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February 2005
Peter Schneider
The Big Bear Coach
925.634.1551
Pete@discoversolutions.com
DiscoverSolutions.com
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Discover Solutions for the INFORMATION AGE and the OVERWHELM that comes with it.
If you find this ezine/newsletter thought provoking, please forward it to your friends and business associates, as I grow my readership and business through your generous referrals.
Got Results? E-Zine Contents
Focus Quote
What you tolerate is what you stand for.
Pat Murray, TEC Speaker
Focus Coaching Insight
So, do you know the number-one reason people hire a coach? No, it's not to win an Olympic medal. It has to do with time management, according to a survey by the International Coaching Federation.
Time Management is really an oxymoron, as we all only have 24 hours a day. . In the "information age" it's all about having unlimited choices; we want to do too much in too little time. A great example of this was when I had accepted an opportunity to go to Long Beach, California for the Indy race held there. The very next day I got an invitation to go to the Masters golf tournament in Augusta, Georgia. Now I have figured out how to get around by plane on many occasions, but this was impossible. How many times has this happened to you? It seems to happen more as we get older and expand our circles of friends, associates and knowledge.
Look at your life today, and see and feel if the world is smothering you. Look at the piles of paper on the various workspaces you have. Are you an industrious one who even makes the floor more functional with piles? Do you have an endless collection of magazines you're meaning to read? Do you have projects that have come and gone? Do you receive endless, useless e-mails that plug up your inbox pipeline? Are you singing the old Sonny and Cher song, "As the beat goes on…" or your own version of "The shi_ keeps piling on…"? (I hope that catches you smiling.) My clients ask me, "What can I do?"
I worked in a family business for 22 years, and one trick I learned from my dad is to turn over your piles and start sorting them out. Often the deadline has come and gone. It's not important anymore, or someone else did it (rarely does this happen). So, turn your piles upside down and clean them up.
Next, look at your famous magazine piles. But wait! First, look in a mirror and say aloud, "I have (fill in the number) hours to read these magazines." If you laugh at yourself, start shortening the time till you don't laugh anymore. Now pick the magazines that you can read within that timeframe and recycle or toss the rest. If you're a "packrat" like I am, then put them in a box and set it away with a date on top. If it doesn't move in a month, recycle it and put this month's box in its place. Do this until you develop the fortitude to just toss the magazines at will.
If you have an assistant, ask her/him to tear out important articles. Make sure to cancel the magazines that you don't need. Same with those of you with newspapers and the Wall Street Journal.
The process is all about setting your boundaries, and identifying that which you truly have time for and is valuable to your success. When you ditch the mess, you create more time for the work you want to do, and serve yourself and your company best.
So I ask you: WHAT ARE YOU TOLERATING AND DO YOU WANT TO KEEP THAT STANDARD?
Focus Exercise
One of the daily tasks we have to attend to is handling our mail at work and at home. Every time you handle a piece of mail consciously look at it and ask yourself if I don't throw it away when will I have time to read it. Of course bills do matter and everyone keeps the checks. But focus on the magazines, newsletters and any correspondence that you have committed yourself to reading. Realistically how much time do you have to handle these items. If you just consciously review them daily you will soon cancel those subscriptions and clear more space for yourself. More space increases your time to focus on what is most needed to produce the results you want in your life to happen.
Pete's Perspective
You should know that any successful business or life coach should have his or her own coach. My present business coach, Chris Barrow, had his assistant help us to clean out the DEADWOOD and DRIFTWOOD in our offices a few weeks ago on a Friday. I worked for six hours, dedicated solely to cleaning up my office of those aforementioned piles of paper and magazines, along with the numerous books I have to read.
Needless to say, I was exhausted after all the hauling, sorting and cleaning of my office. But I must admit that it was gratifying to accomplish so much in that amount of time. The real bonus was Monday morning when I opened my door to a clean, organized and fully-functional office. The peace of mind, open workspaces and organized files have accelerated my focus on what will produce the high-quality work and success I'm seeking. Call it a "clean sweep of monumental proportions," one that has given me perspective on what I was tolerating…which then became my standard.
I have now changed my standard by not accepting new or very cheap renewal subscriptions, in order to keep the time I created with this new approach to my work environment. I invite you to give it a try and see the huge difference this can make for you. For many of you executives that suffer from a form of ADD (more common then you might expect), there are people who specialize in organizing your environment and office setup to enable your systems to facilitate your success. You should also consider a coach, as it has been a great investment in moving me forward to a higher level of performance with less stress.
If you are interested in expanding this process, drop me an e-mail and I can forward you a copy of a Tolerations exercise for all the areas in your life. For many of my clients - and for me - changing tolerations has been the first step in reclaiming precious time and creating space for the things they value in having in their lives.
Thanks for your time,
Coach Pete
Upcoming Events
Lost the New Years weight loss Resolutions? Now find permanant weight loss. We are in the final stages or creating this unique program. Please e-mail if your interested in becoming part of the first 10 person group launch. Space is limited.
E-mail pete@discoversolutions.com if your interested.
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Copyright February 2005, Discover Solutions, Pete Schneider
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