Being successful does not have to be at the expense of family…
I like to say that life is primary! Work is meant to fund life, not become life. As much as you may have convinced yourself otherwise, being successful does not have to be at the expense of family, friends and any sort of social life. As I see it, too many people are either not clear about what they want, or believe it is impossible to have what they want, so they settle for much, much less. If I could encourage you to open your mind to the possibility that you can have it all – a magnificent life and a wonderful working experience – would you be willing to consider an alternative approach to life and work?
If so, let’s begin by discovering just what it is that makes you happy, what rewards your soul. That is your first lesson – getting your soul to be a partner and together designing a magnificent life. When your soul is not your partner in life, it is very difficult to experience all the richness of being fully human. When your soul is truly involved, traveling your destiny path becomes an adventure.
Where to begin?
How about exploring what could entice your soul to work with you again? The best way to partner with your soul is to make it want to participate. Invite it and do more than promise – pay! First things first, back to what makes you happy? Depending on the degree of joy that different positive experiences bring me, I call these activities “10s”, “25s”, “50s” and “100s”. The “10s” are the simple joys you can make happen to reward your soul every day- like a good cup of coffee with a friend; “25s” perhaps once a month – maybe dinner with a beloved at a super restaurant; “50s” are something even more special that you’d do maybe two or three times in a year- like dinner in Paris or New York with your beloved. “100s” are the big rewards- the kind of reward or celebration that is extra special, mind-blowing and, ideally, tax-deductible! – like dinner in Paris with your beloved and colleagues/friends to discuss an investment.
Your homework now, is to list the things that bring you differing levels of delight and happiness that would fit into the above categories of “10s” etc.
Now you’re probably asking yourself, “What does all this have to do with making more money in less time?” Read on…
Productivity Increased
Have you ever noticed that after a short trip or even just a day off, when you return to work your productivity increases significantly? That’s because your soul has been rewarded and is now prepared to help you achieve, to help you fund your life so that more rewards will follow. Many of us limit “payment” and in turn limit our productivity. Instead of saving all your fun and joy for a few “50s” during an annual vacation, why not plan daily “10s” and monthly “25s” along the way? Think of how much easier it would be to stay one-minded and work-focused if you knew that off and on during the day you had planned treats and retreats for your soul.
Your Mission…
Your mission then, the alternative approach I’d like you to consider, is to design an Ideal Day/Week/Month for yourself which includes not just specific work-related goals, but also a number of “10s” for yourself when you complete the planned tasks. If, for instance, you were a business owner and you had a work day structured to include perhaps two hours of recruiting, an hour over lunch with a center of influence and then three more hours of coaching time with staff, an hour or so workout, swimming or getting a massage at the gym, then a few hours of one-minded enjoyment with your children unencumbered with worry or guilt, now that would make for a pretty satisfying day wouldn’t it? Fifteen minutes at the end of the day spent on planning the ideal day for tomorrow would then ensure another more enjoyable and dollar-productive day to come.
Pay special attention to…
Your next homework assignment is somewhat more global. I’d like you to take time, maybe dedicate a day or two, to explore what “100s” you would like to experience in your lifetime. What would be major rewards for your soul to acknowledge a job well done like a doubling of income or the completion of a particularly major project or investment? I want you to take out your calendar, sit down with your beloveds and plan for at least one “100” per year for the next ten years. A “100” for you might be to take the family on holiday to the Greek Islands or a cruise around the Caribbean. Pay special attention to all those things you’ve dreamed about over the years and dismissed as being out of your reach. As you pick up speed and find your focus and enthusiasm returning full strength with your soul engaged as your business partner, you’re suddenly going to find yourself with an income stream that you never dreamed was possible.
When I have checked in with people who have been working with this very simple, alternative approach to business life, I have heard time and again that it wasn’t the thought of more dollars in the bank that motivated them to double their dollar-productive behavior. What made them fulfill their commitment to two hours of prospecting calls a day were things like the promise they’d made themselves and their families to do a great trip together, or a non-reward like sending money to an ex-spouse that they disliked.
A Magnificent Life
When you start to experience the benefits of taking charge of your life, being proactive in ensuring you have an Ideal Day/Week/Year that includes dollar-productive activities as well as “10s” and steps towards major personal goals, I would urge you to step more fully into your role as mentor to your staff and team members. Take the time to ask them some of their “10s”, what is important to them, and then help them to shape their days, weeks and year around this system that you’ve proved works. May everyone, whose life you touch, come to know the meaning of “magnificent life.”
