Want More Free Time? Try These Tips.

DoMyStuff.com If you want to have more time for important things, you must learn to delegate or move through your to-do-list quickly. DoMyStuff.com is a marketplace where you can post your chores, errands and projects within your zip code and others will bid on them. Whether it is house sitting while you are on vacation, shoveling snow in your driveway or preparing that spreadsheet for your next meeting; you select the qualifications for the bidders and when the work is finished you provide feedback on the quality of the service you received. If you are in need of some extra income, it is also a great site to find work.

Stop Mutitasking
While you may think you are good at doing a lot of things at once, study has shown that the only time we can effectively multitask is when we are doing things that do not require thought. Things like; walking and talking, eating and reading or singing and taking a shower for example. When we do multiple things at one time we are actually slicing time, handling one task at a time and then quickly bouncing to another. Not only are we bouncing physically from task to task, we are also bouncing mentally; causing our mind to rapidly move between tasks, focusing and refocusing. When this happens study has shown that we lose .07 seconds for every shift in focus. This lost time adds up quickly and the likelihood of errors increases by 50 percent according to the Brain Center for Applied Learning Research.
The best way to stay focused is to schedule blocks of time for each task and remove as many distractions as possible. Turn off the ‘You’ve got mail” notifier, put your phone on silent, and hang a do not disturb sign on the door are but a few. Stay focused on one task until completion and then move on to the next.
Focused periods of work reduce stress and improve effectiveness. People who “Push” their brain in an attempt to get more done usually experience more anxiety and stress than those who stay focused. This behavior also often leads to increased anger and depression which may also contribute to stress in your relationships.

Get Some Mid Day Rest. A NASA study showed that a 26 minute nap improved pilot’s performance by 34%. Taking a ‘Power Nap” may give your brain and body the time it needs to reenergize; making you more productive and efficient. A word of caution; Make sure you get permission from your boss before implementing this tip otherwise it may back fire on you if they hear you snoring in the middle of the day.

Quick tips:

• Buy all the same socks of each color and you will no longer have to spend time matching them. Just grab any 2 white, black or brown and they will work.
• Clean out your wallet every evening. Looking for the receipt from last week that fell out at the video store is a waste of time.
• Get a coffee pot that has a timer, make it the night before and set it to brew 15 minutes before you get up. You are usually slower and more apt to make mistakes when you first wake up. Besides; smelling that coffee first thing in the morning is a great way to get you out of bed.

Do you have any time saving tips? How about leaving them in the comment section for others to pick up?

Recommended Reading: Eat That Frog by Brian Tracy. 21 great ways to end procrastination and get more done in less

In the meantime
Make it a Great Week!

Bob

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The 80/20 rule! Which side are you on?

My last post was about making sure we take responsibility for our life and the direction it heads. Today I want to share the Pareto Principle with you. You may know this as the 80/20 rule. 8o% of the world’s wealth is held by 20% of the population. It can also be applied in this manner; 80% of the joy and success in our life comes from only 20% of our efforts. Think about the amount of time you put into your relationships, your joyful activities, hobbies and service to others; the things that make your life significant and meaningful. Then think about how much time you put into cleaning, finding things, playing games when you have work to do, non profitable discussions, TV shows and the like. Most people will see Pareto’s principle applied here as well.

Your Life is Your Fault!

Achieving success may be simple but it is rarely easy. One of the best but most difficult traits a person can develop is one of personal responsibility. Think of how much you fault other people or circumstances for keeping you from achieving the level of success, health and happiness you desire.

Unless you are willing to stop blaming others for your lack of success you will never achieve it. Blame does nothing to help you move forward and everything to justify staying in your present condition.
You may not have been responsible for some of the events you have experienced, but how you respond during and especially after the event is entirely on your shoulders.

Collect Friends and Memories, Not Stuff!

This is a repost from an earlier blog that I felt was worth sharing to all of my new subscribers. Enjoy.

I have moved quite a bit in my 51 years; at last count it was 16 times. The last few years have been getting a little easier because with each move comes another yard sale and a trip to Goodwill where we sell or give away all of the excess stuff we have accumulated. If we didn’t clear out the excess we would need a 4,000 square foot house with a three car garage by now. Lately though I have been trying to live a simpler life and recommend everyone try it. Not only does it leave you with a lot more money in your pocket at the end of the month, it is easier on your mind and it gives you the time to do what you really love. It is amazing how much better one feels when they get rid of the clutter in their life. Remember that feel you get right after cleaning up the yard, house, car or workbench? Imagine how it would feel if your entire life was clean and organized. Here are a few tips to get started.

Eagles and Turkeys Don’t Flock Together.

“You can’t soar with the eagles if you’re spending all your time with the turkeys”

It’s been written that if I were to examine the lives of 5 of your closest friends I could probably describe your life pretty accurately. People tend to fellowship with those that have a very similar lifestyle. They shop at the same type of stores, their income brackets are usually very close, they have similar hobbies and they even tend to eat at the same kind of restaurants. While in and of itself this is not bad, it does tend to pose a problem for those wanting to separate themselves from the rest of the pack and move upward. Even though friends and co-workers can do a pretty good job of keeping us where we are at they do very little in the way of assisting us up the ladder.

Simplifying Success on the Job

I have read a few statistics that say the average worker in America is only productive for 4 hours out of the typical 8 hour day. At first I denied the validity of those figures; that is until I did some investigating myself. It seems that the other 4 hours is spent being on hold, in non-productive meetings, waiting for someone, daydreaming, in non-work related conversation, reading non-work related magazines, surfing the internet for non-work related information and sending and reading personal email.

If you want to stop staying late or taking work home and put yourself in a position for advancement and/or a raise, you must make sure you are as productive as possible at work.

Love Life, Not Stuff!

People are in love with stuff. They love shopping, buying things and collecting things; whether they need them or not. Far too many people have become obsessed with having more, bigger and better things and this obsession with stuff has become unhealthy.

When we have a void in our lives, we buy things. When we are depressed, we buy things. When we have problems, we buy things. When we want to show someone we love them, we buy things. When we want to impress someone, we buy things. And these things are becoming more and more expensive, bigger, shinier and in many cases more wasteful.

First Steps to a Simplified Life

After reading a few comments on my quest to stop the busyness and begin to live a more enjoyable simplified life I find that I need to expand my definition of what a simplified, less busy life is to me and exactly what I will be quitting.

A simplified life is where I identify what is most important to me and then do my best to make sure I spend the majority of my time and money achieving and maintaining those things.
Getting rid of the busyness is identifying and eliminating (or quitting) as many of the tasks and purchases I make that will bring stress or distance between me and the items I deem most important.