There is a time and a place for the question, “How?” but it’s not where we should begin. This is what Peter Block, the author of the book, The Answer to How Is Yes, argues.

In an article titled Self-discipline is easy, actually: clarity vs. force (sic), Dan Koe argues that rather than trying to change your life, you need to begin by spending enough time with your “anti-vision.” Here’s part of the article. 

Part of the vision for The Good Leaven Letter is to share thought-provoking distinctions that act as good leaven for your life. A section I read by Dan Koe in his e-book Purpose and Profit: A Guide to Discovering Your Life’s Work shares such a distinction.

Can you touch your toes? This common stretch is often used to test flexibility. Perhaps you’re like me and not very flexible. If you’ve tried to improve and had a hard time making progress, it might be that you’ve been operating according to a common misconception that flexibility has to do with muscle or tendon length.

Have you ever said something like “I’ll complete that by the end of the week,” and then found that you ran out of time or you simply forgot to finish the task?

Have you ever been interrupted in the middle of a task? The interruption might even be the next thing on your agenda. For example, you might be eating lunch and realize that your 1 o’clock appointment is in five minutes.

I’ve been writing The Good Leaven Letter weekly for several years now. Each week, I follow inspiration and don’t have particular core themes in mind. Because of this, I’ve been increasingly curious to learn whether or not there are general trends.

It might seem unusual, but I am in the midst of a book titled The Empowered Wife. Actually, I’m reading it together with my wife after more than one coach friend told me that it transformed their marriage.

Before trips my wife uses a written list of items to pack for our family. Some friends of ours cook brats for dinner every Saturday. As a recruiter, I use a chart to visualize and track my phone, text, and email communications to candidates.

Joseph King Barkley, the president of the MetaPerformance Institute, recently wrote a thought-provoking post on LinkedIn. It relates to how he handles exploratory calls with coaches who are considering joining Foundations, a coaching training program offered by the Institute.

Strong Towns, one of the most popular books on urban revitalization, has grown an entire movement around its principles. All around the country, people have banded into groups called “Conversations” to support the improvement and renewal of their cities.

“The thing’s on fire, and they had to call the fire department.” These are the words that my wife woke me with at 7:30am.

In Patrick Lencioni’s book, The Ideal Team Player, the main character finds himself in a challenge that will require intense focus. For a time, he is able to make this his main priority but then, he is surprised when the busyness of ordinary tasks take him off course for two whole days.

Think of a particular challenge in your life. What if you could change your mindset to create a positive snowball effect in less than an hour? This is exactly what the interventions of Stanford psychologist Gregory Walton do.

When I was driving to Nashville this weekend, I often had a car or truck in front of me. While following them, I was reminded of a practice in cycling called “drafting” or “slipstreaming.”

In the following pairs of statements which is true? 

People stay the same. — People change.

I don’t belong here. — Other people also feel like they don’t belong.

I am unattractive. — If one person, my future spouse, finds me attractive, that is more than enough.

I once read somewhere that one way that you can tell if an animal is monogamous or polygamous is that animals who have just one mate for life release significantly higher levels of oxytocin, the social bonding hormone, during reproduction.

Can your mindset about food impact how your body reacts to it? In a fascinating study, participants were given a milkshake for breakfast and told that it was a high-calorie, indulgent treat. Two weeks later the same participants were given another milkshake and told that it was a low-calorie, healthy drink.

You’re getting old. How did you react to that statement? Does getting old mean something negative or positive to you?

“What was more important than doing what you said you would?” When I ask this question of my coaching clients, I’ve often gotten reactions like, “Ouch, that one stings,” or “Man, that one hurts.”