I'd like to introduce you to my friend, Maria. She is my guest blogger today, and her bio is at the end of this post! We all have dreams, ideas and goals...but it's only when you take ACTION that dreams take shape. Action makes dreams come true. Action is the only way to achieve results.
With hectic schedules, a society so heavily indebted to instant gratification and "bigger, better, faster, more..." how is it possible to stay focused on what you want to achieve?
"Small deeds done are better than great deeds planned." ~Peter MarshallWhen big projects and big ideas are in front of you...sometimes the enthusiasm from your inspiration gets watered down and you experience analysis paralysis. The reality is, however, that it's better just to get things done and they don't have to be perfect.
In fact, there are very specific things you can do to achieve massive success, if you're willing to open the gateway to more clarity and improved action that help you stay focused:
1. Invest in your mind and body by starting your day between 4am and 5am doing the same ritual you can easily commit to EVERY DAY. Your ritual should nourish your mind and body AND be so simplified you can do it on "auto pilot." For instance, begin by hydrating your body with warm water and lemon, stretching and meditation. More important, as you become accustomed to early hours, you'll find that no matter how many people live under the same roof with you...YOU will find time alone without interruption. You'll discover your body will benefit from the hydration and stretching and your mind will also find clarity, flexibility and more inspiration about the things YOU choose to focus on.
The Ayurveda lifestyle believes in routine and that one should wake up about 1 to 1 ½ hours before sunrise so that your body can synchronize with the rhythm of the sun. They consider this time most auspicious and meditation at this time helps your mental performance.
As an early riser you'll discover time to work on the projects that matter to you. By waking up early you get a head start on your day and your schedule. The most creative and productive hours tend to be early morning hours (while most others are sleeping).
Think about it. If you have an average 40 hour work week...adding even only one hour a day to your day, you'll have nearly one additional work day added to your week! Early morning will give you the biggest benefit because it'll be uninterrupted. You'll own the day, rather than the day owning you.
"If you are willing to do only what's easy, life will be hard. But if you are willing to do what's hard, life will be easy." ~T. Harv Eker2. Schedule Your Day using the Ivy Lee Method. At the end of each day write down a list of the 6 MOST IMPORTANT things you need to accomplish for tomorrow. Prioritize them. Each day concentrate on the first task until it's complete and then move on to the second task. Repeat the process every day. This may sound simple but it has some very deep roots that inherently force you to stay focused and it'll have you make the (difficult) decisions necessary to fully complete the task at hand. You can read the story about how one of the richest men in the world, Charles M. Schwab, President of Bethlehem Steel paid Ivy Lee $25,000 after receiving this advice for free solely because of the tremendous value it brought him and the progress it gave his company.
"Either you run the day, or the day runs you." ~Jim Rohn
3. Remove the mind clutter from decision-making. In other words, instead of having to make choices every day about various things in your life (stealing time away from your focus), make more of your decisions and tasks streamline. Like item #1, starting your day with a ritual so easy you can do it on autopilot... what other things can you do to save time so that you can invest more time in other more important actions?
For example, did you ever notice Steve Jobs wear the exact same thing every day when he was with us? That's right, jeans and a basic black turtleneck. Or how about Mark Zuckerberg...aside from Facebook, he's known for wearing jeans and a hoodie. They both saved time by eliminating the burden of daily choices via their apparel. This alone has been documented and found to be a common trait and mindset of the successful entrepreneur.
Another way to remove mind clutter from decision-making is through meal planning. I choose the same breakfast smoothie every day. It's a no-brainer, healthy, and easy. I also encourage busy moms to make Saturday or Sunday your cooking day and make foods to have available the rest of the week for lunches (chicken, lentils, washed/cut greens for salad, soup, cut apples with lemon juice, etc...). It saves time thinking about what to eat and removes the incentive to go out to eat (something less healthy). This goes a long way to saving you time during a busy week AND it keeps you healthy AND if you're eating healthy...the mind stays clear, making it easier for you to focus.
There's a reason Mind-Body-Spirit are lumped together. When they're working in alignment, you'll be operating with everything you have available to you (coming from you and through you).
"We are the creative force of our life, and through our own decisions rather than our conditions, if we carefully learn to do certain things,
we can accomplish those goals." ~Steven Covey
The three tips in this article give you the ability to master your day so that you can invest your valuable time rather than spend time on less valuable things.
Mastering your day is one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself: magnifying your focus, improving your action plan, ultimately gaining you results.
The bottom line is this...no matter what plans, dreams, goals you have...if you can't lead yourself in doing them, there is no way you'll be able to lead others no matter what area of life you're wanting to focus on (from personal to professional).
BIO: Maria Flynn is the creator or OneWiseLife.com (OWL) an online magazine dedicated to helping you tap IN and turn ON your inner wisdom and create the life you love. A Reiki Master and Intuitive, Maria has also been researching and writing personal development articles for nearly 10 years, using this medium to help herself and others around the globe.
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