Purpose. Rituals make us feel part of something bigger.Psychological safety - create social cohesion and engagement, meets the need of belonging Performance - reduce stress and anxiety, create a more human and engaging workplace Rituals like a time to have a snack together (New york times’ snack cart), work anniversaries celebrations (Microsoft with M&Ms) are affordable yet priceless

Workplace Rituals Build Engagement 

When creating your own morning ritual, try to find something enjoyable that you already do before work. Then consider how you can imbue that action with a specific purpose. One way to approach this task is to ask yourself this question: In what mindset do you want to start your day? If you get the answer right, it’ll make all the difference as you face a packed day full of meetings. Follow Sarah Blakely, CEO of Spanx and invent your own commuting ritual to start your day and get your thoughts in order.Follow Cal Newport and start your day with Monk Mode morning to ensure deep work

Create Your Morning Ritual To Start Your Day Successfully 

Every meeting is a gathering needing a purpose.Why are you gathering? What is the value this meeting aims to provide?Create a “chiming in” ritual to ensure people are present during the meeting (e.g. rotating ownership).

Be Mindful And Ensure Your Meetings Have A Purpose 

Informal workplace socializing bonds groups and ultimately increases productivity.Teams that eat together, stick together: Companies who offer their employees a chance to share meals strengthen the relationships within their teams and inspire staff to bring greater energy to work. Still, eating together as a ritual only really works if the workplace values live up to providing purpose, improved performance and psychological safety.

Water Cooler Power

Rituals offer a great way to reward outstanding performance, celebrate milestones, or make team members feel seen and appreciated.This means creating the sort of environment in which team members really do want to put it all on the line for the company. Rituals make employees feel seen and appreciated, and that tells everyone at the company that they matter. Ultimately, such simple gestures and fun rituals make everybody feel valued.

Rituals To Show Appreciation

Whether you’re ending a big project, a work position, a long day, or a stressful quarter, a parting ritual can help you find closure and set you off on the right foot for your next endeavor. Creating an end of day/week ritual to share accomplishments is about more than praise. It helps the leadership team and their frontline workers feel connected.

Rituals Provide Closure

The best rituals should feel authentic and be something people would complain about if it went away, but be mindful of size of your team as some rituals might not scale.

The Best Rituals Come From The Bottom Up

For a busy, dynamic, human workplace, rituals are fundamental. They can instill team spirit, drive up employee engagement, and get everyone into a mindset that helps get things done. When a ritual harnesses the Three P’s, everyone in the company feels connected to a greater purpose, while also feeling psychologically safe and comfortable. And this kind of positive atmosphere will surely lead to greater performance. 



#2 Wall Street Journal Bestseller, USA Today Bestseller, and Publishers Weekly Bestseller From the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Bring Your Human to Work comes an indispensable guide to taking your employee engagement to the next level. In Bring Your Human to Work, Erica Keswin laid down the rules and protocols of a human workplace. Now, in Rituals Roadmap, she shows us how to further employee engagement, explaining that workplace rituals foster a sense of belonging and help workers connect with one another and their work. From our morning cup of coffee to the standing Wednesday morning meeting with our team, our lives are steeped in rituals. Rituals Roadmap combines cutting-edge scientific research with examples from the most human companies, like Starbucks, Microsoft, Chipotle and LinkedIn, showing how they establish rituals during meetings, employee onboarding procedures, and daily interactions among coworkers. Whether you choose to pass around a stuffed penguin at your weekly meeting to express gratitude like Aria Finger of DoSomething, or decide to make lunchtime a daily ritual with your team in the same way one top performing team at Douglas Elliman does, rituals create community and change us in a way that conjures lifelong commitments. If you’re serious about employee engagement, Rituals Roadmap is your blueprint for creating a workplace full of engaged, connected employees who drive revenue and stay at their jobs long term.

books

Books

Erica Keswin

Rituals Roadmap: The Human Way to Transform Everyday Routines into Workplace Magic

Focus on one truly important goal<ol><li>what is the one thing that will have the most impact on your job/life?</li><li>what are the small steps to help you attain this goal?</li><li>debrief regularly your progress: what worked? What didn’t? What do I need to change?</li></ol>

Just Do It

Progress is achieved by steady action. Find your pace, avoid burn out and keep momentum.Value each pocket of time. Make the most of 15 min windows here and there to tackle smaller tasks and free up mental space for more complex and time consuming tasks.

Find Your Pace And Leverage Small Windows Of Time Effectively 

<ul><li>Do a brain dump of all the uncompleted tasks that distract you from your main objective. Tick those distractions from your to do list.</li><li>Spend time with those that inspire and energize you. Each day debrief how the people you spent your time with made you feel (energized, productive). Adjust your schedule accordingly if possible. Try to spend at least an hour per week with those that truly inspire you.</li></ul>

Eliminate Distractions

Track your productivity and the things that obstacle it. Remind yourself why you do what you do writing “So that” sentences.

Remember Why You Do What You Do

Listen carefully for feedback, seek mentor/mentee relationships to gather feedback on a frequent basis.Keep practicing to get better.

Seek Feedback 

Your ambitions will never be out of reach when you keep your focus on them and surround yourself with people who inspire you. 

A forefront productivity expert argues that longer working hours do not compensate for flawed approaches to performance, outlining strategic techniques for establishing positive habits, mindset-based strategies and proactive processes for enabling more effective working hours.

productivity

Productivity

personaldevelopment

Personal Development

motivationandinspiration

Motivation & Inspiration

Imagine if your best just got better every single day In Your Best Just Got Better, productivity expert Jason Womack teaches readers that working longer hours doesn't make up for a flawed approach to productivity and performance. Workers need to clarify their habits, build mindset-based strategies, and be proactive. Womack's signature "workplace performance" techniques offer specific strategies to consistently and incrementally improve performance. Readers will: <ul> <li>Understand the fundamentals of workflow and the principles of human performance</li> <li>Arm themselves with the tools and the processes to get more of their work done, on time, with fewer resources, and with less stress</li> </ul> Making your best better won't happen overnight, but learning how to effectively manage just a few critical success factors lead to an effective workday and an overall successful professional career.

Jason W. Womack is an accomplished writer whose work has resonated with readers around the world. Jason W. Womack has published several books that explore a range of topics, from fiction to nonfiction, and has received critical acclaim for the ability to weave compelling narratives. Jason W. Womack's writing style is known for its depth and authenticity, and has earned quite a loyal following of readers.

Jason W. Womack

Your Best Just Got Better

What do you hope will happen at the end of the meeting? Start the meeting expressing what is on your mind and clarifying what is your purpose. Prepare ahead thinking about the actions that will need to be performed to achieve this purpose and make sure to discuss them.

Start With The End In Mind

<ul><li>Speak from your own Point of view.</li><li>Note down the exact words people say so that they feel heard when you recap. When you don’t fully understand follow up.</li><li>Be open and follow up offline to clarify any doubt or unclear item.</li></ul>

Be Open And Listen Carefully

Balance making the other person comfortable with sharing your goals.Pay attention to sentence structure:<ul><li>If you want clarity use the past + you: “What did you mean by what you just said?” </li><li>to show forcefulness use present + I/me: “I need,” “I like” and “I want.”</li><li>to go in problem solving mode and identify a common solution use future + we/us</li></ul>

Respond Appropriately 

Non verbal communication is important to reinforce your message and conflicting signals can cause lack of trust or confusion.

Make Your Body Language Coherent With Your Message 

Make sure your ideas have been fully understood and that everyone is happy with how the meeting went.In a more informal setting:<ol><li>What do you think of what I said here?</li><li>What did you think of the meeting?</li><li>In a more personal discussion, you may ask: What do you think about me?</li></ol>

Get Feedback 

The businessperson's guide to saying what needs to be said and asking questions that need to be asked In the business world, the first step to great results is good communication. Talk Lean uses original research and a fresh approach to teach businesspeople how to say difficult things and ask difficult questions in a way that is positive, effective, and comfortable for everyone involved. You'll learn how to begin meetings and conversations in a way that is succinct, empathetic, and effective, while putting people in a positive and receptive frame of mind. You'll learn how to listen and respond during meetings to maximise both productivity and empathy and how to close meetings in positive ways that lead to great results. Offers proven techniques for improving communication and making an impact professionally Written by Alan Palmer, head of Interactifs UK, which offers communication coaching to major corporate clients Ideal for executives, team leaders, entrepreneurs, and anyone whose success depends on great communication

career

Career

The businessperson's guide to saying what needs to be said and asking questions that need to be asked In the business world, the first step to great results is good communication. Talk Lean uses original research and a fresh approach to teach businesspeople how to say difficult things and ask difficult questions in a way that is positive, effective, and comfortable for everyone involved. You'll learn how to begin meetings and conversations in a way that is succinct, empathetic, and effective, while putting people in a positive and receptive frame of mind. You'll learn how to listen and respond during meetings to maximise both productivity and empathy and how to close meetings in positive ways that lead to great results. <ul> <li>Offers proven techniques for improving communication and making an impact professionally</li> <li>Written by Alan Palmer, head of Interactifs UK, which offers communication coaching to major corporate clients</li> <li>Ideal for executives, team leaders, entrepreneurs, and anyone whose success depends on great communication</li> </ul>

Alan Palmer

Talk Lean

Picasso himself said, “It takes a lot of time to become young.”A fresh, young, and somewhat childlike view of the world is often closer to genius than a grown-up perspective.

Embrace Childishness And Look At The World With New Eyes

What distinguishes rare geniuses like Leonardo from the rest of us is that they seem to be curious about almost everything.To develop a sense of curiosity try things you would not normally try. New topics in books and magazines. Wonder unknown areas of the city. Explore life in a multifaceted way as curiosity makes life richer.

Cultivate Curiosity 

The ability to concentrate and focus to develop deep thinking is a key feature of genius. Concentration can come naturally or you might need to devise rituals that enable you to concentrate. Deep thinking is fundamental to develop your ideas and you need to seek ways to focus your attention for long amount of times.

Focus Your Undivided Attention 

Geniuses recognize the order of the word but they are not afraid to break with the status quo. They see their mission to be coherent with their disruptive vision.

Break The Rules

The mind creates new ideas when disengaged. Under the shower, napping, taking a walk.The way to arrive at new ideas and insights isn’t by exhausting yourself with never-ending work. For optimal creativity, times of concentration need to be combined with stretches of deep relaxation and rest.Go for a leisurely walk when you need new ideas.

Relax 

“An unusually engaging book on the forces that fuel originality across fields.” --Adam Grant Looking at the 14 key traits of genius, from curiosity to creative maladjustment to obsession, Professor Craig Wright, creator of Yale University's popular “Genius Course,” explores what we can learn from brilliant minds that have changed the world. Einstein. Beethoven. Picasso. Jobs. The word genius evokes these iconic figures, whose cultural contributions have irreversibly shaped society. Yet Beethoven could not multiply. Picasso couldn’t pass a 4th grade math test. And Jobs left high school with a 2.65 GPA. What does this say about our metrics for measuring success and achievement today? Why do we teach children to behave and play by the rules, when the transformative geniuses of Western culture have done just the opposite? And what is genius, really? Professor Craig Wright, creator of Yale University’s popular “Genius Course,” has devoted more than two decades to exploring these questions and probing the nature of this term, which is deeply embedded in our culture. In The Hidden Habits of Genius, he reveals what we can learn from the lives of those we have dubbed “geniuses,” past and present. Examining the lives of transformative individuals ranging from Charles Darwin and Marie Curie to Leonardo Da Vinci and Andy Warhol to Toni Morrison and Elon Musk, Wright identifies more than a dozen drivers of genius—characteristics and patterns of behavior common to great minds throughout history. He argues that genius is about more than intellect and work ethic—it is far more complex—and that the famed “eureka” moment is a Hollywood fiction. Brilliant insights that change the world are never sudden, but rather, they are the result of unique modes of thinking and lengthy gestation. Most importantly, the habits of mind that produce great thinking and discovery can be actively learned and cultivated, and Wright shows us how. This book won't make you a genius. But embracing the hidden habits of these transformative individuals will make you more strategic, creative, and successful, and, ultimately, happier.

habits

Habits

“An unusually engaging book on the forces that fuel originality across fields.” --Adam GrantLooking at the 14 key traits of genius, from curiosity to creative maladjustment to obsession, Professor Craig Wright, creator of Yale University's popular “Genius Course,” explores what we can learn from brilliant minds that have changed the world. Einstein. Beethoven. Picasso. Jobs. The word genius evokes these iconic figures, whose cultural contributions have irreversibly shaped society.Yet Beethoven could not multiply. Picasso couldn’t pass a 4th grade math test. And Jobs left high school with a 2.65 GPA. What does this say about our metrics for measuring success and achievement today? Why do we teach children to behave and play by the rules, when the transformative geniuses of Western culture have done just the opposite? And what is genius, really?Professor Craig Wright, creator of Yale University’s popular “Genius Course,” has devoted more than two decades to exploring these questions and probing the nature of this term, which is deeply embedded in our culture. In The Hidden Habits of Genius, he reveals what we can learn from the lives of those we have dubbed “geniuses,” past and present.Examining the lives of transformative individuals ranging from Charles Darwin and Marie Curie to Leonardo Da Vinci and Andy Warhol to Toni Morrison and Elon Musk, Wright identifies more than a dozen drivers of genius—characteristics and patterns of behavior common to great minds throughout history. He argues that genius is about more than intellect and work ethic—it is far more complex—and that the famed “eureka” moment is a Hollywood fiction. Brilliant insights that change the world are never sudden, but rather, they are the result of unique modes of thinking and lengthy gestation. Most importantly, the habits of mind that produce great thinking and discovery can be actively learned and cultivated, and Wright shows us how.This book won't make you a genius. But embracing the hidden habits of these transformative individuals will make you more strategic, creative, and successful, and, ultimately, happier.

Craig Wright is an accomplished writer whose work has resonated with readers around the world. Craig Wright has published several books that explore a range of topics, from fiction to nonfiction, and has received critical acclaim for the ability to weave compelling narratives. Craig Wright's writing style is known for its depth and authenticity, and has earned quite a loyal following of readers.

Craig Wright

The Hidden Habits of Genius

Learn from the Japanese concept of Wabi Sabi which encourages to value simplicity and to find beauty in imperfections and impermanence. Wabi sabi teaches us how to simplify and prioritize the right things, while allowing time to make the necessary changes. It shows us how to access the magic of the everyday and the mundane and to understand that what we have is enough.

Find Beauty And Fulfillment In Life’s Perfect Imperfection

Wabi: subdued taste. Sen no Rikyū revolutionized tea ceremony favoring a version that celebrated natural beauty and simplicity. Rikyū’s style of tea ceremony was known as wabi tea, or “wabi-cha.” Wabi implied a mindset that appreciates simplicity, humility and frugality.Sabi: elegant simplicity and beauty that come from the passing of time. Pensive luster, in Tanizaki words, is preferred to shallow brilliance.Wabi sabi implies a worldview that appreciates simple beauty, imperfection and the transience of all things.

Learn From The Meaning Of Each Word

Imperfection is to be celebrated. Home should be the place where you feel more at ease. Use natural and imperfect materials like wood and stone that remind us that life is perfectly imperfect. To bring more of yourself in your home decorate with objects that create emotions or memories in you. This coupled with the right kind of decluttering can help you build a home focused only on the truly important parts of your life.The wabi sabi home, then, allows for all of our imperfections, but encourages us to simplify our lives so that we’re closest to what we cherish most.

Soulful And Simple Home

“that a certain type of perfection can only be realized through a limitless accumulation of the imperfect. And personally, I find that encouraging”

﻿When we pay attention to nature, we begin to notice a whole world of quiet and simple magic. We also become more present. This is celebrated in Japanese poetry called Haiku and in the classification of seasons. Japan calendar has 24 smaller seasons to acknowledge small changes like “Mist starts to hover”. Noticing the small changes in the outside world make us more attuned to changes in our body and mind. We start to notice we need to rest, to lighten or to change scenery. Nature impermanence makes us aware of our own. Cherry blossoms reminds us that we must focus on what really matters now.

Tune Into Nature, Embrace Impermanence 

”Suffering is inevitable, pain is optional”We mist learn to embrace change and respond promptly to it. We cannot control what happens to us but we can control how we respond to it.The sooner we accept what is happening the better, as we can modify our behavior to the new reality.Life is fundamentally imperfect. And after we’ve accepted this basic truth, we should realize that much of what we have already is – in its own way – perfectly imperfect.

Embrace Acceptance 

"I have not failed. I've just found ten thousand ways that won't work." Thomas EdisonAs we embark on a learning journey, we must understand that the journey will never be complete. It will have set backs and advances but won’t end. You are not competing against others but growing compared to the person that you were yesterday. In this process failure can be the opportunity for expansion, we can reframe it and learn useful lessons that we might have otherwise missed.

Embrace Failure As The Path To Success

Tea Ceremony is a moment where we look after of one another offering care and consideration.It has 4 principles:<ol><li class="ql-align-justify">“Wa” - Harmony. What could you do to encourage harmony in your relationships?</li><li class="ql-align-justify">“Kei” - Respect. What do you respect of each individual that you could celebrate and acknowledge?</li><li class="ql-align-justify">”Sei” - Purity. Cultivate purity of heart and seek out the best in each other. Think of how you could manage your conflicts differently if you tried to see the best in others.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">“Jaku” - Tranquility. To connect with others you need space and calm. How can you create more time and space to grow your relationships?</li></ol>

Tea Ceremony Principles Can Help Improve Our Relationships

There is no perfect career path. Each successful person had to endure many difficulties and face many failures in their path to success. “Do” represents the journey one has to take to acquire knowledge and wisdom in a discipline. Sado, the way of tea; Judo the way of gentleness. It is the path towards something which contains the most vital lessons. The journey is more important than the end goal.The same is true for our careers. We should seek out and learn the most important lessons in our journeys through self reflection.

Enjoy Your Career Journey And Its Unplanned Turns

With age we acquire life lessons, wisdom and discernment . We treasure moments with loved ones and carve out time to do the things we enjoy most. Perfection can be found in the everyday magic of our imperfect lives.Take time to reflect and write down the things you love most like the eleventh-century poetess Sei Shōnagon which noted her favorite things, in lists like “Things to Quicken the Heart”.

Cherish Your Time On Earth

Wabi sabi encourages us to value the perfectly imperfect in every area of our life from career to relationships.

The definitive guide that teaches you how to use the Japanese concept of wabi sabi to reshape every area of your life and find happiness right where you are. Fed up with the exhausting challenges of our fast-paced, consumption-driven existence, millions of people around the world are turning to timeless cultural traditions to find true meaning. In this transformative handbook, Beth Kempton introduces you to wabi sabi (”wah-bi sah-bi”), a captivating concept from Japanese aesthetics that offers a whole new way of looking at the world. With roots in Zen and the Way of Tea, wabi sabi teaches you to see beauty in imperfection, appreciate simplicity, and accept the transient nature of all things. It inspires you to simplify everything and concentrate on what truly matters. Filled with simple yet profound wisdom, Wabi Sabi will help you slow down, reconnect with nature, and be gentler on yourself. From honoring the rhythm of the seasons to creating a welcoming home, from reframing failure to aging with grace, Wabi Sabi teaches you find more joy and inspiration throughout your perfectly imperfect life.

mindfulness

Mindfulness

travel

Travel

The definitive guide that teaches you how to use the Japanese concept of wabi sabi to reshape every area of your life and find happiness right where you are. Fed up with the exhausting challenges of our fast-paced, consumption-driven existence, millions of people around the world are turning to timeless cultural traditions to find true meaning. In this transformative handbook, Beth Kempton introduces you to wabi sabi (”wah-bi sah-bi”), a captivating concept from Japanese aesthetics that offers a whole new way of looking at the world.With roots in Zen and the Way of Tea, wabi sabi teaches you to see beauty in imperfection, appreciate simplicity, and accept the transient nature of all things. It inspires you to simplify everything and concentrate on what truly matters. Filled with simple yet profound wisdom, Wabi Sabi will help you slow down, reconnect with nature, and be gentler on yourself. From honoring the rhythm of the seasons to creating a welcoming home, from reframing failure to aging with grace, Wabi Sabi teaches you find more joy and inspiration throughout your perfectly imperfect life.

Beth Kempton

Wabi Sabi

Transform your habits one small change at a time repeating until you don’t get results. Whether you want to adopt a healthier lifestyle, get better at saving money, or rethink your career, kaizen can set you on the path to success. But first, you have to know where you stand.

Incremental Growth is Key

Habits are the way our brain standardizes behaviors to save mental resources. Association strengthens with repetition until the behavior gets locked in. As a first step make an inventory of your life. <ol><li>List the areas that make up your life</li><li>For each area ask yourself if you are doing the most to achieve happiness </li><li>Areas where you have a sense of dissatisfaction should be subdivided in other parts to understand the source of dissatisfaction.</li><li>Write what you love and hate about them</li><li>Complete with a list of activities you feel drawn to</li><li>When you are finished you will have a list of goals to choose from</li></ol>

Analyze Your Habits

Your first actions should be so small you barely notice any difference. Adding them up will produce momentum (“contagious enthusiasm” and a compound effect. What is the smallest, most easily achievable step you can make toward your goal? Then set various incremental steps to achieve your goal. This step-by-step technique is recommended by experts and makes it a lot easier to sustain change in the early stage. It also makes lasting change more likely.Once you’ve established your goals and first steps, write them down. Now, set a time frame for completing them.

Plan Your Actions

Breaking down your goals in achievable steps makes it easier to complete. If the habits you want to cultivate are permanent ones, it’s important to set a measurement and cadence (e.g. one yoga class per week). The kaizen philosophy suggests adjusting your time frame as you go, according to your natural pace. So if you find you’re feeling overwhelmed, make your goal even smaller. The more wins you accumulate the more likely you are to maintain momentum and make progress. The goal of Kaizen is not to cross off tasks but ongoing improvement.

Break Down Your Goals In Short, Medium and Long Term goals

Tracking progress allows you to see timely where you need to improve. Bullet journaling can help through habit tracker inserts that enable a visual depiction of your progress. Alternatively use habit tracking apps. Do an end of month review to understand the progress you made and what you need to adjust, including setting new goals as needed.

Monitor Your Habits And Your Progress 

The time required to pick up a new habit changes from person to person and from habit to habit (18 to 254 days). Everyone has its own pace, so respect your own. The beauty of kaizen is that it’s a flexible and personalized approach to lifelong change – adjust to what works for you. Stay aware of your feelings and behaviors to identify when to step back. If you find yourself not meeting short-term goals, simply return to the very smallest possible action you can take instead. Taking a small action is better than taking none, and it enables you to gradually work your way up to your goal.

The goal of Kaizen Is Lifelong Improvement. Set your own Pace

<ul><li>Ikigai: find your unique contribution, live longer</li><li><a href="https://dsta.sh/pXGUwgNNXXmk3pKr7">Ichigo Ichie</a>: learn how to make the most of each moment and fulfill your Ikigai</li><li><a href="https://dsta.sh/WQviosFiXkdS4Bmt7">Joy at work</a>: set your vision and curate your work life for joy and productivity</li><li><a href="https://flip.it/9uRNzJ">Wabi sabi:</a> find beauty in imperfection and craft your own path</li></ul>

Discover More Japan Inspired Personal development 

Kaizen is a Japanese management theory that encourages taking incremental steps to transform habits. First inventory your habits. Define your long-term goals and make a plan to start working toward them gradually. Once you start, track your progress and make adjustments according to your pace to keep momentum and compound improvements.

Reach your goals with Kaizen—the Japanese art of gentle self-improvement From Hygge to Ikigai, positive philosophies have taken the world by storm. Now, Kaizen—meaning “good change”—will help you transform your habits, without being too hard on yourself along the way. With Kaizen, even the boldest intention becomes a series of small, achievable steps. Each person’s approach will be different, which is why it’s so effective. First popularized by Toyota, Kaizen is already proven in the worlds of business and sports. Here, Sarah Harvey shows how to apply it to your health, relationships, money, career, hobbies, and home—and how to tailor it to your personality. Kaizen is the key to lasting change!

Reach your goals with Kaizen—the Japanese art of gentle self-improvement From Hygge to Ikigai, positive philosophies have taken the world by storm. Now, Kaizen—meaning “good change”—will help you transform your habits, without being too hard on yourself along the way. With Kaizen, even the boldest intention becomes a series of small, achievable steps. Each person’s approach will be different, which is why it’s so effective. First popularized by Toyota, Kaizen is already proven in the worlds of business and sports. Here, Sarah Harvey shows how to apply it to your health, relationships, money, career, hobbies, and home—and how to tailor it to your personality. Kaizen is the key to lasting change!

Sarah Harvey is an accomplished writer whose work has resonated with readers around the world. Sarah Harvey has published several books that explore a range of topics, from fiction to nonfiction, and has received critical acclaim for the ability to weave compelling narratives. Sarah Harvey's writing style is known for its depth and authenticity, and has earned quite a loyal following of readers.

Sarah Harvey

Kaizen

The KonMari Method is about realigning yourself with your goals and purpose in life. When you follow the steps, your tidy work area will represent the place where your goals and aspirations come to life. This is why people who follow the method will continue to maintain a clutter-free environment long after they made their first changes.

Create The Place Where Your Dreams Will Come To Life

The goal of the method shared in this book is not just to have a nice neat desk but to begin a dialogue with yourself through tidying—to discover what you value by exploring why you are working in the first place and what kind of working style you want. This process will help you see how each task you do is linked to a joyful future. In the end, the real goal is to discover what brings you joy in your work so that you can give it your best. We invite you to experience for yourself how tidying up can spark joy in your career.

The trick is to imagine in vivid, motion-picture detail what your whole day will look like after you finish tidying up. That image should include three elements: the physical environment, your behavior, and your feelings. Visualize what your workspace looks like, what you do there, including such things as enjoying a cup of coffee or refreshing aromas; and what you feel when you do that: for example, excited, fulfilled, or content.Reexamine these ideals from different perspectives, such as productivity, efficiency, and your relationships with the members of your team.

Visualize Your Ideal Work Life

Tidy up properly, all in one go, then designate a place for every single item. Once you know where everything in your workspace is stored, you can keep track of your things even when they start to multiply. Whether tidying your workspace or tidying your home, this is the essence of the Kon-Mari Method. Tidying up a desk takes an average of five hours and, depending on the type of work, can take as little as three. If finding time it’s a problem split into multiple sessions. The important thing is to give yourself a deadline.

Tidy your entire workspace by category, all in one go.

There are three types of things that you should keep: <ul><li>things that directly spark joy to you personally, </li><li>those that provide functional joy, and </li><li>those that lead to future joy. </li></ul>These are your criteria for choosing what to keep in your workspace.If the words spark joy just don’t seem to click in your work setting, feel free to substitute something else that does. E.g. Will this help my company prosper?Always keep in mind that the reason you are tidying is not to throw things away and declutter your desk but to realize your ideal work life, the one that sparks joy for you.

Keep What Sparks Joy

Let’s start by collecting all of the books in your workspace and piling them in front of you. One by one, hold each book and ask: Does it spark joy? Does it make me happy to know that it’s nearby? Does it provide important information that helps me do my job better? If the answer is no to all of these questions, show your gratitude by thanking the item for serving you well up to this point. Then let it go. In the end, the books you’re left with should clearly speak to your values and what you find important

Start With Books And Discover Your Values

With paperwork, the process will be slightly different. You should still gather all of your paperwork in one place and go through it piece by piece. But this time, you’ll want to divide your papers into three categories: pending (documents that relate to ongoing matters), save because you must (documents that your job requires you to hold on to), and save because you want to (documents that help you perform your job).Once you’ve sorted the papers and discarded those that don’t fit into these categories, put them all in vertical hanging files to keep papers easily accessible and retrievable.

Paperwork: Discard Everything 

Komono (miscellaneous) includes supplies, gadgets, snacks, and other materials you have around to help you work. So, when deciding which komono to keep, it can be helpful to put them into subcategories like office supplies, personal care products, food, and electronic devices.Remember. Keep only those items that will help make your ideal workplace a reality. If you struggle to let go of a sentimental item snap a photo.At this stage of the process, you should have only the most essential items with everything in its own designated place. Use dividers and small boxes to keep everything organized

Categorize Miscellaneous And Sentimental Items

By constantly repeating the mental process of identifying what we truly want and deciding what to do on the basis of what brings us joy, we acquire a positive perspective that affirms every choice we make.﻿

Desktop: To tidy this space up, create a couple of folders, such as “Storage” and “Current Projects,” to get these files organized and off the desktop. Ideally, this space should be used to display an inspirational wallpaper photo and to provide temporary access to the few files that you are working on at the moment.Hard Drive: you shouldn’t need more than a few main folders like:<ol><li>Current Projects then divided into a few subfolders—one per project;</li><li>Records including contracts, policies, etc; </li><li>Saved Work represents an archive of past projects and research.</li></ol>Only keep what is useful or inspiring.

From Tidying the Physical Aspects to Tidying the Nonphysical Asp

Your email is a place for dealing with current work. Create folders, ideally no more than ten, to allow you to start organizing emails by category and the project they’re related to.If you have thousands of uncategorized emails in your inbox, put them all into an archive folder. When you get a new email, either delete it or categorize it into a folder.It takes around 26 minutes to return to the level of concentration preceding an interruption. Turn off all the obtrusive notifications and set aside blocks of time, at the beginning and end of the workday, to deal with email in a focused manner.

Tame Your Inbox

Unsubscribe from all of your current newsletters. Then, just resubscribe to the ones that truly spark joy.Delete all your apps and only reinstall the ones that matter to you.

Curate The Content You Consume

Finding joy and harmony in what you do also requires a schedule that’s free of clutter and wasted time. Once again, the first step here is to visualize your ideal schedule. What would your perfect day look like? The things you say “yes” to and the events you write into your calendar should bring you closer to this vision, not further away from it.You can do a similar tidy-up around the time you spend making decisions. Is someone else better-suited to make these decisions? Can someone else be trusted to decide for me? Can this task be automated, or done less frequently?

Reconsider your schedule and which Tasks You Focus On

Visualize your perfect meeting and then write down your regularly scheduled ones onto index cards. As you go through them ask the following questions: Is it required for my job? Does it bring me closer to my ideal work life? Does it bring me joy?Improve your meetings. If you can’t cancel or avoid an unproductive meeting, there are still ways to make it better. You can start by getting people to be better prepared. Make sure there’s an agenda that includes a strong purpose for the meeting, and that this agenda is shared with everyone beforehand so that the participants can come with some ideas.

Make Meetings More Joyful

Interior Design your workspace Use photos and decorations that spark joy. Use a beautiful notebooks so that even writing notes becomes a joyful experience. Use aromatics to calm or energize your mind. Self-reflection helps maintain Joy at work. Put aside some time every couple of weeks to consider the work you’ve done and how it aligns with your goals. Without self-reflection, small problems can fester, grow, and become harder to deal with. But if you’re diligent, you can keep that ideal workplace fresh in your mind’s eye and stay on the right path.

Cultivate Your New Mindset

Find joy at work by curating your work life to fulfill your vision and Ikigai

Declutter your desk and brighten up your business with this transformative guide from an organizational psychologist and the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. The workplace is a magnet for clutter and mess. Who hasn't felt drained by wasteful meetings, disorganized papers, endless emails, and unnecessary tasks? These are the modern-day hazards of working, and they can slowly drain the joy from work, limit our chances of career progress, and undermine our well-being. There is another way. In Joy at Work, bestselling author and Netflix star Marie Kondo and Rice University business professor Scott Sonenshein offer stories, studies, and strategies to help you eliminate clutter and make space for work that really matters. Using the world-renowned KonMari Method and cutting-edge research, Joy at Work will help you overcome the challenges of workplace mess and enjoy the productivity, success, and happiness that come with a tidy desk and mind.

Declutter your desk and brighten up your business with this transformative guide from an organizational psychologist and the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. The workplace is a magnet for clutter and mess. Who hasn't felt drained by wasteful meetings, disorganized papers, endless emails, and unnecessary tasks? These are the modern-day hazards of working, and they can slowly drain the joy from work, limit our chances of career progress, and undermine our well-being. There is another way. In Joy at Work, bestselling author and Netflix star Marie Kondo and Rice University business professor Scott Sonenshein offer stories, studies, and strategies to help you eliminate clutter and make space for work that really matters. Using the world-renowned KonMari Method and cutting-edge research, Joy at Work will help you overcome the challenges of workplace mess and enjoy the productivity, success, and happiness that come with a tidy desk and mind.

Scott Sonenshein is an accomplished writer whose work has resonated with readers around the world. Scott Sonenshein has published several books that explore a range of topics, from fiction to nonfiction, and has received critical acclaim for the ability to weave compelling narratives. Scott Sonenshein's writing style is known for its depth and authenticity, and has earned quite a loyal following of readers.

Scott Sonenshein

Marie Kondo is an accomplished writer whose work has resonated with readers around the world. Marie Kondo has published several books that explore a range of topics, from fiction to nonfiction, and has received critical acclaim for the ability to weave compelling narratives. Marie Kondo's writing style is known for its depth and authenticity, and has earned quite a loyal following of readers.

Marie Kondo

Joy at Work

What we are experiencing right now will never happen again. We must value each moment like a beautiful treasure. If we let it slip, it will be lost forever.Becoming aware of ichigo ichie helps us remember that each morning we spend in the world, every moment we spend with our children and with our loved ones is infinitely valuable and deserves our full attention.“Treat your host as if the meeting were going to occur only once in your life.Yamanoue Sōji, 1588.As moment hunters, everything becomes unique and sublime, since we know that what we are experiencing right now will never happen again.

Become A Moment Hunter And Fulfill Your Potential 

Each tea ceremony should be treated with great attention because it is ichigo ichie, which is to say, a unique encounter in time. Even though the host and guests may see each other daily, the gathering can never be exactly repeated.The host should thus show true sincerity and take the greatest care with every detail, to make sure that everything flows smoothly and without a hitch.The guests for their part must understand that the encounter will never occur again, and so they must appreciate every detail of the ceremony prepared by the host and, of course, participate wholeheartedly. Ii Naosuke

Tea Ceremony as a Unique encounter 

Sakura is visible proof of how the most beautiful things in life are fleeting and can’t be postponed.Kaika indicates the early buds of Sakura. A kaika moment, is when something unknown begins to blossom within us. When kaika is transformative, we want to turn it into mankai, the full blossoming of Sakura. We want it to mature to its full potential. This means cultivating our habits, seeking continuous improvement and reaching 10000 hour of practice to achieve mastery. Gladwell suggests that a great deal of effort and commitment are required for talent to be realized in all its brilliance.

Blossoming To Your Full Potential 

<a href="https://dsta.sh/uCn5eqZo2Ys6peAZ9">Ikigai</a>: discovering something we become passionate about and which also comes easily to us.Kaika: making room for our passion, allowing the reason we feel we were put on the earth to begin to blossom.Mankai: we reach mankai by staying the course, keep dreaming and devoting mindful time to improve our skills.”If we discover our talent, open ourselves up to it, and make it a priority in our lives, our passion will be able to develop, leading to our happiness and that of others.”

Ikigai and Manifesting Your Natural Abilities 

There are 4 key emotions that leave a mark on your life:<ul><li>Anger: evolutionary emotion that enabled to face danger effectively. It keeps us in the past and prevents us from enjoying the present.</li><li>Sadness: healthy sadness is due to a loss and is used to grieve, process and determine a strategy to face the future. It keeps us focused on the past.</li><li>Fear: also evolutionary, fear makes us live in the future and makes is impossible to enjoy the present creating a sense of doom.</li><li>Happiness: belong to the present and can or not have a cause. With Ichigo ichie we want to tap into unconditional contentment.</li></ul>

4 Basic Emotions

When you are mindful, you are fully aware of your surroundings and of yourself in the present. Mindfulness increases the time that you swim with your head above water, when you can see both potential dangers and pleasures. When you are mindful, you are aware of your position and your destination. You can make corrections to your path.

“You will find Zen in your everyday life, if you dedicate yourself passionately to what you love. . . . You can still have a spiritual life while you run your business.” Describing <a href="https://dsta.sh/uCn5eqZo2Ys6peAZ9">Ikigai</a> to Steve Jobs

<ol><li>Just sit and see what happens</li><li>Savor this moment as if it were your last breath</li><li>Avoid distractions</li><li>Free yourself from everything that is not essential</li><li>Be your own friend: you are unique</li><li>Celebrate imperfection: Each failure is a sign that you should take a different path. Each flaw is an invitation to polish a diamond. If you have the will to improve, then it’s perfect to be imperfect.</li><li>Practice compassion: Each person acts according to the moment of personal growth in which they find themselves.</li><li>Let go of your expectations: expectations are like the wrapping that prevents us from seeing the gift.</li></ol>

Zen-spirations

1. Don’t postpone special moments. If you don’t embrace it, it’s lost forever.2. Live as if this were going to happen only once in your life. Be aware of the unique and once-in-a-lifetime nature of each meeting. 3. Dwell in the present. Here in this moment, all the possibilities in the world are alive. 4. Do something you’ve never done before. Allow something new to blossom inside you. 5. Practice zazen.Just sit down and observe the miracle of life.

10 Rules Of Ichigo Ichie (part 1) 

6. Apply mindfulness to your five senses. Train yourself in the art of listening, watching, touching, tasting, and smelling to give each moment the richness of human perception. 7. Notice Coincidences. A journal in which we keep notes of these moments of daily magic will increase our ability to follow the invisible threads of reality. 8. Make every gathering a party. The right frame of mind can make every day a celebration. 9. If you don’t like what there is, make something different. 10. Be a hunter of special moments. The more you practice, the better and more abundant the results will be.

10 Rules Of Ichigo Ichie (part 2)

Each moment is unique and cannot be repeated. Learn to make the most of every moment and fulfill your potential.

Find happiness by living fully in the present with this definitive guide to ichigo ichie--the Japanese art of making the most of every moment--from the bestselling authors of Ikigai. Every moment in our life happens only once, and if we let it slip away, we lose it forever--an idea captured by the Japanese phrase ichigo ichie (pronounced itchy-GO itchy-A). Often spoken in Japan when greeting someone or saying goodbye, to convey that the encounter is unique and special, it is a tenet of Zen Buddhism and is attributed to a sixteenth-century master of the Japanese tea ceremony, or "ceremony of attention," whose intricate rituals compel us to focus on the present moment. From this age-old concept comes a new kind of mindfulness. In The Book of Ichigo Ichie, you will learn to... • appreciate the beauty of the fleeting, the way the Japanese celebrate the cherry blossoms for two weeks every April, knowing they'll have to wait a whole year to see them again; • use all five senses to anchor yourself in the present, helping you to let go of fear, sadness, anger, and other negative emotions fueled by fixating on the past or the future; • be alert to the magic of coincidences, which help us find meaning among the disconnected events of our lives; • use ichigo ichie to help you discover your ikigai, or life's purpose--because it's only by learning to be present, to be tuned into what catches your attention and excites you in the moment, that you can identify what it is that most motivates you and brings you happiness. Every one of us contains a key that can open the door to attention, harmony with others, and love of life. And that key is ichigo ichie. A PENGUIN LIFE TITLE

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • 1.5 MILLION+ COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE “Workers looking for more fulfilling positions should start by identifying their ikigai.” ―Business Insider   “One of the unintended—yet positive—consequences of the [pandemic] is that it is forcing people to reevaluate their jobs, careers, and lives. Use this time wisely, find your personal ikigai, and live your best life.” ―Forbes Find your ikigai (pronounced ee-key-guy) to live longer and bring more meaning and joy to all your days. “Only staying active will make you want to live a hundred years.” —Japanese proverb   According to the Japanese, everyone has an ikigai—a reason for living. And according to the residents of the Japanese village with the world’s longest-living people, finding it is the key to a happier and longer life. Having a strong sense of ikigai—where what you love, what you’re good at, what you can get paid for, and what the world needs all overlap—means that each day is infused with meaning. It’s the reason we get up in the morning. It’s also the reason many Japanese never really retire (in fact there’s no word in Japanese that means retire in the sense it does in English): They remain active and work at what they enjoy, because they’ve found a real purpose in life—the happiness of always being busy. In researching this book, the authors interviewed the residents of the Japanese village with the highest percentage of 100-year-olds—one of the world’s Blue Zones. Ikigai reveals the secrets to their longevity and happiness: how they eat, how they move, how they work, how they foster collaboration and community, and—their best-kept secret—how they find the ikigai that brings satisfaction to their lives. And it provides practical tools to help you discover your own ikigai. Because who doesn’t want to find happiness in every day?

Hector Garcia was born in Spain in 1981 and has been living in Tokyo since 2004. During his spare time he writes aGeekinJapan.com, one of the most widely-read blogs in the world in Spanish and in English, as well as books about his experiences in Japan. He is the author of the bestsellers: Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life and A Geek in Japan. You can find more of Hector's musings at ageekinjapan.com

Héctor García

Francesc Miralles Contijoch is a Catalan writer, essayist, translator, and musician.

Francesc Miralles

Ikigai

The Book of Ichigo Ichie

Ikigai is the intersection between what you are passionate about, where your skills lie, how you can earn a living and what the world needs.

Ikigai is where your reason for living meets your life goal

Once you find it, wether as a job or a hobby, you should not give it up as Ikigai is also the key to longevity as people from Okinawa show. Indeed an active mind and low stress are the key to a long life. To keep your mind active engage in social life, go outside and do mind games. This will avoid you get stuck in patterns and routines that promote your brain to slow down.

Everyone has an Ikigai that they were born to fulfill

Reducing stress is the key to a long life, try practicing mindfulness, doing yoga or taking time to exercise. This will give you a chance to calm down and observe your body and mind more closely.

Avoiding stress is key for Longevity 

“We have to learn how to turn off the autopilot that’s steering us in an endless loop.”

No Autopilot

In Morita therapy, patients are asked to pay attention to and accept their feelings, without attempting to change them. From there, they take particular actions to create new emotions, which gradually replace the old ones. <ol><li>First there is a week of complete rest and disconnect from media.</li><li>Second, the patient begins to integrate repetitive activities into her daily routine. </li><li>Third, these activities become more physical and creative producing a new set of emotions.</li><li>Finally, the patient is ready for stage four: reentering the world with a newfound sense of calm and purpose</li></ol>

Morita Therapy 

Flow is experienced when enjoyment and concentration are so deep they bloc out all other concerns – even time itself. Seeking out flow activities will increase your enjoyment of life and, therefore, your longevity. That’s why you should prioritize flow experiences over hedonistic ones like overeating, substance abuse or media entertainment. Ideally, your ikigai – your main life occupation – will regularly produce a state of flow, but if it doesn’t, be sure your hobbies do. Calibrating the level of difficulty is essential for flow.

Remain Young by immersing yourself in an activity 

Enjoy and cultivate your friendships, chat with your neighbors, enjoy quiet pursuits in the early morning, enjoy what you have

Friendships, gratefulness, early mornings and Garden vegetables 

The Okinawan diet contains an incredible variety of foods ( up to 206 different foods on a regular basis, including herbs and spices. The base of the diet is grains, like rice or noodles, while seasonings like salt and sugar are used sparingly. They eat small portions until they are 80% full and eat/ drink antioxidants rich foods like green tea and citrus fruits.

Eat Small portions in all Colors of the rainbow 

Learn how to find your life purpose, enjoy life and live a long fulfilling life.

Los Angeles Times bestseller • More than 1.5 million copies sold “Workers looking for more fulfilling positions should start by identifying their ikigai.” ―Business Insider “One of the unintended—yet positive—consequences of the [pandemic] is that it is forcing people to reevaluate their jobs, careers, and lives. Use this time wisely, find your personal ikigai, and live your best life.” ―Forbes *And from the same authors, don’t miss The Book of Ichigo Ichie—about making the most of every moment in your life.* * * * Find your ikigai (pronounced ee-key-guy) and bring meaning and joy to all your days. “Only staying active will make you want to live a hundred years.” —Japanese proverb According to the Japanese, everyone has an ikigai—a reason for living. And according to the residents of the Japanese village with the world’s longest-living people, finding it is the key to a happier and longer life. Having a strong sense of ikigai—where what you love, what you’re good at, what you can get paid for, and what the world needs all overlap—means that each day is infused with meaning. It’s the reason we get up in the morning. It’s also the reason many Japanese never really retire (in fact there’s no word in Japanese that means retire in the sense it does in English): They remain active and work at what they enjoy, because they’ve found a real purpose in life—the happiness of always being busy. In researching this book, the authors interviewed the residents of the Japanese village with the highest percentage of 100-year-olds—one of the world’s Blue Zones. Ikigai reveals the secrets to their longevity and happiness: how they eat, how they move, how they work, how they foster collaboration and community, and—their best-kept secret—how they find the ikigai that brings satisfaction to their lives. And it provides practical tools to help you discover your own ikigai. Because who doesn’t want to find happiness in every day? A PENGUIN LIFE TITLE

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