Setting effective goals can significantly improve your productivity and help you achieve more. Here are some tips to help you set goals that motivate action and enhance your productivity:

Be Specific: Clearly define what you want to achieve. Specific goals provide a clear direction and make it easier to measure progress.

Make Them Measurable: Set measurable criteria to track your progress. Measurable goals help you stay focused and motivated as you see yourself getting closer to the target.

Why Don’t More People Set Goals?

In my previous post, I shared some surprising statistics about goal setting.

Or, should I say non-goal setting?

As in only 3% of the population setting goals and only about 1% of people writing them down.

The question is, why this so?

According to Brian Tracy, the 5 main reasons are:

They are not serious enough about being successful - “I know I should, but…”
They fail to understand the importance of goals - “Do they REALLY make a difference? I’ve tried them before and it didn’t work.”
They just don’t know how to do it - “I would if I knew how.”
They fear being rejected by others - “If I set goals, they’ll tell me that I’ll fail.”
They fear the failure of not meeting their goals - “Can I really do it this time?”

At different times in my career, I would have admitted to at least some, if not all of these.

This Goal-setting Statistic May Blow Your Mind

Did you know that only 3% of the population set goals and only about 1% of people write them down?

Yet, success expert Brian Tracy writes that, “the ability to set goals and make plans for their accomplishment is the ‘master skill’ of success. It is the single most important skill that you can learn and perfect. Goal setting will do more to help you achieve the things you want in life than will anything else you’ve been exposed to.

Tips to Manage Our Emotions AND Our Workloads

Here are some strategies that can help individuals cope with distressing news while still focusing on work:

Acknowledge Your Emotions: Recognize and accept your emotions rather than suppressing them. It's okay to feel upset or distressed about such events.

Set Realistic Expectations: Understand that during times of distress, your productivity might not be at its peak. Setting achievable goals for the day can help manage expectations.

Create a Supportive Environment: Surround yourself with supportive colleagues or friends who can provide a sense of community and comfort during difficult times.

How to Get Back Into a Routine

Prolonged holiday seasons, like those just concluded in the Hebrew month of Tishrei, present similar challenges.

Even with a schedule like this year, with much if the most stringent holidays occurring on weekends, observers found their workflows and routines greatly disrupted.

Since R+R is often associated with a weekend’s gift of “rest and relaxation,” let’s use R+S to connote our “return and success.”

Here are some “R+ S” tips to rebuild your routine and start getting things done.

The Difference Between Productivity and Busyness

Productivity is about achieving meaningful results and making the most of your time, while busyness is simply being occupied with activities, whether they are important or not. The key to personal and professional success is to prioritize productivity over busyness, focusing on tasks and activities that truly contribute to your goals and using your time efficiently and effectively.

10 Lessons I Learned from Starting 10 Years Ago with 0 Clients

10 years ago, my role as principal of a K-8 in Atlanta ended and I immediately hung my “Impactful” shingle.

Voila! I was now a coach/consultant… of exactly 0 clients.

Which meant that I had no idea how I was going to...

pay for my family's relocation to NJ, one of the most expensive states in the nation;
make meaningful and consistent income as a new-to-market coach/consultant with a freshly hung shingle; and
put myself through graduate school to complete my doctorate.

Thank God, I managed through that difficult early phase, and can now count many thousands of people who I have been blessed to serve through coaching, consulting, training, keynotes and talks, and my books and articles.

Here are 10 lessons I learned along the way.

'When' matters almost as much as 'What'

I recently read (well, listened to) Daniel Pink's book When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing.

The central theme of the book revolves around the idea that timing matters more than we might realize, and understanding the patterns of our internal clocks can lead to better outcomes and improved well-being.

Here are 3 important takeaways:

1) Circadian Rhythms: We have internal biological clocks called circadian rhythms. These rhythms influence our sleep-wake cycle, body temperature, hormone production, and metabolism. Our bodies are naturally programmed to be more alert and active during the day and to wind down and rest at night. Understanding and aligning our activities with these rhythms can optimize our energy levels and overall well-being.

How to get more done this week (plus special announcement!)

We all want to get more done this week.

But if this week becomes like all other weeks (a likely reality for many) then we'll look back yet again and wonder why.

🔎Why we couldn't be more focused.

📋Why we couldn't achieve more.

🎡Why we seem stuck in a perpetual rut.

The truth is, there are reasons that we don't get more done.

Some might call them excuses.

But since they affect so many of us, let's just assume that they're real and need to be identified if they're to be addressed.

Here are some of the most common reasons.

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