Any time I want to talk about habits with clients, people tend to get squeamish. They begin to think that I only want to focus on the bad ones that they have, when in reality, the good ones are just as important to discuss. When we build on these good habits, they can leave us a more disciplined person that gets stuff done.
When I say habits, this can mean anything from drinking coffee or smoking a cigarette to daily meditation or setting weekly goals. Whatever your morning or evening routine you have, they ultimately have a huge effect on you and your productivity. They can help us achieve more things if we so choose, but they can also derail us and leave us feeling worse and worse.
Over my years and years of experience working in and for the business world, the habit that too many people won’t commit to is creating a plan for their day and actually sticking to it. I used to be this way as well; I’d wake up in the morning and immediately start checking emails. I’d run into work and jot down a to-do list a mile long that can never be completed because I’d already started to work on other people’s agenda for the day instead of my own.
But then I got my planner. I recommend to all of my clients that they get themselves a planner and use it every single day if they want to be on the right path. There are always the people with excuses, however. They don’t want to even give it a shot and claim “they can’t work that way” and dismiss it without ever really fully using it. Maybe they use a planner on their phone or write down notes in their phone. I’ve been there as well, but the problem with phones is they are a huge distraction. You might go to check your planner and end up on emails and texts and before you know it, you’re sucked in.
There’s something neurologically satisfying about paper planning. Physically writing down what you need to do for the day somehow just makes it so that you actually complete these things and come back and cross it off your list. And it can be hard to get into, I get that. Which is why you need to make it a habit. 30 days is what it takes to turn something into a habit. Every morning, or every evening, plan out your day, your week, what have you. In a month’s time, it’ll be second nature to you in that you won’t even think about or dread it. It will just be something you do now. It will become one of your good habits that brings positivity and growth and less stress into your life.
Leaving your day to chance and circumstance is a sure-fire way to a life of overwhelm and little productivity. When you don’t have a solid idea of what you need to do each day to reach your goals and move your business forward, it will inevitably be lost to putting out fires and tending to other people’s needs before your own. Take control of your days by making a plan for yourself and sticking to it. The rest can wait.
If you are unsure how to do this, which many, many people are, I encourage you to join me for my free, 3-part training. It’s all about the three keys to grow your business, no matter what is happening in the economy, no matter what’s happening out there, even in the worst of times. Join me live on Zoom or on my Facebook page this Thursday, August 27th, Tuesday, September 1st, or Thursday, September 3rd .
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Episode 75 – Slowing Down | Lessons Learned in Hard Times
Episode 74 – Important vs. Urgent: A Talk with My Husband Dennis
