As we come to the middle part of our week on what to do after vacation, today we are going to tackle the subject of how to build a routine that works. We started our week with clearing our heads and finding that place for meditation and spending time each day to get ourselves focused. Then yesterday we got out our cleaning supplies and took a look at those things that need to be taken out of our lives that are holding us back. Once you have the two of these done, you now see yourself thinking of new ways to get your projects done, and you have space to do them now that some weights have been lifted.
What we need to do next is build a routine with all that extra space that gets us working more efficiently. If you are a creative person like me you love to have the freedom to express your artistic side. I do that each day in this blog and other things I’m writing. Many people I talk to want to know how I get the inspiration to write like this. They want to know what they need to do to get this much written.
Well even with my free spirit / inspirational / be creative personality, I have to set up a routine that gets me working on these things on a regular basis. I have a routine that gets me in front of this computer to write. No matter what I have going on, I treat this like it’s a job. For a long time I tried just getting to it when I felt like it. This left me so many times up late at night working to get something written. Working only when you feel like it will never bring you success.
So if you learn to build a routine for what you need to get done it will take the stress out of your day. When you are starting over, you may be at the place in life I was a few years ago when I had to spend so many hours of each day at a job working. That was part of my routine. To make this business a success I had to build a routine outside of my work to get things done. Many who are reading this are always looking for ways to get from that routine they call a job to a new dream. Well, yes, you may have to work at a job that is its own routine, but the routine you set with your spare time is what will bring you success at your side venture.
Since we came back from vacation, this week it’s like we are starting over. So how do you build your routine that makes you successful? This entire idea is built around management of your time. I have found several time management programs out there that give you ways to take the steps you need to get your time back to being yours. Here are a few suggested programs to help you find a new time management system for you that are low cost.
501 tips and ideas for finding more time.
These are good self-help programs that can help you reach your goals, help you get your time working for you, or just get yourself back on track after a great vacation. Of course I also have a few tips to get you going if you want to try on your own.
1. Define your objective. Like I said above, maybe you are working a job right now to bring in the money you need until you are able to set out on your own with the business or venture that you dreamed of doing. Maybe it’s to launch a non-profit to help people, like my friends did at Races4change.org. Whatever it is you need to define that to start with.
2. Do some research. The greatest research tool is Google. Find five other people who are doing what you are doing. Learn how they got there, what challenges they went through to get there.
3. Take action with what you’ve got. Yes, I write almost 2000 words a day – about 1000 for this blog and 1000 on books and programs I am working on. But I started out doing less. If you only have an hour each day to do this then take that one hour and use it. Even the small actions and small amounts of time add up over time. The point is when taking action, make it work towards your goal. Find ways to make this a routine that changes your world.
4. Keep a record of your progress. Last night I was hanging out with some of my closest friends in business and we talked about an old friend of theirs, who I never met. He faced challenges that came into his life one at a time, at a very rapid pace. The one thing that everyone asked him to do was to keep a journal or record of his story to help others. If you don’t like to write, find another way to keep notes. Call me and I will help you set up a way to record your story and get you to the people who are writers and looking to help you tell your story.
5. No matter what happens, press on. Last week we lost Steve Jobs to a form of cancer. Many on this earth will suffer in pain and you will never know it. Steve Jobs dealt with this sickness for years, yet in those years he introduced three modern technology devices. Think about when he learned of his illness; it was after his diagnosis that he introduced the iPhone, MacBook Air, and the iPad. Imagine if he had awakened each day and said, “I don’t feel like working today; I hurt.” Many of you would not be reading this on your iPad today. Yes I have done the tasks that are part of my dream even on the days that I could not get out of bed. Don’t let a little sickness or uncomfortable feeling keep you from your dream.
So what is your dream and what routine are you going to assign yourself to make that dream come true? Are you willing to work on those days that you do not feel well? We don’t know that days we have on this earth, but I do know this: if you are still alive you have not fulfilled your purpose yet. Take each day you have and work toward it because if you are not living your purpose or chasing your dream you are not living.
I’m Tim Gillette, the Rocker Life Coach. It’s time to live the life you always dreamed of, to love what you do and those you share this life with, and get a routine that makes you the RockStar in your world today.
