the Lemonade movie

Have you thought about today?

If so, you are way ahead of most people.

Most people. . .

• Do not set daily goals.
• Watch over 4 hours of television per day.
• Spend 3 hours per day online.
• Experience over 100 interruptions per day.
• Procrastinate rather than prioritize.
• Wonder why their life is mediocre and they can’t get anything done.

Do you realize that today is the most important day in your life?

Here are some tips to help you think about today. . .

1. Decide what you have to do today. (No more than three things.)
2. Decide what you want to do today. (No more than two things.)
3. Decide what you cannot do today. (Decide what day you will do it.)

John Maxwell Interview

Dave Ramsey and John Maxwell discuss John’s new book: Put Your Dream to the Test.

John C. Maxwell on The Dave Ramsey Show from James Arnold on Vimeo.

Five Ways to Improve Your Daily Personal Productivity

Here are five simple ways to increase your daily personal productivity:

1. Sleep More
When our lives are disorganized and over-planned we call it being busy. And when we are busy we think it’s okay that we don’t get enough sleep. However, studies show that lack of sleep leads to less productivity, less awareness and poor decision-making. Aim for 7-8 hours of sleep each night.

2. Eat Less, More
Don’t eat more! Eat more often! Larger meals require more energy to digest and decrease blood flow to the brain and other parts of the body. Eating small meals more often allows the body to easily digest the food and use the energy created more efficiently.

3. Develop A Daily Plan for Each Day
Each day of the week is different and should be planned for differently. Being proactive by developing a daily plan for each day increases your productivity and decreases stress.

4. Utilize Power Blocks
A Power Block is a 1 to 1.5 hour unit of time dedicated to accomplishing one specific task. Power Blocks are especially effective for tasks you do not like to do! Examples include making phone calls, writing thank you notes, cleaning the house, etc. The key to an effective Power Block is to focus on the one assigned task without any interruptions (turn off cell phone and computer).

5. Do It, Delegate It, Defer It, or Dump It
Every opportunity that comes your way falls into one of these three categories. The key is to make an immediate decision when an opportunity or task comes your way. Either do it immediately (if it can be done in 10 minutes or less), delegate it (if someone else should do it or can do it better than you), defer it (decide when to do it later) or dump it and decline the opportunity!

Work-Life Balance Cartoon

lessons learned in 2008

I am thinking about offering a workshop to business owners and otherwise busy people at the end of January in 2009 based on all of the stuff that’s happened this year.

I’d like to ask for your help!

What lessons have you learned this year that you can apply to your life or business in 2009?

You can email me or post below.  Thanks!