How to get SH!T done

No matter what is going on in the world or in our lives, we have to continue to get sh!t done. Each one of us has our own way of getting things accomplished – little tricks or processes to help us get through the never-ending minutiae required to do our jobs and lead our lives.

These methods might involve sticky notes wallpapering our cubicle at work, lists an arm’s-length long, reminders on our phones or in our computer calendars, even old-school notes written on our hands that are inevitably washed away before the task is completed. Whatever works for you is great – as long as you’re doing something.

One trick worth adding to your repertoire, if it’s not part of it already, is writing things down. Neuroscientists have found that when we write things down we create two channels for recall:

• External storage. That’s that sticky note or reminder in your calendar.
• Encoding. This is the biological process that involves the things we perceive travelling to the hippocampus in our brain, where they are able to be analysed. This enables decisions to be made about what gets stored in our long-term memory and what’s discarded. 1

The ‘generation effect’ is a term coined by neuropsychologists to refer to the fact that we are more likely to remember information, materials or experiences that we generate or create ourselves, compared with those we only read about or observe second-hand. This means that when you tell your kids something, they’re going to remember it better when they write it down themselves. In the same way, you will do better with getting things done if you make a note of the tasks your boss mentions to you as they walk past your desk.

Similarly, a recent study by University of California professor Doctor Gail Matthews found that people who write down their goals are 42% more likely to achieve those goals.2 42%! Clearly this is a practice that’s going to help you get sh!t done.

So what does it boil down to? If you write something down you are more likely to remember it and therefore more likely to do it. That means that all those sticky notes, lists and calendar reminders are going to help you get through the tasks and to-dos more efficiently and effectively than if you just try to remember them.

The Peeplcoach programs have been developed with this research in mind and have been created around these three central pillars:

1. Watch, read and learn components to share concepts and models
2. On-the-job modules and exercises that enable you to apply the concept or skill you have learned
3. Embedding, which involves one-to-one coaching with an experienced coach, allowing you to explore obstacles, practise applying concepts and ultimately embed the learning and skills.

These pillars and our passionate team of coaches work towards helping each participant not only remember their goals but actively work towards achieving them and crossing them off their list. There’s nothing better than watching our participants get sh!t done when it comes to their career and business goals.

References

1.   https://www.forbes.com/sites/markmurphy/2018/04/15/neuroscience-explains-why-you-need-to-write-down-your-goals-if-you-actually-want-to-achieve-them/?sh=690e08887905

2.   https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinecastrillon/2020/03/15/this-is-how-highly-successful-people-achieve-career-goals/