The Top 3 Ways to Overcome Procastination!

Wow... time flies! Its has been so many days since i last posted. I am still making some background changes, but meanwhile i am busy preparing for Chinese New Year and spending time with the girl of my dream.

So please pardon me as I spend more time with my family and loved ones for the next few days ya! But still, I would like to share the article below on Procastination with everyone.

Happy Chinese New Year!!

Cheers!!!

P.S. I still can't help it but go back and watch the huggies video one more time! This is the link if you missed it. http://internetsuccessjournal.com/2007/02/dont-worry-be-happy.html


Below is the excerpt from Week 24 of the Success University Weekly Success Plan!

Hi there, Chris Widener here.

The Top 3 Time Wasters and the Top 3 Ways to Overcome Procrastination

I want to take my space this week to talk about what I believe are the top three time wasters and the top three ways to overcome procrastination. Some of these time wasters will be those you find at work and some at home. These are the things that I have found to be almost universal. So, let's take a look:

The Top Three Time Wasters:

1. Television. Yes, the old one-eyed monster. Now, before you write this off, saying, "Chris, I just don't watch much TV," let me have you do a short exercise. Think about how much TV you watch. Go through each day, from Sunday to Saturday. For example: Sunday (one hour on Meet the Press, 3 hours for football). Monday (Half hour morning show, one hour news, half hour sitcom), etc. Add it up. Be honest! Do you know what I found was the average amount of television watched per week in rooms full of "busy professional people who didn't watch much TV?" 20 Hours!

Now think about this. That is 1,000 hours a year or 25 full work weeks! What could you accomplish if you had an extra 25 work weeks a year?

So, how can you overcome this time waster? Here are a few
ideas:

Get rid of the TV. Yes, that is exactly what I said. I did just that on January 1st, 1989, and have never looked back.
When people ask me how I get so much done I simply tell them that I have 1,000 hours a year more than they do!

At the very least, cut back on your TV viewing. Be proactive and take control of how much you watch. Budget your time.
Cut some shows out (believe me, most shows can be cut out and your life won't suffer!).

2. Telephone calls. The phone is what I call the "great interrupter". There is this very weird, almost magical effect that a ringing phone has: Like pre-programmed zombies, we "must" answer it. Try something the next time you have someone in your office and the phone rings. Just keep talking as though you don't hear it. Watch the person you are with nervously look over at the phone and then back at you before finally asking, "Do you want to answer that?"
Even though it would take away from them, they expect you to answer the phone!

The fact is that you do not have to answer a ringing phone.
Especially in this day and age of voice mail, you can let the phone ring through and schedule a time at regular intervals to return important calls (one side benefit is you will be amazed at how much time you save by not having to work your way off the phone with unsolicited sales calls).

How can you avoid wasting time on the phone? Here are a few
ideas:

Don't always answer it. 'Nough said.

Schedule your calls into time frames. Make all of your calls during regularly scheduled times. This will keep you from "spur of the moment" calls that distract you.

Know before you call what you want to talk about, talk about it, and then get off the phone. When you call someone, say, "Hi there, I wanted to talk to you about XYZ." Then talk about it. When you are done, say, "Well, I know you are busy and I have some things to get done too, so I'll let you go."
Bingo - you're off the phone!

3. Email. Email is the new phone. Except much worse. Why? A few reasons. Some of it is spam, but the main reason is because people can't type as fast as they can talk. Many times when someone writes me an email that I know will take a long response, I either call them or write an email that says, "Call me. It would be better to talk about this."

Another reason is just the volume of email we get. And the forwarded jokes from your aunt in Omaha. Just sorting through this takes time. (By the way, the best way to get off of Aunt Margaret's email list is to politely ask. Just tell her that you are trying to cut down on email and ask if she will take you off the list. It works! I did it with my own mother and she still talks to me!)

Some ideas for cutting out email time wasting:

Schedule email reading and responding. Depending on how much you get each day, maybe you do it once per day, maybe three times. You don't have to jump every time the inbox chimes!

Be ruthless about what is important. Not everything is.
Delete it and move on. Especially delete anything from Aunt Margaret that says, "Fw: Very funny - you will love this!"

The Top Three Ways to Overcome Procrastination:

1. Overcome your fear. Jim made a great point about fear. He is right. Much procrastination is because we fear things. A lot in life can be accomplished as we dig deep into who we are and what drives us. Do you have fears that cause you to procrastinate? Do some internal work and find out what you are really afraid of. Then face that fear. Get some help from a coach or counselor if you need it.

2. Get motivated. Motivation is something we have to work at. Read books, listen to tapes, go to seminars, and hang out with exciting people. Do whatever you can to stay motivated. It is much easier to get down to business when you are motivated than when you aren't.

3. Just start. Just begin doing what you said you need to do. Tell yourself you are going to just do 10 minutes. Then you'll quit. What happens though, is that you don't quit.
Much of the problem with procrastination is just starting.
So, just start!

Hope these ideas help you this week in getting over procrastination and in avoiding the big three time wasters!

Questions for Reflection:

Q. What are your major time wasters? Why?

Q. Are your time wasters usually of the "urgent" kind or the pleasurable nature?

Q. Of the urgent kind, which come up most often? What about the pleasurable kind?

Q. What is the major reason you procrastinate? What can you do to overcome it?

Q. Of the three best ways to overcome procrastination, which works best for you? Is there a better way that works for you? What is it?

Action Points

1. List the ways you waste time, in the greatest to least order for the problems they pose for you. Spend some time this week being specifically aware of these and do what you can to say "no" to them, focusing instead on your priorities.

2. Take some time to look forward at upcoming things due and work a little on them so they do not become urgent later on.
As you do, work as little as possible on those things that are telling you they are urgent now. This will begin the process of eliminating the "urgent" from your life and moving you to the important.

3. Spend some time this week working against the "pleasurable" that you spend time on instead of your priorities. Specifically turn away from them in an act of discipline.

4. Take specific action this week to watch less television and spend that time on other important things around the house.

5. Work on how well you handle phone and email time. These are major time wasters, so get a hold of them!

See you next week!

Chris Widener

Dreams unleashed,

Albert Lee
Success University Student

--------------------------------------------------------------
Click here to access Success University, one of the best online mlm program that focus on Personal Development.

You can subscribe to the FREE Success University weekly newsletter "First Bell" here.
--------------------------------------------------------------

How Do You Manage Your Time?

Below is an excerpt from Week 22 of the Success University Weekly Success Plan. With proper Time Management, you can achieved much more things and spend more times with your loved ones.


***************************************************

The Myth of What We Manage by Chris Widener

Perhaps it is merely semantics, but an underlying problem I find that people have as it relates to the success in their life lies in a proper understanding of what exactly it is they manage. Think about it. We have time management (in fact, I present a seminar on this very topic, some of which is excerpted below), and financial management, and relational management, weight management, career management and many, many more.

The fact is though, that we don't manage any of those things. What we do manage is ourselves, and how we relate to those things. We don't manage time. Time clicks by, second by second, whether we do anything or not. What we do is manage ourselves, and our activities, as the time passes. We make choices as to what we will do and be involved in. The problem as well as the solution lies not with time, but with us.

So as we live our lives and pursue success, one of the keys to grab onto is the idea that the most important thing we can manage isn't a thing at all - it is ourselves!

How then can we manage ourselves? Here are some thoughts.

Make sure that the above is firmly engrained in your thinking: I only manage myself. I can choose how I will act and react in every situation. Dwight D. Eisenhower said, "The history of free men is not written by chance, but by choice, their choice."

Know your priorities. Do you know from top to bottom what your priorities are? Have you decided what the top ten things are that you want to spend your time on? How about with your money? Only after you know these things can you properly manage yourself into choosing to live in line with your priorities.

Learn to say "no" with a smile on your face. Here is where most of us fail. We do not choose to say "no" to those things that are not a matter of priority (the reason "why" is another article and probably a few counseling sessions at that!). Someone calls us up and asks us to do something for them (usually because they haven't managed themselves and would like our help picking up the pieces) and we say "Uh, I guess so." Then what? We usually kick ourselves for the rest of the day. "Why did I ever say yes?" Instead, practice this, "Gee, I am really sorry but I am not going to be able to be involved this time. I am sure you will be able to find somebody though." Go ahead and try it right now. Weird, isn't it? That is because we don't say it very often.

Schedule your priorities into your schedule, budget or whatever structure governs that particular area of your life. For example, do you have a financial budget that you yourself set? Then do you first and foremost allocate your money in that way, say at the beginning of the month? If you do, you will eliminate even the opportunity to blow your money on impulse decisions and expenses because your money has already been committed to the priorities of your own choosing. The same principles apply to your management of time.

Remember, one of the greatest gifts God gave us is the ability to choose. And we can choose to manage ourselves appropriately according to our priorities. As we do, we will find ourselves feeling less and less of the personal pain and frustration we sometimes feel when we are out of control and not managing ourselves based on our priorities.

***************************************************

Dreams unleashed,

Albert Lee
Success University Student

--------------------------------------------------------------
Click here to access Success University, one of the best online mlm program that focus on Personal Development.

You can subscribe to the FREE Success University weekly newsletter "First Bell" here.
--------------------------------------------------------------

Charting Your Course to Success Article

Today i would like to share an article from another remarkable motivational speaker Chris Widener. I'm sure you will enjoy and benefits from his wisdoms.


**********************************************

Simple Ways to Super-Charge Your Goals and Make Them Work! by Chris Widener

Goals. Most people have a love-hate relationship with goals. They love them because they are such a great idea and a wonderful way to motivate us to achieve, as well as evaluate our progress, but hate them because for many, they more often than not go unattained and simply frustrate them. This isn't what goals should do!

So here are some simple ways to set goals so that we achieve them! After all, what good is a goal if it isn't something you achieve? Here are some simple steps you can take to make sure that you see change in your life this year.

Narrow your focus. That's right, start small. Pick two or three areas tops, that you want to work on. Too many people say to themselves, "I want to do this, and this, and this, and this..." and they end up doing nothing! Most of what you do throughout your day can be done without a lot of mental or emotional exertion, but change isn't one of them. So focus down to a couple. This way you can get some victory in these areas. Here are some areas to think about: Physical, Intellectual, Emotional, Spiritual, Financial, and Relational. What areas need some work? Now, what one thing should be the first item on the change list? The others will come later, but for now, you should focus on two or three total.

Keep the long-term in mind, but set your sights on achieving your goals in the short-term. Do you want to lose 75 pounds? Good. Long-term you will. But for now, think short-term. Don't think about losing 75 pound by summer 2008. Think about losing 5 pounds by January 1st. This does two things. First, it makes it urgent. Instead of blowing it and saying, "Oh well, I still have 17 months to lose the 75 pounds" (because eventually that becomes 2 months to lose 75 pounds) your goal is only a few weeks out. This is better in terms of reaching your goal. Secondly, as you reach these shorter goals, it gives you regular victories instead of regular progress. Progress feels good, but achieving a goal is awesome!

Reward yourself when you achieve the goal. When you lose the 5 pounds by January 1st, go get yourself a grande whole-milk mocha. But just one! Then get back to your goal for February 1st. This puts a little fun back into the process of self-control and self-discipline. You will look forward to the reward and when the going gets tough, you will say, "two more weeks, two more pounds, then..."

That's it. I truly believe that it can be that simple for you.

This adds some ideas to the above article.
1. Don't bite off more than you can chew. Instead of saying, "I am going to quit my three pack a day habit cold turkey," say "I am going to drop to a pack and a half a day." You can always make new resolutions when you have achieved the first ones. Give yourself small victories a little at a time. Instead of saying "I am going to lose 75 pounds," say "I am going to lose 20 pounds."

2. Be specific in your timeline. Don't just say, "I am going to lose 20 pounds." Say, "I am going to lose 20 pounds by April 1st." This way, when you start to be tempted in the ice cream aisle in the middle of February, you can say, "Nope, only 10 more pounds to go in a month and a half and I am not going to blow it."

3. Post your resolutions where you will see them every day. This will keep the resolution in the front of your mind at all times. Instead of forgetting that you are trying to lose weight and ordering a big, thick porterhouse, you will have been reminded earlier that day that you need to go with something a little more on the lighter side. It will help your will beat your desire.

4. Find an encouraging person, who you respect, to keep you accountable. This person should ask you, at an interval established by the both of you, how it is going. They must be the encouraging type, though. If you are blowing it, they can say, "Well, that's okay, get back to it tomorrow." If you are doing well, they can say, "Awesome job. I'll talk to you next week." You will look forward to their weekly encouragement.

5. Find a partner. That's right, someone who is trying to accomplish the same thing (or something different if need be). Just make sure that they really want to change, or they will end up just bellyaching about how hard it is and you will both fall into the abyss.

6. Write down a list of all of the benefits that will come if you accomplish this. If it is losing weight it might be something like this: Feel better, better self-esteem, longer life, clothes are more comfortable, no more time spent sewing on popped buttons, wife says you look 22 again, etc. If it is quitting smoking, it may look like this: Better breath, no more brown fingers, no more wrinkles on my face, no more red eyes, no more smelly clothes, longer life, wife don't make me spend two hours a day on the back porch, etc. This will help you see what you will get from accomplishing your resolution.

7. Plan a reward if you accomplish your resolution. It can be anything from small to large. If you drop the twenty pounds, go out for dinner and dessert. Then get back to lose the next 20. If it is quitting smoking, go on a mini-vacation. Whatever you do, reward yourself. Or let a spouse or a friend pick the reward. Then splurge and enjoy!

Chris Widener

This article is by Chris Widener. Chris' newest book, Live the Life You've Always Dreamed Of! is written solely to help you learn what the successful already know – how to turn your dreams into realities! To learn more go to http://livelife.yoursuccessstore.com

**********************************************

Dreams unleashed,

Albert Lee
Success University Student