About this episode
Quote of the day from Tony Robbins…Beliefs have the power to create and the power to destroy... Uncertainty is a necessity of being an Entrepreneur and for Growth and Success. Let me add to that…Your Ability to allow and embrace Uncertainty in your life is in direct proportion to your Success, Growth and Prosperity. We cannot grow or achieve inside our Comfort Zone and we cannot achieve the best version of ourselves without Growing to our True capabilities…. Brenden Burchard in his best selling Book High Performance Habits talks about our NEED and REQUIREMENT to deal with Uncertainty if we want to create an Amazing Life. He said, “Certainty is the enemy of growth and high performance.” Too many people want certainty amid the chaos fo this world. But certainty is a fool’s dream and , thus the charlatan’s selling point. Certainty ultimately blinds you, sets tase or fixed limits, and create “automatic” habits that become predictable bad thinking and openings for your competitors to surpass you….High Performers outgrow their youthful need for certainty and replace it with curiosity and genuine self-confidence. So, uncertainty is a good thing, BUT….how do we deal with it. Well, I read an article recently on Success.com from Michael Pietrzak. He shared 12 Secrets to Creating Efficiency (and I believe dealing with Uncertainty) for You in Your Life. I’d like to share those 12 Secrets with you today... SECRET #1 PRACTICE SELF CARE When your purpose is clear, you are unstoppable. Your motivation levels increase and you find solutions far quicker to the problems you face. SECRET #2 CREATE A “WILL NOT DO” LIST My partner Robert Stuberg like to create a list every year of things he will eliminate or delegate from his daily lists. When you re clear on yoru focus it is much easier to say no to new ideas and projects, but saying NO is critical to creating results in your life. It also helps to simplify and create more peace and focus in times of uncertainty. SECRET #3 PLAY OFFENSE NOT DEFENSE Most people spend their entire life playing defense by reacting to the things in their life that are constantly distracting them. The day to day issues that some up can overwhelm us if we are not too careful. Sometimes you need to let a few balls drop in order to focus on moving forward. But more importantly, you need to schedule and focus on driving your team and life down the field by playing offense as much as possible. Find areas of your focus and business that are non negotiable time blocks you can push forward in your business, your life and your personal growth and do not take your eye off the ball. Become great at offense (which is when you actually CONTROL our destiny). It will help you deal with uncertainty by giving you the opportunity to advance even in the face of certain set backs. For example, working out or meditation or journaling... Don’t neglect the Most important asset you have in the GAME OF LIFE….YOU SECRET #4 PRACTICE SELF CARE This brings us to the important topic of Self Care. I like the way Michael put it in his article... The most neglected piece of any productivity plan is your most important asset: YOU. Success coach and entrepreneur David Bayer says that 80 percent of success is determined by your mindset. If the programming between your ears is delivering anxiety, doubt, fear and frustration, no amount of hustle or strategizing will deliver results. One key to creating an optimal mindset is to invest in self-care: inspiring hikes in the woods, playing your favorite game, an excellent meal, time with close friends; whatever recharges your soul’s battery. You can’t do your best work when your mind and heart are overwhelmed. You wouldn’t constantly run an engine at the redline without oil, A word of caution: Brushing your teeth, taking your meds, and reading self-help books is self-maintenance, not self-care. To accomplish more, prioritize compassionate activities that supercharge your spirit; for many entrepreneurs this is the missing link in their success plan. SECRET #5 LEVERAGE HEALTH HACKS Health is by far the best way to improve your mindset and your results. The mind and body connection is proven to have a connection and you must find a way to increase your health if you want to impact your happiness and prosperity in life. Find some great resources to follow for health tips, hacks and suggestions so that you dont plateau or get used to the patterns you have in life. I read blogs from guys like Ben Greenfield, Tim Ferris and many others. Also, find ways to regulate your energy with exercise, supplements, intermittently fasting, time in the sun or whatever helps you to feel healthy and energetic. Get to know how your body responds to different things and get proactive. Take control of your physical health and you will see a direct impact on your levels of energy and success. Most importantly, remember that you can control this area of your life (even in times of definite uncertainty). SECRET #6 PLAY TO YOUR STRENGTHS Stop doing things you are not good at. We’ve talked about finding the things you have Unique Talent in (excellent and passionate). Try to do everything you can to operate inside your Unique Talent. Most people spend their entire lives in areas that they are either incompetent in (to earn buck) or worse…they spend time doing things they are “good at” but not “excellent at”. This is a recipe for unhappiness and slows your long term growth. Focus on your strengths and you will plow through uncertainty (even if it does bring with it failure and lessons to learn) because you will grow. SECRET #7 BE THE EARLY BIRD We have all heard the phrase “the early bird gets the worm” but let me put it to you a bit differently. I was listening to an interview with Ed mylett the other day and he talked about how his life and business used to be a ton of chaos each day. He would wake up and immediately his mind and life would take over and he would get thrown into stress, anxiety and the troubles of the day. Then, one day he realized that if he would just take control of the start and the end of each day (book ends), he would be able to have a degree of control and impact his day much more. So, your morning and evening rituals (in my opinion) are Critical to creating success in your life. They are what help you to determine the trajectory of your day, and Winning the Day is the only thing you can impact in life. My morning routine consists of Meditation, Workout and Affirmations/Goals. But do what you personally need to get your mind going and your life traveling in the right direction. Waking just a few more minutes earlier each day will significantly impact your life. I promise... SECRET #8 UNDERSTAND THE MAKER’S VS MANAGER’S SCHEDULE Michael explains this topic really well, so here is what he said… The Manager’s schedule is comprised of one-hour chunks, where you run from one task to the next. But the Maker needs clear, half-day sessions to excel. A coder or a writer can’t do great work in an hour; he can barely get started. Side hustlers are Makers and Managers at different times, but tend toward managing. A business only succeeds by creating value, and creation is easier in those Maker periods. Wise entrepreneurs schedule Maker time first thing each morning, leaving frenetic Manager work for late-day. Tim Ferriss simplifies this by saying: Make before you manage. “Even token efforts allow me to reassure myself with ‘Don’t worry. You did produce something today,’ ” he says. First, understand which work belongs to each domain, then prioritize Maker time each week. SECRET #9 ALWAYS BE SHIPPING This particular Secret is one that really is important to understand. One of the biggest problems with people no days is they over plan, over think, and spend way too much time on strategy rather than just doing. They basically avoid the action of just “shipping” by overplaying. The key to success is to schedule time that you SHIP stuff: send emails, call clients, post an article, release your product. Yes, these are the time you fear the most because they are usually followed by criticism, critique, failures, and all kind of uncomfortable moments, BUT…this is where the magic happens. This is where you GROW, where you LEARN, where you SUCCEED in life. Parkinson’s Law tells us that your work and life will expand to fill your schedule, so SCHEDULE your productive time. Don’t wait till you have free time for the important stuff, because that time never comes... SECRET #10 OVERLAP YOUR EFFORTS I love the idea of Diversification, but having Synergy in the things you do is also a great way to get more productive in uncertain times. One of the key reasons I started this podcast was that I realized that I am far more productive when I start my day with personal development, financial education and learning. Well, I figured what better way to do that and also 1)build a brand, 2)get a message out, 3)help other entrepreneurs, 4)expand my businesses with the educational companies I consult for, and many other things I wont go into detail with. Find ways to follow your passion while also creating results in other areas of your life and you will be surprised to see how they benefit you as well as others you come in contact with. This is a great way to deal with uncertainty while also playing offense in your life. SECRET #11 MIND THE ANALYTICS You can’t hit a target you can’t see, so you set goals. We’ve talked about this before, but you can’t win a game if you aren’t keeping score. Now I will note that its a fine line that you need to become obsessed with playing the game, but without keeping score you have no idea how you are doing, how you can improve and where to start. I have had thousands of employees in my businesses over the years. Each time one of them sat down with me, we could spend hours analyzing a problem or trying to find ways to help them improve. But it was always easier to help them if we could simply look at the scorecard and start from there. Create KPIs for your business….Key Performance Indicators. Example from events company…..Example from telesales…Example from sales… Scorecard also let you focus far easier because you can run your day by the metrics rather than “wondering” what to work on. Brenden Burchard measures what is important to him on a scale from 1-10 every single week. Another habit I picked up from High Performance Habits Book. SECRET #12 ADJUST YOUR SAILS The author wrote, "When he was a general in World War II, Dwight Eisenhower said, “No plan survives contact with the enemy.” The same is true off the battlefield: No business or life plan stays intact once we start executing. The process of planning is indispensable because it forces us to anticipate outcomes, setbacks and the resources we’ll need to succeed. But reality will always surprise us." Being willing to keep score is important to your growth, but without adjustments and changes in direction you will not ultimately arrive at the destination you choose. This means… 1-Stop trying to figure it all out before you start, because no one knows the path you will travel until you travel the path. 2-Be willing to be honest and humble when you identify mistakes, errors, and need to change direction. Humility is going to be a key. I hope this article has helped you come up with some key ideas for how to deal with uncertainty. It has definitely helped me. I encourage you to check it out over don success.com and I also encourage you to study your own daily performance and focus. Here is the biggest take away I want you to get from this episode… You must learn to deal with Uncertainty in your life if you want to grow and succeed. But, you can absolutely find ways to CREATE CERTAINTY in your own personally economy while you allow the Uncertainty to Play out around you...