As I travel around the world all year long, leaders and achievers — people just like you — tell me the same things over and over.Subscribe to Feed | Tell a Friend | Print this Page | Contact Us
How Will You Use the Most Productive Week of the Year?
As I travel around the world all year long, leaders and achievers — people just like you — tell me the same things over and over.
"I'm so busy, my plate is so full."
"I can't seem to get anything done."
"There is too much email and too many interruptions."
If you have said, thought or felt any of these things, welcome to the most productive week of the year.
Yep, I believe, for a variety of reasons, the week between Christmas and New Year's can be the most productive week of the year.
Here are three reasons why:
These facts can be used to your distinct advantage, if you choose to. The rest of this piece tells you how.
If You Are Working This Week . . .
. . . realize that to make it the most productive week of the year, you must make some choices and likely do things differently than others around you. Here's a start.
Take Advantage. There will be fewer distractions, fewer people, and in general less competition for your time and attention. So take advantage of that fact! It will be easier to close your door and focus. It will easier to stay on task. It will be easier to do all those things you tell me you never get to. While it will be easier – that doesn't necessarily mean it will be easy. Change your distracting habits. Start by turning off email for a while. There will be less of it, and people will be probably cut you slack if you don't reply immediately anyway, because it is the holidays.
Take Time. Take time to work on the important, not the urgent. Since there will be less urgent, you can work on the most important things for you, your team, your business and your goals. This alone is reason enough to call this the most productive week of the year.
Take Stock. Spend some time reflecting on the past year (more on this below), on your goals and values, and getting yourself mentally and emotionally prepared for a New Year.
Take Action. It won't really be the most productive week unless you do something. Take action on the advice in this piece. Move forward more quickly. Implement! Do. Something. Now.
While you are working, and the four pieces of advice you've just read are great, you want to read on, and see which of these apply to you too.
If You Aren't Working This Week . . .
. . . enjoy your time off! Beyond that, here are some ideas for you.
Recharge. Use this time to consciously recharge your batteries, mentally, physically and emotionally. Yes, I know you may be traveling, rushing and more – but you can still make sure that this is a refreshing and reinvigorating time for you. It starts when you decide to make it so.
Reflect. Spend some time looking back on the past year. Think about all phases of your life. Think about what you have learned, what you want to repeat and what you want to change. For more thoughts, read this post.
Read. Even with the hustle and bustle of travel and other activities, find some time for some high value reading. The book you have had on your list for a long time. The book everyone is recommending. A classic that your intuition tells you to read. A book that supports your biggest goals. The good news is that doing this helps you recharge at the same time.
Rededicate. Rededicate yourself to yourself and your success. Claim your potential. If you have written goals, review them, and rededicate yourself to them. If you don't have any written down, there is your other action item for this week . . .
Oh, and just because you are on vacation, doesn't mean that you can't do some of the things on the first list, either this week or the first couple of days in January.
While all of these things can be done at any time of the year, the unique opportunity that this week offers makes it important that you capitalize on it.
Not everyone will do this.
That's ok.
Achievers do things others won't —which is good news. It means there's plenty of room at the top.
Do these things and I will be extra confident that you will have a happy New Year.
The best leaders know they are in the performance business – both for themselves and their teams. If you want to have an ongoing plan to build your personal and team productivity and effectiveness, join leaders from around the world as a member of the Remarkable Leadership Learning System. This one skill at a time, one month at a time approach to becoming a more confident and successful leader is a flexible way and effective way to build these skills – and not conventional (it just works!). This system allows people to learn without travel and allows them to learn in multiple ways whenever works best for their schedule – and encourages them to learn by teaching others too! Get $916.25 worth of leadership development materials including two complimentary months of that unique system as part of Kevin Eikenberry's Most Remarkable Free Leadership Gift Ever today. Kevin is a bestselling author, speaker, trainer, consultant and the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group.
Photo Credit: Courtney Dirks
About the Bud to Boss Workshop
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My Favorite Books This Year
Each year I share my favorite books of the year.
This isn't like a journalist's list though. While I read many newly-released books each year, this list comes solely from the books I have previously recommended during the year, which means you get a peek not just at the best books of the year, but what is sitting my shelf, new or old.
My criteria are pretty simple. I looked at the books I had recommended here and asked: Which are the books I have used or applied, have made me think about new things (or things in new ways) or have I recommended most often in conversation?
Below, they are listed in the chronological order I recommended them here, and links to the original reviews are here too. You'd rather read recommendations rather than preamble, so let's get right to it.
The Culture Code: An Ingenious Way to Understand Why People Around the World Live and Buy the Way They Do by Clotaire Rapaille. A bit research, a bit marketing, and a whole lot of interesting thinking about cultures and key words that describe and define them. My full recommendation.
The Next 100 Years: A Forecast for the 21st Century by George Friedman. Part history, part prediction. All thought provoking. This book helped me think about my world and future differently. My full recommendation.
Today We are Rich: Harnessing the Power of Total Confidence by Tim Sanders. When I wrote the recommendation in March, I said it was the most valuable book I've read this year. It may still be. A great book of stories, lessons, insights and reminders on confidence, success and more. My full recommendation.
Moonwalking With Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything by Joshua Foer. This is a fascinating book about memory, practice and personal growth. It is full of interesting research, but largely reads like a novel. Read the full recommendation to understand what I mean.
Read This Before Our Next Meeting by Al Pittampalli.It's about meetings, which everyone would like to improve or eliminate. In 75 pages this book helps you do both. My full recommendation.
Mastering the Rockefeller Habits: What You Must Do to Increase the Value of Your Fast-Growth Firm by Verne Hawkins. This one may not apply to everyone, but the ideas and tools are already helping me grow my business faster. My full recommendation.
2011 also marked the publishing of my latest book, this one with Guy Harris. I'll put it here because, while perhaps for different reasons, it is definitely one of my favorite books of the year.
From Bud to Boss: Secrets to a Successful Transition to Remarkable Leadership by Kevin Eikenberry and Guy Harris. It's been published in Portuguese, been transformed into public workshops, and a licensed training workshop (coming soon). Most importantly it is helping new leaders be more effective every day. Here's a link to the book's website.
Photo Credit: Horia Varlan
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