Patience and Persistence

I love doing sudoku puzzles ever since I discovered them at the beginning of last year, I’ve found them intriguing and compelling. Nothing to do with mathematics but more to do with logic. I have a number lying around incomplete, that I pick up every now and then and spot something I hadn’t seen before. It pays to take a step back from what you’re doing – do something different for a while and then come back. You’ll see things differently and with a fresh look.

Some of the puzzles I decided were too difficult, beyond my skills and didn’t even attempt them. I’ve been having a bit of a blitz recently so I’ve built up from the moderate to the difficult and now I find even doing the fiendish or hard ones do-able. When I started, I used to find the moderate ones difficult. We all have to start somewhere with something new and the more practice we get the better we become.

So whatever you want to learn – start it now, practice, practice and keep practicing, then surprise yourself at how far you’ve come in a year's time.

Like the sudoku - stick at it, don’t give up and in the end with patience and persistence, you’ll work it out.

An added bonus of course, is that it's good for your mental agility, so if you'd like to give sudoku a go try it here http://www.sudoku.com/.

Focus Day - Get More Done

I had a couple of days last week where I was discussing getting things done and how we often put things off or let them build up. This is something I often work on with clients so I thought I’d share the process with you.

If you’ve got a bunch of work that you’d like to get done, then why not team up with a friend or colleague and work together.

Pick a time when you can both commit to a few hours in a day. Make a list of what you want to get done. It can be one major task or lots of small ones. Perhaps a project you want to complete or jobs around the house you need to get done.

List them out and if possible think about how long they’re going to take or the maximum amount of time you’re going to spend on them. For example:

· Catch up on Emails (30 mins)
· Complete a report (2 hrs)
· Update client files (1 hr)
· Clear filing (30 mins)
· Tidy office/living room … (30 mins)

Set a start and end time and then call each other on the hour, every hour. The call needs to be brief and should last no more than 5 minutes. Say what you’re going to get done in the next hour. Hang up and go do it.

Call back an hour later, report how you’ve done and what you’re going to do next. Don’t forget to keep it brief!

You’ll be amazed at how much you get done and how much energy it creates.

If you want to try this out for yourself, then why not join one of my Focus Days once a month.

9/11

It's one of those world-changing events that you remember where you were when it happened.

I was in the US at the time. A friend and I were away on holiday and had been camping in Canyonlands, Utah for a few days. We were on our way out to the next place and had stopped off at the campsite shop. People were standing around staring at the TV screen - obviously in shock, saying "they're both gone”. By this time both towers had already collapsed, as we were a couple of hours behind. They were just repeating over and over again the only footage they had. Repeating the little news they had, on every channel as it was all they could do.

We both had friends and colleagues who worked in one of the nearby office buildings, so there was concerned for their safety, until we finally heard they were OK. It was all shocking and very emotional. People desperately searching for their loved ones. Joy and tears when they were found, grief and desperation when they weren't.

Watching the documentaries and reruns this week - it's still terrible to be reminded of the loss of life and tragedy of the day. For the 2,749 lives that were lost. Their families, friends and colleagues whose lives were changed forever.

Five years after the event - what changed for you?

Switch Off!

How many hours a week do you work – no really … how many or don’t you know? I’m the first one to admit that I often sit working on my laptop in the evening and spend the evening responding to emails or more often, catching up on posts and discussions on this network.

Listening to comments from others and some of the postings here - it's obvious that some people and I'll put my hand up here too, are spending far too much time letting work take over or feeling compelled to put in long hours just to keep up.

If you work for yourself or work from home, it doesn't mean you shouldn't have a structure to your work routine and schedule your working hours accordingly. It's your time, you make the choice as to how you spend it. What could you be doing instead?

I know things might be busy this week, especially if you’ve just got back from holiday. You’ll be catching up on work but don’t let it take over. Make sure you’re finishing work at a reasonable time each evening. Spend your time relaxing before you go to bed and set some boundaries around those emails and postings.

If you have one of those Blackberries or similar, I’m giving you permission to switch it off! Yes, really. The world won’t end just because you don’t answer that email at 11.30pm … or even worse 2.00am.

What could you do this week to spend a few less hours working and take a few more hours for yourself?

If you'd like to find out how - contact me for a free consulation.