Efficiency is impossible without action. Here are 10 verbs, or actions, that will make you more efficient in life.
It is more than probable that the average man could, with no injury to his health, increase his efficiency fifty percent.
- Walter Scott
- Practice – Practice makes perfect… at least that’s what they say. While you may never quite meet your own personal expectations for perfection, practice will make you more efficient at whatever you do. Always remember, if the activity is the art, practice is the science of improving the art.
- Rest – If you have ever tried to bench press heavy weight you know that the 1st set is much easier than the 2nd. This is because your muscles are 100% rested before the 1st set. Now substitute your mind for your muscles. If it never gets proper rest, it will not be capable of operating at full capacity on the 1st set… let alone the 2nd and 3rd.
- Think – The act of thinking sparks creativity, and creativity is one of the primary sources for increased efficiency. Unhindered thought will lead us in new directions and open doors that were once hidden. Only after we think about it will we truly realize what we are missing.
- Walk – A moderate paced walk provides exercise for the body and stimulation for the mind. It gets our blood moving and frees our thoughts from the restrictions of a static environment. A regular routine of walking will make you more efficient at being alive.
- Read – Close to 50% of all communication is in written form. With that said, could anyone possibly learn at an efficient pace without reading? The answer is no… so learn to enjoy the act of reading, and read as much as you can.
- Prepare – Without suitable preparation and organization our actions are merely a shot in the dark. If we want to stand a chance at attaining our goals we must prepare ourselves to efficiently deal with the obstacles that lay ahead.
- Focus – If you never focus clearly on something, you will never be 100% efficient at anything. Multi-tasking might seem to make you efficient at getting multiple tasks done at once, but it usually reduces your efficiency in dealing with each individual task. This ultimately results in a reduced overall performance output.
- Start – Well begun is half done. Nothing could be closer to the truth. Some of the greatest ideas ever thought never made it. Why? Because the genius behind the idea failed to take action. Just remember, no action results in a 100% failure rate, or an efficiency rate of zero.
- Listen – If you don’t listen to others you will live a lifetime of talking to yourself. Not only will you continuously be unaware of what is going on, but nobody will want to speak with you either. The most complex problems are solved by groups of people who communicate efficiently with one another. If you don’t listen, you will be left behind.
- Fail – Failure is the first step toward success. Most people don’t get it right the first time. Many people fail to get it right the first 5 times. Remember, strong-willed persistence always eclipses failure. It may take more than one swing to compose an efficient hit, so don’t give up on strike #1. Instead, interpret each failure as a lesson on the road to victory