In his book, Stillness Is The Key, Ryan Holiday tells us we should slow down and think deeply. This is the perfect advice for setting you goals for the rest of the year. Starting new projects often gives a renewed sense of enthusiasm and excitement about the future and what is possible, but before running off at 100 miles per hour chasing multiple goals and leaping from one incomplete project to another, slow down and think deeply.

Holiday writes “We have to get better at thinking, deliberately and intentionally, about the big questions. On the complicated things. On understanding what’s really going on with a person, or a situation, or with life itself.”

“We have to do the kind of thinking that 99% of the population is just not doing, and we have to stop doing the destructive thinking that they spend 99% of their time doing.”

My job and your job is to become more accurate thinkers, and encourage our teams to get better at accurate thinking. Better at slowing down, not reacting impulsively, and attempting to calmly figure out what is really going on.

I agree with Holiday. 99% of the population doesn’t do this. Listen to the snippets of conversations you hear today on your way to and from work, walking in the street and lunch time; listen to the one side of the mobile phone conversations you overhear. I can guarantee most of it is ‘he said – she said’ stuff. People moaning about other people. ‘I’m right. They’re wrong. How dare they?’ etc. etc. It’s all purely reactive. You won’t hear any deep, reflective thinking going on.

We have to be better than that. I spend most of my time in my practice trying to figure out what the hell is going on with any situation whether good or bad. I learned long ago that without slowing down and thinking, it is too easy to be led astray by appearances, or miss what can’t be seen by the naked eye.

Through deeper thinking, you can establish what is really most important to you and your practice. Think about what it is you really want, and go deeper than just appearances. Ask yourself, why, why, and why to get to the bottom of what you’re planning on doing (a pen and paper helps with deep thinking).

This kind of thinking brings great clarity. When you have thoroughly examined your thoughts, you’ll know exactly what matters and what can and should be ignored. You can prioritise. You can say No to the things that are not part of your plan.

So, slow down, think deeply and let’s make the rest of 2024 a success!