Positive Energy

"You can have all the time in the world, but if you don't have the energy, you can't get anything done." --Jon Gordon

I read this quote a couple of weeks ago and it nudged me to read
The Energy Bus: 10 Rules to Fuel Your Life, Work, and Team with Positive Energy. Gordon encourages us to focus less on our time and more on our energy. Time is finite-there are only so many hours in the day. What we can affect is the positive energy that we bring to our day.

There are times in all of our lives when we need to take a good hard look at the energy we expend. Being optimistic and having enthusiasm to perform at a higher level takes energy. It doesn't just happen by chance. If you get a chance pick up a copy of this inspirational book. Today I will focus on having more positive energy!

Work Smarter, Not Harder!

Work smarter, not harder!
-Allan F. Morgensen

The first time I heard this I literally stopped in my tracks. My parents taught me to work hard and through the years I have achieved many of my goals because of my work ethic. I am detail oriented, disciplined and persistent. These traits have served me well.

Many times since I have heard these four words I have paused to think about the way that I work. Time management has always been a challenge to me. I have a wide variety of business interests that keep me really busy. Sometimes I get side tracked from one project to the next so that at the end of the day I have not been as productive as I should have been. Now that I am more aware of this fact though, I am able to keep on task a lot more frequently.

I create and keep a schedule for each month. Within the month I break down what I would like to achieve each week. Then I break it down by day. This system seems to work really well for me. At the end of the month I evaluate what I have achieved and what still needs to be accomplished. I am not as hard on myself as I used to be. Beating myself up is counter productive. Not every project or task needs to completed immediately. By writing the projects and tasks down I am forced to decide what my priorities really are.

By working smarter, not harder I find myself accomplishing more in my life! Do you work hard? Do you work smart? Please feel free to share your tips here!