I’ve got nine minutes to write a post this morning, because the fiction writing went long. Ordinarily, that would be enough—I can dump a rough idea here, wander off to work, then come home and redraft the concept into a couple of hundred decent words. 

But today is not an ordinary day. There are meetings at work—which take their toll on my socially anxious brain—and pans later this evening which wipe out my night shift. Finishing a reasonable post means giving up sleep, or accepting what’s possible today is out of the ordinary and reshaping my expectations. 

On days like this, I set aside my expectations and go back to the core principles: what is the most useful thought or idea I can put out into the world today?

Today, it’s this: success starts with surveying the landscape and figuring out what’s possible from where you are right now. Nine focused minutes can deliver upon your core goal, if you’re clear about what that is. 

Or it can be the time you spend faffing around, wishing things were different. 

Faffing is the easy option, but it’s not always the best. 

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