The Up Side of Habitual

A day in the early life of the entrepreneur may consist of emotional highs and lows.  This could be due to the roller coaster effect of new discoveries and disappointments, but I submit that’s not the most efficient way to go about becoming successful in your chosen field.

It is far better to keep things rolling along on an even path because this is the course you’ve chosen.  You’ve planned for it and most importantly you have foreseen yourself attaining each milestone along the way. 

This is not to say that unexpected things shouldn’t pop-up all the time.  This is life right? By definition life equals the unexpected.  What I’m talking about is controlling the controllable.

Laney Griner

There are scads of lists titled “the successful habits of so & so,” and some are huge selling books because they are indeed very good.  Combing through various and sundry lists I started picking out the habits that were shared among a good many of the them.   More importantly, I started choosing the ones that may best apply to an entrepreneur just starting out.

Here’s what I summarized to be the best ones:

Visualize What Success Is – We’ve touched on this in earlier posts, here and here but this deserves to be repeated.

1)   If you don’t have a good idea of what success looks like then how can you know when you find it?  Part of leveling out the emotional highs and lows involves knowing where your going and understanding that getting there will indeed have some bumps along the way.

2)   “Fake It Till You Make It” may the best advice I’ve ever received, (Thanks Dad!)  It doesn’t mean being fake or phony at all. What it does mean is if you think, act, walk, and talk like you are headed straight toward your definition of success then it’s only a matter of time till you reach it.

Establish Priorities – This one is a common habit of success shared among the most famous of lists namely, Steven Covey & Brian Tracy and deserves to be repeated often. 

1)   Hit the big stuff early.  By cracking the big nuts early in the day we set ourselves up for success for the rest of it.

2)   We also free ourselves up mentally for giving the smaller things their proper focus

3)   80/20 Rule – This applies to so many areas of life it’s staggering.  Only 20 percent of what’s done during the day produces 80 percent of the results.  Recognize what that 20 is and tear through it.

Eliminate Waste – Funders & Founders provide some excellent tips for focusing in a digital age and eliminating the chatter that interrupts work.

1)   Turn off the news – hardly anything important happens during our busy times.  If they do occur someone will let us know quickly.

2)   Turn off the phone – Obviously we can’t disconnect from the world completely but we can set aside blocks of time for no interruptions.  Let others know when those times are and if need be allow yourself the opportunity to answer the expected call that will help you move forward on that project.

3)   Limit email replies – If you cant reply to an email in a minute then put it aside for later.

4)   When you get stuck creatively, map it out.  Even if it means sketching something on a napkin, having something tangible and visual helps to shape ideas into actions.

Routines Matter – Part of the reason we choose to be entrepreneurs is because we can’t stand the hamster wheel effect we associate with going to the cubicle farm everyday.  However, routines for how we start and finish everyday can add productivity and help us recognize when we are getting sidetracked.

1)   Early morning habits like picking clothes, leaving the house, etc. can help us remove distractions.

2)   Setting up routines for healthy eating help to reduce the mental chaff that accumulates over time.  This may sound like the road map to boredom but it doesn’t mean bland and if we accomplish more in the process isn’t it worth it?

Relationships Matter – Two habits I found in my search really stood out to me.

1)   Never eat lunch at your desk alone.  This is a very good time to share those somewhat relaxed moments in the day to get some feedback on your ideas but more importantly, offer advice and help on the ideas of others.  Cross pollenating is hugely valuable in harvesting our crop of ideas.

2)   Provide Utility to Others.  In addition to the lunchtime idea/advice we can also share with others short articles we run across that can help with their projects. Put a comment in there saying what jumped out at you.  Also, this will come back as rewards when others share valuable information they run across and could provide big payoffs.

I hope this helps those that don't practice any of these habits now and for those

that already do may this help to reinforce good habits already established.