Tag: effectiveness

Thoughts on Yearly Goals and Resolutions

Carl Setzer2 Comments
close up photo of yearly planner beside a pen

A blogger I respect, Pooja with Life’s Fine Whine, posted a few days ago a review of 2025: How Many Of My 20025 Goals Did I Keep? For most of my blogging tenure, I have not posted such things. The closest I can find is this one, from 2015, “Growing Healthier“, where I express my concern with my weight (Follow Up: I was successful with getting my weight down 20 lbs, though I recognize that I have more work to do).

With that, I’m wondering if I might find some value in doing so. For instance, have any of you found the public accountability helpful? How many of you have posted either your yearly plans or an evaluation of your year’s results per plan? I do make plans and evaluate things, so creating a post would be relatively easy.

Anyway, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Thinking about effectiveness

Carl Setzer1 Comment

I came across this quote from Steve Jobs this morning:

“Deciding what not to do is as important as deciding what to do.” — Steve Jobs

I’ve found answering the question “what do I say no to?” the hardest. Whether it’s because I loathe disappointing people, or simply letting fascinating ideas go, saying “no” is highly challenging for me.

What about you? Does “no” flow easily of of your tongue? How do you go about de-selecting work? Oru time is limited, so it’s our focus that’s golden. How do you protect that?

Welcome to February!

Carl Setzer2 Comments
woman explaining position to african american husband

So, we’ve made it through the first month of 2025! Congrats so far!

As I’ve noted earlier, I’ve lost a lot of my energy in January to sickness. This week I’m finally feeling solidly on the mend (though my cough is still annoying, but every day a bit less so).

I’ve spent this morning weeding through a backlog of email, and getting a few neglected tasks into my planner. I’ve also been able to do a bit of edification type reading.

This morning’s email about Complaining from Seth Godin struck me. I occasionally struggle with it, even though I find it (mostly) a waste of energy. Seth made some good points about it’s purpose.

  • “The obvious reason to complain is to make a change happen.”
    • That one is often not really the point. Though, if it is the goal, we need to “…focus those complaints where they’ll do the most good, and be prepared to do the work to have an impact”.
  • He does list of other reasons, which is worth the minute or two it takes to read his post.

He also points out that complaining is the “evil cousin” of whining. And that whining is pretty wasteful in terms of effectiveness. Both are often simply functions of the entitled mentality.

His last point, which I’m going to embrace, is ““The best way to complain is to make things better.” At least, if positive change is your goal. If it’s simply to deflect blame, conceal fear, or anything else, then, well, go and do you.

Do you have strategies to keep complaining/whining at bay?

    A Winnie the Pooh Quote for your Friday

    Carl Setzer

    I find this quote just lovely, and fits the life I try to live.

    I hope it finds you well this first of March Friday morning. May your day and month be fulfilling and uplifting.

    Some Thoughts While Re-Organizing My Life

    Carl Setzer

    I finished my final final and turned in my final project for fall quarter yesterday. Now, I’m in the process of getting my feet back under me. I have a few hundred emails to go through, so will be spending some dedicated time go through them all.

    As I work to process all the stuff, I read this gem: “Malcolm Gladwell’s 3-Word Reminder to Stop You from Overthinking“. Overthinking and analysis-paralysis are perpetual problems for me, but I continue to work on them. Articles like this help remind me of the importance of keeping my brain under control.

    A few excerpts that I’m clipping/posting on my wall.

    Nothing kills progress faster than indecision!

    Uncertainty of the future shouldn’t freeze us but rather free us.

    “This belief we have that the future is knowable is crazy. People need to have the freedom to take more chances.” — Malcolm Gladwell

    I need to remind myself that the world rewards those who have the stones to keep moving forward regardless if they don’t know their destination

    So, I, too, resolve to live by his last line: “Screw it, let’s go!”

    Some Thoughts On Being A 21st Century Student

    Carl Setzer
    person writing on notebook

    I have a few favorite tools that really make school more effective. One: I get my textbooks on Kindle. I have the Kindle app on my computer, plus I have it on my phone and iPad. Having my books wherever I find myself is great. Plus, I can hit ctrl+F and search the whole book quickly. This has been really helpful when I’m struggling to remember “that one command”.

    Also, I have Grammarly’s app installed. Being able to spell and grammar check in the browser is a great time saver.

    Lastly, I love using Evernote to take notes. I often use paper, and also the note feature within the Kindle apps. But I can scan the papers, and import the Kindle notes, so all of them are in Evernote. Again, being able to search is powerful, and being able to review whenever I have a few minutes of downtime is great.

    My Music Mood, August 7, 2020

    Carl Setzer

    Music, a deeply critical part of my life. I use it to reflect my mood or change it. It gives me energy, focus, feeds sadness. Such a powerful thread interweaving my whole life.

    I’ve been streaming Kaki King the past few days. Her music covers such a wide range of topics and styles. She has plenty of pieces that give me energy and focus, important things since my studies are demanding plenty of both lately.

    Pieces like this have been today’s loops:

    Explore more about my relationship with music here.

    Here’s my daily playlist built on my current interests and foci.

    Quote of the Day: Stan Lee

    Carl Setzer

    I struggle with putting too much stock in the opinions of others. I guess it’s natural to want friends, etc, to support and validate your thoughts. 

    However, if you are seeking to do something new and innovative, you will come up against natural human resistance to change. No matter how good an idea, some well-meaning people will challenge it. 

    Take their critique, analyze it, then make your own decision. You have to live YOUR life. Ensure that you won’t face regret. 

    On the other side of this coin: I seek to ensure I’m not “some idiot”. I don’t want to reflexively crap on the ideas of others. What do I know, anyway? I’ve made many wrong predictions in my life. I’m not clairvoyant!

    When I’m asked my opinion on such things, I try to focus on details and on what challenges I perceive. I seek to help clarify and refine a vision, not damage or destroy them. 

    I want to help people achieve their goals and dreams, not damage them. “Leave people better than you find them”. 

    The Real Reason Why You Can’t Stop Thinking So Negatively

    Carl Setzer


    Photo by Gui Spinardi from Pexels

    The Real Reason Why You Can’t Stop Thinking So Negatively

    I found the article (from Medium) above insightful. It speaks to a challenge that I find tempting: blaming external forces for my challenges. The line ‘“I’m just a messy person” excuses you from taking responsibility for the mess’ really strikes home. It reminds me of the power of self-talk, of those mental scripts that I often don’t even think to check. They happen so automatically that I’m not aware. For years I’ve known about this, and yet I still find these scripts running in the background. And I will continue to create new ones, to take responsibility for what’s in my mind, and seek forward motion.

    What about you? Are you aware of such thoughts, and how corrosive they can be? Give the article a read and let me know what you think.

    Monday Morning Meditation

    Carl Setzer

    Mondays are a gift

    Beginnings: great potential

    How will you use it?