Tag: personal development

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Learn and Practice the Philosophy of Stoicism

There is no way for you to learn everything you need to know about this life philosophy from one blog post or article. However, if you’ve never even heard of the idea, just being exposed to this idea and what it really means can help you live a better and more successful life.

 

Live a Good Life of Virtue and Good Character

 

Firstly, a stoic believes that living a life of virtue and good character is the answer to living a happy and fulfilled life. To live this type of lifestyle, it takes introspection and an understanding of your own personal values, principles, morals, and willingness to live them.

 

You Are Responsible for Yourself

Are You Really Being Accountable?

 

Secondly, a stoic believes it’s within your power to be who you are and who you want to be and that you are fully 100 percent responsible for your own life and how you feel about it, but you cannot control what you cannot control. Therefore, a stoic will focus on controlling what is controllable.

 

Want Less Experience More

 

Thirdly, a stoic puts more stock in having experiences and learning new things over having more stuff or buying the most popular thing. That doesn’t mean they’re necessarily a minimalist, but they don’t just buy things for no reason or status purposes and actively focus on wanting less.

 

Accepting of Reality

 

Finally, stoics understand that they will not live forever. They are accepting that they’ll die at some point and live their life with that in mind. For example, if statistics show that walking fast 45 minutes a day extends life, and the stoic can make that happen because they have legs and the time to walk, they’re going to do it without struggling about the why or what-ifs surrounding the stats.

 

If you’re not sure who you are yet, or how you want people to think of you after you’re gone, take the time to discover who you are and how to become the person you want to be. If you are often considering the legacy you’re going to leave behind, it’s a lot easier to make the right choices when you have an options. Suppose you are fully accepting that you control your own reactions to the things that happen to you and not the other way around. In that case, it becomes a lot easier to make good choices minding your own personal ideals over what other people might think about it right now.

 

You can learn more about stoicism by reading books about philosophy like:

 

 

 

But you can also join groups about stoicism on Reddit, Facebook, and other social media sites that offer communities. There are also many useful YouTube videos about the philosophy of stoicism that you can get a lot out of.

 

 

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Organize your Environment for Success!

When it comes to daily habits that breed success, being organized can’t be understated. Getting your environment organized and keeping it that way will pay off in big ways.

 

Some people experience issues with being organized isn’t due to having some organizational block, but it’s more about not really understanding that there are better ways to get organized for success than just putting things away and being uncluttered.

Your Lack of Focus Is Getting in Your Way

Here are some ways to think about organization so that your entire environment is set up to make success easy for you, whether at home or work.

 

  • Use Your Planner – Whether you use electronic or paper versions, you can’t beat incorporating the habit of using a planner into your daily life to help you be more successful. When you have it all in one place, you can easily look at your days, weeks, months, and years and make the best use of that time. Don’t rely on memory. Write everything down you want to do and block out the time to do it.

If you know your Goal

  • Set Goals Properly – Make it a habit to set up your goals properly to what steps are necessary to be successful and how long it will take to do them. For example, if you want to start making money from your podcast, don’t just start podcasting; take the time to plan your podcast, plan your marketing, and plan each action you need to take to make it all work.

 

  • Make Daily Lists – From your planner the night before take a look and make a list of actions you will take tomorrow to achieve what’s in your planner. Organize the list with the top 3 priorities on the top and be willing to move anything after three to the next day.

 

  • Create Activity Zones – Whether home or office, the best way to organize is to set up activity zones. Putting everything away every time is a roadblock that will stop you from doing more. If you want to bake cookies, you shouldn’t have to redo your entire kitchen for an hour, and you should be able to go over to the baking zone and start within five minutes. The same thing if you’re writing a novel, if you have a writing area set up and ready to go, you can simply move to that writing zone and get it done during the block of time you set aside to do it.

 

  • Have a Place for Everything – Spending time creating the right storage and space to do the things you want to do will help a lot. It’s hard to get motivated to do much when the tools you’re using aren’t right, or the space you’re doing it in isn’t set up right. Spend the time and money investing in setting up your space to do what you want to do in it.

 

  • Be Consistent – No one wants to spend four hours cleaning a cluttered room and area on Saturday. Instead, make it a habit to consistently pick up and clean as you go so that you never have to do that. If you set up routines for each time of day where you habitually do certain behaviors, you won’t need any willpower. Check out com for some prewritten cleaning and organizing routines you can copy.

 

If you make it a habit to clear up right away and set up things for the next time, right away – you’ll experience a lot less procrastination and get a lot more done. Your productivity will increase exponentially just by simple organizational practices each day. The great thing is that most of it will become a habit quickly because the payoff is fast.

 

 

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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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Write Down 3 Things You’re Grateful for Each Day

One of the very first habits it’s important to incorporate into your daily life if you want to be happy and feel successful is the habit of gratitude. Being grateful is more than looking on the bright side. It’s actually about being realistic about what is good in your life.

I am Grateful

To record your gratitude, use whatever method works best for you, whether it’s to email yourself, using a paper diary, or some other method. The important thing is that you acknowledge in a way that can be tracked at least three things you’re grateful for so that you can look back on it and measure how far you’ve come.

Tips to Help You Practice Positive Thinking

Plus, there are many benefits to appreciation outside of a good mindset.

 

  • You’ll Feel Happier – The saying about what you focus on grows is very true, especially when your focus is on something positive about your life. When you can see the good in your life as it’s happening, you’ll be much more likely to be able to do it again.

 

  • You’ll Be More Satisfied with Your Life – It’s so easy to focus on things when they go wrong. You missed your alarm clock, you got caught in the rain, you spilled food on your new shirt – all seem like bad things until you realize oversleeping enabled you to cuddle with your spouse longer, the rain cooled you down after lunch, and you only spilled the food because you were laughing with your best friend.

 

  • You’ll Become Less Materialistic – When you focus on the positive, it becomes clear that it’s not things that make you happy or successful – it’s experiences. As you realize that your life becomes so much richer and then, of course, you feel more comfortable and experience your life as successful.

 

  • You’ll Be Less Likely to Suffer from Burnout – If you’re aware of yourself and stay mindful, you can avoid experiencing burnout in the first place. Taking the time to record your gratitude lets you concentrate on the good parts, which can calm you down and let you place your focus where it belongs.

 

  • You’ll Experience Better Physical Health – People who can turn their focus to what’s good in their life are more likely to exercise, eat right, and stay mindful about their health.

 

  • You’ll Sleep Better Every Night – Getting everything out on paper before bed is a great time to focus on gratitude. You’ll fall asleep faster as your good mood will result in reduced anxiety.

 

  • You’ll Feel Less Fatigue – When you sleep better at night due to less anxiety, you’re naturally going to feel more well-rested and sharp during the day.

 

  • You’ll Feel Healthier Due to Suffering from Less Inflammation – Sleeping better and being less anxious has great effects in a positive direction on body-wide information thought to be one of the driving factors in disease.

 

  • You’ll Be More Mentally Resilient – Not having your mind clouded with all the negativity of the day is going to help you bounce back when things do go wrong. When you can turn your brain toward what’s good about something, you can usually get back on the path faster.

 

  • You’ll Be More Patient – Not being on edge due to anxiety and bad thoughts will also increase your patients with others and yourself too. After all, there is often something good you can take from almost everything, eventually.

 

  • You’ll Have Better and More Solid Relationships – People like being around those who are more positive than they do people who are always on edge and anxious. If you really want to build strong relationships, focus on the positive more.

 

As you can see, being grateful carries many benefits that will make your entire life better. No one is asking you to be thankful for a bad situation, especially something beyond your control, but you need to look at what is working in your life, analyze why that is working, and then do more of that. The best way to do that is to look for things to be grateful for each and every day.

 

 

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Kick Distractions or Else

If you enjoy personal and professional growth and genuinely want to live the life you imagine for yourself, then you must take responsibility and kick those distractions keeping you down. Distractions come in many different forms and come with their own set of consequences too.

 

Sensory or External Distractions

These include environmental and digital distractions such as your cell phone, browsing the web or social media websites, and your workspace, including those around you. While you may enjoy working at the coffee shop, constant interactions and noises are likely hurting your quality and time management.

 

Emotional or Internal Distractions

These are the distractions that your brain is telling you as you are working. These thoughts are self-sabotaging and can easily guide you in the wrong direction if you listen to them. Controlling your emotions is possible and will help you in life in many ways. Try studying stoicism to help you if you need extra assistance with this.

 

Personal Distractions

This is the category that you need to be the most mindful and honest about. No one but you truly know what is keeping you away from working at your best. It would be best to take accountability and ownership of your actions and things around you to be successful. If you wait around for others to solve the problem for you, you might as well throw your goal list in the trash.

 

The following are six tips designed to kick distractions so you can stay focused and on path: 

 

Set Clear Boundaries and Limitations

Fully understand what you are capable of and your limitations for each work requirement or personal goal.

 

Be Mindful and Realistic About Your Surroundings

In other words, create a workspace optimal for the tasks you plan to do and be realistic about your personality and what you can handle. For example, if you know, you will get too chatty with your clients, keep your meetings short, follow a list of bullet points to keep you on track, and only do them over Zoom or the internet.

 

Simplify and Automate Your Processes

Use technology and other resources to automate processes that don’t need your complete focus and attention or ones you know will only distract you in the long run. Utilize tools, cell phone applications, or Google Chrome extensions such as StayFocused that allow you to set time limits or block websites for a certain period of time — giving you the control and confidence you need to stay focused.

 

Be Honest and Stop Self-Sabotage

Stop negative thoughts before they control your actions. Most internal distractions are false and a result of low self-confidence, lack of knowledge, and experience. Experiment more, try more things, and gain as much knowledge as possible so you can learn yourself inside and out and gain back control of your life.

Multitasking Is A Lie

In the end, to kick distractions successfully, you must practice self-control and discipline. If you don’t, your business and personal goals will suffer.

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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.

 

 

 

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Do This to Be More Consistent in Life and Business

Consistency is about doing repeatable tasks each day, night, or week depending on the goal you are trying to accomplish. Consistency is a smooth and repeatable process combined with the right actions to achieve your goal more efficiently.

 

Just think about the last place you ordered food. It’s likely that one of the top reasons you selected this choice is due to predictability and knowing they will do it right or be consistent in delivering the food you expect. Their ability to provide you the same food each time is why you keep coming back and why they are successful.

 

Become more consistent in life and business by following these five tips:

 

It’s Not Always About Being Comfortable

Push through even if you don’t feel like it or want to do it. It is pretty understood amongst successful entrepreneurs that continuous daily actions, no matter if you feel like doing nor what other problems are currently going on, is the path that leads to success. Even the happiest people realize they will experience discomfort, and it doesn’t stop them from getting what they want.

 

Understand Your True Wants and Intentions in Life

How do you define success, and what values do you live by each day? If you can’t answer these questions quickly, then take a moment right now to answer them and understand them.

 

If you don’t know yourself honestly, you can’t expect to achieve goals, especially not the right ones. Imagine for a moment that you have accomplished everything you want out of life and create a vision board to match it. This way, you can have a daily reminder to help you back on track.

 

Clarify Your Mission and Expectations

Highlight your goals and clearly outline what resources and other requirements you need to get there. The easier it is to understand, the easier it will be to make processes and systems that better flow for you and your business — giving you the resources you need to be more consistent.

 

Organize and Work in Batches

Be sure the work you set to do each day is organized and relevant. For example, schedule a separate time for checking emails or responding to clients and don’t allow yourself to work on anything else during this time.

 

Establish Healthy Routines

The first step you take in the morning is the most important as it determines your path going forward and how well you do. For example, if you wake up each morning in a bad mood, you will likely drag your feet trying to get work done — making your day that much harder to get going. Find the routines that allow you to live at your most optimal mental and physical health to always start on the right foot.

 

Being consistent should be at the top of your priority list and easy to do as long as you plan correctly and commit to it each and every day.

5 Rituals to Boost Your Energy and Productivity

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

If you feel like you can never get anything done and constantly run against the clock, you are likely skipping one of the most essential details of any to-do list or 90-day action plan. If you don’t set hard deadlines, then you are setting yourself up to fail from the start.

 

Deadlines are crucial to a successful plan because they:

 

  • Ensure you complete the right work to accomplish your goals.
  • Establish consistency, organization, and a smooth workflow.
  • Clarify your expectations and responsibilities.
  • Maximizes success and productivity.

 

In other words, when you set clear deadlines and stick to them, you can better use your time to focus on your goals and achieve more in life. When you are not constantly running to beat the clock, you maintain your energy and improve productivity.

 

Here are a few ways to create deadlines you will always stick to, to achieve maximum productivity: 

 

Gain and Understand the Right Resources First

Understand all the expectations required of you, what extra materials you may need, and any other obstacles that may get in your way before you establish a deadline.

 

Make Them Urgent but Realistic

Once you fully understand the expectations set a deadline that pushes you to act without feeling overwhelmed and is realistic to the task you are doing. While also accounting for the unexpected. This step will require your full attention, honesty, and accountability.

 

If you can’t be honest with your actions and abilities, you won’t estimate the correct times to accomplish your takes. For example, if you know you usually take about two hours to do a specific task, don’t expect you to get it done in an hour, even if you think you can do it or be better overnight. If you do happen to get things done faster, take note of it, find a new task to work on instead or take a much-deserved break.

 

Make Them Personal and Meaningful

Instead of telling yourself, you need to meet the deadline simply to be on time for the project, highlight a better and more meaningful reason to complete it on time. To harness even more power, make it as personal as possible.

 

For example, “if I don’t complete this assignment on the date I established, I will miss free time with my friends and family.” Even though this isn’t about your business directly, it is precisely the motivation you will need to stay on track. If you are more likely to suffer consequences, you are less likely to fall off track.

Be More Accountable and Consistent, Share Your Goals

As you can see, the correct deadlines are there to motivate you and give you the discipline you need to get work done in a timely and orderly fashion as long as you stick to them.

 

 

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Managing Your Energy Is A Must

Fatigue leads to poor choices, potential injuries, and more problems that will only waste your time and deplete your skills. For maximum productivity, you need persistent consistency, which requires you to manage your energy. Burnout will destroy all the work you put in along the way. To better manage your energy, you must add it to your plan, ensuring that the habits you build work for you, not against you.

 

Here are four ways to help you better manage your stress so you can be more productive in life:

 

Adopt the Right Diet and Exercise Routine

No one likes to hear it, but it’s crucial and one of the most valuable tips to managing and harboring energy. If you don’t adopt the proper diet and exercise routine, it won’t matter how many other habits or practices you adopt. If you are unhealthy and your body needs crucial vitamins, you must listen to your body.

 

Being a professional athlete or adopting the next fad diet isn’t required for success here. You need to find the proper balance that works for you and your schedule. This requires honesty and mindfulness to be done successfully. Providing your body the right food and resources it needs go far. If you’re serious, you’ll research ways to use up all the extra energy you have instead.

How Sleep Impacts Your Productivity

Stop Being Busy All The time

Believe it or not, the most productive people have free schedules. They are not always busy because they understand that it’s more about the quality of their work and how it impacts their ultimate goal that leads to productivity. The goal is to do less, with less but achieve more or maximum success.

 

Being busy drains your energy and prevents you from performing at your best, and makes you forget your life goals as you work to get through each day. When you give yourself a more realistic schedule, you can better use your energy to master your skills and achieve goals more efficiently with ultimate focus and precision.

 

Stop Trying to Make Everyone Happy

Unfortunately, you won’t, can’t, and shouldn’t please everyone. This high expectation will only overwhelm you and lead to poor communication and engagement among your audience. You would have to juggle a million different personalities to please them all successfully. In everything you do for your business, all focus should be on your target audience — only. Your target audience is unlikely to be everyone and is something you should narrow down right away if you haven’t already.

 

Don’t Dwell on What You Can’t Control

Stop negativity in its tracks and only focus on the things you can control. It’s a draining and exhausting never-ending rabbit hole otherwise. You can’t make everyone buy your products, but you can control the quality of work and put the best product out there to change their minds, hopefully.

 

As you can see, with a bit of change of perspective and adopting the right habits, you can manage your energy efficiently. Maintaining your energy is essential so you can consistently use it to focus on what truly matters for you and your business needs.