The daily mind check

The check is the habit that keeps a page of personal operating notes in use: nine one-line questions drawn from the psychology of the mind (which system answered, what am I feeling, what story have I built, and so on), listed in full on the mind operating notes page. A practice that takes twenty minutes is abandoned within a week; one that takes two survives, and survival is the point, because the questions only help if they are fresh in mind when the reflex comes. Looking back: where did today's reaction come from, what was the feeling, what was the story, and did I pause before replying? Looking ahead: what is tomorrow's one block of work with a clear goal, quick feedback and the right level of challenge, and which meeting, message or dinner is likely to provoke me, and what will I say instead? The check needs a time and a place (the metro, the morning coffee, the desk before the laptop opens), because, as Kahneman's work suggests, nobody remembers to be reflective in the moment. Like David Allen's weekly review for a task system, it is the maintenance that keeps the whole practice trusted. Judge it by the month, not the morning: in Haidt's image you remain a rider on an elephant, and the check makes you earlier, not flawless. BookYol's Understand Your Mind Yol builds the notes and the check over twelve daily Stations.