3 Tools to Manage Your Life Like A Boss

Feeling stressed or crazed because there's too much to do and not enough time to get it all done?

Our 24/7 world is taking a toll.

But if you’re ready to work smarter rather than longer or harder, I have 3 simple ways you can begin to do that RIGHT NOW.

Sound good?

1. The One Thing

This particular one has been my mantra for the past few years. It’s based on Gary Keller’s bestselling book of the same name.

He asks you to answer this question (and I’m paraphrasing), “What’s the 1 thing that if you do it, it will change your business/life?”

It might sound crazy, but I dare you to try it. 

When I did, I got an answer and it’s been the SAME for 3 years now!

What I like about this is that it gives you a focus, an orientation so you're 100% clear about where you’re going.

2. Take Action

Alright, so now that you know that ONE thing you need to do to move the needle in your life -be it your relationships, health, finance or in your business- the next question is, what action or actions can you take to move toward that goal?

Try and think of 3.

It’s okay if you only think of 1. 

Because when you’ve completed it, then you can do another one!

Here's an example: Let’s say you’ve decided the 1 thing you have to do is find a life partner. 

As you dive into that, you may discover that what you really want is to feel loved, connected and happy. So, instead of making your one thing finding a partner, it shifts to being happy.

So, what's an action step you can take right now to help you to feel more connected, loved and happy?

See how it works?

3. Prioritize

I’m a firm believer in less is more and that if you focus on the few key things, the rest takes care of itself. 

Some people call this the 80/20 rule. I’ve found that it’s more like 90/10. Either way, here’s how I’ve learned to deal with this.

After you’ve decided on the 1 thing and the action(s) you need to do, make a list of everything else that has to get done. I have a business list and a personal list. Because let’s face it. This modern life has a lot of demands.

Once you’ve got it all written down – and that’s important – WRITE IT DOWN, now start prioritizing. 

What has to get done first, second, third?

Years ago, I worked with a coach who wanted me go one step farther. I had to label everything that was priority as 1, then 2, etc. Then I went back through the list and put an a,b,c, etc. next to each number so I knew which one I had to do asap. 

Her system was super efficient and rocked which is why I pass it on to you.

It helps you see the major things that simply must get done.

But I digress...

Come back to the basics. If you only get 1 thing out of this email, do the first one. Choose the ONE thing that’s gonna make the biggest difference in your life.

And don’t act like you don’t know what it is, cuz you do. HINT: It may be the elephant in the room.

And I promise, that if you do, if you focus on that 1 thing, your life will begin to change in remarkable ways.

Try it and let me know how it goes.

AND if you haven't already checked out my NEW course on Insight Timer - 10 Strategies for Mastering Uncertainty- now's your chance! Click Here

Who’s Limiting You?

I was listening to a speaker recently explain why people don’t obtain results. And do you know what she said?

It’s about our beliefs.

Think about one of the New Year’s resolutions you made ten months ago. Maybe, like many of us, you had ‘lose weight’ on your list. Let’s say fifteen pounds.

Have you accomplished it?

Here’s the thing – if you don’t see yourself as a thin person- then you aren’t going to lose the weight because your belief and goal are not in alignment.

How do we free ourselves so that we can actually obtain what we want?

In other words, how do we begin to see how we may be limiting our own success or progress?

To understand this, we have to be willing to deep dive and go within. We have to ask ourselves three questions that will help us get to the heart of what we believe and why we think we may not deserve to achieve our goal- to be thin, healthy or rich.

Ready to dive in?

1.  How Are You Limiting Yourself?

We are the only ones thinking in our brains, so guess what? We tell ourselves every moment of every day if we’re happy or sad, feeling motivated or not, seeing ourselves as successful or as failures.

Let’s use the above example about losing weight. Can you imagine yourself as a thin, fit woman? When you look in the mirror, are you able to see yourself as a size 4/6/8?

When you do this, what happens? Is it impossible? Is there a voice that tells you, it isn’t really you?

Sometimes when we reach beyond what is familiar, what we’re used to, we have to take a leap of faith. Because we’re talking about changing our habits of thinking. We get used to our thoughts – good or bad because they’re familiar.

But if those thoughts are limiting you, it’s time to change them.

And when we first begin to do that, these new thoughts can feel ill-fitting, like wearing in a new pair of shoes.

It seems weird and at first may not feel like you but the more you affirm what you do really want and see it as already done, the more familiar and comfortable those messages will become until it is you.

So – claim what you want! Look in that mirror every day and see yourself thin, healthy and fit!

Remember, you are not your own limitations!

2. Did Your Family Give You Limiting Messages?

Maybe when you dive into uncovering the blocks preventing you from losing fifteen pounds, you hear your stepmother tell you that you’ll never be beautiful or maybe the voice is your father’s saying, “you’ve always been fat” confirming it as your identity.

Perhaps the messages you received told you that you were stupid, unaware or clumsy because you were hyperactive or learned in a different way.

We all received negative comments growing up, I know I did and I even believed many of them for years.

But at some point we have to recognize that these messages, even though we take them on, really aren’t about us.

I remember watching a movie as a teenager in which one of the characters told another she was a fat person in a skinny person’s body and a light bulb went on. I realized I was the opposite – a skinny person trapped in a fat body. That a-ha moment helped me break through messages from my family about my identity and helped me hold on to a new view of myself.

What messages have you been able to overcome?

Remember, you are not your family’s limitations.

3. How Have Society's Messages Limited You?

What are the messages we get from the media and Hollywood? How have they shaped your thinking or are limiting your dreams?

Women are constantly inundated with messages about beauty and body. According to shame researcher, Brené Brown, the number one shame trigger for women is our bodies. We are never thin enough, fit enough, pretty enough… If we buy into these messages, we can make ourselves crazy.

When do we decide that we are enough?

When we stop defining ourselves by other people’s standards.

What about society telling us how to be successful?

I know a woman who dropped out of high school at 15. Just before she turned 50, she started a new business venture and now runs a multi-million dollar company!

If she’d listened to the messages from society, that she couldn’t be successful without a college degree, without even a high school degree, she might still be a waitress.

Instead, she recognized what she was good at, passionate about and kept following it. She hustled, worked hard and is now reaping the rewards.

You are not society’s limitations

Sometimes I think about Olympic athletes, how they often go above and beyond what we think is humanly possible. They break records, they inspire us with their abilities and sheer will to succeed. They go beyond all limitations – society’s, family’s, coaches, and even their own- to achieve greatness.

We all have that ability to go beyond those limitations and achieve our own greatness.

Are you ready? 

Tell me what YOU are going to do by leaving me a comment BELOW!

Are You Willing?

I have a good friend named Robin who’s a Unity minister. She’s a dynamic speaker and a riveting storyteller.

Reverend Robin has a knack for tying metaphysical concepts with everyday reality and infusing them with heart and humor.

One of her sermons -that really stuck with me- was a story in which she likened life to a game.

So, play with me here for a minute.

Imagine if you will, that life really is a game.

We choose our player and then embark onto the board.

Sometimes we get a good break (we skip three spaces) and sometimes we have to go backward (or worse to jail!)

Maybe we meet a partner, have a child, get divorced, buy a car, lose a job, go back to school, fall into bankruptcy, need hospitalization…

But inevitably, whatever new adventure life throws at us, we have to continue playing.

We can’t give up.

The phrase Reverend Robin kept repeating was, “nevertheless, I am willing.”

• Willing to play
• Willing to move ahead
• Willing to get through the adversity
• Willing to open up to life
• Willing to embrace change
• Willing to invite in miracles

When we think about life as a game it:

1.     Provides Space

Sometimes life can feel oppressive, heavy or burdensome. When we shift into thinking about life as a game, it gives us more objectivity.

It’s like a bird’s view.

We see the whole board- where we’ve come from and where we’re going- rather than simply seeing the catastrophe of the moment (a stain on my new blouse, bills piling up, cracking my cellphone, breaking my ankle.)

We can view the momentary set back for what it is, not life threatening or shattering, just a small bump in the road. Being objective often helps us see a strategy for moving to our next goal more easily, too.

2.     Allows for Relaxation

When I see life as a game, suddenly every decision I make doesn’t feel quite so fraught. It’s more like a turn down a wrong street that may take me ten minutes longer but shows me an exciting new view.

Nothing actually feels quite so dire. After all, it’s just “Monopoly money.”

We often stress over decisions and the worry about making a wrong one. But here’s the thing, we simply have to choose. And if it turns out to be wrong, make a new decision!

When we can relax about our decisions, we allow ourselves to move more into the flow. This is when we invite in our intuition and that always helps us make better decisions!

3.     Is more FUN

I know that I can take life WAY too seriously and then I get caught in that grouchy head space where everything feels wrong, hard or difficult. Instead, I have to re-orient myself back to purpose.

What is the purpose of my life?

What is the purpose of a game?

Some would say to win. Some would say to have fun. Some would say to spend time with others.

When I think about life as a game, it reminds me that my ultimate goal here is happiness. Games are fun and fun makes me laugh and smile and feel happy.

Seeing life as a game reorients me back to my purpose. And as happiness guru Robert Holden reminds us, “your happiness is your gift to the world.”

I wish to live my life with a smile on my face, with lightness in my heart and with an eye for strategy. Because this game of life is meant to be lived, savored and enjoyed.

So, what do you say?

Nevertheless, are YOU willing?

Tell me what you think by leaving a comment below! 

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