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Mistake Maximizer This week’s trek is inspired by the work of Bill Burnett and Dave Evans. In their book, Designing Your Life, they focus on the importance of reframing your failures to gain new insight into how you can improve your performance.  Does the thought of making a mistake make you want to run and hide? When you mess up on a presentation, miss a friend's birthday, or tank a meeting it's often tempting to just forget about the mistake and assume you'll get it right next time. While that approach can be effective at times, it can also completely stagnate your ability to learn from your mishaps and find opportunities for growth.  Introducing Your Mistake Maximizer Exercise What It Is A 5-10 minute exercise that helps you assess your mistakes or failures, extract insights for new learning, and create a better approach for next time. Why We Love It  It isn't fun to rehash situations where we didn't put our best foot forward. This exercise provides an easy way to categorize your mess-ups so you only spend precious energy fixing areas that are truly worth the investment. How It Works 1. Set aside 5-10 minutes to reflect on some of your most recent mess-ups. As you reflect on each, list them out in the first column of this doc. 2. Once you've listed them, categorize each into one of three buckets: A. Screwups: These are "simple mistakes" that don't normally trip you up. There isn't a major learning opportunity here because you usually get it right; you just happened to mess up. Example: I interrupted a client in a meeting which I almost never do. I owned up to it and am not worried it'll become a habit. B. Weaknesses: These are "mistakes you make over and over that you try to avoid doing, but they happen." You've accepted that they're a part of who you are and you have worked on managing them. Example: I procrastinated again and had to work all night to meet a deadline. This is just how I work and, while it's not ideal, there isn't more to learn here. C. Growth Opportunities: These are "mistakes that don't need to happen next time because the cause is identifiable and a fix is available." More specifically, these failures offer a true opportunity for growth. Example: I was surprised to learn that a client I know well and have worked with for years wasn't happy with a deliverable. When I take a step back, I can see that I didn't manage client expectations well. 3. Take a few minutes to examine the items in C above. Ask yourself: - Where might there be room for improvement? - How might the circumstances surrounding this error require me to see things in a new way? - What went wrong and what could I do differently next time?  4. Review your responses in 3 above and develop an insight about what you could have done differently to get to a better result. Then, try that out next time you're in a similar situation and note how things went.  Source: Designing Your Life Want to dig deeper into this topic? To read about how Coke, Amazon, and Netflix promote learning from failure, read this from HBR. To read about four great lessons failure can bring, check this out from Inc. For tips from top athletes on how to use failure as an opportunity, read this from Entrepreneur. Have a favorite trek?  Hit us up at treks@lifetrekkers.me and tell us which one you liked and what you learned! Here's what your fellow trekkers have to say about past treks: "The What's Your Tutu? exercise couldn't have come at a better time. I've always had a hard time showing emotion in romantic relationships, so it's helpful for me to to check in with these questions after a date."  – Beebe Xia, Copywriter and Single Lady Tweet Tweet Email Us Learn More Copyright © 2018 LifeTrekkers, All rights reserved. Want more information? Drop us a line at info@lifetrekkers.me. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can unsubscribe from this list.

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Compassionate Commute This week’s trek is inspired by the concept of Metta, which can be found in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain traditions. Most popularly translated as "loving kindness," Metta has become a staple in many mindfulness practices.  Do you feel crushed after your commute? Whether you are trying to muscle your way through a jam-packed subway car or a road-rage filled highway, the daily commute can be a grind that produces feelings of anxiety and frustration towards others. When we refocus our attention on developing feelings of goodwill and compassion towards others, though, we can make the commute work for rather than against us. Introducing Your Compassionate Commute Exercise What It Is A way to rework the energy of your commute. Why We Love It  Commutes can leave us feeling super cranky but they don't have to. By putting a different kind of energy out into the world, we can make our commute an opportunity to re-center ourselves. How It Works 1. As you head out for your daily commute, bring your attention to yourself and repeat a mantra (3-5 times usually works!) that offers up a little self love. Consider phrases like: - May I arrive safely and at ease. - May I be happy and at peace. 2. Next, take note of your surroundings. Is the school bus in the nearby lane filled with chatty kids? Does the guy sitting next to you have an awesome dog? Is the car behind you following a little too close? 3. Select one of the things you've noted -- the bustling school bus, the awesome dog, the tailgater -- and choose a mantra to send those people/animals some loving kindness. Consider phrases like: - May they (i.e., the kids) be happy. May they be safe and free from injury. - May you (i.e., dog walker) be at peace. May you (i.e., dog) feel safe and loved. - May you (i.e., tailgater) be free of anger and anxiety.  4. Once you have arrived at your destination, take note of how you feel. What new things did you notice about your daily commute? What new feelings did you experience? How might you create space for more compassion for yourself and others? Want to dig deeper into this topic? If you are feeling skeptical about this whole loving kindness thing, watch this video featuring Sharon Salzberg and a skeptic. To learn more about Metta meditation, read this from Tricycle. For an overview of the benefits associated with doing loving kindness meditation, read this. Shout. It. Out. To Angel Hu for her exercise crafting skills! Shout. It. Back. To treks@lifetrekkers.me if you have feedback on this trek or other treks you have liked. Here's what your fellow trekkers have to say about past treks:   "Last week's creative recovery exercise was one of my favorites. This exercise helped me push past my creative blocks. I love using it to clear my mind and reflect by rereading it at the end of the week." - Dama Dipayana, Founder Be Frank Tweet Tweet Email Us Learn More Copyright © 2018 LifeTrekkers, All rights reserved. Want more information? Drop us a line at info@lifetrekkers.me. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can unsubscribe from this list.

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Emotional Vocabulary This week’s trek is inspired by Lisa Feldman Barret's concept of emotional granularity, which focuses on understanding the nuances of different emotions. Have you ever encountered an emotion you couldn't convey through words? Depending on the number of languages you speak, this kind of thing might be a regular occurrence. In English, for example, there are 21 emotions from other languages that have no English translation. Introducing Your Emotional Vocab Exercise What It Is A way to expand your emotional vocabulary. Why We Love It  The precursor to emotional intelligence is the ability to identify the depths of your own emotional reactions. Since emotional intelligence is essentially the currency of relationships, expanding your emotional vocabulary helps you better communicate with others. Consider this: would you want to take a sailing trip with a captain who doesn’t know the difference between the stern and the boom? Then, how can we expect to have earth shattering relationships when our emotional vocabulary doesn’t extend far beyond the likes of lonely and FOMO? How It Works 1. To start, check out some of these awesome words from other languages like Age-otori, the mythical Japanese word for the feeling of “looking worse after a haircut” or Saudade, Portuguese for “a pleasure you suffer, an ailment you enjoy”. Both capture very specific emotional nuances. 2. Over the course of this week, stay close to how you are feeling each day. (I for one often feel my emotions in my gut!) When something comes up, see if you can name it, but then figure out if that word falls woefully or slightly short in fully capturing that internal experience. Your goal is to find cases where words feel incomplete and then search for better words that more richly describe that fire in your belly. And if you can’t hunt down a word: Make one up! 3. If you do make up a word, send it our way (treks@lifetrekkers.me)! We're putting together an LT dictionary of emotions. Want to dig deeper into this topic? For a visual representation of the complexity of emotions, check this out.  To go deep on the range of emotions expressed in many languages, check out this book. Shout. It. Out. To Sarah Jones for her exercise crafting skills! Shout. It. Back. To treks@lifetrekkers.me if you have new words to share from this exercise or want to tell us what you think! Here's what your fellow trekkers have to say about past treks:   "The Wake-up Call trek really hit home for me. My best days are the ones when I avoid email until as late as possible and this reminded me to stay mindful. It's key to make sure I get grounded first so I can give important things the attention they deserve." - Vijay Rajendran, Director, BBVA New Ventures Tweet Tweet Email Us Learn More Copyright © 2018 LifeTrekkers, All rights reserved. Want more information? Drop us a line at info@trekkers.me. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can unsubscribe from this list.