21st October 2024
Here’s an all-too-common scene from my life:
It’s Monday, The week starts and I feel on top of things. I know the priority items, I’m energized and enthusiastic, I feel in control.
Then, Tuesday rolls around and something starts to change. My energy starts to wane as the to-dos pile up, my stress levels rise.
By Wednesday, I’m holding on for dear life, riding out the storm into the weekend, when I can finally catch up and recover.
I’m willing to bet I’m not alone. It’s easy to allow your weeks to spiral out of control as you try to navigate your personal and professional responsibilities.
Fortunately, I developed a trick that helped me fight back.
I started defining what a “Win” looks like.
When you’re in it, it’s easy to get caught up in the days and lose sight of the bigger picture.
While I used to preach the idea of narrow focus on daily priority tasks, I found that when I just focused on the day, I was prone to taking on ‘Rocking Horse work’ —work that creates movement, but no real progress.
To address this and maintain perspective on the bigger picture, I make sure to define what a “win” looks like for the week before it starts.
I spend 15 minutes on Sunday evening defining a “Win” for the week ahead.
I write down the ~3-5 things that, if accomplished, would characterize real progress.
And, they need not be related to work alone. It may be simple things like the number of steps I will walk, the pages I will read, the podcasts I will listen to, the words I manage to write for my next book, the friends I will touch base with and then finally the client meetings & reviews, the time I will spend prospecting, or learning a new skill etc etc.
Accordingly I create a ‘Weekly Win Card’ that sits on my desk during the week.
If I ever find myself getting lost in the craziness of a day, I use the card to zoom out and make sure my central focus remains on the bigger picture.
Try out the ‘Weekly Win Card’ this week for better control of your life & stay blessed forever.