r/lifehack

My mental model of a smart person is someone who solves problems by looking at them from different angles, inverts and molds them, and arrives at a favorable and reasonable solution. This person seems to go through this process quickly and effortlessly. But 'Get Smart' by Brian Tracy makes the opposite case- the most effective thinkers are almost always the ones who think slower, longer, and with a great deal more deliberateness than everyone else in the room.

I recently listened to the podcast series of this book on the app Dialogue: Podcast Conversations on Books.

My main takeaway -> "being smart" is only a matter of clearing some misconceptions and habit upgrades. 

Here are the five of my key learnings:

• The first one is long term vs. short term thinking. Generally people are prone to go for the things that have better chances of getting them immediate rewards, or the things that are easy, without thinking about the consequences, even of a week later. But in contrast to this, a ‘high achiever’ asks: "what is this going to look like 5 years from now?". Many outcomes differ simply because of this ‘short term versus long term’ thought pattern. short term is almost always an activity that feels productive, but often isn’t.
• The second is the interval or pause between stimulus and response. Between the moment a trigger is fired and a response occurs, a split second exists when a good decision can be made, and the vast majority of people overtake it. the book asserts that this moment should be preserved. Thinking before reacting and deliberately grasping this interval and, if need be, making a small time delay before you respond will generally result in a better decision. The idea is to gradually make this a habit so it doesn't require conscious extra strain and comes naturally.
• Third is "the way of the solution-oriented thinkers." Most of the people in a ‘problem state’ focus their energy around ‘why me?’, ‘who to blame?’, ‘how it happened?’, ‘how unfair it all is.' Solution-oriented thinking acknowledges the problem, maybe feels a little pity for oneself, but focuses solely on how to resolve it. You cannot hold both ‘problem’ and ‘solution’ simultaneously in your head, whichever one your focus is directed towards is the one that will grow.
• The fourth one is result-oriented thinking. the author very nicely makes the distinction between being busy and being effective. In reality many of the things we do – emails, meetings, meetings about emails, and so on... are just moving around and filling our day with filler. Result-oriented thinking asks the question: "What is the single thing, for me, that I can do right now that will produce visible progress?" The rest is clutter until that question is answered or a way out has been found.
• Finally, we have goal clarity. If you have a goal that’s vague, your mind is free to go off and work on whatever is right there in front of you, which tends to be whatever someone else is urgently pushing or whatever demands immediate attention. A clear written goal helps you actively seek and notice the relevant opportunities that you might have missed otherwise.

What is fascinating is how simple all of these concepts, infact, are and yet how rarely they are practiced.  The book doesn't lay down a straight roadmap for transformation into a "smart person." It only asks you a simple question: are you happy(whatver that may mean for you) with how you are thinking and making decisions? (I suspect, most of the time, the honest answer to this is no.)

I'm trying to get 7+ days outta these bouquets that you can grab from Kroger for around $5.

I use the little plant food packet that comes with, but then I change the water after about 4 days, and am looking for a home brew solution that'll feed em for a few more days....