Tag: self-improvement

You

How to Teach Yourself to Be Funnier

patmcgLeave a comment

Comedy does not come naturally to me, especially if I’m trying to be funny. I like this article’s step-by-step approach to being funnier. And I really like the guy who checks into hotels with a fake Elvis driver’s license. 😂

View at Medium.com
👉 https://medium.com/the-cut/how-to-teach-yourself-to-be-funnier-9feaa968c113

Humor is about “benign violation” — disrupting your sense of normalcy in a way that doesn’t present any real harm. So weird incongruities. Or remembering a threatening situation that turned out to be fine, and now you feel silly about it.

So here’s a game plan, and like anything else hard and worthwhile, it’s going to take some conscious effort. Luckily, it’s pretty simple…

Learn to look for funny things

“Look at the absurdity around you. Check for incongruities,”

Make this a conscious habit in every day life.

Seek out humorous situations in your life

Listen, read, watch funny stuff. TV shows, movies, podcasts, etc.

Find an audience and practice on them

Find someone willing to check your humor. Tell them a joke every day. Get honest feedback. Maybe try an improv class.

Keep in mind that humor is vert contextual. “Know how to apply the basic principles of humor to specific situations.” And humor builds on itself over time. So once you get going with someone, you have a foundation for getting funnier.

You

How to Actually, Truly Focus on What You’re Doing

patmcgLeave a comment

Summary

The goal is deep work. Avoid “persistent attention residue” by avoiding “quick checks” of your phone, websites, etc.

Seems like this basically boils down to clearing out the time and space to focus on deep work.

Concentration is like a super power in most knowledge work pursuits

  • Actively include “deep work” blocks of time in your day and protect them. Use your calendar if you need to. Make deep work a habit rather than rely on willpower.
  • Embrace boredom. Frequently expose yourself to boredom. If you whip out your phone every time you get bored, your brain will build a Pavlovian connection between boredom and stimuli. So when it comes time to think deeply (which is boring in the sense of lacking constant stimuli), your brain won’t tolerate it.
  • Quit (reduce?) social media. Be intentional and selective about what digital channels you allow into your life. Helps protect your ability to focus.
  • “Drain the shallows”. Shallow work does not require extended concentration (check email, schedule meetings). If your day becomes dominated by shallow work, you won’t get to the deep work that really moves the needle. Aggressively minimize shallow work and be organized and productive about what remains.

Book – Deep Work