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How to Take Control of Your Emotions

Your emotional capacity is linked to the amount of uncertainty you can handle at any one time. The ability to control your emotions and use logic to drive your decision-making is a valuable tool for any professional. Warren Buffet once said, “If you cannot control your emotions, you cannot control your money.”

Much of your capacity to handle uncertainty has to do with maturity. Maturity is often misconstrued as a matter of age but it’s entirely a matter of characteristics you employ. Immediate gratification mindset and not having a long-term perspective are linked to immaturity, and therefore a low emotional capacity. The good news is that you can exercise your emotional capacity to grow it and learn to handle increasingly uncertain situations.

Physically Take Control:

The quickest and easiest way to control your emotions is by controlling your breathing when you feel a strong emotional reaction to something. Slowing down your breathing and inhaling deep, relaxing breaths will force your body to slow down your heart rate and calm your mind when it wants to panic. This is the best, first step for emotional control because it teaches you to control your mind by controlling your body first.

Spiritual Strength:

Most people find their identity in something beyond their control. It’s something eternal and unchanging. Most of the time, people get their identity by what is valued in society. For women, this could be their beauty, and for men, it could be their performance. This is a deeper topic than we can cover in this blog, but you may want to consider exploring where you obtain and retain your value from. Once you determine what you value most, determine if it is something beyond your control or if it’s something based on a superficial foundation.

Mental Toughness:

To get through short-term emotional storms, narrow your focus so you don’t get overwhelmed with the future. Sometimes all we have the capacity to handle is getting through the day, or the hour, instead of the end of the week or the end of the month. This allows you to stay present in the moment and give your mind a chance to tackle the task at hand and not let your emotions cause chaos.

Becoming emotionally stable and taking control of your emotional intelligence can be very similar to becoming financially stable and taking control of your budget. If you’re trying to save up money to buy a house, it’s much easier to focus on achieving small goals and setting aside a certain amount each month rather than looking at your larger end goal and getting overwhelmed. (For more on budgeting, check out our 6 Budgeting Tips for Beginners here:  https://lhstrategies.tumblr.com/post/635447421654204416/6-budgeting-tips-for-beginners)

It always helps to consciously think about your goals and the reasons driving your behavior. It may not be easy to start a business but remembering your reason for starting – to provide for your family, to use your creative energy, to help others – can help you get over the temporary, inevitable frustrations or disappointments that test your emotional capacity. In Navy Seal training, the most dangerous thought during hell week when soldiers encounter a level of discomfort or pain beyond what they expected, is something along the lines of, “I don’t think I can keep this up.” Those who narrow their focus to the task at hand and making it through each iteration rather than focusing on the long week ahead are typically the ones that make it through.

For More Tips on Emotional Resiliency, Watch Mark Divine’s Video on the Subject:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lsd5oDUpDjc

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6 Budgeting Tips for Beginners

Budgeting is a discipline every person should practice both in their personal and professional lives. A budget represents a plan to help you organize and spend your money. Ultimately, a budget represents income (net monies that you earn through work or business) and expenses (costs of an item or money spent on something). Here are 6 quick tips to help you setup, organize, and track a budget:  

Set a Goal

You must have definitive goals for your budget in order to stay on top of it and stay disciplined with your money. To provide yourself with accountability to your goals, determine short-term and long-term timelines so you have a deadline to work towards.

Example: “Save X Amount of Money Each Month, Save X Amount of Money By Next Year” – at the end of each month, review your goal and see if you’re on track. If you’re not on track, take action to correct your course. 

      2. Track Your Spending Daily

There are a variety of online tools, business apps and professional services that can help minimize the time and effort it takes to track your spending habits. Most people know how much money they make, but few people have any idea where it goes. If you’re serious about creating better financial habits and accomplishing your personal or business goals, then it is no longer acceptable to avoid budgeting! For most people, this is a new skill, so be patient and learn to be consistent.

If you do not have the financial resources to employ a financial services firm, you should consider using an online app as an alternative and efficient way to budget and track your spending patterns. An app, such as Mint.com, is simple to use and can help you track your budget to actual performance in real time.

      3. Develop A Monthly Budget

By reviewing your detailed expenses each month (in addition with consistent daily review of expenditure activity), you can adjust current and future spending by making changes to your budget to better monitor cash flow.

      4. Categorize Your Expenses

If you are a business owner or have multiple budget setups; you should categorize your expenses. Categorizing your expenses means you are determining which expenses are fixed or static costs (e.g. rent/mortgage, insurance, etc.) vs. variable costs (e.g. entertainment, beauty salon, clothing, etc.). You may also want to become familiar  with the tax code in order to understand and separate tax deductible vs. non tax deductible expenditures. It is extremely important to track business-related expenses separately from personal expenses. This will help you more easily identify business deductible expenses during income tax filing and help better identify categories to re-adjust or rebalance your budgeted spending.

      5. Rebalance Your Spending

Everyone goes through unexpected scenarios when it comes to personal or business finances. It is important that you review your budget history and identify trends (both positive and negative). Once you identify potential budget short-comings (or successes), you should revisit your variable expenses and determine if you need to adjust your budget to keep expenses below income. Our team always recommends the principle of delayed gratification (delaying the current opportunity for a better opportunity in the future) when it comes to discretionary spending.

      6. Prioritize Your Payments

Anyone who has come to the end of a paycheck before the end of the month knows that managing the timing of cash flow is important. Everyone has bills to be paid, and for most professionals starting out, the timing of your payments can make the difference between personal financial success and failure for the month. Most people have predictable bills that can be scheduled to manage their cash flow. This is essential if you want to be in business or a fiscally responsible professional, because most personal financial money challenges or businesses fail due to a lack cash flow. To mitigate this issue, create a periodic schedule of payments (outflows) and income (inflows). This will help you proactively manage your budget and get ahead of potential money management issues.

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The Power of Visualization

It has been said that every created object you see now, was first created in someone else’s mind. Everything is essentially created twice, first in the mind of the creator, and then it is manifested in real life.

A few of us have our goals written down, but how many of us are picturing what it’s like to live life as if we’ve already reached that goal? If you are like the majority of people, the answer is not often.

As the architect of your future, you cannot let this power go untapped. Most of us walk around with a vision of the past, which is to say that we obsess about our problems. What are your first thoughts when you wake up in the morning? Do you immediately remember your problems from the day before? Do you constantly obsess over what’s not going your way? This is more than just negative thinking, this is a mental rut that keeps you chained to your past.

What you think about are the ingredients that create your future, and should be taken seriously. It seems the older we get, the easier it is just to focus on our responsibilities rather than our goals; to survive rather than thrive. This is why our future will look almost exactly the same (or worse) as our present if we do not impose our will.

Think about how often you visualize your future, and then think about how often that visualization is negative or positive. Are you anxious or stressed? If you ever experience anxiety about the future, you’re not alone, but that does not mean you should settle for that state of mind. Business tycoon and best-selling author, Tony Robbins, has coached millions of people on having the right state of mind. Robbins has provided the following insight:

“The quality of your life is in direct proportion to the amount of uncertainty you can comfortably deal with.”

The reality is that most people choose unhappiness over uncertainty.

But the good news is… that can change! Neuroscientist and corporate consultant, Dr. Joe Dispenza, states, “The best way to predict your future is to create it.” The power of your thoughts translates to the physical, which means that almost everything you are currently experiencing in your life is due to the reality you first created in your mind. Even an architect doesn’t begin to build the home until it is “finished.” That is to say, the home does not begin construction until the plans or the mental picture is first completed. Even when you are losing weight, you must first visualize yourself as a fit person, living a fit person’s lifestyle. It’s the same thing for your business and your life.

To finally take control of your future, start by developing a clear, detailed, visualization of your future.  It’s also known as a “mental movie” for your ideal future. This movie needs be as detailed as if it is happening in real life, so when you picture it, your mind is actually experiencing all the sights, sounds, and even emotions of that moment in time. Your mind cannot tell the difference between real and imagined if it is detailed enough.

Visualization Exercise: For your mental movie, pick a moment in time in your future – an event or even a typical day, in which you experience all your future goals at once. An example could be driving up to your new home, in the car you’ve always wanted, greeting your spouse warmly, and you’re in the best health of your life (in more detail of course). This moment in time can encompass all your goals in one vision. You can always create multiple ones later, but perhaps begin with one. Do this exercise at least twice in a day, ideally first thing in the morning and last thing at night, when your subconscious mind is the most receptive to suggestion.

Author’s Note: As a team we have explained in previous posts that visualization is one part of the equation, and hard work is another.  Work is not to be overlooked, visualization is just another critical aspect of achieving your goals.

On a deeper level, remember that the mind is constantly moving toward equilibrium, which means the more you visualize your future the way you want it, the more your subconscious mind goes to work on bringing those circumstances to life. You must visualize yourself “being” the person that would have all the things that you want. Think about for a minute the type of person who would have an abundant, joy-filled life. Are they in control? Are they positive? You must see yourself as this new person and then make that visualization your reality.

“In order to have a new personal reality, you must have a new personality.”  – Dr. Joe Dispenza

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Tips for Having a Successful Meeting

Ever thought a meeting was a waste of time? You’re not alone. In fact, one analysis found that, on average, 33% of meeting time is unproductive for most participants.

Meetings will almost always be a necessity for professionals though, especially if you work with a team. In this blog we outline the various ways that you can improve your meetings, keep your team on track, and make the most of your meetings!

Proper Planning

Determine if any ideas, conversations, supplies, etc. should be gathered prior to meeting start, and have that ready before the meeting.

You’ve probably heard the saying, “too many cooks in the kitchen.” To avoid this, limit the number of attendees for your meetings; you should be able to explain why each person is there. Too many people or having wrong people can waste someone’s time or potentially everyone’s time.

Every person present should contribute to specific decisions that are to be made or take action after the meeting ends. If someone is not going to be held accountable for the actions or decisions made, they should not be in the meeting. Having someone in the room to generate ideas isn’t enough of a reason to participate.

Accountability

Have a defined meeting leader, not an assumed role, so the leader can prepare in advance.

Set an agenda so everyone participating in the meeting knows the primary activity or goal of the meeting. Then, STICK TO THE AGENDA. Keep the meeting focused and moving forward. Do not get distracted by off topic plans or ideas.

The purpose of meetings should be making important decisions, planning, information sharing, brainstorming, or problem solving.

Social support

Avoid side conversations. This is a major distraction and can throw off an entire meeting. If you must, gently interrupt but proactively be sure to steer the conversation back to the agenda and goal of the meeting.

The meeting leader should be gentle but firm. Keep the conversation focused and stay on task.

Respect one’s another time. Don’t waste others’ time with insignificant details. When you speak, speak with purpose.

Acknowledge everyone’s point and don’t interrupt.

Incentives

There should be a measurable objective stated at the beginning, before the meeting starts. This will incentivize your team to focus the meeting toward reaching that objective. Objectives should be clear and concise.

If there are not measurable goals, then another form of communication, such as a memo, may be the best way to accomplish the information distribution. Make each meeting purposeful.

At the end of the meeting, make sure everyone agrees that the objective has been achieved or that there has been significant progress made toward that objective.

Ex: Proposal Due at End of Month

Goal: Break into Categories and Assign Duties

Purpose of Meeting: Determine How We Are Going to Delegate the Work

Measurable Objective: Know exactly how we are breaking down the proposal, approach, logistics required, and delegate specific tasks to teams

Tip: Show measurable objective on whiteboard or projector so everyone is aware and reminded of the purpose (if applicable)

The Big Deadline

End each meeting with a plan and specific tasks assigned to specific people with a deadline for completion for that action.

Be specific – be sure each person completely understands and can restate their tasks to the meeting leader along with the deadline for the delivery of the work.

Distribute a summary email that clearly states all tasks, owners and deadlines so that your entire team is accountable to each other and themselves.

Your meetings will be much more successful and productive if you stick to these guidelines. By making your priorities and goals clear and transparent, you will respect everyone’s time and provide more valuable teamwork.

Notes from: Early to Rise – Matt Smith

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How to Build Confidence

What is Confidence?

Confidence can be defined by exhibiting a trust in yourself. It is typically described as a feeling of self-assurance or expectation which arises from an appreciation of one’s own abilities or qualities, based on repeated experience.

One of the most important aspects of consistent performance is a high degree of confidence. Confidence is built up by keeping small promises you made to yourself (first and fundamental) and then to others. This nurtures a self-trust that is built one decision at a time. For instance, what time did you say you’d wake up in the morning? Did you follow through? Did you promise someone you’d meet them somewhere on a specific date at a certain time? Did you follow through? The fact is that most people over-promise and under-deliver. Developing a habit of not following through, usually is created slowly. It happens for a variety of reasons, depending on the person, but the reasons we see the most often are:

Over-Promising: Most people who have a hard time saying “no” to others, typically find themselves in situations where they can’t follow through because they forget they are human like the rest of us,  and can’t do it all. This happens usually at the start, when someone asks them to do something or attend an event. In the moment, they immediately say yes, before weighing the costs of their decision to comply. They’d rather not deal with the uncomfortable situation of turning down an opportunity (or additional responsibility) and end up finding it easier to cancel last minute or miss a deadline. These are people known for their “flakiness” even if it’s first paved with good intentions. Learn how to say “no” first, and commit to your “yes.” We recommend a book called Boundaries by Henry Cloud to learn how to do this better, especially with family.

Under-Delivering: Most people don’t watch their words. What they say, in their mind, has no consequence, because they rarely view it as binding. Have you ever said “oh yeah, I’ll call you back,” but then completely forget? Have you ever told a friend you’d attend their event and then in the moment, decided you didn’t feel like driving across town to make the effort to show up? We’ve all been there. This is typically because those who don’t view their word as binding, typically let their emotions run their day. They base most of their actions on how they feel, rather than who they are. This is an important distinction, and mainly comes from a lack of maturity. People who are mature can say yes and follow through because they not only regard their word with weighted measure, but they also trust themselves that they will follow through when the moment demands it, regardless of their emotions. If you want to become successful, you must master your emotions, or your emotions will master you. Oh and by the way, if you don’t master your emotions, you can never master your money (more on that in a later post).

In today’s world, people only do long-term business with those they trust. And trust, most of the time, comes from your ability to express your true, authentic, and real confidence; especially in the beginning. The right type of confidence, real confidence, is built on solidity of character, and character means you are consistent in everything you say and do. “Success is on the top floor, and you must take the staircase to get there.” This means, to be successful, learn to embrace the hard work it takes to build the right kind of confidence that people can trust.  

Confidence, as you’ll see described below, is built by following through on one small decision at a time:

How to Build Confidence in Business:

Stage One

Borrow Confidence – Work with a Coach with a PROVEN record

Work with someone that knows what they’re doing. If you ever have the opportunity to learn and work with someone who has been there and done that, they can save you a lot of time and money if you learn to listen and duplicate. This is where you must learn to first submit your ego, and be the best student possible. The best students of an industry, skill, craft, or business will eventually become the best teachers.

Stage Two

Build Confidence – Character & Competency

Nurture Self-Confidence: Learn to nurture self-confidence by following through on everything you know you should be doing. Start small, with things you know how to do. Then, stretch yourself just a little beyond your comfort zone. You are learning to put on a new version of yourself and it takes time, be patient. As Joe Dispenza has said, “to create a new reality, you must first change your personality.” All this means, is you have to grow into the person that makes the amount of phone calls, connections, business deals, etc. who would be operating the business you want to create. In the meantime, learn to identify, in yourself, if you fall to some of the over-promising or under-delivering pitfalls listed above, and begin to change them.

Learn Your Craft: Develop confidence by becoming competent on every skill area required by your industry. No exceptions. If you want to have more, you must become more. This might mean learning how to make a proper phone call or learning how to give a presentation. Whatever your industry requires, go after it, and resolve to become one of the best, become a “master.” For more on the Levels of Mastery, check out our previous blogpost.

Visualize Your Success: The best way to predict your future is to create it. Your mind is your gateway to your future. You must do what all successful people do, and that is “picturing what you want.” You do this through affirmations, visualizations, vision boards, meditation techniques, the mirror technique, and Tony Robbins’ favorite; in-can-tations. More on how to do each of these in a later blog. Look them up, they need to become part of your routine if you are going to create your future with your mind. You can create the vivid experience of your future in your mind, and experience first hand, with all the feelings and especially emotions, that come with it. This does an enormous amount for you personally and your confidence. Start with applying one technique that you relate to at a time, and you have at least one key to creating the confidence in yourself that you’ve always desired.

Work It!: We would be misleading you if we didn’t put this on here. Nothing replaces good ol’ fashion hard work. There is no such thing as a free lunch, and you can do all of the methods above to build your self-confidence but if you are not doing the work it takes (every industry is different, so consult an expert) to succeed, then they won’t have the effect they are meant to have. The visualizations, the studious preparations, the following-through on promises are the seeds, but the work is the soil. The soil gives the seed the activation and the environment to grow. A plant cannot grow without a seed, and seed cannot grow without good soil. Therefore, you must work to make your dreams and your confidence grow.

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The Five Pillars of Success

From the Book The Perfect Day Formula by Craig Ballantyne

When you study success, you will notice that successful people follow a similar pattern to achieve a goal. We’re going to analyze that pattern by looking at the five pillars of success. If one or more of these pillars is missing, it will significantly decrease your chances of success.

Start and end with your personal responsibility – recognize that you and ONLY YOU are responsible for exactly where you are in life. Train yourself to bookend your day with good habits in the morning and evening.

Having the 5 pillars in your life provides you with behaviors to “conquer the chaos” in your life. The following list is a recipe that, when executed with discipline and determination, can help drive you to the top!

Planning and Preparation

Before you start any task, prepare everything first (tools, set up rituals, etc)

Everything you do sets you up for success, or creates another obstacle

Eliminate the temptations that stand in your way

Attack early in the morning (fewest external distractions) and highest willpower

Identify and remove temptation, especially in the morning (different for each person, ex: office drama, negative news, naps)

Recognize what gets between you and your goals. What can you do to eliminate the distractions?

Happy hours after work? Create obligations after work so you aren’t tempted to go out.

Not fitting in a work out? Bring your clothes with you and don’t go home until you stop by the gym.

          Tips:

Don’t check your e-mail until after the first hour of your day, or longer, until your most important tasks are complete.

Planning on the front end, saves you time on the back end (meeting prep, meal prep, errand prep)

Planning sometimes requires more elimination than preparation – (not taking phone calls during designated times, social media boundaries, etc.)

     2. Professional Accountability

Everyone needs the power of a pro

We all need a coach – even the best at the pinnacle of performance in sports or the arts

Make sure they are experts in what you are asking them to coach you through – don’t hire a chubby trainer!

A professional mentor/coach/instructor teaches us what to do and holds us accountable

Expert feedback creates better decision-making skills and leads to better habits

Transformation requires habit formation

You show character and commitment through action

You can become the teacher for others in your circle of influence

When you instruct by example, it forces you to live by example

Demands that you get better at what you’re teaching

While we teach we learn and gain a greater understanding when we explain it to someone else.

Demands integrity from us that we practice what we preach – practice what you preach, and then practice preaching

“Can’t brighten another’s path without first brightening your own”

When you’re down, you become the helping hand to someone else and you feel better

     3. Social Support

Harness the power of other people – positive people!

Your positive social circle can help you win the war and even heal your scars

Create your circle – seek them out, build your network, develop a mastermind group

You are the average of the 5 people you hang out with the most

As you go through your day, pretend these people are counting on you and watching you – this will help take the eyes off yourself

How you use your time and who you spend it with are the most important

Remember, you can’t sore with eagles if you keep hanging around turkeys!

     4. Incentive

Treat yourself to big victories

Celebrate success, feel the full pain of failure

Release the power of delayed gratification – delay the good for the great

Example of delayed gratification: not going on a trip when you have debt, or want to hold out for a better one

Pay first, play second; otherwise you will play first and pay second, but you will pay with interest

Delayed gratification is a muscle and essential for success

     5. A Big Deadline

Learn to accelerate your progress by reminding yourself of the limited time you have to achieve your goals

Realization that we are all running out of time

Without big deadlines, we procrastinate. We must have deadlines – harsh, honest, and unforgiving

Attach this power to your daily routine – everyone is productive before vacation – most people get done in a day what they could get done in a week

Set limits

Example: Set limits on your workday – create a “cutoff time.” This challenges you to get done what you need to get done in a certain amount of time.

Without deadlines, tasks last longer than needed without proper planning

Develop an end date for each goal – a good starting point would be ideally 90 days or less

Parkinson’s law: “Work expands so as to fill the time available for it’s completion.”

Emotional deadlines: What do you want to achieve while your parents are still alive? What experiences do you want to have while you are still young?

“Every successful person, no matter whether they realize it or not, has put the 5 Pillars of Success to work for them. They Plan and Prepare properly, they have Professional Accountability and Social Support, they have chosen an Incentive to inspire them, and they have given themselves a Big Deadline.”

-Craig Ballantyne, Author of The Perfect Day Formula

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The Five Levels of Mastery

A jack of all trades is a master of none, so the saying goes. One thing that nobody likes to hear – success takes TIME. Success demands mastery of your skills. Success is a continuous process of growth. The following five levels of mastery will help you understand where you are, and where you need to go to achieve excellence.

Level 1 – Unconscious Incompetence

You don’t know how bad you are.

Example: You see someone snowboarding at an expert level and think you can do what they’re doing because they made it look easy. To your surprise, you will probably find yourself on your bottom most of the day. Sometimes you see the Level 5, and don’t realize that it takes more than enthusiasm, you need skill.

Most people quit at this level once their enthusiasm is gone.

This is where you need to follow, DO NOT try to re-invent. Maintaining enthusiasm and a positive attitude is necessary to move to the next step.

Level 2 – Conscious Incompetence

The pain of not getting results is bigger than the pain of you adjusting and growing.

Look in the mirror and realize that there is a lot of room for growth. This is the stage where you need to proactively seek out guidance, ask a lot of questions!

Level 3 – Conscious Competent

At this level you’re becoming better, but you still must think about the steps you are performing.

You will be here the longest as you learn a craft.

Patience and repetition is key at this level.

Level 4 – Unconscious Competent

You start putting in more productivity because muscle memory starts taking over. Your business becomes fun and you know what to do.

At this level you’ll start gaining traction and seeing results.

Confidence increases because you see your success building.

Level 5 – Unconscious Mastery

Confidence in every piece of knowledge of your industry.

This is where you start to see 7+ figures of income because it pays to be a master of any industry. At this level, everything you do is for fun because you want to be better, not because you need to be better.

This is where you can start to give back.

Questions to Ask Yourself:

What level am I at? You have to be honest with yourself. Check your ego at the door. If you’re at level 1, remember that this is where EVERYONE starts. Don’t kid yourself! It’s possible to be at different levels with different skills within your industry.

What level do people that I coach reach? This is important for you to note as you go to level 4 and 5, as to identify the quality of leader you are. Don’t try to coach too early. It will hinder your credibility and you should wait until Level 4.

Just because you are getting results, doesn’t mean you have advanced a level. Sometimes the market can trick you or you are putting more hours in, which can lead you to believe that you are at a higher level of mastery. In reality, there may be several factors that are working out in your favor to help you achieve results, even though you haven’t moved up a level in skill. Also, just because you are not getting results, doesn’t mean you are not progressing your skillset. Don���t let results dictate where you believe you are on that scale.

Keys to Making it to the Next Level:

REPETITION of the right skills – don’t repeat bad habits!

MENTORSHIP – You can get this from association, business events, reading, etc. Seek out a mentor who can help you grow.

BE PATIENT – Remember, success does not come over night. Don’t compare yourself to others, focus on YOUR progress. Everyone’s journey is different.  If you stay focused on your track, you WILL achieve mastery.

Everyone has setbacks no matter where they are in their journey but the difference between those who are successful and those who are not is PERSEVERANCE! Be HUNGRY. Put in the work. DON’T be a jack of all trades and master of none.

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Work Hard, Rest Hard

How much time have you already wasted today? Contrary to the majority of self-help philosophies out there, I am here to tell you one of the main reasons we are unproductive during our working hours is because we are not resting during our resting hours. We are always “on.” We don’t truly “unplug” and therefore we can never truly “plug-in.” Sound familiar? Rest is the missing element of work, and the least talked about in this space today. In the content below, rather than detailing why rest is a critical part of your working rhythm, we are going to explain how to get better rest by identifying areas that promote rest and those that inhabit it. Most of your best rest will be directly linked to the elimination of the inhibitors below. And yes…you can thank us later.

First, here are some simple practices to promote rest:

Disconnect from media, especially social media…give yourself a break from your screen!

Schedule in some much-needed SILENCE. Who knew?! Meditation apps such as “HeadSpace” work wonders.

Set appropriate boundaries – we’ll go into more detail about this one below.

Rest according to your personality. Do you like to be alone or with others to recharge?

Be one with nature! Did you know being outdoors actually has science-backed health benefits?

Take your sleep seriously! Make those hours count! Your room should be like a “sleep chamber” when you are ready to get some serious zzz’s.

Rest Inhibitors and How to Avoid Them:

Distractions Time wasters – we all know’em…YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, you name it. Every alert on your phone, every viral video your friends send you, every minute you spend swooning over your friends new baby-in-a-pretty-headband pictures…even though you don’t even want babies yet (or is that just me?)…there are a million distractions in your life. It’s time to get serious, because they are stealing your future.

How to fix it

Eliminate Non-Essential Notifications

Utilize the “Do Not Disturb” Setting

Schedule Time Blocks for People and Activities

Put a Limit on Your Social Media or Other Non-Essential App Usage …and stick to it!

Delete Non-Essential Apps – Either Temporarily or Permanently

Make Time Wasters Difficult to Use…unplug the tv, delete YouTube off your phone, download website blocker plug-ins for your browser, etc.

Artificial Boundaries Has anyone ever pushed your buttons? What does that even mean anyway? It means, that someone has overstepped your perceived boundaries.

Boundaries are barriers we put up in front of ourselves to guard our time, our energy, our emotions, our physical space – basically, our life. Most people don’t put up boundaries correctly when dealing with other people and too often find themselves overcommitting. Does that sound like you?  A proper boundary is a barrier with the door nob on the inside – so YOU are the one that determines when you open the door and when you close it. An improper boundary looks like a barrier with the door nob on the outside, where certain people can just open that door and walk right through without your permission. Many people react by putting up walls, but the problem with that is no one gets in and no one gets out! Putting up walls is not effective or efficient for growth, even if it provides temporary comfort.

How to fix it:

This could be an entirely separate blog post, but the main premise to become aware of is to know what your boundaries are in every situation. Then you must be aware of which side of the barrier the door handle is on, and ALWAYS make sure you are in control. For more information on boundaries, check out The Art of Saying No by Damon Zahariades or Boundaries by Henry Cloud.

Procrastination How much time have you already wasted today? Procrastination comes in many forms – distractions, interruptions, focusing on non-priorities, and so much more. We have all dealt with procrastination in one form or another. What if I told you this was more of a coping mechanism rather than laziness? When we are faced with difficulty, we tend to let procrastination get the best of us. Procrastination is a snowball. It pushes our work down the road until we reach a snowball where we are overwhelmed and under-motivated. This is what inhibits rest the most. And that is why it’s a cycle.

When you procrastinate and don’t get your work done during your “work time” you end up having to do work during “rest time.” Your “me” time. It’s time to interrupt this pattern and stop the cycle!

How to fix it:

GET CLARITY. First, become aware that you are procrastinating. Next, ask yourself what you are avoiding and why. Then, ask yourself why you should face it and what would happen if you don’t. Then, TAKE ACTION! Pick one, very small action you can take to tackle your task ahead. This can break the procrastination cycle.

For more tips on how to improve your rest, check out The Perfect Day Formula by Craig Ballantyne.