Do It Right The First Time
Back when I was 13 years old, working away for $3.10 per hour at the local garden center, one of my tasks was to take the empty flats (the plastic container in which you get your petunias) and stack them up in an old warehouse until they were needed again…
This Past Weekend…
On any given day, most of us dedicate time to our children, spouses, careers, friends, charities, churches, parents, siblings, clients, household activities, and, oh yeah, if there is a little extra time left in the day, ourselves. So why is it that only a select few of us can make…
Are You Using Up Your Life in Service of Your Business?
As a professional service provider, I’m guessing that you enjoy pretty good profit margins in your business. I know that, for me, past some small overhead in the form of technology infrastructure, and some marketing expenses, my service business is virtually all profit. So pretty much everything I make, I…
Five Minutes is All It Takes
In order to squeeze the most productivity out of your day – so that you have the satisfaction of accomplishment, rather than the dreaded feeling of another ‘lost day’ – you really need to have a plan. And the plan not only shows you what you should be doing, but…
Even Better than the One Word Solution
One of the most common questions I get about goal setting is: “Okay, I’ve mapped my goal but how do I make progress? I do well for a couple days but then I fall off track.” It’s actually pretty simple if you implement these two practices: deadlines and accountability. Now…
Get More Done and Have More Time For Living
As you progress through life and your business grows, it’s natural that some messes will accumulate in your life. We define a “mess” as an obligation you’re not committed to. You can remember this as “M = O – C,” or “Mess equals Obligation minus Commitment.” Common messes entrepreneurs experience…
Everything You Do Takes You Here
A friend of mine in the fitness industry is a legendary Scottish personal trainer named Alwyn Cosgrove. He moved to New York in the 90’s, built up a large personal training business, met his wife, and moved to California to open a gym in 2000. He’s a real no-nonsense guy,…
A Foreign Concept for the American Dream
On a beautiful Saturday morning in the spring of 2005 I woke up at 6:30am and quickly prepared for the short subway ride to the gym. Every weekend I’d meet one of my favorite personal training clients at 8am for his workout. That morning, like so many Saturdays before, a…
Power of One Word
It’s amazing the excuses we come up with to avoid taking action. Recently, on my Internet Independence website, I held a “before and after” business transformation contest. Entrants had to show how their business grew over six weeks. They could have shown a growth in email list size or sales.…
How to Find More Time
“It’s time to clean your company’s proverbial hallway closets and garages.” Like the classic movie “Ground Hog Day,” many employees experience work as one recurring nightmare after another – same old stuff, just a different day! And recurrent mistakes and problems eat up over 40% of your people’s time and…
Politically-Incorrect Time Management Tips
On Thursday afternoon, me and my ol’ pup, Bally the Dog went for a short walk outside on the farm, down to the river for him to cool off with a swim. It’s been a little hot up here in southern Ontario, with temperatures flirting with 100 degrees. Add in…
Four Common Time Obstacles
Time is limited (we do, after all, have 24 hours in a day), so it’s not uncommon to feel apprehensive as the minutes tick away. Many people let that apprehension overwhelm them, which puts their success at risk. That’s why, today, I want to talk about four common time obstacles.…