21 Great Ways to STOP Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time - Brian Tracy

does this sound familiar you set a goal

in the morning or at the beginning of

the year but when the time comes you

look back and realize that you haven't

accomplished much then you feel guilt

and shame you even start hating yourself

your self-confidence goes down and you

enter the cycle of setting goals in the

mornings and feeling guilty in the

evenings and this pattern keeps

repeating for the coming weeks months

and even years if what I just described

sounds fam amiliar then this video is

for you because today I will be

summarizing Brian Tracy's book called

eat that frog 21 great ways to stop

procrastination and get more done in

less time this is one of the most famous

and practical books about

procrastination and productivity please

keep in mind that this is a very

detailed and complete summary of the

book no book summary video can replace

reading the book itself but if there is

one video that comes close to replacing

the book then it is this one okay let's

get started and see what this frog

eating thing is all

about it's been said that if the first

thing you do each morning is to eat a

live frog you can go through the day

happily because you know that it can't

get worse than that in your case your

frog is your biggest most important task

the one you are most likely to

procrastinate on there are two rules of

frog eating number one if you you have

to eat two frogs eat the ugliest one

first this is another way of saying that

if you have two important tasks then

start with the biggest hardest and most

important task first rule number two if

you have to eat a live frog it doesn't

make sense to sit around and look at it

for very long you must develop the

routine of eating your frog before you

do anything else I know it's easier said

than done but these 21 tips will help

you to eat your frogs fast and

effectively number one set the table

before you can determine your frog and

get on with eating it you have to decide

exactly what it is you want to

accomplish in each area of your life

Clarity is the most important Concept in

personal productivity the number one

reason why some people get more work

done faster is because they are

absolutely clear about their go goals

and objectives and they don't deviate

from them the more clear you are about

what you want and what you have to do to

achieve it the easier it is for you to

overcome

procrastination a major reason for

procrastination and lack of motivation

is vagueness confusion and fuzzy

mindedness about what it is you're

supposed to do in what order and for

what reason here is a seven-step formula

for setting clear and effective goals

one decide specifically what you want

either decide for yourself or sit down

with your boss and discuss your goals

and objectives until you are absolutely

crystal clear about what is expected of

you and in what order of priority it's

amazing how many people are wasting time

day after day on low value tasks because

of a lack of clarity one of the very

worst uses of time is to do something

very well that need not be done at all

before you begin climbing up the ladder

you have to make sure that it is leaning

against the right

building two write it down the author

calls it thinking on paper think of when

you need to have an agreement with the

professional that is going to offer you

a service if you have that agreement on

paper it has a lot more value than

having it just discussed verbally in the

same way when you write your goals down

you are making an agreement with

yourself people with clear written goals

can accom accomplish 5 to 10 times as

much as others whose goals live only in

their fantasies that happens because to

write it down you need to stop and think

clearly and consciously about it writing

makes it tangible three set a deadline a

task without a deadline is something

that can be done today next month or

next year not setting a deadline for

your important goal is like telling

yourself it's okay to procrastinate on

this specific goal and prioritizing all

others

four list down everything you have to do

to achieve your goal for example if your

goal is to be healthier then the list of

things you have to do can be signing up

for a gym getting a diet plan designed

buying gym clothes Etc five organize a

list into a plan organize your list by

priority and sequence take a few minutes

to decide what you need to do first and

what you can do later decide what has to

be done before something else and what

needs to be done afterward even better

lay out your plan visually in the form

of a series of boxes and circles on a

sheet of paper you'll be amazed at how

much easier it is to achieve your goals

when you break it down into individual

tasks Six Take Action

immediately do something do anything an

average plan vigorously executed is far

better than a brilliant plan on which

nothing is done seven do something every

day to move yourself toward your major

goal even if it's a small action never

miss a day for example today you can't

do 30 push-ups as you planned it's okay

to do just 10 but don't miss a day

here's the summary of all seven tips and

also kind of an example to show you how

the end result would look like if you

did this seven-step goal setting

exercise take a clean sheet of paper

right now and write a list of 10 goals

you want to accomplish in the next year

for example you would write I earn earn

X number of dollars per month or I weigh

X number of pounds or kilos then go back

over your list of 10 goals and select

the one goal that if you achieve it

would have the greatest positive impact

on your life whatever that goal is write

it on a separate sheet of paper set a

deadline plan how you will achieve it

take action on your plan and then do

something every single day that moves

you toward that goal number two plan

every day in advance the 1090 rule says

that 10% of time used to plan your work

can save you 90% of the execution time

this means that every 10 minutes of

planning saves you 100 minutes of

execution time by setting aside 10 to 12

minutes every evening for planning you

can save up to 2 hours on execution on

your next day here's why planning is so

important have you ever tried to go

grocery shopping without a shopping list

here's what happens when I do it I buy

items I don't even like just because

they're on sale I buy things that I

still have at home and don't need to buy

yet and I forget to buy things I need

which makes me go back to the grocery

store again in a few hours or the next

day this is also what life looks like

when you don't have a good plan you do

things you don't need to be doing and

you don't do things you should be doing

so how to do the planning then planning

doesn't have to be complex all you have

to do before you go to bed is write down

the list of tasks you must complete the

next day when you do that you allow your

subconscious mind to work on the list

while you sleep and you will then wake

up with new ideas on how to achieve them

always work from the list and have

different lists not just one for example

you can have a monthly list for the

month ahead a weekly list for the week

ahead and a daily list you can also have

a master list that contains all the

possible tasks you must do number three

consider the consequences

Dr Edward Banfield from Harvard

University researched for 50 years

trying to answer one question what is

the most important factor that makes

people increase their chances to move to

a higher Social and economic class in

other words what is the one factor that

can accurately predict if you will

become rich one day or not now if you

had to guess what would you say high

levels of Education being smart wrong

the factor that can more accurately

predict if you will become rich one day

or not is seeing the world with a

long-term

perspective long-term perspective turns

out to be more important than family

background education race intelligence

connections or virtually any other

single Factor your attitude toward time

Horizon has an enormous impact on your

behavior and your choices

people who take a long view of their

lives and careers always seem to make

much better decisions about their time

and activities than people who give very

little thought to the Future successful

people have a clear future orientation

they think 5 10 and 20 years out into

the future they analyze their choices

and behaviors in the present to make

sure that they are consistent with the

longterm future that they desire so here

are two tips for you number one get

crystal clear on your long-term goals

long-term thinking improves short-term

decisionmaking number two everyday

before starting on anything you should

always ask yourself what are the

potential consequences of doing or not

doing this task think continually about

the potential consequences of your

choices decisions and behaviors if there

is a task or activity with large

potential positive consequences make it

a top priority and get started on it

immediately whatever your frog is

resolve to gulp it down first thing

number four practice creative

procrastination the truth is that you

can't do everything that you want to do

you have to procrastinate on something

the difference between High performers

and low performers is largely determined

by what they choose to procrastinate on

Creative procrastination is the act of

deliberately procrastinating on those

tasks that are of low value you can only

get your life and time under control

when you discontinue lower value

activities for you to do something new

you must stop doing something old

getting in requires getting out picking

up means putting down for example

working on small business administrative

tasks and responding to messages and

emails are the things that I

purposefully procrastinate on

yes sometimes it pisses off some people

who want a faster response from me but

it it is something I can live with

besides purposeful procrastination you

also need to continually review your

tasks to identify those that you can

abandon with no real loss very often we

keep doing things just because we have

been doing them and simply forget to ask

ourselves if it really needs to be done

I personally use these four questions

when reviewing my task number one can

this task be eliminated number two if it

can't be eliminated then can it be

systematized and automated in a way that

no work from my side is required number

three if it can't be eliminated and

can't be automated then can it be

delegated to someone else number four if

it can't be eliminated automated and

delegated then is there an alternative

way to do it so that it is faster

cheaper and more

efficient let's take going to the gym as

an example you can't eliminate exercise

you need it for a healthy life obviously

you can't delegate and automate it

either so the first three questions

cannot help you here however you can

find an alternative way which is instead

of spending 3 hours exercising in the

gym you can do a 30-minute intense full

body workout at home and finish the

whole process in an hour don't get me

wrong I'm not against going to the gym I

really like it and if I could I would

would do it for a very long time I went

to the gym three times a week but then

it got really hard to keep doing it at

some point I had to stop here's why when

I made the decision to go to the gym

three times a week I was single had no

kids and didn't have a business to run

but now the situation is different I had

major changes in my life but I kept my

old gym habit which required quite some

time if you go to the gym then you know

this well you have to pack your things

travel to the gym have a small talk with

a friend exercise have a shower have one

more small talk on the way out travel

back home unpack your things and have

rest the whole process took at least 3

hours for me on the other hand exercise

at home takes only 1 hour so to recap

this lesson first purposefully

procrastinate on low value tasks because

you can't be doing everything second

regularly review your tasks using the

above four questions in order to

eliminate delegate or improve

efficiency okay next

lesson five use the ABCDE method

continuously the author teaches a

technique to help you decide what to do

first and next when it comes to setting

your daily priorities after you list all

tasks for the next day rate each of them

using the letters a b c d and e a tasks

are those with the most serious

consequence quences if left undone and

only you can do them they are also the

items that have the most positive

consequences if done well for example

talking to a key customer or hiring an

assistant you might have more than one a

task in which case you will use A1 A2

Etc to classify them A1 is the ugliest

frog that you should eat first and so on

only after you finish your a tasks

you'll go on to B tasks which are things

you should still do but they have minor

consequences the rule is you never do a

b task if you have an a task left

undone your C tasks are the things you

want to do but have no consequences if

left undone for example phoning a friend

or chatting with a coworker are C tasks

a d task is defined as something you can

delegate to someone else the rule is you

should delegate everything that anyone

else can can do so that you can free up

more time for the a tasks that only you

can do finally e tasks are what you can

eliminate totally with no consequences

this may be a task that was important at

one time but is no longer relevant to

you or anyone else often it's something

you continue to do out of habit or

because you enjoy it always start your

day with the A1 tasks and then move on

until you're done if you realize that

your a tasks are taking so much of your

time that you never have any time left

for B's and C's maybe you need to break

your main goal into even smaller tasks

so that you don't get overwhelmed number

six focus on key result areas who

doesn't want to earn more and move up

faster at work and still many people

find it hard to perform their best ever

wonder why it's because most people

aren't sure why they're getting paid

they forget that they were hired for one

purpose to achieve a specific result the

author says that every job can be broken

down into 5 to seven key result areas

these are really important areas that

you can't ignore think of key areas as

the most vital functions of the body

like blood pressure heart rate and

respiratory rate if any of these

functions stop it leads to the death of

the organism it's the same if you don't

do well in any of these key areas you

could lose your job the key result area

is something that you are completely

responsible for if you don't do it it

won't get done for example in management

the key result areas are planning

organizing delegating supervising and

measuring if you're a small company

owner hiring the right people and

delegating effectively can be your key

results area for a receptionist or

secretary tasks like typing letters

answering calls promptly and

transferring callers efficiently Define

their key result areas here's a two-step

formula to get really good at your key

result areas earn more and get a

promotion step one Clarity is essential

identify the key result areas of your

job make a list of things you need to do

well to excel in your job grade yourself

from 1 to 10 for each area one being the

lowest and 10 being the highest grading

will allow you to see your strengths and

weaknesses then ask yourself this

question what one skill if I developed

and did it in an excellent fashion would

have the greatest positive impact on my

career look into yourself for the answer

you probably know what it is Step number

two talk to your boss about this

question and your list ask for honest

feedback listen to their advice talk to

your co-workers and your family too you

can get better when you are open to

constructive input from others one of

the major reasons for procrastination is

that people avoid jobs and activities in

those areas where they have performed

poorly in the past instead of setting a

goal and making a plan to improve most

people avoid that area altogether which

just makes the situation worse the

better you become in a particular skill

area the less you will procrastinate and

the more motivated you will be remember

your weakest key area sets the limit for

your overall

performance even if you're great in six

out of seven areas one week part can

stop your growth for example delegating

tasks is a key area for a manager if a

manager struggles with delegation it

hampers his ability to use his other

skills effectively poor delegation

skills alone can lead to job failure

number seven peretto principle right now

if you have a list of 10 10 things to do

two of those things will turn out to be

worth more than the other eight items

put together here's an interesting thing

each of these tasks may take the same

amount of time to finish but one or two

of those tasks will bring you more

results than all the others combined

this is because of the 8020 rule also

known as the parto principle you

probably know about it so we'll not go

much deeper but what it basically means

is that 20% of your activities will

account for 80% of your results 20% of

your customers will account for 80% of

your sales Etc often the task that is in

the top 20% is the frog and the sad fact

is that most people procrastinate on

those tasks they busy themselves instead

with the least important 80% which

contributes very little to results

before you begin work always ask

yourself is this task at the top 20% of

my activities resist the temptation to

clear up small things first let me

repeat never start with small things

first never say to yourself this will

only take 10 minutes so let me finish it

and then I will start on the main

task it's never 10 minutes I've tried it

many times and it always ends badly

those small tasks seem to multiply very

quickly once you finish one another one

pops up and just like that you end up

spending the most productive part of

your day on low value tasks remember

whatever you choose to do over and over

eventually becomes a habit that is hard

to break if you choose to start your day

on low value tasks you soon develop the

habit of always starting and working on

low value tasks this is not the kind of

habit you want to develop the hardest

part of any important task is getting

started on it in the first place once

you actually begin work on a valuable

task you seem to be naturally motivated

to continue there's a part of your mind

that loves to be working on significant

tasks

your job is to feed this part of your

mind

continually number eight apply the law

of three Cynthia a skeptical student had

a coaching session with the author At

first she found it hard to believe the

author's promise of doubling her income

and gaining more free time within a year

to begin the author had Cynthia list her

tasks she had 17 responsibilities which

kept her working tirelessly and

neglecting her family then the author

asked if you could focus on only one

task from this list all day long which

one would contribute the greatest value

to your company it didn't take her long

to identify the most crucial task and

circle it on her list this process was

repeated for the second and third most

valuable tasks the author proceeded to

reveal a surprising fact to Cynthia he

informed her that a staggering 90% of

her contra contribution to the company

resided within those three tasks

everything else she did was either

supportive or complimentary and could be

delegated downsized outsourced or

eliminated empowered by this realization

Cynthia approached her boss with a bold

proposition on a Friday to delegate or

Outsource all but her top three tasks

she believed this Focus could double her

contribution and she suggested that her

pay should double accordingly Cynthia's

boss after reviewing the critical tasks

gave his wholehearted agreement he

recognized their significance and

promised to support her in Outsourcing

or delegating minor responsibilities he

also pledged to double her income if she

succeeded Cynthia's dedication paid off

as within just 30 days her output and

income doubled after over 8 years of

Relentless work she managed to transform

her life now here are the two exercises

you should try number one determine the

three most important tasks in your work

ask yourself if I could do only one

thing all day long which task would

contribute the greatest value to my

career repeat this exercise two more

times once you've identified your big

three focus on them

exclusively number two identify your

three most important goals in each area

of your life organize them by priority

make plans for their accomplishment and

work on your plans every single day

number nine prepare thoroughly before

you begin think of the time when you

prepare a meal you start by gathering

all the ingredients and placing them on

the kitchen table then step by step you

start putting the meal together

similarly the more organized and tidy

your workspace the easier it is to start

and stay focused on your goals so begin

by clearing your desk or workspace

focusing on one task at a time put

everything else aside collect all the

necessary information reports and

materials needed in order to start

working and continue working until the

job is done here are the two exercises

that will help you prepare thoroughly

one take a good look at your desk or

office both at home and at work ask

yourself what kind of a person Works in

an environment like this the cleaner and

neater your work environment the more

positive productive and confident you

will feel two resolve today to clean up

your desk and office completely so that

you feel effective efficient and ready

to get going each time you sit down to

work number 10 take it one oil barrel at

a time the author once crossed the

Sahara Desert a 500 Mile 85 km stretch

with no water food plants or animals

many people had died trying to cross it

before getting lost in the darkness or

buried by shifting Sands to help

Travelers the French placed black oil

drums every 5 km along the Route during

the day you could always see two drums

the one you just passed and the one 5 km

ahead by focusing on the next drum the

author successfully crossed the desert

taking it one oil barrel at a

time this same approach applies to

achieving a great goal instead of

overwhelming yourself

break your goal into small steps and

focus on one task at a time here are two

exercises you must try number one select

any goal task or project in your life on

which you have been procrastinating and

make a list of all the steps you'll need

to take to complete it number two then

take just one step immediately sometimes

all you need to do to get started is to

sit down and complete one item on the

list and then do one more and so on you

will be amazed at what you eventually

accomplish number 11 upgrade your key

skills you probably did this in school

if there was a class that you were

really good at you always attended that

class and actually enjoyed it however

you always procrastinated and found

excuses not to attend the class you were

really bad at we do the exact same thing

with our tasks we procrastinate on the

ones that we are bad at the solution is

to get better at those tasks that are

crucial for your success but you

procrastinate on them a lot the better

you get the more likely you are to dive

in right away upgrading your skills is

one of the key factors for productivity

there are three steps to mastering new

skills one read at least 30 minutes

every day two convert your traveling

time to Learning Time by listening to

audiobooks or podcasts as you drive or

commute three take all the courses and

seminars you can find the more you learn

the more confident and motivated you'll

feel and the less you will

procrastinate number 12 identify your

key constraints let me ask you a

question you already have several

important goals and you've been working

on them quite a while now why haven't

you reached them yet here's the thing

between where you are today and any goal

or objective that you want to accompl

Lish there is one major constraint

bottleneck or choke point that is

stopping you your job is to identify it

clearly what is it that's holding you

back what sets the speed at which you

achieve your goals what determines how

fast you move from where you are to

where you want to go why aren't you at

your goal

already regardless of what your goal is

there is always a limiting factor that

determines the speed your primary job is

to identify that limiting factor then

concentrate all your mental energies on

eliminating that one key factor this can

be the most productive use of your time

and talents this constraint may be a

person whose help or decision you need a

resource that you require a weakness in

some part of the organization or

something else but the limiting factor

is always there and it is always your

job to find it the 8020 rule also

applies to the constraints in your life

and in your work this means that 80% of

the constraints the factors that are

holding you back from achieving your

goals are internal they're within

yourself within your own personal

qualities abilities habits disciplines

or

competencies or they are contained

within your own company only 20% are on

the outside in the form of competition

markets governments or other organiz

organizations you must have the courage

and honesty to look deeply into yourself

for the limiting skills keep asking

yourself what sets the speed at which I

get the results I want once you found

the answer dedicate all your time to

resolving that limiting factor the time

dedicated to solving it will be the best

use of your time number 13 put the

pressure on yourself when you were a

child all you did did was just play and

have fun your parents ran behind you all

the time to make sure you were doing the

important things such as eating the

right food or studying now you're an

adult and nobody's collecting behind you

or directing you in the right direction

many people in the world never leave

this childhood mode they're waiting for

someone to come along and Inspire them

to become the person they want to be but

the problem is no one's coming to rescue

them these people are like waiting for a

bus on a Street where No Buses go only

about 2% of people can work entirely

without supervision we call these people

leaders this is the kind of person you

can be if you decide to to reach your

full potential you must form the habit

of putting pressure on yourself and not

waiting for someone else to come along

and do it for you you must choose your

own frogs and then make yourself eat

them raise the standards on yourself

make a game of starting a little earlier

working a little harder and staying a

little later the main benefit you'll get

from that is a boost in your

self-esteem psychologist Nathaniel

Brandon defines self-esteem as the

reputation you have with yourself

everything you do builds up or pulls

down your reputation you build up or

pull down your reputation with yourself

with everything you do or or fail to do

the good news is that you feel better

about yourself whenever you push

yourself to do your best you increase

your self-esteem whenever you go beyond

the point where the average person would

normally quit here are two tips to

increase pressure on yourself one set

deadlines and sub deadlines on every

task you do create your own forcing

system once you set yourself a deadline

stick to it and even try to beat it two

plan out all the steps of a big project

and estimate how many minutes and hours

you need for each step then try to beat

your own deadlines make it a game and

try to win number 14 motivate yourself

into action imagine that inside of you

there's a power switch that determines

whether you're motivated or demotivated

energized or not wouldn't it be awesome

to actually have something like that

well the good news is that you already

have it and it's not coffee your power

switch is the way you interpret the

events in your life and talk to yourself

your version of events largely

determines whether these events motivate

or demotivate you to keep yourself

motivated you must resolve to become a

complete Optimist if you tend to be a

pessimistic person this might make you

roll your eyes but I'm not talking about

becoming a person who puts on a fake

smile and fake confidence all the time

and tells himself positive affirmations

while feeling miserable and insecure

deep down

inside instead think of optimism as a

practical tool to overcome negative

thoughts and skepticism that hold you

back here are six tips number one refuse

to complain about your problems keep

them to yourself 80% of people don't

care about your problems anyway and the

other 20% are kind of glad you've got

them in the first place number two look

for the good good in every situation no

matter what goes wrong optimists always

look for something good or beneficial

and not surprisingly they always seem to

find it number three always look for the

solution to every problem instead of

blaming or complaining when things go

wrong optimists become action oriented

they ask questions like what's the

solution what can we do now what's the

next step number four optimists think

and talk continually about their goals

they think about what they want and how

to get it they think and talk about the

future and where they're going rather

than the past and where they came from

they're always looking forward rather

than backward number five seek the

valuable lesson in every setback or

difficulty optimists believe that

difficulties come to teach us something

and take us to a better place we often

wish that everything would go smoothly

in life and we wouldn't face

difficulties and problems but that kind

of life would probably be miserable

you're in a better place today because

of the problems that you faced yesterday

author Naval ravikant says thank God we

didn't get that first promotion or got

rejected by that girl in high school

otherwise we would be married to the

first girl or boy we liked and still

work in McDonald's at our first job

number six always watch your thoughts

and don't go behind chasing the negative

ones just because you have a thought

doesn't mean that it's true negative

thoughts are much stronger than positive

ones you've seen this yourself for

example when something positive happens

you feel good for a few minutes or maybe

a few hours and then you're back to

normal but when something negative

happens it lasts days and sometimes

weeks so when that negative thought

comes don't let it pass watch your mind

as a bodyguard standing at the entrance

of the room and deciding who enters and

who doesn't remember you have a choice

and you are not a slave to your

mind 15 develop a sense of urgency don't

wait the time will never be just right

start where you stand and work with

whatever tools you may have at your hand

and better tools will be found as you go

along waiting for the right time is just

another way to waste time when I was in

high school I said to myself you know I

have many subjects to study now for the

University entrance exam but when I

start University I will finally exercise

regularly guess what I was even busier

at University I kept delaying it to find

the right time but the right time never

came if you are not doing it now you

will probably never do it because there

will always be something important to do

highly productive people take the time

to think plan and set prior priorities

they then launch quickly toward their

goals and work on them continuously so

whatever important goal you are

postponing right now start working on it

and create a sense of urgency by setting

a deadline when you create a time

constraint it ignites a fire within you

and puts you in a flow State the urgency

fuels your focus and productivity each

time you complete a task you gain

momentum according to the momentum

principle although it may take

tremendous amounts of energy to get

started initially it takes far less

energy to keep going it's like riding a

bicycle you need to Pedal harder to get

started but once you gain speed it

requires only a little bit of effort and

things get easier 16 Focus your

attention where your attention goes your

life follows some people believe that

they can engage in multitasking going

back and forth between trivial and

important tasks but that is an illusion

people can focus only on one thing at a

time when you think you're multitasking

what you're actually doing is called

task shifting you are shifting your

attention back and forth why is this a

problem well after an interruption it

takes about 17 minutes for you to shift

your total attention back to your task

and continue working isn't that the

biggest time waster this is precisely

why so many people today are working

harder and harder but getting less and

less accomplished the solution is pretty

simple and it can double your

productivity first plan each day in

advance and select your most important

task second eliminate distractions leave

your phone in another room turn off the

notifications and lock the door if you

have to third start on the task first

thing in the morning before you do

anything else then work nonstop for 90

minutes with no distractions give

yourself a 15-minute break after that

time start again and work another 90

minutes finally after this 3-hour work

period you can then reward yourself 90

minutes is the time suggested by the

author other authors suggest a shorter

working time of 25 to 30 minutes with a

5minute break I recommend you test both

strategies and see what works for you

for me personally 25 and five model

works the best most of the time however

for Creative tasks such as writing

scripts for these videos I use 50

minutes work and 10 minutes rest Model

17 slice and dice the

task sometimes big tasks can feel

overwhelming and lead to procrastination

to overcome this you use two techniques

the salami slice and swiss cheese

methods with the salami slice method

break down the task into smaller steps

map out the task in detail dividing it

into small smaller parts and writing

down every step in order then commit to

completing just one slice at a time this

approach makes it psychologically easier

to start and finish a small part of the

task once you begin and complete one

slice you'll often feel motivated to

continue eventually completing the

entire job this is like eating an

elephant one bite at a time remember we

humans have an innate urge for

completion finishing tasks gives us a

sense of happiness and empowerment each

completed task triggers the release of

endorphins providing us with more

personal power and energy another

technique you can use is called the

Swiss cheese method of working you use

this technique to get yourself into gear

by resolving to punch a hole in the task

like a hole in a block of Swiss cheese

you work on a task for a specific time

period even as short as 5 or 10 minutes

after that take a break or switch to

another task

similar to the salami slice method

starting and making progress on a task

builds momentum generates a sense of

accomplishment and keeps you motivated

to continue until it's finished you

should try the salami slice or the Swiss

cheese method on any task that seems

overwhelming when you approach it for

the first time 18 single handle every

task this means once you begin you keep

working on the task without distraction

until until it's 100% complete starting

and stopping a task can increase the

time needed to complete it by as much as

500% this is because starting a task is

usually the hardest part and when you

start and stop you have to deal with

that initial resistance multiple times

and lose momentum by concentrating

single-mindedly on your most important

task you can reduce the time required to

complete it by 50% or more

starting a high priority task and

persisting until it is 100% complete is

the true test of your character the more

you discipline yourself to persist on a

major task the more you will respect

yourself and the higher your self-esteem

will be and the higher your self-esteem

the easier it is for you to discipline

yourself to persist even more by

focusing clearly on your most valuable

task and concentrating

single-mindedly until it is is 100%

complete you actually shape your own

character you become a superior person

you feel stronger more competent more

confident and happier you feel more

powerful and productive you eventually

feel capable of setting and achieving

any goal you become the master of your

own

destiny number 19 create large chunks of

time nothing can add more power to your

life than concentrating all of your

energies on a limited set of targets 2

hours of fully focused work on one task

is better than 8 hours of work in a

noisy office where you are working on

multiple tasks the key to the success of

this method is to plan in advance to

block a fixed amount of time on your

calendar for example every day in the

morning from 10:00 a.m. until 10:30 I

will be brainstorming on how to improve

my business or I will read for 15

minutes every night before I go to to

bed these time blocks are appointments

you are making with yourself you would

never be late for a meeting with an

important person treat these meetings in

the same way 20 technology is a terrible

Master a journalist for Fortune Magazine

once wrote that when he arrived back at

the office after a two-e European

Vacation he had more than 700 emails

waiting for him he realized that it

would take him a week to get through

them all before starting on important

projects

for the first time in his career he took

a deep breath and punched the delete all

button erasing those 700 emails forever

he then got busy with the projects that

were really important to him and his

company his explanation was simple I

realized that just because somebody

sends me an email it does not mean that

they own a piece of my life although not

many people would delete their entire

inbox or all the social apps you can

definitely delete and ignore more than

you think you might ask but don't you

have to stay plugged into technology to

keep current with the news the answer is

no if it's really important someone will

tell you many people unplug from the

news and surprisingly enough they

remained well informed on the most

important subjects here are two things

you can do for the start number one turn

off your computer and smartphone for 1

hour in the morning and 1 hour in in the

afternoon number two dedicate one full

day each week to unplugging technology

by the end of your digital detox your

mind will be calm and clear and your

mental batteries will be

recharged 21 technology is a wonderful

servant there are six ways to regain

control of your digital workspace and

improve your productivity number one

clear your digital workspace treat it

like your physical desk close any

programs that are not needed for your

current task block websites that

distract you the most only keep open the

communication channels that are

necessary for completing your task

number two take charge of your

smartphone disable all notifications

both Visual and audio on your smartphone

number three emergency communication if

you have responsibilities for young

children elderly parents or disabled

relatives it may not be feasible to

completely unplug from technology in

such cases create a separate phone

number email address or Communication

channel that only the caretaker of your

loved one knows about leave that channel

open for emergencies only number four

segment your communication channels to

maintain Focus divide your communication

channels for work provide your boss or

key clients with a specific contact

method that others don't have access to

number five manage your C calendar don't

automatically accept digital invitations

instead assess if the invitation aligns

with your priorities before accepting it

schedule dedicated blocks of time for

task completion in your calendar

treating them as important appointments

by having a busy calendar others will be

motivated to schedule shorter meetings

with you number six utilize digital

to-do lists use digital task management

software or to-do lists to take control

of your your

time conclusion putting it all together

one set the table decide exactly what

you want Clarity is essential write out

your goals and objectives before you

begin two plan every day in advance

think on paper every minute you spend in

planning can save you 5 or 10 minutes in

execution three consider the

consequences your most important tasks

and priorities are those that can have

the most serious consequences positive

or negative on your life or work focus

on these Above All Else four practice

creative procrastination since you can't

do everything you must learn to

deliberately put off those tasks that

are of low value so that you have enough

time to do the few things that really

count five use the ABCDE method

continually before you begin work on a

list of tasks take a few moments to

organize them by value and priority so

you can be sure of working on your most

most important activities six focus on

key result areas identify those results

that you absolutely positively have to

get to do your job well and work on them

all day long seven apply the 8020 rule

to everything 20% of your activities

will account for 80% of your results

always concentrate your efforts on that

top

20% eight apply the law of three

identify the three things you do in your

work that account for 90% of your

contribution and focus on getting them

done before anything else you will then

have more time for your family and

personal life nine prepare thoroughly

before you begin have everything you

need at hand before you start assemble

all the papers information tools work

materials and numbers you might require

so that you can get started and keep

going 10 take it one barrel at a time

you can accomplish the biggest and most

complicated job if you just complete it

one step at a time 11 upgrade your key

skills the more knowledgeable and

skilled you become at your key tasks the

faster you start them and the sooner you

get them done determine exactly what it

is that you are very good at doing or

could be very good at and throw your

whole heart into doing those specific

things very very

well 12 identify your key constraints

determine the bottlenecks or choke point

internal or external that set the speed

at which you achieve your most important

goals and focus on alleviating them 13

put the pressure on yourself imagine

that you have to leave town for a month

and work as if you had to get your major

task completed before you left 14

motivate yourself into action be your

own cheerleader look for the good in

every situation focus on the solution

rather than the problem always be

optimistic and constructive

15 develop a sense of urgency make a

habit of moving fast on your key tasks

become known as a person who does things

quickly and well 16 Focus your attention

stop the interruptions and distractions

that interfere with completing your most

important tasks 17 slice and dice the

task break large complex tasks down into

bite-sized pieces and then do just one

small part of the task to get started

18 single handle every task set clear

priorities start immediately on your

most important task and then work

without stopping until the job is 100%

complete this is the real key to high

performance and maximum personal

productivity 19 create large chunks of

time organize your days around large

blocks of time so you can concentrate

for extended periods on your most

important tasks 20 technology is a

terrible Master take back your time from

enslaving technological addictions learn

to often turn devices off and leave them

off 21 technology is a wonderful servant

use your technological tools to confront

yourself with what is most important and

protect yourself from what is least

important