Tag: learning

Why reading 5 pages per day will change your life

5 pages per day x 365 days per year = 1,825 pages per year.

If a book averages 300 pages (which seems high), you would finish 6+ books per year.

What you read daily changes the way you think. If you can change your thoughts, you can change your life.

We all need constant, little reminders of how we should be acting. By going too long without thinking about something (leadership, business, marketing, sales, relationships, finance, etc), we often forget what we should be applying in everyday circumstances.

Four keys to success (inspired by a recent BiggerPockets podcast episode)

1. Decisiveness – clearly define what it is you want. Then ask yourself, will whatever action you’re about to take bring you closer to that goal? If yes, do it. If no, don’t do it. Not sure? Give yourself a set period to decide then take action.

2. Build momentum. Does an airplane start the engine then it’s up in the air flying? No. It has to build up speed to take flight. Once in the air, it’s easy to maintain. Determine what is the most important next action step, then do it (preferably, it should be easy to implement so you can “check it off the list” and build momentum). When you do that, figure out the most important next step and do that. Repeat, repeat, repeat.

3. Measure what matters. Keep track of the most important numbers. What are the lead measures and lag measures you need to hit to achieve your goals? Budget your time, actions, money, etc.

4. Become an expert. What did I do yesterday? How could I have done it better? What did I do that I should stop doing? What do I need to learn to be considered an “expert” in my field.

Three underrated skills that everyone should learn

1. Sales.

Whether you like it or not, you’re involved in a sales pitch every day. In addition to trying to be sold by retailers, you’re also being sold/selling what you should eat for dinner, what movie you’re going to watch, what your plans should be for this weekend, etc. If you get good at selling, you’ll get what you want more often than not in life. The key is to not make it sound like a sales pitch. People like to buy. They get excited about buying. But they hate being sold.

2. Storytelling.

Good storytelling can capture imaginations, paint vivid pictures, express ideas that can’t be conveyed otherwise, and win people over. If you are a good storyteller, you’ll naturally draw people’s attention and they will be more likely to enjoy your company.

3. Carpentry.

To be a good carpenter, you generally have to have good forethought to see what repercussions there are for what you are about to do. It requires hands on skill. And, there is usually more math involved than most people think. Doing work with your hands accesses a different part of your brain than reading, writing, or listening, and is essential to becoming as well-rounded as possible.

Four things to avoid when trying to improve…

1. Avoid getting locked into bad habits. You usually have an idea of if you shouldn’t be doing something, so don’t do it.

2. Avoid resisting change. Change not for change’s sake, but to progress. Always strive for a better way to do something – doing it more effectively, more efficiently, or finding something to replace it. (Do you need to be doing that activity at all? Does anyone?)

3. Avoid seeking comfort in repetition. Just because it’s comfortable doesn’t make it right. The greatest times of accomplishment are often preceded by the greatest challenges/struggles which push us outside our comfort zone. We must embrace challenge.

4. Avoid applying old solutions to new problems. Your core values should stay the same. Your goal(s) might stay the same. But your tactics on how to complete the goal could (and probably should) change somewhat regularly, depending on if the tactics are producing the results you want. Just because a specific solution worked for something else doesn’t mean it will work for this new problem.

Embarrassment

Never be embarrassed by where you are in life – by what car you’re driving or what house you live in. Everyone has to start somewhere. If you’re going to be embarrassed about anything, be embarrassed about if you’re taking a victim mentality and blaming others for your situation.

Instead of being complacent, how are you using ambition and drive to improve your situation? Just because you’re somewhere right now, it doesn’t mean that you have to stay there. But if you don’t take action, chances are you’re not going to be in a very different spot a few years from now.

So if you don’t like where you’re at, again, you shouldn’t be embarrassed or ashamed of it. But that means that you’re not happy with the results of what you’ve done so far. Now is the time to change. Take action everyday to improve and you’ll be amazed at how far you’ll go in a short period of time.