Organizing the Day

Published on September 23rd, 2010

by Steve Cohen

Organizing the day. Everyone eventually has their day fall into a routine. There are a certain number of tasks that must be done to conduct a day of business and balance life on the side. Sometimes this routine becomes your life and your goals fade with the demands of getting into the office, handling daily problems, and dealing with everything else. For people building a business or recasting their lives, routine can overwhelm you and eventually retard your efforts to change.

This happens because each day is just allowed to evolve against the forces that surround us. With no plan, the forces guide the day. This is not some ethereal concept from Star Wars; there are events, people, and concerns that can force a day in a direction that has nothing to do with intended goals and objectives. Often the “forces” are more interesting, or enough of a diversion to offer a departure from that routine that is already feeling too much to handle.

Each day should start with a simple list of intentions. Write them down before you end your day and follow them each morning. The list should include:

Personal Intention:

Usually one self-motivating goal that stretches you as a person. You may choose to be more silent; pause before you speak; have a day without a negative thought; be a champion of praise. Sometimes you may repeat an intention you want to utilize again.

Business Intention of the Day:

What is it precisely you want to achieve today? Make it a single thought and make it achievable. For example: return all phone calls at the same time each day; hire a new employee, publish a new ad; join the Chamber of Commerce. This is easy to dodge. But if you force yourself to a goal a day, each month you will observe measurable growth in your business.

Schedule Intention:

How will you structure the day to be most effective and provide the balance you need to feel fulfilled? Often the same structure is too restrictive and destroys creativity. Alter the mix of business, exercise, family, and fun each day in your planner. A day should have periods of intense, focused activity, and periods of release. This compression and relaxation will eventually become a natural flow for you and you will seek it out, as your planning adapts to your life cycle.

Long Term Intention:

Take 10% of your work time and devote it to master planning, long-term goals and super thinking. Super thinking is about letting go and directing your thoughts to the horizon. A few minutes each day to think outside your routine can rocket your business to new heights that come from freethinking. If you are selling two thousand units a month, how can you get to ten, twenty? Super thinking, even 10% of your day can bring enormous dividends, since most businesses never plan big thinking.

Having a day planned and based upon these intentions requires thought and observation of how you are doing and feeling as you conduct your business and your life. And it can create some dissonance because it demands introspection. But, without organization, you will find yourself in a rut, and worse, standing still. There is no reason to be adrift directed only by the forces around you that may take you far from your goals. Plan what you can, control that schedule, and execute what you plan each day.

The simple act of organizing your day will give you a special power that will help you succeed.