Tag: business plan

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Exercise For 5 Minutes Each Morning

An important habit to incorporate into your day is to move your body more. Sitting and being sedentary is worse for your health than even being a cigarette smoker, assuming the smoker is physically active.

Walking

Short Term High-Intensity Exercise Benefits Health

 

According to a 2018 study at an Australian University, two minutes of exercise at a high intensity in the morning may be just as good for you as 30 minutes of exercise. Plus, moving boosts your serotonin levels and puts you in a happy mood the rest of the day, not to mention you’ll jump-start your metabolism and thus maintain a healthier weight easier.

 

Morning Exercise Eliminates the Need for Willpower

 

Most of us have good intentions to move more, but we often allow an entire day to go by without ever doing the intentional exercise we planned. This ends up backfiring and causing us to be less healthy and less productive due to increased fatigue and brain fog that happens when you’re sedentary.

 

Make It a Habit

 

From this day forward, right after you get up, as soon as you can move well, do a three-minute warm-up plus two minutes of high-intensity movements until it becomes a habit for you within thirty minutes of rising each day. Since it’s just five minutes, you don’t have to prepare as much as if you were going on a bike ride or a longer run.

 

Mix Up Your Movements or Just Do the Same Thing

 

Some ideas are jumping jacks, jump roping, pushups, jogging in place, jogging down your driveway, squats, running up and down your stairs. Whatever it is that you do, do it at full intensity for just two minutes. You can exercise more later, but this is just something you do upon rising each day before you have your coffee or get ready for the day.

 

The benefits of working out like this each morning are that you’ll feel more energetic all day long, you’ll be more alert, focus better, and due to all that, be a lot more effective in whatever you need to do. Making the workout only five minutes long, including warm-up and the high-intensity two-minute workout, helps eliminate any excuses because you don’t need any equipment, gym, or set up to do this fast workout. But, one thing is clear, it will set you up for a much more successful day.

Avoid Burnout: How to Exercise and Sleep More

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Say No At Least Once a Week

As you work building in daily habits that will make you more successful, one of the skills you need to practice and habituate is saying no more.

For the next month or so, start saying no to something at least once a week.

say no

The way to choose what to say no to is to check your goals, look at your schedule, and ask yourself what you really want. If an action leads you to reach your goals and fits your schedule, saying yes is fine, but if it does not provide any value to you or does not fit into your schedule right now, say no.

 

When you do say no, you don’t owe anyone a reason with few exceptions. However, here are some reasons and ways that you can say no more often.

 

If You Already Know Say So

 

Sometimes you simply know that you don’t want to do something no matter what. Instead of putting people off or saying yes just to avoid the issue, start saying no right away. For example, if you have a friend involved in an MLM and constantly asks you to come to parties or buy things, and you have but resent it, start saying no and ask them to stop asking you.

 

Say I’ll Think About It

 

You don’t have to give people answers right away about anything. This can help you reduce the pressure on yourself to say yes to anything. Start making it a habit always to say, “Let me check my schedule. I’ll get back to you by 3 pm on Friday with my answer.” This way, they can wait patiently, and you can ensure that you want to say yes or no.

 

Always Check Your Schedule

 

Even if your first thought is that it’s something you want to do, you must always check your schedule before saying yes. You may be over booked already, and even if you’re going to say yes, you need to say no. Doing this will ward off burnout. Stretching yourself too thin is bad for you and everyone else that depends on you too.

 

Offer Alternatives

 

Sometimes you can’t do what your customer or the person wants, but you can turn your no into a yes in the recipient’s mind. If you know someone who can do the thing being asked of you better, tell them about it. If you can offer some help but not exactly what was asked for, say exactly that to the person.

 

One thing to remember is that you don’t have to be part of everything in your community. Saying no allows others to step up. Suppose you’re the type that runs your PTA, a small business, and more than two or three community organizations and clubs. You’re probably doing too much. Let others shine and take your time back. Your friends and family and you will thank you.

Write Down 3 Things You’re Grateful for Each Day

 

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Are You Really Being Accountable?

If you want to achieve your business goals or live a happier life, you must learn how to be more accountable. Accountability means that you take ownership and responsibility for yourself—no matter what challenges and things get in your way.

Are You Really Being Accountable?

It’s excluding excuses from your way of life and harnessing values that increase your productivity. When you better understand how your actions or lack of activities affect everyone around you, you can better control what needs to be done or improved to accomplish your goals.

 

The following are a few ways that can help you become more accountable to achieve more quarterly and daily goals:

 

Honesty Is the Best Policy

Be honest with the mistakes you have made or situations you experience. If you find yourself making excuses or blaming others, then it’s likely you are not accountable for your actions and responses.

 

Understand Expectations Clearly

Take responsibility and learn your expectations inside and out. Don’t wait for others to provide the information for you or use the excuse you didn’t know. Ask as many questions as possible so that you can find resources that build you up.

 

Celebrate Wins and Quickly Forgive Faults

While it is crucial to track your strengths and weaknesses to be more accountable, you should also forgive yourself and quickly move on. You don’t want the process to be about self-doubt and abuse.

 

You want to recognize it for what it is, then figure out what you need to improve and forgive yourself. Owning your mistakes does not mean you should dwell on them. In fact, that only keeps you behind longer. It is okay to make mistakes. You are only human, but not owning up to them or evaluating where you need to improve only harms you in the long run.

 

Value Your Time

When you don’t take accountability, you are using up time no matter if it’s obvious or not. While it can be hard to own up to mistakes, it is even worse to repeat them repeatedly until it’s too late.

 

Have Weekly Check-Ins

Have weekly check-ins with an accountability partner, mentor, or perform self-assessments. Partners and self-assessment tests are valuable as they can ensure and guide you on the right path. They can give you the tough love and recognition you need to take responsibility for yourself and do the work required.

 

As you can see, accountability is a crucial skill needed to increase your productivity and success of your business. It’s about being honest with yourself and what you want from life and evaluating your actions and processes to get there.  If you don’t take accountability, you can be sure you won’t realize your fullest potential.

 

 

 

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Stay More Focused with These Five Simple Steps

Focus shows you have the drive and desire to want to achieve something. It’s about putting all your energy into one thing and getting it down with grit and determination. It ingrains your goals and keeps you on the path of success. However, it’s hard to maintain and easily affects your business if you don’t.

 

Here are five steps to improve your focus and prevent self-sabotage from destroying your success:

 

Step 1: Find Your Mantra

Everyone has something unique to them that drives them to keep going—for example, putting on music while you work or giving yourself words of encouragement. Whatever it may be, find what resonates with you and repeat it every day before you get to work. If you are not sure, try giving yourself a pep talk in the mirror first thing in the morning and see just how much more productive and positive your day becomes.

 

Step 2: Commit to Healthy Routines

Adopting a healthy lifestyle and exercise routine is one of the best ways to ensure you get the right nutrients your body needs to function optimally. Poor concentration and memory problems are direct messages from your body that it is missing essential nutrients to work correctly. Learn to listen to it and always strive to provide it what it needs.

 Avoid Burnout: How to Exercise and Sleep More

Step 3: Eliminate Distractions

Put your distractions like cell phones in a different room or turn on your StayFocused chrome browser extension to block YouTube or other sites you always lose track of time on. Create the right working environment that inspires you to work at your best and quickly. Throw out clutter and things that don’t provide value to your work.

 

Step 4: Commit to Mindfulness

To be more focused, you have to commit to do so and be mindful of your actions and surroundings. You can’t expect others to provide that information for you, nor will their perspective be automatically valuable. As only you know what you need and want from life, no one else. Only you know if music distracts you or if your set goals don’t actually align, for example.

 

Step 5: Plan More Effectively

Find the right time of day to do your work. All humans have a set number of productive hours and times of day that work best for them. Test and experiment with various schedules to see what works best for you. Just because everyone else works a 9 to 5 schedule doesn’t mean you have to, too.

 

Don’t let your lack of focus get in your way any longer. Determine what you really want in life, create an action plan, take responsibility, and control your own life.

Stay More Focused with These Five Simple Steps

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Always Plan First and Last

The thing that marks a good business is planning. A business plan for where they hope to bring their business and daily plans to guide their actions to achieve it.

 

You’ve likely heard the famous quote “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail” many times before, and that is because it is so powerful and accurate. There is no other way to put it. Just because you don’t plan doesn’t mean you don’t know the direction it will go. As statistics prove over again, you are more likely to go down than up.

Business Plan Resources You Can Use

Here are a few tips and tricks to apply for better planning your day and business:

 

Plan First and Last

An often-used productivity hack by many businesses and entrepreneurs includes creating a to-do list at the beginning and end of their workday. This strategy improves your business overall by increasing your time management skills, consistency, and accountability.

 

When you start and end with a to-do list, you allow flexibility and ensure you are always working on your top priorities and staying on topic—enabling you to cut out unnecessary or mundane tasks that only keep you away from your main objective.

 

Not only that, but it can also be a great reminder and motivational factor. Lists enable you to be ready to go and can give you the push to get started sooner.

 

Make It Simple and Fun

Planning doesn’t have to be complicated, and business isn’t always dull. Use colorful pens or fun phone applications to write down your goals. Add fun and small rewards when you accomplish each step. Remember to keep it simple, and to the point, so it doesn’t overwhelm you.

 

Think Small, Medium, and Large

Think about three objectives you want to accomplish for that day but organize them into three separate categories:

 

  • One Large – The task you want to do right away as it’s the hardest to do and makes the most significant impact on your main objective for that month.
  • One Medium – This is the bulk of your day that isn’t too hard to do but likely to use more of your time—for example, a group meeting or coffee with a client.
  • One Small – This is the task you can focus on at the end of your day and relax. Ideally, you want this task to be easy and pretty mindless.

 

This method aims to give you a starting point and organize your day where you are not running out of energy and momentum.

 

Don’t let your days get away from you anymore with these planning tips. Remember, a business without a plan is one that will likely fail. Don’t let that be you when you have the power and control to make it happen with the right strategy and commitment to daily action.

 

How to Be Realistic About Time

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Essential Elements of The Realistic Optimist

If you want to be more productive, striving to be more of a realistic optimist might be the strategy for you. If you ask a successful entrepreneur what values or attitudes you should project, realism and optimism will likely be high on their list. An optimistic mindset should always be filtered with realism to see success. You can be a positive person all day long, but that doesn’t mean you will get what you want if you don’t act.

 

Here are a few tips to help you become a realistic optimist:

 

Unrealistic Vs. Realistic Optimist: Understand the Difference

One of the best methods to learning how to do something is to discover what not to do first. Being positive is great and has many benefits but doesn’t do anyone favors if it’s unrealistic. Toxic positivity only keeps you back and focused on the wrong things.

 

The distinction between a realistic optimist and an unrealistic one is their actions and their perspective on the world. Unrealistic optimists believe they will have success no matter what, even if they don’t work on it. They deserve and are owed success and the path to it won’t be complicated or challenging.

 

Realistic optimists are the exact opposite. While they too believe their life will be successful, they understand it is still up to them to realize that they have to seek knowledge and education, recognize mistakes, improve skills, and go after their dreams. They don’t wait around for it to come. They are proactive and always take on new challenges because they see them grow and gain more.

Changing Your Mindset: Attitude is Everything

Keep It Positive but Relevant and Attainable

An optimist is someone who is hopeful and confident about their life and the direction it will go. They believe that the world is ultimately good, and that evil will never prevail. While it sounds great, it’s not very practical on its own.

 

The world may be ultimately good, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be hard or challenging, which is why you need realism to balance it out. Realism makes sure that the plan you are taking is relevant to your ultimate dreams and ultimately attainable.

 

Only Focus on What You Can Control

One of the main objectives of a realistic optimist is to only focus on and control what you can. There is no point in ruminating or overthinking something that you have no ability to change.

 

You can’t change the weather; you can’t control people’s emotions, but you can control how you respond and which actions you take or don’t to get around it. You know the weather can change at a moment’s notice, so always have a plan B, for example.

 

Use these tips to be more positive and realistic to achieve maximum productivity, happiness and never miss any opportunity.

 

Changing Your Mindset: Attitude is Everything

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Your Lack of Realism Is Stalling Your Success

Realism allows you to manage your time better to plan more efficiently with improved confidence, clarity, and focus on tackling your goals. Realism ensures positivity and actions that result in creating attainable and relevant pursuits. Realistic people are said to be more independent and practical with their time.

Managing Your Mental State (When Times Are Tough) or (Through Adversity)

They use education, knowledge, and mindfulness to their advantage to make the right decisions. You will rarely see them go with the flow or not take a moment to recognize it for what it truly is. Without realism, you are likely down a rocky path of confusion and low self-confidence as you continue to accomplish goals that don’t lead to happiness or try to go after ones that don’t make sense and are out of reach.

This is a Great Jim Rohn Video that highlights the Steps to setting Realistic Goals. Pure Gold!

 

The following are a few tips to help you be more realistic to improve your business and life:

 

Always Stop to Think and Evaluate

Your parents might have told you this already, but it’s important to reiterate and harder than one might think. However, it’s the first step you should take to being more realistic. If you don’t stop and thoroughly analyze the situation, it could lead to more problems down the road. Miscommunication often stems from reacting right away rather than fully listening and being aware in that moment. It only takes a few minutes to evaluate your situation to be sure the information you are receiving and dissecting is accurate or not.

 

Develop More Awareness

Realism develops through experiences and education. Taking the time to learn about other people and the challenges or different things they go through in life allows you to see a different perspective and really see things for what they are. When you know all sides of the equation, you won’t be shocked at the result.  Join local events, industry conferences and surround yourself with more people that have similar interests and goals.

Ask for Feedback and Advice

Don’t shy away from constructive feedback, advice, or different point of view. The purpose is to provide you more insight and information you can’t see for yourself. Even if their opinions may not be true in the end, it doesn’t mean it doesn’t value you in some way. Now you know what not to do, for example.

 

Take Responsibility

Commit to being more mindful and responsible for your actions and inactions. This means being proactive with your life and gaining the knowledge required to form the success you want. Recognize your mistakes and find ways to improve, and always strive to be and do better.

 

Remember, the key to realism is to slow down, experience more, take in as much information as possible to create the right action steps to achieve your dreams and aspirations.

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Quit These Bad Time Management Habits Now

Adopting the right time management habits and routine for your business is essential for maximum productivity. Obviously, if you don’t have the time or can’t manage it appropriately, you will always be behind.

 

Here are five common bad time management habits you must quit now for better business success:

 

Creating Variable Deadlines

If your deadlines are not strict or hard, then you are only doing yourself a disservice and further using up and wasting time. More so than if you didn’t set one in the first place. Every time you move that deadline, you use adequate time to focus on action instead. Set firm ones to keep you on track and find the discipline you need to be a business owner.

 

Utilizing the Wrong Tools or Too Many

Tools are great until they are not. With any technology or resources, even if they work great for others, it doesn’t mean it will automatically be right for you. Each person and business is unique and needs to be studied, tried, and tested.

 

Doing Easy Tasks First

Don’t use your most productive time on easy or brainless tasks. Just because it’s easy doesn’t mean you should get it out of the way. Use these tasks at the end of your day, or when you don’t need to focus on a bigger or better project that brings you closer to your main objectives.

How To Manage Your Energy

Just imagine you start your workday full of energy, ready to tackle your most demanding project but then fall into the never-ending rabbit hole of emails. Your energy is drained before you know it, and now you have to slug through your work to reach your deadlines. Affecting the quality of your work and likely decreasing your willpower. Making you create excuses to give you permission to change your deadlines and delaying any results that truly make you productive.

 

Zero Time Tracking Tools

If you are not tracking the time it takes you to complete each task, you are not planning appropriately. Effective time management and planning include understanding precisely the time you need to get it done and then applying fifteen to twenty extra minutes to account for the unexpected.

 

Being Someone That You Are Not

Trying to go after all the latest trends or following the advice of everyone around you constantly without taking a break, being dishonest with yourself, and not being true to yourself is a recipe for disaster.

 

Their habits may work for them, but that doesn’t mean it’ll be the most valuable or comfortable for you too. If you keep doing things just because everyone else is but unhappy and uncomfortable about the process, your business and customers will see it too. Always be honest with yourself and keep the journey more personal for more success.

 

Don’t let these bad habits control your life. You have what it takes to do and be better as long as you put in the work and take a moment to reflect.

 

 

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Give Your Business A HIIT

HIIT stands for high-intensity interval training, a popular exercise routine that combines bursts of intense exercise with short rest periods. It is designed to maximize your workouts within the shortest amount of time. Believe it or not, this strategy doesn’t need to stay in the gym. You can use it on your business to reach maximum productivity too.

 

Here is how to use the HIIT method to achieve more and increase your productivity:

 

Work in Intervals but Be Realistic

Set intervals and break times that work with your schedule and the task you need to finish. Keep in mind that not every task is design to be performed in intervals or too short of periods. Be realistic regarding the activities you can do and be sure the time intervals you pick are optimal for quality, quantity, and other metrics you use to measure your business success.

 

A Pomodoro timer can be used to help you get started. With this timer, you work in a 25-minute burst with five-minute breaks. You can also adjust the times and intervals that make sense for you if you need more time to work. However, the faster you can push yourself, the better this strategy will work.

 

For example, content writers and authors will use “writing sprints” to encourage their creativity, find inspiration and reach a higher word count. They use the breaks to recharge and better manage their energy. They also use it to challenge their fellow writers in a fun writing game or challenge.

 

Check out Kiingo Writing Sprints on Twitter to give it a try and join the next challenge.

 

Don’t Skip the Break

All HIIT training sessions include quick little breaks in their routine to give you a short time to recenter and recover so you can better attack the next challenge. Therefore, you should be including five-to-twenty-minute breaks in your schedule before you start a new task.

 

If you skip the break, you are not using this method correctly or effectively. To reap the benefits, you must work as hard as possible during the first burst, meaning you’ll want the rest and need it to get back to the next interval.

Scheduling to Avoid Burnout: Learn to Take More Breaks

Keep Track and Measure Progress

Don’t rely on yourself or your memory to keep track of time and progress. Invest in a timer, stopwatch, and project management tools to record the intervals, cycles, and times required for each task.

 

Experiment and Adjust

Just because one set interval didn’t work doesn’t mean another won’t. Change up the interval number and times depending on the project. Then analyze the results to see which interval times allowed you to get the most done.

 

Overall, the main idea of HIIT is to work in short periods as hard as possible with a break right around the corner to encourage you to get to work and get it done faster.

 

 

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It’s Not the Deadlines; It’s Your Lack of Discipline

Deadlines are not the problem, nor are other people and the long list of excuses you have made for yourself. It’s your lack of discipline and willpower. Discipline is about regulating or training your brain to do what is right even if you don’t feel like it or want to.

 

It’s about taking responsibility to overcome your weaknesses and to fight off temptations. It’s about acting and going forward to achieve your goals and aspirations. Without it, you’ll let your procrastination ruin and run your life forever.

 

To better your self-discipline, try these five ideas:

 

Change Your Perspective and Mindset

Instead of saying “I should do this,” say “I must do this” and then provide a solid and apparent reason. We do things for pleasure, and we avoid pain. Don’t allow for excuses, and it won’t always feel right, nor will the stars be aligned perfectly every day.

 

Fight Off Distractions and Temptations

Set up your environment to avoid temptations, don’t have junk food in the house, and avoid the junk food aisles at stores.

 

Reward Yourself and Take A Break

Forgive yourself, take days off and build a healthy reward system for your goals and to-do lists. Good results don’t happen consistently if you are constantly running on empty or jumping from deadline to deadline with no opportunity to reward yourself and be proud of your accomplishments.

 

Define Your Consequences

If you don’t make your deadline or never realize your dreams and aspirations, what are the consequences? Record them and put them somewhere you are reminded of to give you the push you need to keep going.

 

If you don’t have any consequences, make them, and find an accountability partner to provide the punishment. Most deadlines are purposeful but hardly motiving due to the lack of consequences. Especially if you are sitting around waiting for the world to make you successful.

 

Commit to Self-Awareness and Reflect

Perform a self-evaluation routinely to dissect your weaknesses and strengths inside and out. List any resources or things you believe have contributed to your growth or current problems. Then voice them aloud to yourself and recognized your truths. The more you do this, the better you can understand where to practice and better develop your skills.

 

Remember, the path to improving your self-discipline won’t happen overnight. It’s a gradual process combined with the proper steps consistently each day to do better. Practice will make it easier, and one day you won’t even have to try anymore.

Perseverance Requires Persistence