Archive for January, 2010

Working the Highest Payback Items Now

Posted in Time Management, Sales, Coaching, Marketing, Success by Manny on January 25th, 2010

<meta content="OpenOffice.org 3.1 (Win32)" name="GENERATOR" /><style type="text/css"> <!-- @page { margin: 0.79in } P { margin-bottom: 0.08in } --> </style></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">“The reason most major goals are not achieved is</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">that we spend our time doing second things first.”</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Robert J. McKain</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Here we are, just three weeks into a new year and</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">already most people have left their goals behind.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Already most people are continuing the bad habit</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">of spending time on second level items instead of</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">the most important things they should be doing.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">How about you?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">How are you doing?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">“All true leaders have learned to say no to the good</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">in order to say yes to the best.”</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Jim Deven. The Leaders Within</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Are you focused on what you really want in the this</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">new year?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Are you saying no to the good in order to say yes</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">to the best.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Focus means learning to say “NO” to distractions.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Robert Schuller</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Are you saying no to all those distractions? All</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">those things that are trying to take you off your</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">path to the goals you want to achieve this year.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">“Put 80 % of your time into your top 2-3 main goals.”</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">John Maxwell</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Are you focused on 2-3 things?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">That is, as John Maxwell says, where you need to</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">put your effort.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">As Martyred Missionary Jim Elliott says,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">“Wherever you are, be all there.”</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">As Dr. Alan Zimmerman says, “When you are</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">working, focus on the most important task on</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">your desk. All other things will get their time,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">but not now.”</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Is this really going to be the year you achieve</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">those goals you wanted on December 31?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Is this going to be the year you do it?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Do you really believe it, or is it just a pipe dream?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Are you focused or are you distracted.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">“If you want to defeat them, distract them.”</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Jesus CEO</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">“Whatever the thing may be which he is doing he</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">let’s himself think of nothing else until it is done.”</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Russell Conwell</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">You started this year with a dream, a goal, a</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">desire which you really wanted. You felt</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">this would be the year you could do it. Now,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">only 3 weeks into the year, you have to be as</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">strong in that belief as you were when you</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">started. You have to have the passion to know</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">you are going to make it. Each and every week</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">I want you to believe it and go for it. This is the</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">year you do it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Stay focused on what you want.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Those that stay focused are those that make</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">it happen.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">You can be part of that group.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">No one can do it all.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">You cannot do everything.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">So you need to focus and drive toward what you</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">really want.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">You knew what it was at the start, don’t lose</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">focus now.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Remember, “No man can serve two masters</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">for either he will hate the one and love the other,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">or else he will hold the one and despise the other.”</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Matthew 6:24</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">I want you at the end to have made it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If you focus on it all year long.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If it drives you all year long.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If you do not get distracted and pulled away.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">You can do it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Now go for it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> </div> <div class="meta2"><div style="float:left"><a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/2010/01/25/working-the-highest-payback-items-now/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to Working the Highest Payback Items Now" class="permalink">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/2010/01/25/working-the-highest-payback-items-now/#respond" class="commentslink" title="Comment on Working the Highest Payback Items Now">Comments</a></div></div> </div> <div class="post"> <h2 class="postheader" id="post-91"><a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/2010/01/18/the-courage-of-the-cowardly-lion/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link to The Courage of the Cowardly Lion">The Courage of the Cowardly Lion</a></h2> <div class="meta"><img align="right" src="http://blog.mannynowak.com/wp-content/themes/blue-tech-10/images/postheaderend.gif" width="22" height="22" style="margin: -4px 0 0 0" alt="" />Posted in <a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/category/coaching/" title="View all posts in Coaching" rel="category tag">Coaching</a>, <a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/category/success/" title="View all posts in Success" rel="category tag">Success</a> by Manny on January 18th, 2010 </div> <div class="entry"> <p><meta content="text/html; charset=utf-8" http-equiv="CONTENT-TYPE" /><title /><meta content="OpenOffice.org 3.1 (Win32)" name="GENERATOR" /><style type="text/css"> <!-- @page { margin: 0.79in } P { margin-bottom: 0.08in } --> </style></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Do you remember the Cowardly Lion in the</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">story of the Wizard of Oz? The lion went out</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">in search of courage.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What was it he learned?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">The story ends when he learns the simple fact</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">that courage is something that is not found</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">externally, but you have to find within yourself.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Courage means going forward without doubt.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If you believe you have courage, you have</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">courage. The lion found courage within himself.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">So can you.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Today it is a simple fact that we lack so much</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">courage in the business world. As leaders we</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">have to ask, “where is the courage”? As leaders,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">we should be setting the example for the people</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">who work with and for us. Where is the courage</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">that we are suppose to be exhibiting to our teams</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">and to ourselves?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">How can we expect the people who work for us</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">and with us to have courage, when we don’t have it?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Instead of courage today, what we exhibit is conformity.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">As Howard Hendricks says, “The opposite of courage</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">isn’t cowardliness, it is conformity. A believe is</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">something you will argue about. A conviction is</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">something you will die for. You cannot really live</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">unless there are things in your life for which you are</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">willing die”.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Yes, Howard does take it to an extreme, but the bottom</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">line is as Winston Churchill says,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">“Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak”.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Courage is also what is takes to sit down and listen.”</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If you are a student of Churchill you remember on</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">of the great lines he said when he was in battle,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">“Bullets are not worthy considering… I do not believe</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">the gods would create so potent of a being as myself</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">for so prosaic an ending”.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Wow</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Where has that courage that Churchill and other</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">great leaders exhibited gone?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Where has it gone?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What has happened in today’s world that we</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">don’t exhibit that courage.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">We are not cowards.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">No one is calling us cowards, but they might</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">be calling us conformists?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Why don’t have the courage to take on the things</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">we need to do make the changes we know are needed.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">That is one of the reasons we have lost our</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">leadership in the world.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">We no longer have the courage.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">We no longer teach courage, but instead we</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">teach conformity.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Yet people in the rising countries throughout the</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">world are teaching courage.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">They are teaching, “you can do anything you want”</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">and “YOU can lead the world”.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">So is it time we took some courage lessons?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Isn’t it time we set the pace and exhibited the</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">courage we know we have.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If you have had enough of the bad economy.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If we have had enough just conforming to things.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Then it is time you as leaders put up the courage</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">to do something. To make something happen in</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">your business, life, career, health and family.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">It doesn’t have to be some super extraordinary thing.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">You can exhibit courage simply by standing up for</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">what is right.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">You can exhibit courage by simply making the</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">decisions that will take you down the right path.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">You can exhibit courage by showing your team</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">consistency of how you operate.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">You can exhibit courage to your team by being there</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">for them and supporting them, backing them,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">teaching them and helping them.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">I urge you this week to make a new commitment</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">to courage in your business, life, career, family</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">and health.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Help them as you move forward. Look inside as</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">the Cowardly Lion did. You have all the courage</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">you need inside yourself.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Go out and make it happen.</p> </div> <div class="meta2"><div style="float:left"><a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/2010/01/18/the-courage-of-the-cowardly-lion/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to The Courage of the Cowardly Lion" class="permalink">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/2010/01/18/the-courage-of-the-cowardly-lion/#respond" class="commentslink" title="Comment on The Courage of the Cowardly Lion">Comments</a></div></div> </div> <div class="post"> <h2 class="postheader" id="post-90"><a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/2010/01/11/are-you-winning-or-whining/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link to Are you Winning or Whining">Are you Winning or Whining</a></h2> <div class="meta"><img align="right" src="http://blog.mannynowak.com/wp-content/themes/blue-tech-10/images/postheaderend.gif" width="22" height="22" style="margin: -4px 0 0 0" alt="" />Posted in <a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/category/coaching/" title="View all posts in Coaching" rel="category tag">Coaching</a>, <a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/category/success/" title="View all posts in Success" rel="category tag">Success</a> by Manny on January 11th, 2010 </div> <div class="entry"> <p><meta http-equiv="CONTENT-TYPE" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><title /><meta name="GENERATOR" content="OpenOffice.org 2.4 (Win32)" /><style type="text/css"> <!-- @page { size: 8.5in 11in; margin: 0.79in } P { margin-bottom: 0.08in } --> </style></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Are you Winning or Whining</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What do winners do that whiners just cannot do?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Attitude:</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">A winner is always talking about how they are going to make it happen.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">A whiner is always talking about why it can’t be done</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">I spend a great deal of time working with people in this area. You can spot it a mile away. You start talking with a person, and brining up things that could be done, and every time they come up with a reason why it cannot be done. Sound familiar to any of you out there?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Some examples:</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">We should try cold calling from the list of people we have.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">That will never work.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">We tried it before.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">No one likes to get a phone call.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">It is a bad idea.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Why don’t you attend a few local networking groups and see what kind of leads you can generate.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">That will never work.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">We tired it before</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">People don’t want to hear about what we have to sell.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Why don’t we spend some money on our website. See if we can generate some traffic.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">That will never work</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">People are not having success with it</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">It is just a pipe dream.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Wow</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">You ever get sucked into these conversations.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What do you do?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">How do you flip them around and get the person on the right track.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Viktor E. Frankl in Man’s Search for Meaning says, “The last human freedom – to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances”</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">A winner is always smiling and joking. He/she may not feel like it. They might not really want to do it. But they will never let you know that nor will they ever admit it. They will always be looking for a way to make it happen and because they are looking for a way to make it happen, it happens.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">OG Mandino in the Greatest Salesman in the World says: “As long as I can laugh never will I be poor”.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">When we encounter a situation, we have two choices.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Find a way to make fix it and be successful.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Or.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Whine about it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Which do you want to do.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Let’s go back to the three situations we talked about in the beginning of this article.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">We should try cold calling from the list of people we have.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What did we learn the last time we did it?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What didn’t work that we can change?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What have others done that worked?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">How can we get people to talk to us on the phone?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">We need this to work, so lets move forward?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Why don’t you attend a few local networking groups and see what kind of leads you can generate.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Which ones have we not been to?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Which ones are new?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What successes and failures have we had in the past?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What did we learn?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Who is networking successfully that we know?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What can we learn from them?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What education is out there to help us?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Why don’t we spend some money on our website. See if we can generate some traffic.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What is working for other people?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What have they done that really generates traffic and gets people to buy?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What did we do that did not work?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What did we learn?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Who can help us?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Wow!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Simply looking at “how it can be done,” instead of “why it can’t be done,” creates a whole new approach.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">This week I want you to take all the things you have to deal with.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">I want you to look at them and simply attack them with this attitude.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">What do I have to do to make it happen.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">You will be amazed at the results you have by the end of the week.</p> </div> <div class="meta2"><div style="float:left"><a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/2010/01/11/are-you-winning-or-whining/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to Are you Winning or Whining" class="permalink">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/2010/01/11/are-you-winning-or-whining/#respond" class="commentslink" title="Comment on Are you Winning or Whining">Comments</a></div></div> </div> <div class="post"> <h2 class="postheader" id="post-89"><a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/2010/01/03/stick-to-your-schedule-and-watch-what-happens/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link to Stick to your schedule and watch what happens.">Stick to your schedule and watch what happens.</a></h2> <div class="meta"><img align="right" src="http://blog.mannynowak.com/wp-content/themes/blue-tech-10/images/postheaderend.gif" width="22" height="22" style="margin: -4px 0 0 0" alt="" />Posted in <a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/category/coaching/" title="View all posts in Coaching" rel="category tag">Coaching</a>, <a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/category/success/" title="View all posts in Success" rel="category tag">Success</a> by Manny on January 3rd, 2010 </div> <div class="entry"> <p><meta http-equiv="CONTENT-TYPE" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><title /><meta name="GENERATOR" content="OpenOffice.org 2.4 (Win32)" /><style type="text/css"> <!-- @page { size: 8.5in 11in; margin: 0.79in } P { margin-bottom: 0.08in } --> </style></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">How good are you at sticking to your schedule for the week?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">How good are you at sticking to your schedule for today?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">How good are you at sticking to your schedule period?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">This is a great question to start of the new year with</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">because this is one of those key things that you need</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">to work on to make this your best year ever.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">So, what are you doing to make it work?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">I know this is very basic.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">I know we all take it for granted we can do it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">But the truth is, most of us suck at it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Let me repeat that for those who did not get it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Most of us suck at sticking to schedule.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">We might be great at creating it, but sticking to it</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">is another story.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">But why are we not able to stick to our schedule?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Let’s look and try to understand some of the reasons?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">1. We don’t have it in writing.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">We have a schedule for the week and day, but other</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">than appointments on our calendar, the rest is just</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">in our heads.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Solution: Write it down. This will solve the key</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">problem most of us have.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">2. We schedule no time for interruptions</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">We are planning to work 10 hours tomorrow and</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">we have our schedule all written out and put in</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">place. The problem is 2 hours into the day it is</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">shot because we keep having to deal with things</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">we never scheduled.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Solution: Schedule 20-50 percent of your work day</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">for interruptions. Depending on your business.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">3. Be honest about the time you allocate for a task</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">and do it in that time. Why do we always under</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">estimate the time to do something. Who are we</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">trying to fool. It is the classic way to get behind.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Solution: Truthfully, it is better to over allocate than</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">under allocate time. If you have 2 hours for a task,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">get it done in two hours or allocate more time.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Nothing worst than scheduling 1 hour when you know</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">it will take three. Be honest about it. This is so key.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">I learned it working for Boeing. When we did projects,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">if we allocated 1000 hours the project was done in</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">1000 hours, period. Learn to do this. Be honest in</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">time you allocate and determined to do it in that time.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">4. Focus on the task you are working on and don’t do</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">anything else while you are working on it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Why do we let ourself wonder. Why do we get</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">involved in everything else.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Solution:</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If you are making calls. Then make calls.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If you are working on a report, work on the report.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If you are doing a proposal, do it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">5. Your schedule is the most important thing.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If it is not, then why did you schedule it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If you are not working on the most important</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">things then why did you schedule it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Yes, things change, but be honest, not that fast?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Solution: Build your schedule doing the most</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">important things and then do not get swayed.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Yes it is very hard to stay on track.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Yes it is very easy to get swayed.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">But if you have scheduled the most important things.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If you have left room for interruptions</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If you stay focused</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">and if you have allocated the right amount of time for the tasks</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">and if you have all this written down.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Then you can make it work</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">If you work your schedule you will create great</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">success in this new year.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Believe it and do it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> </div> <div class="meta2"><div style="float:left"><a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/2010/01/03/stick-to-your-schedule-and-watch-what-happens/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to Stick to your schedule and watch what happens." class="permalink">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://blog.mannynowak.com/2010/01/03/stick-to-your-schedule-and-watch-what-happens/#respond" class="commentslink" title="Comment on Stick to your schedule and watch what happens.">Comments</a></div></div> </div> <br /> </div> <div id="sidebar"> <table width="198" 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