A way to measure habits is by how long the streak is.
Another way is by how easy it is to start a new one after you’ve taken a break.
Don’t ruin the break
If you are about to go on holiday, keep in mind that the job is still going to be there when you are back. That there are very few things that need to happen before you leave, that there are no things that need to happen when you are away, and that there are, again, very few things that need to happen as soon as you are back. In general, businesses move slow. And all the pressure we feel is often self-imposed. Don’t let that ruin your break.
If a colleague is about to go on holiday, keep in mind that the job they are doing will still be meaningful when they are back. That there are very few things that need to happen before they leave, that there are no things that need to happen when they are away, and that there is no reason in the world why it should be a good idea to send their way just a little more pressure, a tiny sudden deadline, an anxiety-inducing and unrequested meeting invite on their last day. Don’t let this ruin their break.
I am going on holiday. And I’ll probably won’t be writing for a while.
That’s ok.
Simple things
Do not complain about your privilege. As in, “I am busy”, “I have to deal with too much politics”, “I worked over the weekend”, and so on.
Do not bitch about peers and subordinates. As in, “This person is driving me mad”, “That guy is never doing their job”, “I never wanted to work with them”, and so on.
Do not undermine a plan that is not your favourite one. As in, “That was not my idea”, “We are going to do this instead”, “We will do it, but..”, and so on.
Simple things that every manager should be aware of.
At all
There’s not only joy. There’s not only pain.
There’s not only butterflies. There’s not only dullness.
There’s not only raising. There’s not only rising above.
There’s non only failure. There’s not only success.
There’s not only together. There’s not only alone.
And actually, it turns out that most of what we remember is because of the illusions we have made out of the one and the other.
We don’t know extremes. At all.
Rows and flows of angel hair
And ice cream castles in the air
And feather canyons everywhere
Looked at clouds that wayBut now they only block the sun
They rain and they snow on everyone
So many things I would have done
But clouds got in my wayI’ve looked at clouds from both sides now
Joni Mitchell, Both Sides Now
From up and down and still somehow
It’s cloud illusions I recall
I really don’t know clouds at all
Existential
Most fears, nowadays, come from within.
There’s no existential threat in acknowledging that a colleague is doing a great job, yet we worry that our work might be underappreciated.
There’s no existential threat in telling a difficult truth, yet we worry that we might be breaking a relationship forever.
There’s no existential threat in welcoming an outsider in the community, yet we worry that it might alter the balance of things and force us to review our take on the world.
There’s no existential threat in being wrong, yet we worry that others will think less of us.
We need to find a way to comfort ourselves without harming those around us.
You've got this 