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167. Unlock Your Mental Focus: Boosting Productivity and Clarity
Episode 16714th February 2024 • Elemental Evan • Evan Roberts
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Unlock Your Mental Focus: Boosting Productivity and Clarity

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On today’s episode, Evan discusses strategies to improve one's mental focus, productivity, and overall well-being. Some of the main topics covered in this episode include the importance of sleep, efficient time-management methods like the Pomodoro technique and Parkinson’s law, the debate around morning rituals, physical activity, task tracking, and consuming specific foods and supplements for brain health. Evan particularly highlights the benefits of Lion's mane mushroom for cognitive performance and provides comprehensive advice on how to effectively tackle tasks, reduce procrastination, and live a more productive and fulfilling day-to-day life.


Get ready to increase your productivity, and free up time in your day with this episode. As always, do everything with good intentions and connect to your elements. 



DISCLAIMER:

This podcast is for educational purposes only, it is not a substitute for professional care by a doctor or other qualified medical professional. Evan Roberts is not a medical professional and this podcast is provided on the understanding that it does not constitute medical or other professional advice or services. Statements and views expressed on this show are not medical advice, this podcast, including Evan Roberts and any guests on the show, disclaims responsibility for any possible adverse effects from the use of information contained in this episode. If you think you have a medical problem please consult a medical professional.


Transcripts

Speaker:

How often does a job that should only

take an hour end up taking four hours.

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Do you often have trouble focusing,

staying energized and motivated, or

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maybe you just even have difficulty

sitting down and getting your work done?

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Well, I don't know about you, but

I hate it when a task that I have

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ends up dragging out for half of

the day when really it should have

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been done in a fraction of the time.

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So if you're anything like me, Then you're

probably interested in learning how to

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improve your mental focus and clarity

while increasing your productivity, which

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means that you are in the right place.

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My friend, because on today's episode,

we will talk about my favorite practices

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to finish a task in a timely manner.

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Stop procrastinating, my favorite

supplements and foods for mental

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performance and what Parkinson's law is.

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And much more.

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This is the elemental Eben podcast.

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And I'm your host, Evan Roberts.

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But more importantly, I am just

someone who really truly cares

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about both your health and mine,

especially as someone who has dealt

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with gut issues growing up as a kid.

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So it's my goal with this podcast

to break down health topics from a

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holistic and simplified approach.

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So that everyone can understand

these different health topics and

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more importantly, walk away from

these episodes with knowledge that

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you can actually apply to your life.

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Now today's episode isn't

I guess specifically.

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You know, in the direction of health,

but it definitely is in my opinion,

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in the realm of wellness, because our

ability to be productive and to get

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things done throughout our day and make

the most of not just our days, but our

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life and actually amount to something.

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Plays a huge role in our wellness, our

mental health, and also just feeling

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like we're being productive and doing

something with our lives, which can have

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a huge benefit for our mental health.

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So truthfully the productivity portion of

our lives and how well we can accomplish a

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task and really make something of our day.

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In my opinion is super beneficial

for our mental health, as well

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as just our overall wellbeing.

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Now I personally, over the years have

definitely had my, um, Spouts of.

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Procrastination and

difficulty getting tasks done.

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And, you know, even to this day, it's

still something that occurs regularly.

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Uh, but now the difference is that I

have tools in my tool belt that I can

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actively apply to all of these different

tasks to help get them done in a timely

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manner and feel that I am not wasting

time, but rather getting the tasks done

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that I need to get done right away in

a timely manner so that I can then go

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ahead and enjoy the rest of my day.

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So.

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On this podcast, I'm going to go

ahead and share a few of these tips

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and tricks that I've discovered.

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And the very first one starts off with,

if you want to have a good day or, you

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know, just be a top performer in your day.

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That means you need to start the

night before everything that.

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You know, basically having a good

day literally starts the night

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before you have to get amazing sleep.

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That's what I mean by having a good

night, you have to have amazing

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sleep to be a top performer.

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I don't know about you, but if you've

ever had like five hours of sleep or

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maybe even less, which is not a good idea.

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You definitely feel it throughout

the entirety of your day, right?

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Like you're just not mentally as sharp.

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It's harder for you to recall, recall

certain memories or names or just.

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Whatever you need to, you know,

random information that you

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might need to call on as well.

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Your energy levels are probably going

to be really, really low for that day.

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So truthfully.

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If you want to have a really good

day and be completely just mentally

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on top of it and just crushing it

throughout the entirety of your day,

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then you have to get incredible sleep.

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And if you were not taking precautions to

make sure that you are setting yourself

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up for a good eight hours of sleep.

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In your bed, right?

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Like actually in bed getting a full

eight, then you really need to focus

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there on other podcast episodes.

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I've even spoken about how.

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If you go a certain amount

of time without sleep.

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So sleep deprivation, you can

actually have the mental abilities of

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someone who is slightly intoxicated.

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So of course, none of us want to be,

you know, trying to get through all

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of these different tasks at a slightly

intoxicated cognitive level, right.

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We want to be at the top performance so

that we can really show up as our best

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self in every single thing that we do.

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And that all starts with.

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Our sleep.

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So if you are not getting

good sleep, start there.

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And if you're curious on how to

improve your sleep, go ahead and

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check out some of the other episodes

that I've done on this show, where I

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dive a little bit deeper into sleep.

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Now number two is going to be about

morning rituals, which is a question

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or a topic that tons of people are

debating or have been debating.

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Um, in recent months I would say.

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And really the question is to morning

ritual or not, or to not morning ritual.

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And in my opinion, I think.

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It really just depends on you.

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Um, there is a benefit in having a

morning ritual, but I think a morning

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ritual can also become a detrimental.

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So if you have a morning ritual

that takes you like two or two and

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a half hours every single morning.

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That morning ritual is probably way too

long and needs to be shortened down,

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or maybe just thrown out altogether.

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Um, morning rituals can in a way become

a form of procrastination as well.

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So instead of actually being something

that sets us up for a good day, it can

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actually be something that is, you know,

setting us up for a shortened bad day and

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a day that just feels like it doesn't have

enough time in the day for us to get all

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the tasks done that we need to get done.

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So in terms of a morning ritual, I would

say, ideally, you don't want to go over

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an hour for your morning ritual that way.

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You know, you can get a lot done

within that hour and just really be.

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Really on top of everything that

you're doing for your morning ritual.

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So it can be very timed.

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Um, but provide a lot of benefit.

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So for example, for myself, I do

have a morning ritual, which I

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haven't really been doing recently.

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And that's totally fine.

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Life has gotten super busy for me.

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Uh, work has just been crazy.

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I've been getting up super early, so.

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While I would love to

have a morning ritual.

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I understand that the first thing I

mentioned on the show was get good sleep.

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That is really the most

important thing here.

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So I have been prioritizing that more than

my morning ritual, but nonetheless, when I

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did have a morning ritual or if I do have

some time in the morning, um, the things

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that I do still do as a morning ritual.

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Is first off, I do love to read.

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Some kind of.

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Text in the morning, right?

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Uh, typically it's a.

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I don't know, uh, health, or I

guess you could say quote unquote,

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like a self-help type book.

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Um, I love the Ryan holiday,

um, stoic philosophy type

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books as well in the morning.

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And so if I have the time, I'll

do like 10 pages of reading in the

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morning if I don't have the time, but

I still want to do a little reading.

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I'll literally just read a page or two.

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And that's still something that I

feel is beneficial, uh, specifically

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with, you know, these Ryan holiday,

like stoic philosophy texts.

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Um, there's a lot of benefit in few words.

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Uh, so that's always a great book to read,

even if you don't have a ton of time.

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And then the second thing is meditation.

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Meditation is huge.

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Back in the day.

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I literally was doing 30

minutes every morning.

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Um, I obviously don't have

that much time right now.

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So, uh, when I do meditate, it

typically is only about five

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or 10 minutes in the morning.

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But it is so important that I make

sure that, that if, if anything,

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that one is included over all of the

others, because personally meditation

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is truly a time for you to quiet the

mind and just sort everything out.

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Right.

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And it also helps you

to, uh, become more of a.

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Single pointed focused person, because

you have a lot of mental chatter

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and your ability to sift through

all of that and let it go and focus

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on the task at hand, which during

meditation is just being present.

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It really helps you throughout the day in

whenever you're going through a task and

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you've got all these different things in

your mind, and you're thinking all these

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crazy thoughts and whatnot, it helps

you to really sit through those and just

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focus on the thing that is most important.

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Um, meditation is one of my favorite

practices and I hope you give it a try.

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If you aren't already trying it out.

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And then last but not least is

doing some exercise in the morning.

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So exercise is one of the best ways

to really just flip your brain on.

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And it really does.

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Yeah, like it might drain your body a

little bit physically, but man, does it

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just kick the brain on like nothing else?

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It truly is like, almost

like a drug in that sense.

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So if I have a ton of work to do, or I

just know that, you know, I'm going to

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have a good four hour block of a ton

of things that I need to get through.

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Sometimes I actually like to

just do a pretty quick, but

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rigorous workout right before it.

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Um, and that typically

tends to kick my brain on.

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So.

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In the morning when I was doing my

morning rituals, sometimes I would just

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go for a walk, which even that would

help to turn on the brain and kind of

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get things moving, but actually doing

something like a jog in the morning.

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And it really doesn't have to be

a long jog, like 10 or 15 minutes

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jogging can be absolutely sufficient.

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And that right there would be enough

to really get the brain going and

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get me ready and prepped to do

some work, uh, for that morning.

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So.

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If you are interested in doing a

morning ritual, those are three

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practices that I would highly recommend.

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If you're going to do any practices, of

course you can add or take away whatever

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you like and whatever works best for you.

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But once again, we really don't want

to have this morning ritual take up

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more than about an hour of our morning,

because after that point, it really

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does just start to eat in our, into

our day and take away from time that

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we could be putting towards the actual

tasks that we're trying to accomplish.

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And, uh, you know, the morning ritual.

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Joel was supposed to prep us for that.

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Not take away from it.

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So the morning ritual totally up to you.

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If you have the time

for it, then go for it.

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But if you see that it is eating

into your morning and it's really

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just taking time away from your

day, then feel free to absolutely.

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Get rid of it.

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It's not something that

is absolutely necessary.

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Uh, number three is going to

be the Pomodoro technique.

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And Parkinson's law.

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These two things have been game changer

for me in terms of being productive.

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Uh, first off, starting

with Parkinson's law.

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If you haven't heard of this before.

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Um, here is a treat for you.

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I absolutely love this.

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So Parkinson's law pretty much

states that a task will take up

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the amount of time that it's given.

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So how often have you.

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You know, Had like two things

to do for the entire day.

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And for some reason, those two

tasks take literally the entire day.

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Right?

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I mean, it could be like, Just super

simple, like cleaning up the house and

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ordering a couple of things online.

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And you know, if you really

were pressed for time, you could

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probably accomplish those in.

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Literally like an hour and a half,

maybe it's not perfect, but you could

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get it done in an hour and a half.

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But if you have the entire day, it's

like, you're looking through the

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different drawers going through stuff,

taking your time, moseying around

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and just, you know, really like.

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Just eaten up the time of the day.

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Right.

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And so truly, I believe when you

have a task, if you don't give it

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a set time limit, it is going to

take up more time than it needs to.

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So this leads me to the Pomodoro

technique, which is something I

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really love utilizing, uh, when

I have, you know, just a pretty

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good task list to get through.

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And the Pomodoro technique

is basically this.

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If you have a task, you

got to size it up first.

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So let's say, uh, you got to send

some emails and you're like, okay,

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there's a pretty good amount of emails.

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This is probably gonna

take me like 30 minutes.

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Well, The Pomodoro technique.

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Is where you take a task and you break

it down into this, uh, work sessions.

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So for me, I typically

do a 30 minute session.

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Uh, but some people like to do

like 10 or 15 minute sessions.

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So for the sake of answering

emails, that should take 30 minutes.

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Uh, maybe you break this

down into 15 minute sessions.

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So you pull out a timer

probably on your phone.

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Uh, don't get distracted by pulling

out your phone and then go in

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there, set a timer for 15 minutes.

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And once you hit start.

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You do not get up until

that timer goes off.

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Not even, I mean, if you really, really

have to go pee or something like that,

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go for it, but really you should be

at your desk not touching anything

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that is not related to those emails.

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I don't care if it's something

that's still pretty important.

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Something you have to do later.

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Um, Instagram, whatever, any

distractions you could think of?

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Someone calls you on the phone.

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Uh, whatever it may be, there is

supposed to be zero distractions.

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And for those 15 minutes, you are

absolutely dialed in on your task.

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And then after those 15 minutes, you

take a short little five or 10 minute

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break, and then you come right back

to it for another 15 minutes to.

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Completely in this case,

finish answering all.

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All of these emails.

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Right.

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So hopefully it would just

take those 30 minutes, right.

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Uh, just those two 15 minute sessions.

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Uh, if it's going to take

longer, then that's okay.

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You can just add on a session or

vice versa if you completed it

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faster than 30 minutes, then cool.

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Now you just move on to your next task,

but this is really awesome because

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in a world full of distractions.

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It is so incredibly

easy to be sidetracked.

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So whatever type of session you

want to use, 10, 15, 20, 30 minute

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intervals, whatever it may be,

find which one works best for you.

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And then your little breaks in between.

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Shouldn't be super long.

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Um, five to 10 minutes is usually

where you should pretty much keep that.

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Um, let's say for example,

you're having, um, A task.

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That's going to take you like two hours.

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Okay.

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Well, at the one hour, mark, you can

go ahead and take a longer break.

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You can maybe take a two, a 20

minute or a 30 minute break there

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and just really kind of give yourself

a moment to, to, you know, rest

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and reset and all that good stuff.

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Uh, but this has been extremely, extremely

effective for me in accomplishing tasks

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in a very short amount of time and making

sure that I'm not allowing these tasks to

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eat up more time than they really should.

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So the Pomodoro technique, once again,

that's the technique that I use.

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And then Parkinson's law was the law of a

task taking up the time that it's given.

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So those are incredible.

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And I highly recommend you implement

those into your life as well.

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Now.

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I've had people also mentioned,

and I go through this as well.

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You know, what do you do when

you're just absolutely exhausted.

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Right?

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And you just, you, you can't even

think about doing work, right?

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This is typically like that two

to 3:00 PM time when your eyelids

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feel like they're, you know, a ha.

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You know, fricking a hundred

pounds and nothing you can do.

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Uh, we'll break you out of this

drowsy daydream that you're, you

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know, kind of stuck in, right?

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Well, don't get me wrong.

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This is not a fun place to be.

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It sucks.

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Like the pretty much, the only thing

I want to do in that moment of time

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is lay down and take an app, which.

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Actually is one of the

things that you could do.

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So there's two things here.

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Obviously, if you're at work and you can't

just break away and take a quick little

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cat nap, um, that's totally reasonable.

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Um, and, uh, you know, hopefully

if you're allowed, you can at least

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get up and do a little activity,

which would be the second option.

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Um, but if you have the ability

to just break away for like

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30 minutes from your work.

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Go ahead, set a timer for 30 minutes

and go lay down, go try to take a nap

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because sometimes L short little 15

minute nap, because I don't know if

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you're like me, but if I set a timer

for 30 minutes, there's like a good 15

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minutes where I'm not actually asleep.

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Um, and then, so I'm probably only

getting about a 15 minute sleep there.

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Um, but nonetheless, that little

15 minute nap could be exactly

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what you need to reset your brain

refresh and come back to your work.

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So if you have the ability

to do so, that is an option.

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The other option would be

to get up and get active.

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So even if it's going out for a

quick little walk, just standing up,

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maybe even doing a little workouts

and pushups, and sit-ups some

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jumping jacks, whatever it may be.

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And this is just going to help activate

once again, the brain we're coming

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back to the exercise process and

really flip that switch back on and.

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And really get you out of

this, um, drowsy daydream.

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That we typically hit around,

you know, two to three o'clock.

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Um, it's it's the worst.

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I hate it.

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Um, but aside from that, There's,

those are pretty much the two best

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things that I have found for me.

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Uh, in terms of that two to three

o'clock time, um, I will say there are

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some times where I noticed that, uh,

certain foods actually make that two to

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3:00 PM a little bit worse than others.

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If I do have a lighter meal or

something, that's just pretty healthy.

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Uh, for my lunch, it typically

keeps me much more awake.

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Around the two to three phase, then,

uh, if I was to eat something really,

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really heavy or, you know, just something

that was not very healthy, um, that

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will typically actually make me more

tired around that two to 3:00 PM time.

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So anyways, if you deal with this,

give either of those two things, a try

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and just see if they work out for you.

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Now, the other thing that we can do is we

can be very specific with our calendars.

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Or use some kind of a journal

to track our tasks and our time.

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Because really at the end of the day,

if you're not tracking what you need.

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You know your time, as well as the

tasks that you need to get done,

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then eventually they're just going to

get lost, you know, somewhere, some

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way, somehow one or another thing

is going to get lost in the mix.

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If you're trying to keep everything

in your head, especially with all of

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the tasks that we have to accomplish

in our day-to-day lives, which.

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Typically is a lot.

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Um, it's very likely that you're going

to slip on a couple things and you're

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going to forget them, and then it's

going to be three days later and then

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you're going to remember them again.

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So really the best way to avoid

that is to just write it down.

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I don't care if it's in a journal.

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I don't care if it's on a calendar.

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I really do like actually using both,

um, a calendar and a journal sometimes.

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Um, I'll use the journal for more like

small tasks and then the calendar is

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like really big chunks of the day.

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Um, but however you want to use it.

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You have to track.

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It or else it's going to get lost.

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So get used to using a calendar.

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:

I mean, Google calendar is

literally free or you can just go

356

:

purchase an old school calendar.

357

:

And journals on Amazon are, I

would imagine extremely cheap,

358

:

probably no more than $20 and

probably no less than like $8.

359

:

So.

360

:

Uh, very accessible, very easy to

use, and they can really be super,

361

:

super beneficial in making sure that

you don't forget some of the really

362

:

important things that you have to do.

363

:

Now last, but not least on today's

episode is going to be food and

364

:

supplements because of course,

health wellness got, got to bring

365

:

this in here and, uh, our brain.

366

:

Obviously benefits from the things

that we consume or can be hindered

367

:

by the things that we're consuming.

368

:

So, uh, it's really important for

us to make sure we're consuming

369

:

the correct foods and supplements

when it comes to cognitive health,

370

:

as well as cognitive performance.

371

:

Right.

372

:

So being able to memorize things

easier to really, uh, be more.

373

:

In-tune with the stuff that we're

learning and have our brains just

374

:

turned on so that we're able to really

pick up what everyone's putting down

375

:

and to really be on top of stuff.

376

:

So in terms of general brain

health, Uh, there's a few things

377

:

that I really love to eat.

378

:

Um, of course, once again, it

all comes back to the basics

379

:

of eating whole foods, right?

380

:

The single ingredient foods that you

find in nature, um, you know, fruits,

381

:

vegetables of course are in here as well.

382

:

I'm not really mentioning too many of

them, um, in my list, but I did want to

383

:

just mention that fruits and vegetables

are going to have benefit for the brain,

384

:

especially like dark leafy greens.

385

:

Uh, but in terms of some foods

that I really liked for brain

386

:

health first off is eggs.

387

:

So eggs are in many ways like nature's

multivitamin and they have a ton

388

:

of benefit for our brain health.

389

:

They have things like full eight

and Coleen in them, which are really

390

:

beneficial for our brain health.

391

:

And you got to think about it.

392

:

An egg is literally the

beginning of a life form, right?

393

:

So it has to have some of these

essential nutrients that are

394

:

going to help develop the brain.

395

:

And.

396

:

The spinal cord and all of that,

of, uh, developing, uh, chicken.

397

:

Right?

398

:

So these are literally like

nature's multivitamins.

399

:

I love these for brain health

and I typically eat eggs

400

:

on a pretty normal basis.

401

:

Now another thing would be seafood, right?

402

:

Seafood for their omega oils.

403

:

Right?

404

:

So, uh, things like salmon can be

really good, uh, sardines as well.

405

:

They can be very beneficial and

having some Omega's that are really

406

:

beneficial for our brain health.

407

:

Now, if.

408

:

You're a vegan or vegetarian.

409

:

There are other options like algae,

like spirulina and chlorella.

410

:

I love spirulina and chlorella.

411

:

And even on top of that, spirulina

has been shown to benefit your

412

:

mitochondria, which really

benefit your energy production.

413

:

And once again, Energy production is

super high in the brain actually per uh,

414

:

per cell or something along those lines.

415

:

We have a massive amount more, sorry.

416

:

I'm totally butchering this.

417

:

We have a.

418

:

Larger amount of mitochondria based in

our brain than in other parts of our body.

419

:

For example, our heart is another

area that has a large concentration

420

:

of mitochondria, but our brain

is also one that has a very large

421

:

concentration of mitochondria because

it uses a ton of energy, right?

422

:

It only makes sense that a place that

uses a ton of energy is going to need

423

:

those power plants that can crank out

the energy and have the production there.

424

:

So spirulina is really good at benefiting.

425

:

Our mitochondria and promoting

the health of our mitochondria.

426

:

So I love spirulina for a ton of reasons,

but that's definitely one of them.

427

:

And then in terms of food and this one's

going to show up again in supplements.

428

:

Uh, it's the lion's mane mushroom.

429

:

Lion's mane is incredible.

430

:

I I'm going to chat a little bit

more when I get to the supplements

431

:

here, but a lion's mane is one of.

432

:

Uh, it might even be my favorite,

uh, thing to take for cognitive

433

:

performance and brain health.

434

:

There is a research as well as

just, you know, A long, like

435

:

history of usage of lion's mane.

436

:

Uh, specifically in Asia and

China, uh, where it's really

437

:

been shown to help benefit.

438

:

Uh, our brain and our cognitive

performance and, um, our axons and

439

:

dendrites and all that good stuff.

440

:

So.

441

:

A lion's mane is high on the list.

442

:

And on top of that, you can actually

consume lion's mane as a food.

443

:

It's really tasty.

444

:

You can cook it up in a pan, you can kind

of like grill it or saute it like a meat.

445

:

It does typically pull apart

almost like a shredded pork or a

446

:

shredded beef, which is really cool.

447

:

And I've seen some people make really

good, um, uh, lion's mane tacos,

448

:

and it's kind of like almost like

shredded pork or shredded beef.

449

:

Uh, tacos, which is really cool.

450

:

Um, and just a nice way to consume

a really brain healthy food.

451

:

Now.

452

:

In terms of supplements

there's many out there.

453

:

Um, and of course I don't

have all of them listed.

454

:

But a few of the ones that I

typically use for kicking on my

455

:

brain or just promoting brain health.

456

:

Uh, first and foremost, just

got to put it out there.

457

:

Caffeine.

458

:

I mean, Some people don't

work well with caffeine.

459

:

That's totally fine.

460

:

Maybe it's not what works best for you.

461

:

Um, and you know, of

course, a lot of people.

462

:

I might have trouble with their

adrenal glands and things like that.

463

:

So, yeah, coffee, caffeine might

not be the best route for you.

464

:

Um, but you know, if coffee is too

strong, I would recommend trying

465

:

like a macho or a green tea.

466

:

It's going to have lower

levels of caffeine, but it

467

:

is going to have Nene in it.

468

:

Um, so this is going to be beneficial

for turning our brain on and getting

469

:

to work and staying productive.

470

:

Um, this is obviously super

well known and many people do

471

:

consume coffee and caffeine.

472

:

Uh, but it's definitely worth listing.

473

:

Uh, it's a hundred percent.

474

:

One of, one of the ways

that I start my day.

475

:

Uh, but be sure that you are drinking

water before you drink coffee and

476

:

make sure that you are remineralizing

afterwards, because coffee definitely is

477

:

a diuretic and can help strip the body of

much needed hydration as well as minerals.

478

:

So make sure you're staying

up on top of that as well.

479

:

Uh, the next thing would be B vitamins.

480

:

So B vitamins typically are very

beneficial for our energy levels.

481

:

Um, so B vitamins are something

that I might take in the morning.

482

:

Uh, if I'm taking like a multivitamin,

those will usually have them in there.

483

:

Um, but I have tried just

a, like B vitamin complex.

484

:

Uh, and that has been very

beneficial in yeah, just overall

485

:

promoting, um, energy levels.

486

:

So maybe that can help combat the two to

3:00 PM slump that a lot of us go through.

487

:

Um, but that might be something

you want to look into.

488

:

And then I had already mentioned

spirulina, but once again, spirulina,

489

:

truly incredible for the brain.

490

:

It's not going to be something that's

just going to kick your brain on right

491

:

away and give you a ton of energy.

492

:

But in terms of the long-term,

uh, spirulina is going to be very

493

:

beneficial for your brain, for the

mitochondria all throughout your body.

494

:

Um, it's got a ton of

vitamins and minerals as well.

495

:

Um, so it's really just one of

those super foods in my opinion.

496

:

And, um, You know, I, I haven't, I

didn't mention, I forgot to mention

497

:

this earlier, but the one spirulina that

I personally use is from energy bits,

498

:

they have the best quality spirulina

that I've ever come across personally.

499

:

Um, and I've tried a lot of spirulina,

like at least 10 to 15 different brands.

500

:

And it is hands down.

501

:

My absolute favorite one.

502

:

Um, so if you are going to try a

spirulina, I highly recommend energy bits.

503

:

I always have them linked in

the description of the show and

504

:

you get a 20% discount just for

being a listener to the show.

505

:

So it's obviously, um, A good idea

to go ahead and give that one a try.

506

:

Uh, and just see what you think.

507

:

But definitely spirulina

is a top supplement for me.

508

:

It's one that I take

literally every single day.

509

:

Um, and then the next thing would

be methylene blue with nicotine.

510

:

So this is a, this is a, uh,

kind of a controversial one.

511

:

Um, but I have taken methylene

blue with nicotine in the past.

512

:

And, um, I think I actually recently

ran out of it, but I use a brand called.

513

:

Toko scriptions I want to

say is what it's called.

514

:

Um, but anyways, methylene

blue, once again, is going to

515

:

help benefit our mitochondria.

516

:

So here we are, again, mitochondria,

super high concentration in our brain.

517

:

And by taking methylene blue, we're

going to be helping to support those

518

:

mitochondria with their energy production.

519

:

Now the reason I have the one that is

with nicotine, because you can just

520

:

take the one that has methylene blue.

521

:

That's absolutely something you can do.

522

:

But the one with nicotine.

523

:

And I really don't take this very

often, but when I am in a pinch

524

:

and I really need my brain to be

on and focused and ready to go.

525

:

This is my go-to a hundred percent.

526

:

It is.

527

:

It is one of the things that.

528

:

You know, a lot of these supplements are

beneficial, kind of long-term aside from

529

:

like caffeine, for example, but methylene

blue with a nicotine is something you're

530

:

going to feel in like 10 minutes and

your brain is going to be kicked on.

531

:

Now for me, nicotine is,

um, it's very strong.

532

:

Like I feel the effects very heavily,

so I take the smallest dose possible.

533

:

And I drink a lot of water with it,

um, to kind of help buffer that.

534

:

But nonetheless, I can't lie.

535

:

It is truly one of the things that

just absolutely kicks your brain on.

536

:

And on top of that, I think it's much

better than some of the alternatives

537

:

because, um, as someone who's

been in college, you see a lot of

538

:

people who spend some really like

late nights studying, using, uh,

539

:

things that they probably shouldn't.

540

:

One of them definitely being Ritalin.

541

:

And, uh, yeah, I would.

542

:

Highly recommend this over that for sure.

543

:

Um, this is definitely going to be a

much better option and, uh, something

544

:

that is also going to provide some

value because the methylene blue is

545

:

really good for your mitochondria.

546

:

And then last but not least in terms

of supplements, I am going to have

547

:

to include my lion's mane once again.

548

:

I literally love, love, love,

love, love lines, Maine.

549

:

It is my.

550

:

Possibly my favorite medicinal

mushroom to take, although I

551

:

really do love all of them.

552

:

Uh, but lion's mane was the

one mushroom that I took for.

553

:

I think it was, it might've

been 60 days straight.

554

:

I just really was wanting to see if I

could see any effects with lion's mane.

555

:

And so for 60 days I just took it and

took it and took it every single day.

556

:

And sure enough.

557

:

It was a noticeable difference for me.

558

:

I literally was able to recall.

559

:

You know, facts, information, names,

all these different things, much easier.

560

:

It just felt effortless.

561

:

Like it was always at the tip of

my tongue, you know, I never had to

562

:

go searching or thinking about, you

know, oh man, do I remember that?

563

:

And it was awesome because it was

during while I was in college and

564

:

it was definitely a huge benefit.

565

:

Now, what was wild was.

566

:

After I stopped taking lion's mane.

567

:

I actually noticed that, you know,

my mind wasn't working as well,

568

:

which come to find out later.

569

:

Uh, there are some studies

that show lion's mane is

570

:

effective when you're taking it.

571

:

But once you stop taking it, you do

have a decline, um, of the benefits

572

:

that lion's mane was providing.

573

:

So lion's mane is one of those

things that if you want to continue

574

:

receiving benefits from it, you

have to continue taking it, which.

575

:

Eh, it's kind of a bummer, but

honestly it was really beneficial and

576

:

it's one of my favorite mushrooms.

577

:

Um, I really, really felt

a difference with it.

578

:

So it's something that

I still regularly take.

579

:

Um, there's multiple ways of taking it.

580

:

Like I mentioned, you can cook a cook

lion's mane or honestly, um, I think

581

:

an easier way of getting it is through

maybe like a tincture or a powder.

582

:

If you are getting a tincture or powder,

typically you want to get something

583

:

that is dual extracted, which means

that it has both the Alcohol and the

584

:

hot water extraction, um, because

certain components of the lion's mane

585

:

are extracted only through alcohol and

then some are only through hot water.

586

:

So.

587

:

It is important to have the two of those.

588

:

Of course you want a reputable brand.

589

:

Um, if you're looking for a tincture

or a powdered form, typically

590

:

someone like four Sigmatic or rainbow

mushrooms, that's R a I N B O no.

591

:

W at the end.

592

:

Um, try to think own mushrooms

as well as a pretty good brand.

593

:

From what I can tell, that's

literally just O M I've seen

594

:

them at a whole foods a lot.

595

:

And, uh, personally, my favorite

is going to be in the mix

596

:

powder drink from Organifi.

597

:

Uh, so that one is called pure and it's

got both lion's mane as well as a gut.

598

:

Uh, beneficial.

599

:

Sorry.

600

:

I'm like super tongue tied here.

601

:

Uh, gut promoting

properties in there as well.

602

:

They have like apple cider vinegar.

603

:

They have prebiotics as well.

604

:

So you're kind of getting a gut

and brain boost at the same time.

605

:

Uh, once again, though, one of my big

reasons for taking it is the lion's mane

606

:

and it's just a really enjoyable way to

take lion's mane because not gonna lie.

607

:

A lot of these powders

and tinctures are not.

608

:

Going to be very tasty at all.

609

:

Um, so they're not really the

most enjoyable way of consuming.

610

:

Lion's mane still absolutely

effective and really beneficial.

611

:

But Hey, if I can take something that

tastes good and has benefit, that's

612

:

usually the route that I'm going to go.

613

:

And on top of that, Organifi is

a super, super repeatable brand.

614

:

Um, they view they do third-party testing

for glyphosate to make sure there is.

615

:

Truly no glyphosate on any of their

products are a hundred percent organic

616

:

and they really just do all the work

that I would hope a company would do in

617

:

providing a really high quality product.

618

:

So.

619

:

If you want trout lines main,

uh, from Organify go ahead

620

:

and check out the pure blend.

621

:

It's a juice blend and a as well have that

linked in the description and you get a, I

622

:

believe it's a 15% discount with that one.

623

:

So feel free to check

that out, but those are.

624

:

You know, a few ways in

which you can get lines mean.

625

:

I've tried all of them

and I like all of them.

626

:

So, um, truthfully, I don't

care which route you go.

627

:

I think those are all very

re like great brands to use.

628

:

Um, once again, I'll just

name those off that's own O M

629

:

mushrooms, rainbow mushrooms.

630

:

There's no w at the end of rainbow.

631

:

Uh, four Sigmatic is

another really good one.

632

:

And then the one that I use is Organifi.

633

:

So those are going to be the main

supplements I would use for like brain

634

:

health and cognitive performance.

635

:

Of course, there's a bunch

of other ones out there like

636

:

Ginko bill Bilboa or whatever.

637

:

Um, yeah, there's a ton out there that

definitely provide benefit and are really

638

:

beneficial, uh, to cognitive performance.

639

:

But.

640

:

These are the ones that I'm currently

using and that I typically use.

641

:

So these are the ones that I'm

just including, but anyways, that's

642

:

going to do it for today's episode.

643

:

Y'all I'm going to do a quick recap,

just so you can reference this part

644

:

of the episode, if ever you need to.

645

:

So once again, starting with a good

night's sleep, that's going to be the

646

:

most important thing here in terms

of having good cognitive performance.

647

:

Number two is going to be, uh, the

choice between a morning ritual or not.

648

:

I think it's very beneficial to have one,

but make sure it's not eating up all of.

649

:

Your day.

650

:

Number three, the Pomodoro

technique and Parkinson's law.

651

:

Remember Parkinson's law says

a task will take up the amount

652

:

of time that you give it.

653

:

So.

654

:

Knowing that it is important for us to

assess each task and understand how much

655

:

time it's going to take and then apply the

Pomodoro method in which we go ahead and.

656

:

Uh, work in little segments.

657

:

I'm taking a short break in

between, but these are completely

658

:

uninterrupted, no distraction work

segments that will help you get your

659

:

tasks done quickly and effectively.

660

:

Uh, and then number four is going

to be, uh, if you're exhausted

661

:

around that two to 3:00 PM phase.

662

:

Uh, you're going to want

to do one of two things.

663

:

A go for a really quick nap and

try to sleep it out real quick.

664

:

Or number two.

665

:

Get, uh, get some exercise, get active,

go for a walk, do some pushups, do some

666

:

sit ups, whatever it takes for you to

wake yourself up and then come back to

667

:

your desk, refreshed and ready to go.

668

:

Uh, next is going to be, to be

very specific with your calendar

669

:

and or journal, because remember

if you're not tracking something,

670

:

eventually it's going to get lost.

671

:

And then last but not least, we have

the foods and supplements, which offer

672

:

the foods where eggs, seafood and

lion's mane mushroom of course, dark

673

:

leafy greens can also be in there.

674

:

They're very beneficial for the brain.

675

:

And last, but not least for supplements,

we have caffeine, B vitamins,

676

:

spirulina, methylene blue with nicotine.

677

:

And lion's mane mushroom.

678

:

All right.

679

:

Y'all that is going to do

it for today's episode.

680

:

Thank you all so much for tuning in.

681

:

I hope you received a ton of benefit

from this episode and walk away

682

:

feeling a little bit more productive.

683

:

Um, please go ahead and try

some of these things out,

684

:

especially that Pomodoro method.

685

:

Uh, with obviously understanding

the Parkinson's law, right.

686

:

Uh, that has been so

beneficial for me personally.

687

:

So feel free to give these a try,

see what you think, and if you

688

:

receive any benefit from them,

then I'm super happy to hear that.

689

:

And please feel free to share it with me.

690

:

If you do find some benefit and also

feel free to share this episode with a

691

:

friend, family, or loved one or anyone who

needs to hear this episode or this show.

692

:

And also, if you haven't already

subscribed, please do so.

693

:

So you don't miss any of these episodes

and leave a rating as well as a review.

694

:

If you have not already.

695

:

I really appreciate that.

696

:

And it also helps people find this show.

697

:

It's a really quick and

easy way for you to.

698

:

I give back to.

699

:

this show.

700

:

And aside from that,

that's going to do it.

701

:

Y'all I hope you had a really great

time listening to this episode.

702

:

I know I had a great time, uh,

researching and talking about it, but.

703

:

Till next time.

704

:

I hope you guys have a beautiful

rest of your day and your week.

705

:

And I will see y'all next Wednesday

as always do everything with good

706

:

intentions and connect your elements.

707

:

Much.

708

:

Love to y'all and peace.

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