Working hard is a great way to move forward and get ahead. But working hard does not mean working non-stop, using every second to ‘be productive’. If you want to truly be productive you need to work smart.

I recently read an article titled ‘The 7 Rules of Personal Productivity’. It offers some interesting opinions, however it is a select few of those 7 that I focus on – rules 2, 6 and 7. Why these? Because they tell you not to work [all the time].

Rule 2 – Know yourself

Knowing your working limits. Not everyone can work 12 hours a day, others can work more. Understand where your limits are now and work to it and just beyond.

Imagine you wanted to run a marathon, you wouldn’t jump straight in and go. You’d train,  starting small and building up. But also, know when to rest. If you had a particularly hard training session one day, your body might need to rest the next. The same is true for your mind – if one day you have a particularly taxing day mentally, take time to recover and restore your mental capacity. Over time it will build up and you will be able to go for longer and longer, but be patient, nothing happens overnight!

Rule 6 – Work when you have to, not when you don’t

“As long as you work hard when you have to and when it counts, you can take time off and screw around when it doesn’t.”

You don’t have to spend every second of every day working. Add other things to your day for variety and for enjoyment. It is important to make sure you still do the things that make you happy. Support a local football team? Go and support them every week! Like to cook? Make sure you have enough spare time to cook proper meals for yourself.

This doesn’t mean doing the bare minimum amount of work. It means finding the amount you need to do the best you can do! If time spent on a task and peak performance were plotted on a diagram, it would be curved – find the optimum.

Rule 7: Take Care of Yourself

You need food and rest. You need a balance.

To be productive you need to prepare you mind and body to work hard. That means fuelling it properly, recovering properly and switching off when needed. Eat food with family without talking about work, go to the gym and listen to music. Find something that switches your mind off from work, then when it’s time to get going again you will be raring to go!!

If you don’t feel happy and healthy you can’t work to your best. Push yourself and find where your limits are. Be patient and respect what your body and mind tells you. It takes time to be able to run a marathon.

How do you get ahead?

In sport, school, business –is there a secret formula? Is it about thinking outside of the box? Is it about thinking ahead and ‘predicting’ the future? Do you need the ability to think differently to out-think your opponent, develop a new theory or invent a new product?

Whether the above are secrets to success, I don’t know. What I do know (or at least, think I do) is that they are not the only ways to success. There’s one quote that nicely sums up my current thoughts on the topics.

“Success is doing ordinary things, extraordinarily well” – Jim Rohn

To try and add context to this. Here are my thoughts on how this can be applied in three areas – sport, school and business.

Sport

Dribbling is a basic element of football, yet when Messi does the above her looks extraordinary. He isn’t doing something unique, he is doing the basics extremely well.

In racket sports, people often focus on the movements of the racket to judge a player’s skills. If someone pulls off a trick shot, they are hailed. However it is often said by top racket sport athletes that footwork is the most important part of the game. It is the building block of their ability. Again it is a basic thing, however they can’t hope to compete at the very top if they don’t do it better than most.

School

Is school a test of knowledge or memory? Neither.

People often argue that school tests your memory, if you can learn everything the night before an exam you’ll be fine. But in reality that is a poor method for success in education. As for knowledge, whilst it helps, success in school isn’t completely limited to only those ‘born smart’.

School tests habits.

If you want to succeed in education, do the simple things well. Go to all classes, listen and learn. You don’t have to be a genius, you need to do what you’re expected to do and do it well!

Business

Here’s a business truth. Most ‘inventions’ were not the first design of that product. Often a ‘new’ product is an improvement on a previous invention from elsewhere that didn’t gain traction for one reason or another.

Google glasses, were not the first of their kind. Apple didn’t invent the iPod. So when you think that to have the next big idea you need to invent something, you’re instantly limiting yourself. Look around for what already exists but is flawed and improve on it. Those things may seem ordinary, but if you execute them perfectly, they will seem extraordinary.

 

Keeps things simple and do it well.

It seems every company now has to have a website, social media presence, blogs and maybe even a periscope account. It all takes work and sometimes for very little reward. When it comes to having an online presence, it isn’t about working hard, it’s about working smart.

Improving your visibility online are lessons I am still learning, everything from SEO (Search Engine Optimisation), PPC (Pay Per Click) and everything to do with social media posts – optimal times, content, images etc.

I have been applying some of these tools to this very blog, with mixed results…

SEO

SEO is essentially working to get your website noticed through Google, Bing etc. This means meeting the search engines criteria with your content. This criteria changes every week!!!

One week I tested my blog on Bing. I searched ‘Can you find motivation’ – to my amazement, my blog Motivation Isn’t Hard to Find was the NUMBER 1 result! However at the time of writing this, I’m not on page one or two, and as the joke goes; The best place to hide a dead body is on page two of google! If you aren’t page one, you aren’t there.

[As far as I know] there are two levels to SEO. SEO built into the backbone of a page and SEO built into content. I won’t even pretend that I know much about the first, however the latter is something I am continually trying to improve in my own posts. To get good SEO within a post requires good use of a target keyword, setting up post URLs and Meta Descriptions, these enhance that keyword, improving the chances of a post appearing in a search engine when that word is searched.

It also helps a lot if your post is shared, mentioned and linked as it shows popularity.

Social Media

Everyone jumps to social media as the go to place to promote themselves or their business. For me, it’s a little over-rated!

I find that people are bored of seeing promotions on their social media…. Think about it – firstly when was the last time you looked through all your posts of Facebook or Twitter and when was the last time a generic “Hey, we’re close to 500 followers, why not give us a share?” actually got you to share. Ok one or two may do, but it is nothing compared to thousands of shares when the content is attractive.

To win at social media, you have to be clever and fast! Speed is everything.

Social media is now less about planning good content and more about reacting to the world. Twitter ‘Moments’ are the future and you need to be ready for them. If you run a sport related company, you MUST have the capacity to tweet within 5 minutes if there is a sudden news story in the sporting world. People want to use social media to stay up to date with the world and if you are the first to provide that information, you will attract the crowds you seek.

 

It is difficult and time consuming and that’s why large corporations have specific teams to manage it all. However if you are small company, startup or even on your own it can be a challenge.

A friend of mine has his own digital marketing agency to aid companies with all the above online tools. If you ever have a question or want support, check him out. If you say I sent you, I’m sure he will be extra nice 🙂

 

Last June I posted a blog about my first year at university and what it taught me. The post was very well received and so now I’m back for my second year, I thought I’d follow up – what advice would I give to a first year?

1 – Talk to everyone!

This is especially relevant in fresher’s week. This week is very unique, it is potentially the only time that you will be somewhere, where everyone is in the exact same boat – not knowing many people and wanting to meet lots of new people. Going up to random people and saying “Hi” is not only normal, but invited.

This is the perfect time to find the people you want to meet to help you have the best year possible, don’t waste that chance!

2 – Go for it!

The opportunities at University are endless. You will be bombarded by societies, clubs, programs, online services, taster sessions etc.

Some are a waste of time, some are completely irrelevant to you and some will be a definite ‘yes’ from you. It is the ones that are a ‘maybe’ that you need to go to!

If you are debating whether or not to apply for an exec position on a society, join a sports team or even try and start one – do it! Getting involved is the best thing you can do in your first year.

3 – Don’t worry!

Living away from home, not knowing anyone – it’s easy to be scared or worried when first going to University. Lots of people go into their shell and when everyone around them can see that, the atmosphere can go down.

Your first year is a year to have fun! Whilst the whole experience can be daunting, try and embrace it! And always remember there are people at University ready to help if it’s all getting to be a bit too much.

4 – Do something new!

For me, this was squash. I had only played a couple times before heading to University. I decided to try out for the squash team, somehow I managed to get a spot in the development squad (apparently badminton shots work it squash!), played every week and loved it!

Whether it’s a new sport, learning a new language or trying your hand at acting, University is the place to try! If you’re rubbish, who cares?

5 – Work as hard as you like!

It’s true, first year doesn’t count. But if you want to get a top grade, go for it! As long as you pass first year, I think you can work as much or as little as you want. Ultimately it is about achieving your personal goal, whatever that may be.

Once again, I write this whilst 40,000 feet in the air.

This blog has been inspired by a single picture, sent to me recently by a friend.

Loathing Monday is all too common. It is so common that people will loath it before they know why! “Monday is not the day to be back at the grindstone. Monday is the day to be back at your passion.”

Love Everyday

Monday isn’t a specific day that you should look forward to. Everyday should be exciting with new challenges to face. Everyday needs to be a day to work on your passion.

“I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?” And whenever the answer has been “No” for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.” – Steve Jobs

If you aren’t passionate about what you do, you won’t do it to the best of your abilities. Want proof? Think about how your productivity at work fluctuates throughout the week. When you stop working for the weekend, every day is a chance to be your best. Once again, let’s turn to Steve Jobs….

At the time of writing this, I am nearly 40,000 feet in the air and looking forward to a week of American sun, trying to not burn!

In this post, I want to do something a little different.

When I write, I try to reflect on something that has happened or on a belief of mine, today I want you to do that for yourself.

Aspirations

We are often asked what we want to be/do when we are older. We often reply with a job title or by saying “I don’t know”. This is not good enough. However often the problem also lies in the question.

Personally I’m not sure what specific job I want to do know when I’m older. However I can tell you the responsibility I want, I can tell you the lifestyle I want, I can tell you what sort of person I want to be and I can tell you personal goals, both inside and outside of work. Having these are hugely important, however people are rarely asked about them or even think about them, so here is it…

What do you aspire to be?
What do you want to accomplish?
How do you want to be known?

Answer these questions to yourself. They can change all the time, they can be vague or detailed. If they scare you, great.

Aspirations are incredibly important as they add a direction and purpose to work. It doesn’t matter how ridiculous your aspirations are, it is the journey that matters.

Today marks the end of my summer work placement. Over the past six weeks I have worked on a number of tasks, testing my knowledge from university and helping me to think logically and creatively. Yes, this was a paid placement, however it is the value that the work has added to my skill set and knowledge that I believe to be most important.

I have a personal rule that I will never work just for money. I will only work if I believe the work will add value to me in some way. So far I have followed this rule and had plenty of work opportunities.

First, I must clarify, this is a personal rule. I don’t believe this is a ‘must follow’ rule for everybody. Whilst it is ideal, sometimes money is extremely important, or if you’ve spent the last few months completing unpaid work, a bit of work to earn some cash is probably a good idea.

Experience

 

These memes are everywhere at the moment. With unemployment increasing, companies are quite rightly being picky with the standard of people they recruit. With a bigger pool of candidates, they can set the bar higher in terms of experience and knowledge.

That’s great for an employer, but awful for young, unexperienced candidates. So how can this be solved? Simple – GET EXPERIENCE!

But when you’re at school, you want to make the most of holidays and you don’t want to work evenings. Well here is the BIG bonus for work experience and placements over normal work – They are usually shorter!

1-2 weeks work experience, 6 week summer placement. The times are set and you can plan around. There’s no waiting for your rota to come out before you can make plans.

What else is so great about work experience and placements? For me, they have been a great way to discover what I like and don’t like. I am exposing myself to possible areas to aim for and that allows me to decide if that area is for me.

Getting Experience

This is the hard part, right? Well, yes. But not as hard as people make it out to be.

Getting experience depends on two things:

1. Actively looking
2. Being willing to work for less or even no money

Experience doesn’t find you. You need to find it.

The main places to find experience are:

• From family and friends
• Formal placement schemes – usually advertised online (do the necessary research!)
• School or university

The third was the most surprising for me. It came around as an accident that my college careers team learnt that I was looking for a summer placement. Once they knew, they found one for me. This placement is where I have returned to this summer!

Lots of work experience is unpaid. Sometimes you can be lucky and be offered payment, however don’t expect too much. This summer I have been paid less than most of my friends, however money hasn’t been my priority, for me it has been about finding the right work that will test and improve my knowledge.

You think of and start working on an idea. It’s your baby, of course you love it and think it is perfect. It can be hard to see any faults and if you do, you’re sure you have a solution. However, chances are, your idea can be improved. Look for the improvement, even if it means heading in a new direction.

I first came across the concept of ‘pivoting’ in business in The Lean Startup by Eric Ries. To pivot is to change the direction and focus of a business, but to only change the angle or scope, not the path. For example, if you run a sandwich shop, you might discover that the coffee you sell if really popular and so you decide to change your focus to coffee. Here you’re pivoting to change what the focus of your business is, coffee was part of the original business, just not as prominent.

However, the problem is this. Many entrepreneurs believe the sandwiches they sell are the best. It is a secret recipe and customers will love it, they just don’t know it yet. The coffee is keeping the shop open, yet they’re sure that sandwiches are what the market desire.

Unfortunately discovering how to pivot isn’t always so simple. The numbers can lie, your customers may be little help and your current product may be doing well. The best way I’ve found is to always be looking. You never know where the crucial insight will come from.

Recently I had a conversation about a new venture of mine. We had a unique model that we believed would disrupt competition and attract new customers. I spoke about the model and how we planned to stand out in a competitive market. A few hours later I found myself calling my friend to explain how we needed to pivot. What changed my mind?

A new perspective. Our model wasn’t flawed, but it wasn’t perfect. We always knew that entry would be difficult and initial costs would be high. However we were sure this was the way forward. After talking at length about the idea it was pointed out that a small part of our customer service could stand alone. It was meeting proven demand, it would take a fraction of the costs to start and faced a lot less competition. For our current position, it was much better!

Whether this new approach will last I cannot say. Perhaps in a few months we will pivot again. However, pivoting is not a problem. Continue to grow into the market and learn more about the problems that exist and the gaps that will appear and adjust to meet those – that way you will know to put more emphasis on your coffee if that’s what customer crave.