10/26/26
STORY
Years ago, when I was working at Tesla, I would be asked to create training videos.
This one video was about how to go through a new software we were using, so I did a screen recording with a voiceover.
I sent it to my manager, Chris, and he asked if I had a few minutes to discuss.
I hopped on a Zoom call with him, and Chris had some feedback he wanted to share.
He said, “Jay, the content is good, and I noticed a lot of filler words. There are lots of ‘umms’ and ‘uhhs’. So I want you to record it once more, but before recording, tell yourself:
I will not use filler words”.
I took Chris’s feedback seriously.
Before I started recording, I said it to myself over and over again.
I will not use filler words.
I will not use filler words.
I will not use filler words.
I recorded it in one take, from beginning to end, without saying a single filler word.
I sent it to Chris, and he was thrilled with the new content.
While you might think the takeaway from this story is to reduce your filler words…
(which is a good thing to work on)…
The bigger takeaway is the power of single-minded intention.
I wanted to improve just one thing.
I focused my energy on one simple adjustment in my communication, which resulted in a significantly better outcome.
The problem is we so often try to fix too many things at once when it comes to our communication, leadership, time management, etc.
In truth, the best thing we can do is focus on just one thing to improve upon.
Just one.
So rather than trying to improve everything all at once…
I invite you to hone in on one practice or one skill to develop.
Once you feel you’ve reached a high level of competence in that area…
Then move on to the next.
That’s the most effective approach to self-improvement.
OBSERVATION
(This observation was written with the help of AI)
Researchers Amy Dalton and Stephen Spiller studied what happens when people make specific plans for how, when, and where they’ll pursue a goal. When people had just one goal, making a specific plan helped them follow through. But when they tried to pursue several goals at once, the benefit mostly disappeared. In fact, planning for multiple goals lowered people’s commitment to them, because the whole set started to feel harder to pull off. In other words, the same effort that helps you when you focus on one thing can work against you when you spread it across many.
(Dalton & Spiller, Too Much of a Good Thing: The Benefits of Implementation Intentions Depend on the Number of Goals, Journal of Consumer Research, 2012)
STRATEGY
This one’s easy!
This week, choose just one thing to improve.
If it’s communication-related…
Pick one communication technique.
If it’s time management-related…
Decide on one tactic.
If it’s leadership-related…
Choose one new approach.
Before the opportunity presents itself to improve in that one area…
Affirm what needs to be true to get to the outcome you want.
Make this your practice until you feel you’ve mastered the new skill.
Then…
Move on to the next!
Rooting for you,
Jay (inviting you to set a single-minded intention)
Global keynote speaker
Host of the “Unstuck” podcast
Fan of everything Autumn (the leaves, Halloween, Thanksgiving, such a great time of year!)
