There are five habits that will automatically double your productivity if you work at them. They are listed below. If you apply these habits consistently for a month you’ll be amazed at how much more effective you become. Here are the five habits:

Get Up Early. Believe it or not, this gives you a mental edge. The early bird does not only get the worm, he makes the deals. Use the extra time to prepare for the day. Make a list of things you want to accomplish during the day. Read a motivational passage from a favorite book. It can be as short as a couple of pages – the point is that it will set the tone for the day.

Listen to an audio program on the way to work. This is a terrific way to stay sharp. Listen to your favorite speaker or teacher while you drive (or ride the subway or bus) to work. Remember one thing from what you heard and write it down when you get to work. Put the paper where you made your note in your jacket pocket. It will be great inspiration when you find it later.

Teach someone something. Each day you should teach someone something new that you learned. Teach your coworkers the new tip you heard on your audio program. Teach your client a new technique (for using your product) that you just discovered. Every time you teach, you learn. In fact, teaching burns the learning into your brain. Teach something that is fresh learning for you, to someone else.

Do something alone. Take a long walk. Go for a run. Site and meditate. While performing this solo activity, make it a point to spend some time reflecting on who you are and what you are contributing to the world. Have you had a positive impact? What more can you do? How far can you push yourself? Who can you help?

Write something. It doesn’t matter what you write. Start a blog. Keep a journal in a notebook. Where you write and what you write is not important. How you write is. The way you right is the way you think. Every so often read what you have written. Are your thoughts coherent? Do they follow a logical pattern? Are they succinct? How can you improve your thinking/writing?

If you do these five things every day for a month you will notice a dramatic improvement in your sales productivity. You’ll be amazed at how focused your thoughts become. You will be astonished at how much meaning each activity has throughout your day.

You must make these five activities habits. They have to become part of your daily routine. They will help ground you.

I have taught these five tips to everyone I have coached over the years. Something magical happens when people implement these five simple activities in their lives. Around day fifteen you’ll begin to feel better. You’ll have more energy. You will begin to attract people to you like a magnet. You’ll feel more confident and your days will fly by.

Start today. Turn off the television. Quit surfing the net. Get going.

David Lorenzo has more than 20 years of business experience as a successful corporate executive, entrepreneur, strategist, author, and speaker. He has worked with and mentored some of the world’s most successful businesspeople while helping lead many large organizations to unprecedented success. His latest book is titled: Career Intensity: Business Strategy for Workplace Warriors and Entrepreneurs.

Mr. Lorenzo’s experience in starting new business enterprises and repositioning under-performing business units, along with his ability to implement innovative performance improvement solutions, makes him one of today’s most sought-after trusted advisors.

Mr. Lorenzo is a participant in the Wharton Fellows Program at the University of Pennsylvania, a management think tank that meets regularly to analyze and address timely business issues. He received his MBA from the Lubin School of Business at Pace University, and he received a Masters of Science in Strategic Communications from Columbia University in New York City.

Dave’s blog is dlorenzo.com/blog dlorenzo.com/blog

Well, it depends on what you mean by ‘fly’ doesn’t it?

Let me explain. If you want to fly in business, or in your social or creative life, to fly means to be able to fulfill your potential, to allow your creativity to flower, to exploit your own uniqueness as an individual, to enjoy the freedom of feeling fulfilled and successful.

On the other hand if you want to go up onto the roof, spread your arms and leap into the sky – well you would plummet and die – or would you? Well of course you would, unless you do it virtually with a video game in which case you would feel nothing and experience nothing of the experience of flying. But there is another way that you can fully experience the feeling of flying alone through the air, with the wind in your face, the ground clearly visible below and no machinery between you and the elements – I will tell you more about that later!

What holds you back from taking that leap off the roof is belief, the belief that you would fall,. And it is a pretty good belief to have. Imagination is a very powerful thing. If I asked you to walk along a 9 inch by 20 foot plank on the ground you would have no problem walking along it would you. But picture that same plank securely between the roofs of two buildings, say 200 feet in the air, with you at one end, a very big drop in the middle and safety at the other – would you still feel so good about crossing it? Maybe you would imagine yourself slipping, plummeting to the hard earth below. What if I placed a stack of banknotes at the far end, would that help to overcome your imaginary limitations?

Your Imagination Can Really Hold You Back

Your imagination may well be creating a barrier to your success in your every day life too. Because of the way we were brought up, the lives we lead, we are all subject to working in the same old ways, thinking along the same old paths and struggling with similar problems. We are all the product of our environment and our upbringing, all unique and individual but all constrained by our ingrained habits. Such habits can seriously hold you back.

I often work with people who have phobias, addictive behaviours, or problems with anger or drugs. All of these behaviours are related to fear in some way, usually a fear of failure. It is often said that in order to really change your life you have to take risks and these behaviours are all habitual ways of thinking that prevent failure because they prevent people from taking risks – from trying to make changes they might fail at.

People create their own barriers to success, the things that hold you back and prevent your from accessing and using your confidence, your inner strength. Because these barriers are created in the imagination, they can be dissolved using the imagination too – yes I am talking about self-hypnosis. Just five minutes a day, over about two weeks will have you thinking, creating and behaving like you have never done before.

And what about that leap from the rooftop, arms outstretched into the sky, the feeling of wind across your face, the ability to skim the rooftops, dive bomb the pedestrians and even peek in through people’s windows? Well you can do that too, using the powerful imagination that will be unlocked by self-hypnosis.

Using Your Imagination To Fly!

Try this. Sit in a comfortable chair, feet flat on the floor and hands in your lap, eyes open. Now close them and using your imagination, pretend that you can’t open them. Pretend that they are really heavy or glued closed. Pretend that the more you try to open them, the more you struggle the more stuck they get. You can convince your imagination that they are completely stuck. Of course another more logical part of your mind knows that you are just pretending but we are not interested in that part for now. So stick with the pretence and ignore the logical part of your mind for now.

Okay, so stop struggling to open them because there is no point struggling, your imagination is too powerful, so relax. Allow this relaxation to flow down through your body and allow it to feel heavier and heavier with each breath that you breathe out. Image all the tension flowing down through your body and out through your feet, as you feel heavier with each breath that you breathe out.

Now pretend that you can feel the sun shining on your face. Pretend that your face is getting warmer as with each breath that your breath out you feel heavier and heavier. Feel the warmth of the sun on your face. A slight breeze wafting about you. Picture the sun in your minds eye, warming you. Feel the warmth. You feel heavy and calm and relaxed.

Give it about ten minutes, then remember that you can open your eyes because it is just your imagination. Open your eyes. You will probably feel nice and relaxed.

This is a little taste of hypnosis and it is a short step from there to imagining yourself flying through the air and feeling the breeze, the stomach churning drops and cold air of the stratosphere. Or, to standing in front of an audience giving a speech without fear, or making that crucial sale. This exercise will work for most people but it is beyond the scope of this article to go further and look at other techniques of which there are plenty.

So what’s the use of imagining making the sale, or of not being afraid of heights if you are not actually doing it? Well when we access this illogical side of our wholeness we are begin to make some wonderful changes. We start to change our programming, putting positive and solution focussed ideas in our imagination instead of self-limiting and self-defeating ones. We feed our imagination so that it grows and becomes more creative and stronger. We are rehearsing for success instead of failure and allowing our creative juices to flow unfettered. When we do this we come to believe that possibilities are endless and we become unlimited by our illogical fears of failure.

Disclaimer.
Webmasters are free to reprint this article provided that it is not edited, the author’s information is included and the links are included as live links.

Mark Hamer is a professional therapist, writer and illustrator (BA (hons, DipsSW, MA, RSW). with a number of published social work books to his name. His website free-hypnosis.co.uk free-hypnosis.co.uk contains free lessons on how hypnotise and use hypnosis.

His other websites include another-way.co.uk another-way.co.uk which is a website aimed at social workers and gives details of his publications. Mark also trained as an artist and his website markhamer.co.uk markhamer.co.uk is a gallery of illustrations he has made for publishers.

The plane crash in Manhattan on October 11th, 2006, certainly did not recapture the horror of five years ago, but at first impact, it was a stunning reminder. The sentiments in the following article continue to be useful, and I feel that ground zero and all that occurred there and all the lives that were shattered at that time still deserve our compassionate concern. This is what I wrote at that time:

I had earmarked Tuesday morning, September 11th, to complete this column. For weeks I’d been jotting down thoughts and this was to be the time to collate them. At the top of the page I had scrolled the word “Imagine,” and my first musings had been some of the key words in John Lennon’s song:

Imagine all the people living for today
Imagine all the people living life in peace
Imagine all the people sharing all the world

There were other notes all aimed at using our brilliant imaginations to create more beauty and fulfillment in our personal lives and ever expanding love and peace in our world.

And then it happened!

In certain circles John’s song wasn’t, and still isn’t, well received. His lyrics speak of imagining no countries — no religions — the very source of identity for many of us. But John’s whole thrust here, it seems to me, is encouraging us to be here now — today — with peace in our hearts and love in our minds. To share this world openly, freely, and with great delight. No more separation — no more arrogance that declares, “I’m better than you because I belong to this religion or live in this country.

“The truth is that we are family on this tiny, precious planet and he knew that. He knew that “we are all one.” And anything that obscures, denies, or defiles that innate connection and brotherhood is counterproductive to the natural flow of life.

If you’re reading this column it’s no accident, and you’ve got work to do. We all do. This is why we’re here now. Certainly we have to search our hearts for ways in which we can be helpful to our fellow beings and move forth to do that. But most of all, we need to Imagine.

On Friday evening, Sept. 14th, 2001 all over this country and in many parts of our world, candles were lit in an outpouring of spirit that sent light forth into the darkness. We can be doing that with our thoughts constantly. Light literally emanates from us when we think upon love and peace and all the positive energies.

So begin today to imagine that you are a bearer and beacon of light. See and feel that light is emanating from the center of your chest, what is metaphysically referred to as your heart center. Imagine it like a gigantic search light, and focus it wherever you choose. (You can do this anywhere, anytime — walking down the street, sitting on the bus, doing the dishes, making the bed, etc. You don’t have to be at a prayer meeting or in meditation.)

Also imagine that the light of compassion is pouring from your eyes everywhere you look and that light flows from your hands healing everything you touch. Imagine your “heart search light” flowing into those who are grieving the loss of loved ones and profoundly comforting them. See it descending upon ground zero, assisting the courageous beings who are working there with such relentless determination. See it blessing and releasing the suffering of those who so abruptly lost their lives. See it bringing hope and new vision to those whose lives have been so drastically shattered. See it filling the hearts and minds of all our world leaders with inspiration and great wisdom at this most critical hour.

Imagine that you are sending forth light to encircle our earth and rain down a soothing balm that, now and forevermore, heals the anger and hatred that source such egregious acts. Imagine.

Imagine that this time we finally wake up; we get it. Imagine that this time we recognize and claim that the love, the beauty, the deep compassionate caring that become our modus operandi in times of great crisis is who we really are. Imagine that this time we shift into that way of being, always.

Imagine that this is the catalyst that transforms the consciousness of the entire planet. “Imagine all the people sharing all the world” in love, harmony and understanding.

Albert Einstein said that imagination is more important than information. Imagine that your mind and heart and every fiber of your being is a healing instrument. It is when you say so. Be the Light. Imagine.

Whenever in doubt, Come Home to you Heart
Elizabeth Hepburn
~

Time management is a critical part of the university experience. If you are going to be a successful college student, you need to learn how to fit your responsibilities into your schedule.

Here are five methods that’ll help you manage your time while in college.

1. Set deadlines and reward yourself when you meet them

You need to create a rewards system for yourself. Set strict deadlines for your workload. Follow these self-created time impositions, and when you have achieved the goals that you set for yourself, reward yourself with time off. You have to be able to work in spurts. Achieve what you’ve set out to do, and let yourself enjoy the benefits of a job well done.

2. Spend mandatory time in the library or find a quiet place where you can always work

Having a place on campus, in your house or anywhere else that’s quiet and conducive to hard work is a must. Do you have some time to kill before your next class starts? Then go to the library and get some work done. Schedule regular trips to your quiet study place, so that you know that you always have time to complete your work

3. Sleep properly (or at least make honest attempts to try)

You’re going to have a few all-nighters in college, whether you’re up all night working or raging with your friends. Long periods of improper sleeping habits can have a detrimental effect on your study. Don’t dig yourself into too big of hole. After you’ve pulled an all-nighter, recharge your battery accordingly.

4. Make to-do lists

Write down what you have to do every day. Cross off activities from the list once they are complete. This idea my sound ridiculous, but you have to keep track of your responsibilities on a daily basis. You don’t need some hardcore organizer to get through your day. Just wake up, take a piece of scratch paper, and write down everything that you want to accomplish for the day. You might not get to everything, but you’ll know exactly how to juggle your priorities when you have them written down and in your pocket.

5. Find a study partner who will encourage and support you

You don’t have to study by yourself all the time. Find a cool kid in your class and combine your knowledge. Compare notes and ask each other questions. Pool together your strengths and encourage each other to keep improving. When a test comes along, rack your study partner’s brain for valuable info, and share any pertinent facts that you’ve uncovered yourself.

College is great place to learn self-discipline. Your parents won’t be there to nag, challenge and bait you into getting your work done. You need to set your own schedule. Reward yourself when you have completed your goals. Find a quiet place to get your work done. Get enough rest, make to-do lists, and find supportive study partners. The more self-control you have over your schedule, the more productive your college experience will be.

Chris Stout is a frequent contributor to