Dear journal, Wednesday, June 9, 2010 was the laziest day of my life.

I fully intended on doing a whole lot of things, but simply never got around to it. I chalked it up to rain and Akron, but at the heart of it was a lack of motivation and the comforts of my home.

I simply can’t get things done at home.

Have you ever just been in the zone and cranked out a ton of work in a short period of time? That’s never happened at my house. It’s like a black hole of productivity.

On the other hand, there are places where time flies by and I’m a well oiled machine of making things happen.

Here’s what I’ve found: you’ve got to “find your happy place”.

For me, my happy place is a Starbucks that’s only a mile away from my house. But in terms of productivity, it’s on the other side of the universe.

Coffee shops work for me. I don’t hear the bean grinders or the clanking and hissing of espresso machines. I put my blinders on and get laser-beam focus. Some people can’t take it. The ordering, chatting, laughing, indie music and sipping send them over the edge.

7 Factors

So how do you find your happy place of productivity? Focus on these factors:

1. Comfort. The more comfortable you are, the less likely you are to work fervently. The couch is a bad place, so is a bed. Find a place with a hard wooden chair. Sit up straight. Get after it.

2. Lighting. Get away from fluorescent lights. In a recent study of all the places I’ve ever worked, I found that the glaring lights that burn your retinas make me want to curl up in a ball and cry nine times out of 10. I like places with track lighting with a good amount of natural light. Which leads me to…

3. Windows. I have to have at least one I can look out of. You might prefer a dungeon because you have a tendency to watch every car that drives by when you can see the road. I have to have some sunlight coming in (or lackthereof in Ohio) to focus my thoughts.

4. Distractions. Get away from your normal distractions of television or doing things around the house that you simply use to procrastinate. I have a chronic napping problem that forces me to nap anytime a bed is within 50 yards of me, so I have to get out of the house. Chatting with strangers or bumping into friends in a coffee shop are welcomed distractions for me when they come intermittently, but I can’t escape the wrath of the nap. Figure out what distractions promote and reduce productivity for you and plan accordingly.

5. Internet. I have to get away from it or turn it off for periods of time to accomplish things. You might need to do the same. Starbucks unfortunately only lets you log on for two hours at a time, but it forces me to use my time wisely.

6. Energy. Being around people gets me pumped up. Eating scones gets me juiced too. Maybe it’s being outside or being in a white room for you.

7. Inspiration. Caffeine gets my creative juices flowing. So does people watching. You know where the two intersect. Decide what things inspire you and find where you can get them to intersect. Go there.

What type of environment do you work best in? Where do you go to make things happen?

The “Like” Problem

Imagine witnessing a friend do something absolutely awe-inspiring.

They caught a fly ball that was unreachable.
They jumped over a river.
They kickflipped over a shed.
They disapproved E=MC².
They shed light onto an idea you never understood before.
They gave you a new perspective that changed your views.

After any of the above, imagine just throwing them a “Thumbs up”.

No comment. No reaction. You simply stare at them like a hitchhiker.

Absurd. Ridiculous. You’d never think of doing that.

But we do it every single day on Facebook.

Someone posts a fantastic picture. Click. “Jordan Shirkman likes this”.

“I just finished a marathon!” Click.
“My wife and I just found out we’re having a baby!” Click.
“I was just elected President of the United States!” Click.

Liking is downright offensive. It says,

“What you did is cool, funny, entertaining or remarkable, but certainly not worthy of a comment or my congratulations, input or thoughts.”

Like Ruins

It dilutes the quality of what someone has done.

Likes get no response. They require no action. They add nothing to the conversation.

Liking is lazy. It’s worthless. It adds no value. If you like something, tell us why. Anyone can click a button. Few put in the effort to say why.

Retweets Are Noise

Anyone can retweet a post on Twitter. Few take the effort to add a sentence or two and pose a question at the bottom of a post.

The author may appreciate you linking to their post, but in my experience it has very little effect on overall page views. In fact, my most retweeted post ever had less clicks than posts that had no retweets at all.

Linking and liking don’t help ideas spreads: discussion does.
Spark something up.
Poke the fire.
Fan the flame.
Don’t just look stare at it; show someone where it is and tell them what you think about it.

The Fix

Stop liking. Start commenting.
If you are a chronic “liker”, it’s not too late to change things.

Take a moment, move your hand away from the mouse, and think through what someone has posted, created, photographed, or joined. Tell them why it’s great they did that or how much you appreciate it. Don’t just like it. Tell them why you love it.

The “Like Less, Love More” Challenge

Here’s my commitment: I won’t tweet, post or publish a single link to a blog without commenting first.

Yes, it will take more time. It might mean I’ll share less links. But the ones I do share will show up with my opinion, and they will add more value to the blogger and those in the comment community.

(As an aside, I think posting a comment before a retweet is okay, but I think taking the time to comment in addition is significantly more valuable.)

The advantages of the “Like Less, Love More” movement are monumental:

More interaction.
Real discussion.
Deeper relationships.
True value.
Better community.

And so on.

Will you join me in this? Will you stop just liking and retweeting and start engaging, asking questions and commenting on blogs?

P.S. Don’t you dare like this post or retweet it without commenting =)

Photo provided by LlGC ~ NLW

Last week in one of my classes, a professor stopped class for a public service announcement. He said:

“I’m not going to learn your names this quarter. I’ll call you ‘this gentleman’ and ‘that lady’, but I won’t learn your name. In fact, the only way I’ll know your name is if you get in trouble. So it’s better if I don’t learn it.”

Thank you for the disclaimer, prof. You’ve just earned my divided attention and haven’t garnerned an ounce of respect from that statement.

I think I get a bit more fired up than others about learning names, but I have a low tolerance for the I’m-not-good-at-learning-names cop-out. More than anything, it’s a respect issue. By saying you aren’t going to learn my name, you’re saying, “I don’t respect you enough to put in the time and effort required to complete a simple task that is critical in communication.”

Sure, there are40 people in the class, but it’s not a 400 person lecture hall. Is it difficult to learn everyone’s name? Absolutely. Is it ok not to try? No way.

So, prof, I appreciate your honesty, but your blunt disregard is offensive.

If you’re bad at names, get better. I’m by no means a professional at this, but it’s something I’ve worked on because it gives instant credibility and makes connecting with people even easier.

Here are five tips to learn names and make an impression on your new-found friends.

1. Don’t think about introducing yourself. When you’re in a huge group of new people, it’s so easy to think about what you’re going to say when you introduce yourself. I promise you won’t forget your name and favorite hobby, birthplace, or fun fact about yourself. When I meet someone I don’t even think about saying my name00ou’ll never forget that. Focus completely on who they are.

2. Say it back. This has helped me tremendously. When you meet someone, shake their hand, ask them their name, and say it back to them. Having their name come out of your mouth dramatically increases your chance of remembering it.

3. Ask how to spell it. If it’s a unique name or a common one with many spellings, ask how they spell it. It will help you visualize it in your mind.

4. Associate a trait with it. Michael Scott does an absolutely terrible job with this in “Lecture Circuit Part 1″ in the The Office when he remembers a guy named Marks name by saying, “Baldy. Your head is bald. It is hairless. It is shiny. It is reflective, like a mirror. M. Your name is Mark.” I don’t suggest going that route, but when you can focus on a personality or physical trait of a person to remember her name, it helps a ton.

5. Ask again. If you don’t remember someones name, just ask. The sooner the better. Ask someone else who does know it or ask the person directly. I have way more respect for someone who asks me my name over someone who calls me guy, man, dude, or bro because he doesn’t remember.

Call this rant a pet peeve. Say I’m over reacting. Call me out if you disagree. My only request? Use my name.

Photo provided by quinnanya.

Your thoughts: Is this a big deal? Do you get frustrated by this? Is my professor warranted?

…when it comes to social media.

Twitter is not about your lunch.
YouTube wasn’t designed to make you famous.
LinkedIn isn’t for you to get a job.

Are they used like that? Sure. You can also use books as paperweights, email for spamming, and food for overeating. But that’s not the intended purpose.

Photo provided by Matthew Field: http://www.flickr.com/photos/matthewfield/

In reality, however, when it comes to social media, it’s about everyone but you.

In business it’s about…
Connecting with your customers
Listening to their concerns
Providing an outlet for more information
Linking your fans together

In your personal life it’s about…
Helping spread ideas
Developing relationships through a different channel
Inspiring knowledge-seekers with insight
Drawing connections others wouldn’t see

For everyone it’s about…
Bringing people across the globe closer together
Changing the way information flows
Providing relief when disaster strikes
Making a difference in the world

Social media is not your stage.  It’s your chance to connect with the crowd, bring people together, and create change.

People lined the streets.Cheerleaders. Grandparents. Local celebrities. Average Joes. Outfits ranging from Santa hats to rockstars. Some knew racers. Most didn’t. But you couldn’t tell who was who because they were all going crazy.

Photo Provided by Competitor Group: http://arizona.competitor.com/photos/

“You can do it! Come on! You’re doing great! Lookin’ good! Only a few more miles to go! You’re killing it!”

Outside of the goodness of God, the spectators were the biggest reason I finished the 26.2 mile trek.

People were high-five’n me and patting me on the back as I ran (err, passed) by. They yelled out my race number. Held signs that were mildly inappropriate but just as much encouraging. Passed out Cheez-Its and orange slices like they were feeding their own family. It was incredible.

The craziest thing about it all? They didn’t have to be there.

They wanted to be there. Normal, average, everyday human beings coming out to support normal, average, everyday human beings trying to accomplish an extraordinary feat. People rooting on others to achieve a dream. They weren’t their because the race was exciting. Trust me, I saw hundreds of people pass by me, and, to say the least, I was underwhelmed by that experience.

These people were a blessing. They didn’t know me. I didn’t know them. But they supported me like we were friends since gradeschool.

What if we encouraged others like that?

What if we kept extra snacks in our car to hand out to homeless people to encourage them when we saw them. What if we told a stranger in class that they were going to do great on a test to boost their confidence. What if we told a coworker they were going to knock it out of the park with their presentation?

We can all use a little encouragement. We’re all human. We all fall short. But when we band together, pick one another up, dust each other off, and dish out some uplifting remarks, anything is possible.