Welcome & Introductions

With the practice of social distancing and many places closing for the safety and well being of our communities, how are you keeping yourself motivated with your goals, projects, work and more? Any tips you have for others who may be struggling to find a new normal that supports their ultimate goals?

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Katie Avendano
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Hi Katie,
I am a self-motivated and organized person and I would love to give a few tips. The best advice I could give is to have a to do list. Your to do list can be planned for the day, for the week, for the month or even the semester (that is what I do). Having a list of what you need to do has many benefits: it keeps you organized, encourages you to accomplish more, helps you have a clear mind because everything you need to do is already organized and written down, and to be honest crossing off something from the list is always satisfying. I also recommend to stay active because it helps you have a clear mind when you need to work. If the weather is nice, you can go outside, or if not, you can practice an activity at home. 
Hope this is helpful ! 

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Sincerely, Elissa Doumith
University of Portland, School of Business.
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I'm not a horribly motivated person. I procrastinate a lot, but I really also hate wasting time. Life certainly has been upended this year, but even though we're all separated, technology has made it easier than ever to be connected in some way. My office building is closed down, but I'm on the phone or video chat with my colleagues hourly. Even though I can't pop into the next office, I can message someone and give them a video call to talk about work, or to talk about our tactics to not go crazy as we're trying to work while kids are whizzing by screaming at the top of their lungs.

And even though the workplace has shifted, there's still work to be done. I have different methods for work vs home goals/projects. I've tried a lot of different ways to keep on task throughout the years, and none is ever perfect, and I've always found that your mileage may vary on any given method that works well for others.

Work goals/tasks - these aren't really changing even given the circumstances, things are just different and working with colleagues is different.

• Projects - Every year I map out a high level plan of all the projects going on that year and use it as a living document that changes as needs/timelines/resources/etc change. It's a really nice starting point to work with and to make sure projects are running on time.
• Beyond that I have detailed project plans for each project (assuming the projects are involved enough to need a plan).
• I have a running list of tasks that are due for both projects and the day-to-day urgent items that come up. Daily I like to figure out what my top ~3 tasks are for the day, along with anything else that might come up.
• I will say that it's way harder now to try to stay on track - both because there's more separation between my colleagues and me, and because kids are really distracting. I find the only way I can keep up right now is to shift work around to make time for the kids.

Personal goals - using technology, and also going back to being connected to others with technology

• Roughly annually I set a number of goals for the year (learning something new, exercising, meditation, reading, etc). When setting the goal, I try to have a measurable target that I can work toward. Then I set up a spreadsheet to track milestones and progress toward a goal (I've read X books of XX, or run X miles of XX).
• Setting up the spreadsheet isn't really motivation, but for that, I find the following 3 things work well for me:
  • Setting routines - I wake early to run, meditating at lunchtime, reading for at least 20 minutes before going to bed, etc - this gives me the ability to make goal progress daily
  • Motivating Friends / Being Motivated by Friends - I share my goal and tracking spreadsheets with some friends who have similar goals. I also connect with friends on any mobile apps that I use for tracking (running app, etc) where we keep track of each others' workouts to motivate each other to keep up our progress.
  • Guilt - I'm going to feel bad about myself if I don't complete my goals, and if I don't make progress toward one on any given day. Guilt, for me (even though I'm not catholic) is more powerful than how nice the extra sleep feels in the morning.

Again, these things work for me, but your mileage may vary with any of them.

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John Schroeder
Arlington Heights IL
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Hi Katie,
With the lockdown of many places, and option to solve problem digitally, arise the best opportunity to self develop.I am from India and due to current pandemic the country is locked down so Started doing things which were on my to do list for a long time

1) Start exercising, get what you want: ABS may be
2) Reading: I have started developing this habit to complete various books and novels
3) Spend time with famil and watch some family show together
4) Learn to cook

I am treating these days as my best time for self development and instead of getting stressed out I find myself very busy.

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Mayank Dubey
Hathras
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