Find a practice for your goal
Search for the skill or situation you want to work on, such as focus, negotiation, or setting boundaries. Open a practice to read its steps before choosing what suits you.
28 results (expanded search) for "allen"
Social
Challenge the Catastrophe Prediction
Write your catastrophic prediction pre-event and compare with what actually happened — evidence stacks.
Leadership
Distinguishing Technical vs. Adaptive Challenges
Before solving any problem, ask: do we need an expert with a ready answer (technical), or do the people themselves need to change (adaptive)?
Psychological
Mind-Reading Challenge
You assume what others think of you — but never asked.
Administrative
"Kill or Develop" Challenge for Active Projects
Each active project: continue or kill? No "waiting" middle ground.
Leadership
Distinguishing Technical from Adaptive Challenges
Classify your problem: technical (known solution) or adaptive (requires shifting minds and values)? Confusing them is leadership failure #1.
Professional
Shocking Hook Opening
Open with shocking stat, personal story, or challenging question — first 30 sec.
Professional
Radical Candor 2x2
Sort your feedback on care personally × challenge directly — sweet spot: high in both.
Leadership
Radical Candor Matrix
A 2×2: "Care Personally × Challenge Directly". Know which quadrant you're in with each report.
Parenting
Zone of Proximal Development Scaffold
Offer a challenge slightly harder than he can solo, and gradually less scaffolding.
Professional
GTD Weekly Review
A 60-minute weekly session that empties every open loop from your mind and resets your compass for next week.
Professional
Tomorrow Tonight
Before sleep, plan tomorrow — saves morning willpower.
Administrative
Template Library
Every doc type written 3+× yearly has template — write once, use forever.
Digital & AI
Desktop Zero — Friday
Every Friday, empty the desktop: each file goes to its folder, archive, or trash.
Digital & AI
Text Expansion Setup
Set 20 shortcuts (e.g., ";eml" types your full signature) to save hours weekly.
Digital & AI
Inbox Zero
Rule: per email, one decision: reply in 2 min, delegate, defer, or delete. No "later".
Digital & AI
Recurring Document Template Library
Like text shortcuts, build a library of full templates (presentation, simple contract, weekly report) instead of starting from scratch every time.
Psychological
Evidence For-Against Dialogue
Put your negative thought on trial: what's the evidence for and against? Then judge.
Psychological
Flow Activity
Find an activity where you lose time — this is flow.
Professional
Internal Application Prep
Before applying to an internal role, schedule a 20-min exploration chat with the target team's manager.
Social
Negative Inquiry
When criticized, ask: "what specifically in X bothers you?" — forces clarity.
Administrative
Three-Point Estimation (PERT)
For each task estimate: optimistic, most-likely, pessimistic — then compute expected.
Leadership
Devil's Advocate
Designate one person — or take the role yourself — as official critic before approving any major decision.
Leadership
Coaching a Peer (Not a Direct Report)
Coach a peer at your same management level with no hierarchical authority — the challenge here is separating friendship from neutrality, not authority from support.
Social
Weekly Family Meeting
Create a 30-min weekly family meeting with fixed agenda: gratitude, challenge, plan.
Leadership
Bias Mitigation Plan
Before people-affecting decision, identify 3 potential biases and create a shield for each.
Leadership
Group Coaching Facilitation Basics
In group coaching, your role isn't answering but fairly distributing attention and turning one person's problem into collective learning.
Leadership
Disagreeing with Your Boss Productively
Use the format "I agree on X, but I see a risk in Y, and suggest Z" instead of silence or unstructured direct opposition.
Parenting
Collaborative Problem Solving
Instead of imposing a fix, collaborate with your child to solve concerns of both — Ross Greene method.