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21 Productivity Tips

Here are 21 tips to get you to your best productivity:

#1. Check email in the afternoon so you protect the peak energy hours of your mornings for your best work. 

#2. Stop waiting for perfect conditions to launch a great project. Immediate action fuels a positive feedback loop that drives even more action.

#3. Remember that big, brave goals release energy. So set them clearly and then revisit them every morning for 5 minutes.

#4. Mess creates stress (I learned this from tennis icon Andre Agassi who said he wouldn't let anyone touch his tennis bag because if it got disorganized, he'd get distracted). So clean out the clutter in your office to get more done.

#5. Sell your TV. You're just watching other people get successful versus doing the things that will get you to your dreams.

#6. Say goodbye to the energy vampires in your life (the negative souls who steal your enthusiasm). 

#7. Run routines. When I studied the creative lives of massively productive people like Stephen King, John Grisham and Thomas Edison, I discovered they follow strict daily routines. (i.e., when they would get up, when they would start work, when they would exercise and when they would relax). Peak productivity's not about luck. It's about devotion.

#8. Get up at 5 am. Win the battle of the bed. Put mind over mattress. This habit alone will strengthen your willpower so it serves you more dutifully in the key areas of your life.

#9. Don't do so many meetings. (I've trained the employees of our FORTUNE 500 clients on exactly how to do this - including having the few meetings they now do standing up - and it's created breakthrough results for them).

#10. Don't say yes to every request. Most of us have a deep need to be liked. That translates into us saying yes to everything - which is the end of your elite productivity.

#11. Outsource everything you can't be BIW (Best in the World) at. Focus only on activities within what I call "Your Picasso Zone".

#12. Stop multi-tasking. New research confirms that all the distractions invading our lives are rewiring the way our brains work (and drop our IQ by 5 points!). Be one of the rare-air few who develops the mental and physical discipline to have a mono-maniacal focus on one thing for many hours. (It's all about practice).

#13. Get fit like Madonna. Getting to your absolute best physical condition will create explosive energy, renew your focus and multiply your creativity.

#14. Workout 2X a day. This is just one of the little-known productivity tactics that I'll walk you through in my new online training program YOUR PRODUCTIVITY UNLEASHED (details at the end of this post) but here's the key: exercise is one of the greatest productivity tools in the world. So do 20 minutes first thing in the morning and then another workout around 6 or 7pm to set you up for wow in the evening.

#15. Drink more water. When you're dehydrated, you'll have far less energy. And get less done. 

#16. Work in 90 minute blocks with 10 minute intervals to recover and refuel (another game-changing move I personally use to do my best work).

#17. Write a Stop Doing List. Every productive person obsessively sets To Do Lists. But those who play at world-class also record what they commit to stop doing. Steve Jobs said that what made Apple Apple was not so much what they chose to build but all the projects they chose to ignore.

#18. Use your commute time. If you're commuting 30 minutes each way every day - get this: at the end of a year, you've spent 6 weeks of 8 hour days in your car. I encourage you to use that time to listen to fantastic books on audio + excellent podcasts and valuable learning programs. Remember, the fastest way to double your income is to triple your rate of learning.

#19. Be a contrarian. Why buy your groceries at the time the store is busiest? Why go to movies on the most popular nights? Why hit the gym when the gym's completely full? Do things at off-peak hours and you'll save so many of them.

#20. Get things right the first time. Most people are wildly distracted these days. And so they make mistakes. To unleash your productivity, become one of the special performers who have the mindset of doing what it takes to get it flawless first. This saves you days of having to fix problems.

#21. Get lost. Don't be so available to everyone. I often spend hours at a time in the cafeteria of a university close to our headquarters. I turn off my devices and think, create, plan and write. Zero interruptions. Pure focus. Massive results.

I truly hope these 21 productivity tips have been valuable to you. And that I've been of service. Your productivity is your life made visible. Please protect it.

Stay productive.

From: Robin Sharma

On Following God's Leading

The following is a story by Beth Moore.

Apr 20, 2005
Knoxville Airport

Waiting to board the plane: I had the Bible on my lap and was very intent upon what I was doing. I'd had a marvelous morning with the Lord.

I say that because I want to tell you it is a scary thing to have the Spirit of God really working in you.

You could end up doing some things you never would have done otherwise life in the Spirit can be dangerous for a thousand reasons not the least of which is your ego...

I tried to keep from staring but he was such a strange sight. Humped over in a wheelchair, he was skin and bones, dressed in clothes that obviously fit when he was at least twenty pounds heavier. His knees protruded from his trousers, and his shoulders looked like the coat hanger was still in his shirt. His hands looked like tangled masses of veins and bones. The strangest part of him was his hair and nails. Stringy gray hair hung well over his shoulders and down part of his back. His fingernails were long. Clean, but strangely out of place on an old man.

I looked down at my Bible as fast as I could, discomfort burning my face. As I tried to imagine what his story might have been, I found myself wondering if I'd just had a Howard Hughes sighting.

Then, I remembered that he was dead. So this man in the airport... an impersonator maybe?
Was a camera on us somewhere?....

There I sat trying to concentrate on the Word to keep from being concerned about a thin slice of humanity served on a wheelchair only a few seats from me. All the while my heart was growing more and more overwhelmed with a feeling for him. Let's admit it. Curiosity is a heap more comfortable than true concern, and suddenly I was awash with aching emotion for this bizarre-looking old man.

I had walked with God long enough to see the handwriting on the wall. I've learned that when I begin to feel what God feels, something so contrary to my natural feelings, something dramatic is bound to happen. And it may be embarrassing. I immediately began to resist because I could feel God working on my spirit and I started arguing with God in my mind.

"Oh no, God please no." I looked up at the ceiling as if I could stare straight through it into heaven and said, "Don't make me witness to this man. Not right here and now. Please. I'll do anything. Put me on the same plane, but don't make me get up here and witness to this man in
front of this gawking audience. Please, Lord!"...

There I sat in the blue vinyl chair begging His Highness, "Please don't make me witness to this man. Not now. I'll do it on the plane." Then I heard it..."I don't want you to witness to him. I want you to brush his hair."

The words were so clear, my heart leapt into my throat, and my thoughts spun like a top. Do I witness to the man or brush his hair? No brainer. I looked straight back up at the ceiling and said, "God, as I live and breathe, I want you to know I am ready to witness to this man. I'm on
this Lord. I'm your girl! You've never seen a woman witness to a man faster in your life. What difference does it make if his hair is a mess if he is not redeemed? I am on him. I am going to witness to this man."

Again as clearly as I've ever heard an audible word, God seemed to write this statement across the wall of my mind. "That is not what I said, Beth. I don't want you to witness to him. I want you to go brush his hair."

I looked up at God and quipped, "I don't have a hairbrush. It's in my suitcase on the plane, How am I supposed to brush his hair without a hairbrush?"...

God was so insistent that I almost involuntarily began to walk toward him as these thoughts came to me from God's word: "I will thoroughly furnish you unto all good works." (2 Tim 3:17) I stumbled over to the wheelchair thinking I could use one myself. Even as I retell this story my pulse quickens and I feel those same butterflies.

I knelt down in front of the man, and asked as demurely as possible,
"Sir, may I have the pleasure of brushing your hair?"

He looked back at me and said, "What did you say?"

"May I have the pleasure of brushing your hair? To which he responded in volume ten, "Little lady, if you expect me to hear you, you're going to have to talk louder than that. At this point, I took a deep breath and blurted out, "SIR, MAY I HAVE THE PLEASURE OF BRUSHING YOUR HAIR?"

At which point every eye in the place darted right at me. I was the only thing in the room looking more peculiar than old Mr. Long locks. Face crimson and forehead breaking out in a sweat, I watched him look up at me with absolute shock on his face, and say, "If you really want to."

Are you kidding? OF course I didn't want to. But God didn't seem interested in my personal preference right about then. He pressed on my heart until I could utter the words, "Yes, sir, I would be pleased. But I have one little problem. I don't have a hairbrush."

"I have one in my bag," he responded. I went around to the back of that wheelchair, and I got on my hands and knees and unzipped the stranger's old carry-on hardly believing what I was doing. I stood up and started brushing the old man's hair. It was perfectly clean, but it was tangled and matted. I don't do many things well, but I must admit I've had notable experience untangling knotted hair mothering two little girls.

Like I'd done with either Amanda or Melissa in such a condition, I began brushing at the very bottom of the strands, remembering to take my time not to pull. A miraculous thing happened to me as I started brushing that old man's hair. Everybody else in the room disappeared. There was
no one alive for those moments except that old man and me. I brushed and I brushed and I brushed until every tangle was out of that hair.

I know this sounds so strange but I've never felt that kind of love for another soul in my entire life. I believe with all my heart, I – for that few minutes - felt a portion of the very love of God. That He had overtaken my heart for a little while like someone renting a room and making Himself at home for a short while. The emotions were so strong and so pure that I knew they had to be God's.

His hair was finally as soft and smooth as an infant's. I slipped the brush back in the bag, went around the chair to face him. I got back down on my knees, put my hands on his knees, and said, "Sir, do you know my Jesus?"

He said, "Yes, I do." Well, that figures, I thought. He explained, "I've known Him since I married my bride."

"She wouldn't marry me until I got to know the Savior." He said, "You see, the problem is, I haven't seen my bride in months. I've had open-heart surgery, and she's been too ill to come see me. I was sitting here thinking to myself. What a mess I must be for my bride."

Only God knows how often He allows us to be part of a divine moment when we're completely unaware of the significance. This, on the other hand, was one of those rare encounters when I knew God had intervened in details only He could have known. It was a God moment, and I'll never forget it. Our time came to board, and we were not on the same plane. I was deeply ashamed of how I'd acted earlier and would have been so proud to have accompanied him on that aircraft.

I still had a few minutes, and as I gathered my things to board, the airline hostess returned from the corridor, tears streaming down her cheeks. She said, "That old man's sitting on the plane, sobbing. Why did you do that? What made you do that?"

I said, "Do you know Jesus? He can be the bossiest thing!" And we got to share. I learned something about God that day. He knows if you're exhausted because you're hungry, you're serving in the wrong place or it is time to move on but you feel too responsible to budge. He knows if you're hurting or feeling rejected. He knows if you're sick or drowning under a wave of temptation. Or He knows if you just need your hair brushed. He sees you as an individual. Tell Him your need!

I got on my own flight, sobs choking my throat, wondering how many opportunities just like that one had I missed along the way... all because I didn't want people to think I was strange. God didn't send me to that old man. He sent that old man to me.

John 1:14 "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have
seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father,
full of grace and truth."

 

The Leadership Principle of Listening

Listening . . . the word listen means to make an effort to hear or pay attention, to give heed, or to take advice. The proverb says, "A wise man will hear," meaning that if we are wise, we will be good listeners. The reason that wise men listen is because they know they become wiser by listening. Good listeners are seeking to learn more. Wisdom is not an inherited gift; rather, it is earned by listening and learning, and by observing and understanding. A good listener will usually have these four character traits:

1. They are disciplined listeners and talkers.

2. They are seekers of truth. They want to know what is right, not who is right.

3. They love quiet time - no radio, no TV, no reading, no interruptions. They like to have time to review what is inside them. They are thinkers.

4. They are full of questions. They don't want to misunderstand or be misunderstood.

Jesus was always aware of being misunderstood. That's why He said, "He that has an ear, let him hear." He meant, "Don't just hear My words, comprehend and understand the idea and get the concept of what I'm trying to say." All good teachers try to communicate certain concepts, but they don't always use the right words. So we hear the words, but don't get the bottom line. That's why good listeners will probe by asking questions. If we are not disciplined listeners, we won’t get the point. Sometimes we think that people around us hear what we are saying, only to find out later that they thought we meant something else.

Listening is not enough - we must hear. Listening is not hearing until we fully understand what the other party is trying to convey to us. Television only communicates in part, for it only works one way. Telephones are a better system of communication, for we hear and respond. Fax machines, on the other hand, are perfect in communication: the receiving machine receives exactly what the sending machine transmitted. But we are not like fax machines. We measure and judge the words of others by our own perceptions and emotions (our state of being). We hear the words, then form our own perceptions based on what we think we heard, and interpret it with our feelings from our past experiences. Everything we hear goes through a process of our hurts and disappointments, and we then judge accordingly. That's what we call "reading into it." Someone will take something we said, and they will say that we were talking about them, when it was not even in our mind.

If we are going to be successful in building business and personal relationships, we will need to take the initiative to listen until we know where people are and what they need. Discovering needs is the first step in helping others. We will learn their needs if we can listen. Wise men become wise by listening, and they will keep on listening because they see the value in it.

A good way to make sure we understand someone is to ask him, "Is this what you are trying to tell me?" or "Is this what you mean?" Don't be too proud to ask for clarity. It is time well spent, and will avoid a lot of hurts and confusion.

This principle is a part of the one-year character development program
Foundations for Achievement

Copyright 2003 by John E. Schrock and La Red Business Network

The Day Money Fails

What will you do the day money fails? In the days of Joseph money failed. “Can it happen again,” you ask? Yes. The real question is, “Are you prepared?” Scripture teaches that money failed in the land of Egypt and Canaan during the life of Joseph. The testimony declares that Pharaoh had a dream no one could interpret except Joseph. In Pharaoh’s dream there would be seven years of “great plenty” followed by “seven years of famine.” The famine would be so bad that “all the plenty would be forgotten and the land consumed.” Can you imagine such an economic collapse that money failed?

Pharaoh’s advisers could not interpret the dream but God’s man Joseph could. Not only did Joseph interpret the dream but offered a solution that would save the nation from total starvation. Here was his three-point strategic plan:

1.) “Look out a man discreet and wise” and set him over the land of Egypt with governing authority to oversee the strategy.

2.) Appoint more officers (overseers) over the land to ensure results.

3.) Store 20 percent of the land’s production in the seven prosperous years (Genesis 41:33-34).

God’s warning to Pharaoh was true. There were seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine. When the famine arrived the years of prosperity were quickly forgotten. Scripture says, “And there was no bread in all the land for the famine was very sore so that the land of Egypt and all the land of Canaan fainted by reason of the famine” (Genesis 47:13).

During a famine the ability to produce goods and services are drastically reduced, the division of labor falls apart, distribution networks fail, government defaults on promises, crime rises and fear sweeps the land. When famine hit Egypt the major concern became food, not consumer products.

It was at this time a great transference of wealth took place in Egypt. Because of the wisdom of the Holy Spirit guiding Joseph there was enough food stored in the cities to sustain the people. Sustain, however, with a price. Joseph didn’t give the people food, he sold it to them. Not for money, however, but for assets. Remember, money failed.

The first year Joseph exchanged food for cattle, horses and flocks. He said, “Give your cattle and I will give you for your cattle if (since) money fail. And they brought their cattle unto Joseph and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for horses and for the flocks and for the cattle of the herds and the asses and he fed them with bread for all their cattle for that year” (Genesis 47:17-17).

When the second year arrived they came to Joseph again saying, “Our money (savings) is spent, my lord also hath our herds of cattle there is nothing left in the sight of my lord but our bodies and our lands… buy us and our land for bread and we and our land will be servants unto Pharaoh and give us seed that we may live and not die that the land be not desolate” (Genesis 47:18-19).

From these verses we learn the wisdom of Joseph to save 20 percent during prosperous years to provide the nation’s needs during times of famine. Contrast that savings rate with the typical American savings of 4.7 percent in 2009 and 6 percent in 2010 of his income according to the U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Economic Analysis.

We also learn that food became the main focus during the famine. The Department of Labor states that Americans spend 12.7 percent of their income on food. When money failed in Egypt food quickly became the people’s main expense. When food becomes scarce prices rise. Not only did food become rare in Egypt with soaring prices but there was a great transference ofwealth. Not paper currency like we have today but real wealth found in tangible assets like land and cattle. “And Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh for the Egyptians sold every man his field because the famine prevailed over them so the land became Pharaohs. Even the transference of wealth was future oriented because seed was given to the people under the regulation that 20 percent of their increase was given to Pharaoh (Genesis 47:20-24).

The bottom line is that God gives wisdom not corrupt career politicians that don’t believe in God or His relevance to modern society. The further our nation gets away from Jehovah the more perilous times become. We may even find ourselves wakening up one morning only to discover that money failed.

Could it be possible that we are approaching the day when money fails? Peter Schiff, a well-known investor and former Senate candidate for Connecticut thinks it could happen. During a January interview with the Fast Money Wall Street trader’s panel on tout media CNBC Schiff said the US Dollar could fall 50 to 70 percent in value by 2012 because of the massive Federal debt build-up and money printing by the Federal Reserve.

In January of 2010 President of Venezuela Daniel Chavez devalued his nation’s currency by 50 percent while threatening shop owners against raising prices or have their businesses confiscated. The result was predictable with a decrease in the buying power of their currency, store closings, product shortages, mass inflation and job losses.

Most Americans are living paycheck to paycheck. Six-in-ten (61 percent) workers report they always or usually live paycheck to paycheck just to make ends meet, up from 49 percent last year and 43 percent in 2007. This is according to a new nationwide survey of more than 4,400 workers by CareerBuilder.

Currency falling 50 percent or more would be disastrous. The truth is the dollar continues to fall in buying power every year. (Click "Instruments" in chart for US Dollar index.) It has fallen by 95 percent in purchasing power since 1913 because of Federal Reserve monetary policy. The Federal Reserve is not a U.S. Federal Government agency. It is a private banking cartel chartered by Congress to operate. Since we live in a dollar world a gradual decrease in the dollar’s value goes unnoticed. If Peter Schiff is right our nation will experience a major drop. So what’s a Christian to do? Here are some things to consider.

Tithe.

If you are not tithing then I can’t help you at all. The Holy Spirit told me one time that tithing is only for believers. Tithing is not a suggestion - it’s Scripture. When you tithe God rebukes the devourer for you. If you need God’s help then you have to do things God’s way. Start here.

Put the Kingdom of God and His righteousness first (Matthew 6:33).

This goes way beyond your personal salvation. This speaks of the government of God, the word of God, the laws of God and the right causes of God. Causes like helping the poor and needy, ministering to orphans, widows, advancing the Gospel of the Kingdom around the world, missions, and helping your local church fulfill its purpose.

The Gospel of the Kingdom is the Word, ways, culture, language and government of the Kingdom, not just the message of the cross. Yes, the cross is extremely important but it’s a doctrine of the Kingdom not the gospel of the Kingdom.

Live within your means.

Some try to keep up with the Jones next door. Well, the Jones lost their home. Their 401K is now a 201K. They will not be able to retire and live off Social Security. Their American dream of a golden retirement has turned into a nightmare.

I know living within one’s means is painful to hear for some because we have been taken captive by consumerism leaving us with little self-restrain. The truth is we must learn to spend less than we make. How did you do today? Did you spend more than you made? What about this week? Did you spend more than you made? What about this month? Did you spend more than you made?

Get out of debt.

Fight debt like it’s a devil. One way to start is by making a decision. Everything starts with a decision. Start getting out of debt by refusing to take on any new payments of any kind. The best approach is buy the best, pay cash, and take with you.

Focus on production not consumption.

Production is your key to prosperity. Producing more than you consume is your road to abundance. As you produce opportunity will show up. Then little-by-little the law of accumulation will work for you in a positive way. Seldom do successful people hit giant deals. Most success is bit-by-bit.

Make your land produce.

Have you ever seen large tracts of unproductive land? What good is land if it’s not producing anything? Make your land produce. I mean that in both a spiritual and natural context. God gave you a gift and He expects you to produce something with it. He made that clear in the Parable of the Talents.

Understand the dangers of fiat currencies and exotic financial instruments as a store of wealth. Money can fail. Currency is nothing more than a means of exchange for products or services. When money is used for something other than an exchange such as a store of wealth or some other financial instrument like interest bearing CD’s, stocks, bonds, then money has become something beyond a means of exchange. Here is a basic problem. Mammon has developed many exotic financial instruments to entice people to engage its kingdom. Jesus warned His disciples of the god of mammon. He said you cannot serve two masters. Mammon is a cruel master. Mammon can be likened to the financial kingdoms of the world.

Money failed in Egypt.

The famine killed the ability to produce which led to a collapse. Today money is failing because of bad Federal Reserve monetary policy, Wall Street corruption, out of control big government spending and massive Federal Government debt and Ponzi entitlement schemes.

Could money fail like it did in Joseph’s generation? The answer is yes. It’s time to get back to biblical principles for right living. A great transference of wealth is about to take place. Will it go to the wicked or to the righteous? Build your house on the rock.

(c) Jonas Clark
www.jonasclark.com

Read more: http://www.jonasclark.com/culture/the-day-money-fails.html#ixzz251tMdRYB
Copyrights (c) Jonas Clark Ministries - Permission Only 

@TPFRuth

This past weekend saw the end of the famous Tusker Project Fame, Season 5. This was one heated competition as there were several good musicians all fighting for the prize money of Kshs. 5 million. The last show on Sunday found me and my wife at home and I decided to be a dare-devil and place a bet on someone who, if they won, could have caused chaos is the whole of the Eastern Africa region.

(Fast forward to the end) At the end of it all....Ruth Matete form Kenya won the award and the whole scene was emotional - from Ruth on stage, to the audience and also into the neighborhood. Shouts could be heard from all corners, but they were definitely drowned by the ones in my house :-)

Why am I writing about this? There are certain aspects of Ruth's life in the academy that captured me and would like to share:


1. Her Talent
Ruth was one contestant who did not have to struggle to find her talent. In my opinion (and am glad this was shared by many others including the judges and faculty), Ruth knew her talent and passions and then gave it her all. I always used to wait to here her performances and would be quite distraught if I missed it.

The bible talks about gifts in Proverbs 18:16, "A man's gift makes room for him, and brings him before great men." Ruth's gift definitely has placed, and will continue to place her, before great men.

2. Her Faith
I knew from the beginning of the TPF competitions that Ruth was a Christian; but I can never forget her response after she had won the award. In her own words, echoed by Judge Ian, she said, 'Thank God' and then went on to sing 'Halleluyah' by Alexander Burke.

How many of us, after being favored and brought to a high position like that of Ruth, would remember to give thanks and acknowledgement to God for His help? Ruth reminded me of various people in the Bible who attributed their success to the Almighty God e.g. David, Solomon, King Uzziah, Daniel, Noah, etc. Whenever they were successful, they were careful to give thanks and praise to God.

3. Her Family
One evening we were sitted in a restaurant in Nairobi with my wife, chatting. She then pointed at me towards a man who was dishing out small slips of paper to people in the restaurant. Soon enough, we came to discover that this was Ruth's father and he was out there talking to people and coercing them to vote for her daughter. This was a very encouraging sight.

How many of us (as parents) believe in our children so much that we would do anything to support them? How many of us have brothers, sisters, relatives or friends in whom we believe in and give selflessly towards seeing them grow and become all that God has called them to be? I want it to be said of me that I was a number one fan to my wife and children first, then to others, as God would permit me.

Are there other lessons that you were able to draw out of the just concluded TPF Season 5?