Category: Uncategorized

The weekend

“With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

No matter what happened yesterday, no matter what you did or didn’t do, today is a new day. Don’t dwell on the past. You can’t change what happened last week, but today you have a new opportunity to do what you need to do.

I agree with Eleanor Roosevelt’s quote above. Each day brings you new opportunities to reset. But there’s something different about the weekend. It feels easier to hit the reset button because you’re able to take a breath and take a step back from work. Now that it is the weekend, try doing things that you don’t have as much time to do on a typical weekday. Weekends don’t mean you should just sit around and do nothing. You get an extra 8 hours per day back (more if you count the drive time) since you’re not going into work! Take advantage of it. Go work out, read a good book, clean the house, meal prep for the week, start on the project that you’ve been meaning to…Sure, you can still catch up on a show or two, but try to improve yourself. Now is when you have the time and the strength (mentally and physically) to follow through with your ideas. Don’t waste it.

Building a buffer for less stress

Build a buffer into your day.

If you schedule everything so strictly, filling every hour of your day, you’re going to feel much more stress. Because if you go over time in one thing, it’s like a domino effect. One thing affects another, which affects another. Next thing you know, the schedule for your entire day is “off” and you feel like you might as well throw your schedule out the window!

You need slack in the line. If everything is so tightly scheduled and rigid, you are setting yourself up for a much more stressful (and probably less successful) day. If you think something is going to take an hour and a half, give yourself two hours to do it. Not everything will be perfect. There will be distractions or things you didn’t anticipate. That is why having that time buffer in place is so crucial.

Don’t stress yourself out. Plan a buffer.

Making memories

“It doesn’t matter who my father was; it matters who I remember he was.” – Anne Sexton.

My dad was a great man. I would say so and I believe that many other people would say so too. My dad passed away when I was just 28 years old, 4 months away from me becoming a first time father myself. He taught me many things in the 28 years that I was by his side. I attribute who I am today because of the values that my mother and father instilled in me from a young age. I will always remember him as one of the greatest men that I’ve ever known.

This brings me to my thought of the day, which is to not take your time with loved ones for granted. Whether it’s your mom, dad, sister, brother, husband, wife, children, friends, or extended family – it doesn’t matter what their title is. Try to see them whenever you can. Try to do things with them. Make memories. If we outlive our loved ones, the only thing we have left are the memories we made with them.

If you can’t spend time with them regularly, reach out to them. Call them just to have a conversation and catch up. You’ll never regret making time for the ones you love, and you never know how long they will be in your life.

Lastly, try to express to them how much they mean to you. It can feel weird and vulnerable, but it will be worth it. If you pass away before them, they will know how you felt about them (and vice versa). It’s comforting, even though they are not with you anymore.

So that’s today’s thought of the day. I hope it inspires you to become more connected with others and not take your time for granted with them. I also hope that it makes you want to take action. Because the decisions you make on how you spend your time each day will determine how many memories you can make with others.

Sales

Good salespeople have good answers. Great salespeople ask great questions. Ask open-ended questions and then repeat their answer back to them to get your prospect to feel understood. This also helps because it allows the prospect to clarify something you may have misunderstood or assumed incorrectly.

If you are confident in your abilities and are a good communicator (i.e., you listen well and know how to encourage others to give you more relevant information), you will do well in sales.

Withholding judgment

Don’t hold other people to your standards. It’s their life, not yours. Be happy for them if they’re happy with the decisions they’ve made.

When you judge others based on their decisions, it is often coming from a place of resentment. Whether you resent them for doing something you wish you could do or whether you disagree with their lifestyle, either way, judging them won’t make them change and only presents downside to you. Judging others never brings you joy. Eliminate judging and complaining for a better day.