Do You Know Your Values

Values are things in life that you want for their own sake.  They define who you want to be.  They also guide your moment by moment choices about what to do and what to have.

Values have little meaning if they do not change your daily behavior.  Oftentimes, people say they live life based on values, but they act in ways that contradicts this.  You can take charge of your life by clearly stating your values and then choose your actions carefully.  Do not be content with vague ideals and goals.  This leaves room for confusion, failure, and procrastination.

Becoming a Master of Success is based on a specific set of values:

1-Focused attention means being in the "here and now".  People with focused attention can be centered even in the midst of chaos.

2-Self responsibility means being the victor, not the victim.  In any circumstance, you choose how to respond.

3-Integrity means being someone people can count on.  Your words and actions always line up.  People can trust you to keep your agreements.

4-Risk taking means being willing to change.   Be open minded and courageous.

5-Contributing means being a person who finds their meaning in life by serving others.  They gain the knowledge and skills in order to give back to the world.

To help define your values, translate them into visible behaviors.  One way of doing this is to create your own Eulogy.  This is a detailed statement of how you want to be remembered when you die.  When it is written, set goals on what you will do to create that legacy.  This is not about focusing on death.  It is about choosing how to spend your time while alive.

The ABC Daily To Do List

One of the most effective ways to stay on track and actually get things done is a  daily to do list.  An advantage of keeping a daily to do list is you do not have to remember what to do next.  It is on the list.  On busy days it is easy to forget tasks or become distracted.  Keep your tasks written down so you do not have to rely on your memory.

Use the following method when creating your daily to do list.  Rank items according to the level of importance A, B, or C.

Brainstorm tasks.
List all tasks you want to complete for the day.  Do not worry about the order or anything else.  Just list all the tasks.

Estimate time.
For each task listed, estimate how long it will take to complete.  Be sure to over estimate if you are unsure.  This leaves room for the unexpected.  Add up the time needed to complete all your tasks.  Also add up all the unscheduled hours.  Compare these two totals.  If you have 8 hours worth of to do list items and only 2 unscheduled hours to do it in, this is a potential problem.

Rate each task by priority.
To prevent over scheduling, decide which tasks are top priorities, given your time frame.
Simply label each task A,B, or C

A's are most critical.
B's are important but not critical and can be postponed for one day.
C's are the tasks that do not require immediate attention.
They are often small easy jobs with no set time line.  These can also be postponed.

Now schedule a time for all your A's.
B's and C's can be done randomly during the day when you are in between tasks.

Cross off activities.
Keep your list with you at all times.  Mark off items when they are done or add new tasks when you think of them.

Evaluate.
At the end of the day evaluate your performance.  Look for A's you did not complete.   Look for items that are B's and C's and never get done.  Adjust your priorities before they become a problem.  When you are done evaluating start your list for the next day.  That way when you wake up you can start getting things done right away.

When it comes to to do list, one size does not fit all.  Another method I prefer is the 80/20 Method.  This method states that 80% of the value of your list comes from only 20% of the tasks listed.  So if you have a list with 10 items, choose 2 that will contribute most to your life today.  Complete these 2 tasks without fail.