My favourite book is Eat That Frog! by Brian Tracy. I’ve found it to be extremely practical when it comes to getting things done. The concept is that the frog is the biggest and most important task of the day, the one you usually procrastinate on. So to start the day, you discipline yourself to ‘eat the frog’ and do this task immediately, completing it before moving on to anything else. ‘Eat the frog’ is my morning motto and is programmed into my phone.
Self-managing means setting yourself a structure to carry out tasks, such as ‘eat the frog’. People often find it easy to plan, but they have to carry it through by executing the new habits they need to put in place and finishing what they set out to do. Brian Tracy says there are three ‘D’s to address when forming new habits: decision, discipline and determination. When I’m trying to create new habits to assist with my self-managing, I find it helps to visualise myself as the person I intend to be and that the job is done.
As you can imagine, I have a list a mile long of dreams, ideas, things to do, and a business and family to run. Part of my self-managing is realising that there needs to be an underlying aim of total wellbeing for myself. I find that if I am fit, healthy and well, and have had enough sleep and nutritious food, I can ensure my family, my business and everybody else are getting the best from me.
(Extract taken from The Life Plan, by Shannah Kennedy. Head over to bookdepository.com to order your copy or get in touch with Shannah here to find out about executive coaching options.)
