3-2-1: The will to win, capturing experiences, and the difference between creativity and efficiency

Happy 3-2-1 Thursday!

Here are 3 ideas, 2 quotes, and 1 question to consider this week.

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I.

"The will to win is wasted if it is directed towards trivial affairs."

(Share this on Twitter)​

​II.

"Be great in small ways.

Writing 100 words today doesn’t seem worthwhile when you see people publishing bestsellers.

Exercising for 10 minutes doesn’t seem valuable when you see world records posted on Instagram.

But winning the next 10 minutes is its own form of greatness.

People are so busy wishing for more time and better resources that they fail to make the most of the time and resources they have. Be great in small ways and you may be surprised by what you've achieved within a year or two."

III.

"Most good material is forgotten.

Write down the funniest or most interesting thing that happens to you each day. Most days will be boring, but if you write something each day, then you'll have 5 to 10 entertaining stories within a year or two. People are sitting on more funny stories than they realize because they do not have a habit of capturing humorous things as they happen.

Write down one idea each day. Most ideas will be simple and uninteresting, but within a year you'll have a handful that are compelling and useful. Little bits of genius are bubbling up all the time, but you need a habit of recording your ideas in order to capture the good ones.

It's a myth that great storytellers only think of great stories or that insightful people only have brilliant ideas. But they do have a habit of capturing their experiences and insights, and the patience to filter the majority until the best remain."

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I.

Jesuit priest Anthony de Mello encourages us to focus on the message before the messenger:

"Sinners often speak the truth. And saints have led people astray. Examine what is said, not the one who says it."

Source: Awakening​

​II.

Reed Hastings, founder and CEO of Netflix, on the difference between creativity and efficiency:

"A way to think about it is, innovation requires variation. And in manufacturing—six sigma, all that stuff—you're trying to reduce variation.

The fundamental manufacturing paradigm is to reduce variation, and the fundamental creative, innovation paradigm is to increase it."

Source: 3 secrets to Netflix's success​

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Sometimes it benefits us to be passive: to allow life to come to us and unfold without force.

Other times it benefits us to be aggressive: to bend the world to our will and actively shape the life we want.

Are you being too passive or too aggressive right now?

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​https://jamesclear.com/3-2-1/september-1-2022​

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Until next week,

James Clear
​Author of the #1 worldwide bestseller, Atomic Habits​
Creator of the Habit Journal​

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p.s. If children were named after prescription drugs...

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