One Size Does Not Fit All

Does anyone else roll their eyes when they see something that claims “One-Size-Fits-All” or “One-Size-Fits-Most?” Making that claim makes the exceptions feel even more excluded. While it may work for some products or companies, don’t assume it’s best for your business and industry.

By defining your niche, you are creating a sense of focus. Do one thing great. Don’t try to be “okay” at everything. Creating a niche and understanding it won’t limit your business or exclude people, but instead will serve you and your clients best. By providing tailored products and services that are a perfect match qualifies them for your business and qualifies your business for their solution.

Do you have aligning budgets and deliverables?

Every budget, business, product and service is unique. Not everyone has the same amount to invest. If you try to bend your estimate to fit their budget, you are undervaluing your services in the beginning. You might end up feeling resentful during the project and lead to feelings of being taken advantage of or feeling underappreciated.

Be real, be honest and have back-up plans. Create realistic expectations for everyone involved so that there are no surprise bills or delays.

Do your personalities and work styles work well together?

Depending on the situation, the time spent together and frequency of communication can really make this aspect a deal-breaker. Perhaps someone else in your business is better suited for certain clients/projects. The more you know, the better you can create the best experience possible.

If it’s not meant to be, don’t force it. Otherwise you’re hurting both yourself and the client.

Do you both value and expect the same results?

Do you both expect the same end result? Do you have a defined way to measure that result? Whether it’s how the clothing fits or how much the sales will increase, it’s important to discuss goals, action plans and proposed results.

You can’t please everyone. Everyone is unique; some people hate Walmart, some love Walmart. By creating clear expectations and defining your niche, you’re sure to have happier and more qualified customers.

Dump Thursday

Recently we started integrating “Dump Thursday” into our weekly schedule. I’m not referring to a weekly trip to the place where trash is taken, or a comical term for a bodily function. Instead, dumping things that no longer serve you.

There’s so much stuff. Everywhere.

It seems almost like bragging rights to have a lot of stuff. If that stuff isn’t serving you well or making you happier, then why have it? Collecting “things” seems like a commodity, but what void is it filling besides negative space in your home or work?

Take the time as frequently as you need to dump. Purge the things that no longer serve you. Does it make you happy? Does it bring you joy? Does it help you? The less stuff you have that doesn’t serve you, the more space you have to be surrounded by the things that actually do make you happier!

Here are 3 reasons of why less is more:

-More time. By decreasing and simplifying the choices you make every day, the more time you have to enjoy the things that fulfill you. Imagine getting dressed every day and choosing only from clothes that you love and fit you perfectly. Imagine knowing right where your keys are as you walk out the door.

-More money. Throwing things out might not necessarily make you money, but it will save you money. The less you have, the less you’ll lose or break things. You’ll have fewer items, but higher quality and you’ll know exactly where they are.

-More joy. If your belongings are serving you well, making you happier and making your life easier, then the extra stuff was just space fillers. See, use and enjoy everything that you own and love. When it has finished serving its purpose, it’s ok to let it go.

Be intentional about the things taking up space in your life. Be it collections, clothes or even people! Respect yourself, your own time and your own space to know what is serving you well and bringing you joy.

Midnight Means Good Morning

“There’s no such thing as midnight because after 12 it’s a new day already.”

When a six-year-old tells you something so profound, you listen. And whenever 12am obnoxiously flashes across any digital devices, or the hour and minute hand perfectly overlay each other in a vertical position, these words will be sparked.

At that moment, however, I shook my head in wonder at how a mind so young could look at a world so large and complex and come to that conclusion. For him, 12am is an exciting time. For him it’s the promise that whenever mom said tomorrow, 12:01am marked a whole new journey. A clean slate. New possibilities. Endless possibilities

Meanwhile, we try to wrestle with the 24-hour time zone, going so far as to bargain with it through inventions such as fast-food, dishwashers, microwaves. All in an effort to speed up productivity rate while we can slow down our routine.

All it has done, however, is allowed for us to fill more hours with more fast-food mentality productivity. And we’re fried, no pun intended. See, time is one of the most coveted and yet casually treated commodities we can claim. Time has become a billable asset.

But to one little six-year-old kid, it was a discovery. He could recognize Sunday-Saturday, knew what yesterday, tomorrow and before or after meant. For a young guy, his reminiscing was sharp, but for as much as he lived in the now, he was always eager to live in the what’s next.

So much so, that that when trying to get him to sleep throughout the night he asked half-asleep and 100% disgruntled, “Why is it taking so long to wake up?” In other words, why wasn’t it time to get up?

All he wanted was for the morning to come so he could punch the possibilities in the face and conquer yet another day.

The only thing I want to punch in the morning is my alarm clock. (Did you know there’s actually a national holiday for this?) Regardless, we all have different schedules. We all live different lifestyles. But we all have developed a unique relationship with our bed that is hard to sever come wakey-wake time. But wouldn’t it be nice to develop some element of sentiment in which we look forward to getting up? 

Wouldn’t it be nicer if we got up in the morning and half the work was already done?

A Few Simple Ways to Kick-Start Your Day Wisely:

• Don’t Be an “I Have Nothing to Wear” Victim

Lay it all out…Our mom’s did this for us for years; it’s time we adopted the habit. This task includes more than matching an argyle vest with a checkered shirt. It’s about checking the weather to verify whether our clothing will be compatible with adverse weather conditions.

• Plan an Emergency Exit Strategy

Don’t get mad, get even? Yes, that doesn’t really work when you’re behind schedule, stuck in traffic or are still at home and unintentionally tried to give yourself a double shot of espresso via osmosis by spilling it down your front. No, don’t get mad, get up even earlier. Plan an exit strategy that will give you plenty of time to make your real entrance right on time.

• Block Time for Breakfast

For some of you that may not be food. But we all need to begin our day by digesting what energizes us. Maybe it’s exercise, maybe it’s reading, spending a few minutes with your children before they head off to school - maybe it is physical food. But what is the first portion of your day?

When we get up in the morning, we far too often see just another hour, another number and the endless tasks. I challenge you to see endless possibilities and that no matter what, 12:01am marks a whole new journey. A clean slate. New possibilities. Endless possibilities.

Planning vs. Spontaneity

I’ve been a planner for as long as I remember.

Even in middle school I was always trying to organize my daily schedule in my head: practices, school, projects, homework, organizations and time to chat on MSN messenger. Planning my New Year’s and Birthday parties, I’d have a master sheet of the invite list, food to buy, games to play, even the cleaning duties list the day of the party. I don’t think we as planners should be looked at as boring, mundane and over organized, but rather so excited for the future that we can’t help but start to plan it; an efficient organizer that feeds off of the high of anticipation. We can visualize the future as a success, and we want to get started right away!

Unfortunately, with all of the excitement and expectations, comes the opportunity for disappointment; the anxiety of focusing on the details of something that might not even happen. Wasted time, energy and sometimes, even money.

On the contrary, there are times of spontaneity, and those are the times that can end up being most memorable. By being spontaneous, one can absorb the present and react to what is happening here and now because they are extremely aware of their surroundings. With non-existent expectations, the risk of being disappointed by a cancelation is practically non-existent.

However, these people can also establish a reputation of being unreliable and hard to coordinate with which can be disappointing and frustrating to others.

 So which is better?

Both!

Finding the balance between the two will create an opportunity to fulfill the planner and adventurer inside of you. So how do you find that middle sweet spot?

-Work with time chunks.

Planners: Schedule chunks of time to be open and ready for spontaneity. This will allow you to keep the structure without the expectations to details.

Spontaneous: Try to establish a time chunk for coordinating with others.

Work together: Use time ranges to coordinate rather than to-the-minute, on-the-dot details.

-Find flexible activities.

Planners: Choose an activity that doesn’t require a set start-time. Ex: reservations at dinner vs. open house get-together.

Spontaneous: Coordinate with others to choose the location that will sync well with your spontaneity.

Work together: By coordinating around a location near the spontaneous, and an activity that doesn’t require a specific start time, it allows for casual expectations and meeting arrangements.

-Be less demanding.

Planners: Don’t ask others to be definitive.

Spontaneous: Avoid vague answers such as, “maybe,” “we’ll see” or “I don’t know/care.”

Work together: By using neutral words, neither side feels attacked or under-valued.

My Couch Understands Me...

It’s a Wednesday night, and I am dead-tired from a bad night of sleep, a long day at work and a cranky toddler. After I put my daughter to bed I eat a bowl of cereal while binge watching a show that I am not even enjoying. All of my motivation to do anything else has absorbed into the couch cushions. Well crap.

Maybe instead of watching Netflix, I could work on one of the many side projects I think about everyday. I know that tomorrow I will absolutely regret not doing it. What the heck happened to my motivation?

Lack of motivation can be attributed to many factors. Ignoring your physical needs is a big one. When life gets busy it is easy to go without breakfast or eat a late lunch. I am guilty for picking up Morgan after she has dinner at daycare and completely neglecting to feed myself, hence the bowl of Cheerios. It is really difficult to want to do anything when your blood sugar is low.

Having to make too many decisions at once can drain your batteries. Have you ever had the feeling where there is so much that needs to be done you just want to take a nap? Blame it on your brain. The more choices you make throughout the day, the harder each one becomes for your brain and at some point it starts looking for shortcuts.

How do I fix it?

If you are simply not taking care of yourself – start there. Think about where you could be going wrong with this and correct it. To help with an overwhelming amount of decisions, make a list and prioritize what needs to be done now versus what can wait.

Lastly, find something that you really want to do and do it! This could be as simple as finally cleaning out your fridge. Getting started is the hardest part. Once I get moving on something, you better believe I won’t stop until it’s done.