 In this video, I'm going to share with you the core mindset for joyful productivity, which is the name of one of my books and something I like to talk about occasionally. In fact, what I'm going to do is to read to you the first chapter, the introductory chapter actually of the book, Joyful Productivity, and this is in part to celebrate the availability of the audio book for joyful productivity, and I recommend that you check out. It's narrated not by me, but by a lady with a beautiful voice and just an enjoyable experience to listen to it. So we're going to talk here about how do we really intentionally situate our energy and our spirit so that we can get a lot done and still remain calm and joyful. I think a lot of you wonder how I'm able to get so much done with a full client roster and a full group coaching program and writing two books a year and teaching on new course every month, et cetera, et cetera, besides the fact that I don't have kids, which is just like a really big, big factor. But even so, I'm probably more productive and calmly so than most people in my situation. So here we go. Is it possible to be emotionally relaxed and joyful yet highly productive? Think of a master in martial arts. They aren't fretting, tense, worried, or stressed out. They have a relaxed focus, a calm strength, a powerful composure. Their face might appear emotionless, yet their body expresses a wide range of powerful motion able to accomplish a great deal with precision as well as flexibility. Inside, they are experiencing clarity, confidence, and a deep joy. So let me pause here and just have you imagine a black belt in Aikido, for example, or Jiu Jitsu, or whatever martial arts, Wing Chung, or whatever martial arts you respect. Or martial arts could be like a ballet dancer. It could be some other, some musician. So any master of their craft is so well-practiced as part of that that they are able to accomplish great amount. Their bodies can move a lot. They're very flexible. They're very powerful, but they're not stressed out as they're doing it. Now think about you yourself. When you're working, are you stressed out? Are you tense? Are you, you know, afraid, anxious? Or can you intentionally today emulate some of that master that you're thinking of? Let me continue in the book here. I'm not a martial arts master. In the past few years, though, I have developed a sort of calm, joyful productivity within my own sphere of work, which is content creation, business coaching, and now book writing. While I was writing my first book, Authentic Content Marketing, a dear client asked me, George, as the grand finale of your book's completion approaches, what are you feeling right now? Soon is the moment of letting go. Any thoughts on that? My response, I have never really held on to what the book's results would be, so there is no letting go. As for a grand finale, I don't see it, I said to her, since I was already planning my second book, Joyful Productivity. I now see each and every project as simply a mile marker on a lifelong journey of ever greater service and self-knowledge. Joy occurs throughout the process, at the beginning, in the middle, and at the end of a project, and onto the next project with a calm and joyful heart. So, you know, yesterday I had a couple of calls that didn't go quite as well as I would have liked. One of them was a group client call, and I didn't feel effective in that call. I felt like maybe I wasted my client's time and I felt like I wasn't at my best. So, what can I do? I mean, what do you do when you have a call with a client or a group of clients where you don't feel like you're at your best and, you know, you could have done a lot better, et cetera, et cetera? Now, in the past, I would have beat myself up. That was natural for me in the past. That was how I grew up, beating myself up, you know, because I had, you know, harsh parents, right? So, beat myself up, learn to beat myself up all the way until the last couple of years, really, I think. Really the last five years I've learned to stop the self-blame, stop the self-punishment. And just, I think what happened in the last five years is the realization that there is always the next chance. There is always the next chance. And by the way, I can't change anything I've already done. Nothing I could have done. There's no reason to punish. It's kind of like I've got a dog and two cats. And something we learn as pet owners is that you don't punish the pet, you know, except what happens immediately. Like, you know, they went to the bathroom in the wrong place and you pick them up ideally right when they're doing it and put them in the right place. That's how you train the pet to do the right thing or they're chewing something they're not supposed to. You don't, you know, kick them and like do whatever. No, you take them away from chewing whatever and you give them something better to chew. Okay, chew this instead. This is the thing to chew, right? So why don't we train ourselves in that way rather than kicking ourselves, you know, even immediately after the thing. You know, because that just creates a negative reinforcement on that activity. If I kick myself after the client group meeting, then the next client group meeting I'm not going to look forward to it, right? So how do you treat yourself when things don't go, you did a bad job of something, right? You don't want to reinforce a bad emotion for the next time you think about that activity. Instead, you pick yourself up like you're picking up a pet, right? You pick yourself up and you say, oh, do this instead next time. That's it. Do this instead next time. Oh, next time, next time I do the client group, next time I get this particular question from a client. Instead of doing this, I'm going to try doing this instead. Okay, because there is always a next time, you see, always, always there is a next time. And in fact, not just the next time, you have more opportunity ahead of you than you do behind you. Almost certainly that's the case. If you're building a business, that's certainly the case because you're just starting out and building your business or you're somewhere along the line. But your business is going to go a lot longer than you can imagine. So that's what we do. Instead of self-blame and kicking ourselves, pick ourselves up and go, oh, try doing this instead. Chew on this instead. Don't chew that. Chew this instead. And when you catch yourself and self-blame, just don't chew this. Chew on this instead. Chew on what you could do better and maybe what you did well. You know, it's always good to say, oh, yeah, even though, you know, you are never a 100% screw up. Nobody is. Whatever thing you thought you could do better. There's always something that you probably take for granted, but it's time to use your creativity to say, well, what is something I did well in that meeting? How this thing I wrote, I'm not proud of it, but what was good about it? Oh, I didn't misspell every sentence. That's pretty good, you know, or, oh, I really like this particular part of that that that I did. That was good. Right. Okay, let me keep going in in the book here. Okay, so there is no anxiety about results, no gritting of teeth, no failure, nor success. Only constant experimentation, a steady progress of learning, and a consistent joy of self exploration and service to the greater whole. So I am never really after a part, I mean, yes, I celebrate along the way, you know, for example, this month, my book creation course did really well. And I'm celebrating that it is an above average number of enrollments, more than I expected, and it's great. But I don't go, oh, my God, this is amazing and I better match it the next month. And this is what a lot of people do when they reach a success is they're like, oh, I better match it the next month or the next time it better be the same and then it's not the same and all I'm so disappointed. Oh, I knew it. I'm not that good. You know, it's just so much drama, so much internal drama. You know, I have to say, studies have shown that I think it's testosterone or estrogen or something, but I think the way that men males are set up. We are less sensitive. You know, we are less emotionally sensitive, which has good and bad, right. The good part is that we're more, we're more dense. We're more dense, we're more duh, right. So therefore, we don't have as much a tendency to emotionally like keep dwelling on a problem or oh, I didn't do that well or oh, what if this happens. So men have it good in that way. Women, those of you, you have the positivity of being less duh, you're more sensitive, you're more in tune with what people are feeling and thinking and what you're yourself, what you're feeling and thinking, but the downside that you have to be really aware of is the downside of it. The flip side of the coin is watch your tendency to keep perseverating, you know, keep on, you know, just working through those negative emotions or keep repeating that over and over again. Self-blame, self-punishment, anxiety, that kind of thing. So just be really, really conscious that there's strengths and weaknesses to every type of person and I don't know what it is. I don't know if it's biological or if it's hormonal. I'm sure some women act more like men and some men act more like women. It's, you know, I don't know, but that's just what I've seen in terms of studies. And just in my own kind of regular observations, you probably have seen the same thing, similar thing as well. So, so yeah, try to intentionally move yourself away from any kind of emotional repetition of especially negativity and move yourself towards chewing on what you can, what you will do next time. Not just what you can do, but what you will do next time. Visualize yourself doing the thing better. That is what I always recommend when it comes to visualization. Don't just visualize, oh, I'm going to have a million dollars or I will have this many clients, you know, that kind of end goal visualization is helpful to show us what direction to go into. But then to get to the million dollars or to get to the 100 clients or whatever, you have to do a lot of things to get there. So visualize yourself doing those things with joy, with calmness, you know, and as you keep doing them and you make mistakes, you say, oh, what could I do differently next time? Visualize yourself doing it. Okay, let me continue on with the book. Recently, I came across an Alan Watts lecture that summed this up beautifully, so now I'm going to read to you a section from Alan Watts. What do you do if I say to you, take a hard look at me, take a real hard look. Now what are you doing? What's the difference between a hard look and a soft look? Why, with your hard look, you are straining the muscles around your eyes and you're starting to stare. If you stare at a distant image far away from you, you'll make it fuzzy. If you want to see it clearly, you must close your eyes. Imagine black for a while and then lazily and easily open them and you'll see the image. The light will come to you. And what do you do if I say, now listen carefully, listen very carefully to what I'm saying. You'll find that you're beginning to strain yourself around the ears. Supposing somebody says, okay, now you've got to use your will. You've got to exercise strong will. That's the ego, isn't it? What do you do when you exercise your will? You grit your teeth, you clench your fists. If you want to stop wayward emotions, you go up tight. If you pull your stomach in, you hold your breath or contract your rectal muscles. But all these activities have absolutely nothing to do with the efficient functioning of your nervous system. Just as staring at images makes them fuzzy, listening hard with all this muscular tension distracts you from what you're actually hearing, gritting your teeth has nothing to do with courage. All this is a total distraction. And yet we do it all the time. With the chronic sensation of muscular strain, the object of which is an attempt to make our nervous system, our brains, our sensitivity function properly, and it doesn't work. From the moment when we were little children, teachers in class streamed at us, pay attention to see or hear more clearly, to concentrate or to will something, which is supposed to be difficult to do, and that constitutes a habitual tension over the whole body. That feeling of unnecessary tension is, as it were, the material on which we fashioned this concept of I. We hang it onto that feeling. That concept is not us. The feeling of tension is completely phony. It has nothing to do with success or seeing or hearing or acting. That's the end of the Alan Watts quote. I think it's amazingly brilliant. So continuing on with my writings here. So let us question our hard efforting, trying to make things happen, and instead relax into what we are to do in this moment. So can you imagine this? Can you feel yourself when you are trying to write, when you're trying to make a video, when you're trying to reach out to a client, when you're trying to teach something or whatever work you're doing, when you're trying to figure out a technology issue, you are going like this. How does this help? How does this help? It doesn't help anything. It just makes things harder to see. It makes things more tense. It makes things more anxious. Instead, let's say you're trying to figure out technology issues. Instead of going like this, why don't you go like this and even smile? And instead of tensing, why don't you go, let that be the normal state of confusion for you or working? It's not interesting. It's more like, yeah. That's kind of the attitude that I invite you to try on instead of this, you know, right? Just go, hey, you know, it's that kind of feeling. Okay, so continuing on with the book. Being in this moment doesn't mean that I don't plan. I plan every day. And then I simply do the plan with an inner calmness of non-attachment, even playfulness, rather than trying hard. So as a sidebar again, I have to say, I live by my calendar. So there's this paradox that I live. On the one hand, I am incredibly regimented in my schedule. Every part of my day is scheduled to the half-hour mark. If you look at my calendar, I just follow my schedule from 6.30 a.m. when I wait. Well, I give myself a buffer. So I wake up between 6.30 and 7.30-ish, but I really try to get to work around 7.30 or 8. But then starting then, I follow my schedule all the way until 7.30, 8 p.m. Now, there's huge breaks in the middle. I take an hour and 90-minute morning break. Well, my morning break is breakfast, nap, walk my dog, 90 minutes. I take a one-hour break for lunch early afternoon. And then I take a two-hour break in the late afternoon to have a snack, take a nap, walk my dog on a longer walk. And so I have huge breaks in a day. But basically my day is 12 hours with large chunks of breaks in the middle to break up my work periods. So I'm very regimented. I know exactly what I'm going to do every day. But then when I show up, for example, when I'm preparing a new course, I have a new course every month. So as I prepare for it, I show up and it says, prepare for the course. I show up. I have nothing prepared. It's completely blank. Oh, my God. How am I supposed to teach the course? I have nothing. But that's when I have an hour set aside to start preparing for the course. So I'm just going to, something's going to happen in an hour. Something is going to happen. I'm really curious what's going to happen in an hour preparing the course. I don't feel like doing it in the beginning. I rarely feel, and this is important, I rarely feel like doing whatever is on my calendar. Almost never do I feel like doing it. I didn't feel like starting this video. I never feel, I never feel like doing, you know, if, if there was nothing left for me to do for, just to help the world, everybody, if everybody is, has perfect businesses that they love. I'm out of a job. I have nothing to do. I wouldn't make these videos. And if there's nothing else for me to explore within myself, I wouldn't make these videos. I make these videos to in part explore what I really think about something, but in part, hopefully to help you, you know, move forward in your authentic business. So, you know, I don't do this for fun. Now that's how I feel in the beginning. I didn't want to do this. And then once I start doing it after five or 10 minutes, now I'm enjoying it. Now I'm feeling the service. Now I'm feeling the self exploration. Same thing with the course. Oh my God, what am I going to teach? I don't know nothing. I don't know what I'm going to say. Five, 10, 15 minutes into it, not really making myself do it, but just showing up calmly, curious, curiosity. Oh, playfulness. Oh, I wonder what's going to happen. In the hour, maybe I'll write three words. Maybe I'll write 300 words. Maybe I'll have an outline. Who knows what's going to happen by the end of the hour, but I'm showing up for what I planned for. You see, because otherwise, how is the course going to get created? It's not going to get created by itself. So I show up. I'm curious. I'm playful. I don't know what's going to happen by the end of the hour. And then 10, 15 minutes into it, or sometimes it takes as long as half an hour into it. Now I'm in the float. Now I'm like, oh yeah, I can start to see what the possibilities are going to be for this course. You know, and same thing with writing. I show up with a blank screen. There's nothing there. I don't know how a blog post is going to come up, how it's going to be created. I have no idea. But I just show up and I just try to type something. Just try. Just say, curiosity, calmly, just, and then 10 minutes into it, 15 minutes. Oh, I can start to see the shape of the blog post. It's probably going to be like this. Ah, something is happening here. Channeling. I am then channeling my spirit guide or muse or whatever. I'm using the word channeling probably in the wrong, the wrong way. But, but you know what I mean, I'm channeling my creativity anyway with calmness, with curiosity, with playfulness. So let me keep going. And then the book here. Again, what I have planned in my work, I do, even if I don't initially feel like it, I show up with curiosity, wondering what will emerge as I give my energy to it. Always I am glad that I stayed and tried instead of avoidance through distractions, because certainly I promise you, it is much easier for me not to create the course, not to write the blog post, not to do this video. It's much easier for me to play games on the phone. So easy. There's a clear, you know, there's a clear path. I'm playing this game. I know I'm good at playing the game. I know if I do this, I'm going to, you know, get the score. It's very clear. But you know what? This life that you are living right now is the ultimate video game. And the score you get to win is, did I stay and try? Did I stay and try? And how did I stay and try? Was I, did I bring calmness to it? It's kind of like when you're playing a video game. Ah, superpower. You're going to use that superpower, the super strength when hitting somebody or whatever it is in the video game that you do. Well, the calm joyfulness is the superpower of this game called living this life. And we're playing a game. And the score is, did you stay and try? Number one, because you stay and try, you'll win. And secondly, did you do it with calm joy or whatever this you want to, whatever virtue you are called to embody in this life. Is it courage? Is it humility? Is it forgiveness? Is it love? Is it lightheartedness? Is it joy? Is it playfulness? Is it curiosity? I don't know. Whatever it is, you know. So, all right. Let me, let me finish the book. We're almost, we're almost done with this chapter here. Here is an important nuance to all of this. However badly I do the task is just fine. I am not trying to force a result. I stay curious as to what outcome might emerge. I simply focus on the calmness and the joy that is possible within that work in the moment. And I'll complete the chapter with this quote. One of my favorite quotes, written thousands of years ago, summarizes this. To action alone has thou a right and never at all to its fruits. Let me say that again. To action alone has thou a right. You have right to your action and never at all to its fruits. You don't have a right to the results of your action. Let not the fruits of action be thy motive. So don't let the results be why you do something. Not the success, not the money, not the clients, not the views, not the likes, not the comments, not the shares, not the accolades. Let not the fruits of action be your motive. Neither let there be in thou and you any attachment to inaction. So in other words, don't be lazy either. Okay. Don't be procrastinating. Don't be stuck. Don't be. Oh my God, I'm fearful. I'm not going to do it because I might do it wrong. No, neither let there be in you any attachment to inaction. Therefore, without being attached to the fruits of activities, one should act as a matter of duty. So I interpret that as, Hey, I planned to do this. I, it was on my schedule and I'm going to do it. And also as a matter of duty, I interpret that as to the greater whole and to my own self development. Right. That's my duty. Right. For by working without attachment. One attains the supreme. For by working without attachment, one attains the supreme. For by working without attachment, one attains the supreme. That was from the Bhagavad Gita. So continuing on and finishing up the chapter here, what matters is not the result. What matters is the action, the learning and the inner composure and joy along the way. Therefore, no performance anxiety. As I take action, I may also pause occasionally to update my systems and processes as I learn what's more effective. So I'm always, you know, Oh, I could have remembered. Oh, don't chew on this, chew on this instead. Try this instead next time. Oh, let me update my process. I'm going to try this next time. This prevents strain, exhaustion. Oh, I simply do what I plan step by step and enjoy the scene of productive actions that I witnessed myself doing. Just as you do this after a while, right? It's really strange. It's almost like you'll be witnessing yourself doing it. Like you're not the one doing it anymore. It's like you're witnessing it. And I think this is partly what, you know, Lao Tzu and, you know, Dao De Jing says it's kind of like, I'm not doing anything anymore. I am being done. I'm the one life is doing through me. I'm not the one doing it anymore. So this prevents strain, exhaustion and burnout. One can be active outside, but deeply relaxed inside productive externally, but deeply joyful. So with that, I hope you enjoyed this introductory chapter to joyful productivity. The Kindle book as well as the audio book are both now available. I recommend the audio book. You get to hear Jill's beautiful voice narrating it. It's enjoyable to hear. So go to audible.com or Amazon, either way, and you could get the audio book of joyful productivity. So thanks for those who were able to join me here. Cornelia, Captain, Carissa, Stacy. Thank you. Cornelia says five minutes ago, I was just, I read this from a Maharishi text and now you tell the same. Yeah, wonderful. And Cornelia says, are you meditating? That's a great question. You know, I have tried meditating for years. I even meditated. I've always had a hard time meditating, just sitting down and, you know, meditating. But I tried for like six months where I started with one minute of meditation per day. And then I moved that to two minutes. Literally, I gradually went up to being able to meditate for half an hour a day. And then I went on a 10-day Vipassana silent retreat. It was very painful. And then I just, you know, I don't meditate anymore. I haven't for the last couple of years. I think what I do is what I do is called energy reboot. And you can Google George Cow energy reboot if you want to see my process. But I think generally I probably meditate throughout my work and throughout the whole day I'm kind of meditating by just noticing my thoughts, noticing my actions and then trying to bring some more joy and calm to it. So that's probably what I do, I think. Noelle, thanks for joining as well. Okay, everybody, I wish you a wonderful rest of your day. I wish you much calm and joyful productivity as you go ahead and do your work and find that service, that sense of service and that sense of self-expression. Take care. And oh, one thing I was saying, obviously there's something wrong with meditation. Meditation is amazing for a lot of people. So I think, and some people like prayer, some people like journaling, some people like dancing. I mean, there's a lot of, some people just like walking, long walks. So I think we each need to, thankfully, there are all these different modalities. So I disagree with someone who says, oh, you must meditate. Everyone must meditate. No, not really. I think everyone must practice consciousness of their thoughts and not get caught up in their thoughts. I think that's true. But how you do that is maybe different than how someone else does it. So anyway, all right, be well, take care.