Priorities

Self-Made Millionaires are not smarter or better than you. They have just discovered these secrets and used them to become wealthy. You can do it too.

Here is secret #12:

PRIORITIZE YOUR LIFE. Do what's most important first.

Notes from Shirley:

You mean not do the easiest most fun thing first? Not do the most distracting least important thing first? You mean not do ANYTHING and I do mean anything you can think of to avoid doing that most important thing first instead of last or not at all?

Yowsers! I'll have to change my whole life!

Anyone else have anything to say about this? What is your most important thing today? Have you started on it yet? Well? What are you waiting for?

Disorganization

Having to constantly find documents, forgetting commitments and appointments puts is a huge sinkhole. The solution out of this is simply to create a system for organizing and routinely tidy it up. You may have implemented a few systems, but here are some areas you might consider giving a clean-up:

• Computer hard-drive
• Calendar
• To-Do Lists
• Project Task Lists
• Office/Desk/Home
• Filing System
• Closets

Disorganization

According to a USA Today report, Americans waste 9 million hours every day looking for misplaced items. Every time you can't find your keys, you waste energy. Each time you have to shuffle through a stack of papers to find an important document you waste energy. Each time you feel like you'd be embarrassed to have a friend drop by, you are depleting your energy account.

The solution is simple. Get organized. Although it may seem a daunting task, what you'll gain in energy and satisfaction is well worth the initial investment. Julie Morgenstern, the organizational goddess, recommends handling it in small chunks. Start with one room at a time. You've got to start somewhere. It's well worth the effort for the feeling of peace and tranquility that an organized space offers.

Keeping Details In Your Head

Keeping details in your head instead of in a system can be a real energy drain.

Your brain, like a computer, only has so much RAM (random access memory). And RAM is mental energy. When you rely on yourself to remember your shopping list, your to-do list and your dentist appointment, it eats away at mental energy you could be using elsewhere to create a greater impact in your life.

It's not that all those tasks aren't important, but what if you had the mental energy to complete that major report, write your book or create a more powerful business strategy?

Think of each item you need to remember as an energy unit. How many energy units do you spend keeping details in your head? Find (or create) and begin using a system to track and remember things for you. Use it daily, and you'll free up more mental energy to accomplish higher leverage projects and tasks.