If you’ve determined your goals for this season of your life, and if you’ve narrowed them down to two key goals and one focus goal, then you are well on your way to accomplishing them. Maybe you’ve gotten as far as creating a “To Do List” and working on a couple of strategic activities each day that will further propel you toward your goals.
And if you’re an overachiever, then you’ve probably already created your “Dream Routine” and are rocking your daily routine.
But if you’re like me and get easily distracted with um, anything and everything, then perhaps you need a few tips that will help your day run more smoothly.
If so, I’ve listed a few ideas that have helped me be a little less scattered (HA!) and a lot more focused. But please don’t think I’ve got it all together, because I totally do not. However, the following ideas have helped me stay on track with things that must be accomplished each day.
Help Your Day Run More Smoothly with These Tips:
Tip #1: Change your attitude to one of gratitude. Be grateful that you are able do whatever you are doing. You don’t “have” to clean the house; you “get” to make a loving and cozy home environment for your family. You “get” to cook delicious and nutritious meals for them; you “get” to workout and improve your health and fitness. When you’re feeling grouchy about all the things you “have” to do, stop yourself and change your attitude. Decide to be grateful for what you “get” to do. Add some thankfulness to your day right from the start.
Tip #2: Take time to “collect” your thoughts each morning. In her book, The Artist’s Way, Julia Cameron teaches a daily practice she calls “morning pages,” which are three pages of longhand, stream of consciousness writing, done first thing in the morning. I confess that I haven’t been as faithful with this practice as I’d like, but when I have, I’ve been able to clear the clutter of my mind, and receive insight and ideas for my life and business.
Perhaps you would prefer to keep a gratitude journal, or even jot a few thoughts down in your daily planner. The point is, take some time each morning to declutter your brain, journal your ideas, questions, concerns, write down what you’re thankful for, or simply plan out your day. You’ll feel lighter and much more organized.
Tip #3: Write your “Dream Routine” down in your daily planner. If you will write out your “Dream Routine” (those five activities that you do every day) in your daily planner, you’ll be more likely to remember to complete them. Keep in mind, these are the five daily things which are essential to your success and will help you live out your dreams.
Tip #4: Add 2-3 items from your goals “to do” list to your daily planner, and do the one you dread the most first. Mark Twain said, “Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.”
First of all, Um, GROSS!!! Secondly, there are worse things that can happen to you than eating a live frog. And lastly, this really is good advice! If you will make yourself do that one thing you’re dreading to do and have been procrastinating before anything else on your “To Do List,” it will make your day go by much more easily.
A excellent book to read on this subject is, Eat That Frog: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time, by Brian Tracy. I bought this book years ago, and my husband took it from me and marked it all up, so I had to order another one that I could mark all up. It’s one of the books we make our kids read too.
Tip #5: Take some time each night after dinner or before bed to write out your “evening reflections.” The evening is a great time to review your day. Think about what your accomplishments were. In which areas can you improve? Are you making progress towards your goals? What things are you grateful for? What’s on tomorrow’s “To Do List”? Review your day and make the needed changes for tomorrow.
Those are my tips. I’d love to hear your ideas to help your day run more smoothly. Let us all know by commenting below!
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