Month: January 2012

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7 Tips to Make Your Life Easier

7 Ways to Achieve More NOW

1. Think like triage medics.  If you feel battle torn because of so many tasks and demands of your time, think like medics.  Know where you need to stop the bleeding of your time, energy, money and focus.   On the battlefield, medics have to decide where to apply their limited resources.  They can’t help everyone.  The definition of triage is the process of sorting victims, as of a battle or disaster, to determine medical priority in order to increase the number of survivors.  Some patients will survive and some will not.  Triage means ignoring these two groups and focusing on those that will only survive with medical care.  You must know which things you can safely ignore and which things demand your attention.  What may seem urgent to others putting a demand on your time, may not be a priority to you.  Learn to say “no” to the unimportant tasks, so you can say “yes” to the important tasks and actually get them done.

2. Prioritize what is urgent, critical, important, time sensitive and what things you can delegate.

3. Learn how to say “no” to requests of your time that distract you from your priorities. Cure yourself from the dis-ease to please others.  Value your time and priorities.

4.  Keep a watch, clock, calendar and things-to-do-list visible.  I use a cool on-line tool as my visual bulletin board for my things to do list and for my vision/dreams/goal board.  I am a visual person.  Knowing this about myself, I learned to have visual aids around me to keep me focused on my priorities.  If your goals and tasks are out of the sight, they are out of your mind.  The web site is www.popplet.com

5.  If you know you have the habit of falling into the trap of doubt, procrastination, feeling unworthy, clutter, isolation or too much TV or socializing…ask for an accountability partner.   As a life coach to my clients, I offer accountability and steps so my clients can experience progress, results and satisfaction.  Many people do not lose the weight, finish their book, overcome depression, de-clutter their lives, graduate or fulfill their dreams and goals because they are not accountable to anyone.   Too many people leave things undone because of isolation, excuses, fear, lack of planning and a long list of things to do which causes frustration.  Who are you accountable to so you can stay on track with your goals and realize the fulfillment of your potential?

6. Listen to your body.  Get in your zone.  I know that I am a morning person.  This is when I am operating at my optimum energy level.  As much as possible I schedule important tasks when I’m in my energy zone to get more done.  I can’t control or predict all requests of my time.  But when I can … I know that it is counterproductive to commit to tasks when my energy is low.   Health is your first wealth.  Be more consistent in eating healthy, drinking water, some form of exercise, good rest and spiritual renewal to maintain your energy.

7.  Acknowledge you can’t do it all. The idea that you will eventually get caught up is a myth. It’s impossible. You have more work than you can reasonably expect to get done. You have to make peace with the fact that you must leave some things undone-for the sake of your own sanity. ~ Jewel Diamond Taylor

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Guard Your Heart

     Your heart is the home of your emotions, hopes, dreams, faith and memories.   If you let down your guard, you can lose your temper, character, confidence, peace, focus and faith.  

     So it is very important to guard your heart when you experience a setback, sorrow, delays and disappointments. Sure there are times you may want to throw in the towel.  Yes, bad things do happen to good people.  You may be holding on with your fingernails.  Your tribulations and setbacks are a trap to convince you to give up. You may feel tired and alone.  When I experience those times, I search for the prayers, words, music and strength to remind me of what Gospel Artist Marvin Sapp sings in this week’s song pick…”If you could only see what God sees, you’d get excited about your destiny.”

         Don’t let bad times blur your focus and vision.  People usually say, “I’ll believe it when I SEE it.”  I suggest you reverse that!  Faith requires you to SEE it before you believe it.  Faith in what God can do requires trust in what you cannot see in the natural.  You may not see your way out right now.  You may not see how you’re going to make it.  You may not see the house, car, the job, graduation, new health, debts reduced, traveling, marriage healed or your business/ministry flourishing.   

     What do you see?  What do you feel in your heart?  Don’t allow the enemy to block your vision and take your confidence.  See yourself walking in victory. See yourself in your mind’s eye experiencing the fulfillment of your purpose and goals.  Faith gives you the vision to see through the fog of fear, worry, shame and doubt.

     Comedian Flip Wilson used to say…“What you SEE, is what you get.”  He was teaching a spiritual principle.  

     Do you see yourself less than blessed, broken, and defeated?  Or do see yourself favored, prepared, optimistic, qualified,determined and loved by God?         Do see yourself as ugly, fat, too old and unlovable?  Or do you see yourself as beautiful, intelligent, creative, strong and loving?  Do you focus on your pain, lack and hurts or do you focus on gratitude, love, peace and success?   Do you see yourself as a failure or do you see yourself as a resilient, teachable and a blessed person? Begin to believe you can grow through your circumstances.  Click the link below to listen to this week’s inspirational song pick.  I pray it ministers to your heart and hopes.  ~ Jewel Diamond Taylor

http://www.donotgiveup.net/SongPick10.htm 

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How to Stop Being Late

Admit that you need to improve on your punctuality.  Denial and excuses do not build up credibility, leadership or professional  qualities.  You’re creating a reputation for yourself, and it’s not the best reputation to be establishing.  People feel they can’t trust you or rely on you, so it impacts relationships and self-esteem.

Change your view point. Your appointments, job, family, team, church, committee, etc. need you and you’re doing them a disservice by not being there on-time and to show up, perform, give or serve.  You’re too valuable to be late.    Realize your tardiness is a problem for others.   Don’t use your lateness as an expression of power. .. “You’re less powerful, so you have to wait for me; I can keep you waiting.”

Frequent tardiness can be a way of expressing unconscious or intentional subtle messages of rebellion, anger and resentment.   Do you find yourself moving slow and late to a job you don’t like or an activity with your spouse/family/parent/friend because you are angry with them?   Do you resent being the caregiver in your family and so you show up late to the holiday dinner or family reunion?   Are you angry with co-workers or your church feeling overlooked and under appreciated, so you show up late to meetings and miss deadlines?   Do you resent filing your taxes and turning in a report on the job or at school because you feel it is unfair or too much of a demand?   Do you feel mistreated by others and your retribution is always being late …and you feel it is justified?   Your acts of tardiness are speaking loudly.  They could be the symptom of a deeper issue.   As you learn to resolve and heal your issues of rebellion, anger and resentment you will be more conscious, respectful and punctual in regards to your commitments and requests from others.

Reframe how you see yourself.  Stop defining yourself as someone whose always late – it boxes you in to that behavior.

Lay out your clothes, important papers, equipment, materials, tickets, laptop, accessories, etc. the night before.  I began to see the costs of being late and the payoffs of being on time.
When I started packing my car the night before a conference speaking engagement or travel, I noticed I had less stress and more time.
Build in cushions before and after everything.  You need drive time to get to appointments – add a few minutes to your estimate.  Often, appointments run over time so build in a cushion there, too.   Check and double check addresses and directions when you are going someplace new.   Take into consideration traffic, weather, parking issues, car problems and bad driving directions.
Manage expectations.   If you’re going to be late, give people a call so they know.  Allow time in the schedule for interruptions and preparation. This includes tasks like getting ready for work, finding locations of appointments, and getting directions.  Be sure to allow a little more time that you think you will need.  Schedule times for social activities and phone calls instead of letting them interrupt your work.
Punctuality is a function of basic professionalism, personal discipline, and respect for the time of others.
There are all sorts of time-management processes and tips that can improve punctuality, but they only work if the person has the discipline to apply them. And if the person has that discipline, they don’t need the processes.
Avoid saying “yes” to every request.  I usually found myself running late and stressed whenever I tried to take on too many projects and requests.  I had to learn that I could not please everybody.  Sometimes you have to say “no”  to keep yourself focused on priorities, organized, punctual and stress-free.
Teach others how to respect your time with diplomacy and conviction.  If you are a people pleaser or weak in communicating your time schedule, you will allow people to put you in a time squeeze.  Here’s a great thing to say: “Excuse me, I hate to cut you off, but I have an appointment to keep.”  It is hard to cut someone off, but they will respect you for sticking to a schedule. The higher up you go in corporate life, the stricter the people stick to a schedule. The good news is that this means it’s perfectly acceptable in work life to draw time boundaries. Get comfortable doing it at work and then you can do it at home, too.  Saying “no” and shortening a phone call or activity to insure your promptness takes forethought and practice.
Prioritize and figure out what’s most important and just get that done.   Communicate with the people who depend on you – like your boss/spouse — what your time frames, priorities and need for delegation are.  I quickly learned from too many late and stressful times the importance of asking for help, putting gas in my car the day before, having a consistent place for my keys, purse and cell phone, programming my GPS before I leave, having phone numbers readily available and keeping healthy snacks in my car to avoid timely stops for food, gas, etc.
Wake up and realize your tardiness can affect your career opportunities negatively.  People, bosses, customers and your children do notice!
After being late for a hair appointment and being informed I couldn’t have my hair done that day and being charged a fee for a missed dentist appointment that I forgot…the costly pain and embarrassment taught me a lesson about respect, organization and punctuality.  Fear, pain, boredom and anger are primary motivating factors in human beings.  Unless there is a reward for being on time…or a punishment for not being on time…you will continue the bad and unprofessional habit of tardiness.
Putting yourself in other people’s shoes can make a big difference in punctuality. If you know what it feels like to be left waiting, then you will be less likely to cause that feeling in other people once you imagine their circumstances.   Remember the golden rule…Treat others the way you want to be treated.”
Set your clocks and watch ahead a little.  Mark the times of your appointments a little ahead of the actual time.
How much time, money and peace of mind have you lost?
How many relationships are ruined because you have not been dependable?
How many career opportunities have you lost because you lack organizational and time management discipline?
How many classes, lessons and projects did you have to repeat because you lack punctuality?
Who’s trust have you lost?
How has your business, family, credit or ministry suffered because you lack discipline with time?
Punctuality shows integrity

Punctuality is a trust issue. When you make an appointment, you are making a commitment to be where you said you’d be when you said you’d be there. The only way you build up other people’s trust in you is by consistently meeting your commitments — and that starts with being punctual.  The person who is always on time is someone others can trust to be as good as their word.

I believe my husband’s limousine/sedan transportation business is successful because he is a stickler for punctuality.  It used to be point of conflict for us because he would be frustrated with my tardiness and I thought he was being too bossy and too rigid.  I believe his repeat customers are “repeat” customers because they know they can trust his dependability, professionalism and punctuality.

Begin to implement these punctuality steps in your professional and personal life and you will experience peace, self-esteem, success,  less stress and gain the respect of others around you.

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Kiss Procrastination Good-bye

     The habit of procrastination is a common and big blockage to your experiencing success, health, peace of mind and a sense of satisfaction.  Procrastination steals your time, health, money, blessings, integrity, opportunities, and sleep.

What is your procrastination type? thief

  • The thrill seeker  looks forward to the rush he or she gets when facing last-minute deadline pressure.
  • Decisional procrastinators – those who simply can’t make a decision; not making a decision relieves this type of procrastinator responsibility for the outcome of events, they rather pass the responsibility to someone else.
  • Perfectionists – all or nothing type personality, suffers from paralysis of analysis, offers excuses instead of executing because they want all circumstances to be perfect which is unrealistic.
  • Fearful – afraid of the unknown, doesn’t want to be embarrassed or have physical/emotional pain (i.e. dentist, taxes, school test), afraid to leave comfort zone, lacks faith, allows past results to give them a doomsday attitude.
  • Dreamer – fantasizes, in denial, believes someone should do the task for them or rescue them, they believe others should serve them because of their status, power, image, age…they feel privileged and above others.  Their head is in the sky and blinds them from the consequences of delay and procrastination.
  • Emotionally challenged – lonely, depressed, grief, apathetic, discouraged, addicted, conflicted, taking care of others first, not feeling worthy of success and happiness
  • Clutter-bug – this personality type is unorganized, can’t find anything, won’t hang up their clothes, tasks and things pile up, they lack planning and good time management discipline.
  • Playful fun type would rather focus on the easy and fun tasks, needs to mature and realize their lack of action will cost them.

How to stop the procrastination habit:

  1. The big picture of losing weight, graduating, getting rid of clutter, writing your book or getting out of debt can seem daunting and impossible.  Break your tasks down into small steps.
  2. Ask for accountability to complete what you start (i.e. coach, mentor, friend,
    Jewel
    by Jewel Diamond Taylor

    etc.)  Single, isolated, prideful and independent people need accountability or they will find quit with excuses and distractions.

  3. Keep a clock, watch, calendar and things to do list in view at all times.
  4. Stop worrying about perfection.  Seek progress not perfection.
  5. Don’t lie to yourself and fool yourself.  Take responsibility for the quality and progress in your life.
  6. Remember the con$sequences if you continue to avoid tasks. Remember the rewards you will experience if you do take action.
  7. Eliminate distractions (i.e. TV, games, phone, food, music, etc.)
  8. Spend more time with achievers,leaders, readers and people who believe that with faith and action anything is possible for those who trust in the Lord.  (imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised. ~ Hebrews 6:11-12)

Did you know Jewel Diamond Taylor could be your Success Coach and help you break the procrastination habit?  Would you like to accomplish more and experience progress and success?  To set an appointment for your coaching session call 323.964.1736 or e-mail JewelMotivates@gmail.com

click here to see video message about procrastination

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