When we set out to teach our children how to be diligent, we sometimes overlook the self-checking that needs to happen in our own lives. “Of course, I’m diligent. I work all day and barely have a break!” OR “I know I’m diligent because I’m busy all the time.” Unfortunately, neither of these scenarios is a benchmark for diligence.
We can work “all day” (but not really use our work time wisely) and still not be as diligent as we think we are. We can be “busy as bees,” not realizing that, that running around like a crazy person doesn’t always mean we are diligent.
In this week’s productivity video, I tackle the topic of diligence in US. How can we know we are being diligent? How can we develop more diligence in our lives? How can we work smarter, not harder?
I hope it helps you to become more productive—and reach your many goals in life!
How to become more diligent:
My Background in Diligence
1. If you want something, you have to work for it
2. We could surprise ourselves how much more diligent we could be
3. We did not want to waste time; we wanted to manage it
How to Check on Your Diligence
1. Check your schedule – hour by hour of your day
2. Check your organization level – knowing what you should be doing increases diligence
3. Check if you are making excuses a lot – sign of lack of diligence
4. Check if you are with people who are less than diligent – makes you feel more diligent than you are
5. Check your lazy time – relaxing is not evil, but it’s easy to get stuck in it
How To Become More Diligent
1. Believe it will make a difference – what I do today will impact me
2. View time like money – tell your time where to go
3. Set aside free time – determine when your free time will be, earmark your free time
4. Do the things that need done first – consistently do your dailies and then complete more tasks
5. Use a timer plus a task list – determine to finish a certain number of tasks in a certain amount of time
P.S. What diligent tricks do you have up your sleeve? How do you stay diligent when you don’t feel like being diligent?
