Do Your Actions reflect Your Priorities?

Did you take time to reflect on your intentions? Did you focus on being intentional in all that you did this past week? It takes a change in your mindset and your actions to reach a level of significance.

Before I begin, I want to qualify this week’s blog. Timing is everything. I am quite aware that May is a very hectic month especially if you have children in school. However, now that I think about it further, when is our life NOT busy? Summer brings its own challenges with different routines and schedules, vacations, sports etc. Then there’s the fall with a new school year starting and football has begun. I mention football since our lives revolved around Jon’s schedule at CU and now Jason’s schedule at MBU. But wait, then there are other sports beginning, AND the holidays which takes us through October, November, December and January. Of course basketball is in full swing now and oh, don’t forget March Madness, Easter and spring break. Throughout the year, college students are working around their projects, papers, midterms, finals, and the list goes on and on. In other words, life is busy for each of us (even those of us retired) no matter what time of year it is.

Can we agree that everyone has a busy life? Everyone has a long list of what they’d like to get accomplished, everyone has people in their lives who are important to them, everyone has a job/school goals and desires, everyone wants free time, and everyone wants to be healthy in mind and body? With that said, is it important to YOU to lead a life of significance? Are your actions reflecting what’s truly important in your life? Do the people in your life whether it be family, friends, colleagues, employees, team members etc. know that they are important to you and you want to add value to their lives?

I think we all take for granted, on some level, that we will wake up and have another day on this earth. We all “put off until tomorrow” things that we think we can do later. I think we all know “on some level” that tomorrow isn’t guaranteed yet that’s not a comfortable topic for many. I’m not talking about having a will, nor am I referring to planning for financial security when you’re older although both ARE important.

What I want to discuss are whether your actions consistently reflect what you value.

No matter your age; male or female, your marital status, whether you have children or not, whether you’re a college student, beginning a new career or you’ve been in your career for a length of time, we all must focus on what we value and what we want to be remembered for once we leave this world. I, for one, believe that we CAN have it all. We CAN have a successful career AND have a close knit, healthy family. We CAN be healthy in both our mind and body. I’m of the belief that we can use AND vs. either/or. What it takes is BALANCE, and it takes PRIORITIZING! 

As a teacher, throughout my 30 years, it was very important to me to do the very best job I could to give value to my students in order to prepare them for middle school and life in general. However, the most important part of my day was to be sure each student felt valued, respected, and had a “can do” mindset even through struggles and failures. In addition, it was important to me to balance my life of being a mom of two wonderful children who had many interests and commitments, as well as a husband who had an extremely demanding and time consuming job himself. It was important for me to have meal times together, to prepare a healthy meal, to have time for all of us to talk and stay in touch with what was going on in everyone’s lives.  Being healthy both physically and mentally have always been important, however, I have had to continuously work on these areas more when I was working than now.

In addition, it has always been important to me to send my family and friends cards with a hand written note on their birthdays and anniversaries. It’s always been important for me to hand write thank you notes even today which now include my grandchildren. It’s always been important to me to read and learn more about my craft, learn more about being a better parent and now grandparent, learn new ideas about organizing my schedule, our family’s schedule etc. Those were MY values. What are yours?

The first part is to know what you value. Next is the question of how are you going to accomplish those things? My values are not necessarily yours, but I give you my perspective to give you some ideas. I will say, no matter your circumstances, the keys are PLANNING, CONSISTENCY, and ORGANIZATION. I realize some of you are going to stop reading right now as that is something you don't want to hear, but at least get through the following questions…

How would you answer these questions for yourself?

*Are you more organized in your job than you are in your personal life?

*Do you find your job takes precedence the majority of the time over your family?

*Do you remember, after the fact, that it was a family member’s birthday or it was either Mother or Father’s Day and you call to apologize?

*Are you constantly wondering what you should fix for dinner at 5:00 in the evening?

*Do you find with things at home you are doing most things last minute and many things fall through the cracks, but you’re in control at work?

*Do you find you and your spouse/significant other have little time to talk and find out what’s happening at each other’s work, what’s been on their mind etc.?

*Do you find the only conversation you have with your spouse/significant other is about the kids?

*Do you find that you’re tired at the end of every day and seldom feel satisfied with what was accomplished?

*Do you find yourself not eating breakfast and/or eating more fast food meals than home cooked meals?

*Do you say thank you, you’re welcome, and please occasionally or are they a habit no matter if it’s your children, your spouse/significant other, your colleagues your team members etc?

*Do you find your clothes not fitting as comfortably as you would like, yet you chalk it up to just getting older?

*If you value your health and overall wellness, on a scale of 1-10, how would you rate yourself on: eating nutritional meals, avoiding sugar, drinking a lot of water, and getting in some kind of cardio at least 3-5 days a week?

These are only a few questions to get you to think about whether your actions reflect your priorities. So how did you do? Are there areas of your life you can make a small change that will have huge rewards in the long run? Keep in mind we’re talking about overall habits knowing that we all slip once in a while. What’s usually the norm for you? Is it important to you to get better and lead that life of significance? 

Remember John Maxwell’s quote, “No one stumbles upon significance. We have to be intentional about making our lives matter. That calls for action ---and not excuses. It’s easier to go from failure to success than from excuses to success. Action is what converts human dreams into significance.”

PLANNING! CONSISTENCY! ORGANIZATION!

Think about some of these suggestions and pick ONE that you’re willing to commit to for the next 30 days – the time it takes for a habit to begin:

1   1.  Take 15 minutes to plan the meals for the week and make up your grocery list. Take into consideration the nights the kids have softball etc. Can that night be a crock pot dinner?

2   2. Set aside 15 minutes at least twice a week, if not more, to sit down with your spouse/significant other without interruptions. Go over what’s happening at work, other things on your mind, or just enjoy some down time with a beer or glass of wine. (Establish an expectation with the kids that this is a mommy and daddy time without interruptions.)

3   3.  Plan ahead to be sure you have what you need for a healthy breakfast. PROTEIN! All it takes is a shake with fruit in a shaker, and you’re out the door.

4   4. Sit down for 15 minutes once a week with your spouse/significant other with your calendars (on your phone or a planner). Go over ALL activities happening in that week which will affect the other person eg. an evening commitment which will bring you home later than usual, any school activities, a game/sporting event for you and/or the kids. Include things you will need help with eg pick up the kids, help with getting ready for something, help with…(This is a focused time NOT a reminder as you’re going out the door that you’ll be home late, for example.)

5   5. Take 30 minutes and put all birthdays, anniversaries in your phone calendar so it’ll come up yearly. Do this once and you’re done! I know this is “my thing” but I can tell you, as a recipient of cards and written words, these are cherished.

6   6.  I learned this from my beautiful mother-in-law: once a month pick out cards for all birthdays, anniversaries, gradations, baby or wedding showers, weddings etc. Address the cards, put a stamp on, and have it ready to go. In addition, put into your phone calendar the day you will need to send the card in order for it to get there on time. This usually will take you 15 minutes once a month!

     7.   Organize ONE area of your home that needs attention. Plan on taking ONE hour and focus on three piles: one is for anything that can be recycled, another is for anything that can be given away to Goodwill, the church a nonprofit etc., and a third is for trash. You CAN do one hour. Then plan another day for ONE hour.

8   8.  Go through your clothes first. Make four piles: one is for those clothes that fit or are slightly tight but you love them, another is for anything that you haven’t worn for at least a year, another pile is for those clothes you must keep for sentimental value although be careful with this category, and then any clothes that are so worn and old that they can’t even be used for rags. GIVE away what you can. We all can let others benefit rather than have our drawers and closets stuffed with clothes that we really don’t ever wear

    9.    For 30 days, write ONE hand written thank you note (text messages do not count) to someone for something they did for you, or for a gift they gave you, or they took the time to go out of their way to help you. That will take you 5-10 minutes! Saying thank you is always great BUT a written note means you took extra time just for them. 

1   10. Routines are built into consistency. When do you have meals, for example? This is even more important when you have kids. They need to know when they’re going to have breakfast, lunch, and dinner. That time may vary 30 minutes one way or the other, but we all need to establish times for eating. That’s HUGE for our digestive health!

1   11.  Set aside 30 minutes 2-3 times a week to go for a run or do some cardio workout. Involve the kids with your exercising, or take them with you when you go for a walk, bike ride, etc.

If we strive to be the very best we can be there MUST be planning, consistency, and organization to whatever we do. If we can improve in at least ONE area of our life then it’s easier to do the same in another area and another etc. Notice that time can’t be an excuse if you follow any of the 11 suggestions listed above. Most things are going to be 15 minutes and only one is an hour. If you can’t find 15 minutes to plan and organize to make a difference in not only your life but in the lives of your family and the people you work with then life will continue to be stressful and frustrating. If living a life of significance is important something has to change.

Remember:

“Success is winning

Significance is helping others win

Success leaves a fingerprint

Significance leaves a footprint

On the hearts and minds of others.”

Remember:

We all have 24 hours in a day. It's NOT that we don't have the time...It's that something is NOT a priority.

I wish you a week of looking at the list above and deciding ONE of the questions which “spoke to you.” What do you want to change in order to bring more significance to your life and therefore, the lives of those around you? Second choose ONE of the 11 suggestions, or something else, that you will commit to doing for the next 30 days.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

ENERGY!

Were you able to take some reflection time this past week? Any “ah ha” moments to help you move forward? What did you discover as to the types of people you are surrounding yourself with and who are in your close circle?

Here it is the second day of May!! Spring time is a time of renewal, rebirth, and a freshness in the air. Those of us in Colorado are finally seeing the sun and warmer days after a dreary week of 30+ temperatures, rain/snow, mix and cloudy. For the most part, this is the time when the flowers and trees are blooming (sorry allergy sufferers), the grass is greening up and needing to be cut, and the temperatures are starting to warm up.  Another part of spring, especially for those of you with children in school, it’s the time where your calendar is packed with choir concerts, final dance recitals, spring sports are in full swing, end of the year programs, banquets, prom, graduation, etc. etc.  Whew! 

ENERGY!  We all need more of it, right? After a long night with little sleep due to a sick child, a crying baby, tossing and turning in anticipation of a tough meeting in the morning, thinking about another day with people who look at the glass half empty and only know how to complain, going over and over that “to do” list in your head etc. We all need more energy! 

What do you do for a pick-me-up when you’re dragging?  Interestingly enough, most people will have 3-4+ cups of their favorite coffee throughout the day.  They didn’t have time to make breakfast, pack a lunch or both so they stopped off at a fast food place just to grab something quick.  Getting up a little earlier to exercise is definitely NOT in the picture, and hydrating with water is also out of the question….caffeine!  I need caffeine.  Sound familiar?

Before I go any further, I do want to acknowledge those of you who ARE paying attention to your health and ARE doing the “right” things. I love getting Elsa’s post in the mornings as she’s finished her exercise session in front of the TV in her basement. Garet is usually there as well, and we’ve also seen the pictures of Zane joining in on occasion. (Hysterical!) Breakfast, during the week, is a protein shake which is fitted into also getting the kids a healthy breakfast and ready for school.

If we take the time to sit back and reflect on our habits it’s easy to see what we SHOULD do, so why don’t we?  It’s that same excuse raising its ugly head again…TIME. 

Remember, however,…we all have 24 hours in a day, so it’s not a time problem, it’s a priority problem.  It’s the story you’re telling yourself.  If you’re engaging in some of the behaviors listed above on an occasional basis that’s one thing.  If this is your mainstay than yes, it is a problem.  We all have those times, and maybe it’s the last six weeks of school for you, where we are not in control of our time as much as we’d like.  If it’s a limited period of time, you may just be in survival mode.  Unfortunately, however, survival mode tends to flow into being the norm: “energy” drinks, coffee, no exercise, skipping breakfast, junk food, fast food meals etc.   With these bad habits contributing to your lack of energy, it now becomes an endless cycle. The story you keep telling yourself about having no time IS NOT WORKING!

So what are we to do?  First, acknowledge there is a problem.  Second, decide if this truly is just for a short period of time and then get back into your healthy eating, drinking, exercising routine.  Third, take a hard look at how you’re coping with not having energy.  What is ONE thing you can do to start to make a change? 

Here are a few suggestions:

Find ONE thing you’re willing to do starting tomorrow and repeat, consistently for an entire month – that’s 30 days!  If you’re really committed, you’ll write daily in some kind of notebook or journal on how you’re doing and what you’re noticing about your energy level.

The night before, make a list of the essential things that must be done the next day. The key word is essential. If other things get done then that’s a plus but the focus is on only the essential things.

Start to do more planning ahead of time. Plan Your weekly meals knowing which nights are busy therefore a crock pot meal would be a great choice. That also means making up the grocery list for that week and getting to the store. Maybe it’s once a month you do all the birthday gifts and card shopping. Consolidate your errands into one or maybe two trips. 

Turn the TV off, put your phone on the charger, AND put the computer down 45 minutes to an hour before you go to bed.  Your mind needs a chance to “wind down.” Besides, here’s a perfect opportunity to catch up with your spouse/significant other as to how your day went, reminders of what’s coming up, fyi about the kids, and just general adult conversation.

Have on hand a healthy trail mix bar like ones from Trader Joes or make your own No Bake Energy Bites when you get that hunger urge around 3:00 in the afternoon.  Almonds or walnuts, small amounts of yogurt are also good choices.  Have something that is easy to grab when you need that extra boost.

Get a pedometer and monitor the number of steps you take each day.  The goal is to increase that number by at least 50 steps each day.  Set your baseline on Day 1.

Breakfast is a must and protein is an essential part of this meal.  From personal experience, there are a lot of “junk” shakes out there.  I can attest to either the Shakeology or the Evolv shakes as having clean, good levels of protein, and healthy ingredients which will keep you feeling satisfied until lunch.  AND it takes less than five minutes to mix up.

For one entire month, commit to NO FAST FOODS. If you can’t go that long at least try one week then two etc. Your body needs time to adjust and start to learn what healthy food really feels and tastes like. 

Limit your caffeine intake to one cup of coffee in the morning.  Choose other ways to hydrate like water with a dash of concentrated lemon or lime juice for the rest of the day. I enjoy mixing up a pitcher of our Evolv Fuel or Fix drinks to have on hand.

NO soda, 5 Hour Energy, or any “energy” drink.  These are so loaded with sugar and “hidden sugars.”  

Create a routine during the week, and even on the weekends, with a regular bed time and the same wake up time.  (That is unless you have small children who may determine those times for you.)

Commit to a 20 minute walk once a day.

Women, in particular, complain about fatigue but actually the problem is dehydration!!  Are you drinking enough water?  A good test is if your pee is clear or a pale yellow then you’re getting enough fluids.  Focus on what you’re drinking.

Yes, you need carbs.  However, if you’re eating white bread, cookies, white pastas etc. your blood sugar will spike and then you crash which leaves you without energy – you’re exhausted.  Take these out of your food choices for the month.

Choose complex carbs like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains and focus on having these at each meal.

What’s your choice?  Which one will you pick to pursue for 30 days?

I wish you a chance to reflect on your habits, your routines, and how you can get back to having an increased  level of energy each day.  I hope you don’t settle and accept the “no energy” as the norm.  We ARE in control and there ARE things we can do. 

I’d also like to take this opportunity to wish all the mothers out there a very HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!! I feel very blessed to still have my 88 year old mom still with us. She blesses me with her positive outlook on life, her willingness to change and adapt to new situations, and her love for all her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. Feeling very blessed.

Planning and organization Part 2

Martin Luther King is the epitome of someone with a purpose, he had a BIG PICTURE, and he definitely had priorities.  What he began as the pursuit of civil rights through non-violence has been challenged and “put to the test” over the years.  Progress has been made but not near enough.  Now, more than maybe any other time in recent history; with the violence in Ferguson, MO, today is a day to examine our personal beliefs with more authenticity.  I hope yesterday didn't pass without you taking time to reflect on what the day represents and what each of us can do to move forward so ALL people feel valued, respected, and heard.

From last week’s blog, how did you do with your own reflection on YOUR Big PICTURE?  What priorities did you decide you want to continue, rework, or even new ones you want to establish?  You may have chosen just the area of work or home which is great for a start.  (You will also want to examine the areas of finances, your spiritual health as well as your physical health as you move ahead.)

The BIG PICTURE is the key to a strong “foundation” of what we want to accomplish which then leads to prioritizing our focus and activities.  Yet no matter how hard WE are working on those priorities, we also need to be flexible without losing site of our overall goal.  As my daughter reflected on last week, she had HER priorities of what needed to get accomplished, however, there were other demands on her time outside of her control.  Customers needed to talk, loan committee took more time, there were drop in requests, last minute needs from others which caused her priorities to stack up.  She focused on customer service which is a key priority and the "right thing" to do.  Consequently, she worked on her day off. Working on a day off, ideal?  No.  Necessary, yes.  Once again we are in charge of our priorities and actions on a continual basis.  It’s a CHOICE.   Keep in mind, we must always be flexible to various situations that pull us away.  The key, however, is not to lose sight of that BIG PICTURE and our priorities.  Don’t be too hard on yourself if you too have to make adjustments.  Just don’t allow that occasional situation to continue when you can get back on track. 

Planning and organization are the two areas we began with when talking about how the holidays went this past year.  In my humble opinion, that period of time is usually a reflection on how we do throughout the entire year.  For me, I can say I’m usually pretty good at planning and am always looking for better ways to do something or to organize my life.  For me, the key is to get things on my calendar first, then I can “back into” what needs to be done. Having a deadline even if it's self imposed keeps us accountable.  It’s a strategy.  You may have a different way which as long as it accomplishes your priorities then it’s working.  I learned this approach many years ago through a high school study skills class.   Planning and organization do not come naturally for most people - it is a life skill that needs to be modeled, taught, and practiced like any other skill.

When I was first teaching, I made many assumptions that my students knew how to plan and organize.  It wasn't until my own children were having difficulty getting a handle on their long term assignments, that I began to rethink how I was dealing with teaching the skills of planning and organization.  My first change was to have all the students use planners (calendars), write  in the due dates with reminders along the way.  (Fifth grade is the first year where assignments may be over a week rather than just overnight.)  So why did I continue to have many late assignments?  My “ah ha” moment was to realize there is a lot of time between the start and end of a project or assignment.  Once I began to teach the students how to break things down into smaller steps to reach the end goal, I began to see more success. That meant together we brainstormed all the steps it would take to complete a task, then we “backed into” when those tasks needed to be done.  I modeled this step by writing in my planner, and they did the same in theirs.  Did everyone have success? No, but there were far less late and/or incomplete assignments hence less stress and frustration on the part of the students AND their parents.  For those still struggling, we collaborated to find a strategy that worked for their particular learning style and needs.

What’s my point?  Planning and organization are skills that we may not have been taught or modeled, but they are skills that can be learned.  That means there has to be a BIG PICTURE of wanting to have less stress, less last minute running around, less frustration, less conflicts with others etc.   When something is  a priority it needs to have action behind it, but we often don't know where to begin.  So the first action might be to ask others in your same position how they plan and organize tasks, gather ideas and strategies from other sources like Pinterest, purchase the right tools (aka a calendar for 2015), ask for suggestions on a social media site, take a class etc. etc.  If you truly want to do things differently you can!

BIG PICTURE – PRIORITIZE – STRATEGIES TO ACCOMPLISH THE PRIORITY – TAKE ACTION.

Some of you will read this and think, “I’m already organized,” to which I say a resounding, “GREAT!!”  Maybe this is an area of strength for you, so be sure to help your children, co-workers, spouse, or others who seem to have difficulty.  My philosophy has always been to learn from those who I admire and who are skilled in an area I need help.  If planning and organization is an area needing attention it won’t change until you do give it attention by making it a priority.  My life as a teacher, a wife, a mother of two children with many areas to juggle demanded planning and organization with little “wiggle room.”  I continue to have planning and organizational needs even now.  It definitely “looks different” with fewer deadlines but still necessary. Life can be quite demanding especially when we’re juggling work, home, children, activities of each family member, church, times with family and friends etc.  The more we can prepare and be organized with fewer last minute tasks the more we can enjoy each day and the times we have both at home and at work. 

Make the next four weeks a priority to plan and organize the events, activities, and even the mundane tasks such as watering plants.  Use a calendar of some sort, prioritize what needs to be done and when, and see how life can become more manageable with less stress.  You will be thrilled with how much more you’re able to accomplish.  New habits take a minimum of 21 consecutive days to become established.  If you've fallen out of sync, get back on track, and if you’re a pro help someone else.  I would love to hear other’s suggestions of what they do to be well planned and organized.

Have a fabulous week of planning and organizing.  It comes down to mindset.  YOU CAN DO THIS! 

Planning and organization

I hope you made a commitment to have a reflective time last week and examine, in more depth, how things went for you over the holidays in the areas of planning/organization, money, and relationships.  What needs more attention in your life in order for the negatives not to repeat themselves?  This week, I want to focus on planning and organization.  As I said last week, these three areas aren't exclusive to the holidays, but they seem to be exacerbated during the holiday times.

In moving forward with each of us examining our own strengths and our weaknesses in the area of planning and organization, let’s go forward with a mindset that we ALL need some form of tweaking.  Let’s also assume that each of us wants to make a change,

and we're not going to use the same old excuses of why we can’t change and improve.  Do we all have our own excuses and rationale for why we can’t be better organized or better prepared?  Of course!  That’s a given. But read on if you truly want to make some changes no matter how big or small.   

I recently listened to a CD in the January Success magazine, with Darren Hardy interviewing Laura Stack who is considered the “productivity pro.”  I began to listen with more focus and attention when Laura began with the question whether we were busy or productive.  Interesting.  The common “buzz” seems to be the word busy.  Her definition to busy is “we look the part but there aren’t results.  Activity vs. accomplishment.  Productivity, however, is not measured in the number of hours, it’s the value you create and there are measurable RESULTS and “documented” accomplishments! We all have 24 hours in a day, some days are more productive than others, yet in the big picture are we seeing results of our efforts?  Are we accomplishing the things which are THE most important to us? 

As a side note, I learned several new strategies of things I want to accomplish this next year.  We all don’t know what we don’t know which is why it’s important to constantly be reading, listening to CD’s, “picking other people’s brains,” in order to come up with refining, tweaking, or developing a totally new approach.  Looking beyond ourselves is NOT a weakness.  On the contrary, it’s definitely a strength.  It’s not settling for the excuses, it’s not settling for the same old ways, it’s realizing that in order for change to happen, we need suggestions and help.  The only way that can happen is to commit to personal growth and open ourselves up to needing help.

Laura pinpointed what is preventing us from being productive.  (And I include myself in all that I’m addressing in today’s blog.)  The list includes; not prioritizing, not being able to say “no,” not being organized, our plate seems already too full and we’re overwhelmed, we put other’s needs before our own etc. etc.  Busy?  Productive? 

   

In today’s world, there is a lot of our daily time that seems to be out of our control due to the needs of our small children, the needs of staff, our boss, technology etc.  Many of us have some kind of “to do” list.  It’s not prioritized so we will generally do the “feel good,” easy, fun things first.  However, emotions are a bad judge of prioritizing.  Second, some people do things in the order they appear FIFO – first in, first out, and a third is the order you think of them.  You’re multi-tasking and constantly reprioritizing but it’s all happening in your mind.  These actions are more focused on being busy rather than prioritizing with a purpose.

Instead of coming up with New Year’s resolutions that data shows only 8% of the people who set them are still working on them after 6-8 weeks, let’s set monthly goals instead.  In the next four to six weeks (you set the time line) focus on PRIORITIZING.  Pick an area in your life: home, family, work, health, spiritual etc.  Once you have that ONE area, now take a few minutes to ask yourself the question, “If things were the way I would really want them, what would that look like?  (We started with reflecting on how things went over the holidays, but as I also said, it’s really an all year issue.  The holidays just seem to bring planning and organization to a head.)  Breaking this down even further after identifying the area of my life (business) I want to prioritize (improving my organization), I now need to have a BIG PICTURE of what will the end results “look like” if I am organized in my business.  What will it look like for you in the area of life YOU want to improve?  This is a crucial step – the BIG PICTURE.  This is NOT the time to start a long list of “to do’s.”)  In a sense, it’s like having your own mission statement that is realistic, has your focus and desires all wrapped up in a couple sentences.  This is your “map” to guide you through each day, each decision of what to do next.  If you have that big picture, that mission statement, then your “to do” list for the next day, week, or month may only be two to three maybe four things.  For example, I know I need to communicate with my customers on a regular basis and to me regular means weekly.  (I’m specific and not general in the time).  If at the end of the week, I have only completed that one thing and it’s moving me closer to my mission statement then I have been successful.  I don’t need to lament over all the things that didn't get done which, in the past, would have been my tendency.  I still have the “to do” list of getting the laundry done, reading, exercising etc. but I’m not going to let the emotional, feel good tasks get in the way of my priorities. The laundry etc. gets my attention AFTER I've done THE most important item of communicating with my customers.   

The goal for myself and for you is to look at life in a different way.  Rather than being overwhelmed with all that you feel “needs” to get done, all the demands you feel coming from children, spouse, co-workers, bosses, the expectations of what you think others think etc. etc. keep in mind… if you have your BIG PICTURE goals and what you want to accomplish in your life then it’s NOT about the number of tasks accomplished. It IS about prioritizing that will lead you to accomplishing what is truly important and valuable to you.  The reality is if your boss tells you that you need to be at a meeting at 11:00, then you’re at that meeting at 11:00.  If you're meeting with a recruit and his/her family on Saturday morning then you're there.  If your little one is running a fever and you need to leave work to pick them up from daycare then you do it – no questions asked.  Growing a business whether it’s self-employed, coaching, employment by someone else still entails a personal mission statement, a BIG PICTURE, and prioritizing.  Starting a new business, starting a new job, raising small children has its own set of demands.  At first, that new job, the young age of your children, the new business may be more time consuming; that’s natural and expected.  Yes, the laundry may pile up etc.  but that’s only short term.  However, if your organizational challenges continue to be the same problem year after year then something does need to change. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over expecting different results.

Obviously, there are lots of variables when dealing with priorities.  What I hope the take away here is one, in order for things to change YOU have to make a commitment to change; two, learning and growing as a person first and foremost will unlock the door to many ideas, suggestions, and avenues that wouldn’t be available otherwise, and three having a BIG PICTURE with a mission statement as your road map on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis is a necessity.

Now here’s the BIG QUESTION…are you interested in changing the way things have been?  Or are you already making excuses that you don’t have the time; you’re too busy?  We all have 24 hours in a day.  So let me rephrase the “I’m too busy” to “that’s not a priority for me.” If you know your priorities then you’ll never again use the “I’m too busy” excuse.

 

I wish you a reflective week and a positive mindset.