We all know that productivity goes out the window when we are having a bad day and its safe to say that in order to succeed in anything you do it is important to remove as many ‘Bad days’ as you can to keep moral and productivity up.

Below is a brief outline of the article so you can get an idea of what they published. If its something that interests you click the link at the bottom of the post to read the article in full… (be warned though there’s some strong language in the article)

LifeHacker: The Science Behind “Having a Bad Day” (and How to Solve It)

Sometimes you wake up, and within the first hour or so, you know it’s going to be a bad day… there’s real science behind it. Let me explain.

A Bad Day is as Real as You Make It. Think for a minute… when is the last time you had a bad day? When is the last time a couple things happened, not quite as you had planned, and you thought, “I cannot wait until today is over!”

Here’s the thing… there is absolutely no such thing as a bad day in reality. A bad day only exists in our interpretation of reality, which then becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Peter J. Bentley, PhD, the author of Why Sh*t Happens: The Science of a Really Bad Day, responded:
“Yes, and it’s our fault, I’m afraid! The statistics show that people who believe in bad luck will have more accidents on Friday the 13th. Those who have a negative attitude are more likely to endow normal little mishaps with some mystical significance. Some psychologists even suggest that it’s a way of subconsciously avoiding responsibility for our actions. “It was Friday 13th, so I was bound to stick my fingers with superglue” or “Accidents happen in threes, so after the first mishap the next two were inevitable.” Of course it’s nonsense.

So there you have it, we have the ability to make a bad day exist if we believe it to exist.

The article then goes on to explaining why if we know what a bad day is why do we still have them (convenient over-simplification apparently!)  To read the full article click here but before you do I just want to share how they say to solve the problem so…

1. Reflect on the negative feeling you have right now. Is it stress? Anxiety? Frustration? What caused it? Try to label it in one to three words, but no more! … Once you’ve labeled it, do not think about the feeling or events anymore. Move on and only refer back to the label if necessary.

2. Re-evaluate the situation or events that lead to this stress. Find some conceivable positive outcome… imagine some way it could have gone worse

3. Remember that the outcome of the previous minute is not indicative of the outcome of the next minute. Likewise, the last hour has no bearing on the next hour, and this morning is no indication of what this afternoon will bring.

Anyway that should be enough to get you thinking for the day (or indeed when you are next having a bad day!)

As another reference point check out these;

David Rock’s book,
Your Brain at Work: Strategies for Overcoming Distraction, Regaining Focus, and Working Smarter All Day Long

Peter J. Bentley, PhD
Why Sh*t Happens: The Science of a Really Bad Day,

Article information provided by LifeHacker.com

“If you have no critics, you’ll likely have no success”
Malcolm X

Just reinforces a few reoccurring themes that keep coming up recently for me;

Firstly, if you haven’t got critics then what you are doing is probably not making the difference you think it is. In order for some people to agree with what you are trying to do and Really care, you will inevitably create a negative reaction from those who think the complete opposite to those people – that’s just how it works!

Secondly, constantly be listening to what people are saying about you or your work. Without criticism (hopefully constructive!) you cannot grow as a person. Surrounding yourself with ‘Yes’ men will get you nowhere.

That’s my thought for the day done
L

I’ve posted the quote below but I suggest you visit the post on their site too as they have a great community of people that add loads of comments to every post they put live. Enjoy!

“Successful improvisation in most cases is the celebration of a creative brain that has prepared well.”
Lee David

The short clip shows depths of planning and archiving she has gone to in-order to achieve her success in her industry. It really does show that you never know what someone has done or continues to do behind the scenes to keep themselves at the top of their game. Hope you enjoy

Pullout quote
“People think that it comes so easily… I prepare like a crazy lady”

This video is great introduction to Edward de Bono a well repsected expert on creative and lateral thinking. In the video he offers a definition of what creative thinking actually is. He also defines logical thinking and mistakes. A great little clip that gives you enough of an idea of how interesting Bono is. I encourage you to research further.

Best Quote:
The definition of a mistake – “Fully justified venture which for reasons beyond you control did not succeed”

Mind Mapping is a way of method of recording and discovering ideas using creative thinking. This particular technique gets you to create a tree-like diagram that contains coloured branches with words and images on.

This is well worth a watch. Why not try it out on something that you are trying work on right now.

Best quote
“If you don’t have associations, you don’t have connection. If you don’t have connection, you don’t have memory and you don’t have thinking”

Today as browsing around the internet doing some research on Tim Ferris the guy behind ‘The 4 Hour Work Week’ I came across an article in which he is heavily quoted. I thought I’d chuck a quick over view of the article below seen as it was so good…

Written by Fleur Britten

We can’t work properly amid a barrage of emails, texts and tweets. Here is how to clear your mind and focus on what matters

On a side note you’ve got to check out the how completely ‘Unreadable’ his white board gets by the end of the presentation. The genius thing about it is if you jump to the end of the second video it looks like scribble – if you watch the whole of the two videos from start to finish you actually know what the scribble means! You’ve got to love that!

Part One
Best quote “We don’t get paid for time, we get paid for value”

Part Two
Best quote “Work harder on yourself than you do your job”

“Leadership is vital, you can’t buy it. You need to have it to be successful. The players will follow a strong leader, you need to be able to convince the players of your methods and ideas at all times and you can only do this by being a good leader.”

“The spirit of the group is really important… little differences that can sometimes make the difference when it comes to winning. The managers need to understand what is best.”

“Wise men know when to change their minds.”

“I never cry about what I don’t have. I’m always positive.”

“One thing I know, clearly, is that success only comes with regular, consistent hard work. I live for repeat success. One single success doesn’t inspire me.”

“I’m not thinking about it. I have a positive approach and I’m convinced we have the desire and determination to do great things.”

“Sometimes miracles happen. We have to be confident. We’re convinced we can do something really exceptional.”

Some pretty decent quotes there from a man with incredible success in his own career as a player and again a manager/leader of men. In the modern world its people like this that are definitely worth listening to!