Success Habits - The Book
We are the product of what we repeatedly do - Aristotle.I am writing a book about Success Habits. The format of the book would be to have the success habit with details on exactly what it is and variations on it. I would follow this by a short profile of someone who successfully uses the habit.
It has in intro chapter on why habits work and one on how to create habits.
I am asking for your input - either by commenting or emailing me at jimestill at gmail with some of your success habits and how they have helped you. If you are commenting and want credit, include your name and email address please.
And to get your creative juices flowing, some of my success habits include:
1 - Do the worst thing first thing. This technique is great for solving procrastination.
2 - I talk to myself or I have mantras. Things I repeat often. Some of mine are:
Successful people do tough things (When I am baulking at doing something)
What is the best use of my time right now (from Alan Lakein to keep me on the right task)
What the heck - go for it anyways (used whenever I have cold feet)
What would I like to have accomplished by the time I go to bed
Back to work (used to help me regain focus)
3 - I rise early
4 - I do not go to bed without learning one new thing
5 - I read 2-3 books per week minimum.
6 - I keep a great contact list and I try to reach out to as many as I can (even passively like this blog)
7 - I do not watch TV
Etc.
So get me your success habits and comments please.
posted by Jim Estill @ 4:57 AM 
11 Comments:
1.I track the goal till it is accomplished.
2.I always set high expectations than what need to be achieved.
Make sure to get regular exercise. This helps me focus and balance life's opportunities. I also find that it is a good time to sort through a particular challenge outside of the office.
Here are a few beliefs that enable achieving one's potential --
Time is an equal commodity. We all have twenty four hours in a day. All of us. We share this. This is a truth. Truly coming to terms with this - makes you analyze - how do I want to spend my time?
The only thing holding me back is me. I set my own limit(s). If I believe I can't do something I re-visit my fears and doubts. Fear and doubt have a role, but if they rule you, you will never achieve your goal.
My credo -- have fun, be excellent in everything you do, make others around you feel great. It has worked wonders in my career. When I don't do this, the opposite happens. That is why I believe one needs to thing about how to 'be' (esp. in the present).
I am not a victim to a broadcast TV schedule. I will watch a few things at times, but when it is time. Life is short. The average household watches between 20 - 30 hours of TV/week. It is shocking. I guess I have 20 - 30 hours more/week to be creative and practice excellence.
Have a morning ritual which grounds and centres you for the day. You'll be more productive and connected to yourself and others.
I do a few mins qi gong, a few mins sitting just "being" in the garden, followed by a few mins journalling about whatever comes to mind.
Feed your body, mind and soul with good food, plenty of water and regular sleep.
I write a to do list and stick with it. I used to focus too much on efficiently planning out my day, but I'm very ADD and find myself off task often.
To combat that, I've started focusing on finishing one task at a time, then moving to the next. It might not be as "efficient", but at least I finish things ;-)
Continually expand your creative inputs. For most of us, creativity is our greatest asset. There are many ways to expand your thinking. For example, take a class on a topic that isn't related to your day to day work. Recently, I've taken classes on rock climbing, watercolor, and drawing. Another good example is setting up a reading club with friends. Or join someone in an activity they are good at and you don't know much about. This idea isn't limited to mental activities--novelty is the point.
Great challenge, Jim. Here are some habits that have worked for me.
A little planning is good for results. I need about 10 minutes at the end of the day to review my work for the day and pick my "most important thing" for the next day.
I've had clients who do that hard thing first and others who've started their day with a sure win. Both seem to work, but for different people. My first thing is that most important thing from the night before. I do that before email or anything else.
When my Most Important Thing is done for the day, I check email and then pick what needs to be done during the rest of the day. Then I work the list.
I use Recurring Events lists to make sure the things that need to be done every day, week, month, quarter, etc get done.
I love checklists and use them to make sure that the business laundry gets done.
My goal is to have just enough structure to concentrate my efforts, but not so much that maintaining the structure takes work.
I personally feel that the key to success is to ruthlessly prune responsibilities so that you can focus solely on what you actually want to achieve. In doing so, you can constantly keep the task at hand on your "mental processor", instead of always shifting your mind between tasks. Just like with batch processing (sorry, Engineer here) you become much more efficient, creative, and potent. That said, I guess this comes at the expense of adaptability. Maybe this is why one of the best times to start a company is when you're young, when you have so few responsibilities to begin with that you can actually prune to the degree that is required to be a success.
And one other habit I forgot, which is to remember nothing and leverage technology (which is maybe why I forgot this habit in the first place!)
As soon as I think of something that needs to get done, I pull out my BlackBerry and hit the right convenience key, which takes me to my calendar. I then pick a time in the future when I expect I will be able to complete the task. I feel this has three benefits:
1) A clear mental space, as I never have to remember what needs to be done - my BB does for me.
2) No daunting to do list, as the tasks are spread out and prioritized.
3) I can re-evaluate the importance of the task in the future when I am reminded of it - sometimes I decide that it is no longer necessary.
That said, I agree with Wally in that different systems work for different people, so it is important to chose the one that works for you.
As a matter of fact, I focus all the effort on working in order to overcome the scare of no money to pay for the rent. I just want to get things done, all the other unrelated things will be set aside. All the habits useful to the task will be good for me.
I am reading Richard Bransons book -in there it amazes me each time I hear him reflect on things he'd been through early in his career that I find myself doing as a new entrepeneur- my one shared trait with Richard is the notebook of ideas -I carry one in my vehicle with me - thoughts- dreams -plans -ect ect - and as well Jims comments of "What should I be doing with my time right now" "Successful people do tough things" ( I recite this to myself each Weds as I rise extra extra early to be on time for BNI) & What the heck -( Like my $2000.00 / month local Radio adverts for my small bizz - this budget is a lot for me but I want to set myself apart) Here are a few more from me -
- Get a Business COACH
- Surround yourself with people smarter than you are
- Get involved in your community service club)(s)
- listen to books on CD in the CAR
-make & stick to a 90 day plan
- plan plan -
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