Key Takeaways
- Most of us have some habits we could stand to change.
- Some of those habits might seem benign, but they may be keeping us from reaching our goals.
- Here are some common habits to examine and consider changing.
SUCCESS.com had an article that likely resonates with a lot of people. It’s called “10 ‘Harmless’ Habits to Drop If You Want to Be Successful.” The word “harmless” is in quotation marks because these are common habits that may seem benign, but they’re very real obstacles to accomplishing goals and being successful. We’ll review five of these habits here.
First, there’s saying “yes” when you should be saying “no.” We tend to say yes to too many things. In the book The 4-Hour Workweek, author Tim Ferriss states that if something isn’t a “Hell, yes!” it’s a “no.” In other words, if you don’t have the enthusiasm and energy for it, decline it.
Second is trying to multitask. Multitasking isn’t really something humans are able to do. We can only focus and work on one thing at a time. If we’re trying to switch between multiple tasks, we’re making it difficult to get anything done. It also wears you out and it’s certainly not any fun. So stop trying to multitask and instead work on one thing at a time.
Third is striving for perfection. Perhaps it was ingrained in you during your school days that you needed to work to get straight A’s. That sort of perfectionism just isn’t healthy in the day-to-day real world. Instead of striving for perfection, strive for progress. Make some progress every day – don’t aim for perfection, otherwise you’ll be setting yourself up for frustration and you won’t feel like you’re accomplishing your goals.
Fourth is immediately answering every email and message that comes in, right when it comes in. Doing this takes your attention away from what you’re working on – and then it takes a few minutes for you to refocus and get back to the task at hand. Instead, schedule time in your day to address those messages.
Finally, don’t work through lunch. You need a break. In fact, you need a 10-minute break for every hour of work. If you can’t do that, at least take a 45-minute break during the middle of the day. Take a walk outside, eat your lunch in peace, get up and stretch – whatever it takes to step away from work and give your brain and your body a break.
If you can make these changes, you’ll find yourself working smarter and more efficiently. Read the SUCCESS.com article for the full list of habits, but even by starting with just these five, you’ll see a difference. Until next time, enjoy.
Gary
If you’d like to read more on this topic, here are a few of Gary’s previous posts that you might enjoy:
