Lagniappe first:
Ball reversal into reverse action.
How we go about our business matters. Buffalo Bills coach Sean McDermott demanded, "That’s what it gets back to in terms of earning the right to win. How we meet, how we talk, how we work out, how we practice when we do practice, how we play – that’s the standard we’re trying to get to every day.”
We want higher productivity, but struggle with "choice architecture." How we structure our environment (or how it is presented) impacts our choices. When we go to the store, where do we find the merchandise? Most retailers display high-priced commodities favorably versus the store brand (lower cost, lower margins)? In the buffet line, where are the healthier items versus the fattening ones?
When we structure practice, where do we schedule high versus low-intensity activities, drills versus teaching, individual versus team domains?
Several years ago, I wrote an e-book, The Simple Guide to Girls' Basketball: The Game is for the Players. The work to benefit ratio weighed heavily on the work side because I wanted pragmatic information on every page.
That experience reduces my intent and enthusiasm about completing my second basketball book. Writing is time consuming and I understand why the 'generic' reader would choose a "name brand" author.
That said, I have read basketball books written by well-known coaches (two who have won national championships), that share almost nothing about their basketball philosophy, insight, or methods. And I'm not talking about Jay Wright, whose book I haven't read. Pete Newell, Dean Smith, and John Wooden wrote numerous books...all about basketball, not primarily about themselves.
We can limit "directed attention fatigue." We deceive ourselves believing that redirection to email, Facebook, or multitasking don't impair concentration and productivity. Sleep, breaks, and nature all restore attention. Natural environments may restore emotional well-being better than synthetic ones.
How can we rebalance the productivity scale?
1. Schedule productive time and work in a non-distracting environment.
2. Deny distractions (e.g. email, Facebook) by 'turning down' the noise.
3. Schedule breaks. Our attention wanes. Few people can work more than ninety minutes without requiring a break.
4. Exercise "Recent experimental research indicates that both acute and chronic aerobic exercise promote children’s executive function."
To accomplish more, we need an enhanced process, the preparation before the preparation.
*Concepts derived from Manage Your Day-to-Day by Jocelyn Glei.
