’s habits and skills (within any discipline) produce the output of performance and results.

The disciplined boxer becomes disciplined via practicing.

Similarly, the highly skilled boxer becomes so via the habits of discipline, sacrifice and hard work.

We ALL seem to get this when it comes to the professional boxer, swimmer, dancer, gymnast — the performers we admire.

But, for even the most seasoned professionals, the most time they actually spend performing might be five percent of their life.

Five percent!

The swimmer who wakes up at 5am knows exactly what she will be working on — what she is practicing that day.

The boxer can say the same.

What about you?

LIFE IS A PROFESSIONAL SPORT

So . . . start practicing!

Consider the phrase often used in reference to a doctor or professor: “Where is your practice?”

The other phrase we use in determining a specialty within the practice for a doctor might be, “What is your specific discipline?”

Through practice comes discipline.

Here are a few things YOU might consider practicing today.

Silence
Listening
Meditation
Breathing
Stretching
Reading
Writing
Editing
Guitar
Kindness
Compassion
Love
Piano
Chess
Gratitude
Sales Calls
Marketing
Advertising
Honesty

and then tomorrow and the following day.

So, what are you practicing today?

Have you set any intention to BEcome better — to improve in any particular discipline?

Great.

Now, it’s time to start practicing!

Until next week,

~mg

Next week we’ll focus on what practice is comprised of, that is, what you must bring to make your practice higher quality!

Habits, Goals, My Summer Vacation & Lessons Learned

creativity, energy, goals, Habit Alignment, habits, meditation, Podcast, unstuck, zen

[By: Martin Grunburg]

Time to get back to some habits and goals!

It’s been a while — a long while — since my last blog post, and this is largely by design. That is, I didn’t want to begin writing again until, well, I wanted to.

The time has come.

The same can be said for the podcast, which we will light up in just a few weeks. (Season V kicks off on 11/5!)

In both cases the fire is back (along w/ the creativity) and the timing just “feels” right as we head into Q4 and then 2019!

That’s right, let me be the first to wish you a Happy New Year! ; )

Having said that, I want to keep this post relatively tight and light.

Lessons/great reminders from my summer vacation:

LIFE IS VERY SHORT.

Very, very, very short. Just found out yesterday that an old high school buddy, Mike, passed away, and re-reading his last Facebook Messenger message brought me to tears. The man had a heart of gold. The messages we exchanged included a quick note to him with a link to my interview with Hal Elrod, which discussed Hal’s own battle with cancer. I hoped he’d enjoy Hal’s story and be inspired — he told me he was and we then exchanged soccer stories about our daughters!
SKYDIVE TO LIVE!

Middle of Sept. we did a team-building event: a tandem skydive. This was an amazing experience. I was later asked, “What was it like to cheat death?” I think I just laughed it off, but as I contemplated that question later the reality struck me: “Nobody cheats death…but it sure seems so many of us are cheating life.”

Death ultimately gets ALL of us. I like to call it the “Big vacuum in the sky.” So, the question really becomes: What are we doing NOW, with the very limited time we have, to not cheat/sell short this great opportunity we’ve been presented? (Read: sense of urgency.)
EURO-ZONE:

We had a terrific family vacation at the end of July in Europe. The trip provided us the chance to visit my mother in her motherland, Sweden. (Our daughters are 15 and 17 at this point, which is hard to fathom!) The girls thought of it as a big Instagram post…they thoroughly enjoyed Copenhagen, Malmo and Paris. My wife and I hadn’t been back to Paris for almost 20 years! So, yes, she had a great time too!

; )
EURO-PLUS: SIDDHARTHA:

The Airbnb host in Malmo, Sweden, had this little gem of a story by the bedside. (I’ve read this a few times in the past, but it had been a while, like 20+ years). The difference in reading this book in your twenties and thirties and then in your — dare I say it — fifties is extra poignant. The story follows a young and brash Siddhartha through his early years up through his later years (50+!), and there is simply no other way to appreciate that story with a more “mature” perspective other than to read it then and now. Wow. Book Here!
YOUR REAL COMPETITION = YOUR POTENTIAL:

Workouts tend to provide fantastic insight into subtle “things,” like our own mindsets, habits, goals, limits, etc. The other day, I really just wanted to quit. I finished the workout and told myself — actually caught myself saying — “That’s good enough!” as I neared the gym exit. Then, for some reason, that simple statement echoed in my head. “Was it really good enough?'” How much was I selling myself short? I turned around walked back and talked myself into two more sets of pull ups (which resulted in the next awareness) . . .
PLAY “SMALL BALL” FOR THE WIN:

Whether it’s pull-ups or shuffleboard, the lesson that keeps hitting me in the head these days is playing small ball! Thinking/acting “small.” That’s right, small, which leads to BIG results/wins!

It was no small coincidence that later that same day, as the Yankees were losing a playoff game, the announcer kept reiterating this VERY same message as a Yankee player (no names) kept swinging for the fences. “He’s trying to do way too much here,” said the commentator. “He needs to do the little things…just put the bat on the ball, get on base.” Which then reminded me of Cal Ripkin Jr.’s great quote referencing his father at the Hall of Fame induction:

“My father always used to say, when you take care of all the little things you won’t have a big thing to worry about.” To underscore the message further, enter Lao Tzu, ancient Chinese philosopher:

“Anticipate the difficult by managing the easy.” Which is a nice segue to…
THE ONLY ZEN YOU FIND ON THE TOPS OF MOUNTAINS:

My daily meditation practice is up to 47 minutes per day. Yep, 47 minutes a day. It’s almost funny to me that I used to think about meditation in terms of “getting it done.” In other words, I’d try to be efficient. When I began mediating around 2001, the goal/target time was about 20 minutes. Then I felt I could cut down my time and have similar results, so it dropped to about 12 minutes. Approximately a year or so later I found I was all the way down to about just six minutes of meditation. It was long after that I found I was limiting my quiet time to 2 minutes!

Did it work? Incredibly, yes. Even a short period of meditation was beneficial, helping me become more grounded and clear, even in just two minutes. But I’d lost my way and understanding. Many of you reading this are probably thinking, “THERE IS NO WAY I HAVE 45+ minutes to sit and do nothing!”

I would challenge that statement/belief and simply ask you how much time you spend with TV and Internet each day? Which do you think offers a greater RoT (Return on Time)?
“Now, repeat after me: “Sitting peacefully doing nothing, Spring comes and the grass grows all by itself.“
FREE COURSE IS LIVE! “GET UNSTUCK”

We’ll close out this post with this, my friends: If you’re feeling STUCK or just want to get fired up about life again, we’ve just completed and published this FREE course (limited time). I’m confident this course will do wonders and kick you in the right place to help you GET UNSTUCK! So, if you are STUCK and your results aren’t what you’d like them to be, often it can be traced right back to your habitual thinking and behaviors. Yep, your HABITS.

Just know that going through this course will challenge your thinking about your thinking, yourself, your goals, your future.

That’s it for now!

~mg

What the FBI vs. Apple Case Can Teach Us About Goal Achievement

belief, creative theory, creativity, energy, goal theory, goals, Habit Alignment, habits

By: Martin Grunburg

Chances are good you know of the recent controversy regarding the FBI’s demand that Apple help the agency crack the iPhone of one of the San Bernardino shooters. The FBI also wanted Apple to provide backdoor access for future iPhone models and iOS iterations. Apple quickly recognized that complying with such an order would set a dangerous precedent. So, instead of complying, Apple wrote this letter.

However, this post isn’t so much about the FBI vs. Apple situation as much as how it seems almost everyone loves a good controversy — and, better yet, digging in their heels and choosing sides!

Twitter and Facebook blew up! The “Ban APPLE” tweets were rampant, accusing the tech giant of somehow deliberately aiding terrorists. On the other side, many liberal and mostly anti-government people dug in their heels: KEEP THE GOVERNMENT OUT!!!

It was an intense standstill that appeared likely to be headed to the Supreme Court. And, with the amount of cash Apple has in reserves these days, I’m not sure this would have gone well for the government. Read this…

During all the drama, though, there were a few people — a select handful — who wondered, “Isn’t there another alternative?” Couldn’t a third party hack the phone (which was the issue at hand)? Was there not some middle and common ground where BOTH sides could save face, protect their highest interests (security and privacy) and still win?

I’ve written extensively about this idea in The Pressure Paradox: how our (Western) society and our upbringing has thoroughly ingrained an “us-vs.-them,” “right-vs.-wrong” mentality — as though every instance or controversy can be stuffed in a box and labeled “Winner” and “Loser.”

It’s a bit precarious to live with such a dichotomous nature all the time, a nature that reinforces simple, black-and-white thinking. This type of thought process ignores the thousands of shades of grey that are likely to exist in any situation. In my earlier days as a business owner, part of the counsel I gave to employees who exhibited this line of thinking was to offer a simple question: “How many Supreme Court justices are there?” The point is that if any situation were truly black and white, we’d just need one judge.

Dichotomous thinking is really a sign of poor critical thinking. One of my favorite quotes on the subject is from the great Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard: “If you take away paradox from the thinker, you have a professor.”

And, before I receive hate mail from the teachers and professors, please know, I love professors! Hold on to that email ; ).

A true THINKER in the Apple vs. FBI case is NOT likely to take sides, to not see a black-and-white issue — to appreciate the complexity and seek the third option.

Recently, I saw this terrific NOVA episode titled “The Great Math Mystery.” At its core was the simple premise and question, “Is math invented, discovered or both?”

The answer, it turns out, proves to be (drum-roll) BOTH.

And now we can bring this home…

When it comes to goal achievement, it’s both efficient and effective to keep an open mind. To be rigid and to be flexible. To move quickly and to move slowly. To seek one answer and then an alternative, and of course another.

Are goals good or bad? Well, they could be both. Are habits good or bad? I’ll let you take that one.

And here is the great paradox of my favorite subject, HABIT (particularly as it applies to goal achievement): The idea that a “mindless” behavior — a habit — can be crafted mindfully and intentionally to serve our highest and most important goals. That may require a re-read ; )

We hear “experts” in achievement and “success” all the time tell us that MINDFULNESS is the key to a great life and happiness. But, where does that leave room for habit? I once had a very popular speaker and author tell me he didn’t believe in habits. Consider that for a moment. Of course, what he was trying to emphasize is that he wanted to be mindful all the time.

To think that we must be mindful all the time is extremely dichotomous and, unfortunately, impossible. Not even the Dali Lama is mindful all the time. In fact, strap on your seat belt: His meditation practice is (you guessed it) a HABIT.

Until next time, embrace the duality and the oneness of it all ; )

~mg

Seek what they Sought

goal, goal theory, goals, Habit Alignment, habits

Seek not to follow in the footsteps of wise men; seek what they sought.” ~Basho

By: Martin Grunburg

After an incredible (albeit too-short) trip to Greece last week I had a fantastic opportunity to literally follow in the footsteps of some of the wisest of men; Socrates, Plato and Aristotle to name a few. If you’ve read The Habit Factor then you recognize the significance of that for me. In fact, any time you launch the app (on iPhone) the splash-screen is Raphael’s classic “School of Athens” Plato and Aristotle (not just “two men in robes” as some emails to our support email address identify them!).

Anyhow, as it relates to the above quote, it was fun for me to contemplate so many of the ideas and truths which they sought, surrounding topics like; truth, justice, virtue and character just to name a few. And somehow, this led me to realize that if you think you’re confused as you scan the personal development landscape of today’s self-help books, products and services, rest assured, you’re not alone.

With hundreds of thousands of self-help books, we’ve reached a bit of a tipping-point where many of these books and authors are regurgitating ideas often repeated but unfortunately with limited depth and understanding.

In fact, it seems the Kindle and iBook have spawned (for better or worse) a host of digital ebooks flooding the marketplace. Opportunistically, in an attempt to crank out as many cheap ebooks as possible under $3,99 — many of these authors are choosing quantity over quality— and in many cases diluting and confusing a once very legitimate and beneficial personal development marketplace.

Good for them (maybe) — but probably bad for you.

The good news is, it’s typically very easy to recognize such books and their authors. You’ll note that their work is almost never over 120 pages and many times the author has released a handful of similar titles within the last year. Again, all for approximately $2.99.

I encourage and at the same time challenge YOU, (the reader) if you’re truly interested in personal development (and, why wouldn’t you be?), to first, look for and seek originality and authenticity! Perhaps the easiest way to do this is go back in time— that is, seek some of the original classics.

Below I’ve listed a just a few truly old-school classic personal development / self-help books as I’m constantly amazed at how many people still haven’t read these!

What makes them great?
Original ideas backed by timeless questions and principles supported by a driving passion to teach and share the material!

So, here you go: (I will at some point, share a much more complete list of the essential personal development / self-help library.

Your Starter Set! – BTW: Feel free to go to the Facebook.com page and comment/share any books essential you think I should’ve mentioned (and like it too!) ; )

James Allen – As a Man Thinketh
Napoleon Hill – Think and Grow Rich
Orison Svett Marden’s The Miracle of Right Thought
Earl Nightengal’s The Strangest Secret (this is a GREAT audio!)
Dale Carnegie Win Friends and Influence People

Marcus Aurelius Meditations
Epictetus Art of Living: The Classical Manual on Virtue, Happiness, and Effectiveness

RE: $$ Finances (must read) The Richest Man in Babylon

Until next time,

~mg

The Secret and Missing Ingredient of “Think & Grow Rich” and WHY I wrote The Habit Factor®

Character, goal theory, goals, Habit Alignment, habits, HabitStregth™, P.A.R.R. Methodology, SMART Goals

Mr. Hill declared, “I knew I must find the ‘missing link’.”

If you know anything about the history and study of personal achievement, you know that Napoleon Hill is recognized as one of the great-grandfathers of the “Science of Success and Personal Achievement.” (BTW, if you didn’t know that, that’s OK too!)

Napoleon Hill authored the all-time classic self-help book “Think & Grow Rich.” You can read about the book here: Wikipedia Link. The book was originally published in 1937 and proved to be a deep study into the “science” of personal achievement. Mr. Hill (a former newspaper writer) undertook the project to write this book at the request of Andrew Carnegie (the world’s first billionaire).

Hill was tasked with dedicating 20 years of his life to the study, development and construction of a new “success” philosophy certain to provide a “recipe” for success and wealth to any who would follow its instructions. For his efforts, Carnegie promised to provide Napoleon unique access to many of the greatest achievers at that time – men such as Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, Alexander Graham Bell, John D. Rockefeller and Charles M. Schwab, to name a few. After interviewing these great successes and gathering their “best practices” and collective wisdom, he compiled the many lessons into a workable and powerful success philosophy – one that transformed the lives of millions of people.

Something appeared to be missing…

This book was an instant classic and positively affected millions of people; even today it is a best-seller. But numerous people would write to Mr. Hill after reading his book – and they even approached him after his inspirational talks as he toured the country – and shared that his book did NOT make them rich.

They explained that even though they followed his detailed 16 PRINCIPLES for success, they did NOT become millionaires – AND, unfortunately, that the book “did not work.”

A distraught Napoleon was confounded as he heard this sort of feedback repeatedly.

Hill spent 20 years writing this book to refine this powerful “success” philosophy, but he found that it did NOT always work for everyone as he anticipated it would.

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What was missing? WHY did it not work?

That is a terrific question, and it’s really the most incredible and important part of the story – an unintended GEM resulting from Hill’s efforts to pen the greatest assortment of success principles. In fact, EVEN TODAY seemingly nobody is aware of or understands the significance of his SUBSEQUENT discovery made so late in his career.

I consider this discovery to be the single greatest contribution to the “science of personal achievement” of all his efforts. And, the irony is it was what he LEFT OUT OF THINK & GROW RICH that provided the most value.

“WHAT was missing!?” Well, Mr. Hill pondered that question long and hard, and, as he explained it, he found himself meditating upon this “missing link” FOR ANOTHER 20 YEARS!

So, what was missing!?
Well, it’s almost unfair to tell you/share it ; ). Again, Napoleon Hill spent 20 years of his life formulating this success philosophy and authoring Think & Grow Rich, then another 20 years trying to figure out what the “MISSING LINK” was (those are HIS words).

Why do I say it’s unfair to share the answer? Well, I can almost assure you (as in guarantee) that without the same sort of contemplative meditation, his answer will either appear 1) too obvious, or worse yet, 2) insignificant.

TWO NAMES — A Single Truth

What Mr. Hill “discovered,” that is, what he left out of Think & Grow Rich, was something he labeled “The Law of Cosmic Habit Force.” That’s right… “The Law of Cosmic Habit Force.”

You see, Mr. Hill recognized (after all that time— 40 freakin’ years!) that while these disheartened souls (readers of Think and Grow Rich) were in fact applying one principle in his book after another, there was no consistency – there was a randomness to their efforts. In short, they did NOT DEVELOP THE HABITS necessary to ensure that his 16 principles became HABIT and were therefore effective for a lifetime!

That was it, the answer: The Law of Cosmic Habit Force!

Hill then knew he had to quickly revise his success philosophy to include this new, 17th and final principle, again, which he entitled, “The Law of Cosmic Habit Force.” Unfortunately, this was near the end of his career and seemingly this powerful truth has vanished. It’s been essentially LOST IN TIME.

TRANSCRIPT of Below Audio:
….for then they are bound to find the things that will work (referring to Edison and his persistent personal initiative).

:0.46 seconds

And, take myself for example, in devoting more than 20 years in research to the missing link of this philosophy now known as The Law of Cosmic Habit Force my persistent personal initiative finally yielded a full and workable description of this great law of nature into which all the other 16 principles of this philosophy blend and upon which they must depend for automatic application.

Please, listen to his own words here:

Note: Hill speaks for the first 40 seconds about the lesson of personal initiative and persistence, which he learned from Thomas Edison, and then shares how that same lesson applied to his discovery of the Law of Cosmic Habit Force. This is an excerpt from THE SCIENCE OF PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENT. (Note: You can find a few videos on YouTube, as well.)

Again, even the most earnest students of Napoleon Hill and Think & Grow Rich today, including the current “GREATS” of personal achievement (no names… Just visit your favorite self-help guru’s website and see if they EVER wrote about The Law of Cosmic Habit Force prior to this post date). And, they seemingly fail to share this great insight and story – Hill’s greatest discovery.

So, if I’m YOU at this point I’m probably asking two questions: 1) What does it mean? That is, what is the law of cosmic habit force? and 2) Why haven’t I ever heard of this before?

Let me attempt to answer question #2 FIRST. I have various theories, but the most likely one is the very name itself. “The Law of Cosmic Habit Force” is, at best, a bit cryptic. In fact, in my book there is an entire section entitled “The Esoteric,” which encapsulates and even goes beyond how Hill himself tried to describe it. In fact, it’s so cryptic that even those earnest students simply didn’t understand the message. Even when it came from his own lips as he gave lectures about it (if you heard the audio above you know what I mean), it appears people had a hard time grasping what this “law” meant.

So, if you purchase THE SCIENCE OF PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENT, and I recommend you do, you will notice for yourself that while he emphasized the principle, it was a bit hard to decipher. As for the first question, “What does it mean?” Listen carefully again to the end of the audio clip. “My persistent personal initiative finally yielded this GREAT LAW OF NATURE into which all the other 16 principles blend and upon which they must depend for AUTOMATIC application.” THAT it! That is exactly what that means. It’s a law of nature (discussed thoroughly in The Habit Factor), one that ALL other principles of success must depend upon.

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If there was ONLY one thing I could teach my children.

Recently, I spent a weekend with Brian Tracy at his speaking academy along with several other well-off authors, coaches and business personalities. As we went around the room, Brian asked each member of the group to share our SINGLE GREATEST SUCCESS SECRET.

He asked that we share the single-most important lesson or “secret” that we might share if we could only share ONE thing with our kids. It was a fantastic exercise and each person revealed spectacular insights and great best practices. When you think about it, coming up with just ONE key is very difficult.

Again, these were all very high achievers in the room, so it was great to listen to everyone’s tips, such as: setting daily goals, modeling after the experts, leveraging time and talents, etc. Then, when it was my turn, I simply held up my book, The Habit Factor®. I explained that while everyone’s tips, secrets, keys and lessons were spectacular, without developing HABITS of them, unfortunately, they would be ineffective.

I then explained that it was this very question and exercise I had asked myself years ago that drove me to write this book. As I held up the book, I told them, “I had to write this book. I knew I really had to share this information!”

Here’s the key I hope you fully appreciate and take away, whether it’s Malcolm Gladwell’ s revealing of the 10,000-hour rule in Outliers or The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People or The Secret, or ____ just pick any current diet fad, workout regimen (P90X, 4-Hour Body) or any other practice/philosophy designed to better and improve your being, and guess what?

NONE of them will work until you do – until you put in the work to develop and channel the force of HABIT! It was Darwin who once said, “It is notorious how powerful is the force of habit.” Interesting when you consider Darwin was a naturalist (you’ll see how that plays into this in a bit).

As my buddy Mark said to me the other day on the golf course, “Crazy… it seems it always come back to HABIT, or the Habit factor.” And, of course, it must.

And that is precisely the conclusion Napoleon Hill recognized some 60 years ago.

You still want more? HERE’S WHY…

Since you and I are of this “natural” world, we must assume the same characteristics of said world. “What does that mean?” you ask. It’s explained deeply in my book (see the ESOTERIC section), but the fact is, HABIT (rhythms and patterns) can be found throughout the cosmos and natural world.

In its most simple form the universe is just ENERGY. In your most simple form, YOU are ENERGY. To achieve your goal it is going to require energy.

Energy is predisposed to assume patterns and rhythms (habit). Think sound waves, ocean waves…the spiral of a nautilus sea shell or even the spiral of the galaxy or weather pattern. Therefore, our personal energies WILL be drawn into habits, and they are, for better or worse.

The beauty is, as a HUMAN, YOU are uniquely endowed with the power of conscientious choice and, with PRACTICE, can AT-WILL harness this remarkable force of habit — The Law of Cosmic Habit Force. Yes, there’s an app for that :).

EVEN MORE!??? The Habit Factor and the Great Leap To Goals!

While The Habit Factor® has delivered on its promise to rekindle Mr. Hill’s “Law of Cosmic Habit Force” and spotlights his seemingly lost efforts, I recognized my undertaking in writing The Habit Factor® needed to be far more exhaustive, descriptive and explanatory by focusing exclusively on the SUBJECT OF HABIT (vs. multiple success principles) and by avoiding any single particular pursuit, i.e., lose weight, get fit, make money, etc.

And in so doing, The Habit Factor revealed new and exciting dimensions Mr. Hill either never discovered, considered or had information of. So, I not only wanted to shed light on his lost discovery, but knew I had to go much further with The Habit Factor. I sensed that HABIT, as the sole subject matter, demanded an even more thorough investigation, even starting with the fundamental question, “Why do habits exist?” (this is a funny story).

I felt it was critical to introduce and share some of the latest science (neuroscience) about habit and our brains, again, discoveries and information unfortunately Mr. Hill never had access to. I also recognized it was critical to investigate the philosophical and business aspects of habit. But, what is proving to be the most valuable contribution of The Habit Factor® is the idea of creating and tracking supportive, positive habits to attain one’s goal far more quickly— the use of Habit Alignment Technology™ which has now become a best-practice for goal achievement.

There is no greater showcase of this literal application than THE FREE TEMPLATE, iPhone and Android app bearing the same name, and you can TRY THE APP FREE! It’s a bit funny to me that The Habit Factor® will probably always be best known for its introduction of a simple and powerful goal achievement process rather than the rekindling of Mr. Hill’s greatest discovery, The Law of Cosmic Habit Force.

So, there you have it. You now know what the large majority of the world’s population does not know, understand or perhaps even care about. That whenever you hear anyone talking about how great Think & Grow Rich is, ask them if they know what was missing? : )

You can check out this quick episode about The Law of Cosmic Habit Force on The “Habits 2 Goals” Podcast.

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So, now the question is, What are you going to do with Mr. Hill’s greatest discovery. The irony here is if you do nothing with it, you are of course still applying The Law of Cosmic Habit force/The Habit Factor®. I humbly suggest it’s time you give The Law of Cosmic Habit Force and/or The Habit Factor® YOUR BIGGEST, most important GOAL and put Habit Alignment Technology™ to the test.

***BTW: THF Makes a GREAT GIFT. A gift that keeps on giving ; ) (inexpensive and value-packed). I’m still hearing from friends about the “thanks” they are getting from giving away the book last year. Finally, for those of you who purchase a minimum of 5 or 10— we have a couple gift packages. Please email me your receipt to: mg AT thehabitfactor.com, and we have a special gift for you. I’m not sharing what the gift is because we’d like to know that you’re giving/purchasing for the purpose of serving & giving rather than getting. If you plan on purchasing 25 or more email before purchase.

Enjoy and put THF and TLoCHF to work today for your benefit!!!!

~mg

Search Results for: meditation

“The successful man is the average man focused.” ~Bruce Lee

“Most ‘unsuccessful’ people are just highly-distracted people.” Anonymous

Focus Precept #1: You Are ENERGY

Focus Precept #2: Before Focus Comes CONCENTRATION

Focus Precept #3: Before Concentration comes SELECTION

Focus Precept #4: The Speed of Focus is SLOW

Focus Precept #5: Time Blocking

Focus Precept #6: Environmental Distractions and Controlling Your Environment

Focus Precept #7: Keep Flying the Plane! The Cost of Interruptions

Wrapping It All Up!

Some FOCUS resources:

Highlight #1: Reduced Body Fat

How does it makes me feel?

Why it’s important to me:

Highlight #2: Slacklining

How does it make me feel?

Why it’s important to me:

Highlight #3: Skydiving

How does it make me feel?

Why it’s important to me:

“All men’s miseries derive from not being able to sit in a quiet room alone.” ~Blaise Pascal

Practice and Experiment

How To Begin Meditation

Why To Begin Meditation

The Unspoken Competition for “Busy-ness!”

Insights

Sowing the Seeds with Practice

Enter EFFORT

Ben Knew How to Practice

WHAT IS PRACTICE?

PRACTICE IS INPUT

THE FAMILY TREE OF PERFORMANCE

LIFE IS A PROFESSIONAL SPORT

LIFE IS VERY SHORT.

SKYDIVE TO LIVE!

EURO-ZONE:

EURO-PLUS: SIDDHARTHA:

YOUR REAL COMPETITION = YOUR POTENTIAL:

PLAY “SMALL BALL” FOR THE WIN:

THE ONLY ZEN YOU FIND ON THE TOPS OF MOUNTAINS:

FREE COURSE IS LIVE! “GET UNSTUCK”

Seek not to follow in the footsteps of wise men; seek what they sought.” ~Basho

Mr. Hill declared, “I knew I must find the ‘missing link’.”

Something appeared to be missing…

What was missing? WHY did it not work?

TWO NAMES — A Single Truth

Please, listen to his own words here:

If there was ONLY one thing I could teach my children.

You still want more? HERE’S WHY…

EVEN MORE!??? The Habit Factor and the Great Leap To Goals!

The Universal Kimono, Muscles and Habits

A memorable date; 11-11-11. A B-Day Promo. Your Turning Point?