Are you trying this hard?

This weekend, I watched an ESPN special, "Homecoming with Rick Reilly."  Reilly's guest was the all-world skater, Tony Hawk.

Hawk was one of the key reasons  ESPN created the X games.  This entry is not about ESPN, Skate Boarding, or The X games.  This blog is about perseverance.  Tony Hawk worked on one of his key tricks for 10 years before perfecting it.

Ten years of work.  Let's break that time period.

1 decade
120 months
520 weeks
3650 days

Can you imagine how many times he got discouraged?  How many times he wanted to quit?  How many times he wondered if it was really worth the effort?  I don't know the answers, but I do know that he kept going, he pushed through, and he overcame and made it happen.

Now, the question is to you.  What have you put off doing, because it was to difficult?  What have you put on hold because you got discouraged?  Let me challenge you.

Get to work.  Revive that dream,  start working and forget about the negative self talk.  If it takes you longer than you think it should, does it really matter?  Keep working, make everyday count, stay focused on your dreams.

Go have a great week.

The next time you need a speaker, make it easy on yourself and call me. I will inspire, motivate, and entertain your group. See my speaking demo.  Call (417) 339-6568 for availability. The only way I look good is making you look good for booking me.

Let's do some math and become more productive!

There are 168 hours in a week.  Go ahead and check my math, 24 hours per day x 7 days =   ?

Working schedules vary, some people work 40 hours, some people work 80 hours.  For our purpose here, let's say you work 60 hours per week.  How can you make that time more effective?

Bryan Dodge introduced me to an interesting concept.  Quality of time at work - Quantity of time at home.  According to Dodge, when you are at work -- work.  When you are at home be at home.  He goes onto say that our kids need to know that we are home.  Even if they are in another room of the house, the simple fact that they know that Mom and Dad are there for them is very important.  So how can we become more effective  at work.

1.  Have a plan.  When you have a plan for the day, you are more excited and focused. With focus, comes execution.

2.  Do the worst thing first.  Brian Tracey, a time management expert, has authored a book, "Eat that Frog."  If you have a frog to eat, eat it first.   That way you won't be worrying about it the rest of the day.  Do it and move on.

3.  For me, real successful days always mean having some fun while you work.  Life is to short and too unpredictable not to have fun.  But you can have fun and still have a focus.  I have received email forwards that I have enjoyed and on occasion I send them on -- but be honest, if you are forwarding several emails every working day, you are robbing your company.  If that doesn't mean anything to you - you are robbing yourself and your company too.

4.  Be ready to work when you get to work.  If you spend the first 20 minutes of each day at the coffee pot,   you have wasted an hour and half per week

So if you work 60 hours per week, what are you doing with the other 108 hours?  Okay you need to sleep.  Let's say on average people sleep 8 hours per day that is 56 hours; that leaves us 52 hours.   Again, we have church, family, school and various responsibilities.  However, if we are dedicated and determined to get the most out of our time, we can reach our goals.

This week, do the right thing at the right time and enjoy your productivity.  Have a super week. 


The next time you need a speaker, make it easy on yourself and call me. I will inspire, motivate, and entertain your group. Check out my speaking demo.  Call (417) 339-6568 for availability. The only way I look good is making you look good for booking me.

Is it time to "make it happen?"

Goals.  They are important.  They are the road map for your life.  Some people have their goals taped to their mirror.  Some people visualize themselves hitting their goals.  Goals are vital to success.

At the same time, a road map, like goals, is only useful when people are in motion.  People have to get in (or on) a vehicle and put it in action for a road map to be useful.  The same is true with goals.  We can cover every mirror in our house with goals, we can visualize every success we want to achieve -- but if we don't get off the couch and make it happen, it will never happen.  Here are some suggestions:

1.  Do not misunderstand this blog -- goals are important and you should have them.
2.  Keep a list of all the things that you do every day to achieve your goals -- work to accomplish four daily tasks that will help you.
3.  Understand that without action, nothing happens.
4.  Make a list of all the habits that are stopping you from hitting your goals - create a game plan to establish more productive habits.

Action is the key.  This week work to create a game plan for action.

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The next time you need a speaker, make it easy on yourself and call me. I will inspire, motivate, and entertain your group. Check out my speaking demo.  Click Here   Then call (417) 339-6568 for availability. The only way I look good is making you look good for booking me.