Bit By Bit, Chapter By Chapter

Last week I officially launched my first book.

Looking back there was a point when the goal of actually writing my book seemed like a distant dream, something almost too big to possibly contemplate. Deciding what to put in the book, finding a publisher, finding the time(!) to write, getting the chapters together and going through the process of getting it into print. One of those many things that you say to yourself - “One day …” as a delaying tactic because it just seems too much to think about or you’re just too busy.

I was lucky enough to be approached and actually asked to write the book by a publisher. However, there were still times when my resolve was wavering and I wondered if I’d actually complete it. There was a certain element of not looking at the end result, which seemed like a huge task and just focusing on getting the next chapter written and sometimes even that seemed almost overwhelming, as I starred at a blank computer screen waiting for the words to come. Again, just spending a few minutes writing down bullet points and random thoughts meant that slowly but surely they developed into something coherent that took shape on the page and four months later ended up in a printed, yellow and black book with my name on it. :)

If you’re not the sort of person that plunges into new projects with enormous determination, motivation and energy, set your goal and just focus on taking one step at a time.

Slowly but surely you’ll make progress towards your goal.

Write It Down

I’m reasonably good with dates and generally have a good idea of what’s happening when but it's a lot easier if I write everything down. Usually it’s the personal stuff that needs to get done during the day that I’m more likely to forget, if I don’t have it written down on my list of actions for the day.

I might think I’ll remember something but if I've written it down I don’t have to worry about forgetting it. I’ve often thought "Oh, I’ll remember that" until I can get back home or get back to my computer but invariably there’s so much going on or I get distracted and before I know it – I can’t for the life of me remember what that important piece of information was that I needed to remember. So, now I write things down – phone numbers, people I meet, appointments, things I need to do.

Unless you’ve got a photographic memory or a finally honed brain that can remember ten decks of playing cards at a time or recall the entire contents of your phone book, it makes sense to write every thing down. Carry a notebook with you – write down ideas, thoughts, things to-do when you think of them rather than missing the moment, or use your mobile's text msg or notes function. There’s nothing more frustrating than having a blinding idea or remembering something important when you’re busy doing something else, only to have it disappear from your mind when you’re back in the office or back at home.

Tips on improving you memory later ...

Information Overload

With so much information bombarding us from all directions we can’t possibly give our attention to everything that goes on around us but we feel that we may be missing out if we don’t, therefore we join every new group, we sign up to every social networking site going and we register for every newsletter, magazine and free piece of information that’s out there in case we miss out on some golden nugget of information that’s going to make a huge difference to our life.

I don’t know how many newsletters I’ve subscribed to over time but it’s a lot – now I know which one’s I like, which one’s I find useful and which one’s suit my style of working. There’s nothing wrong in unsubscribing from those you don’t either have time to read, or no longer find useful. We also have blogs, in fact there are hundreds, thousands out there – all of which you could end up subscribing to.

But when are we going to find time to take in all this additional information, read all these newsletters, blogs, contribute to all the discussion groups, attend all the network meetings? Don’t even attempt to. Fit what you can into the time you have available without pushing more important tasks to one side. Choose the ones that matter, one’s that are interesting and useful and don’t worry about the rest.

Remember Pareto’s principle … 80% of the information you need is contained in only 20% of what’s in your inbox!

Keep It Simple

One of the things I find happening more and more, is doing less and less. Not necessarily for myself but for many of the clients I work with.

Although we’d all like to be more efficient and do more with our day, because of course we always have so much to do, what we actually need to do is less, so rather than increase someone’s efficiency so that you can actually fit in all the hundred and one things

The trouble with living a busy, hectic lifestyle and either running your own business or working in a busy organisation is that we often take on too much. We say yes to everything. We try to not only have it all but do it all. No wonder there are so many people stressed out, overwhelmed, worked out and running round trying to catch up with themselves, with never a minute to spare.

Try doing less. Stop doing things that you really don’t have time for. If you have a tendency to take on too much and then underestimate how long it’s going to take, halve the amount of things you say yes to. Apply this to both your business and personal life and start to really enjoy more time.

Holiday Intentions

The schools here go back this week and many people are now back from holiday. If you’ve managed to get away for a few days break or even had your summer (what summer) holiday – did you managed to take some time out while you were away?

I’ve often found that holidays can be a great opportunity to not only take a break from your business or job but to think about the things that are really important to you, spending time with family and friends who you don’t have as much time for when the nose is to the grindstone, time to exercise and eat more healthily … or perhaps not if you’ve been over indulging. When we get a chance to get away from our day-to-day routine, it can be a lot easier to take a few steps back and step off the treadmill for a while. As well as New Year, holidays can be a time when we decide to make changes to our lives – whether it’s to exercise more, work fewer hours, go for a career change or get a promotion. The trouble is that when you get back to work and back into the daily routine, it’s easy to quickly forget all the good intentions, as the memory of the holiday quickly fades.

Write them down, before you forget them (see Getting Accountable – 18th Aug). Even if they’re not something you’re in a position to do anything about right away, there are probably one or two small things you could do now to make a difference or at least get you moving in the right direction. If you want to get fit – book time for exercise in your dairy. If you want to work fewer hours – commit to a starting and finishing time and stick to it.

Another opportunity for change. Don’t let the enthusiasm and intention fade away without trace.