It's a lifestyle that carries both the weightless freedom of autonomy and the weighty burden of responsibility on any given day you're living it.
Like right now, nobody's making me write this. I have no one to answer to.
If I wanted, I could quit without even finishing this sentence- and instead surf YouTube the rest of today.
I could fill my car up and set off on the road, any direction I chose.
I could head down to the point at Burleigh Heads, take my Mexican blanket with me, grab some snacks and some beers on the way then laze about on that grassy slope and watch the sun set...
I have nobody to report to, and I'm free.
Yet...I don't even consider doing any of these. I couldn't stand wasting a day!
With great freedom comes great responsibility. There are big choices that rest solely on the shoulders of any business owner or professional. There is the ongoing battle between "What needs to be done now?" and "What can I come back to, later?"
It's out of this mindset that I've come to live by the following principle:
Principle #4: A Great Week Is A Planned Week
The thing is, even if you're a Duke of delayed gratification and a Sargent of self-control, this doesn't guarantee that your career and your life will advance in leaps and bounds.
There are constant tasks that need to be tended to. People and relationships we're accountable for. Bills to be paid. Meetings to be had, deadlines to be met. Phone calls to be made. 'To Do' items that need to be followed up next month, tomorrow, next week and yesterday.
So you've got to make headroom to keep all these tasks in your mind. The days come and go so quickly. Somewhere in the midst of it, you're meant to have fun. Emphasis on the "meant to" part.
What do you do with all these tasks? You can write your 'To Do' lists, but all that is, is simply a list with more noise on it. More items. More things to worry about.
You were made for MORE than this!
It's time to toss out your 'To Do' list- and welcome your Weekly Planner. Here's why:
For nearly five years now, I've kept a Weekly Planner. I got the idea after listening to the Tony Robbins 10 part audio series 'Time Of Your Life'. I highly recommend you get your hands on a copy and listen for yourself. Especially listen to Parts 6 and 7, where he takes you through keeping a Weekly Planner in-depth.
I won't go on and on with the details here, but fact is that for the better part of the last 5 years, every Monday at some point I sit down either at home, at a cafe or restaurant out somewhere with my laptop and plan my coming week.
The purpose of the Weekly Planner is not just to include your professional outcomes (like career and financially related tasks) but to set goals that improve your health, your relationships, your interests and the other key areas of your life. In my Weekly Planner, I have the following categories to pay attention to:
Physical
Emotional
Spiritual
Financial
Family
Career
Relationships
Interests
Setting it out like this (and categorising all the action items I list in terms of how important/ urgent they are) means that each week I'm not just getting the important stuff done- but I'm enjoying the week as it unfolds, too.
You might want to ad other categories to your planner, but the most important thing is this:
Get the work done- but have fun and appreciate your life each day you get, too.
There are online programs like Trello that you can use for this (me, I just have a simple Word document as my Planner) but the most important thing is to get your Weekly Planner up and running.
This, in tandem with paying attention to that little putt forward every day (see my previous post here: scribecopywriting.weebly.com/notes-from-the-scribe/how-to-putt-your-way-to-success-and-glory) gets you a whole lot more juice out of life.
I guarantee it!
Throw out your To Do List, get your Weekly Planner going- and experience the difference for yourself!