In the coming weeks we’ll talk about various actions to take to achieve the career success and life  you desire. Habits to develop, behaviors to adopt, as well as things to let go of that may be hampering your potential. But before we dive into the work, it’s important to step back and take a breath.

Now don’t worry. This isn’t some flaky blog where I’ll have you chanting by the third post. Plotline Leadership is all about the business of success and that includes arming you with the right tools. So let’s begin with a question.

Do you want to increase your effectiveness and productivity – at work and at home?  

Then do nothing…not all day of course, but allow yourself two to three 10-15 minute bursts of pure white space.

In an age when employees carry multiple cell phones, work 24/7, and are beholden to both their inboxes and Twitter feeds, there is hardly time to think. The trouble is, thinking…clear, uninterrupted, creative thinking is exactly what’s required to dream up that next product idea, design an innovative service offering, or solve that productivity problem that’s been plaguing the office for years.

Unfortunately, the problem of “life noise” is incredibly pervasive. Even when we slow down and go for that run, we stuff our ears with music blaring buds, hyper focus on our Fitbits, and/or rattle off voice notes to our smart phones.

To be effective, truly effective, we need to allow ourselves a non-cancerous “smoke break” – a mental time out to wander and recharge. How you do it doesn’t matter. Maybe it’s a music free morning walk, a long hot shower, or a news free run on the treadmill. Effective solutions will come…you just have to give them room to roam.

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