3 Disciplines

Over the past few years I have accepted 3 rules to live by in order to stay effective, progress forward, and to remain energized. If I but stray from one of them I find myself becoming overwhelmed, tired, or falling behind. When I remain true to these disciplines I see myself moving forward, feeling healthy and able to do my job leading people at 100%. I want to share this with you….

1)Plan:
We have all heard this before and know how important it is to plan your time both long-term and short-term. During the peak of my graffiti art years I used to plan every piece by drawing before hand and prepping all my colors. When asked why I follow such detail I would reply "the man with a plan is the one who doesn't waste a can". In other words, no wasted paint (time). Turns out, my work was always on point and my reputation was amongst others was the one who was always different - planning ahead of time rather than the same ol' piece.
The same goes for the 24hr period we have each day. Plan your piece, how it will start, what fills will you put into it and how you want it to end. This happens through the use of our day-timer and I for one am a huge follower of it. Seeing your day even closer at a micro level how will you make each hour of training different? Do you arrive early to review the logs, programs, goals and plan something different? Or do you roll in right on time and do the same workout?
When we take the time to make the plan we feel ourselves being effective with out time and moving forward. There is one disclaimer with all of this: Any plan can have a wrench thrown into the spokes. Be prepared for this and be ready to adapt on the spot. The wall might be smaller than anticipated and you have to shorten your letters, you might arrive and see you are training 8hrs instead of 7hrs and you might plan a specific workout yet find the customer come in with their 80year mother.

2)Prioritize:
It is so easy to throw a plan together yet the challenge is to put one together that emphasizes the must-do items get done first. Before using some of the fun colors in the fill (the baby blues, the nice purples) of my piece I was painting I had to make sure I got my sketch down first. This was hard and took a bit of concentration. Getting this completed well would ensure that anything I did after would not matter as much because the most important part was done. I could relax at that point and have fun.
In real life it is no different. Yet it is so easy for us to get side tracked by the fun stuff which puts the important stuff aside for that much longer. In the end it only leads to more stress knowing that you did not handle the most important thing first. Each day, get your workout over with first, you will feel a sense of accomplishment and approach the rest of the day feeling good. Opening your email to send an important follow-up will you first check all the easy fun emails or will you take care of priority 1 first? Take the time to get the most important items done first – these are usually the ones that take a bit more concentration and focus yet are also the ones that will move us forward.

3)Rest
The day only has 24hrs. We are not machines and that can operate each hour of the entire day. Somewhere in there we must rest our body and mind. We sometimes get a burst of energy that allows us to burn the candle at both ends but the harsh reality is that eventually it will catch up with us if you continue. It might show through stress, being agitated easily, sickness or injury.
Everyone is different, I have been one who must get at least 7hrs a night. When I follow my plan and get to bed on time, I feel great the next day. I am able to come to the facility, mentally and physically sharp ready to motivate and energize those around me.
Proper rest allows you to follow your plan better too. It can be a catch 22. If you fail to plan & execute your rest you fail to deliver on your plan the following day. And nobody wants this it just back-jams all of your priorities and you fall behind.

Thanks for reading.