You can enter a search for “life hacks” and 521,000 results come back. How do you know which ones work for you? You don’t until you try, however, as they say, the well-trodden path was made through the creation of a new road.
Hack or not, I tend to believe it’s all about organization, here is the road I’ve developed and can’t live without.
Schedule
Not some flimsy, approximate date and time scrawled across stickie notes. Put some serious thought into this and stick with it. Schedule your:
Sleep– This is your best hack for a fruitful year. If this falls to the wayside, so does the creative and energetic juices you need to push forward.
Working hours -You’ve heard of hour creep? Clients, emails, bills and more will quickly infringe on any other time you need for rest, family, and friends. Schedule your working hours, create “out of office” replies when you’re done for the day. And, turn off the phone. Just because you have 24/7 access, doesn’t mean its good for you.
Health– I use my Sundays to prepare my menu for the week, prep food and write out my workouts. I know you feel swamped but this will free up your week… the key is preparation. Your body and mind will thank you.
Clean It up
Are you feeling scattered, frustrated, or anxious? Look around your home or office. Research shows us that cluttered surroundings create cluttered thoughts, its time to clean up. Set time aside to determine what you’re tolerating (grab this free workbook) and make it a habit of cleaning up your environment for great productivity.
Connect
Human connection is vital to your health and wellness. This too needs your schedule time and attention however consider
Perceptions– The fastest way to create conflict is to force your perceptions on others. Instead, be patient, ask questions, approach with kindness, compromise, and most importantly, Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slower to anger.
Say No-learn to be choosy with whom and how regularly you connect. Are you avoiding something by going out for the 4th time after work? Is Jan driving you crazy with her negativity and complaining? Learn to say no to connecting time with people where you are feeding into one another.
I’ve found life is a lot easier when I follow these “hacks”. Although they appear simplistic many times they aren’t easy to implement but, the concerted practice of habit gives me a trodden ground of success.