subject: The Power of Less - 6 Lessons for Networking Professionals [print this page] The Power of Less - 6 Lessons for Networking Professionals
The Power of Less - 6 Lessons for Network Marketers.
It is captivating , and also somewhat disheartening, that we all appear to be living in the fast lane, flying around, under pressure, regularly chasing our tails and wandering why we seem to be working harder than ever and accomplishing so little.
According to Leo Babauta, author of the booklet "The Power of Less" the reason is that we fill our time and attention with irrelevancies and nonsense, thereby increasing our stress and anxiety level on the one hand, which delivers very few positive results on the other.
Probably, planning into our overloaded schedules enough time to sit down, fully absorb and then put into action some of Babauta's ideas should decidedly heighten the quality and inject a little balance into our lives.
It should be fair to attest that Babauta( author of the highly successful blog Zen Habits) adopted the 80/20 Principles of Pareto to his own life and in so doing uncovered some lessons which are of value to us all, specifically those of us in the Network Marketing profession.
Why are we beset with so much to achieve, and so little time?
Why are we more stressed and anxious than ever, yet we already have more than necessary to live a full and absorbing life?
Babauta suggests, the answer is that we employ no arrangement, or sifting mechanisms leaving ourselves and our concentration open and accessible to all the outward sources to brainwash us into a way of living of little or no real value to the texture, pleasure or appreciation of our lives.
He recommends 6 rudiments which when practiced on a regular and consistent basis will simplify our lives, reduce stress and anxiety, but at the same time increase our personal productivity .In many ways, there is a similar argument running through the 4-Hour work week by Tim Ferriss. To an extent the overall goal of both booklets is very similar, yet Babauta does address the questions from a little different psychology.
So what are these 6 guiding principles?
1. Set Limitations.
A easy enough idea, yet when exercised honestly can decidedly reduce the amount of time, resources and emotional energy wasted. He uses the analogy of a shopping trip without spending limits.
We shop for things we actually don't need, want or actually appreciate, every so often with money we don't have (credit cards), as there is no yardstick to judge the relevancy of the purchase in the overall structure of our lives. Continue this action over many years and is it any wander we accumulate so much emotional and physical junk?
Though, (staying with the shopping analogy), the constraint of a spending budget immediately forces us to question the validity of each purchase.
By the application of limitations in all areas of our lives, we will soon begin to judge and apply a measure of relevance.
2. Choosing the Essential and Simplification.
First select the essential and then simplify. Simple to suggest, though requires emotional commitment.
3. Simplification.
Once the very important parts are identified, we can then begin to simplify and discard all the unnecessary information and clutter.
What are our goals in life? Who do we pick to spend time?
4. Simple Focus.
We appear to multi-task, trying to accomplish numerous tasks concurrently; spreading ourselves and attention to thinly.
By addressing one task at a time with focus and clarity, improves performance and reduces stress and anxiety.
5. Creating New Habits.
It has been implied on numerous occasions that we as individuals are nothing more than the accumulation of our habits, and if we are to be truthful with ourselves, are these the controlling habits we would wish?
For the majority, the answer is in the negative, so why not really create the habits we should wish and then let these new habits develop the person we choose to become?
6 Start Small.
similar to New Years Resolutions, we continually leap into things with great gusto, bite off more than we can chew, and then look back several days, weeks or months later and wander what happened.
We must start small, and build on our small successes.
In Closing, as Network Marketers, are there lessons we can learn and apply to our business?
Without doubt the answer is yes; buy the book read and apply!
