Mental Tube

Uncle Gizmo

Founding Member
#1
The power of introverts | Susan Cain


Considering myself a bit introverted, I'm not quite sure that's true, it's more like I hate extroverts! I really loved this video. Next time I watch it I will drop in time indexes and descriptions to the bits I think are the most interesting/relevant.. Please feel free to do the same!
 
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Bee

Founding Member
#2
Wow. Firstly let me say what a warm and engaging style she has. It was a pleasure to listen to her expressing her ideas.

This hit home with me for so many reasons. Firstly, I am naturally introverted. People are often surprised by that because I'm also fascinated by other people and I am very social. But what they don't see is that I need a degree of solitude to recuperate, gather my thoughts, process them and be ready for the next onslaught. And it often is an onslaught.

You may have picked up that in my spare time, I'm a writer - and I'm beginning to enjoy enough success for people to ask me am I going to stop work. The answer to that is hell no! I know I'm introverted. I know that writing is solitary. You'd think it would be the ideal scenario for me, but I actually need a certain amount of external stimulus - and as I've said, I am fascinated by people, so my ideal would be to work part time and write part time. Only then would I feel like I had the right balance for me.

The other thing that is interesting to me is that she mentioned a couple of times about Leadership and the expectation that Leaders are more naturally extrovert. I came across this dilemma just this morning. I had to do some psychometric assessments for a job interview. I had to choose a word (from a group of four) which was most like me. Then using the same group, had to choose the one that was least like me. I wrestled with myself a little because I knew that by ticking softly-spoken, I might be flagging myself as unsuitable. But I went with it. After all, they might be looking for someone who is diplomatic, softly-spoken, thoughtful, and willing as opposed to the norm at this level which appears to be assertive, stubborn, gregarious, and tenacious.

There are many ways to lead - and I know without fear of correction - that my current team hold me in very high regard, so I must be doing something right.
 

Jon

Administrator
Staff member
#3
There seems to have been quite a few books recently out about introverts, rebranding them as just fine and also to clarify what they actually are. It appears it is not just a question of quiet verses loud, but instead that extroverts get energy from other people while introverts get energy from being alone.

Edit: Having looked at some of that video, it appears that it maybe the amount of stimulation people like, with introverts liking less.
 
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The_Doc_Man

Founding Member
#4
Which leads me to the question: Can someone who is THOROUGHLY introverted do something so public as to write a book? And Bee - that is NOT a dig. It is a rhetorical question intended to point out that you can't be 100% introverted even though you claim introversion.

For me, introversion controls me only momentarily. Perhaps I have an initial reticence if you prefer. Then once I realize that nobody is drawing weapons and the sharpest thing in the room will be wits (or pungent cheese), I'll start to open up. I'm introverted enough to not be the "ice-breaker" but once the door has been opened, I'll jump right in (and mix metaphors with all and sundry.)
 

Uncle Gizmo

Founding Member
#5
How to motivate yourself to change your behavior

In this excellent Ted presentation by Tali Sharot you will discover it's easier to modify your behaviour with good positive feedback rather than a negative approach, like you shouldn't do this you shouldn't do that...

So what tricks do you pull on yourself? Which ones work and which ones don't?

NOTE!
Here's a little trick for you, did you know that you can watch YouTube videos at double speed? An excellent time saving trick.

I did a video about it here:-
See:- YouTube Time Saving Tip!
 

Jon

Administrator
Staff member
#8
So what tricks do you pull on yourself? Which ones work and which ones don't?
The tricks I play on myself are not so much tricks but forging habits. By having a routine, it becomes easier and easier to do the same thing again and again. But if I am - for example - reluctant to start doing Project X (say start writing a book), I try to say to myself, "Just sit at the desk and type one sentence." It doesn't always work but it often does.
 

Uncle Gizmo

Founding Member
#10
I use a tomato timer so that I have more break's, real physical breaks away from the computer, otherwise my break's happened at the computer, and become prolonged explorations of the internet! In other words a waste of time! - so every half an hour or so I will at least get up and walk around and usually have a cup of tea. It's also a que to pick up with headspace and do a bit of meditation, otherwise I can find myself quickly spiralling into that desperation mode which is not a good place to go!

This is the online tomato timer I use
https://tomato-timer.com/#
 
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Jon

Administrator
Staff member
#11
Uncle, that sounds a bit like the Pomodoro technique. It is quite popular. I bought myself a physical tomato timer. Not sure what it is about tomatoes...!
 

Uncle Gizmo

Founding Member
#12
My other problem is fear, I'm supposed to be creating a set of saleable digital products, basically access code which is packaged into easily consumable blocks. The problem is, I'm scared to death that I will miss out something important part, make some silly mistakes in the code. It just ends up in an endless circle of me chasing my tail, trying to make sure everything's perfect.

I set myself the goal of creating one every day, or if failing that every week. But I haven't finished anything for at least a month or more. And then that's when procrastination really kicks in, I find myself writing long documents on how to produce this code! ... Anyway here I am again procrastinating! Time for a cup of tea I reckon...
 

Jon

Administrator
Staff member
#14
Yes, but why did they resemble tomatoes? It reminds me of going to Wimpey for a burger back in the day. They had those squidgy tomato ketchup pots, shaped like a tomato.

Is your code for you to sell or is it for someone else to buy from you and then they sell it?
 

Uncle Gizmo

Founding Member
#15
Is your code for you to sell or is it for someone else to buy from you and then they sell it?
The website I sell it on does offer an affiliate route but I haven't taken that up yet, mainly because I don't think the information provided with the code is in a format suitable for affiliates.
 

Jon

Administrator
Staff member
#16
There is a concept of MVP, or Minimum Viable Product. You could always get it up and running and just iterate the code over time. Otherwise, you never get to market. I am guilty of this myself!

In fact, a great example would be The Mind Tavern. The home page on the root domain is not exactly great! Yet!
 

Uncle Gizmo

Founding Member
#17
Yes, but why did they resemble tomatoes?
That's an interesting question, mainly because the obvious answer is what else would they be?

And a look on the internet, and in particular I was searching magazine archives for pictures of them, the only thing I found was a timer in the shape of a chicken.

Also from the internet, I discover that the chap that invented the pomodoro Francesco Cirillo, an Italian, I guess Italians use a lot of tomatoes in their cooking?

My guess is the original timer wasn't made for timing in the kitchen, I imagine it must be a device with a spring winder and a key like a clock, it was probably an industrial timing device for some sort of process.

Then somebody took this timer and thought I can make this into a kitchen timer, the device they had was roughly the size of a tomato, and they had to think of something to put it in and make it attractive or possibly they already had a tomato shaped piece of plastic?

The point is that the question was a good question, because it hints at the history of the device, the history of advertising, the history of selling products to people. There's a lot more to it than just a simple timer for the kitchen. Someone created this thing, a timer for the kitchen, why?

Why did somebody decide you needed a timer in the kitchen?
Was there a famous cook like Delia Smith that said you should time this processor else you will get sick?
Was it just a Christmas gift idea?

Do YOU actually use a timer in the kitchen?
I know I don't, and my wife who does the majority of the cooking doesn't
The only person I know that does use a timer is my mother to time how long her porridge is cooked for.
But she doesn't use a tomato shaped one, she uses a little digital one she keeps in the cutlery drawer.

This leads me to tell you about something else I do. I love to know what people have for breakfast... Because --- that's another thread I reckon!
 
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