Lab Rant

I was at Lowe's yesterday and stumbled upon this company called Sasquatch that makes men's soaps and shampoos. The label on one body wash said, "Smells like productivity."

So, of course, I had to smell it. 

It was eucalyptus, peppermint, and pine. It didn't smell very good, but it got me thinking about the notion of environmental triggers and work.

People often ask me about how to set up their office. What makes the most productive workspace? Are standing desks legit? Should I be filling the air with eucalyptus, peppermint, and pine (NO!) 

So my answer is it's not necessarily a specific location or desk. It's a matter of using our five senses to trigger a desire to do a particular type of work. 

Here's an example we can all relate to. 

Do you know the reason that the sound of running water sometimes makes people feel like they have to pee? Well, it's because when we pee, we usually make the sound of running water. So our brain associates the two together. 

When I write (like now), I use pine essential oil, not because there's anything special about pine. It's because I ONLY use pine when I write. So my brain associates the smell with writing and writing with the scent. And I know it sounds crazy, but it works. 

You can use a specific color of light for a particular task. Smart bulbs that sync to Alexa or Google Assist offer loads of options. 

You can use temperature. I do my best podcasting when I'm sitting in an ice bath. 

Taste is another one. I know some people who only drink coffee right before big presentations. The ritual and specificity of it help them to focus intensely.  

The key is to connect the senses to a particular type of work. Listening to focus music for eight hours will not help you concentrate for eight hours. No one can or should focus for eight hours. 

What are your sensory triggers for optimal productivity? Let me know. I'm sitting here writing, surrounded by the scent of pine, contemplating my next book. 

Productivity Riffs. Want more real-world solutions to scaling your business efficiently? Just join The Less Doing Labs. It's a private group chat that gives you access to me for $12 a month or a hundred dollars for the year. If you're interested, watch this super-fast video for more info.

This month's coolest reads and finds

Nick Gray's New Book - The 2-Hour Cocktail Party: How to Build Big Relationships with Small Gatherings

Dispatches from The Elon Musk School of Management

minimal - wait til you see what your notes feature can do!

Successful Content Marketing is All About "Information Gain"

Battery Widget 2.0 - Check battery levels on ALL your devices in one place.

Vitruvian - The smartest workout ever is resistance training reimagined.

The Prepared - No it's not about bunkers and weird dehydrated food. It's the coolest newsletter about all things manufactured.

Nook - Next level scheduling tool. Bye Bye Calendly?

Busy vs Non-Busy - which one are you?

eduflow - Social learning at scale. Onboarding templates. Course builder. Collaboration features.

Are you on TikTok?

I am and I'm loving it. Check out my new series, "Businesses Behaving Badly" - where I analyze your experiences with businesses that could be doing a whole lot better, in a whole lot of ways.

It's like "Bar Rescue" for Entrepreneurs.

Give me a follow @arimeisel. Then send me your encounters. I'll call them out and give my take on how they could improve. (or if).

Make it an effective day.

P.S. Whenever you are ready...here are 3 ways I can help you grow your business:

1. Join my FREE Facebook Group - The Replaceable Founder
2. Enroll in one of my courses, Overwhelmology or The Replaceable Founder
3. Work with me privately