Now I will admit I learned this from Winning International, so a big thank you to Ryan Magdziarz for sharing this with me several years’ ago. It’s a formula that just works and I have made it my go-to if circumstances in my life start to overwhelm me.
Strategy 1 – Eating right. It can be so easy to default to eating crap when we feel crap, right? The easiest thing is to simply be sure that there is nothing in my pantry or fridge that will enable you to do that. Not living within easy distance of a store certainly helps there too!
Strategy 2 – Exercise. Now I know not everyone is an athlete like me, but just walking the dogs, walking out in nature, going for a bike ride, a swim, doing Yoga or Pilates is easy enough that anyone can do. Make sure it’s a minimum of 30 minutes’ a day and gets up a sweat!
Strategy 3 – Routine. This has become absolutely critical in our lives as I have an Autistic son and it has certainly helped me to become a whole heap more regimental about my days’ as he does not respond well to change. Typically most people don’t – admit it or not. I plan out my week every Sunday night and write out my planner. Now it doesn’t always go to plan – obviously life happens and stuff comes up that requires my time. But mostly, it keeps my day structured, organized and I can manage the time appropriately. It gives me also a feeling of accomplishment, fulfilment and satisfaction. Go on and give it a go!
Strategy 4 – Work times adhered to. I keep an alarm and a planner to keep me accountable. I usually plan my day in 30 minute increments. I find that if I don’t get something done – too bad – I move onto the next thing. It’s equally important to give yourself regular breaks as well – even if it’s just 5 minutes’ to meditate and focus on your breathing.
Strategy 5 – Use the 10 second rule. Think and then physically take action. Don’t fall for the trap of over-analysing situations. Sometimes you are just not meant to know the answers to every little thing and stop trying to figure people out – you never will. People do weird shit all the time. Just roll with it. If you want to talk to 10 people about your business today, make that list and pick the phone up and do it after counting to 10. Get out of your comfort zone – that is where the magic is.
Strategy 6 – Get enough sleep. My go-to is between 7 and 8 hours’. I typically get around 7 hours’ 15 minutes’ during the week and just over 8 hours’ on weekends. Anywhere from 7 – 9 hours’ is around what we all need. Don’t try and exist on less than 7 hours’ consistently as you will just exhaust yourself and you are cruising for collapse. To stay sharp and alert – get plenty of good quality sleep. Make sure your mattress and pillow is well suited to you. I like to listen to self-hypnosis during the night, I also put on a negative ion generate and air purifier and I also use an oil diffuser for the first four hours’ of my sleep. Every little bit helps.
Strategy 7 – Remove frictions and distractions. Since physically moving my office from outside of my house to an external building, my productivity has gone through the roof! Now I understand that not everyone is able to do that, but in essence you can choose to work from wherever you want! The local park. Library. Creek/River/Lake/Beach. A local café. Once a week I work from RACV Country Club in Healesville – you’ll find me there every Tuesday afternoon/evening. It’s super quiet with amazing – albeit slightly distracting views. Wherever you feel you will get peace an quiet with little to no distractions. Sometimes home isn’t the best place to work. Structure your time so you are able to achieve this regularly and watch your productivity and results skyrocket!
Hope this has been helpful. Don’t ever hesitate to sometimes take some time out. I am taking a few days’ off this week to head over to Adelaide to spend time with my BFF. And I’m making sure I hit my weekly targets early and getting to work today to start the week strong. Taking a few days’ off is great every once in a while, but ensure you plan for it. And as always, continue doing personal development work daily. This is THE MOST important thing you can do as it’s always who you are BEing that will get you through the tough times – not what you are DOing.