Do you often find yourself working 6 – 7 days a week for almost 12 – 15 hours a day? If yes, you’re not alone.
There are a lot of people that I’ve worked with personally who do this. They have many reasons of their own for doing so.
I’m sure you have your own reasons as well.
But in my opinion – the reason you clock such hours every day and still feel unsatisfied is because of your ‘emotional baggage’.
I’m sure you’re extremely passionate about your business/career and feel the inner-drive to be successful (which keeps you on your toes).
Working so many hours might give you the satisfaction that you’re giving the best you can but it certainly won’t help you get to where you want to go.
You may be the best at what you do and might be commanding the highest fee in your field but by working harder, you are only limiting yourself.
Here’s why…
You ONLY have 24 hours a day.
In those 24 hours, you can ONLY work effectively for about 8 – 12 hours (at the most).
And in those 8 – 12 hours, you can only accomplish a FEW things.
You can’t accomplish everything even if you’re the fastest, most effective person in the world at what you do.
There will always be tasks or activities that still need to be done. And you’ll still feel dissatisfied that you haven’t got it all done.
By telling yourself that tomorrow “you’ll work harder”, you’re only lying to yourself.
… Because you can’t. By trying to do everything, you’re basically limiting yourself and the growth of your business/career.
That’s why it’s important to WORK SMART.
You’ll ONLY be able to love and enjoy what you do and still give your best when you WORK SMART, AND NOT HARD.
With that said, here are a few keys to stop working hard and start working smart…
Get Rid Of The “Work Hard” Notion:
If you’re like most people, you might have been told by your parents, teachers, peers, etc to work harder. They might have told you things like:
- “You’re talented. But you’ll waste your talent if you don’t work hard. So work harder”
- “Stop being lazy. Hard work is the only thing that will put food on the table”
- “Without hard work, nothing grows but weeds.”
- And so on.
There’s nothing wrong with these quotes, sayings and advices. But these sayings were probably NOT directed at you.
Many of these sayings are primarily directed towards young children/adults who are lazy, waste most of their time and fritter away their energies doing unwanted things.
If you’re already clocking 10 – 12 hour days and are willing to give it your all, you’re definitely NOT a lazy person.
Therefore, these quotes do not apply to you.
So stop thinking about being a hard worker. It’s time to think bigger.
Get Absolutely Clear About The Big Picture:
Take a long, hard look at your to-do list and the goals you’ve set for yourself.
Ask yourself, “How does this help me in my growth?” and be ruthless about cutting out anything that doesn’t help you in the long run.
If you still don’t have a big picture vision for yourself, sit down right now and create it. Think about where you want to be 3 – 5 years from now, pen it down and then use that vision to make decision.
Ask yourself, “Will this get me closer to the vision I have? If not, then what will?”
You should take a step back with any activity that you have to do and re-think how you are going to do it. You should avoid blindly starting work on any activity.
Here’s why…
By taking a step back and observing the activity and what needs to be done, you’ll find a way to do it effectively – in such a way that it has maximal impact for minimal effort.
… which means you’ll be giving your 100% effort with every single task that you do. When you’re doing that, the results you’ll get are going to be surely exponential.
Guard Your Personal Schedule From Others:
There will always be other people that will try to reach out to you. If you say yes to them and try spending time with everyone who comes your way, you’ll have lost all the productive time that you have.
It’s great to catch up with friends, check social media and connect with old pals – but you have to be extremely conscious of your time and not get sucked in by other people’s priorities, whims and wants.
… Because TIME is your most precious resource with which you can do wonders.
Start Delegating And Start Learning:
Peter Drucker once said, “The only skill that will be valuable in the 21st century is the skill of learning new skills” and I think it’s more relevant today in 2015 than ever before.
If you’re already good/great at something that you do, there’s just NO point in doing it anymore.
It’s time to find someone else who can do it, teach it to them so they can do it while you spend your time learning/mastering a newer skill.
If you’re really serious about growing your business/career exponentially and become the best, it’s time to think in terms of delegation and learning new skills.
There’s just NO point sitting around, trying to do the things you’re already good at. You won’t do the world or yourself any good.
Cherish Your Downtime:
Your downtime gives your brain a break from the monotony of work. But what you do during your downtime is VERY important.
If you do the right thing during your downtime, you’ll come back feeling refreshed and creative. But if you spend your time engaging in destructive things, you’ll only add to the stress that you already have.
So make sure that you plan out your day-offs just like you plan your work-days. Look at doing things that empower you. Here a few examples:
- Working out at the gym?
- Running?
- Round of golf with your buddies?
- Movie date with your spouse/partner
- A small outing.
What you should avoid:
- Binge drinking
- Binge eating
- Watching TV all day along
It’s incredibly important to step out of your work environment because it’ll help you comeback smarter and more creative.
If you’d like to learn more about how you can stop working hard and start working smarter, the go here right now:
Strategy Call
Besides working with clients 1 on 1, I also engage with corporate teams through my “Group Coaching Sessions”.
Through these sessions, your team will learn to make powerful changes to their current engagement and improve performance. In my personal Intervention, I will teach them how to…
- Develop a die-hard attitude for their personal and professional lives
- Develop powerful, empowering habits
- Double their productivity
Are you an executive who’s looking to increase your team’s overall productivity? Then reach out to me through enquiry@satishrao.in
Yours Sincerely,
Satish Rao
PS: If you find this article helpful, I’d appreciate if you can spread the message to your friends and co-workers.