I love sharing information with others. 

Not only can it help others learn and grow. It can also be a good way to build connections and strengthen relationships.

Today, for example, I received a newsletter from Lean In Circles and thought it might interest my client Florian. (Okay, I know it’s for women in the workplace, but Florian is very open-minded and I thought it could be something for him.)

But, of course, I don’t know.

And as I don’t want to make Florian feel as if he has to read something just because I sent it to him, I always add the words “rainy-day reading” to the subject line.

It’s my way of letting Florian know that my email is not urgent and can be read whenever he feels like reading it.

It’s reading material I think he might enjoy on a rainy or dreary day when he has some extra time on his hands. 

Perhaps this is a practice you might like to adopt?

————–

dreary – trüb, trostlos
adopt – annehmen, übernehmen

A field is empty, but if you put in the effort to grow something then you will have a garden. And that’s life. Give something, something will come back. Give nothing, nothing will come back. To grow a flower is a miracle: it means you can grow more. Remember that a flower is not just a flower, it is the start of a whole garden.”

Take a look at Marissa Solomon Shandell’s artwork.

What do your conversations look like?

Do you skip the small talk and dive into deep conversations straightaway?

Or do you start with small talk and gradually move to deeper topics?

Whichever tactic you use, it helps to have some “deep” conversation starters up your sleeve.

These might work for you:

• What does it mean to live a good life?
• How have your strengths helped you to succeed?
• What is the hardest decision you have ever had to make?
• What are your biggest goals for your life?
• Where do you find meaning in your life?
• What do you value most in other people?
• What is the best piece of advice you have received?

Do you have a deep conversation starter that always works?

There are many reasons why we find it hard to focus. Lack of sleep and exercise, environmental pollution, chronic stress, bad nutrition, and disconnection from others and nature.

So what can we do to learn to pay attention again?

In this amazing interview,  journalist and author Johann Hari talks about his inspiration and experience of going offline. And he gives us ideas on how we can build a life of greater joy, enhanced personal fulfilment and focus. 

Even if you don’t watch the whole interview, listen in at 16:20 when Johann talks about “this moment with my godson who I call Adam”.

Or read the introduction to his book “Stolen Focus“.

If you have an ever-growing to-do list and are not satisfied with your system, you might like to try out Robyn Scott’s great idea. It’ll change how you think about managing your list.

Robyn suggests we make our tasks emotional by creating a few categories that answer the question, “How will doing or completing this task make me feel?”

Some of Robyn’s Category Examples

• Supremely* satisfying — for researching, making a tricky phone call
• Massive relief* — for booking flights
• Highly helpful — for making introductions, giving advice
• Basic decency* — writing thank you notes
• Delight — calling a friend

Could this be a system you’d like to experiment with?

———

* äußerst, höchst
* enorme Erleichterung
* Anstand