twenty-one ways to kick-start · ©michael bungay stanier, box of crayons 2009 twenty-one ways to...

©Michael Bungay Stanier, Box of Crayons 2009

Twenty-one ways to

KICK-STARTyour Head and your Heart

to get youUnstuck & Going

...on the stuff that matters

Michael Bungay Stanier, BA LLB MPhil CPCC

Senior Partner, Box of Crayons

Creator of Get Unstuck & Get Going and Find Your Great Work

2006 Canadian Coach of the Year

Revised & Updated


TWenTY-one WAYS To KICK-START YoUR HeAd And YoUR HeART To GeT YoU UnSTUCK And GoInG... on THe STUFF THAT MATTeRS

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Get Unstuck & Get Going ...on the stuff that matters

We ALL GeT STUCK, ALL THe TIMe.Here are just some of ways ‘stuck’ might show up for you:

· Stuck is when you can only see one way forward — and it’s not the route you want to take· Stuck is when you have many options — and the thought of choosing paralyzes you· Stuck is when you know what to do — but don’t know how to begin· Stuck is when you don’t know what to do — and you can’t quite define the challenge· Stuck is when you’re waiting to be rescued — and your superhero isn’t showing up· Stuck is when you’re doing it all on your own — and it’s wearing you out

THe Good neWS IS THAT We ALL GeT UnSTUCK ALL THe TIMeWe’re smart, creative people. We figure things out. The situation changes, either because we make it change or just because time moves on.

But it can be useful to have additional sources and tools to help get unstuck faster.In writing my self-coaching tool, Get Unstuck & Get Going Going …on the stuff that matters,I came across many wonderful sources to help people get kick-started and get unstuck.

Here are twenty-one of my favourites.

Good luck in getting unstuck!

Michael Bungay Stanier, BA LLB MPhil CPCC

Founder and Senior Partner of Box of Crayons

Creator of Get Unstuck & Get Going and Find Your Great Work

2006 Canadian Coach of the Year

PS - You can find out more about me on the last page of this ebook.



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1. Move your body

Your body leads your mind. If you want your mind to get unstuck, get yourbody doing something different. Stand up and stretch. Move to a different part of the room. Escape the office and go lie in the grass. Walk in the park. Take a hip hop dancing class. Spend three minutes making funny faces. Skip.Do anything, just as long as it gets you moving your body.



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2. Go TUT

This is a very cool service which delivers Totally Unique Thoughts (hence the TUT) free to your Inbox.It’s not your usual saccharine stuff. This has got a delightfully quirky edge to it. It’s worth signing up just to take the Adventurer’s Oath when you sign up for his Notes from the Universe.

www.tut.com

* This is a free service - However, the link is an affiliate link which means I’ll earn a little money should you buy any of TUT’s products.

http://www.tut.com/theclub/?a_aid=b64af31a

http://www.tut.com/



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3. explorethe World

Google Earth keeps on getting more and more amazing.

They’ve taken satellite photos and pieced them together so you can explorethe world, as well as zip along many city streets.

Visit www.earth.google.com and go see the Poles (North and South), the Pyramids, Paris and Petra (and that’s just some of the P’s).

(And if you’re curious about what the world might look like if Google keepsevolving, type ‘epic 2014’ into Google, and follow where it takes you).



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4. Use your public library

Who doesn’t have books on the shelf that they’ve never read?

Go for a wander in your library, and see what catches your eye: magazinesyou’d never buy, books you’ve never heard of, and who knows what else.

And it won’t cost you a cent.



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5. Take a new approach

Sometimes you just need a new approach to whatever you’re stuck on.The more tools you have in your toolbox, the more options you have.Here are two sites full of different creativity techniques and models thatyou can use.

www.mycoted.com/creativity/techniqueswww.valuebasedmanagement.net

http://www.mycoted.com/Creativity/techniques

http://www.valuebasedmanagement.net/



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6. Talk to someone

Saying it out aloud can shift things.

Find someone who you feel safe with.

Take a deep breath.

Blurt it out.

See what happens.



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7. The eight Irresistible

Principles of Fun

We don’t have enough fun in our lives.Fun is the pinch of salt that brings out the flavour, the backbeat that gives the song its rhythm, the first date that makes the heart go faster.

Here are eight ways to have more fun.

Number Threes is “Stop Following the Rules”.Number Four is “Start Scaring Yourself”.Number Seven is “Stop Being Busy”.

Which Principle grabs your fancy?You can watch The Eight Irresistible Principles of Fun, and all the Box of Crayons movies www.BoxofCrayonsMovies.com.

http://www.BoxofCrayonsMovies.com



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8. Break a habit

How we dress. What we eat for breakfast. The order in which we read thenewspaper. The first thing we do at work. What side of the bed we sleep on.The route we take to work. What we eat for lunch. Who we talk to. Who we don’t talk to. The magazines we read. The music we listen to. The wrist we put our watch on. The font we use in our documents. The TV programs we watch. The parts of town we visit. The entertainment that entertains us. The clothes we wear. The way we think about our family. The words we use in our conversation. The restaurants we visit. The type of drink we drink. The place we buy our food. The topics we don’t talk about. The books we read. The subjects we know about. The adventures we have. The holidays we take. The hand we favour. The jokes we make…

(You get the idea).



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9. Improve your memory

Memory is a muscle – you can “work out” and improve what (and how)you remember information, people, experiences.

The more you can remember, the more information and wisdom you haveat your disposal to get unstuck.

Here are a range of techniques to help improve your memory:http://www.mindtools.com/memory.html

http://www.mindtools.com/memory.html



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10. Get behinda cause

What injustice do you feel most sharply? The environment? Treatment of animals? A human struggle? A country other than yours? The denial of rights or possibilities?

What support can you offer?Time? Money? Wisdom?

How can you get involved?



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11. downloadthe Action

Acceleration Sheet

The Action Acceleration Sheet is the backbone of the Get Unstuck & GetGoing coaching tool. It’s a powerful and simple process to help create aplan that moves you from stuck to an action plan to getting unstuck.

It draws on fundamental principles from creativity and coaching, so you not only generate new possibilities but also significantly increase the likelihood that you’ll get done what you want to get done.

You can download it for free atwww.getunstuckandgetgoing.com/pdf/ActionAccelerationSheet.pdf

www.getunstuckandgetgoing.com/pdf/ActionAccelerationSheet.pdf



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12. Take on a Superhero identity

What if you were a Superhero?

One of my favourite books is All My Friends are Superheroes by AndrewKaufman. Tom – our protagonist – realizes that everyone in his life has theirown super power. The woman he loves is known as The Perfectionist whilehis jealous rival, Hypno, has convinced her that Tom doesn’t exist. In hisjourney to win her back, we meet superheroes like The Frog-Kisser (blessedwith the ability to turn geeks into winners); the Stress Bunny (with the ability to absorb the stress of everyone in a fifty-foot radius); and the Couch Surfer (who can sustain life and limb without a job or permanent place of residence).

What would your Superhero name be?

What would your Super Strengths be?

Or maybe you’d just like a new identity? At behindthename.com, you cangenerate a name from over 70 different national origins.

Create a name.

Now, with this new name, what’s possible?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1552451305?ie=UTF8&tag=boxofcrayons-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1552451305

http://www.behindthename.com/random/


TwenTy-one wayS To KICK-STaRT youR Head and youR HeaRT To geT you unSTuCK and goIng... on THe STuff THaT MaTTeRS

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13. Look at art

You no longer have to travel the world to see the greatest art of the world.

Explore the National Gallery in London, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, the Prado in Madrid or Australian Aboriginal art.

What new perspectives open up for you?

http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/

http://www.nga.gov/

http://www.museodelprado.es/

http://www.aaia.com.au/



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14. Attend a class

All around you are people with knowledge to share.

Wisdom for your head: history, science, literature, engineering, law,computer skills.Wisdom for your body: yoga, dance, t’ai chi, painting, crafts.

Wisdom for your senses: wine-tasting, painting, cooking, music, sculpture.

Wisdom for your soul: relationships, coaching, self-knowledge,self-discovery.

Go see what’s available at museums, local learning groups, galleries,universities, night classes, specialist groups and on-line.



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15. Find out how stuff works

Most of us remain deeply ignorant of how the stuff around us works.

We take it for granted, and only start questioning it when things break down.

Get curious as to what makes something tick.

At this site www.howstuffworks.com you can look at the mechanics undervarious headings such as people (for instance, geishas and bounty-hunting),science (for instance, aquariums and hypnosis) and money (for instance,gambling and safecracking).



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16. Use an Oblique Strategy

The musician, Brian Eno, created a deck of cards to help jolt him out of his stuck-ness. These “oblique strategies” include:

• Get Dirty• Emphasize the Flaws• Not Building a Wall But Making a Brick• Cut a Vital Connection

(You can see other oblique stategies here or buy the deck here.

http://www.rtqe.net/ObliqueStrategies/Consult.html

http://www.rtqe.net/ObliqueStrategies/Acquire.html



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17. Laugh

Humour works because what you were expecting doesn’t happen – and something else does instead.

Call up a friend who makes you laugh.

Look here, here and here for some possible tickle-your-funny-bone sites.

Pop in a DVD that makes you laugh. (I’m always up for The Princess Bride or This is Spinal Tap.)

http://www.theonion.com/content/index

http://www.funnyplace.org/

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/topics/topic_funny.html



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18. Call a Hero

In our uber-connected world, the people we admire are often just an email away.

Choose a role model of yours and drop them a note. Say hi. Ask a question. Say thanks. Invite them out for a coffee.



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19. Read the Greats

The wisdom of the world is like fine, old wine that keeps getting put into new bottles. Sign up for the free Philosophers Notes Inspirational Newsletter and get bite-sized drops of wisdom daily in your Inbox. (The link is at the top right hand side on their webpage.)

* This is a free service. However, the link is an affiliate link which means I’ll earn a little money should you buy anything from Philosophers Notes).

http://www.philosophersnotes.com/?m=4b0957c51af1b&a_cid=8134743c



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20. Hug

Find someone you love.

Give them a hug. Get a hug.



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21. Embrace the Manifesto of

Insignificance

I wrote this on a visit to Istanbul, where I was struck by how what I did really wouldn’t matter in 100 or 1000 years time. It’s remarkably freeing to know what you do both does matter (go for it!) and doesn’t matter (Don’t take it so seriously!).

http://www.boxofcrayons.biz/2008/10/manifesto-of-insignificance/



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Michael Bungay Stanier is the founder and Senior Partner of Box of Crayons, a company that works with organizations and teams around the world to help them do less Good Work and more Great Work.

Box of Crayons’ clients range from AstraZeneca to Xerox and are based in North America, Europe and Australia. Box of Crayons has particular expertise with blue chip organizations in the professional service, pharmaceutical and consumer goods market sectors.

Box of Crayons’ premier product is the Coaching for Great Work program which gives managers and leaders practical coaching skills that stick. It is delivered by a global cadre of program leaders who are world-class facilitators and coaches.

Michael was the 2006 Canadian Coach of the Year, a Rhodes Scholar at oxford and has an MPhil from oxford, and law and arts degrees with highest honors from the Australian national University.

Michael has written two books and created three viral movies that have been seen by over a million people on the internet. More personally, Michael has two tattoos, a lisp and wants to infect a billion people with the possibiltiy virus, was sued by one of his lecturers when he left Law School, and named one of his cats after an Australian bushranger.

Michael is a popular speaker at business and coaching conferences around the world. He has been a speaker at the last three International Coaching Federation conferences, the od network, the International Association of Facilitators and SHRM.

Prior to founding Box of Crayons, Michael held senior positions in the corporate, consultancy and agency worlds in the UK, the United States and Canada. He has been involved in numerous large scale change efforts, including writing the global vision for GlaxoSmithKline.

You can find Michael all over the web:Writing regularly on his blog: http://www.boxofcrayons.biz/great-work/On Twitter: www.Twitter.com/boxofcrayonsOn LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelbungaystanierOn FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?v=feed&id=534762109#/profile.php?id=534762109&ref=profileOn Plaxo: http://www.plaxo.com/directory/profile/8590640268/80de95eb/Michael/Stanier

“If I had to pick a person to have dinner with, when I need to be prodded and challenged and inspired to think about the things I really am committed to think about for myself and what I’m doing, I’d pick Michael Bungay Stanier. He has an ability to shake our tree and make us more conscious and responsible about what we know but aren’t willing to admit we know yet. And the best part – he makes it easy and fun.”

david Allen, author of Getting Things done

Michael Bungay StanierBA LLB MPhil CPCC2006 Canadian Coach of the Year

http://www.boxofcrayons.biz/

twenty-one ways to kick-start · ©michael bungay stanier, box of crayons 2009 twenty-one ways to...

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