Organize Tomorrow Today
Think about what you can do in the present.
Focus on the present moment.
Worry about the future and all the possibilities, the potential pitfalls, and you are frozen by anxiety of the unknown.
Worry about the past, the past mistakes, the alternative realities and you are stuuck in regret and what-if’s.
They key is to maximize your time each day.
The summary by Productivity Game neatly structures the core message and it’s certainly something I will try doing to rebuild momentum in my work quickly.
Don’t worry about the result because in the act of worrying about future results each day, you squander or hinder your present capacities and endeavors - squander your present momentum and focus.
By scheduling and organizing your priorities in advance the day before, you waste no time in that task on the day. This allows you to ensure the top priorities are addressed first before your day gets away from you. Furthermore, while you sleep, your brain can begin subconsciously dealing with those problems or priority tasks.
Selk and Bartow say it is worth prioritizing goals for tomorrow today - specifically just before lunch.
Why?
Well, later in the evening, you may be too tired or exhausted from the day. You may not want to do that right before bed.
You also don’t want to do it too early the day before. It can be harder to know what you need to prioritize if you aren’t even sure what you’ll get accomplished today yet.
Just before lunch is great because you already have half a day gone, you have a sense of what your afternoon tasks will be, and you are still in the middle of your day and have enough energy to complete the task.
Take 5 minutes to identify the 3 top priority things for tomorrow.
Just Do it.
Then, establish the top 1 priority of the 3.
Prioritizing Your Thinking.
Selk and Bartow suggest you think like an orange farmer.
You have two thinking frameworks to shape your thoughts.
1. Short Term Revenue collecting.
For an orange farmer, this is the time spent picking the actual fruit. Each day, a certain amount of time is needed to literally pick the fruit . Without prioritizing this need, you can’t actually make money because you have no product to sell.
2. Long Term Revenue Cultivating.
For an orange farmer, this the time spent focusing on the longevity of the business and long-term success. This means taking carrer of the trees so they continue to bear fruit and planting new trees to expand the product line. If you prioritize picking all the fruit with no care for the trees or long-term vision for the business, you won’t survive past 1 fruiting season.
With these two thinking frameworks, you can ask yourself 2 important questions.
What can I do tomorrow to yield the best short term results?
What can i do tomorrow to give myself the most long-term opportunities?
These will help you figure out what you should prioritize in your day because you are thinking about both the short term and long term
Expect The Unexpected.
There are always going to be things beyond your expectation and control. Recognizing this reality allows you to properly recognize and realistically accommodate for that inevitability.
There will always be hiccups.
There will always be delays.
There will always be complications.
Sometimes those things can make it feel like the world is out to get you or nothing goes your way.
When you feel overwhelmed, take a time out.
You need to regain control and rebuild momentum.
There’s 2 steps.
1. The 100-second timeout
Take a 15-second centering breath - 6 second in, hold for 2 seconds, 7 seconds out. Repeat an identity statement/affirmation. Then, say 3 done-wells (completed in the last 24-hours), 3 will-do-wells (in the next 24-hours), and then, repeat your identity statement. Finish it off with another 15-second centering breath.
2. Ask and chop
Ask yourself what is the most important thing i can do in this moment.
Then, chop off an easy first action to kickstart your momentum back into action.
This will help you regain momentum and take a small portion of that first important step.