With 2023 open, there’s a blank canvas in front of you. The question is, what will you paint onto it? What adventures will you have? What goals will you achieve? What memories will you make? What people will you meet?  A new year gives us the chance to be intentional with our next steps.  We get to try on new beliefs and routines. We get to play with new ways of being and inspired ways of living.  We get to create life anew inside the context of the desires we hold for our lives.  These nine tips and practices will inspire you to create your best year yet.  1. Reflect on 2022 You can’t move forward until you’ve first looked back to see how far you’ve come. That’s what reflection is all about. It’s developing the self-awareness that helps you consolidate everything you’ve done and learned in the past 12 months. If you jump straight into next-step planning, you’ll miss out on all the insights and knowledge the past 12 months have gifted you. In turn, you’re more likely to make needless mistakes, move forward slowly, and even make the wrong decisions. Reflection is a skill promoted and practiced by some of the world’s top performers and athletes. They know it ensures you learn from your mistakes and make better choices and decisions in the future. Discover how to reflect on 2023 with this downloadable workbook.  2. DON’T set New Year’s resolutions!  If you do nothing else after reading this article, this is the tip to pick!  According to science, 92% of people never achieve their New Year’s Resolutions. The problem with New Year’s Resolutions is that they're too vague. For example, I want to lose weight, I want to start a business, or I want to write a book.  These resolutions don’t hold you to account for your results because there’s no deadline and no specificity. If you lack clarity, it’s all too easy to stay in the status quo. After all, we’re creatures of habit and given a chance we’ll revert to what we know [and where we feel comfortable].  So this year, set SMART goals instead of New Year’s resolutions. It’s the most effective way to set yourself up for success. Your Self Journal can help you with this.  3. Create a vision With a vision, you have an overarching context that you can live into. When you know who you want to be (as well as what you desire to have and do), it’s easier to step fully into your best self.  Use visioning to jump into the future and get a sense of what you want to create. When you know your destination, you can work backwards to figure out your next steps.  20/20 vision is a powerful tool for creating your best year yet. Spend some time crafting yours with the 20/20 Vision Workbook.  4. Plan your time It’s risky business to leave your New Year plans to chance. Despite your best intentions, when your time feels short and other priorities demand your attention, it’s all too easy to procrastinate on your goals.  A planner will help you manage your time and your priorities. In turn, you move the needle consistently on what matters most.  Use your planner to map out your day with the same diligence and detail that you budget your money.  Schedule tasks in the same way you would appointments - to ensure you optimize the time it takes to do everything on your to-do list.  When time feels as if it’s on your side, it’s easier to work smarter [not harder], so you can accomplish more.   5. Discover your Core Values.  What’s most important to you? Define your core values, and you’ll activate an inner compass that empowers you to head in the direction that’s most aligned to your best self.  One of the easiest ways to define your core values is through the intuitive process of sifting through words and picking those that resonate most with you.  You can do this with the help of the Core Values Deck. With your values defined, feel into what each value means for you (because we all have a personal take). Finally, infuse your values into your day intentionally. In turn, you’ll feel empowered to live a life in alignment.  6. Aim for work-life harmony It’s tempting to put all your time and energy into one specific goal.  But true happiness comes from feeling fulfilled in all areas of your life. Work-life harmony means success in your relationships, your finances, your health, and your hobbies - as well as your career/business.  When your work gets the best of you, it’s easy to let other areas slip.  But you can push back against this trend through daily 10-minute practices. For example:  • Schedule a regular walk/run/yoga class• Commit to a 10-minute meditation [Headspace has a free course to get you started]• Make time for an in-depth conversation with your partner or your children with the help of the Intimacy and Little Talk Decks, respectively. • Increase your knowledge and skills by reading or listening to podcasts • Small daily actions soon compound into something meaningful.    7. Create a Live List We all have a list of things we’d love to do at some point in our lives. But how many of those items have you planned to do?  At some point, there won’t be ‘time’, or you won’t have the energy or health.  Don’t leave things to chance. Instead, create your live list and set the intention to experience some of them in 2023: • Figure out the budget needed to pay for them. • Schedule time on your calendar.  • Decide what preparation is necessary and plan it. Imagine how you’ll feel this time next year, knowing you achieved some life dreams.  Best of all, with these checked off, as well as a host of incredible memories, you’ll also create space to add new experiences and adventures to your bucket list.  [Need the inspiration to add to your Live List? We’ve got you covered with these 103 ideas.]  8. Use self-reflection to hold yourself accountable Life is unpredictable! You never quite know what’s around the corner. Your best-laid plans can face disruption - even if you write them into your planner.  Self-reflection is a powerful practice that can help you differentiate between the things you can’t control and the things you can. By reflecting on your daily performance and approach, you can see where you’ve been procrastinating vs fire-fighting.  Your best self requires you to stay committed to your path - and that’s not always easy. Doubts will creep in, and leaving your comfort zone can send you into a tailspin.  When you hold yourself to account through your reflection practice, it’s easier to differentiate between excuses and reality. You’ll discover plenty of reflection questions in the Writing Your Best Self podcast.  9. Write down your wins Your big-thinking goals will push you out of your comfort zone. There’s no doubt about that. Things can get hairy when you’re thriving in discomfort. Doubts and fears can hold you back and make you question yourself. Before you know it, you’ve become stagnant!  The good news is there’s a super simple way you can inspire yourself to keep moving - even when you don’t want to, and even when the path ahead feels too hard.  Make it a habit to write down your wins every day - no matter how small. You can use the Win The Day pads to help with this.  Over time, you’ll create a catalogue of successes, which you can refer back to anytime self-doubt creeps in. When you have proof that you've done it before, you’ll find it easier to believe that you can step up again.  Ready to make 2023 an incredible year?  With the help of these seven tips and techniques to kick-start your plans, you can mastermind your best year yet. You’ve got this!

It’s hard to get something started. When cycling up a steep hill, you’ve got to overcome inertia and resistance. Your muscles ache and you’re out of breath at the top, but then comes the downhill path! Once you’re going, it’s easier to keep going - which is how momentum fuels productivity, efficiency, and positivity. But how do you create momentum in ALL areas of your life? Here are three must-try techniques that have the power to change your world. 1. Schedule it If you do nothing else, this is the technique that needs your commitment - starting TODAY! Momentum relies on you taking action towards your goals - every single day. Success follows consistency. Success happens when lots of small actions compound into something big. You don’t have to take giant leaps alone to achieve. You can move further and sometimes faster when you commit to one baby step at a time. Daily action is easy in theory, but not so much in practice. Life gets busy. There’s always something around the corner, ready to distract and derail you. Doubts show up, fear gets in your way - as does laziness, procrastination, and fatigue. You’ll always have a reason to stop - and there will be a part of you that wants that [because goals mean leaving your comfort zone, which can feel unsafe!] Momentum is only possible if you push through the resistance. A daily plan creates a structure that keeps you focused on your end goal. - Schedule tasks in the same way that you make appointments. - Budget your time as if it were the most precious resource you have. - Prioritize the tasks and actions that will move the needle. Make daily action a non-negotiable, and success will follow. 2. Create a chain of wins Have you ever wondered how Jerry Seinfeld became such a super successful comedian? A newbie comic asked Seinfeld this question after meeting him on the comedy circuit. Jerry’s answer was simple, yet profound. His ‘secret’ was to write one joke a day - without fail. He didn’t leave this commitment to chance. Instead, he created a visual chain on a calendar. After writing his daily joke, he marked the success on a calendar using a red cross. Before long, his winning streak was so long; it felt more painful to break the chain than to keep going. You can leverage the same success principle by committing to the daily habits that lead to your goal. For example: - Become an author - answer a journaling prompt and write 300 words a day - Strengthen your relationship - spend 10-mins in deep conversation a day - Feel fitter - run every day - Build confidence - challenge yourself to leave your comfort zone - Master a new skill - cultivate a daily reading habit With your habits picked, schedule time to do them in your daily plan [see point 1], then use a habit tracker to create your chain. Momentum here you come! [If you want to join a community of people committed to daily action, check out Momentum Challenges]. 3. Get the right people in your corner No one’s journey through life is smooth. Instead, life is a series of ups and downs. It’s easy to keep your momentum going when things are working out and everything is going your way. It’s much harder to stay motivated when you’re in a rut. This is where your support structure makes all the difference. Plans won’t always work and mistakes will get made. There will also be times when you’re riddled with self-doubt or just don’t feel on your game. If you have people who get you and can support you through the inevitable slumps, you can keep the momentum wheel turning. Accountability buddies or a coach works well for this. You can also get help from online groups such as the BestSelf Alliance. You don’t have to do this alone. Instead, surround yourself with people you can lean on in the tough times. With the right people in your corner, so much more is possible. Anything is possible when daily action is non-negotiable. With momentum, it’s easier to think bigger and achieve more while you enjoy today. You’ve got this.

The people you admire who have it figured out aren’t smarter than you. Instead, they’ve cultivated practices that make success ‘inevitable’. You can do the same with the help of these ten, simple-to-apply habits. 1. Cultivate good habits “Depending on what they are, our habits will either make us or break us. We become what we repeatedly do.” ―Sean Covey First things, first! The more ‘helpful’ activities you’re able to do on autopilot, the more successful you’ll become. Here’s why… As creatures of habit, we do a lot of things without thinking. These well-worn patterns are just part of who we are. A habit takes minimal bandwidth or motivation because you do it automatically. That’s why habits are your secret weapon for stellar success. The trick is to get clear on the habits that will move the needle on your life. Work, personal, or relationships, figure out the daily [and weekly actions] that will make all the difference, then use a tool such as the Habit Roadmap to make these habits stick. Take the right actions consistently, and success becomes ‘inevitable’. 2. Gratitude “Whether you think you can or you think you can’t, you’re right.” - Henry Ford Success is as much mindset as it is a skill. If you believe you can do it, there’s a strong chance you’ll inspire yourself to get results. If you doubt yourself, your Reticular Activating System [or RAS for short] will consistently look for evidence to prove you’re right. Successful people know how to cultivate positivity - and gratitude is one of the most powerful ways to do this. When you focus on what you do have, it’s harder for scarcity to creep in. When you feel abundant, it’s easier to go after the things you want. That’s why so many successful people practice gratitude. Simply make a note of three things you’re grateful for everyday, and overtime, see how this influences your positive thinking. 3. Mindfulness “Surrender to what is. Let go of what was. Have faith in what will be.” - Sonia Ricotti The road to success won’t ever be smooth. There will be ups and downs - the question is, can you ride the storms as comfortably as you ride the highs? MIndfulness is about finding your inner peace amongst the outer chaos. It’s about being fully present with what is - rather than resisting reality and wishing it were somehow different. Mindfulness is an important habit to cultivate because it helps you accept present circumstances - so you can more effectively manage stress and anxiety. In turn, mindful people are better equipped to keep an even keel when the going gets tough. Headspace has some incredible meditations to help you cultivate mindfulness - here’s a one-minute meditation to get you started. 4. Thrive in discomfort “You can choose courage or you can choose comfort. You cannot have both.” - Brene Brown. Success lies at the edge of your comfort zone. It exists in the space where you do the things you didn’t think you were capable of doing. It’s the result of considerate risk-taking and stretch goal setting. Successful people are willing to thrive in discomfort. They’re happy to put themselves into situations when they don’t have all the answers and all the skills. They’re willing to overcome fear so they can be their best. This takes courage and self-belief - something you can develop with practice. So make it a habit to put courage over comfort - and see how much further you can go. 5. Default to action “Do you want to know who you are? Don’t ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.”- Thomas Jefferson. Ideas are one thing, but results happen when you’re willing to take action. Successful people get stuff done. They step up to the plate. They don’t overthink to the point of confusion and overwhelm. Instead, they act on their plans to make the intangible a reality. Make daily action towards your goals a habit and success becomes inevitable. You can use the Self Journal to inspire this. 6. Budget time “The key is in not spending time, but in investing it.” - Stephen R. Covey. Lack of time is often touted as the reason we can’t do the things we want. But the truth is, we all have the same 1,440 minutes a day. It’s not a question of the amount of time, but how you use your time that counts. This is why successful people plan their day with the same scrutiny they budget money. Be more mindful of where your minutes go. Look to see where procrastination and distractions take your time and steal your success potential. Get into the habit of using a daily planner so you can leverage time to its max. Implement techniques and practices that help you get more done in less time, and success becomes easier to create. 7. Journaling "A personal journal is an ideal environment in which to become. It is a perfect place for you to think, feel, discover, expand, remember, and dream." - Brad Wilcox. Daily journaling can create a gateway to your subconscious, your limiting beliefs, and your stretch goals. When you write to make your inner thoughts and feelings tangible, you can process your emotions, make sense of events, and create the clarity you need to move forward confidently. Journaling helps you to better know yourself - so you’re better equipped to succeed on your best self journey. Discover how to start journaling here. 8. Make better decisions. “It is in your moments of decision that your destiny is shaped.” - Tony Robbins Your life is a series of decisions - some conscious, some habitual, some fear-based. Every time you make a decision, you direct your life down a certain path. Even the decision to NOT make a decision is still a decision! Successful people are able to navigate the tough choices through life. This doesn’t mean they always get it right! Instead, they have the ability to be decisive - so they don’t stagnant or run around in circles. It’s not always easy choosing the path ahead, but ask yourself the right question, and you can choose your preferred option with more confidence. Tools such as the Decision Deck can help with this. 9. Accountability “At the end of the day we are accountable to ourselves - our success is a result of what we do.” - Catherine Pulsifer It’s easy to say you’re going to do something. But often a whole lot harder to actually do the thing! Fear, self-doubt, procrastination, distraction, second-guessing - so many factors can get in the way of making an idea a reality. This is why successful people practice the habit of accountability - to themselves and other people. When you know someone else is checking in on you, you’re more likely to get the work done. You can leverage the same tool yourself. The monthly Accountability Challenge in the BestSelf Alliance is a great place to start - and it’s free. 10. Reflection “You cannot have a meaningful life without having self-reflection.” —Oprah Winfrey Life has something to teach you every day. A new methodology, a different way of thinking, what works and what doesn’t - you name it. Reflection is the ultimate short-cut. When we’re able to learn from our own experiences, we can avoid making the same mistakes again and find success quicker. Daily reflection needn’t be complicated or time-consuming. Simply check in with yourself on a daily basis to see what you’ve learned that day. Also, collect your wins - so you can learn from those too. Take a conscious approach to your every day life, and success will be easier to come by. Success is different for everyone While the principles of success are universal, success itself looks different for everyone. So make sure you’re chasing your own version. Don’t get distracted and side-tracked by what other people say you should have, do, or be. Instead, focus on what YOU want to create for your life. Then leverage the habits outlined in this article to get there. And if you need a hand with success tools or principles, we’ve got you.

When we do anything that we've never done before. There's always going to be an initial struggle.

Are there things in your life that you’ve not yet achieved? Are there goals you want to set, places you want to visit, and personality traits you want to be? Here’s the thing… success doesn’t hit you like a bolt of lightning and it doesn’t happen overnight. Instead, success is a process that results from consistent action towards the things you want. If you want to be successful, then you have to build momentum and leverage it -- and that’s not easy! Why? Because the things you want exist outside your comfort zone. This means you must be be willing to take risks. You have to be prepared to thrive in discomfort and you need to get comfortable taking on things where the outcome is either unclear or uncertain. But if you can do these things, you’ll be able to confront your fears -- and beat them. If you can cultivate the courage to take action regardless, you’ll keep building the confidence that helps you win. It’s how you can be your best, achieve your goals, and create the life you really want. This is how fear gets in our way It’s one thing to think about taking action. It’s quite another to actually do it! But there’s no getting away from the truth... Whether you want to write a book, run a marathon, start a business, get promoted, buy your dream house, fulfill your bucket list, find a soulmate relationship -- or any one of an endless list of goals, you have to take action. It’s a non-negotiable. Sure, visualization will get you started by creating a clear vision of what you want in your head -- so you know where you’re headed. But you can’t make your goals physically tangible until you act. And that’s going to put you head to head with your fears. Whether fear gets you stuck or inspires you forward is a matter of mindset. It’s easy to get frustrated with yourself when your fears get in the way, but remember your fears do serve a valuable purpose. Fear is a red flag that warns you of potential danger. It’s a survival instinct that links to the archaic brain, which responded to help us cope with life-threatening situations. That’s what the gnawing feeling in your gut and anxiety in your chest is all about. It’s a reminder that you’re facing the unknown. That you’re stretched beyond what you know and what you think you can handle. In this way, fear puts the brakes on your actions and gives you a breather -- so you can better assess your next steps. In other words, fear helps you better analyze the situation and scenario you’re facing so you can make the right choice going forward. In short, fear in and of itself is not a bad thing -- because it helps to keep you safe. What matters is how you handle fear when it shows up. The worlds most successful people know how to differentiate between ‘real’ danger and ‘perceived’ danger. Real danger is a threat to life. It’s what our fear response is designed to do -- help us escape from sabre tooth tigers and survive in a harsh environment. Nowadays, we’re unlikely to get chased by an angry bear! Instead, it’s perceived fears that stop us. For example, we talk ourselves out of taking action because we’re worried about: - How others will judge us - What people will think if we fail - That we’ll get it wrong or screw it up In other words, most of the time the fear that holds us back is rooted in an internal dialogue in our heads. And this dialogue works to keep us small and stuck in what we know. And even if we know this intellectually, it’s still a challenge to break out -- but not impossible. Did you know there are TWO ways to push through your fears -- so you can take action regardless? 1. Take a giant leap I’ve always wanted to do a parachute jump. It’s something I thought would be pretty cool so when an opportunity came up to do one for charity, I jumped at it (excuse the pun!) I don’t especially like flying, so when the big day came I did get a little bit freaked out at the prospect of jumping 12,000 ft out of an aeroplane. I was going tandem, so I didn’t have to worry about remembering to pull a cord or anything, but I was terrified that the parachute wouldn't open. But I was committed and felt strangely calm when I was asked to move to the side of the plane ready for the freefall. Then the next second, I was out in the air, plummeting to the ground at terminal velocity and having the time of my life. When it comes to your fears, sometimes you have no choice but to take massive action. For example, there is no halfway house with a parachute jump. You can’t step out of the plane and then jump back in again. It’s all or nothing. You’re either all in or you’re not doing it at all. And sometimes that’s exactly what’s called for. And the payback for your bravery is HUGE! When I landed safely back on the ground after that jump I was absolutely ecstatic. I felt unstoppable and I felt like a hero [especially when my 4-year-old daughter put a medal around my neck!] My fears were blown apart and in that moment I knew I could do anything. But you don’t need to rely on giant leaps alone to expand your comfort zone. There’s another way to face your fears and grow exponentially that doesn’t feel half as terrifying. It’s called baby steps. 2. Take baby steps You may not be able to climb Everest tomorrow, but you could walk a mile. A keynote speech in front of 2,000 people may be more than intimidating, but you could start with a Facebook live. Writing an entire book may feel impossible, but you could start by publishing a post on social media. For all your BHAGs, there are baby steps you could take today that would nudge you a little bit closer. Find the courage to take a baby step every single day, and after a week, a month, 6 months, a year -- how much closer will you be to your goal? That’s the power of chunking down your big plans into tiptoes and then taking consistent daily action. You cultivate a habit of implementation and you start to see yourself as an action-taker who’s prepared to step up and do what it takes to succeed. Every time you move forward, your confidence grows that little bit more as your comfort zone expands. And as your confidence and comfort zone expands, you feel ready to take on more. You’ll WANT to do more! You’ll also train your mind that discomfort doesn’t have to be scary. As you relish in the resulting personal growth, you’ll start to feel safer taking risks. Commit to this baby step strategy and completely overhaul what you think you’re capable of. Beware! It’s a strategy that’s going to make you think bigger and motivate you to take on bigger things! Life happens outside your comfort zone. Every time you say YES to the uncomfortable, you grow. Every time you put courage over comfort, you make it easier to face your fears so you can be your best. Every time you take action in spite of your fears, you are being your best. So how can you cultivate your courage muscle - so you can feel more comfortable around fear and take action to be your best self? The simple answer is to create a diet of uncomfortable actions. In other words, make it a habit to put courage over comfort EVERYDAY. These uncomfortable actions don’t have to be related to your specific goal - in fact, the more unrelated, the better. That’s because unrelated challenges get you familiar with the feeling of being uncomfortable. They force you to engage in things where you don’t know the outcome, which empowers you to be more open, pliable, and adaptable in the face of change and uncertainty. Introducing Courage over Comfort A Momentum Challenge Sign up for the challenge, and each day we’ll invite you to try something new - so you can stretch your comfort zone, thrive in discomfort, and be your best self. This challenge is a fun, yet powerful way to prioritize your own personal growth and it costs just $29 to take part. You won’t do this challenge alone. Instead, you’ll join a group of other high-achievers who all have the same goals as you. Don’t underestimate the value of public accountability in getting you to step up! The next Courage over Comfort challenge starts on the 1st of the month and you can sign up here. REMEMBER… You can do so much more than you currently think possible. None of those high achieving people you admire are any better than you. Instead, they’ve simply cultivated their courage muscle -- so they’re able to step up and take the necessary actions to achieve their goals. You can do the same when you prioritize courage over your comfort.

"Ideas can be life-changing. Sometimes all you need to open the door is just one more good idea." — Jim Rohn Look around you… EVERYTHING you see started off as an idea in someone’s imagination. Every product, service, piece of art, invention, song, book, poem, sculpture [you get the picture] was first born in someone’s head. That’s the power of ideas. They create things we love, they solve problems, they provide a fresh perspective, and they can change your world [even the world]. Ideas can generate money, create influence, strengthen relationships, and increase your knowledge. It’s why sharpening your idea-generating muscle is a very smart thing to do. When you can come up with ideas at will, you’ll always be able to find your way through a solution. You’ll always be able to keep moving forward - even during your rock bottom moments. Just imagine the impact that ability could have on your life? Imagine always having an answer, always being able to create options, and always having the foresight to see what could be done. Yes! Idea-generation can increase your personal power and give you more control over your life. But I hear you! Idea generation can be seriously hard - especially if it’s something you believe you don’t do especially well. It’s true; some people were seemingly born idea-generators! The rest of us… Well, that’s something we have to work at! But the good news is you CAN train your brain to generate ideas at will. That’s because idea-generation isn’t a natural talent alone. Instead, it’s a skill you can nurture and cultivate. And in this blog, I’m going to show you how. 1. Create an idea-generating habit If you’ve never lifted weights, you can’t expect yourself to suddenly raise a 20lb bar in the gym! But build a weight lifting habit where you gradually increase the weight as your muscles get stronger, and in time your PB will get heavier and heavier. It’s the same with ideas... In the beginning, you may find yourself scratching around for suggestions. More than that, you’ll judge yourself too - telling yourself that your ideas are ‘rubbish’ or they’ll never work. When the inner critic goes into overdrive, it quickly shuts down your creative thought processes. And if you’re not careful, you will draw a blank each time you’re faced with a problem. If you want to be able to generate good ideas when you need them, you have to make idea generation a habit. That way you can rely on yourself to lift those heavy weights when you really need to. So how do you build this habit? The simplest way is to weave idea generation into your morning routine. In the same way you do journaling, daily planning, or yoga, schedule time in your planner where you do nothing but focus on creating ideas. This is easier than it sounds with the Edison Deck. This powerful idea-generating tool contains 100 different idea generating prompts. Simply pull a card, grab your notebook, and write down 10 different ideas. This practice isn’t about generating ideas to a problem you currently face (although it could be). Instead, your Edison Deck daily practice is about working that idea muscle - by giving you prompts that get you thinking. Here are three examples [included in the Edison Deck] of problems to solve: 10 things to start a podcast about 10 businesses you could start for under $100 10 things you’re grateful for right now The key with this daily practice is to NOT censor yourself. It’s inevitable that some of the ideas you write down will be unworkable and… pretty rubbish! But that doesn’t matter. It’s why Einstein was ‘happy’ to discover 10,000 ways NOT to make a lightbulb! The key is quantity… because the more ideas you have, the more likelihood there will be of you finding that gem. But that’s not all... Have you ever noticed that you’ve got to get through a load of junk before you discover the diamond? It’s the same with idea-generation. It’s not unusual for the first batch of ideas to be the superficial and obvious ones - those that required little thought or effort. But push through this initial level, force yourself to think harder, and watch what happens! That’s why we encourage you to write down at least 10 ideas. Because the deeper you think, the more brain power you invest and the better the ideas that emerge. It’s incredible how much further you can push yourself when you’re up against the wall. Your brain can always go a step further than you first think. So stick to the 10 ideas target and don’t let yourself off the hook. Your brain will become all the sharper because of it - and the ideas add up. Imagine the shift this habit could create in your life. 1 week = 70 ideas 1 month = 300 ideas 1 year = 3650 ideas What are the chances that at least one of those will be life-changing for you? 2. Be with the discomfort As humans, we love our comfort zones! They’re called comfort zones for a reason - because it’s where we feel safe and feel confident we won’t get hurt. There’s just one problem… Yow won’t grow if you stay inside what you know, but every time you to commit to a new habit, you’re forced to change. It’s why your new idea-generating habit is going to push some buttons. Initially, you’ll feel enthusiastic and excited. You’ll enjoy the process -- and you’ll get value from it. But if you’re not mindful, you can fall off the path and drop your daily practice -- because it will get difficult, you feel have days when you feel lazy, you will wonder if it’s really worth the effort. So to make your habit stick, start tracking your habit. This is easy to do. Simply put a big CHECK every time you generate your 10 daily ideas and before long you’ll create a chain. Soon, that chain will be so long it will be more painful to break the chain than it is to do the work. Keep going longer, and daily idea generation will become as much a ‘thing’ as cleaning your teeth or making your bed. When a habit becomes part of who you are, you act on autopilot. This is a powerful transition to move though and it’s something your Habit Roadmap can help you navigate. Mark-up idea generation as one of the habits you wish to track and use your Habit Roadmap to monitor your daily idea practice. It’s a commitment that could make the difference between a temporary habit and a lifelong behavior. 3. Step into fresh ideas Steve Jobs said that “Creativity is just connecting things”. In other words, your ability to generate ideas is also related to the amount of ‘things’ you have to connect up. It’s often said that nothing new is ever created. Instead, creators simply blend together different ‘things’ to create something new. So if you want to have more ideas, put yourself in an environment where you are discovering more ‘things’ you could connect. For example: - Read books that are outside your comfort zone - Watch TED talks - Travel - Explore different cultures - Learn new words - Pick up different facts - Listen to podcasts - Ask questions - Get into nature and think with your body - not just your mind - Read biographies - Take things apart - Look at things under a magnifying glass - Journal There are endless things you can do you enrich the experiences you hold in your body and your mind. As well as enriching your life with newness, you’ll be able to draw upon all these different understandings when you come to generate ideas. So allow yourself to think laterally, infuse newness into your life, and use it all to inspire your idea habits. Ideas are currency. And you have the ability to generate an endless stream of them. So what are you waiting for? I encourage you to start your practice today so you can start benefiting from your own ideas: Invest in an Edison Deck Get yourself a Habit Roadmap to track your habit Allocate a notebook to capture your daily ideas Commit time in your day - everyday - for this practice Enjoy the process of daily creation And see the profound impact that more ideas has on every area of your life.

Have you ever had those moments when you just feel mentally exhausted? It's a ‘flaw’ of being human. Our brains aren’t so great at storing information and it takes a LOT of bandwidth to hold and remember details.Ever noticed how genius ideas pop up at the most inappropriate times? You’re in the shower or out on a run when the perfect solution pops into your head. You try to hold onto the thought until you can write it down, but you get distracted or forget. It’s frustrating because you know that one idea can change your life. But it’s not your fault.That’s why you can’t rely on memory alone. You’ll get mentally exhausted if you do. Instead, you need tools that not only capture the sparks of genius when they show up, but create the environment that makes them appear more frequently.Something that’s not as easy as it sounds…When you’re hustling after goals, life gets busy. Ever noticed how preoccupied your mind is?A lot is happening under the surface. It’s easy to get stuck in thought loops that drain your bandwidth and capacity to think when you have things to remember, tasks to do, problems to solve, decisions to make and emotional clutter to process, If you’re plagued by mental blocks, you won’t perform at your best. And if information overload leads to mental exhaustion, you’ll struggle to get into your flow.As a result, you’ll lose the competitive edge that comes from creative problem solving, innovation, and imagination.That’s why top achievers prevent themselves from getting mentally exhausted with ‘external brains’. It’s a practice you can do too.So if you’re ready to stop feeling mentally exhausted, boost your productivity, and bring your A-game to every task, check out these top five external brains.Simple to use, they could help you kick mental exhaustion for good. 1. The Project Action Pad Every high achiever needs a way to manage the multiple projects they’re juggling at once. You need a way to keep the granular details organized so you have the mental clarity to focus on the big picture.The Project Action Pad helps you map out your project from beginning to end, track your progress, and ensure you’re hitting deadlines. But most importantly, this frees up headspace to think about your project strategically since you know the details are taken care of.Watch the video above to learn:- Why an external brain is critical to your success- How to use the Project Action Pad as an external brain- How to avoid overwhelm and decision fatigue- The 7 steps to turn your project into a plan 2. A master to-do list   While notebooks are great for braindumps, you need a to-do list to see everything that's on your plate. It’s why top performers create a master to-do list of EVERYTHING they need to get done including:- Work to-dos- Appointments and meetings- Reminders- Personal commitments- Errands- Key dates etc.When creating your master to-do list, your core objective is to write down every single thing you have to do - even the super small stuff such as buying groceries or filing your mail. Constantly keeping your to-do list in the back of your mind is how most people become mentally exhausted.When you have a comprehensive list (that you can add to), you don’t need to remember. It’s a habit that helps you feel in control of your life because your list ensures you don’t forget. There’s another benefit. With your list written down, can analyze it and scratch off or delegate the items you don’t need to do personally.Master to-do lists also lead to more work/life harmony - because you’re capturing tasks from all areas of your life. Master to-do lists boost your productivity too. Cluttered minds get mentally exhausted & that's when mental blocks happen. When there’s too much going on you can’t think straight or decide your next steps. With an external list, you can forget everything else and focus on the one thing you need to do now.And you can take this one step further with a Weekly Action Plan.Instead of juggling a master to-do list (which is probably so long it tires you out just looking at it!), your Weekly Action Plan helps you prioritize and identify only those tasks you’ll complete in the next seven days,Everything else stays parked on your master list where those tasks are out of sight and out of mind - until they become top priorities. It’s a simple practice, but with fewer tasks on your radar, the chances of feeling mentally exhausted falls significantly. 3. A planner With a to-do list of prioritized tasks, the next step is to plan when you’ll accomplish them - and that’s why you need a planner such as the Self Journal. It helps you design a day that’s aligned with your priorities and keeps the needle moving in the right direction.  You could rely on brain power, but you’ll almost certainly become mentally exhausted, squander time and undercut your performance.- Without planned deadlines, you'll take longer to do tasks- With no granular schedule, each time you finish a task you’ll have to decide what to do next- Without a strategic approach, you'll finish tasks at the wrong time- You’ll be tempted to focus on low-level tasksIn comparison, a planner lets you plan your day upfront - so you can reduce micro decisions that lead to feeling mentally exhausted and crack on with implementation.Robust planning makes you more tactical too. You can be strategic about where you place tasks and you can work in breaks and meal times. When you can focus all your energy on implementation and execution, your performance soars. 4. A journal When you’re hustling towards goals and trying to create a life you’re proud of, your internal dialogue will go into overdrive.Fears and anxieties will rise to the surface. You’ll have lessons and insights you’ll want to process. You’ll grow in confidence and self-belief and you’ll want to process that too.A journal works as an external brain to help you process all those conflicting thoughts - so you can get the recurring dialogues out of your head and onto paper. When you’re pushing your boundaries and stepping out of your comfort zone the doubts kick in and if you’re not careful, you’ll uncover an armful of reasons why you shouldn’t act.Journaling helps you work through the mental fog so you can get clear on your fears and concerns. This type of writing also helps you uncover thoughts that lurk under the radar. The more you write and clear out the clutter, the more profound the insights that bubble up become. This practice differs from the random idea dumps captured in your notebook. With your mind on paper, you can reflect on your thinking, challenge your beliefs, and get the mental clarity that helps you be your best.- Brainstorm ideas. You can’t action everything immediately, but the thought you had earlier could provide the breakthrough you need when problem-solving in the future- Capture your raw ideas and then pull the threads to see where they lead. A fleeting thought can quickly turn into a new project or innovative solution.- Capture to-dos and other important details - so you don’t waste bandwidth remembering- Jot down insights from conversations - so you can turn insights into tangible benefits in your life- Explore a decision you need to makeWrite about a challenging experience from your past- Journal about a situation that taught you a lesson   5. Your habits   Remember how draining it was when you first learned to drive a car? It was a new skill so you had to focus intently on every detail, and that was tiring. But as you got more skilled and confident, driving became second nature and now, you drive on autopilot and muscle memory.That’s what makes learned behaviors and habits such powerful ways to stop feeling mentally exhausted.Free up headspace to focus on the important things by using routines.It’s one of the reasons morning routines are so powerful. When you’re in your groove, you follow through a sequence of events without thinking about the order.What habits could you turn into external brains to help you become more creative and productive? Give yourself a competitive edge It’s a documented fact that human attention span is declining. We're constantly overwhelmed with so much information that we've gotten used to being mentally exhausted.High performers know they need to push back against this trend.They need to be proactive and consciously take steps to prevent becoming mentally exhausted so they can think innovatively and solve problems creatively - because these are the skills that will help you win in life.External brains are among the simplest, yet most powerful tools you can use to stop feeling mentally exhausted & gain mental clarity.It’s a simple decision that could empower you to uncover the ideas that will change your world.How could you use external brains to transform your life?    

Each day in our lives is composed of thousands and thousands of tiny habits. We go through these habits automatically, without even thinking about most of them. And for the most part, this is an advantageous behavior. We don’t have enough brainpower to think about every single thing we do in our day. Habits free up mental energy for the tasks that do require intense thought, putting everything else on autopilot. However, the greatest power of habits is also their greatest danger. If we build up self-destructive habits, then they can be very difficult to break, even if these bad habits make us unhappy. Just look at the common bad habit of watching too much TV. We may know that watching TV is taking away time from pursuing more important goals, but if it’s become a habit, it’s comforting. The converse is also true — it’s painful to stop watching TV. And if you use that TV watching as a way to cope with something else you’re struggling with (as is usually the case), then it can go beyond a simple bad habit and turn into a vicious cycle: Each time you experience the thing that causes you stress, you turn to TV as a way to relieve the pain. This is where vicious cycles are born, the ones that keep us in self-defeating patterns. If we are to break free of repeating outcomes, we need a reflection practice to help trigger the small steps we need to change our self-destructive behaviors. The question is, how do we recognize our actions and their outcomes to break the cycle? Vicious Cycles vs. Reflection Practice As human beings, we all have our own vicious cycles. We have particular triggers that instigate specific destructive actions like procrastinating on important work, staying up too late binging Netflix when we should be sleeping or hitting the snooze button for the fifth time. They build into one another, killing our productivity, straining our relationships and beating down our self-esteem. It’s frustrating because we know they’re there. We experience their pain again and again, yet we can’t break the cycle. In fact, if a cycle is around long enough our minds become predisposed to automatically react a certain way when a trigger appears. Our actions in response will be the ones most commonly taken, even if they’ve always lead to an undesired result. Don’t worry, our brains aren’t trying to sabotage us. It has our best interests at heart. It’s utilizing a system of creating an automatic responses to make sure we have the resources available to react to events we aren’t familiar with. In nature, this process is essential for survival, but it comes with a catch: Our brains make no distinction between healthy and self-destructive behaviors. For example, maybe you use eating as a way to cope with stress. You know this isn’t good for you, leading as it does to weight gain and other health issues. But the deeper, more ancient part of your brain doesn’t make this distinction. It just experiences the threat (stress) and then grows accustomed to the way you use to cope (the pleasurable feeling of eating junk food). This builds into a vicious cycle, one that only solidifies the more you do it. To achieve what you never have, you must do what you’ve never done; you must achieve a mindset shift. To stop and reprogram these automatic reactions we must catch ourselves in the moment of a vicious cycle. This is extremely hard work. A reflection practice allows us to set up a plan to stop the automatic response when it’s triggered. We can reflect on many different levels, but the best place to start is in reflecting on the past year. This higher level view will help us see the bigger patterns we have, the good and the bad. Once we see them, we can find positive ways to change them. What do you think? Want to give it a try? Special Gift: A Guided Reflection Practice From the Inner Circle Start by looking back on the past year to figure out what went well, what didn’t, what you enjoyed and what you learned. With these insights, you can create your benchmark and lay the foundations for the plans that will help you design your best year yet. STEP 1 OUTCOME Complete this step to consolidate your learnings from the previous 12 months and create your baseline from which to plan your year ahead. With your reflection complete, you will know exactly where you are starting from. This clarity will help you set up the year ahead for success. ESTIMATED TIME: 20-30 minutes TOOLS NEEDED: End of Year Reflection Worksheet Why Reflect? The 10 Step framework to your Best Year Yet kicks off with reflection. This is one of the most important stages of the entire process — you can’t move forward until you’ve first looked back. Reflection is about the best way to consolidate everything you’ve done and learned in the past 12 months. If you put your foot on the gas without reflecting, you’ll miss out on all the insights and knowledge the past 12 months have gifted you. In turn, you’re more likely to make needless mistakes, move forward slower and even make the wrong decisions. That’s why reflection is a personal development practice promoted and practiced by some of the world’s top performers and athletes. They know it's an effective way to learn from their mistakes and set goals to make better choices and decisions in the future. It’s the reason football players spend weeks poring over every minute and analyzing every play of every game. By understanding who played well and why, they can make informed adjustments going forward and keep improving their performance. And you can do the same. It’s why reflection is an essential component of your best year yet. So let’s put this theory into practice with an Action Step that you’re going to like a lot. Action Items This reflection exercise is one of our favorites. It’s something we always do at the end of a year — and if a 13-week road map has been particularly significant, we’ll do it again. It’s a quick and easy way to sense check where you are and give yourself a springboard from which you can move toward gaining control. To help you reflect, we’ve prepared a worksheet for you to download. It’s called the End of Year Reflection worksheet and you can download a copy below. You’ll see from the worksheet that we’ve broken your reflection down into simple categories. For this step, you’re going to reflect on four things: • What brought you JOY• What brought you SUCCESS• What made you DISSATISFIED• And what FLOPPED! To make your reflection easy, grab: • Last year’s calendar• Any Self Journals you used over the past 12 months Go through them — week by week — and pull out any events you want to list on your End of Year Reflection. Your goal is to create your best year yet, so think about all categories — not just your work achievements. This might include: • Your relationships• Your health and wellbeing• Your personal growth• Your financial situation When you’re finished, look for your patterns. For example, is there a correlation between what brought you joy and success? Finally, analyze your results by answering the final two questions on your worksheet: 1. How far have you come over the past 12 months? When we’re hustling after goals and checking items off our to-do lists, we can spend too much time thinking about where we still have to go. As a result, we overlook and undervalue the distance we’ve already traveled. So take a few minutes to appreciate the progress you’ve made. 2. Get a sense of how you feel about your current trajectory If you were to change nothing, would you be happy with where you’d end up in 12 months time? For example: How would your physical health be? What about your business or your career? Or your relationships? Why You Should Fill Your Day with Energizing Activities To create your Best Year Yet, you have to fill it with things that bring you joy. When you craft your day-to-day around the things you enjoy and excel at, you start loving and being proud of your life. Why fill your day with stuff that drags you down if you don’t have to? Remember, you’ll always do your most important work, have the most fun and enjoy the most success when you’re motivated and energized. The opposite applies, too. Tasks that leave you dissatisfied absorb a disproportionately large amount of energy. You need to dig a lot deeper to get things done. What’s more, you’re more likely to procrastinate and waste time. You probably won’t do your best work. You’ll feel more drained at the end of the day, too. So for a better-performing year, you’ll need to proactively pay attention to the things that bring you joy and success. Swap out things that flopped and left you dissatisfied and full of anxiety. It’s a simple formula that lays the foundation for your best year yet. Inspire Others Big or small, we aspire to accomplish things in our lives that matter. We want to do more of what makes us happy, gain self-confidence and feel fulfilled with our life choices. We all struggle, find success and change as we grow. Make no mistake, those lessons can help others as much as you. Let what you’ve gone through help others on their own journey. The smallest insight can change a life!

Do you ever look at successful people and marvel at their intense levels of motivation? How do they manage to find the strength to continue with their goals day after day? How do they have the self-discipline? It may feel like you could never achieve the same level of motivation as your heroes, but the reality is different. It isn't that successful people are more motivated than you — they simply do a few things differently than most. If you can master these things, then you too can achieve seemingly superhuman levels of motivation and produce the great work you've always dreamed of. It won't be easy, but it's simpler than you might think. 7 Things to Do If You Need Motivation To get you started, here are seven motivation tips to help you crush your goals. 1. Make a Public Commitment You’d be amazed what you can accomplish when you commit to it publicly. It’s a whole different level than when your goals are just floating in your head or sitting in a document on your computer. Public commitment leverages peer pressure in the best way possible. It’s a simple way to stay motivated, because if you don’t do what you say you would, you have no way to hide it. People will know, and they will call you out. How public you want to make your commitment is up to you. For some people, committing on your website or social media will be out of your comfort zone, and that’s fine. You can also make a commitment to friends or family. What matters is that you have someone who will know (and hold you accountable) if you don’t meet your goal. 2. Make it Meaningful One reason many people need motivation is that the things they’re working toward aren’t meaningful for them personally. Just look at someone like Elon Musk. He’s running multiple companies simultaneously, all while still making time to be with his family. It’s easy to imagine that Musk has some sort of rare gift that allows him to keep up this work ethic, but if you listen to interviews with Musk, you’ll notice how intensely he believes in the work he’s doing. His vision for SpaceX, for example, is no less than to make humanity an interplanetary species. With a vision like that, motivation is easy. Now, we’re not saying that you have to be as ambitious in your goals to achieve the same level of motivation. We can’t all be Elon Musk, and that’s okay. But if you need motivation, you can find something you believe in to work towards. It could be a goal for your job, but also just something you do on the side, such as training for a marathon or teaching yourself a new skill. What’s important is that you believe in what you’re doing and are doing it out of a genuine interest, not just because it’s something that other people say you ought to do. 3. Set Specific Goals One common mistake people make when they set goals is to make them too broad. This can be a real motivation killer. It’s difficult to know if you’re making progress when you have a large, vague goal. Therefore, we suggest that you set specific goals — it will do wonders if you need motivation. For example, say you want to learn the guitar. What style of music do you want to play? Acoustic or electric guitar? Do you want to shred on stage, or just strum a few tunes at family get togethers? And that’s just the beginning: once you decide on what your ultimate vision is for playing guitar, you need to break it down even further, giving you manageable weekly goals such as “learn how to strum a G chord” or “learn the chorus to ‘Sweet Home Alabama.’” 4. Keep Encouraging Words in Sight When you’re in the thick of a difficult project and things just aren’t going your way, it’s easy to get discouraged. In times like these, it makes a world of difference to have words of encouragement visible. We recommend putting motivational and inspirational quotes from your heroes over your desk or on your desktop wallpaper. That way, you can readily turn to them when you need motivation. To get you started, here are some of our favorite motivational quotes: "Start acknowledging all the good you are doing. Don’t discount the little things. I mean, how many times do you scold yourself for doing something small that wasn’t perfect? How often do you think the good things such as being on time, or signing a new client is simply how it’s meant to be? They need celebrating. You need more wins in your life. This will motivate you, encourage you, and help you see how brilliant you truly are." — Kai Ashley "If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten." — Tony Robbins "The most effective way to do it, is to do it." — Amelia Earhart "My favorite things in life don’t cost any money. It’s really clear that the most precious resource we all have is time." — Steve Jobs “People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing — that's why we recommend it daily.” — Zig Ziglar "What I've learned in these 11 years is you’ve just got to stay focused and believe in yourself and trust your own ability and judgment." — Mark Cuban “If you double the number of experiments you do per year, you’re going to double your inventiveness.” — Jeff Bezos 5. Create the Right Daily Routine What’s the first thing you do when you get up in the morning? Is it something that fills you with energy and motivation? Or is it something fills you with anxiety, stress, or boredom? If the first thing you do in the early morning is check your phone, for example, then you’re not setting yourself up for a motivating day. Seeing whatever horrors have occured in the news or immediately getting sucked into your email inbox are not the way to set yourself up for a motivating day. Instead, we suggest doing an analog activity like reading a book, journaling, meditating, taking a walk, working out or drinking your morning coffee as you watch the sunrise. These are simple activities, but they will do a whole lot more to give your day a motivating start than immediately getting sucked into the busy stress of digital devices. 6. Have Self-Confidence If you don’t believe in yourself, then you’re never going to able to believe in the work you’re doing. This will result in fragile motivation that will be easily shaken when things get difficult. We know it can be hard to believe in yourself sometimes; everyone has their moments of doubt. But what sets successful people apart from everyone else is that they recognize the self-doubt as normal and then push through it, doing great things anyway. To build your self-confidence, reflect on the things that have gone right. Look at all you have been able to accomplish. Celebrate all the good things that have come as the fruit of your hard work. Write them down if you need to. Post them where you can see them; reaffirm them to yourself. This will serve as a major confidence-booster. 7. Have a Long-Term Vision While we already stressed the importance of setting specific goals, it’s important not to go too far the other direction, either. It’s possible to get so set on checking off the items on your daily to-do list that you lose sight of why you’re doing the work to begin with. What big goals are these daily tasks serving? If you can’t answer that question, you need to go back to the drawing board. It’s much easier to persevere through difficult times when you know that the work you’re doing is in service of a larger vision. Stay Motivated for Good We hope you now see that motivation isn’t some mysterious natural gift that some people are just born with. It’s something that anyone can achieve and maintain with the right techniques. When you need motivation, you need to do hard work, of course. But you can stay motivated through difficult times provided that the hard work is in service of something you believe in.