💎 Friday Gems #22 (Clarity of Goals, Being Kind, Mind Traps)

Plus Quick Gems and a Quote!

Jul 14, 2023

Hellooooo Low Fidelity readers!

It’s been a long and hot week but the gems this week will help to cool us down.

On to this week’s gems!

💎 Turning Fear of Failure into Increments of Curiosity

I have a bad habit of deciding for others.

What I mean by that is, let's say I want to invite a guest to my podcast; I start doubting how successful I will be in inviting them. I tell myself that the guest would never agree to be on my podcast because my podcast is not famous enough or is doesn’t have big name guests, or I’m not good enough, etc., so why would they even consider coming on to the podcast?

This way I have already decided for them without having even asked them what they want.

I’ve blocked myself before I have even given myself a chance.

You can see my chances of booking that guest are zero, zilch, nil.

The article by Anne-Laure Le Cunff unpacks this unhelpful thought pattern to help us see how the fear of failing manifests when we decide for others instead of approaching our goals with an experimentation mindset and increments of curiosity so we don't feel that dreaded feeling of regret as we move closer to our potential.

Source: Ness Labs

💎 Just By Being Kind

We all could use more positivity and kindness in our world, and this song by Tiny Habits creator B.J Fogg helps to lift us up to make a difference in the lives of others through tiny acts of kindness.

Even though this video is for kids, we "adults" can gain inspiration to bring kindness into our workplace and our homes as well to help reduce anxiety and stress that can distance us from our authentic selves.

Tiny Habits has also created a handy discussion guide to talk about the lyrics of the song and about kindness with kids.

Source: Tiny Habits

💎 Mind Traps: Reclaim your time by reclaiming your mind

Managing our time is difficult. Anxiety, regret, fear, doubt, or some combination of all become too much for us to manage so we end up distracting ourselves from what we need to be doing, or worse yet, we give up and abandon our goals altogether.

Mind traps can damage and derail our plans.

For example, I beat myself up sometimes when I give an important presentation at work. I find the things that I think I did badly or wrong, and I come down hard on myself. This is a result of falling for the unrealistic tendency towards perfectionism and has prevented me from learning. To break the pattern, I can practice self-compassion, positive self-talk, and patience with myself so I can improve and be motivated to do a better job next time.

In the latest newsletter issue, Oli Anderson, a creative performance coach, who also has helped me transform my approach to life, shares common mind traps that hold us back, what's going on in our heads psychologically, and how we can break the patterns to reclaim our time to work towards our goals and get us closer to our potential.

Source: Oli Anderson's Newsletter

💎 Quick Gems

Clarity with Cory

You Want To Make Authentic Change But Feel Stuck

You've read the best-selling self-help books. You're a devoted listener of helpful podcasts. You follow writers on social media that feed you daily insights. You're starting to understand what it means…

a year ago · 54 likes · 7 comments · Cory Allen

To make an authentic change, you must narrow your focus and become precise about your goals.

CYOO

Teaching for joy, not drain

My first dream job as a wee kid was to become a teacher. I loved my elementary school teachers and all of the fun exercises they led during class, from building bridges with toothpicks to group book reports. I quickly moved on from that dream to chasing more solitary, creative pursuits like writing and music, but my appreciation for teaching always rema…

a year ago · 12 likes · 5 comments · Carolyn Yoo

Teaching is an opportunity to bring more positive energy and connect with others. When teaching, resist the urge to "overcomplicate things to prove worthiness"; remember, less is more!

Gem of a Quote

“The biggest positive for working in mainstream media is having an editor and the structure of deadlines. That’s something a lot of writers hate when they’re in the moment. But I think that there is something unimaginably valuable about someone saying, “You have to get this in at this time, no matter what.” For me, that has looked like me pulling an all-nighter and turning in something shitty. But I’ve learned there is value in having a deadline that motivates you to write 1,000 words. Even if it’s shitty the first time, it puts you in such a good position to create something. The problem with Substack for me is I think it’s really easy to fall into this artistic black hole of wanting something to be perfect so you never actually do it, because the only way that something can be perfect is if it only exists in your head.”
– Rayne Fisher-Quann, in The Creative Independent

I take this quote as a wake-up call to bring more consistency and discipline to my writing. 😅

How do you read this quote?

Let me know in the comments if any of the gems resonate with you. I always love hearing from you.

Thanks for reading, and have a fantastic weekend!

Rizwan