Keeping it short this week, getting kids to events and my wife is away.
Keep Your No Close
It's good to have a reminder about keeping your no close at hand. Over 10 years ago I said that No is the most productive word in your vocabulary but it's easy to forget about it because you want to be the type of person that does....whatever.
It's a good feeling to be relied on, but it's also easy to over commit and then not be able to do anything you said you'd do.
Better to say yes to very few things and do them well.
Sentences in books that change you
Prompted by Derek Sivers here are some books that changed me.
Debt of Honor
Debt of Honor has a stock market crash and the solution is that if it's not written down it didn't happen. In the book this means that since all the records were lost let's just reset and start where we were.
I took the statement and used it to remember that if I don't write my tasks down, then I'm not going to get to them. Remember to write your tasks down if you want to get to them.
Oathbringer
“I will take responsibility for what I have done,” Dalinar whispered. “If I must fall, I will rise each time a better man.”
It's easy to take responsibility when things are good and you're doing well. It's harder when you have made a mistake or failed, but taking responsibility for your actions when you're at fault speaks louder about your character than when things are going well.
Deep Work
This one prompted a long review and got me to focus on doing good work and ignoring distractions. I even coined my own version I called The Mullet Method which helped me do good work without feeling overwhelmed.
Also see books that changed my business.