How to Make Every Day Your Masterpiece
How to Make Every Day Your Masterpiece
Ever wonder how some successful people are able to accomplish so much? Some appear to be mysteriously blessed with time to suit their purposes while the rest of us are gasping for breath just trying to get through the day. There are no mysteries to be solved. No magic potions or secret time machines are necessary to find daily success. You can learn to how to make every day your masterpiece!
The Lazy River Myth
Most people spend more time planning their vacations than they do their professional lives. Many wander aimlessly through life, floating from one job to another and allowing others to dictate where the currents of life take them. It’s like being adrift on a lazy river. It seems peaceful for a time but then you wake up one day with a wretched sunburn and no idea of where you are or how you got there.
I call this the Professional’s Mid-Life Crisis.
Take Back Your Day
“Time is the most valuable coin in your life.” – Carl Sandburg
It is up to you how you spend your ‘coin’ or time that has been given to you! We only have 168 hours in our week and less than 115.5 once you subtract necessary items such as sleep. Your most precious possession is the 24 hours directly in front of you. How will you spend it? If you don’t decide how to spend your time, someone else will!
Take control of the things you can and make today yours!
What’s Your Goal?
The most beautiful thing someone said to me once is: “May you always have something to look forward to.” Having a goal, professionally or personally, is the essence of success. Without it, you are adrift on the lazy river – floating aimlessly. I allowed the currents of life to carry me for many years. I didn’t have anything to look forward to. I was generally dissatisfied with my career and didn’t see a way out. But I was still floating and not really focusing in order to steer myself where I wanted to go. It’s up to you to take control, invest in yourself and steer your career in the direction you want to go!
It wasn’t until I focused energy on finding a way out that I discovered my new GOAL and focus for my career.
- Goals can Change, but Values Don’t. As you grow in your career, your goals may shift or change altogether. There is nothing wrong with a focused evolutionary career path. Sometimes the next opportunity is actually just a step in the right direction. The one fundamental element that must remain constant during this evolution is your values.
- Goals Give us Purpose. A life without a goal is aimless, lost on the Lazy River. If you have NO goals, how are you able to focus your time wisely? Simple: you can’t. Any focus must have a target. Put it this way: when you are older and looking back over your life, what do you want to say you achieved?
- Goals Need to Be SMART. SMART Goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely. In other words, make your goals something that you can feasibly obtain within a reasonable amount of time. Wanting to grow wings and fly sounds cool but probably isn’t very realistic.
- BIG Goals Can Be Obtained. Having BIG Goals is great! They may also be daunting because they can take longer to achieve. Every big goal can be broken down into smaller goals to get you closer to where you want to be! Don’t let fear hold you back from having BIG Goals.
Set Your Priorities
When I discovered my Goal, I also realized that I needed to have a plan to reach it. This changed my approach to how I set up my weeks. I needed to learn how to prioritize! Only by prioritizing wisely can you stick to a plan and make every day your masterpiece.
“Savvy prioritization is the secret sauce to success” – unknown
Every wonder how some people achieve so much in a day or a week? Prioritization is the key. They aren’t drifting along aimlessly! I will share with you that prioritization can be very challenging. It may mean that we must make tough decisions between our desires and our goals.
- Plan Your Time Carefully. I knew that, in order to reach my goal, I needed to take the time to invest in myself. I would need to structure my weeks and days accordingly. I have developed a daily and weekly plan that sticks to my values as well as focuses on my goals. It allows me to set aside time to invest in where I want to go with my life. For example: I set aside 30 minutes in the morning and evening to read professional development books in lieu of watching TV or checking my smartphone.
“You must give up to go up.” – John Maxwell
- Make The Tough Decision. In order to grow my business, I knew I would have to give up some things that I enjoy doing. This is the hardest decision of all. In order to grow in the direction of our dreams, we must decide how to spend our time based on our priorities. For some, it’s giving up watching their favorite TV shows to focus on studying for a certification or for a Graduate Degree. For others, it’s giving up certain foods to stick to a daily diet. It’s necessary to be disciplined in order to be successful.
“The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.” – William James
- Decide What to Stop Doing. For some of us that are over-achievers, we excel at putting too much on our ‘to do’ list! Determining what to stop doing is almost as tough as deciding what to do. To help, you can ask yourself these questions:
- What is required of me? Any realistic assessment of priorities must starts with an understanding of what a person must do based on needs and values. In order to be a good parent, spouse or employee – what must I do?
- What gives me the greatest return? As you progress in your life and your career you probably have already realized that some items give you a higher return on investment than others. Focus on the higher return areas and do what you can to minimize life clutter that soaks up time without tangile returns.
- What gives me the greatest reward? Some people want to start with the reward question and go no further. Success requires discipline to discern what is required first before considering the reward. Regardless, only doing what is necessary and effective does not add color to your life. Finding satisfaction while working towards your goal creates a balance.
Work the Plan
It goes without saying that a plan well-made is useless if ignored. Life happens and we may stumble from time to time. Not every day is what we would like it to be! We have a choice between learning from the stumbles, getting up again and get going … Or: sit down in the dirt, moan about it and drag unnecessary baggage around. The decision is yours but, if you want to achieve your goals, getting back on plan is essential. Understand what the priorities are and refocus if necessary.
“Things that matter most must never be at the mercy of things that matter least.” – Wolfgang von Goethe
Most professionals fail to achieve goals because they lack the discipline to stick to a plan. Determination and belief in yourself are required to make every day your masterpiece. If you don’t believe in you then the chances of achievement are low. It’s easy to be spun out of your current and stagnated on your journey. Remember that you are in control of you and where you go. Take a firm grip on the oars of your career and steer in the direction of your dreams!
Learn more about making a proactive professional action plan and make every day your masterpiece!
Erin Urban LSSBB, CPDC is a certified professional development coach and culture change expert with over 8 years in mentoring and coaching successful professional transformations. With an extensive background in leading individual, cultural and organizational change initiatives: her mission is to lift others up to defy their limits and exceed their goals.
