Be ruthless with your time.

99-SECOND READ

'Be ruthless on yourself, do not repeat the same tired methods.'

Robert Greene

A quote from one of my heroes, James Clear, author of Atomic Habits:

"Be ruthless about what you ignore. Time, energy, and resources are so precious. You have to be ferocious about cutting your priorities - more than you realise and certainly more than is comfortable.

You can only deeply commit to a few things. One or two? Maybe three?

Every pretty good, sorta nice, kinda fun thing you abandon is like shedding a weighted vest that lets you move at top speed. You were so busy focusing on how much you could carry that you never realised you could run this fast."

This is golden advice. Imagine how much time, energy, money, and head-space you would reclaim if you just stopped doing so much and prioritised more effectively. How much less stressed would you be?

But knowing it is one thing, doing it is another. You may still end up spreading yourself too thin because:

1. You think you should - examples: go to the after-work drinks / take the meeting / go into the office
2. You think someone else thinks you should - examples: take the additional project your boss offered / work later

The underpinning fears: I will miss out, I will look bad, and they will think I am not capable/engaged/motivated.

But although fears may feel real, learning not to listen to them or worry too much about what you think other people think can allow you to ruthlessly prioritise: your values and your agenda.

When you commit to less you will feel more empowered, energised, calm and focused. You will show up as the best version of yourself for the people closest to you. You will also excel professionally - just as my client IB found out. When we first spoke, he was working over 100 hours per week. 6 months later he reduced this by 30% - he had more dinners with his family and got promoted.

Look around at the most successful business owners and CEOs - they spend their lives saying NO to things that do not align with their agenda. They do not do things because they feel they should, they do them only if they align with their goals.

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