I’m beaming in to you from the deck or porch of my secret summer lair. I follow or avoid the sun, depending on the time of day and air temp. I’m mell-ow.
I’m here for a while soaking up some slow time and thinking about how I can be happier, do more of what I love, avoid the stuff I hate and generally make life even more enjoyable for myself.
Interested?
Over the next five blogs, I am going to break down 15 simple things you can do to keep your happier, more relaxed summer self coasting into the fall. I’ll hand them out 3 at a time so you can try to implement each of them right away. Trust me, these simple (but serious) shifts will change your life.
1. Ask for Help.
Time wasters pretend they are better at something than they are. Professionals delegate and ask for help. I own what I can’t do and get the right people to do it. Sometimes you have to hire some outside help, and it’s never a bad idea to invest in your own personal and professional development.
This one is really important – important enough to merit its own blog.
2. Say “No” more often.
Critical.
Say no to meetings that are not important. Say no to any work that isn’t the right fit for you. Say no to work that falls during time you have designated for yourself. Say no to the little tiny contracts and clients that lead nowhere and get in the way of you working with who you want to be working with.
There is a long list here of things to say no to. You can complete yours on your own – I’d love to hear them.
3. Use lists.
And having said ‘use lists,’ my transformation into my dear mother is complete.
Ask for help. Say no more often, use lists and always carry a tissue. And of course, every once in a while have a cup of hot water.
I use the task list in my CRM. You can use Google Task or your own task list. Whatever it is, keep it open and integrated into your day. When I think of someone, I send them a quick email or call and then I immediately set a task to follow up with them.
This is solid gold advice, and I hate to be so crass, but if you use lists you will increase your revenues this year by at least 10%.
And lastly for now, use a timer. Really consider blocking out your day, right down to the hour. Manage your day in blocks of 60 minutes. It’s amazing how knowing that you have less than 12 minutes to complete something brings focus.
Okay, that’s it for now. I’m going to do 15 of these so tune in again Thursday.