Most of us set goals for our lives. Whether the goal is to climb Everest or to buy a pair of shoes, setting goals can sometimes seem like second nature to us. Even so, setting a goal doesn’t automatically mean getting the result. Sometimes goals are gradually forgotten about and fade away into…

Maybe one of your goals involves traveling the world or maybe you’re looking for enough time to help with a cause you feel passionate about. Either way, though, you likely have a prior commitment to an employer — or at least to paying rent and eating on a regular basis. Most of us are not…

A few weeks ago, I wrote a few articles about starting a business based on something you love doing and are passionate about. I received several responses from people saying they weren’t sure how to go about figuring out what they were most passionate about or how to find their true purpose. So I’m dedicating…

One of the most important steps (if not the most important one) you can take when starting a business is to talk with your partner/spouse before you embark on your adventure. It’s absolutely crucial to have your partner with you on the same page when you start a business. Without their support and “buy-in,” in…

From the interviews I have done with people on getting the most out of life, it’s clear that assuming positive intent is an important contributor to quality of life. Most people appreciate the dividends such a mindset produces in the realm of relationships.  How relationships can flourish when you don’t assume intentions that may or may…

Before you make the transition into non-traditional work, you need to do at least five things. Some are easier than others, but all are crucial to your success. Follow these steps to ensure that when you finally take the leap, you make a splash instead of a bellyflop. 1. Have a clear vision and a plan. Before…

I’ve received so many e-mails and comments about my “Change The Way You See Work and Change Your Life” article that I decided to write a follow-up article to talk more about the specifics of what some call “non-traditional work” but what I call “business in blue jeans”: why do it, how can you do…

  This is the fourth part of a 12-part series I will be posting through the end of December and into January 2009, examining the current understanding of productivity and where the concept might be heading in the future. I invite Lifehack’s readers to be an active part of this conversation, both in comments here and…

I initially began the blog with a 20% desire to help others, and 80% to cynically make the kind of money the A-list bloggers are making. – Urban Monk.net I stumbled upon an interesting blog, Urban Monk, several days ago. As I read the brief history of the blog, I felt harmony with the passion and…

I have a confession: I cringe at the word productivity. Getting things done. Saying that feels like being against democracy or love or Buddha or something, but I feel that much of what passes for productivity is simply ubercybersonic doingness dressed up in happy faces. Organization, accomplishment, measuring effectiveness–all those tools and systems are cool…

Sometimes it feels as if life is against you. Nothing works as it should. The people around you seem distant, preoccupied, and indifferent to you and your interests. There are constant hassles and upsets. Whatever enthusiasm you once had has burned to gray, barely-flickering embers. You have little energy and feel like giving up. Many people…

The lovely Pamela Slim from the Escape from Cubicle Nation blog has a nice entry about stifling your passion and creativity and how to unleash it again. We are told at an early age that our fire and passion is not “appropriate.” We see others around us conforming to “safe” lives and we don’t want to stand…

If you could do one thing to transform your life, I would highly recommend it be to find something you’re passionate about, and do it for a living. Now, this isn’t as easy as it sounds, but it’s well worth the effort. If you dread going to your job, or find yourself constantly lacking motivation, or…

Last Thursday, I wrote a column here called “Why Work?” I was hoping that we could break away from thinking about the income we tend to quickly associate with jobs and working for a living, and think about some other motivators, and some other satisfiers. Yes, income is a necessity of life, and I…

Imagine something with me for a moment. You are unbelievably wealthy and debt-free. You don’t have to work for the income it brings you, but still, you do work. Because you aren’t concerned with the amount of your paycheck, you are able to choose the work you want to do for the pure joy and…