Archive for August, 2009

Life Designers | Meet some Players, Get in the Game

by Robert on August 31, 2009 in Experiences with 11 Comments

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One of the most valuable things I’ve learned so far is to surround yourself, physically and virtually (phone, e-mail, video chat, etc.) with like minded people. It’s worth its weight in gold when trying to achieve a goal. I’m talking about “lifestyle design” here, but it can be applied to any passion. It’s something that usually happens naturally but can be easily overlooked. I’m voting it one of the best uses of your time and here’s why.

We aren’t all extroverted or think to call every product, service and blog owner out there, so I’m urging those who wouldn’t do so of their own accord to try it. The support, new ideas, encouragement and vast amount of knowledge to be tapped is too great to ignore. Most people love to give back. I thought it ripe to mention now as I’m soaking up extreme value from new found friends in the next stages of this project (cutting out non productive tasks, outsourcing and passive income product development). Tim Ferriss in his book The 4 Hour Work Week continually drives home the point to go ask people who are doing what you want to do, how they do it, it’s one of the best ways to learn. I decided to try it; here’s what happened. Continue reading →

Getting Unstuck in Life | Moving Past Mistakes

by Robert on August 26, 2009 in Experiences, Stage 2: Elimination with 2 Comments

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We all make mistakes. Some bigger than others, but what constantly shines as more important than the mistake, is how you handle it.

I’m roughly 60ish days into lifestyle design and somewhere in the last two weeks I’ve gotten completely stuck. I see now why everyone isn’t breaking free from work, creating new products, living their dreams and generating income. I think it’s because we’re victim to our habits and we get lost in managing this thing called life. It’s also challenging, but that’s really not it. It’s time to get unstuck. Continue reading →

Real Life | Work Work, Get Friday off with Pay

by Robert on August 12, 2009 in Experiences, Stage 2: Elimination with 4 Comments

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Riding on the words of my last post and interest from a few readers I thought I’d take the time and give a fairly detailed account of how I’ve actually used the previously mentioned lifestyle design tactics (found here) to free hours of time at my job and make myself extremely valuable. The response received from my co-workers and boss were not what I expected. It seems odd because the point of learning these tactics is to eventually build yourself out of a 9-5 all together, but the fact is, the singular focus and effective productivity methods will down right make you a better, more valuable, impactful employee (for yourself too). Consider it practice. It’s the complete opposite of what I thought would happen and a perfect stage setter for preparing yourself to create income on your own terms. (Note: Nowhere do I recommend ditching your work responsibilities, in fact the opposite are what so far seem to be required in positioning yourself to get out of the 9-5 scene.)  Continue reading →

Elimination | Achieve More with Less NOW

by Robert on August 5, 2009 in Stage 2: Elimination with 3 Comments

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There’s something very elusive about actually getting work done. It really is baffling how good we are at not managing life. The key is realizing what’s holding you back. It’s a matter of waking up to how we waste our time and how we can combat it. It doesn’t take a class or a book to zero in on ways to instantly save hours of your day. The concepts apply to home life, but really shine when you realize your current 8 hour work day can be accomplished in two. Only a couple months into testing lifestyle design and I’ve seen what it looks like to cut out the fat and develop effective productivity in all areas of my life. I’ve gained hours in my day, stopped doing things that were simply unnecessary, and doubled on some work days what I’ve usually accomplished in one. If you’re looking to break free like we are, add some hours to your day, or want to be highly valued at work, here’s how…

Continue reading →

Minimize | Delete Your Old Shoes, Make Money

by Robert on August 4, 2009 in Stage 2: Elimination with 1 Comment

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Did you know your clutter might be costing you $3000+ a year? Proposterous you say! Maybe, for some of us, but for a lot of disorganized people, the time spent tripping over accumulated junk and searching through papers is quite literally costing dollars.  “In a recent survey of 200 executives of 1,000 of the nation’s largest companies, respondents were asked: ‘What percent of time do executives waste because they or their assistants can’t find things?’ The median response was 4.3 hours a week, based on a 40-hour week.” (When Time’s Money, Organizing Pays Off) At a salary of $30,000, the cost of searching for important papers, measured in lost time, is about $3,376 per year. Ouch. What’s worse is that even if you’re an organized person, the act of being so when you own more than you need still wastes time and money.

Before I eliminated all the time wasting actions in my life, I eliminated all the time wasting products I owned. The old running sneakers in your closet and that cashback coupon you can’t seem to find is starting to take its toll. Continue reading →