How good are your time management skills? 

If you are building a business and you have the desire to get more done in less time, you've come to the right place.

Entrepreneurs must prioritize time management. In the world of business, time is money.

Your ability to effectively master your time will determine your success and the speed with which you achieve your business goals.

If you're ready to master time management, keep reading to discover 12 strategies that will TRIPLE your productivity!

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This page contains affiliate links. If you purchase a product through one of them, I will receive a commission (at no additional cost to you). I only ever endorse products that I have personally used and benefited from personally. Thank you for your support!

Time is a depreciating asset.

You can never buy your time back. Unfortunately, a lot of people don't value their time. Everyone has 24 hours in a day. What you do with the time that you have makes all the difference in your life. If you want to be in control of your life, you must become a master of your time.

Successful people value their time. They associate different thoughts, feelings, and emotions with the time that they have. Thus, they can maximize each day to the fullest. If you struggle with time management, I want to help you shift your core beliefs.

How important is your time? A lot of people spend their time doing things in their business that are less than what their earning power is. In the beginning stages of building a business, entrepreneurs fall into the trap of not outsourcing.

They make the mistake of doing EVERYTHING on their own. As a result, they end up engaging in low-income generating activities with the time that they have. If you're too busy working IN your business, then you're not working ON growing your business.

In my opinion, this is a waste of time. Also, a lot of people mistake activity with achievement. They think that being busy means that they are being productive. Not true. You can be busy, but get nothing done.

The most productive people are those that “own their day” versus letting their day own them. Instead of being busy, they maximize the time that they have. When you start to value your time more, you will start focusing on things that matter.

As an example, act as if one hour of your time is worth $480.

If you believe that and take that on as a new mindset, it will change what you do throughout your day. Focus your attention solely on the activities that will move the needle forward in your business and delegate everything else.

I have been able to achieve so much success in my online business because I've been smart with the time that I have. My business is complex. There are a lot of moving pieces. I can't do everything on my own.

Once I got clear on the tasks that would generate the biggest impact in my business, I focused on my strengths and outsourced everything else. You want to make the shift from being a business operator to a business owner.

I want to share 12 strategies that will make a huge difference in your productivity levels. The more that you implement these strategies in your business, the faster you will accelerate your success. These strategies have transformed my business and my life.

1. Master Tracking Your Day

How you use your time has a huge impact on your success in life. The big lie that people tell themselves is that they don't have time to do things. This is just a story. In fact, they are just wasting their time on mindless tasks.

A simple exercise that I recommend is to keep a journal throughout your day. Track, hour by hour, from the beginning of the day to the end of the day, all of the activities that you engage in. If you track your activities over one week you will start to notice where your time is going.

When I started tracking my day, I started noticing a lot of things that were holding me back. A huge part of getting what you want is knowing what you have to give up. For example, I went many years without owning a TV.

One of my mentors, Jim Rohn, taught me that a TV is an electronic income-reducing machine. I learned that the more time that you spend watching it, the less time you spend living your life. 

As an example, let's say that you spend 3 hours every day watching TV. Spending 3 hours per day over several weeks or months adds up. Don't get me wrong… it's okay to enjoy some relaxation after a long day as a reward for accomplishing something.

However, if you don't keep track of the time that you're binging on your favorite shows, you'll end up wasting precious time. Try cutting your watch time. Spend 1-2 hours watching TV and spend the third hour engaging in a meaningful task. If you make this slight modification, you will make significant progress in your life over time. 

What is one mindless task that you can reduce or remove from your life that will give you more time to be productive? When you go through your list of things that you do on a given day, I want you to determine the cost-benefit ratio of each activity.

For example, if the cost is one hour, what is the benefit that you're receiving from that hour? The key is making sure that you're getting more benefits from whatever it is that you're doing. 

2. Master Your Beliefs 

Your beliefs determine your actions and behaviors. The biggest limiting belief that people have around time is “I don't have time.” This is B.S. The reality is that everyone has enough time.

On a given day, all of us have 24 hours. All that matters is what you are doing with the time that you have. People will spend time complaining about not having time.

Oftentimes, people are looking for something to justify why they aren't doing what they know they should be doing. As a result, they create a story about not having time. They come to believe that story as truth when in reality they're just afraid of failure. 

Going back to the example of building a business, at some point you need to determine what it is that you're willing to sacrifice to achieve success. In the short term, are you willing to not hang out with your friends or not watch TV, if it means having more time to build your business?

In the beginning stages of building my online business, I dedicated 3 years of my life to creating passive income. Over those 3 years, I had to make a lot of sacrifices. I knew that if I was willing to invest the majority of my free time building my business, I would be able to enjoy all of the free time that I wanted to in 3 years.

I was willing to pay that price upfront to get my freedom and time back in the long term. Today I have an abundance of time. Only you can determine what price you are willing to pay to achieve success.

There are people in this world who are much busier than you and me. However, they still dedicate their time to getting important things done. It's never a matter of how much time you have. Rather, it's how committed you are to getting things done.

In the words of Steven Covey, “Most of us spend too much time on what is urgent and not enough time on what is important.” The belief system that I empower you to adopt is “I make the time for whatever I am committed to.” There is always time if you are willing to look for it. 

3. Master The Power of Leverage 

You'll always be able to get more done through other people. Don't get me wrong… success requires hard work. However, I think that a lot of people overutilize this muscle. Working hard will only get you so far.

Eventually, you've got to learn how to work smart by leveraging and outsourcing. As you achieve more success in life, you want to figure out ways to get more done in less time. Efficiency is power. If you can outsource or automate something, do it!

Back in the day when I was building my website, I had to learn HTML or hire a programmer to do it for me. It was timely and expensive. The amazing thing about the Internet is that there are so many tools, like ClickFunnels or WordPress, that can automate things for you.

Similarly, on a site like Upwork, you can search for literally any task that you want to outsource to a freelancer. Don't let the saving mentality hold you back from making decisions that will move the needle forward in your business.

Why waste your time trying to learn something when you could hire someone who is skilled in that task? You can't do it all. Outsourcing is working smart. It allows you to focus your energy on revenue-generating activities that will grow your business. 

4. Master Your Energy

A lot of people aren't getting the most out of their day because they are always tired. They are walking around as if they are half dead. Most people need to utilize stimulants to get a boost of energy. There's nothing wrong with caffeine. However, if you drink coffee in excess, it can wear out your adrenals.

You cannot create success in life if you do not take care of your physical body. This is why it's so important to have an empowering morning ritual that you practice each day. Whatever you put into your body will affect your energy.

If you wake up tired (even after getting 8 hours of sleep) your body is working overtime digesting food. Eating foods that force you to expend a lot of energy to digest will make you feel more lethargic. 

I like to eat plant-based water-rich foods that are more cleansing. Also, I like to do intermittent fasting. If I fast 14-16 hours per day, my body gets an opportunity to rest. As a result, I have more mental clarity. When you fast, your body stores fat for fuel. 

I have the most energy when I'm doing a ketogenic diet. This is when I'm training my body to burn fat for fuel, rather than carbohydrates and sugar. You get an immediate boost of energy with carbohydrates, which is great if you're doing high-intensity training. However, you'll crash shortly thereafter.

This is why you'll end up needing more carbohydrates to sustain your energy. If you change your body to burning fat for fuel, it's like burning coal. It's a slow and steady energy burn that will last throughout the day.

If you want to learn how to get your body to burn fat for fuel, I suggest that you read the book Slow Burn: Burn Fat Faster By Exercising Slower written by Stu Mittleman and Katherine Callan.

5. Master Weekly And Daily Planning

Most people are reactive throughout their days. In this state, it's easy to get sucked into others' demands. It's called the vacuum effect. If you don't have boundaries around your time, you will waste time engaging in activities that aren't empowering for you.

If you don't have a plan for your day or your life, you'll end up fitting into someone else's plan. Their plan for you is going to be what benefits them most. This is why I like to plan out my days and weeks in advance.

At the start of every week, I use Evernote to make a list of the most important tasks that I want to accomplish. I'll schedule everything inside of my calendar. I like to write down what my outcome is for each task and why those outcomes are important to me.

While tasks are the building blocks of work and productivity, an outcome is the most nutrient-rich version of a goal.

Let me give you an example of what this would look like. On a day like today, my outcome is that I want to be in an incredible state.

I want to add value to people's lives so that they can accelerate success in their businesses and their lives. This is important to me because I want to put my knowledge and skills to the higher good. By sharing what I know, I can help people solve similar problems that I have faced in my life and business.

Second, I want to continue building my brand and create raving fan customers.

Third, by sharing what has worked for me with others, I can reintegrate this knowledge into my life in a new and empowering way. Now that I know what I want and why I want it, I write down what actions I need to take to make sure that I achieve those outcomes. 

Once I've got my action plan in place I determine the most important task that I need to accomplish that will contribute to achieving my outcome. Keep in mind that a plan is not set in stone.

When you plan out your week, all that you're doing is giving yourself a framework. However, that doesn't mean that you can't modify your plan. Adapt and adjust your plan when needed.

6. Master Elimination And Focus

You need to identify what is distracting you from what you're trying to accomplish, whether that's answering your phone, checking emails, or scrolling through social media apps. 

On average, it takes about 20 minutes to get your attention back once you've become distracted from a task at hand. This is why you must create a distraction-free zone and stay focused.

Whether you're working from home or in an office, tell your family members or colleagues to not disturb you while you're working. It is critical that you have boundaries with your time. You have to learn how to say “no.” 

In my business, I have a lot of distractions. If I don't have a plan in place, I will open my computer first thing in the morning and react to a multitude of demands. This is why I mute all of my social media sites and apps at the start of my day.

By eliminating these distractions, I can focus all of my attention on the most important tasks that I need to accomplish. Later in the afternoon, I dedicate time to responding to emails and responding to my team members. 

7. Master Your Routines And Rituals 

I'm a big fan of having routines and rituals. I like to wake up at 5 or 6 am because I  can accomplish more in the morning. There are fewer distractions. By the time it's 10 am, I've already got so much done.

Each morning I nurture my mind, body, and spirit. I engage in rituals like meditating, journaling, exercising, and reading. By intentionally putting myself in a peak mental and emotional state, I'm able to accomplish so much more throughout my day.

Moreover, when challenges arise, I'm able to handle them proactively instead of reacting and getting overwhelmed. Create a ritual that works best for you and your life. When you start your day in an empowered state, you are guaranteed to end your day in an empowered state.

8. Master Your Musts

As an entrepreneur, there is never a shortage of things that you can focus on. However, having a successful day doesn't mean that I have to do 10 million things. When you wake up each morning, identify the top 3 musts that will make the biggest impact in your business.

These are your non-negotiables. A lot of people overwhelm themselves with a long to-do list. They get overwhelmed because they believe that they have to accomplish everything on their list.

When you simplify your list to 3 high-leverage activities, you will change your criteria for success and transform your productivity levels. My 3 high-leverage activities include filming my live streams, recording YouTube videos, or working on a project that will make a difference in my business.

If doing 3 things feels like too much, stick with one thing. Don't be so hard on yourself. Simplify as much as you can. I recommend that you do your 3 high-leverage activities first thing in the morning. You've got the most willpower early in the day.

In her book, The Willpower Instinct, Stanford University psychologist Kelly McGonigal says that throughout the day your willpower gets depleted. This is why you are inclined to have less energy and be less disciplined later in the day.

9. Master Your Speed And Urgency

A lot of people don't achieve much because they move too slowly. In short, they aren't efficient with their time. There's one thing that I learned from my step-brother about speed and urgency that I've never forgotten.

He used to have a renovation business. I worked for him now and then doing construction. I'm not going to lie… I hated the work but I needed the extra money. I noticed how fast my brother worked in comparison to myself. 

Not only that, he never took a work break. The faster he worked, the faster the job got done. As a result, he completed more jobs in one year than most renovation business owners. He taught me the importance of having a strong work ethic.

A simple strategy that I use for being more efficient with my time is setting a timer for every task that I engage in. Say to yourself, “I will work on this part of my business for X amount of time.” The act of setting a timer will increase your urgency. You'll work faster.

Once your timer hits zero, you'll know that you have to move onto the next task. If you're a perfectionist, a mind hack like this will trick you into being OK with doing a good enough job.

10. Master Immersive Deep Work

There are two ways to work on something in your business. The first way is through spaced repetition. This involves doing something once per day, once per week, or multiple times per day or week.

For example, you can learn Spanish by taking a class once per week or 3 times per week. That can help you become more proficient. The second way is through immersion. This is when you immerse yourself into something for an extended period.

Going back to the example of learning a new language, immersion would involve traveling to a Spanish-speaking country. By immersing yourself in the Spanish culture, you'll learn the language so much faster.

The same concept applies to your business. As an example, there are some projects that I have to immerse myself in if I want to accomplish them. I can't just work on a particular project for one hour per day. Rather, I need to dedicate an entire week to it, with zero distractions.

As a result, in one week I can finish a big project that may have normally taken months to complete. If you are someone who has kids and a family, why not get an Airbnb and spend one weekend working solely on your business!? It's amazing what you can accomplish in a short period when you're able to fully immerse yourself in a task.

11. Master Celebration And Reinforcement

When you are hyper-focused on achieving your long-term goals it's easy to forget to acknowledge the small changes that you make along the way. Whenever you have a productive day, make it a priority to celebrate yourself. Maybe this means taking a day off, treating yourself to a nice dinner, or spending time with friends.

Whatever you decide to do, treat it as the reward for having a productive day. When you do this, you train your mind to link pleasure to positive behavior. By rewarding yourself, you will be motivated to engage in the behavior again. 

12. Master Accountability 

If you're only accountable to yourself, it's easy to break your commitments. The only consequence is that you'll let yourself down. Your self-esteem will take a hit because you won't trust yourself.

You will always get more done when you're accountable to someone else.

Having an accountability partner or being a part of a Mastermind group will motivate you to take action to achieve your goals. You'll be more likely to follow through on what you say you'll do because there will be consequences to NOT doing so – you'll be letting someone else down.

As an entrepreneur, having an accountability partner is non-negotiable for me. You are your boss, so it's a lot harder to hold yourself accountable. An accountability partner can be a friend, a coach, a member of a Mastermind Group, or even someone in the Project Life Mastery Global Facebook group!

These are 12 strategies for mastering time management and TRIPLING your productivity.

If you commit to applying these strategies in your business and your life, I promise that you'll see massive results. While you're in the process of building your business, I encourage you to maximize your abilities and be as productive as possible.

Once you start making a good amount of money, start outsourcing. Hire people to work IN your business so that you can work ON your business. Use leverage to scale your business. This is the smartest way to create the financial freedom that you desire.

What are the 1-2 strategies that you can immediately apply to your life? Write them down and practice taking action on them every single day!

Do you want to dive deeper and watch the full version of this video? CLICK HERE to get access to it inside of my Online Business Mastery Accelerator program!

Time is your most precious asset. Are you being productive with the time that you have?

If you are someone who struggles with managing your time, you're not alone. Life can get hectic.

When we are insanely busy, it's easy to fall into the trap of saying, “I've got too much to do and not enough time to do it.” This mental block prevents people from accomplishing much of anything.

Inside this blog, Tatiana and I share with you the productivity hacks that allow us to get more done in less time.

If you're ready to stop procrastinating and start getting productive, read on…

Watch the video below:

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This page contains affiliate links. If you purchase a product through one of them, I will receive a commission (at no additional cost to you). I only ever endorse products that I have personally used and benefitted from personally. Thank you for your support!

Do you use your time wisely?

Time is finite, meaning that you can never get more of it. What matters is what you do with the time that you have. We always do whatever we are committed to — if you're committed enough, you will dedicate the time to doing it. 

If you're not taking action towards something that you want on a given day, it's because you're not making it important enough. Thus, the issue isn't so much time management as it is priority management.

Managing your priorities means directing time towards tasks that are important and contribute towards your long-term mission, goals, and values. However, before you can focus on what is truly important to you, you need to identify where your zone of productivity is.

On a given day, when do you have the most energy and willpower?

There is a great book called The Willpower Instinct, which states that we have a certain amount of willpower that gets depleted throughout the day. When you have lower willpower, you will tend to fall into the trap of laziness.

I have always believed that the secret to one's success is found in the daily routine. Thus, the best way to strengthen your willpower is to create an empowering morning ritual. The better we train our willpower, the better equipped we are to achieve great things.

When you don't have a plan for your day, you fall into other people's plans. This is a recipe for disaster. If the first thing you do when you wake up is to check your emails and scroll on social media, naturally you'll feel overwhelmed and distracted. In the words of Richard Whately, “Lose an hour in the morning, and you will be all day hunting for it.”

This is why Tatiana and I wake up every day at 5 am and do our morning ritual before anything else.

We make sure that we take the time to nurture our mind, body, and spirit. This includes things like praying, reading, journaling, exercising, meditating, and practicing gratitude.

Our ritual sets the tone for our entire day, ensuring that we experience optimal productivity. As a result, we are better able to focus and prioritize our time so that our day doesn't control us.

If you don't show up for yourself, everything else suffers. Are you a morning person or a night person? That will help you determine when you should commit time to work on whatever it is that you prioritize.

When it comes to actually starting your workday, Tatiana and I believe in being intentional about what it is that you want to achieve. It's easy to keep checking things off of your to-do list and mindlessly performing tasks.

At the end of a workday, have you ever looked at your list and thought, “How did I manage to accomplish nothing even though I still worked for four hours on this task?” This is why it's imperative that you set an intention and write it down. When you see it in front of you, it will feel more manageable to achieve.

Having an intention gives you a sense of direction. There are a lot of things that disguise themselves as important, but they're merely urgent.

For example, emails are urgent, but not important.

As online business owners, Tatiana and I have a lot of emails in our inbox. When we receive an email, we feel like we need to respond to it right away. However, we've learned that our focus needs to be geared towards the things that will move the needle forward in our businesses. Emails can wait.

When it comes to accomplishing challenging tasks, we recommend that you eat the frog first in the morning.

This is a concept that was coined by Brian Tracy. Think of the ‘frog' as the thing that is on your to-do list that you have zero motivation to accomplish. Thus, ‘”eating the frog” means to do it first thing in the morning before you start working on anything else.

You need to understand that you're never going to accomplish everything on your list at the end of the day. Your list is always going to grow. All y0u need to do is focus on the most important thing(s) that needs to be accomplished on a given day. The important things are anything that creates income or sales in your business.

There is a great book called The One Thing which states that, if you do ONE thing every single day, five days a week, over time you will accomplish so much more than most people.

Lastly, as an entrepreneur, you must accept the reality that you can't do everything in your business. When you have an opportunity to outsource tasks, like customer support and social media management, do it! Upwork is a great platform that connects freelancers and business owners.

You can find highly qualified people from all over the world. Tatiana and I have hired a lot of people from this platform and have had great results from doing so. Outsourcing helps you spend more time focusing on your business, instead of in your business. This is the holy grail of time management.

This is how successful people manage their time.

Everyone has the same amount of time on a given day. Get real with yourself… are you using the time that you have wisely? In the words of Peter Drucker, “Time is the scarcest resource and unless it is managed, nothing else can be managed.”

As an entrepreneur, I can honestly say that nothing in business is as valuable as time. Learning how to prioritize the time that you have is a game-changer. When you make it a priority to master your time, you master every area of your life.

Are you ready to build a successful business doing what you love? CLICK HERE to take my FREE 60-minute quiz to find out which online business model is the best for you to start your online business!

Working from home has become the new norm.

The Coronavirus pandemic has forced a lot of people to stay home as a precautionary measure to prevent the spread of the virus.

If you're not used to working from home, being stuck inside can make you feel less motivated.

It is possible to be productive and be efficient with your time while at home.

Do you want 7 productivity hacks that will help you achieve laser-like focus? If so, keep reading!

Watch the video below:

(Click here to watch on YouTube)

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This page contains affiliate links. If you purchase a product through one of them, I will receive a commission (at no additional cost to you). I only ever endorse products that I have personally used and benefitted from personally. Thank you for your support!

Are you working from home right now?

In the U.S. alone, more than 100 million Americans have been told to stay at home to protect themselves and others from spreading the Coronavirus. During times like these, the Internet has proven to be a critical tool for companies and business owners around the world.

If your company has forced you to work from home and it's a new experience from you, I want to help you stay productive. The same thing goes for business owners or students. I understand the challenges that come with working from home. Yes, it's great to have the freedom and comfort of working in an environment that you're familiar with. However, it can also be hard.

I've been working online for over 12 years now. As an entrepreneur, I know how easy it is to get distracted at home. Scrolling on social media, checking your phone, or turning on the TV only serve to take your focus away from important tasks at hand.

According to a University of California Irvine study, once you get distracted, it takes an average of 23 minutes and 15 seconds to get back to the task. Can you relate? If you spend time doing things that aren't moving the needle forward in your work and/or your online business, you will only stay stuck in one place.

Over the years I have learned how to master the art of setting boundaries and creating healthy habits. Doing so allows me to get the most out of myself and my days. Today, I have become a master of my time. I want to help you do the same. Let's explore 7 productivity hacks that will help you be productive while working from home.

1. Plan Your Day

Improving your productivity starts with planning. When you don't have a plan for your day, you fall into the trap of reacting to everyone else's demands. As a result, you end up missing out on the highest leverage actions that will make the biggest difference in your day.

This is why I'm a big believer in being proactive versus reactive. Before I even open my computer each day, I make sure that I do my morning ritual. I start by taking out a journal or Evernote and I create a plan for my day. I ask myself, “What do I want to accomplish today?”

Once I write that down, I get clear on why I want to accomplish this goal.

This gives me the emotional juice behind why I do what I do. After that I ask myself, “What is everything that I could do to achieve this outcome?” I don't create a to-do list. Rather, I create a could-do list. Usually, I come up with 3 important things that I want to accomplish on a given day. Once I have this list of actions, I prioritize the list.

It's important for you to understand that not all of the actions on your list need to be treated equally. Some will move the needle more than others. This is referred to as the 80/20 principle, meaning that 20% of what is on your list is going to equal 80% of your results. I take it one step further and I schedule my could-do list into my computer using Google Calendar.

2. Eat The Frog

You want to spend the first part of your morning working on your hardest and most important task. This is what is referred to as “your frog.” It is the task that you will procrastinate on the most if you don't make it a priority. Your willpower is at its highest early on in the day.

In the words of Mark Twain, “If the first thing you do in the morning is to eat a live frog, you can go through the rest of the day knowing the worst is behind you.” If you leave something that's really important until the end of your day, you will be more distracted and have less energy.

Have you ever tried going to the gym after a long day of work? I don't know about you, but my motivation is at its highest when I exercise first thing in the morning. The longer I wait, the harder it gets. When it comes to your business or your career, make it a priority to execute your highest leverage task first, before doing anything else. I promise that it will make a huge difference in your productivity levels.

3. Eliminate Distractions

We live in an age of digital distraction. We are constantly “on” which means that our attention is being pulled in multiple different directions. When you work from home it’s very easy to get distracted. Distractions disrupt your focus and take you away from what you need to do. 

This is why it’s really important that you limit or switch off anything that will distract you from completing important tasks. If you have an overactive mind, I highly recommend starting a meditation practice. It helps to calm the mind so that you are less inclined to fall back into compulsive behaviors.

4. Set A Timer

This has been a game-changer for me. I like to work with a sense of urgency because I believe in the speed of implementation. A lot of people aren’t productive because they move too slow. If I’m working on a project, whether it’s writing a blog post, creating content, or crafting an email, I like to set a timer. I give myself a realistic amount of time to achieve an activity. 

When I set that timer I’ve created a deal with myself. If I don't get a task done in time, I have to live with that result and move onto my next task. Creating a sense of urgency will allow you to work faster and more efficiently. High standards are great. However, at a certain point, you just have to take messy action. Trust me… success loves speed.

5. Manage Your Emotional State 

Your emotional state is going to dictate your behaviors throughout the day. How you feel determines how you perform. If you want to be unstoppable, you need to be at your best. This is why I'm such a big believer in creating a morning ritual. Top athletes and performers always carry out a routine before they play a game or go on stage.

This could be in the form of stretching their bodies, listening to music or meditating. Rituals like these help them perform to their maximum potential. The same line of thinking applies to you in your business or your career. If you spend time every morning nourishing your mental and emotional state, you will be more productive in your job and you will feel more grounded. It's a win-win.

I have a very detailed morning ritual. No matter where I am or what is going on in my life, I never waver from it. Every morning I exercise to loosen up my body and turn on my mind, take supplements, practice gratitude, recite affirmations, read a book, and meditate. I believe that how you start the day is how you end the day.

Engaging in these rituals allows me to be in a peak state. As a result, I'm faster and more efficient throughout my day. If you are interested in creating a morning ritual, I encourage you to download my free morning ritual habits cheatsheet. Inside you will find 21 rituals that will help nourish your mind, body, and spirit. If you want to go deeper, I've also got a 30-day Morning Ritual Mastery program.

6. Have an Accountability Buddy

One of the biggest challenges that I had when I was building my business is that I lacked accountability. I didn't have a boss because I was my own boss. Hence, it was easy to slack off and waste away my days. The best solution that I found was to get an accountability buddy. This is someone who is also working from home and in a similar situation as yourself.

My accountability buddy and I did check-ins every morning at 9 am via Skype. Both of us shared 3 things that we were committing to achieving every day. We held one another accountable for accomplishing these tasks. At the end of every day, we touched base and debriefed about how our days went.

If we accomplished our 3 tasks, we congratulated one another. If we didn't, we troubleshot why this happened and how we could learn from it. The power of a debrief like this is far-reaching. It allows you to get better and be more productive in moving forward.

7. Reward Yourself

If you have a productive day, reward yourself. Whatever gets rewarded, gets repeated. When you reward yourself, you are more likely to build positive habits moving forward. If you don't have a productive day, don't beat yourself up. This will only cause you  pain, frustration, and anger.

It teaches your brain to give up. The line of thinking becomes, “Why even try if I keep experiencing pain?” Before you know it, you will fall into a mode of learned helplessness. You won't even want to try because you will link pain to taking action. Instead, acknowledge yourself for things that you do well. You deserve it.

These are my 7 productivity hacks for how to be productive.

I hope these strategies help you be more efficient while working at home. Keep in mind that it takes time to adapt to new habits. This is why I try to set up a different environment in my home that is designated solely for work. Play around with what works for you.

I have no doubt that if you implement these 7 productivity hacks into your daily life, you will be more productive than you've ever been. Which productivity hack will you experiment with?

Do you want to know the 7 online business models that made me an Internet millionaire in less than 3 years? CLICK HERE to get instant access to my FREE business course!

My fiancée, Tatiana and I want to talk about how we get so much done.

If you want to be successful in life, you have to become a master of your time.

In our work, we come across a lot of aspiring entrepreneurs who struggle with productivity. Everyone wants to get more done in less time, but don't necessarily know how to do it.

Are you ready to discover our productivity secrets for how we get so much done in so little time?

Watch the video below:

(Click here to watch on YouTube)

[smart_track_player url=”http://www.buzzsprout.com/9299/1710589-plm-715-how-we-get-so-much-done-our-secret.mp3″ background=”default” ]

Want to know which online business is best for you? CLICK HERE to get instant access to my FREE quiz!

Tatiana and I pride ourselves on being productive.

As entrepreneurs, it is our responsibility to grow and develop our businesses. To do so, we need to be hyper-aware of how we are prioritizing our time. What we put into our businesses is what we get out of them. Hence, we don't have time for lazy days!

Time management is a challenge that every entrepreneur faces at some point in their journey. Both Tatiana and I can attest to the fact that running a business can be overwhelming at times. In the business world, “time is money.” How you manage your time determines how much money you will make.

However, it's important to realize that getting more done doesn't mean that you have to work harder on your goals. Rather, it's about learning how to work smarter with the time that you have. Our ability to master this concept has been integral to our business success.

Here are 3 productivity secrets that allow Tatiana and I to get so much done.

1. Get Clear On Your ‘Why'

Before I started an online business, I thought that I was a lazy person because I would only do the bare minimum in my 9-to-5 job. I would always be looking for ways to waste time. However, as soon as I created a solid vision for my future, the game changed. All of a sudden, my motivation skyrocketed. I started to access parts of myself that I never knew existed because I was finally building something that was mine. In short, I was living on purpose.

2. Believe In Yourself

If you want to create momentum towards the achievement of your goals, you must have a strong belief in yourself. Confidence is what turns thoughts into actions and it is this “action” side that relates to productivity. In the beginning stages of building an online business, you won't see results right away.

This can be extremely frustrating for a lot of people, to the point where they lose their motivation. Not surprisingly, this is when productivity takes a nosedive. Don't get attached to the outcome. Rather learn to fall in love with the process of becoming the best version of yourself and your business will thrive as a result.

3. Eliminate Distractions

You cannot mistake activity for achievement. A lot of people are very active in their daily lives, but they aren't necessarily doing things that are moving their lives forward. Tatiana and I are obsessed with focusing on the highest leverage tasks that will grow our businesses. We have been able to enhance our productivity by eliminating distractions that get in the way of our progress.

On our to-do lists we know what matters most, so we focus on those tasks before anything else. We still have fun and relax, but those are things that we schedule in during our week. Doing so ensures that we are continuously making progress in every area of our lives.

This is how we get so much done in a short amount of time.

If you aren't already, I encourage you to follow Tatiana on Instagram and subscribe to her YouTube channel. She publishes a lot of great content related to how to build a business on Amazon.

Everyone has the same amount of time every single day. What you do with your time is entirely up to you. In the words of Henry David Thoreau, “It is not enough to be busy… the question is: What are we busy about?”

Make it a priority to master your time, or else your time will master you.

Want to know which online business is best for you? CLICK HERE to get instant access to my FREE quiz!

Chad Mureta is revolutionizing the way that people plan their days.

He is the co-founder of Project Evo, a customized planner and app that is custom tailored for your unique Brain Type.

Chad and his team help entrepreneurs and working professionals find their flow by discovering who they are and what they do best.

Ready to discover how to plan your day and get into a “flow” state by unlocking your Brain Type? If so, listen to Chad Mureta!

Watch the video below:

(Click here to watch on YouTube)

[smart_track_player url=”http://www.buzzsprout.com/9299/1222697-plm-684-how-to-plan-your-day-get-into-flow-state-by-unlocking-your-brain-type.mp3″ background=”default” ]

Ready to find your flow by uncovering who you are and what you do best? CLICK HERE to purchase the Evo Planner and save 10% on your order!

Ready to unlock the power of your Brain Type? CLICK HERE to access Chad's FREE Brain Type assessment!

This description may contain affiliate links. If you purchase a product through one of them, I will receive a commission (at no additional cost to you). I only ever endorse products that I have personally used and benefitted from personally. Thank you for your support!

Chad Mureta helps people find fulfillment in their work.

He was inspired to create his planning system when he started to see how many people were stuck in careers that were unfulfilling and uninspiring.

Unfortunately, global disengagement is at an all-time high. According to the recent State of the Global Workplace report, 85% of employees are not engaged or actively disengaged at work.

Chad had personally experienced this in his own work, to the point where he fell into burnout.  He saw this as an opportunity to shift his own and other people's perspectives around work. He believes that, once people are able to identify their unique abilities, they are able to find meaning in their work.

In turn, they experience a state of “flow” and increased levels of productivity.

Flow is a mental state of such profound task absorption and intense concentration that makes a person feel one with an activity.  Finding your flow state is a great way to access your brain's most productive state. This is exactly what the Evo planner and app are designed to do.

Here is a sneak peek of my interview with Chad Mureta where we talk about how to plan your day and get into a “flow” state by unlocking your Brain Type. Let's dive in!

Do you mind sharing your story and how you got to where you are today?

I've had an interesting journey. In my early 20's, I threw myself into the world of entrepreneurship. I had a real estate company but I got into the market at a really bad time. As a result, I ended up losing a lot of money.

During this time, I got into a bad car accident as well. I almost lost my arm. That really motivated me and allowed me to look at life from a different lens.

I remember being in my hospital bed and reflecting upon why I chose to be an entrepreneur in the first place. I knew that I wanted a better life so I started building multiple app companies. These apps did really well and I eventually sold them off.

Three years ago, I got to a point where I knew that I wanted more fulfillment.

When I sold my app companies I made a bunch of money but I knew that there was more to life. I didn't feel like I made it. It made me go inward and ask myself, “What am I missing if this isn't the road to where I want to be?” That got me thinking about the concept of “flow.”

At this point, I started reflecting upon who I was, how I learned, and what I should be doing in this world. At a Mastermind event, my friend and I started talking about developing a Brain Type assessment tool.

We wanted to give people a language through which they could identify and understand how their brain works. It took us into a vision of what we have now, which is Project Evo.

Can you talk more in-depth about the process that you went through for creating the Brain Type assessment tool?

There was a lot of research and learning involved in the process. I was attending a lot of conferences at the time and was hungry to learn. However, I wasn't able to take all of the information and implement it as well as I would have liked to. I felt like I was wired in a different way from my friends and colleagues.

There would be times when I would show up and crush it at work, while other times I would feel sluggish. I wanted to know why this occurred. My friend and I met Beckett Hanan, who became the brain behind our assessment tool.

We were able to merge a lot of Beckett's theory with our own ideas.

We all do different things to thrive and feel inspired. Most people aren't even aware of what those things are. This was the aha moment that I had. Once we built our assessment tool, we tested it on over 100,000 people.

We really wanted to understand if our assumptions were correct and if the assessment would help people thrive. All of a sudden, we started to notice patterns.

When you discover your Brain Type with other tools like The Myers–Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), it can be challenging to deconstruct what is being said. I knew that if I gave people a language that was easy to understand, they would know how they worked as a human being. That is exactly what happened.

What are the different Brain Types?

There are four Brain Types; Oracle, Alchemist, Explorer, and Architect. The Explorer wants to have fun and be adventurous. This is my Brain Type. I would always want to do these things during my day. However, I felt like I had to mute myself because I was supposed to be working as an entrepreneur. It didn't feel weird to me to walk in nature while doing a conference call. It gave me energy.

The Oracle needs to disconnect and find focus time in order to thrive.

The Alchemist needs variety. They are super creative and they can pull upon new ideas easily. I've got a lot of Alchemists in my life, which is great because I always feel like I'm getting the best information.

Lastly, the Architect is structure-based and more linear. In order to plan their day, they need to know what their most important tasks are.

This assessment tool has been revolutionary on so many levels. Once you know where you are spending most of the time in your brain, you can focus on your strengths and set up your day and life in a productive way.

Can you describe for people what “flow” state is?

Flow is when you step into something and time ceases to exist. The feeling that you have is euphoria and knowingness. No matter who you are, everyone has had this feeling. This is life. We have the ability to feel more flow and less of the things that rob us of our natural energy.

That is our mission at Project Evo. I want to instill people with the idea that they can be who they are, show up that way, and actually measure it.

Do you mind sharing with people the importance of being proactive and planning your day?

Life is getting faster and faster. You make it a lot easier on yourself when you leverage habits and routines. This is what we preach at Project Evo. Let technology work for you. Set aside specific times where you engage in habits and check them off when you accomplish them. If you want to go to the next level of being you, there are certain habits that you need to practice.

Can you recommend any productivity hacks?

The best hack that I can suggest is to increase your flow. Commonly, productivity is associated with doing more. However, if you increase your flow, you will accomplish your tasks. You may be doing less, but in turn, you will be doing more. Leveraging your mornings is so important.

Most of our users are getting incredible results because they have a morning and an evening routine.

Make sure that you are aware of your patterns. For example, if I drop my flow score on Friday because I go out on Thursday night, I need to change that pattern. My productivity hack consists of making sure that people know my patterns so that I'm held accountable for following through on what I say I will do.

What is your morning ritual? How does engaging in these activities allow you to get into “flow” state?

The moment that I wake up, I jump out of bed and I listen to the song, Hakuna Matata. It makes me happy. After that, I either jump into a cold shower or I get outside and move my body. Sometimes I take SoundCloud music that I love and I put my voice in the background of it. I'll do an incantation walk and speak the things that I want to attract into my life, based on my vision board.

I believe that life is about out-conditioning your conditioning. When I come home, I make a shake, I do Keto stuff and get my nutrition on. Lastly, I jump on my trampoline and sometimes put my legs up against the wall. If I look at my phone before 9 am, my entire day is messed up.

When you know how to effectively plan your day, you master your time.

Having a clear plan for your day is critical to accomplishing the most important things in your life. Interruptions and distractions don't have to mess with your flow. At the end of the day, when it comes to reaching peak performance, it's all about determining what works best for you and your life.

Ready to plan your day more effectively and get into a “flow” state?

Ready to find your flow by uncovering who you are and what you do best? CLICK HERE to purchase the Evo Planner and save 10% on your order!

Ready to unlock the power of your Brain Type? CLICK HERE to access Chad's FREE Brain Type Assessment!

Do you want to learn how to plan your day like Tony Robbins?

Tony is one of the most famous self-help coaches in the world. He has helped millions of people increase their productivity and performance in every aspect of their lives.

Planning your day for optimal productivity is one of the most important things that you can do.

I'm going to walk you through, step-by-step, how Tony Robbins plans his day for success. If you are ready to take back control of your time and your life, keep reading.

Watch the video below:

(Click here to watch on YouTube)

[smart_track_player url=”http://www.buzzsprout.com/9299/1044748-plm-669-how-to-plan-your-day-like-tony-robbins.mp3″ background=”default” ]

Do you want to discover 21 powerful morning rituals that will give you more time and energy? CLICK HERE to get instant access to my FREE Morning Ritual Habits cheatsheet!

Tony Robbins has mastered the art of planning.

Super successful people like Tony understand that time is their most valuable resource. You cannot get time back which is why you need to maximize it. Unfortunately, a lot of people get caught up in the “I'm too busy mindset” but still don't get anything accomplished. One of the main reasons why this happens is that they don't know how to plan their days effectively. The secret to being productive lies in choosing what to do and doing it right, instead of doing more and more.

Tony Robbins' Rapid Planning Method (RPM) is a simple system that teaches you how to plan your day and manage your time. The acronym RPM stands for results, purpose and massive action. This is a way of thinking for conditioning your brain to focus on the outcome and result that you're after. I'm going to walk you through his 5-step action plan for taking back control of your life.

Step 1: Capture

Before you go through the RPM process you want to capture everything that you need to do in a given day. Naturally, you may assume that this involves making a to-do list. A lot of people get overwhelmed by lists because they don't know how to chunk and organize them in an efficient way.

You want to take your list and ask yourself, “What are the results that I want to accomplish today?” You may not be aware of it, but a lot of tasks on your list may be related to one another. Once you determine what those are and chunk them together, now you want to clarify the outcomes.

My favorite way of engaging in this process is through using Evernote. This is a productivity app that you can download to any of your digital devices. This is how I plan my day. The app allows you to keep notes, projects, ideas, and daily inspirations and synchronizes them to all your digital devices.

Step 2: Create An RPM Plan

R – Result 

A question to ask yourself – “What do I really want?”

When you are planning out your day, you need to have a solid understanding of the specific and measurable result that you want to achieve. If you don't have a solid target in mind, how are you supposed to know where you are going? Clarity is power. The more clear you are on what you want, the faster your brain will get you there.

P – Purpose

A question to ask yourself – “Why do I really want it?”

A lot of people aimlessly achieve throughout their day but don't have a reason for why they are doing what they do. You need to know why you want to achieve a specific result. Tony believes that if you have enough reasons to achieve something, you can get yourself to do anything. Your purpose is the fuel that drives you towards achieving something. The next time that you find yourself lacking in motivation, connect back with your purpose. In the words of Tony Robbins, “Activity without purpose is the drain of your life.”

M – Massive Action Plan

A question to ask yourself – “What is my massive action plan?”

Now that you know what your result is and you have a purpose for it, you need to determine what your massive action plan is. The Pareto Principle states that 20% of actions are responsible for 80% of a plan's effects. This means that 80% of your output comes from 20% of your work. When you know where to devote your efforts you increase your productivity and chances of success.

Step 3: Commit And Schedule 

Now that you have the specific outcomes that you want to achieve throughout your day, you need to schedule the most important things first and commit to engaging in these activities. When you schedule something you commit to doing it.

I know that it is unrealistic to assume that I am going to accomplish everything on my list in a given today. This is why I like to get clear on my “must items” and put a star beside them. My “musts” are the 20% that is going to make 80% of the difference in my life. Anything that doesn't get accomplished is moved to the next day or next week.

Throughout this process, I am constantly re-adapting my result, reminding myself of what my purpose is, and reprioritizing what is the most important thing that I need to focus on next. Once I do this, I then look at my list and determine what I can delegate to someone else.

Step 4: Complete And Achieve 

The secret to getting things done isn't just getting them done. Rather, it's knowing what your outcome and purpose are, and looking for how you can leverage your work as much as possible. You want to complete the most important, highest leverage activities on your list. Ideally, I like to accomplish 3-5 activities. This will help you achieve your goals much faster.

The process of leveraging is when you are working with someone to produce your desired result. In my business, my goal is to leverage as much as possible to other people. While others may be doing most of the work, I am still actively involved in the process.

I always make sure that the people who are helping me have a solid understanding of my desired outcome, my purpose for doing so, and the actions that need to be taken. Using the power of leverage is one of the most effective ways to get more done in less time.

Step 5: Celebrate

At the end of the day or week, you need to celebrate what you've accomplished, as small as it may be. You may not get everything done that you set out to do and that's okay. Focus on the progress that you made because whatever gets rewarded, gets repeated.

When you take a moment to acknowledge and celebrate the magic moments of your day, it will create the momentum that you need in order to keep going.

This is how to plan your day like Tony Robbins.

I highly recommend that you integrate his Rapid Planning Method (RPM) into your daily life. RPM has allowed me to take my productivity to the next level and achieve results faster.

If you want to dive deeper into this method, Tony has an awesome audio program that I suggest you check out on his website called The Time of Your Life. This is a 10-day program that is designed to help you create more time to do what truly matters in your life. You will learn the strategies that Tony uses in order to maximize every minute of his day with his Rapid Planning Method (RPM).

I also recommend his RPM Life Management System Journal. This planner will guide you through the RPM process and help you develop the necessary resources so that you can integrate the massive action system into your everyday life.

When you know what you want, why you want it, and what you need to do in order to achieve it, it gives you a feeling of fulfillment that transfers to every area of your life.

Are you ready to master the art of planning so that you can take back control of your time and your life?

Do you want to discover 21 powerful morning rituals that will give you more time and energy? CLICK HERE to get instant access to my FREE Morning Ritual Habits cheatsheet!

Everyone wants to know how to be more productive with their time, and then procrastination takes over.

Have you ever experienced that feeling of panic when you look at the clock and realize that you haven't accomplished anything, even though it feels like you've been working really hard? I've been there.

A productive day doesn't happen by accident. You need to develop healthy habits that allow you to accomplish all of the things that you need to do.

Now is the time to take charge of your time. Are you ready to learn 6 ways that you can work smarter, not harder?

Watch the video below where I interview Eben Pagan on the opportunity mindset, where we talk about working smart:

(Click here to watch on YouTube)

Are you ready to start living every day with confidence, passion, and energy? CLICK HERE to join my Morning Ritual Mastery program!

This page contains affiliate links. If you purchase a product through one of them, I will receive a commission (at no additional cost to you). I only ever endorse products that I have personally used and benefitted from personally. Thank you for your support!

The goal is to make every day a productive day.

No matter what work you do, it will never feel like there are enough hours in the day. That's just a fact. Where a lot of people get stuck is that they assume that being productive means crushing everything on their to-do list. They think that getting more things done is the most efficient way of working. This is far from true.

Being busy has become a status symbol. In today's 24/7 world, the standard response to “how are you” is “busy!” People think that if you are super busy, then that must mean that you are successful, right? Not really.

Being crazy busy is actually a deterrent to your productivity. When you are engaged in an act of endless “doing”  things, you don't end up getting anywhere. This can make you feel unorganized and overwhelmed. In the words of Socrates, “Beware the barrenness of a busy life.” 

It's fair to say that being super busy doesn't mean that you are super productive.

The best way to become more effective at work is to focus on what really matters to you. Have you ever really wanted to get something done, but for some reason, you find any reason to avoid it at all costs? I think this is something that we have all experienced at some point in our lives.

In his book, The War of Art: Breakthrough The Blocks And Win Your Inner Creative Battles, Steven Pressfield says that there is a malignant presence that exists to block you from doing what you most need to do. He calls this force, “resistance.”

This happens because the work that you need to do is so important to your soul's calling that you are afraid to actually do it. In this headspace, you are naturally more inclined to fall into procrastination mode. However, this doesn't mean that you are lazy or unmotivated.

Research shows that the problem is that our brains are programmed to procrastinate. We all tend to struggle with tasks that promise future upside in return for efforts we take now. In short, it's easier for your brain to process concrete versus abstract things. This is in no way meant to be an excuse for why you can't get things done. Being productive is a choice, just like procrastination is.

In order to prevent procrastination from taking over your life, you need to learn how to work smarter, not harder. How do you do this? By cultivating a set of daily habits that will help boost your productivity levels.

If you want to learn how to be more productive with your time, follow these 6 daily habits.

1. Set Daily Goals

I believe that goal setting is one of the most important aspects of having a productive day. Goals give us a sense of direction. They provide a roadmap so that we know where we are going. If you don't know where you are headed, how do you expect to ever get there?

Long-term goals are great, but it's easy to lose sight of them because they are so far away. This is why it's important that you set tangible, daily goals. Doing so allows you to analyze your progress on a daily basis.

In order to set daily goals, you first need to know what you are striving for in the long-term. For example, if your long-term goal is to lose 10 pounds in 30 days, what could you do today in order to get one step closer to accomplishing this goal?

You want to plan out how you expect to achieve your daily goal-setting activity. Write it out and prioritize your tasks so that you are prepared. The morning is the best time to set daily goals, as this is the time when your mind is most clear.

2. Set Short-Term Deadlines

Nothing drives productivity more than a solid deadline. However, deadlines can be stressful, especially if you put them off until right before they are due.

People get into trouble when they don't attach a sense of urgency to whatever task they are engaging in. Having all the time in the world to finish something is an open invitation to procrastinate. 

It's easy to let yourself off the hook. However, nobody likes to let someone down, especially if it's their boss or a business coach. This is when having an accountability buddy works wonders. It will ensure that you stay committed to the task at hand.

Setting short-term deadlines force you to work more effectively and create a sense of urgency, which provides you with the energy that you need in order to achieve the results that you desire.

3. Complete The Most Important Task First

You only have so much time in one day. If you think that you will be able to accomplish every single thing on your massive to-do list, you are setting yourself up for failure. This is why I'm a big believer in focusing my time on the most important task first.

Not everything on your list is a top priority. What is the most critical thing that you need to accomplish? Consider this to be your top procrastination task. As I expressed above, this won't be easy because your brain is conditioned to look for the path of least resistance.

However, by getting your MIT (most important task) out of the way first thing in the morning, you are setting yourself up for a productive day. Mark Twain once said, “Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.” Figure out what your “frog” is.

Realistically, it is the one task that has the most meaning to your work and life. Make a commitment to yourself that you will invest time into it. If you need to rid yourself of distractions, turn off your phone or mark your calendar as busy for one hour so that people know not to bother you during that time.

4. Create A Mindfulness Practice

When it comes to getting things done, one of the biggest challenges that people face is being able to focus on the task at hand. The mind is constantly wandering, which means that it's easy to get distracted. Procrastination feeds off of this state.

In order to be productive, people assume that they have to be constantly achieving and doing. The focus is always on the next thing that they need to do, or the next place that they need to be. As a result, they are never fully in the present moment.

In the words of Robin Sharma, “Productivity is less about what you do with your time and more about how you run your mind.” A great way to bring yourself back to the present moment on a daily basis is to create a mindfulness practice, like deep breathing, meditation or yoga.

By focusing your awareness on the here and now, you are more conscious of what you are doing. By becoming a more active observer of your thoughts, you will be more aware when your mind starts to wander.

5. Set A Timer

How often have you started working on a task and then your mind drifted off, causing you to check Instagram, look at your email inbox, and then work on an entirely different task altogether? Join the club. We've all been there. This is why setting a timer is a great way to keep you on track and 100% committed to whatever you need to do.

When you set a timer for a task and dig into it with full commitment, you get a chance to see how much you can really get done in a specific block of time.

When I do my work, I like to use the Pomodoro Technique. This is a time management method that uses a timer to break down work into intervals — specifically 25-minutes in length, separated by 5-minute breaks. This process is repeated 3 times. After you've done 4 Pomodoro sessions you can take a longer break if needed, or continue the cycle.

During a 25-minute time period, I work as intensely as I can. Doing so allows me to enter into a flow state, otherwise known as your optimal zone of productivity. I have found this easy method to be one of the most effective ways to rid myself of procrastination.

When you see how much you can accomplish in a specific block of time, it will motivate you to achieve more, thereby increasing your productivity levels.

6. Start and End Your Day With A Routine

A routine is an amazing way to stay on track and boost your productivity. When it comes to having a super productive morning, the key is to find what works best for you and then commit to doing it on a consistent basis.

For example, maybe that means hitting the gym, reading, eating a healthy breakfast or planning out your day. Whatever allows you to hyperfocus and be at the top of your game is ideal.

Forming new healthy habits takes time. This is why it's a great idea to have some kind of accountability reminder in place as you build a habit. I'm a big fan of the Productivity Planner. This is a journal that is designed to help you get your most important tasks completed so that you can feel more productive on a daily basis.

I also write in this journal at the end of the day. I rate my productivity score, on a scale of 1-10, and see what I could have done better. I go through this process every single morning, as part of my morning ritual. Doing so ensures that I always stay on track with my goals.

Keep in mind that what you do before bed matters just as much as what you do in the morning. In terms of an evening routine, I encourage you to plan the next day. Take a look at your calendar and write down the most important things that you need to get done.

Make sure that you actually schedule these tasks into your calendar. If your schedule changes slightly, that is OK. All that matters is that you've created a basic framework for what your day will look like. This will ensure that you wake up feeling grounded and ready to crush the day.

This is how to be more productive at work.

Paul J. Meyer said it best, “Productivity is never an accident. It is always the result of a commitment to excellence, intelligent planning, and focused effort.” Are you ready to work smarter, not harder?

Are you ready to start living every day with confidence, passion, and energy? CLICK HERE to join my Morning Ritual Mastery program!

Do you want to learn 5 ways to motivate yourself to do anything? CLICK HERE to read the article that I wrote on Medium!

Stop wasting time. Time is something that cannot be wasted, replaced or re-written.

This is why time is so precious. It's a depreciating asset. From time to time, we all get caught up in activities that do not contribute to our highest self. Some actions seem like they don't matter because we don’t see the negative impact that they have on our lives in the short-term. However, over time, they creep up on us and we are left wondering, “Where did time go?” 

A lot of people end up getting sucked up in a time-wasting vacuum. As a result, they waste their life away. In the back of our minds, we all know that we have a limited amount of time on this planet.  Sometimes we need to be reminded of how short life is so that we are motivated to live our lives more fully.

When you value time, you don't waste it. In the words of Marcia Wider,“It’s how we spend our time here and now, that really matters. If you are fed up with the way you have come to interact with time, change it.”

Watch the video below:

(Click here to watch on YouTube)

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Do you want to stop wasting time?

Everyone wishes that they had more time, but here lies the problem. You don't need more time. Rather, you need to do MORE with the time that you already have. If you've ever caught yourself saying, “I don't have time” you need to realize that this is just a disempowering story that you are holding onto in order to prevent yourself from failing. We all have a fear of failure.

However, this mindset hinders a lot of people from maximizing their lives and mastering their time. A survey by Salary.com found that 89% of respondents said they waste time every single day. It's fair1 to say that time wasting has become an epidemic.

You always make the time for things that you are most committed to. I believe that how you spend your time says a lot about what matters most to you. This is where people get stuck. Oftentimes we engage in time-wasting activities that prevent us from moving forward in life, whether that's trolling on social media, watching TV shows, or hanging out with negative people.

For many people, it can be a shock to realize how much time they are wasting on things that don't matter. If you've ever asked yourself, “Where does the time go?” then you may want to re-think how you are spending your time.

In the words of Charles Darwin, “A man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of time.”

If you want to become a time management ninja, then it's important that you understand how you can start getting get more done. Let's explore 3 ways that you can stop wasting time today.

1. Prioritize Your To-Do List 

You might be wasting time because you are keeping yourself busy with other tasks that are less of a priority. When the things that you desire to do most are less urgent on your list then it's easy to put them on the back burner. How about creating a “not-to-do list.” In his book, Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity, David Allen says that this is a great way to consciously identify and limit those tasks that aren’t worth your time. When you know what isn't a priority, then you can start figuring out what is.

I start my day by writing in my Productivity Planner. This tool has allowed me to procrastinate less and get my most important tasks completed. As a result, I feel more productive on a daily basis. Instead of focusing on many different things, schedule one chunk of time to make progress towards your most important goal.

When it comes to prioritizing your to-do list, if you want to get more done, you need to do less in your day. Don't try to do it all. That will only lead to many things getting started, but nothing getting finished. What do you need to do less of?

2. Eliminate All Distractions

A distraction is anything that you indulge in that always makes you feel worse after you do it. This could be sleeping in for an extra hour or having meaningless conversations on the phone. I believe that the reason why we end up distracting ourselves is that, deep down, we don't feel fulfilled.

As a result, we look for some sort of escape or immediate sense of comfort in order to fill the void inside of ourselves. By doing so, it may feel as if you are escaping the pain. However, it only serves to further hinder your progress and holds you back from achieving your goals.

Nothing makes me happier than knowing that I am making progress towards becoming a better version of myself. At our core, we all want to feel this way. However, in order to achieve this state of happiness, we need to commit to never-ending growth. If you aren't growing, you're dying.

3. Take Breaks

Oftentimes, overachievers and workaholics are praised for their behavior. Working yourself senseless is associated with success, but is it? In today’s hyperconnected world, finding a moment to take a breathe and relax our minds has become a lost art.

However, if you aren't taking breaks and allowing your brain to reboot itself, then you are most likely decreasing your productivity levels. Stopping your work when you are “in the zone” may seem counterintuitive, However, research shows that by being more intentional with our work and slowing down, we actually get more done.

Researcher K. Anders Ericsson, who has studied elite performers, including musicians, athletes, actors and chess players found that these types of people practice in uninterrupted sessions that last no more than 90 minutes. By engaging in work that is both intentional, high effort, and high concentration practice, they maximize their time spent on tasks. In short, they have mastered the art of working smart, not hard.

Stop wasting time. If you can spend most of your time wisely, then you will be winning at life.

In the words of Pope Paul VI – “Somebody should tell us, right at the start of our lives, that we are dying. Then we might live life to the limit, every minute of every day. Do it! I say. Whatever you want to do, do it now! There are only so many tomorrows.”

Wasting time happens to everyone at some point in their lives. It's okay to relax and waste time now and then. However, if it starts to become a bad habit, it only takes us farther away from living a happy and productive life. What small change will you make today that will allow you to stop wasting your time and start living your life?

Do you want to learn 21 powerful morning rituals that will take your life to the next level? CLICK HERE to receive instant access to my free cheat sheet!

Are you ready to learn why going slower will make you go faster? CLICK HERE to read the article that I wrote on Medium!

The online business journey is a thrilling, jam-packed roller coaster ride, filled with highs and lows.

If you want to become a successful entrepreneur, you need to know what you can expect, in order to determine if you are ready for it. You've probably come across some entrepreneurial success stories of people who have ‘made it big', which has inspired you to know how they did it.

What a lot of people don't see is the years of blood, sweat, and tears that entrepreneurs invest into building their dreams. I want to share with you what you can expect, some of the biggest challenges that you may face, and how you can leverage your time to increase productivity levels.

When you have a realistic perspective of what the online business journey looks like, it gives you a solid framework for understanding how you can move forward. Success is a journey. Are you ready to learn what this process entails, so that you can take action and start creating the online business of your dreams? 

Watch the video below:

(Click here to watch on YouTube)

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When it comes to building an online business, people face a lot of challenges, one of which is time. I work with a lot of people that don't have a lot of time because they have a full-time job that has them working 40-60 hours/week. At the end of the day, they don't have the emotional bandwidth to do much of anything, let alone build an online business. On top of that, many people have families and loved ones that they need to spend time with and take care of, so it can be a difficult balancing act.

The tricky thing about the online business journey is that, in the beginning stages, you don't make any money. It takes time to build the foundation of your business, so you can't expect to see a return from your efforts right away. This is why you need a steady income to pay your bills, and then use that cash flow to invest it into your online business. I don't encourage people to quit their day jobs. This is a recipe for failure.

That being said, if you have the desire to build an online business, there are sacrifices that you are going to have to make. Anything of value in life takes time, hard work, commitment, and discipline. You need to know what you need to give up in order to have whatever it is that you desire most.

This means that you may have to put social time on the back burner and stop hanging out with your friends as much. Similarly, you may have to limit the amount of time that you spend with your family, if it means creating the life of your dreams. Unfortunately, a lot of people don't want to face this reality, nor do their loved ones. 

I would like to share what I learned along my online business journey.

When I was in my early 20's, I had to sacrifice a lot in order to build my online business. My health definitely took a toll, but I knew that it was a short-term sacrifice that I needed to make if I wanted to be successful. I thought about the big picture and knew that paying this price meant that I would be able to one day create my ultimate dream lifestyle.

A lot of people aren't willing to make sacrifices, and that resistance is what holds them back. Eric Worre said it best, “Most people think that they deserve success as some sort of right, but here's the truth. Success is something that you earn through effort.”

Luckily, I didn't have a family to take care of, but while everyone was going out and having fun, I was sitting in my room, building my future. I had to learn how to say no a lot because I was so hyper-focused on building what it is that I have today.

There was a lot of learning curves that I had to go through. When I first started, everything was new to me. I didn't even know that creating an online business was possible, let alone what blogging or email marketing was. I was programmed and condition, as many of us are from an early age, to believe that success meant going to school, getting good grades, and finding a great job that would allow you to retire comfortably. That was my blueprint for success.

When I discovered that I could make money on the Internet and that I could model and learn from other successful people through online training, courses, and seminars, I was hooked. Putting the time, energy and money into building something of my own, versus spending an insane amount of money on a college education, was the best decision for me. 

That being said, I started off with some huge disadvantages. I was a C- student in high school. I struggled with writing and public speaking because I suffered from extreme shyness and social anxiety. However, the one advantage that I did have was that I had strong computer skills. That was the greatest benefit of playing a lot of video games when I was younger.

This is why I am a big believer in the power of personal growth and development. If you want to build a successful online business, you need to be resourceful and commit to lifelong learning. There is no better investment that you will make in life. You may be wondering, “Why is investing in yourself so powerful? Well, When you’re willing to take a leap of faith and do whatever it takes to build your future, the Universe listens and provides you with life-changing rewards. Keep in mind that nothing works unless you do. 

It all starts with believing that you deserve greatness. As Dr. David Hawkins explains in his book, Letting Go, “The unconscious will allow us to have only what we believe we deserve. The more we hang on to our negativity and small self-image that results, the less we think we deserve.” When it comes to learning new things, make the choice to adopt a growth mindset and focus on what is possible.

If you don't know how to do something, learn how to do it. Don't dabble and stay on the surface. Rather, go deep with your learning. When the going gets tough, push harder. Masters know that repetition is the mother of all learning. This is what is going to help you accelerate your success even more.

When you adopt an attitude of curiosity and dive into the world of online business, it can be really exciting because you make all these new discoveries that you've never heard of before. For example, I was blown away that I could become a self-published author, have my book live on Amazon in 24 hours and start making money from it. This is so far from some people's reality, but it's possible!

When it comes to learning, a common mistake that I see a lot of people make is that they try to do too much at once, which results in information overload. They don’t have a step-by-step guide in place for how they can apply what they learn. 

A lot of people make the mistake of jumping too far ahead in their online business journey.

The result? Frustration, anxiety and overwhelm. In short, you end up getting nothing done because your brain can't process all of the information. In a paper published in Psychological Science, Bar and Baror describe how “conditions of high load” foster unoriginal thinking. When our brains are overwhelmed with thoughts, they pursue well-trodden paths of least resistance, with the goal of bringing order to the onslaught of information.

You need to master each step in the process. Don’t expect to understand how to complete step 5 if you haven’t even completed step 1. You need to learn and then apply, and then keep recycling that process. To add to this, in the beginning stages of building an online business not everyone has a lot of money to invest into training, which is why you need to go broad when it comes to learning new skills — whether that's email marketing, copywriting, creating content, doing SEO or PPC's, building a WordPress website, or working with software.

Unfortunately, I see a lot of people who stay broad and never end up becoming an expert at something. I believe that all of us should have a master skill. Any master throughout history is really good at ONE thing, whether that's Charles Darwin, Lebron James or Stefan Curry.

In his book, The Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell spoke about the 10,000-hour rule, citing it as “the magic number of greatness.” On average, it takes 10 years to master something, so you can't master everything. Once you've learned a variety of online business skills, I encourage you to step back and ask yourself, “What are the one or two things that I am going to do deep with and commit to mastering?” 

For myself, it was content creation. Once I committed to mastering this, it was a game changer for my online business. I love sharing my message with the world, writing, interviewing people, learning new things and sharing it with my audience. That is what I spend the majority of my time doing in my online business.

You want to pick a high-paid skill that is hard to replace. If I could go back in time and do something different, I would have found a freelance job that I could go deep with and learn from, while building my online business. You need to practice and cultivate the skill that you want to master, every single day.

With regards to managing your time, you need to become diligent and treat your online business like a real job. Oftentimes people struggle because they have no accountability – they don't have a coach, a boss, or a mastermind group that is in their corner, cheering them on and making sure that they follow through with their goals.

When you have a 9-5 job you have to show up on time and do the work. If you don't, you will likely get fired. If you treat your online business the same way, you will get results, but you need to be hyper discipline. This means that when you are working on your online business, you can't have any distractions. Distractions are a great way to derail you from a task altogether. In fact, one study shows it takes about 25 minutes to get back into the swing of things after you’ve been interrupted.

You also need to enrol the support of your family friends, when it comes to the vision that you have for your online business. If you've got people holding you back from achieving your goals, it's going to make the process so much harder for you. If you know that people are going to criticize you, then don't share with them what you are doing. It's not worth the stress. You need all of the emotional and mental strength that you can muster, in order to take your online business to the next level.

One of my favorite ways to build my online business is through the power of immersion. I'll take a few days during the week where I work 16 hours each day. What you get done during that time is probably more than what you can ever get done in a month or two. I'll put myself in a new environment, whether that means renting an Airbnb or taking a weekend trip somewhere, and I will lose myself in my work.

I like to set a timer when I work so that I know how much time that I have in order to accomplish something. When the timer hits zero, I move on. Don't waste your precious time. That urgency forces me to work faster and more efficiently with the time that I have. Everyone has a different amount of time, but as long as you are committed, you will get where you want to go. Become a master at time management. When you do, your online business will thrive.

Are you ready to dive into your online business journey?

There will be a lot of ups and down along your online business journey, but trust me when I say that it is so worth the ride. Sure, there will be times when you will feel like you're slipping, but if you stay committed to the process, you will start moving again and creating the momentum that you need in order to thrive. Once you've built your first successful online business, you will become inspired to keep creating more!

It's an exciting process and one that you will reap massive rewards from if you don't give up and stay focused. In the words of Tony Gaskins Jr., “If you don't build your dreams, someone will hire you to build theirs.” Are you ready to build your dream business?

Are you ready to learn which online business model is best for you to start? CLICK HERE to take my quiz!

Are you ready to learn how you can navigate the entrepreneurial roller coaster ride? CLICK HERE to check out the article that I wrote on Medium!