Tag: business planning

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Daily Habit to Improve Your Health: Drink Enough Water Every Day

While the average American consumes about 22 percent of their calories in the beverages they drink, over 75 percent of Americans also walk around chronically dehydrated. Problems like fatigue, foggy memory, irritability, and more like slow metabolism are associated with chronic dehydration that you can fix simply by incorporating the daily habit of drinking enough water.

stay hydrated

  • Stop Drinking Other Beverages –To start drinking more water, you’ll want to stop drinking any other beverage but water for the time being. You’ll also want to measure out the amount of water you want to drink each day so that you can see it visually and space out your consumption throughout the entire day.

 

  • Know-How Much Water You Need – Everyone is slightly different regarding their hydration needs. If you eat a low carbohydrate diet versus a high carbohydrate diet, you may need more water or less water, depending on your diet. Start with the recommended daily amount for average-weight men at 125 ounces and 90 ounces for average-weight women, and work your way up or down depending on how you feel.

 

  • Set Your Goals – Once you know how much you’re going to drink each day, set the goal and be very specific about how you’re going to do it. A lot of people find success is to start the morning with 8 to 32 ounces of water before consuming anything else. Try adding a squeeze of lemon to make it special.

 

  • Keep Water with You at All Times – Don’t underestimate how lazy you’re going to be about this. Invest in an eco-friendly, refillable water bottle. Keep the bottle with you full and ready to drink at all times, whether you’re in your office, in the car, or on the sofa.

 

  • Take Advantage of Triggers – If you normally drink another beverage when reading a book, checking your email, or enjoying a movie, make your water just as special. Buy good-tasting water and beautiful glasses and experiment with fruit-infused ice to make it feel special.

 

  • Drink One Glass Before Eating – For each meal and snack you’re going to have during the day, give yourself enough time to enjoy one glass of water thirty minutes before the meal or snack. Drink less during your meals and more between your meal to improve digestion. This will create a ritual with the water, which is easier for you to remember and habituate.

 

When you drink enough water every day, you’re going to notice that your skin texture improves, your eyes become clearer, and your brain fog disappears. Not only that, some people have even suggested they experience less body pain. It’s a wonder more people aren’t working towards this daily goal since it helps with so many issues.

5 Rituals to Boost Your Energy and Productivity

 

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Disconnect Yourself from Distractions and Notifications

One problem with the modern world is that it’s almost expected that people are supposed to multitask. The problem is no one can actually do it. It’s actually impossible for over 99 percent of humans to multitask. If you don’t believe me, you’ll need to look up the studies because it’s not something that is disagreed upon among social scientists.

 

Humans Cannot Do Two Things at Once

 

In reality, instead of true multitasking, you’re just splitting your attention between tasks – and not always evenly either. Trying to multitask is a productivity killer and also a mood killer. There are rare humans with superhuman ability who can multitask, just like there are rare humans who can perform superhuman athletic feats; some people are born with brains that are different from the norm.

 

More than likely, you are not one of those people. More than likely, you also cannot actually multitask. Trying to multitask is not just killing your productivity it’s probably even making you feel bad about yourself because you can’t live up to your own expectations, much less anyone else’s.

 

Multiple Studies Show People Cannot Multitask

 

Studies conducted by universities around the world have concluded that multitasking is not possible. Imaging shows that it takes most of us an average of 15 minutes to switch tasks and become reoriented to a primary task once distracted. There is no scientific argument that these things are true. After 50 years of research, scientists agree that trying to multitask is poorly affecting our productivity and our memory and, sadly, creativity.

 

Make The Commitment to Give Up Trying to Multitask and Start Focusing

How And Why You Must Remove Distractions

So, try this out for yourself. Turn your notifications off and stop being available 24 hours a day. You don’t owe it to anyone to be available to them at all times of the day and the night. And honesty, can you really be that much help at all hours of the day and night? When you don’t sleep enough, is your work done to a high enough standard?

 

Set specific times and block out your schedule for each activity and task you want to do each day. Whether it’s surfing Instagram or watching YouTube or commenting to your friends on Facebook Groups – or going for a game of Tennis with friends – get it in the schedule so that you can focus on it 100 percent.

 

When you get good at scheduling and actively shunning the idea of multitasking, you’ll feel so much more satisfied with your life and feel as if you have more time for doing all the things that make you happy and successful in life.

 

 

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Daily Habit for Health: Stand Up At Least Once Every 30 Minutes

The smallest action, when done regularly, can make all the difference. If your life or job is sedentary, you can improve your health substantially simply by adding just one thing to your day. Add movement every 30 minutes and do it by making it a habit.

Exercise For 5 Minutes Each Morning

This micro habit of movement can make all the difference in your chances of developing cancer or having circulatory issues like blood clots, and even improve your mental health – and all you have to do is stand up, get up, and stretch your legs once every 30 minutes.

 

No special equipment or clothing is needed. Just get up and stretch and then sit back down and continue working. This habit will improve your circulation, help you maintain your weight, cut down on anxiety, and make you feel more awake and productive all day long.

Weight loss

To lesson your chances of blood clots or other cardiovascular issues:

 

  • Take a break to stand up every 30 minutes – All you have to do is stand up, stretch for a few seconds, and then sit back down—no need to go on a stroll or anything like that. Just get up, stretch, and sit back down every 30 minutes. Set up a reminder to get up and move.

 

  • Stand and move while watching Television, YouTube, or Movies – Instead of sitting to start with, don’t sit. Stand up and get moving while you watch your favorite shows. You can stand up and march in place while watching just as easily as you can lay down and watch.

 

  • Work at a standing desk – Invest in a sit and standing so that you can either sit or stand during different periods of activity. The change will really help you avoid problems.

 

  • Use a desk treadmill – One way to beat the system entirely is to invest in a desk treadmill that fits under your desk so that you can keep moving as you work. Peddling away while you work at your desk in a sitting position will help a lot.

 

  • Start fidgeting – If you really cannot get up and sit back down due to work policy or flow, start learning to wriggle while working. Fidgeting by moving your legs back and forth can keep the blood flowing, so you’re less likely to develop a blood clot from being sedentary.

 

Even if you are a person who exercises every day, if you don’t get up every 30 minutes or so when sitting, you could be putting yourself at greater risk of poor health outcomes. According to studies conducted by the Mayo Clinic, sitting even 90 minutes at one stretch without moving could be detrimental to your health even if you regularly exercise.

 

 

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Your Lack of Focus Is Getting in Your Way

Are you constantly struggling to get your work done? You start one project only to find yourself tapping away at another, then the next two minutes, you find yourself doing it again but on something completely different. Even with a to-do list, you can’t seem to get on track and find the focus to finish your tasks. It’s easy to do, but you must change your bad habit before it gets in your way.

 

Your lack of focus is affecting your business success in the following common ways:

 

Leads to Poor Productivity and Quality of Work

When you don’t have the right focus and concentration on your work, it leads to mistakes and poor decisions as you don’t have the clarity you need to work at your best.

 

Leads to Inconsistent Habits and Results

You need innovation and creativity to stay relevant and competitive—all of which could be stalled or lackluster without proper focus.

 

Uses Valuable Resources Incorrectly

Ultimately it depletes valuable time and financial resources that could better be used somewhere else. When you don’t do your best the first time, you’ll leave behind mistakes.

 

If you have trouble with focus, here are five things you can give a try right now:

 

#1: Reoutline Your Intentions

One cause of lack of focus is that they forgot what they were going after. Even worse, they chose goals that were unrealistic and didn’t relate to who they really are. It’s easy to lose track if you really don’t want it.

 

#2: Craft A Vision Board

Create a board of pictures, drawings, or objects that inspire your ideal life and dreams. In five years, what are your expectations about your life and your business? Even better, what are you working on in your business right now that will make the most impact on your success as you envision it? Add that to your vision board and put it somewhere you will see every day to encourage you to get right back on track. Often a lack of focus is due to an unclear vision of the future.

 

#3: Play Brain Games

Make it fun and play memory and concentration-building games from Lumosity. Lumosity provides many fun games that include a specific section to improve your focus. The idea is to exercise your brain just like you would do other parts of your body at the gym.

 

#4: Change Your Environment

Create an environment that influences movement and positivity. As you work on different projects or goals, change the setting to fit.

 

#5: Go to Bed

Are you constantly yawning or getting blurry vision? Then you need to get some sleep. If you don’t have the right amount of sleep, you won’t be capable of concentrating.

 

As you can see, focus plays a crucial role in the actions you take for your business and life. Without it, you easily leave behind a messy and disorganized company.

 

Stay More Focused with These Five Simple Steps

 

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Harness the Power of Consistency

Consistency is a skill that is about doing the same habits and routines regularly or repeatedly. It’s about committing to move forward and act no matter what obstacle lies in your way.

 

In other words, consistency is the repetition of the movements that get you closer to your goals. With consistency, you improve your weaknesses, perfect your strengths, empower yourself to accomplish more, and increase your productivity.

If You Don’t Set Hard Deadlines, Plan to Fail

To fully harness the power of consistency, you need to be more accountable, focused, and mindful of your actions. If you don’t, your business will suffer in many different ways.

 

Here are a few ways your lack of consistency is affecting your business and how to improve it:

 

Delays Action and Wastes Valuable Time

Without consistency, you only waste your time and other valuable resources. Your performance suffers, and so does your work.

 

Stalls Momentum

Routines build up the momentum you need to keep going with ease and comfort each day. When you don’t stay consistent, it’s much harder to get your days going as you plan your day unorganized. Consistency gives you a clearer understanding of what you want to do so you can keep going easily.

 

Stalls Personal Growth and Improvement

Consistency allows you to practice, which in turn improves your skills and makes you better. When you don’t take the time to improve or take care of yourself, your business will suffer too as you continue to make poor decisions.

 

Creates Unhealthy Expectations

No success happens overnight. If you don’t think you need consistency to be successful, then you are likely on the wrong path. It takes repeated actions each day over a set amount of time to get there.

 

Unlock Your Resistance

If you want to harness the power of consistency, you must figure out what holds you back. Lack of desire or clearly understanding the direction you want to go in life will create resistance to action. For many, it’s due to fear of success or wanting instant gratification and having an “all or nothing mindset.” Whatever it may be, you need to look deep within yourself and be honest to find the cure and get back on track.

 

Chance Your Perspective and Attitude

Some days, you will not feel the best, and some days, others will get in your way. However, it does not matter what life throws at you. There is always a way to see it more positively and objectively to push forward and get what you want. You only have now, so don’t waste it any longer.

 

Start Small

Find one task or activity that you know you can do every day without a second thought. Then add another step until that action becomes second nature. Test and repeat until you have a full and consistent workflow that works for your needs.

 

Remember, the more consistent you are, the happier you and your customers will be. Over time, the work will become easier, saving you time and energy to create more and be the next leading innovator within your industry.

 

 

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Better Goal Setting Tips for Maximum Productivity

Research shows that setting the right goals increases your success by as much as twenty-five percent. However, you can’t just set any goal. You need to align and refine them to specifically suit your needs and the direction you want your life to go.

 

Here are the five goal setting tips you need to improve and be more successful in life and business:

 

First Imagine Your Ideal Life

Block out all distractions, everyone else’s opinions, what you currently have, what career path you’re on, and where your life is presently going, and imagine for a moment your perfect and ideal life. Where would you like to live? What activities would you be enjoying outside of business? How much work would you be doing to get there?

 

These are all important questions and things you need to evaluate to be sure you are creating the right goals to achieve happiness. Just because something is popular, or you already went to school for something, doesn’t mean you need to keep doing it or can’t change up your plan. Reflect and understand who you really are and what you want.

 

For example, if you would like free time with your family or enjoy the “four-hour workweek,” then you must do hard work now and set your life up with the right goals and action plan to get there. You can’t expect that kind of life working as a brain surgeon to give you a different perspective.

 Building a Freedom Lifestyle

Think Quarterly, Weekly and Daily

All goals require more goals or action steps to get them done. Think about the big picture or objective you need to achieve. Then break it down into weekly and daily goals that you can get done within 90 days. Research shows that 90 minutes is the perfect amount of time to get big things done while using your time more while avoiding rushing.

 

Keep Them “SMART” And Prioritize

As stated earlier, picking just any goal isn’t the right strategy. While it still increases your success more than going with the flow, you can get even more out of it by giving it more focus. In other words, a vague goal will produce lackluster results when you could get even more value by working on them a little harder.

 

A common and successful way to do this is to follow the mnemonic acronym, S.M.A.R.T:

 

  • Keep them specific and to the point.
  • Make them measurable.
  • They need to be attainable.
  • Keep them relevant and realistic.
  • They must be time-sensitive.

 

Establish Strict Deadlines

All goals must come with strict deadlines; otherwise, you will continue to permit yourself to use more time than needed for the tasks. Providing a sense of urgency can give you the motivation and inspiration you need to finally get them done and achieve more goals in the long run.

 

Setting goals are a powerful tool for your business as long as you have the right strategies in mind. Keep them S.M.A.R.T and always remember what you want for your business and life to be more successful.

 

 

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Hit Pause, It’s Time to Reflect

It’s perfectly normal to experience times that you aren’t happy or satisfied with where your life is going, no matter how many goals you may have accomplished. The point of reflection is to ensure you are satisfied with the direction as you achieve each goal.

 

Without really trying things then you really never know what you might or might not like. It’s only natural to change course if you don’t. Evaluation and reflection also highlight areas you are likely doing wrong that are actually causing the process to fail.

 

Furthermore, self-reflection is an essential resource to your business because:

 

  • It builds confidence and self-efficacy.
  • It reduces stress and improves clarity.
  • It improves your goals and business processes.
  • It saves time and allows you to be more productive.

 

The following are a few ways to hit the pause button and reflect to better your business and yourself:

 

Ask Yourself Repeated Questions

Start the process by asking yourself open-ended questions. Meaning you can’t just answer yes or no. They need to inspire you to deep dive into your processes, goals, and aspirations to ensure you are on the right path for the success you want to achieve.

 

The following are a few ideas to get you started:

 

  • What’s working right now that I should continue?”
  • What didn’t work that I should change or adjust?”
  • What’s one new thing I have learned?”
  • What emotions did I experience, and how have they affected my work?”
  • What made me the proudest overall?”

 

Each of these questions is designed to analyze your actions and results and see how they compare to your ultimate goals and wants from life. For it to work, you can’t hold back and must commit to being honest. Accountability and ownership are two of the most important core values of productivity. As without them, you won’t take the right actions to get started or redesign your strategies.

 

Apply Solutions to Your Answers

After you answer each question, you need to take notice and action on whether you need to stick to your plan or change course. If you are experiencing more emotions than usual, for example, then it’s likely you need to add another routine or adjust a bad habit to make your day easier, less overwhelming, or bothersome.

 

Ignore Your Business for Once

One of the most important steps of self-evaluation is to forget about your business or job for once. While you may be passionate about your business, it’s not you or your life. It’s there to fuel the life you want. What do you and your body really need to achieve happiness, and why?

 

As you go through this process, it’s important to note that each time the experience will be, and should be, different to see results. Block time from your schedule and don’t utilize off-days. You need to set adequate time blocks and commit to the process to achieve ultimate happiness and success.

Are You Being Realistic About Your Goals?

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Stop Doing Everything and Hire Help

Being a business owner or entrepreneur doesn’t mean you must do all the work to see results or need to stay busy all the time. Having these kinds of high expectations keeps you and your business back from seeing the success it deserves. Low self-esteem and energy are not healthy for business or your overall health and mental clarity.

 

Here are five tips designed to help you let go of control and hire more help so you can better manage your time to lead a more productive business:

 

Highlight Your Weak Points and Other Stress Areas

The best place to start is the business areas that you are not too comfortable doing or lack enough education to do well. Accounting and customer service are by far the most common areas people outsource. Accounting takes years to understand, and customer service can often be tedious and stressful.

 

Develop A Clear and Direct Job Description

To gain actual value from having employees or contractors, you need to find the right person for the job. Create a clear and direct job description listing all your expectations and requirements for the job. Don’t skip on the little things or hold back on anything. In fact, always share the points of the job that you find the most challenging right away. The point is to be sure that those who try to apply for the job are the best for the position.

 

Utilize A Virtual Assistant

Let your virtual assistant take over the tedious and time-consuming tasks, including customer service or scheduling and setting up important meetings and other similar and repeatable tasks.

 

Hire Expert Freelancers

Hire freelancers that specialize in specific areas such as social media marketing or content creation. Expert freelancers can better set up your social media pages, add campaigns, and more to increase your engagement to maximize results and profits better. This is because they have the dedicated time and resources to become an expert in their field. When you can focus on one subject, you can master the processes and techniques to get it done faster.

 

Use Smart Phone Applications to Find Hires

There are so many different applications and companies designed for hiring help for many other business areas in a matter of seconds. Some popular choices include:

 

  • TaskRabbit – Find any repair person from your fingertips the same day. From moving trucks to cleaning services, contact deliveries, and more. TaskRabbit allows you to create tasks, send messages and pictures to a certified tasker easily and professionally.
  • Fancy Hands – The most popular US-based service to find your next virtual assistant all on the same day.
  • Fiverr – On this platform, you can find just about any freelancer or service required for business and more, starting at just five dollars a project.

8 Things You Should Outsource in Your Business

You don’t need to do everything to be successful. Use these tips and tools and get more help today.

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“Power Office” Your Workspace

As you already know by now, organization is one key ingredient to increased productivity. Every step of business planning and implementing requires it. Good organization skills lead to better time management, consistency, and focus on getting work done on time, and more.

 

One of the most important areas to organize and get right first is your work environment or office. You need to power office your space or set it up to work for you to lead you to success.

 

What Is A Power Office and Why Is It So Valuable?

A power office is the work environment you create to do your work but explicitly optimized for success. A power office is organized to match work processes and the tasks required to achieve your goals. It inspires confidence and gives you a distraction-free area to highly concentrate and focus on your work.

 

Here’s what you need to set up your own power office successfully to achieve productivity:

 

Analyze What’s Not Working First

When you get to work, what causes the most frustration and anxiety? Do you have paper and knickknacks all over the place? Is there furniture or extra things causing more distraction than good? Before you change your space, go to work first and be more mindful of your emotions and surroundings to get a better sense of the space you need to work optimally.

 

Always Keep in Mind Your Work Objectives

When creating your workspace, keep in mind your main objectives or tasks. If you are on the phone a lot, for example, be sure the phone is right where you need it, or your cell phone charger is there to keep you on track.

 

Adjust the Layout, Setup, and Location

Find the right location and layout that work for your professional and personal needs. If you know you like freedom while you work, don’t use the smallest or most affordable location you can find in your home or elsewhere. It will only do the opposite and stall your work.

 

Declutter and Designate

Let go of all the stuff that you don’t need. In other words, trim the fat and put it somewhere else. If it doesn’t pertain to work or provide any kind of motivation and inspiration to get you to work, it doesn’t belong there.

 

Make It Personal but Simplified

Add things of value you know will inspire you or make you happy but don’t add too many things. You already decluttered the workspace. You don’t want to add it all back. Be mindful of each item you add.

 

Test and Adjust

Test the space and keep in mind when working on the things that are causing frustration and work to adjust those areas. Over time, your needs and business will change, which means your work environment should too.

 

Don’t let your work environment be the reason you can’t get your work done. It will only require a few minor adjustments to make your surroundings work hard for you.

 

Home Office Automation Tips

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Five Tips for Better Task Prioritization

The secret to a successful to-do list or plan is understanding how to prioritize your goals and requirements for life and business. Prioritization orders tasks in the importance of urgency or in the most organized fashion to promote a consistent and smooth workflow. If you think planning is getting in your way of success, it’s likely your priorities that are in disorder.

 

Here are five tips and methods that allow you to prioritize more effectively to be sure you start each day more productively and better manage your time:

 

Consolidate and Analyze All Tasks First

Categorize and break it down into similar properties, deadlines, or time it takes to complete.

 

Keep in Mind All Requirements for Tasks

Consider the effort and the time it will take to accomplish each task as well. Who may you have to work with, or what environments may you need to change?

 

Remember the activities that you have a little resistance to or cause extra stress and anxiety. These tasks should likely be higher on your to-do list as they may take longer to accomplish.

 

Assign A Priority Number

Each day list your tasks in the order they should get done for optimal productivity. Keep in mind due dates or how urgent and vital it is to get done compared to the other tasks. If something is easy, it doesn’t always mean it is the best idea to get it done first when you know you have a deadline for a completely different project coming up tomorrow, for example.

 

Create A Priority Matrix

From the list you created earlier, take each of the tasks and organize it into two categories: important or unimportant. Then list whether the task is urgent, not urgent or if you should delegate and eliminate it instead—the following chart is an example of a priority matrix you can use to order your tasks better.

Chart

 

Use The “ABCDE” Method
Invented by Stephen Covey, the ABCDE method uses a grading system to apply a straightforward approach and visual representation to each task. Allowing you to quickly see what you should get done first without having to analyze too much.

Learn to Create Realistic Schedules

The rules to this method are as follows:

 

  • A – High priority tasks
  • B – Medium priority tasks
  • C – Low priority tasks
  • D – Delegate the tasks to others
  • E – Eliminate the tasks completely

 

This information will help you create your daily to-do lists or 90-day action plan to ensure you use your time efficiently. The last thing you want to do is have the right plan for success, just in the wrong order.