The (Not So) Secrets to a Productive Day

When it boils down to it, there are no secrets to being productive at all. The concepts are simple and straight forward. In fact, many of us know them already. Despite this we continuously fail to remember them in the heat of the moment. Before we know it, we’re groaning about how we’re not getting anything done, life is without purpose, we never have any time to do what we want, etc etc. At least, it happens to me!

Whilst the concepts are simple, the execution at times can be quite difficult. As soon as you wake up, you’re bombarded with distraction and it does not let up until you’re ready to go to bed at the end of the day. Even at that stage our minds are usually racing so much with a multitude of thoughts that many of us have difficulty getting a decent night sleep.

With this all in mind, I thought I would come up with a few (not so) secret actions you can take to ensure you have a productive day. If you can work any (or all!) of these into your daily routine, the results will be absolutely dramatic.

PREPPING THE NIGHT BEFORE

Give yourself 5 minutes the day before, just before bed, to plan ahead. Plan your day (pen and paper!) and also plant the seeds mindfully in thought to ensure you’re waking up with clarity and knowing how your day will look.

TIME BLOCK

Allocate realistic time blocks throughout the day (ie: between 10am and 11am I will do nothing but work on a specific outstanding task). These time blocks must be made with the strict rules that there are virtually no exceptions. This helps to ensure that there are no opportunities of distraction and all other tasks and requests (unless life threatening) can wait. Whatever you do though, don’t go back-to-back with your tasks. Give yourself breaks and leeway between each one. No need to burn yourself out.

KEEP IT SHORT AND TO THE POINT

Don’t overdo it. A short list is better than a long list. It’s great to be enthusiastic and write a page or more of things you want to tick off for the day, but this is a marathon, not a sprint! The last thing you want to do is become overwhelmed and find yourself with a number of incomplete tasks at the end of the day. Not good for peace of mind! Start small and set yourself up to win. With that being said however…

THE ONE THING

Don’t always lean towards the easy items. Use the rule that is outlined in the book ‘The One Thing‘ by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan which is “What’s the ONE Thing you can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?”. Having 3 or 4 purposeful items will have far more of an impact than 20 things that are easy and only give short term satisfaction for that day only.

MEDITATE AND CLEAR THE MIND

This highly underrated practice is being picked up by more and more people. Start with 5 to 10 minutes in the morning, each day (Recommendations – Sam Harris and Headspace App). By allowing a few minutes of meditation, this will help establish focus for the day. It will also reduce the chances of dramatically being impacted by distraction and finding yourself in auto pilot. It can also be a great relaxant, especially when you have some challenge tasks or experiences ahead.

14 Tunes You Must Hear – Music from The…

We’re still early days when it comes to The Andy Social Podcast, however let’s highlight some of the amazing music that has come from the guests who have been generous to give their time and appear on the podcast to date!

This is the first of hopefully many blogs of this nature as I continue to talk to more amazing musicians who are working hard to bring their creativity to the masses.

A Call to Action – Share the music, share the podcast episodes, tell these guys what you think and simply enjoy!

Sedition – Do You Believe (Featuring Sinclair Newey from Episode 35)

Northlane – Impulse (Featuring Josh Smith from Episode 33)

The Art – Weirdo Superhero (Featuring Jordan McDonald from Episode 32)

Aversions Crown – Erebus (Featuring Mick Jeffery from Episode 31)

Widow the Sea – Cinerary Casket (Featuring Mick Jeffery from Episode 31)

Harlott – Systematic Reduction (Featuring Andrew Hudson from Episode 22)

Lagerstein – Land of Bundy (Featuring The Immobilizer from Episode 21)

Dawn of Azazel – Vassalplasty (Featuring Rigel Walshe from Episode 18)

The Eternal – Circle of Light (Featuirng Mark Kelson from Episode 14)

Albatross – Jugglehead the Clown (Featuring Riju Dasgupta from Episode 7)

Shanghai – Shenanigans (Featuring Riley Perry from Episode 5)

Mechanical Black – Together in Electric Dreams (Featuring Riley Perry from Episode 5)

Arnie O Connection – Absolute Escape (Featuring Arnie Olbrich *Rest in Peace* from Episode 3)

Rise of Avernus – Acta Est Fabula (Featuring Andrew Craig from Episode 2)

Oh, and because I have *NO* shame, here’s the last video clip from us!

Be a wanker! Be creative!

I’ve been pretty lucky. For a large chunk of my life I’ve been in the company of many creative people. Musicians, artists, performers, and the like. Overall it’s been a pretty supportive group that are open minded and embrace their creativity and the creativity of those around them.

With that being said, however, I have also experienced the other world where many people don’t embrace it. They see anything that is even remotely artistic as ‘pretentious’, someone who’s ‘a wanker’, ‘self obsessed’, ‘useless’ and associate anyone who embraces their creative side as person who has no direction in their life, no purpose and even at times is seen as someone who is lazy.

That was the reality that I have seen, and I still see it to varying extents depending on the social circles you step into. It’s funny because even to this day, if I tell someone that I play in a band, depending on the person, I tend to get a smirk and a back handed compliment which usually insinuates a level of immaturity that I have, and that one day I’ll grow up and do something of worth. That’s even before being asked what kind of music I play!

For me, it’s no biggie. I’ve always had a passion for music and an alternative way of living and thinking. While I’m far from perfect, I’ve always tried hard to have an open mind and embrace other people’s decisions, especially if it challenges the status quo. What I do find frustrating, is seeing people that I come into contact with who have locked themselves away from the world and refuse to embrace their creativity. This is usually out of fear of what others may think about them (see my other blog – Fear of Fear, for more info on this mindset). In some cases this results in that individual lashing out at other people’s attempts to be creative, because it’s bringing to the surface a deep fear and frustration that they have.

So what’s the point of all this dribble? The point is to do what feels right instead of doing what others think you should do. If you have a longing urge to write, then write! Poetry? Go for it. You’d like to sing? Hit up a local tutor or just start making loud noises! Even if it’s simply to think creatively in your life as a whole. Challenge the norm. Think outside the box. Try something different to see what result you get. Do things with meaning and purpose. If you make a mistake or it doesn’t turn out the way you want, then it’s still a success. Why? You get to take away an experience and have the satisfaction in knowing that you gave it a shot. On top of that, you’ve strengthened your creative mind which will no doubt lead to more growth and satisfaction in the future.

Take the first step, face any fears that you’ve created and disregard the negativity that may come from those around you who struggle to open up themselves. Connect with yourself, connect with others. Do something because you WANT to. Be a wanker! Be creative!

 

Fear of Fear

Fear. I don’t think a lot of people understand the word at times, or more so realise that their actions are often being ruled by it.

This isn’t about fear in a situation where your life or health depends on it. We all know that there are circumstances where we need to be controlled by our fear to remove ourselves from harm. In most every day cases, however, this response system is never needed.

The fear I’m talking about is the negative underlying beliefs of ourselves that tend to prevent us from being happy. Here are a few examples that I have pulled from myself and those who close to me.

“I’m not good enough.”
“<Insert name> will more than likely not approve.”
“What will other’s say behind my back?”
“I’m wasting my time.”
“Plenty of people are better than me.”
“I don’t want to lose what I currently have.”

Any of those sound familiar? There are of course many many more, but those are some common ones that I hear from others and I’ve had similar conversations with myself over the years. Don’t get me wrong, sometimes you have to make a decision to put your focus elsewhere that will produce a better result, but there are many instances where the negative internal dialogue such as the ones noted above have prevented us from simply having a go and increasing our chances of finding happiness.

What I’ve found is that most of these self sabotaging fears never really eventuate when you get the guts to take that step into the unknown. It’s almost never as bad as what it seems. Let’s break down the list above and fllllessssshhh it out.

Please note: As with everything in life, its all about perspective and there are many of them (ie: I’m no fucking expert). This is just one perspective from little old me.

“I’m not good enough.”

– That could very well be true, at the moment. Do you think that some of the best people out there were just instantly talented from the get go? Sure, there are a small number of ‘freaks’ (used in the most enduring way) out there, but the majority need to start from nil. You have the privilege of starting where the majority of others have also begun. You might not be good enough yet, but you can be or at the very least be miles better by simply starting.

“<Insert name> will more than likely not approve.”

– Sometimes we worry too much about what others think. Many of us feel pressure from our partners, parents, friends, etc that might not actually exist. This is always a delicate area because relationships with people are extremely varied, however sometimes we create scenarios in our mind with regard to another person’s perception of a situation that may not always be true. I have found personally that many people in my life have assumed that someone might think negatively of them or a potential decision/point of view, but have never actually discussed it with that other person. It’s only later, long past the time, that they discover that the other person did not care whatsoever and as a result, that opportunity is long gone or you’ve wasted a lot of emotional fuel bottling it up. My tip would be to talk to those who’s opinion matters, rather than make an assumption. From there, gauge their reaction and then make a decision as to whether you take on their comments/opinions, or not.

Adding to this very quickly, in those instances where you do receive a backlash from those close to you, you need to take time out to distinguish whether or not their concerns are justified or if emotion is taking over their stance on the subject. Sometimes people’s resistance to a subject or situation is more from their own fears or even previous failures, rather than a true reality of the current situation and having your best interests at hand.

“What will other’s say behind my back?”

– Who gives a shit? Yes, I know. I’m sorry. Easier said than done. Unfortunately for people, we do tend to worry about what others may say. You will find, however, that in most cases, nobody is talking about you. Shock horror. That’s right, most people are too wrapped up in their own world to worry about speaking ill of you. In those cases where others are in fact being vicious behind your back, chances are its due to their own fears and insecurities rather than specifically what you’re doing. The way I see it, if people are talking about me then it means that I’m doing something that is involving action and having an impact one way or the other. Remember folks, it’s all about perspective. I would much rather follow my gut and act on something, regardless of the outcome, than hold back and do nothing at all.

“I’m wasting my time.”

– I see this like failure and it doesn’t exist. As many of the greats say, it’s all feedback and results. There is always some form of benefit from every experience. Of course, there are times then you’re in a counter productive situation and you need to break out of that experience or action/task, but even then it wasn’t waste of time. There is always something to be learnt and built on. This fear should never be a road block to stop you from getting started.

“Plenty of people are better than me.”

– I hate to say it, but there will always be people better than you. There will always be someone more intelligent, stronger, prettier, and better at the things that you love most. That doesn’t mean that you cannot achieve greatness and deep satisfaction in your life. Always aim to be the best you can be but never be disheartened when someone does 1 better. Turn that into fuel to always improve. Be motivated by those who are several steps ahead and learn from them. In the end, every step that you make towards the things you love is far far more than simply doing nothing at all.

“I don’t want to lose what I currently have.”

– I think if you are genuine and you can justify your decisions and actions without hurting or severely impacting people in a negative way, you won’t lose the things that mean most to you. That is not a bullet proof approach of course, but in most cases these fears are not justified and the outcome of confronting a person or situation turns out to be a lot better than initially expected. In those moments where you do lose out, it’s a great opportunity to reflect and see whether you have really in fact lost something important in your life or if in hindsight it’s been a positive change.

 

I’m sure there will be plenty of negative nancies that won’t agree with what I’ve written, but as I’ve said earlier, this is just one perspective. It’s something that I’ve seen a lot of from people that are close to me and it’s definitely not unique to only a small number of people. Fear is a healthy thing to have, but the challenge is taking a step back and realising whether it is a legitimate fear worth acknowledging, or something that is simply holding you back from happiness.

Finally, I’ll end on this. If there is something that you’re holding out on. Something that you’ve been putting off for a long time and it’s eating you up. Imagine the worst possible outcome of making that next step/decision. Think about how that worst scenario would impact you and your life (excluding situations involving death/physical harm). Really blow it up. Once you’ve done that, think about what you would be forced to do if that situation would occur. What would you do? How would you survive? What would you need to do to make things right? Take some serious time to think this over. You’ll find that in the very rare event that anything remotely like this occurs, you’ll realise that you will be able to get through it. You’ll know what needs to be done. With that in mind though, it’s simply unlikely that this the worst possible outcome will ever happen, because our minds always over-inflate a situation out of fear. This is the very thing that stops us from doing more in our lives. If you’re prepared for the absolute worst, then you’ll make that next step with far more confidence.

Are my drawings getting better?

Breaking through incoherent mutter

You know how much energy it has taken me to stop, sit down, and starting typing this? Honestly, to try and slow my brain down just enough to get that *little* bit of focus to begin tapping away was such a hard task. But hey, here I am and I’m now on a roll.

Have you ever driven somewhere and find that you can’t remember how you got there? Might be a morning or afternoon commute. It can be a little shocking at times, because you know, you’re driving a large and heavy piece of metal and you kind of need to be SLIGHTLY alert, right? I guess you still are, but good luck keeping your mind 100% focused on the road ahead of you.

This happens all.of.the.freakin.time to me. Not just driving, but talking to people, reading, watching a documentary, working, eating, walking, sleeping, breathing… you get the picture. Basically, I always find my mind elsewhere. Distracted. Never in the moment. Never understanding or more importantly appreciating what I am doing right then and there.

The other interesting thing I find is that things are always great after they happen. Don’t follow? Let me explain.

So, I’m out at a gig/show (easiest example for most reading) and have a good enough night. Might be some beers, a lot of socialising etc but it all happens so quickly that before you know it, you’re home again. Good enough night, but life goes on. Now, fast forward 5 years and recall that same night. There’s probably a good chance that you will recall a “fucking awesome night” and say something along the lines of “that was the good old days” or whatever. I used to think that it was a case of blowing things up to be better than what they were at the time (you know, over embellishing), but I think its more of a case that I simply was not appreciating what I was experiencing then and there. In the moment. Only when time has passed and has made the heart fonder (sound familiar?), that you start to miss particular times in your life and appreciate them more.

Remember that other old saying “you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone”? I’ll tell you why you don’t know. You don’t know because you’re not paying attention. You’re not stopping in the moment and thinking “hmmm, what do I have to be thankful for?” and finding a true feeling of gratitude. You’re instead in a subtle and unconscious state of panic. You’re thinking about the next task, the next adventure, the next unattained achievement that is currently out of reach. It’s like when you suffer, stress and frustrate yourself so much because you’re trying to master something, achieve something, attain a material object or person, but then when you have it, you’re instantly onto the next thing. No time to stop! Just got to keep going and going and going and going.

Now don’t get me wrong, there is absolutely nothing wrong with being a high achiever and constantly setting goals for yourself. Achieving one thing, ticking it off the list and moving on. It’s fine and if anything it can be quite healthy. The problem is that word that I mentioned earlier. Gratitude. A word that most know the meaning of, but have so rarely experienced it that they don’t really know its true essence. I certainly don’t. Hell, I torture myself trying to get to the core of the word. What kind of experience does gratitude give? What does it FEEL like? Have I experienced it? Do I really understand it or am I simply telling myself that this is how I should feel regularly. I know one. I’m certainly over-thinking it!

Nudging this rambling amass of words back on track, the point I *think* I am trying to make is that I think we all just need to calm down. Calm.the.fuck.down. Nothing is as bad as we make it out to be (disclaimer – in most cases) and all of those distracting thoughts that tear us away from the moment, are simply throwing us into a spiral of in-cohesive dribble, where we find ourselves waking up on the other side wondering how we got there. Wondering where those minutes, hours, days, weeks, months and even years have gone.

So nutshell here, and maybe I’m simply talking to myself more so than anyone else (therapy session anyone?), is to sit still. Breathe. Feel your heart beat. Feel your lungs expand and contract. Listen to what noises are around you. See who else is around you and continue to build on that. Add to it and slowly see that your world might not be as chaotic or as stressful as you might normally make it out to be. Some of those worries and fears might actually be things that are easy to resolve because you can now put some focus on them, instead of letting it be pushed to the back of your head by other easier and more distracting thoughts.

This is my interpretation of what mindfulness is. It’s not perfect and you might be more confused than before you started reading, but this is where the journey begins, continues and never stops. Always looking to be mindful or finding moments of mindfulness. Never forcing it, but always working towards having better awareness. Day to day, moment to moment.

 

Note: If you’re struggling on auto-pilot and trying to find some clarity of mind, give episode 26 of my podcast a shot with Dr Craig Hassed. He studies mindfulness and is the author of many books on the practice. I highly recommend picking up the book Mindfulness for Life, which is a great introduction. I’m still new to it all, but as I mention in the episode, the little that I have learnt has already had a dramatic impact on my life. You have nothing to lose!

My Top Moments of 2015

TOP MOMENTS OF 2015

I figured I should jump on the band wagon and do a recap of 2015. Hell, I have a website now so why not chuck something up on here?

2015 was filled many moments of growth. I must say that at times I was certainly challenged, however overall it was filled with positivity and appears to have set me on a path to an even bigger and better year ahead.

So here are my top moments of 2015, in no particular order. I hope that you’ll be able to share yours with me and if there’s anything I can do that will help make your 2016 even better than planned (I’ll accept silly requests), please let me know via my Facebook or Twitter pages.

 
Engagement

I proposed in November 2014 to my now fiancée, Jessica, in Singapore, however we had our engagement party in 2015 with a small gathering of friends and family. I still have to pinch myself that not only do I have such an amazing woman, but she said yes and we’ll be making it official in August of this year. I’m one very, very lucky guy.

Buying a house

It probably should have happened 10 years ago, but better late than never! Due to the ridiculously overpriced property market in Sydney (one of the most expensive places in the world to live!), we decided to take the plunge and buy a beautiful 80 year old property down on the south coast. At the moment it’s an investment, however we hope to move in soon to take advantage of first home owner benefits in New South Wales. My plan is that this property will be the first of many. Very exciting as I said before, I should have done it a long time ago!

Trip to the USA

In September I ventured to the US for a few days to attend the annual ProgPower USA festival. Also spent a brief bit of time in Los Angeles and New York as well. You can listen to my entire trip on episode 8 of my podcast.

Playing in new places for the first time (LORD) – Kalgoorlie, Cairns, Townsville and Mackay

You never know what you’re going to get when we play a new town/city for the first time (especially in Australia), but we had an absolute blast in Kalgoorlie, Cairns, Townsville and Mackay. Some shows went better than others, but it’s always a great feeling to play in front of new people for the first time. It keeps everything fresh and great to see that we picked up a lot of new fans from those shows.

New EP – What Tomorrow Brings

In June, we (LORD) put out our latest release ‘What Tomorrow Brings’. It’s always a rush to something new out and the feedback we’ve had from fans has been fantastic. For those who aren’t aware of it, check out our release page. It might be just an EP, but the title track is over 25 minutes in length and comprises of an additional unreleased original and 4 cover songs. Total bang for buck!

New video – Against the Wind

If only we could just do video clips for everything! In late September, we met up in the inner west of Sydney to film ‘Against the Wind’, the re-recorded version taken from our The Dungeon Era box set. It’s been quite some time between videos, so it was great to get a new visual out there for everyone to see, and even better to give a classic Dungeon song its deserved attention. Hopefully we’ll get back to our videoing ways in 2016 with more video clips.

Immersing myself in the world of podcasts

I’d been listening to podcasts on and off for the last couple of years, but in 2015 I really threw myself into it and began regularly listening on a daily basis. It might sound silly, but it’s been life changing for me and opened my eyes up to many more possibilities when it comes to the band growth and my own personal development. Some of my favourite podcasts include Joe Rogan Experience, Tim Ferriss, The Church of What’s Happening Now, Small Business Big Marketing, The Duncan Trussell Family Hour, Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History, Bertcart’s podcast and Damn Interesting.

Launching this podcast

Picking up from what I’ve just mentioned, my ultra-high consumption of podcasting opened my eyes to this new form of media (at least new to me) and I finally bit the bullet and launched my own podcast. At the time of this post, I’ll be 20 episodes in and while it’s still in its infancy, I have already greatly benefited by the conversations I’ve had with all of my guests but also those who regularly tune in every week. Thank you so much and this year I’m looking forward to taking it to the next level!

Seeing John Farnham twice

How could I say how awesome 2015 was without mentioning Farnsy? No, I didn’t get to meet him, but I did get to see him perform twice in Sydney and Melbourne respectively. At 66 years of age, he is still the greatest singer of all time. I would even go as far as to say that he’s singing better now than he has in over 20 years. Absolutely incredible! If you aren’t familiar with John Farnham, check out episode 4 of my podcast which includes a number of links to his music. Oh, and you can of course listen to our cover of Playing to Win!.

Paying the Music Forward

One thing that I’ve been trying to practice more and more is giving to others. I found that I had accumulated a large number of CDs, tapes, records that were duplicates due to buying by accident in my travels or inheriting someone else’s collection. Instead of sitting on eBay and slowly selling everything, I made the decision to give away one release each week to people on Facebook. At time of writing this, I’ve been doing it for 40 weeks and it’s been fantastic. Not only have I been able to offload a lot of clutter, but I’ve also helped other people complete their collections or introduce them to great music. I hope that others will do the same and pass on their unwanted music to someone either young or appreciative of it. Music needs to be shared, and it’s much better being played than sitting in a box collecting dust! This year I’ll be looking to continue the weekly give-aways and find other ways to pass on music to those who will love and appreciate it.

Discovering Mindfulness

This is a work-in-progress. I read a great book entitled Mindfulness for Life by Dr Stephen McKenzie and Dr Craig Hassed and I’ve spent the last several months trying to improve my awareness. For those who aren’t familiar with mindfulness, here’s a great definition;

“a mental state achieved by focusing one’s awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one’s feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations, used as a therapeutic technique”

It’s about not being in auto-pilot. Not reacting blindly in situations that can later lead to regret. It’s not about judging your feelings or what’s happening around you, but simply being aware of what is happening in the present situation. You’ll find that by being mindful, you’ll be able to conquer many debilitating habits such as anger, bad eating, alcohol consumption, smoking and much more. I suck badly at practising mindfulness but I do find that I can do it better than when I first started. It’s all about practice.