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Can Being Bored Make You More Successful?

Posted on 2015-08-11 at 8:55 am.

Today we bring you a guest post by Charles Scott, an endurance athlete and family adventurer who believes that embracing new experiences is the key to living a full and happy life.

The broad adoption of anywhere anytime computing into modern culture has transformed not just office productivity and modes of communication. It has also reset expectations. We expect immediate gratification from our devices, instant responses to our texts, and in perhaps the least analyzed transformation, the promise of release from boredom. But [Tweet “think twice before eliminating boredom from your life – it may turn out to be your key to success.”]

When I worked in the mobile products group at Intel Corporation a decade ago, we often discussed the nirvana represented by anytime anywhere computing. Intel had not yet launched its Centrino platform, which would integrate wireless technology into laptops. And most people used handheld devices primarily for checking their e-mail and calendar. We often discussed how great it would be to have the Internet at our fingertips at all times. A decade later this is old news, of course. And although many companies tried, Apple had the greatest success in bringing the anytime anywhere vision to the consumer market with the iPhone and iPad.

In making the Internet and an endless collection of apps available on demand, the iPhone represents the monetization of spare time. The term “micro-boredom” appeared in a Marketing magazine article in 2001 to describe an emerging usage model among Internet users looking to “kill a few minutes of spare time.” Since then, filling spare moments of boredom has emerged as a massive business opportunity for the technology industry.

Stuck in line at the grocery store? Sitting in a dark theater before the movie starts? Waiting for the subway? Don’t let your mind sit idle – play a game of Angry Birds, send a text, or check Facebook.

Driving? Out to dinner with your spouse? In a yoga class? In a meeting at work? Don’t get bogged down with a sustained focus on your responsibilities – check your e-mail or see how the stock market is doing. I won’t even pretend to admonish you to avoid these last examples.

We all know better, but for some reason, we just can’t help ourselves.

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Adventure – are you getting enough?

Posted on 2015-08-10 at 9:47 am.

Written by Beth Kempton

Today’s post is by Rachel Kempton, Senior Editor at Do What You Love

I love the idea of microadventures; mini escapes for people who want an ‘adventure’ but who don’t have the time, money, freedom or expertise to do something big or off the wall. It’s a concept that I was introduced to recently by one of Do What You Love’s guest bloggers, adventurer and author Alastair Humphries, and one that has inspired me to think about adventure as a whole, and what it really means to me.

Adventure can mean something different to everyone. For many it’s about thrills and excitement, taking risks, or discovering the unexpected. For some it’s about physical exertion and extreme, even dangerous, challenges; and for others, it can be mental or spiritual, or involve an emotional journey of some kind. For me, adventure is about being open to new experiences and finding little ways to challenge myself every day. It’s about making life richer and more fulfilling, creating lasting memories, learning, growing and getting to know myself better, and ultimately, doing more of what I love.

When you choose adventure, doors open – as if by magic!

As Alastair says: “You do not need to fly to the other side of the planet… be an elite athlete, expertly trained, or rich to have an adventure. Adventure is just a state of mind. Adventure is stretching yourself; mentally, physically or culturally. It is about doing what you do not normally do… and doing it to the best of your ability.”

Adventure is a way of being, a way of seeing, an approach to life.

Over the last few weeks, in a bid to mix up my day-to-day routine, I’ve been challenging myself to step out of my comfort zone and seek out adventure in my daily life. So far I found myself doing all sorts of new things: reading (and enjoying!) books I wouldn’t normally choose; getting up earlier and starting my day with a morning power walk or breakfast in a café; learning new skills to boost my creativity; exploring new towns close to home; and planning our next big steps as a family.

Half the fun is getting there! I’ve realised that when you see life as an adventure even mundane things, like supermarket shopping with my son, can be fun, especially if they involve befriending grizzly bears on the way there and getting the bus home!

I’ve also been inspired to organize a couple of impromptu microadventures with my little family. One was cycling the Tissington Trail in Derbyshire. Although we didn’t quite manage the full 26-mile course we pushed ourselves and definitely earned our picnic! Escaping the city and immersing ourselves in nature, even for one day, was so liberating and energizing. It’s true what they say: ‘the best things in life are free’.

My other microadventure was a last minute trip to Croatia – somewhere my husband and I have never been before. Every part was an adventure, from flying with an excited two-year-old (which, as any parent knows, is all part of the fun!) and driving on the other side of the road, to familiarizing ourselves with the language, culture and food and deciding what we most wanted to see and do.

The stunning Istrian Peninsula coastline inspired us to dream

The highlight was heading inland and veering off the beaten track, up a steep, winding, dusty gravel road, to explore the charming hilltop town of Grožnjan.

In the summer months Grožnjan’s labyrinth of cobbled streets and courtyards become one great stage for musicians.

Grožnjan is home to around 30 national and international artists whose houses are the stuff of fairy tales and fantasy novels with their tiny doors, colourful house numbers and cute window boxes. It was a pleasure to wander around the artists’ open studios and galleries and see them blissfully happy in their surroundings, making a living by doing what they love.

A gorgeous photography studio – I couldn’t resist treating myself to a print!

Grožnjan’s lovely antiques dealer

A potter’s paradise: an open ceramics studio

The last few weeks have shown me that adventure really is right there for the taking! It’s all around us, at all times, so it’s up to us to seek it out. Here are my top tips for making adventure part of your every day life:

Alter your perspective: see adventure, and the ability to seek it out in the daily routine of life, as a challenge. Each morning ask yourself: How can I be more adventurous today?
Slow down and indulge your senses: The more we tune into our five senses, the more easily we can tune into that magical and vital ‘sixth sense’ – intuition – the gut-feeling we all have. We also start paying more attention the signs all around us, the little ‘coincidences’ and ‘messages from the universe,’ as well as the things that feel good, easy, or magical, we open the door to possibility. All of these are clues leading us towards what it is we really love, and want to be doing, and invite serendipitous opportunities our way.
Switch off regularly. Give yourself permission to have a daily digital detox. Step away from any distractions, and focus on what you really want to do. Adventure can only start when you take control and captain your own ship.
Live in the moment and be spontaneous. Planning is all well and good but sometimes you just have to do it. Some of the best adventures come as a result of an impulsive, spur of the moment decision. What would you love to go and do today, tomorrow, or this weekend? How can you make it happen?
Connect with your inner child: The wilder your imagination the better! Climb a tree, write a story, go running, roll down a hill, sleep under the stars, take a road trip, take a new class, start a conversation with the mystery person you pass each day on the way to work – everything in life can be an adventure if you choose to see it that way.

We’ll be blogging about adventure throughout August and we hope our posts inspire you to be more adventurous in your daily life. As always we love to hear from you so please do share your experiences – no matter how big or small.

Make time for microadventure

Posted on 2015-07-24 at 8:55 am.

Written by Beth Kempton

This is a guest post by adventurer, author and motivational speaker Alastair Humphreys. Find out more about Alastair here.

The single biggest obstacle that gets between people and the adventures they dream of is a lack of time. Microadventures have always been about making the best of what is available, squeezing in small bursts of adventure into a busy calendar, rather than just lamenting how busy you are.

This weekend was pretty busy for me. It involved 14 hours on a train, an evening speaking event, a Christening, and not a lot of time for the sort of mucking about I enjoy. But I was speaking in Scotland, and any visit to Scotland feels like an opportunity to do something fun in the outdoors…

Kings Cross might be a very cool station, but I’d still rather not be here on the weekend. Still, at least I could be very grown-up and diligent and knuckle down to seven concerted hours of book-writing. This went well for a while. Until I got so very bored that I resorted to taking photographs of my computer instead.

A good time-filler on a train is gazing out the window and looking for cool spots to sleep wild for a night. Then you pin the location in Google Maps on your phone and save it for when you happen to be back in this part of the world and in need of somewhere free to lay your head.

As a very professional motivational speaker, I was sure to arrive at the venue very early. This allows plenty of time for what is known, in the trade, as “faffing about with your slides”. Swapping one picture of a desert for a slightly different one is – you feel – the key to giving a cracking talk.

Time for a spot of Dutch Courage before the audience arrive. Makes my jokes funnier (at least to me).

Time, at last, to give my talk. I spoke at length about microadventures, about the joys of sleeping on hills and making the most of whatever opportunities come your way. Time then for me to practise what I preached. I headed off into the evening to find a hill. But first, serious expeditions require serious nutrition. This is the glamorous world of the itinerant speaker – long hours on trains and snatching crap food when the chance arises.

The long, light summer evenings are perfect for climbing hills. The air was warm though wet with drizzle. It felt like a fine night to be high above a city and enjoying the dusk.

And so to bed. I slept well until about 7am when I was woken by the bellowing of a too-close stag which slightly scared the crap out of me, but successfully ensured I did not oversleep. If it’s raining hard and you are in a bivvy bag it is always worth finding a wood to sleep in. The rain rattled on the tree canopy but I was dry and sheltered down beneath it.

I woke to this view:

I enjoy the odd feeling when I am removed from the rest of the world, but still close enough to be connected.

I also enjoy being in situations where small pleasures become all that I need in life. A shaded bench, sheltered from the rain, to eat my breakfast apple and enjoy the view…

And now, to church! I had a Christening to attend and didn’t want to be late. I set off walking east.

It was such a pleasant feeling to have nothing to do but walk. I wish more of my mornings began in this way. On the road I saw a very good lesson for life for me: to slow down.

The rain was quite heavy but the landscape was beautiful and I was in an uncommonly good mood. An elderly man walking his dog passed me. “Not so good this morning.” he said, briefly. Weather observations are the glue that holds together most British social interactions. The correct technique for my response would be to agree, briefly, and carry on. Something like “Indeed!” or “haha!” or even a smile and a nod.

But I was feeling wild and reckless and the rain smelled great and I loved the shining beads of water on the cow parsley and gorse. So I contradicted him, “Not at all! It’s a wonderful morning!” and carried striding on. The poor gentleman is probably penning a shocked letter to The Telegraph as we speak.

Shortly before I reached the church I ducked into a small wood. I extracted my suit from my rucksack, smoothed it down as best I could, and hung it in a tree to try to get rid of a few creases.

Then I stripped to my boxer shorts and attempted to turn myself into a respectable-looking gentleman on his way to church.

Suit plus rucksack. Always a strong look.

I made it to the church on time. In fact, I was the first to arrive. You don’t want to be late for the Christening of your first godchild. I’m supposed to be setting a good moral example here!

And then it was back on the train, back down south, but with even less book-writing than before. Trains are brilliant for looking at the world and wishing you were out in it, making the most of it and exploring.

[Tweet “What plans do you have to squeeze some microadventure into your busy life?”]

Is your routine holding you back?

Posted on 2015-06-09 at 8:55 am.

Written by Beth Kempton

[Tweet ““If you think adventure is dangerous try routine. It’s lethal.” ~ Paulo Coelho”]

For me variety is the spice of life. I like every day to be different and I’ve always tried to avoid falling into habits and routines. So when I had my little boy, almost two years ago now, I’m the first to admit that being at home all day and juggling feeds, nap times, nappy changes, and everything else that a new baby brings, took some getting used to.

As any new parent knows, having a tiny little person relying on you for everything is hard work. You’re no longer have the freedom you used to. Even the simplest task, like meeting friends for coffee, requires an element of forward planning and spontaneity gores out of the window. Within weeks I developed my own little way of doing things. I was in the motherhood groove and and before long I had a routine!

My husband and I were in Brighton when I realised just how much of a creature of habit I’d become. It’s amazing how much clarity a change of scene can bring. Being by the sea, exploring a new city, and escaping the ‘daily grind’ left us both feeling inspired, refreshed and re-invigorated.

Getting a new perspective

Zack was now a few months old and having adapted to being parents things were becoming much easier. We realised that while there are always going to be jobs to do, and obligations and responsibilities to fulfil, life doesn’t have to feel like Groundhog Day.

Exploring a new city

On the journey home we agreed that while some routines are helpful and even necessary, especially for Zack, others had seen us get too comfortable and complacent. So we decided that some things needed to change.

Things that changed after our trip:

I left my 9-5 and started writing part-time for Do What You Love. Now I’m free to work wherever and whenever I choose and to do all the things I love – be a mum, go running, do yoga, and be creative. Embracing new opportunities and connecting with interesting new people is part of the job so no two days are ever the same. I want Zack to grow up understanding that my work makes me happy and that I have my own hopes and dreams.
We stopped complaining about how much time we waste watching TV and now, instead:

– we limit the amount of TV we watch

– we have regular date nights

– we have dinner as a family and talk

– we socialise more in the evenings with family and friends

– we spend more of our free time being creative and working on our own passion projects

We looked at our finances to see where we could cut back and save money for a weekend away every few months.
We both started doing more exercise. I joined a gym and my husband started running with colleagues at work.
We made a 5-year plan that will help us live the life we really want and create our own special memories along the way.

10 simple ways to shake up your routine today:

Change your schedule. Get up with the sun and take an early morning walk. You’ll see your world differently, sense different emotions in the people you meet and hear different sounds.
Change your style – do your hair or make-up differently or experiment with clothes to find a new look.
Commute a different way to work, or instead of going by car take the bus, train, walk or cycle.
Take a class or a course in something you’re interested in, who knows what doors may open.
Pick a different place to hang out. If you meet friends at a local bar, try a local restaurant. Or do something different – go to a sporting event watch a gig or have a dinner party.
Have a conversation with someone new. Make this your daily mission and who knows, you might make a friend for life!
Make more of your lunch break. Go to museums, try new restaurants, meet a friend, walk in the park, do something you’ve never done before or go somewhere you’ve never been before.
Have a mini-adventure at the weekend. Do a road trip, go hiking or camping or explore a new city.
Be inspired and get creative. Watch this playlist of TED Talks to kickstart your creativity, or read this excerptfrom Pico Iyer’s TED Book, The Art of Stillness.
Take a day off and give yourself permission to do anything you want. Go for a long, solitary walk; write poetry; bake; go shopping; read a novel; watch a blockbuster; paint; make something for a friend; have a picnic in the middle of nowhere and then lie in the grass and look at the clouds.

[Tweet “Have you ever felt stuck in a rut?”] Do you follow the same routine, day in, day out? What small changes could you make to mix things up today?

Rachel

The Do What You Love e-course will help you ditch bad habits and boring routines, and lead you to see what you really want (or need) more clearly.

“I am now far more open to ideas and willing to say yes to opportunities. I think, well, what’s the worst that can happen?!” Shona W., Do What You Love participant, Jan 2015

Join us this June for the experience of a lifetime.

Ideal environments

Posted on 2015-05-26 at 5:04 pm.

Written by vbnz

Our environment has a huge effect on not only how we feel, but how we live our lives. When was the last time you thought about where you want to be as opposed to what you want to be?

When have you last been aware of what kind of environment makes you feel alive and gives you a sense of possibility? Is it in a bustling town centre or is it in a cottage overlooking a dramatic sea landscape? Week 1 of the Do What You Love e-course encourages you to explore what changes you want to see happen by visualizing your ideal life, and that includes where you feel the happiest.

As we go through some of the Do What You Love exercises this month, we have asked Vickie to go through the “Ideal Environment” exercise. This is her mood board below.

All images courtesy of @vickieinwonderland

“The way a certain environment can make you feel is very powerful and finding a place where I can be happy and feel alive is as important to me as finding my “crowd”. When I travel, I often get somewhere, look around, sink in the atmosphere and think “I could live here”. It’s always a combination of things that makes me feel that way, but if I break it down, my ideal environment would have to include these three elements: water, gardens & markets.

Water is calming and invigorating at the same time and it’s ever changing. You never look at water twice and see the exact same thing. Whether it’s the sea or a small stream at the bottom of a garden, water is in constant movement and it reassures me to know that something in constant movement can still be calming and permanent.

For me, gardens are havens of peace. It is important for me to have even a tiny patch of garden somewhere. When I lived in a small London flat, I converted a little corner of my kitchen into a garden, with fake grass and pots with different plants and flowers. I had less space for cooking but I could have breakfast in my “garden” and nothing would make me happier than seeing the sun come through the window onto my plants after a tiring day at the office.

As much as I love the peacefulness of water and gardens, I also love a bustling marketplace. They make me feel like I am a part of a community of great people, even if I don’t know anyone there. Markets are friendly and happy places and although they can get a bit hectic, to me they are always rather comforting. They are like huge street parties where strangers come, share things and go away with a sense of belonging and a smile on their face.”

The Do What You Love e-course will help you understand that you can choose the kind of life you want and gives you the tools to explore what your ideal life would look like so that you can start building it for yourself.

“This course has been very important for me to understand myself in a deeper way, and make the right choices.” Cinzia R., Do What You Love participant

Join us this June for the experience of a lifetime.

On foot through India

Posted on 2015-05-05 at 8:55 am.

Written by Beth Kempton

This is a guest post by adventurer, author and motivational speaker Alastair Humphreys. Find out more about Alastair here.

“I could walk to anywhere on Earth from here, if only I choose to make the time. The road is free and open and waiting.”

If you love the Beatles, at some point in your life you will have to visit Liverpool. Elvis fans have Graceland. Baseball has the Yankee Stadium. And, if you love travel and are curious about the world, then you need to experience India before you die.

I call myself an “Adventurer” and a “Travel Writer”. I had visited almost half the countries on Earth. But I had never been to India.

That needed to change.

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Eat. Pray. Wi-fi.

Posted on 2015-02-17 at 8:55 am.

Written by Beth Kempton

This is a guest post by Ben Keene. You can find out more about Ben here.

Has moving to Bali for winter with our family worked out?

I’d only been at Bali’s first co-working space, Hubud (a bamboo beehive of digital nomadic activity at the heart of the island’s ‘eat, pray, love’ capital, Ubud) for an hour when Steve Munroe (a ‘post-UN-cubicle survivor’), uttered his mantra. Perhaps even more interesting than what Steve was saying was the fact that he was speaking to a group of Harvard students who had come to Bali to study ‘remote working’ and sustainable business.

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Five signs you’re suffering from digital distraction (with tips for finding balance)

Posted on 2015-02-13 at 8:55 am.

Written by Beth Kempton

This is a guest post by one of the UK’s leading experts in digital distraction and digital detox and author of The Distraction Trap: How to Focus in a Digital World, Frances Booth. Find out more about Frances here.

How digitally distracted are you? Often we don’t realise how attached we’ve become to our smartphones, social media or email. But being distracted by a digital device all the time can have an impact on our productivity, wellbeing and relationships.

The first step to achieving balance in the digital world is to increase your awareness of your behaviour around digital devices. Here are five signs of digital distraction, along with five strategies you can use to increase your balance, productivity and wellbeing in the digital world.

1. Smartphone separation anxiety

You take your smartphone with you everywhere you go – often actually carrying it in your hand. As soon as your phone beeps, you leap. This is not prioritising. This is phone-in-hand syndrome. Your phone accompanies you everywhere, including to the dinner table and to bed. It muscles in on any conversation you have. It interrupts your thoughts, keeping you constantly ‘on call’.

The solution: Be realistic. It won’t be easy to suddenly go without your phone. You might find that as soon as your phone isn’t there, you need something to do with your hands. You might feel like something is missing (I see this in one-to-one sessions I run). It’s like giving up smoking, in a sense. Be aware of this. Try putting your phone in another room for just 15 minutes. Make sure you have something to do, like read a magazine. Hold something like a pen when you’re talking to someone. Next level: Go to the corner shop without your phone.

2. Journeys pass you by

What do you see on journeys? The light falling just so? Interesting happenings through the window? Or is your field of vision restricted to your smartphone screen? Journeys by bus or train provide a great opportunity for thinking time, or a short rest. They can be a chance to catch up mentally on the day so far, or to dream and plan. But all too often, we miss this chance. We begin our journey, and immediately stare down at a screen, processing yet more digital information. We arrive feeling rushed, and we’ve no idea what happened out of the window.

The solution: Become an observer

Try this exercise: Count ‘em. Next time you are on a train or bus, instead of staring at your phone or tablet, put it away. Start to observe other people. How many digitally distracted people can you spot? What do you notice about their behaviour? How do they look? Stressed? Absorbed? Can you spot pairs of people together who are both staring down at their phones? Sometimes it’s easier to observe behaviour in other people rather than ourselves. See what you can learn by doing this on just one journey.

3. Memory lapse

You blame your bad memory a lot these days. Or perhaps it’s not you, but other people you know who are using the excuse of their bad memory. Ask yourself whether this is really a memory issue, or whether you (or they) could be distracted. If you’re trying to pay attention to more than one thing at once, you might forget to reply to messages, and even forget the contents of the messages you’ve read. This is because you are not storing memories. I look at this in more depth in my book, The Distraction Trap: How to Focus in a Digital World.

The solution: Do one thing at once. It sounds simple, but we often don’t do this. Try it and see what a difference it makes to your memory, and to your productivity.

4. You can’t walk in a straight line

Do you use your smartphone when you walk along the street? Do you veer around the pavement as you look down at your phone? Do you stop and start, and even cross roads without looking up? Have you seen other people doing this? Digital distraction is extremely dangerous for pedestrians and drivers. Take this seriously. Put your phone away when you’re anywhere near a road. Never use your phone while driving.

The solution: This is an issue we really need to raise awareness of. Not only should you do this yourself, but you should tell other people to do the same too.

5. No time to think

A thought pops in to your head. This could be it … the answer to that thorny business problem you’ve been struggling with. Then – pling!!! – your phone demands your attention or an email pulls you off track. All too often, when we leap to answer to digital demands, we neglect time for deep thinking. Somehow, answering our email seems more urgent than just having a think. But if you (or your team) are short on good ideas right now, then the chances are, this could be why.

Think Do digital distractions mean you have no time left to think? (Photo: J Devaun)

The solution: Leave time for thinking. A simple way to take a first step here is by switching off digital devices when you are doing simple daily and weekly tasks round the house. Allow yourself to use this time for thinking.

A new beginning today

Posted on 2015-01-31 at 8:55 am.

Written by Beth Kempton

Earlier this week I woke up to a magical winter wonderland – it was snowing! As I stood at the window admiring mother nature’s spectacular work, I started thinking about how beautiful the world looks in white.

There’s something quite special about the colour white. In colour psychology, white symbolises purity, innocence, awakening, growth, completion and new beginnings. It’s thought that we wear white clothes (often subconsciously) when we are moving in a new direction in life, such as travelling abroad, moving house, embarking on a new relationship or changing careers because white makes us feel calm, organised and optimistic. Colour psychologists also say that surrounding yourself with white is good for your soul because it cleanses and purifies your thoughts, emotions and, ultimately, your spirit, refreshing and strengthening your entire energy system.

Venturing out into the crisp white snow – a big blank canvas full of possibilities – was just the inspiration I needed to be bold and start the art course I’ve been dreaming about.

What’s will you begin today? We’d love to hear what’s inspired you.

Download a high res version here.

October’s Happy List is here!

Posted on 2014-09-28 at 8:56 am.

Written by Beth Kempton

On my happy list this month… a beautiful shop display in London which has inspired me to get outside and make the most of my garden.

Each month we share a free downloadable ‘Happy List’ as a place for you to capture the things – big and small – that have made you smile and feel inspired each day. Get yours here.

Have an awesome October,

Rachel