The Perfect Day Challenge

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This challenge is a powerful way to tap into your greatness and create an extraordinary life.

 

What you will need:

  • Pen (coloured pens, pencils, crayons) whatever writing instrument you feel comfortable with
  • Paper – as much as you need

 

  • Go somewhere in nature for an hour: Don’t take your phone or anything that will distract you. Find a place to sit comfortably, and start dreaming – write out what your perfect day would be like.

TIPS:

  • Write everything down and be as detailed as possible.
  • Don’t stop writing until you get every single thought or idea on paper
  • Let go of any shame or guilt and just focus on what it is your heart desires
  • Have a clear vision of what you want NEXT in your life over the next 6 to 12 months
  • How do you want to feel right now?
  • What types of experiences do you want to surround yourself with?
  • What kind of impact do you want to have?

 

  • Put your plan into practice by creating an itinerary:
    • Create an itinerary on a different sheet of paper from the moment you wake up to the moment you go to bed in 15 minute to 30 minute intervals.
    • Start slotting in your perfect day activities in-between your regular daily activities.
    • Start living what you envision and put it into practice every single day.

How much time do you (honestly) spend on marketing each day or week

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MARKETING CHALLENGE:

 

Q: How much time do you (honestly) spend on marketing each day or week?

 

Challenge: Every time you post on social media, write a blog, update your website or attend a networking event, over the next 7 days, make a note of how long you spend on it. Write it down on paper, in your diary, set an online timer or use a stop watch. The method you use is entirely up to you. The most important part of the challenge is timing it.

 

By the end of the week, add up the time spent and answer these questions:

  • How much time are you currently spending on marketing your business? Do you think this is enough? How can I help you? Let me know in the comments box below or drop me an e-mail at info@prioritybizservices.co.za
  • Share your plans for being more productive in your marketing efforts with us in the comments box below.

 

Don’t forget to check out our Facebook page and make sure you “like” our page to stay up to date with what’s happening in the administration field.

 

Follow me on Twitter (business):  https://twitter.com/PriorityBizServ

Follow me on Facebook (business) at:  facebook.com/prioritybizservices01

E-mail (business): info@prioritybizservices.co.za

Website: http://prioritybizservices.co.za

Find me on LinkedIn at:  https://za.linkedin.com/in/nataliejohnson2

Skype (by prior arrangement): http://skype.com/natalie.johnson539

 

 

 

Behind the scenes – what am I working on?

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Just in case you are wondering what’s happening on my side of the world right now I thought I would give you a quick update on projects I am currently working on . . .

 

What am I working on right now?

  • Retina SA (Cape Town) – Working as temporary Administrator for Retina SA (Cape Town) is really going well. Very excited about the upcoming variety concert to raise funds for Retina Research.

 

  • Bootcamp Training Manual –  Re-designing Fitness Training Manual for Bootcamp Trainers – this is an ongoing project.

 

  • Proposal writing for NPO’s – Assisting with Fundraising Proposals  for Non-Profit Organisations (NPOs) – combined budgets of R20m. This is an ongoing job which hopefully will generate some income very soon.

 

  • Voice Over work – Selected as Voice Over Artist for Children’s book in two languages (English and Afrikaans) – waiting for book to be published. Should be ready to start Voice Over work by December 2016.

 

Follow me on Twitter (business):  https://twitter.com/PriorityBizServ

Follow me on Facebook (business) at:  facebook.com/prioritybizservices01

E-mail (business): info@prioritybizservices.co.za

Website: http://prioritybizservices.co.za

Find me on LinkedIn at:  https://za.linkedin.com/in/nataliejohnson2

Skype (by prior arrangement): http://skype.com/natalie.johnson539

 

 

 

30 DAY PRODUCTIVITY CHALLENGE

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Three things nobody wants to admit about their time management:

  • How much we procrastinate
  • How long it takes to complete a task
  • How unwilling we are to delegate

 

Here’s a little Productivity Challenge for you – are you ready?

 

FOCUS ON ONE THING (free template available on request):

 

HOW THIS CHALLENGE WORKS

 

  1. Write down all your projects or goals you’re actively working towards at the moment or over the next month.

 

  1. Prioritise your projects or goals so you know what you need to focus on. Ask yourself this question: “Out of everything on the list, what’s the one project or goal I’d love to have completed by the end of 30 days?

(Think about the projects or goals most aligned to your big business vision . . .  you want to focus on something that will really help you move forward in your business).

 

  1. Pick your project or goal i.e. pick the number one project or goal you can focus on for the next 30 days.

 

Commit to focussing on that ONE PROJECT or ONE GOAL almost to the exclusion of everything else you need to do – all your focus and energy goes into this.

 

Naturally you will still answer the telephone, respond to e-mails etc but your main focus for the next 30 days should be this ONE PROJECT or GOAL.

 

AN EXAMPLE:

Let’s say it’s your goal to get your website up and running or your goal is to revamp your existing website. What steps do you need to take for the next 30 days to get this done?

 

At the end of the 30 days, let me know how it went.

Getting more from your day doesn’t have to be so hard

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What’s slowing you down probably isn’t a huge procedural issue, but a bunch of small, anti-productive habits that add up over the course of your day. Fixing small challenges can have a big impact on your day.

 

Respect the 2-minute rule:

Think about the important piece of paper that you shuffle from one side of your desk to the other instead of dealing with it immediately. Then, two days later, you find yourself picking it up again.

 

This is where the 2-minute rule comes in. Many of our immediate responses are to shuffle rather than to just act. Break the habit and just act – take 5 seconds to assess whether something will take you less than 2 minutes to do. If it passes the test, DO IT IMMEDIATELY!

 

Look at the emails sitting in your inbox from last week. Take 5 of them, and, with each one, determine whether you can act within 2 minutes. If you can, do it immediately. If you cannot, wait till later. Always remember, nobody will hold it against you if your reply is shorter than usual. The main thing is to reply and get it done.

 

 

sunflowers in the field in summer

sunflowers in the field in summer

Check your e-mail on the go:

No, don’t check your emails while driving, but when you have a few minutes here and there during the day, when you’re waiting in line at the coffee shop, waiting for your next appointment to arrive and so on.

 

The underlying and most important thing about checking email on the go is that you make your “desk time” sacred. This is when you get real work done. Often, emails are not “real work”. Reply, forward, archive and delete from your phone. If a message requires more, you can save it for “desk time”, then you’ll have a much smaller pile that actually requires your attention than your typical overwhelming unopened inbox.

Action:

  • Don’t check your email from your computer today (yes, I know, you can’t help refreshing that screen as you’re reading this now).
  • Set aside tomorrow morning to answer any email from today that require more than what you could type or do on your phone.

BRAIN DUMP PLANNER

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I don’t know if you are like me always walking around with a million things going through my head at the same time? by the time I sit down at my desk I try to do a To Do List for the day but because there is so much going on in my head I don’t know where to start.

Well, here’s a brilliant idea that works so well for me. It’s called a Brain Dump Planner. This is not your To Do List. This is the place where you write down (dump) every single idea as they pop into your head. You need one of these on your desk whole day every day while you’re working and as an idea or thought pops into your head, you immediately write it down on your Brain Dump Planner. Don’t worry too much about what you need to do with the thought or idea immediately. Leave that for the end of the day.

At the end of the day, have a look at everything you have written down on your Brain Dump Planner and decide what needs to be done about the task. Use the triple “D” system. Decide whether you need to Delegate the task, Dump the task or Do the task. As simple as that.

Delegate that which you need to delegate (via e-mail or whichever way you choose), Dump the ideas that can and need to be dumped (by drawing a line through them on the page) and what’s left to do now gets written on your To Do List for the next day.

Simple, isn’t it?

 

BRAIN DUMP PLANNER

 

Today’s date: ___________

Write down anything that distracts you – Google searches to be done, random thoughts, new ideas, whatever. The point is . . .  if you write them down, they’ll stop popping up when you’re “in the zone” doing what needs to be done now.

 Use the triple “D” system (Delegate, Dump, Do)

 

Task

 Delegate Dump

Do
       
     

Has this post helped you?

Let me know in the comments section below. I’d love to hear from you.

Have you mastered the art of saying NO?

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Having 24 hours in a day is something we all have in common. This means that we all have the same amount of time each day whether we are a homeless person on the street or Raymond Ackerman or Donald Trump.

 

A scary thought for me is that where I am in my life today, is a direct result of how I have been spending my 24 hours each and every single day, up to this point. Doesn’t that scare you?

 

Is your business thriving the way it should? If not, maybe you’ve not been putting enough hours into the correct activities. Please note: I did not say that you’re not putting in enough hours, I said not enough hours of the CORRECT ACTIVITIES. How can successful people like you get more hours in a day?

 

You need to become very good at saying NO! (and mean it every time you say it).

 

I’m going to give you three reasons why saying NO can make you more successful:

 

 

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  1. Feed your own family first

If you’re anything like me, my family is the most important part of my life and spending time with them is not negotiable. My priorities in life are in the following order:

  • My family
  • Myself
  • Business
  • Friends

My family always comes first. There is nothing in the world I would not do for my family.

Next on the list is myself – I need to care enough about myself to ensure that I’m healthy, happy and living a good life.

Next, is my business. Why is this more important than my friends? Well, because of my family and myself. The success of my business depends entirely on me and the amount of time and effort I put into it – partying and having a good time with friends is not going to keep a roof over my head.

 

  1. By saying yes, you are saying NO to something else

Are you always agreeing to do things just because you’re too scared to hurt someone else’s feelings? Are you a people pleaser? Are you scared of what others might think of you if you just said NO?

 

STOP IT! STOP RIGHT NOW!

 

Today is the day when you will take a bold step, make the change and JUST SAY NO! Why? Because you have probably been putting other people before yourself most of your life (like me). You deserve better. When you say yes to something, you are actually saying NO to something else.

 

How many times have you said yes to something (helping a friend during business hours, chatting on the phone about a rugby match, or, if you’re a female, talking about girly or mommy stuff) when you should be working on your business?

 

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  1. If you give them a finger, they will take the whole hand – have you ever heard this expression?

I don’t know about you but I’ve often experienced how selfish many people are and how often they take advantage of good-hearted people like you and I. Being the “go to girl/guy” is great, but does it bring in the money you need to keep a roof over your head?

 

I’ve loved being the “go to girl” all my life but the minute I hint that I’m going to start charging for my services, everyone runs a mile – just goes to show. I’ve built up a reputation of being the “go to girl” who almost always says yes to weird and awkward requests that no one else will help out with (not even their own family).  I’ve said yes too many times because I did not want to be the bad girl to say NO.

 

I’ve made a decision to push myself out of my comfort zone and started saying NO. How about you?

 

Now is the time to finally take your life back and stop living for other people.

 

Disclaimer: I just need to say that I don’t mean you should say NO to everything that comes your way. I just mean that you should become a lot more conscious of what you are actually saying YES to. You should be saying YES to requests as long as they don’t interfere with your list of priorities.

 

For example: a friend phones during business hours to chat about last night’s rugby game – do you chat or say “sorry, I’m just in the middle of something, can I call you back tonight?” and continue working on your business or do you spend an hour or more talking about THE GAME when you could have been earning money?

 

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Always think about your priorities –

A before B, before C, before D, before E.

 

Get the point?

 

Successful people share and are generous, but seldom with their time. Why? Because they also only have 24 hours. They are more likely to donate to charity than give a random person a free one-on-one meeting. Why? Because although they have lots of money, they still only have 24 hours in a day.

 

Where do you find it difficult to say NO?

 

Drop me a note and let me know.

Goals and Goal Setting

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Butterflies orange in a row

 

 

 

 

Setting goals is usually reserved for the beginning of a new year (New Year’s resolutions), but do you review and check on these goals during the year or do you just push on to the end of the year and just make new ones for the new year like you do every year?

 

What about a mid-year review (in June, for example) and then again just before you shut down your business for the Christmas/New Year holidays?

 

Don’t you think it will help you work smarter and give you more focus? Won’t it help set better, more attainable goals for the next year?

 

Let me ask you this:

  • What was your biggest accomplishment this year?
  • Which goals have you failed to achieve?
  • Did you really give it you all this year?

 

If you have achieved your goals already or are heading towards achieving them by the end of the year, GREAT! Well done!

If you’ve fallen off the wagon a little and need a little inspiration, here are six steps you could take to get back in line.

 

  1. Review the goals you reached and missed this year

Physically write down a list of the goals you reached in the last six months or the last year (depending on whether this is a mid-year or end of year review).

Pat yourself on the back. Well done!

Ask yourself the question of how important those goals were for your own success on a scale of 1 – 10. For example: having the most expensive golf clubs in the neighbourhood may be a 1, while spending quality time with your family may be a 10.

 

Now, list and rank the goals you did not reach this year.

 

This will give you a good indication of how well you prioritized the most important goals for your success. If you did a good job, the highest ranking goals should be on the completed list. If not, you have some work to do.

 

  1. Ask yourself why you reached or missed those goals:

Look at the goals you have accomplished and write down the reason why you accomplished it. Possible reasons could be because your boss told you to do it, it was an important income generating task, your wife or children wanted you to do it, etc. Then do the same with what you have not accomplished. The reasons could be you didn’t have time, you didn’t feel like it, it was too challenging, procrastination, etc.

 

  1. Create your goals for this year

If this is a mid-year review, look at what you still need to accomplish for this year, write it down and rank it on a scale of 1 – 10. If this is an end of year review, write down the most important goals you want to accomplish in the new year and rank it on a scale of 1 – 10.

  1. Find your “why”

The main reason we don’t reach our goals is because we don’t really have a strong why. The stronger our desire to do something, the higher the chance of reaching the goal. Your “why” is your inner power that keeps you going.

Write down a strong “why” behind every single goal you want to reach this year. If you can’t find a strong why for your goal, then the goal is probably not that important to you, and you should consider finding another goal. Be realistic. If you’ve only reached 5 out of 20 of your important goals this year, you probably won’t reach 15 out of 20 next year, unless you suddenly have more time, or you start delegating or outsourcing some of your work.

  1. Create your plan

Create a plan for the goals you have set or still need to achieve with a specific deadline. What steps will you take to meet each goal? Having the goal is not enough. You must create actionable steps with specific deadlines to meet the goal.

 Stay focused

Once you have a strong “why” and a realistic plan on how to reach the goals, you will have set your mind to completing the tasks in order to reach your goal, no matter what, whether you feel like it or not.

Accountability partner – find a like-minded person who will hold you accountable and increase your chance of succeeding. With a plan and a partner, this year might just be the year that you will accomplish your goals.

 

How did you do with your goals last year?

 

What will you do differently this year?

BUILD A COMMUNITY (E-mail Marketing Guide)

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sea star and shells on the sandy beach

Here are eight basic steps to follow when building a list of contacts by collecting e-mail addresses.

  1. Use an e-mail marketing programme like Aweber (good) but Infusionsoft (better)
  2. Get a programme to create an opt-in-page. For example: LeadPages.com (good) but Kajabi (better)
  3. Create an added-value deliverable such as a free report, template, E-book, audio or video training so people will happily provide an e-mail address in exchange for the value you provide.
  4. Ask your community about their desires. Send an email to your community with the link to a survey (use a free service like SurveyMonkey.com) asking what they want or need help with in the area of value you’ve identified. Ask open-ended questions to help you later brainstorm or offer multiple choices if you’ve already thought about what you can provide.
  5. Create a solution: After receiving responses to your survey, get to work and create the solution(s). This could be a physical or digital product (a book, audio or video, written training programme, workbook, E-book etc), or a service (dog grooming, babysitting, coaching, consulting, speaking or training)
  6. Plan the launch: Turn the launch into an event. Build anticipation months in advance – make people WANT to buy your product or service. Read the book: “Launch” by Jeff Walker for more tips.
  7. Find a mentor: Find people who have already achieved what you want and copy their behaviour and make it your own. You could either have a relationship with a face-to-face human mentor, hire a coach, read a book or articles by an expert or do web research.
  8. Schedule time to begin implementing these steps, one at a time and within months you can be enjoying the benefits.

 

Was this information helpful?

Let me know how this helped you. I’m waiting to hear from you.

50 New Rules of Work by Robin Sharma

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Owls on tree branch

 

 

 

To serve your rise to your best, I humbly offer you these 50 New Rules of Work with the hope that you quietly consider implementing them as well as discussing them at your next team meeting:

 

  1. You are not just paid to work. You are paid to be uncomfortable – and to pursue projects that scare you.
  2. Take care of your relationships and the money will take care of itself.
  3. Lead you first. You can’t help others reach for their highest potential until you’re in the process of reaching for yours.
  4. To double your income, triple your rate of learning.
  5. While victims condemn change, leaders grow inspired by change.
  6. Small daily improvements over time create stunning results.
  7. Surround yourself with people courageous enough to speak truthfully about what’s best for your organisation and the customers you serve.
  8. Don’t fall in love with your press releases.
  9. Every moment in front of a customer is a moment of truth (to either show you live by the values you profess – or you don’t).
  10. Copying what your competition is doing just leads to being second best.
  11. Become obsessed with the user experience such that every touchpoint of doing business with you leaves people speechless. No, breathless.
  12. If you’re in business, you’re in show business. The moment you get work, you’re on stage. Give us the performance of your life.
  13. Be a Master of Your Craft, and practice + practice + practice.
  14. Get fit like Madonna.
  15. Read magazines you don’t usually read. Talk to people who you don’t usually speak to. Go to places you don’t commonly visit. Disrupt your thinking so it stays fresh and hungry and brilliant.
  16. Remember that what makes a great business – in part – are the seemingly insignificant details. Obsess over them.
  17. Good enough just isn’t good enough.
  18. Brilliant things happen when you go the extra mile for every single customer.
  19. An addiction to distraction is the death of creative production. Enough said.
  20. If you’re not failing regularly, you’re definitely not making much progress.
  21. Lift your teammates up versus tear your teammates down. Anyone can be a critic. What takes guts is to see the best in people.
  22. Remember that a critic is a dreamer gone scared.
  23. Leadership’s no longer about position. Now, it’s about passion, and having an impact through the genius-level work that you do.
  24. The bigger the dream, the more important the team.
  25. If you’re not thinking for yourself, you’re following – not leading.

 

Bird Robin Colourful

 

 

 

  1. Work hard, but build an exceptional family life. What’s the point of reaching the mountaintop but getting there alone?
  2. The job of the leader is to develop more leaders.
  3. The antidote to deep change is daily learning. Investing in your professional and personal development is the smartest investment you can make. Period!
  4. It makes a difference.
  5. Say “please” and “thank you”. It makes a difference.
  6. Shift from doing mindless toil to doing valuable work.
  7. Remember that a job is only just a job if all you see it as is a job.
  8. Don’t to your best work for the applause it generates but for the personal pride it delivers.
  9. The only standard worth reaching for is BIW (Best in World).
  10. In the new world of business, everyone works in Human Resources.
  11. In the new world of business, everyone’s part of the Leadership Team.
  12. Words can inspire and words can destroy. Choose yours well.
  13. You become your excuses.
  14. You’ll get your game-changing ideas away from the office versus in the middle of work. Make time for solitude. Creativity needs the space to present itself.
  15. The people who gossip about others when they are not around are the people who will gossip about you when you’re not around.
  16. It could take you 30 years to build a great reputation and 30 seconds of bad judgment to lose it.
  17. The client is always watching.
  18. The way you do one thing defines the way you’ll do everything. Every act matters.
  19. To be radically optimistic isn’t soft. It’s hard. Crankiness is easy.
  20. People want to be inspired to pursue a vision. It’s your job to give it to them.
  21. Every visionary was initially called crazy.
  22. The purpose of work is to help people. The other rewards are inevitable by-products of this singular focus.
  23. Remember that the things that get scheduled are the things that get done.
  24. Keep promises and be impeccable with your word. People buy more than just your products and services. They invest in your credibility.
  25. Lead without a title.

 

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