Stop Procrastinating in 4 Easy Steps – Article posted on LifeSpace
Great news! You can view one of my articles on LifeSpace. Here’s the link: http://www.lifespace.com/Publication.aspx?ID=751470
Enjoy learning how you can stop procrastinating in 4 easy steps.
If you are a procrastinator, stop it! Enjoy the video I posted. Click here or cut and paste into your browser:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sI_usPXBZqM
Review the other videos on this youtube.com channel. Subscribe and get notifications when a new video is posted. Enjoy!
The stuff in your head is distracting you.
The ‘stuff’ in your head is distracting you from achieving your goals! Enjoy the short video on facebook. See link below.
Do you have things continually going on in your head about all the things you have to do today, tomorrow, next week, etc.? Those are distractions! When you effectively use your calendar and master task list or your goals sheet (whichever you want to call it) on a consistent basis you don’t have to have all these things going on in your head thinking you have to remember them and being afraid you are going to forget to do something.
http://www.facebook.com/n/?video%2Fvideo.php&v=1558671937780&mid=3eabba1G5d43e3e3G155a683G1d&bcode=hCksuW5H&n_m=anne%40accountabilitycoach.com
Stop distracting yourself with all your thoughts. Implement effective time management and use your master task list to your advantage and stop letting all that ‘stuff’ in your head distracts you from what you are capable of achieving.
Are You a Procrastinator? Stop it!
There’s nothing wrong with taking a break, but you know procrastination when you see it. Here’s how to recognize the signs of procrastination and stop the cycle of excuses and delays so you can achieve more success in life and in business.
If you have ever been a leader, manager, or business owner with employees, you’ve experienced what it’s like delegating an important task under deadline. From experience, you’ve probably learned who you can trust to complete the task well, and on time, when others fall short.
Have you ever delegated a time-sensitive task to an employee only to find them making excuses, waiting until the last minute, or wasting time when they should be working on your project?
It probably got you fired up.
So here’s a question for you: If you don’t tolerate procrastination from others, why would you ever tolerate procrastination from yourself?
Self-Limiting Beliefs
One example of a No Longer Acceptable (NLA) is a self-limiting belief. This is beyond just pessimistic thinking. When you follow self-limiting beliefs you actually inhibit your own potential. Self-limiting beliefs restrict a person’s inhibitions as well as their confidence. They start to think that opportunity escapes them, perhaps even that they are doomed to a life of failure because of the circumstances that have been dealt to them. Do you sense the dogmatic attitude here? They are unwilling to try, having already blamed their failure on someone else. A lack of ambition is not the only problem in this scenario. The same people who take on self-limiting beliefs also keep jobs they do not enjoy and stay in dysfunctional relationships. It’s a continuing cycle of misery. Therefore, if you are serious about changing your life then getting rid of these attitudes, these damaging NLAs, is the very first step.
It would behoove you to stop thinking of any lack of accomplishments as failure. You still have time to make a difference and to pursue your dreams. Be thankful that now you realize you have a golden opportunity and the right perspective to make it happen. Now you move on to the next step of NLAs: excuses. Stop making excuses. Your first reaction to a great idea may be an excuse, an excuse of why it wouldn’t work and why you should not try or just give up. Instead of giving up your idea because of a few good excuses, use those excuses as critical dummy missiles so that you can rework and reinforce your idea.
Stop being tempted to go down the ‘wrong’ path and execute your game plan!
Have you ever found yourself going down the ‘wrong’ path and wondered how you got so far off track from achieving your goals? Ever wondered why you don’t achieve the goals you set at the beginning of the year? Ever stated a new year’s resolution and then found yourself off track in February or March (so soon after the start of the year)? Here are some of the pitfalls we need to resist if we are going to achieve our personal and professional goals and create the kind of life we really want – this year and every year going forward.
Personal Development & Multifarious Pitfalls to Resist
- Tempted to not invest enough time in those things that matter more than money to you.
- Tempted to quit too soon.
- Tempted to not choose your highest and best activities during the day.
- Tempted to not seek out mentors.
- Tempted to not get (or take) expert advice.
- Tempted to not optimize your own attention, deploying the power of focus on your priorities.
- Tempted to avoid reality-based thinking.
- Tempted to not insist that there are things which will no longer be acceptable to you.
- Tempted to make no decision (to avoid making a bad decision).
- Tempted to be everything to everybody.
- Tempted to treat exceptions as rules.
- Tempted to allow your team to be undermanaged.
- Tempted to avoid measuring success in all areas which will result in your overall success.
- Tempted to hold-on to people, clients, friendships, etc. longer than you should.
- Tempted to not require reviewing each team member’s written goals for the week.
- Tempted to not invest in the training & development of your people.
- Tempted to not be skilled at clearly articulating the value you bring to your client’s lives.
- Tempted to not seek accountability for yourself.
- Tempted to not measure your progress in a thorough (and candid) way at least 4 times a year.
- Tempted to not build a business to be of tremendous value.
- Tempted to not work hard enough (sometimes you should “work like you’re a rookie”).
- Tempted to not take enough time off.
- Tempted to pull punches rather than (skillfully & gracefully) telling the truth.
- Tempted to not challenge false assumptions (including our own).
Stop being tempted and do what you know you need to do so you can achieve your goals and have the kind of life you really want to live. Get focused, execute your game plan, and enjoy the rewards.
If you need help, let me know how I can help you on your goal achievement journey.
Making New Years Resolutions that you are committed to doing
You might have heard it said: “If nothing changes, nothing changes….”
If you really want and are committed to making 2010 a fantastic year, what do you have to do better, different, or change? Do you have to increase your commitment and desire to achieve what you want this year? How badly do you really want what you say you want?
For some, the odds are not in your favor. You lose focus, priorities change, it is too much work, life happens, and the resolutions become once again, not worth the paper they’re written on.
Effective time management will help you start out on the ‘right’ foot. Decide how the ideal day, week, month would look in order to achieve your goals. Put those activities on your calendar.
Consistently repeating high pay-off activities will help ensure you are on the path to goal achievement.
Don’t look at your New Years Resolutions as New Years Resolutions – look at them as changes that put you in the highest probability position to achieve your 2010 goals. They are things that become part of the way you do things from here on out.
Get an accountability coach. Having to talk to a coach, on a consistent basis, who will hold you accountable immediately improves the odds of you achieving your goals. An accountability coach will help keep you focused and on track so you have an even higher probability of goal achievement – professional and personal. It’s too easy to let the crisis of the day or little distractions and interruptions alter your ideal day activities you have on your calendar. Having an accountability coach provides the accountability you need to enable you to do the things you know need to be done, but just keep making excuse after excuse and therefore letting your goals and dreams slip away.
Have a game plan and execute it. Winging it and not having a game plan isn’t going to help you achieve your 2010 goals. You have a much better chance of achieving your professional and personal goals when you have a game plan that you can execute on a consistent basis.
Are you going to get to the end of this year and say to yourself, I wish I would have….. so I could have achieved my goals? Change the way you have been doing things to get the outcome you desire. What will you change today, this week, this month? Make 2010 a fantastic year and live your life with no regrets from this day forward. Let me know how I can help.
2 Types of Distractions to Avoid
If you are working in an empty warehouse with powerful equipment and surrounded by tons of steel then distractions are probably not a major issue. The problem is that you are working in an office—perhaps even a home office—and distractions are affecting you on a daily basis. Distractions may cause you to miss deadlines, turn in lower quality work, or use up time that you really can’t afford to lose.
Distractions impact your success to some degree. If you give your market less attention, then that market will shrivel up. Ignoring the wishes of your clients will definitely affect your profit margins. Ignoring the quality of your work may betray your own objectives, ultimately killing your business. When you are aiming to be a professional, it is important to take all of your obligations seriously. So what can you do to minimize distractions around the home and office?
1. Electronic Distractions
Let’s start by focusing on the computer, one of the best and worst instruments of concentration and distraction. Close any computer windows that are not directly related to what you are working on in the moment. Do you have a habit of checking your email, surfing the internet, or reviewing your site statistics every few minutes? This is distracting. Not only does continually switching from one unrelated activity to another rob directly from your work time, it also robs you of your train of thought. It may take several minutes to get that high concentration level back.
Instant messaging programs are another concern. The more friends that you chat with, the more times you will be interrupted by your online friends who probably want to talk about silly things. (I.e. chit-chat, strange YouTube videos or upcoming movie trailers starring Vin Diesel) When you go “online” you are probably just asking for trouble. Try going invisible or perhaps even closing the program entirely. You can always check your email once or twice per day for a predetermined amount of time.
What about all the social networking sites, like Linkedin, Plaxo, Twitter, Facebook, etc. that are rapidly growing? Is this just one more way to distract you? Do you really want to spend your precious time hanging out on these sites, or would your time be better invested on generating revenue for your business, or working out to keep and stay fit and healthy? Now, this isn’t to say you can’t do business with these social websites. You have to decide which would have more of an impact on you achieving your goals sooner.
2. Active Distractions
The fact of the matter is that most electronic distractions are bad for productivity, while most active distractions could actually help. For starters, try to schedule frequent breaks, especially if you work on the computer. You need to take a break now and then, not only to rest your eyes and stretch your arms, but also to give your brain a much-needed “breather.” This refreshes your mind, lets your body relax, and lets you escape the glare of a computer screen for just a few precious moments.
Furthermore, it might help to take a break outside and exercise in some form. When you exercise, it stimulates your mind and body, even while providing a nice relief from constant concentration. You could lift weights, do pushups, go for a walk or even play a musical instrument. The important thing is that you are doing something active, the opposite of fully concentrating on a work activity. I have heard some people say that having a 10-15 minute break every 90 minutes has a positive effect on your productivity.
Dealing with Stress Today
Concrete Ideas on How to Cope With Stress
Stress is just a part of life and can be found no matter where in the world you go. Is stress merely part of the inescapable human condition? Are we as a species chronically worried and unhappy or does bad luck simply find us wherever we are? Stress does not happen just to make our day unbearable. You could say that stress is a natural reaction to an action taken, the consequence of a causative event. For every action there is a reaction and often times the stress that we have to endure in life is the stress that we bring upon ourselves by the choices we make.
Catch Stress before It Happens
Life experience is a cruel teacher, but perhaps the best teacher that we will ever have. Experience teaches us that some mistakes we make can lead to very frustrating, even painful, consequences. The more you learn from the wisdom of others, the more cautiously you will approach life, and in the end, the less stressful conditions you will be exposed to. It has been said that hindsight is always 20/20. As you look back on some of the poor choices you have made, you may observe now that you were actually given fair warning as to the amount of responsibility that lay ahead of you.
What can you do about the stress you are currently experiencing? There are many remedies out there ranging from the extreme (drug use, hypnosis) to the relatively simple. Exercise is one healthy way to handle stress since rigorous physical activity releases endorphins. Endorphins serve as mood enhancers while also help in the alleviation of pain. Exercise is also a very goal-oriented activity, one that you can see and feel the benefits of right away. It may also help to learn some stress management techniques. Calming yourself in times of stress is important. Slowly breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. This helps you to control your breathing rate. Meditation has proven helpful as another form of tension control.
If you are interested in reducing the stress in your life, review the options above and set a goal to implement one or more of them. If you have ever wanted to be something more than what you are, but have felt hindered by circumstances, then now may be the time to act. Only by taking decisive action will you ever change into the person you want to be.
Ways to Eliminate The 'No Longer Acceptables' in your Life
Experts suggest that it may help to write down 10 No Longer Acceptables (NLA) in your life. By identifying them, you can more clearly see how and why these behaviors should be eliminated. What are some common NLAs that continue to disrupt otherwise great plans for change? Sometimes they are manifested in negative attitudes, such as a lack of confidence or a tendency to procrastinate. You may even find that some actions like sleeping late or overeating have compromised your new plan. Sometimes NLAs may come in the form of a negative person challenging your goals or laughing at your dreams. In this case, it’s not necessary to cut out the person from your life entirely. (Though in extreme cases of abuse, naturally, it may be an option.) Rather, it is to avoid that line of discussion. NLAs may even turn out to be objects that waste too much of your valuable time.
You know what your No Longer Acceptables are. They are an addiction that continues to taunt you, robbing you of joy and silencing your most enthusiastic resolves. Now that you have identified them, what does it take to get rid of these negative factors? One method of defense is the Pareto Principle, which teaches that 80% of your return should be based on 20% effort. If you apply this rule in your everyday life, then you will save time and energy, maximizing your results. Considering that most people have this logic the other way around (80% effort for 20% return), this puts you in an advantage. Considering your personal life or business in this context may cause you to reevaluate your schedule. Finally, stay focused on your goals. You are not predestined to a life of misery and failure. You can decide to start living and pursuing all the things that make you happy. Realizing that you have limited space and that the No Longer Acceptables do not fit into your plans (think consolidation!), you will find your road to success a much lighter path.
Learn what separates winners from whiners and make plans to start winning in life. Start today by making a list of what is not going to be acceptable in your life any longer. After you made your life, take action on getting those out of your life – permanently. Enjoy how much better you feel and how much more successful you are as a result of getting rid of these things.
Great Advice from Harvey MacKay and Richard Weylman
I thought you would receive value from an email Richard Weylman recently sent out, so I’m sharing it with you.
Author Harvey MacKay said, “Time is free, but it’s priceless. You can’t own it, but you can use it. You can’t keep it, but you can spend it. Once you’ve lost it you can never get it back.” Even with the myriad of “time-saving” technological devices we now have, do you find yourself wishing for “just a few more hours in the day”? We seem to always be in a hurry, but never really accomplish what we hope to. The answer isn’t adding a few more hours to each day (we would just waste them in meaningless actions anyway), but the answer is to more effectively manage the time you have. How can you do this? Consider these ideas:
1. Instead of a “to-do” list, have a “not-to-do” list. Think of the many time-wasters you perform every day and resolve to eliminate them. Things like reading your junk mail, reading the entire newspaper, etc. Any of these things that don’t actually accomplish anything in the end you should try to “not” do!
2. Evaluate what your time is worth: take your annual projected income and divide it by 2,080 – this will give you roughly what an hour of your time is worth. Now evaluate how much time it takes to do everything you do. Is it worth your time? Or would you be better off delegating that task to someone else whose time is less expensive?
3. Delegate, delegate, delegate! The more successful you are, the higher up the ladder you climb, the more valuable and in demand is your time. Learn to give away any task that can be efficiently completed by someone else.
