Top 7 Ways To Live What You Know: Applying Strategies And Concepts To Your Life

Let's face it. We've all been through a powerful seminar or an enlightening personal development group of tapes and we emerge with a light bulb above our heads and happy thoughts such as "what a great concept! I am going to have to use that in my life."

Flash forward a couple days or weeks later and sooner or later you notice that you haven't done what you say you were going to do and those strategies and concepts are another one of those "great ideas" that you'll "get around to." What happened? This article is designed to help you apply whatever you learn into your life, whether it is something as simple as pay yourself first or a huge change or initiative that feels overwhelming such as quitting smoking.

Take heart, this article takes about five minutes to read, but you need to apply the concepts within. As a coach, I help my clients to stay focused and create strategies for their goals and I have developed structures that work well in getting from the "great idea" stage to integrating it into their lives. I would love to share in your successes from using these strategies -- you can email me at coachandy@nextlevelcoaching.com

1. Do your best to corral a specific situation or area of your life to focus on.
I have clients who learn the practical concept/strategy to "visualize your success" and get overwhelmed with the many areas of their life that need attention at the same time. The best tactic is to choose a specific focus in your life one at a time. If you are working on financial strategies, you are most effective when you put your entire focus to work on that aspect of your life. There is naturally going to be spillover when you improve one area of your life, since all areas are connected.

2. Set a deadline for yourself for implementation, self-imposed or not.
Even the word deadline sometimes makes my client stressed so you can call it a completion date as well. I have found that we as humans need the created pressure of a deadline to really get things accomplished. If it is on the plate and not on the schedule, it is a dream. Reporters know this strategy or else the daily paper would be filled with poetry and finger paintings. With a completion date, you can plan backwards and it makes the idea real.

3. Brainstorm different ways that the concept will affect areas of your life.
What will the application of a sound strategy do to your bottom line at work? How will your relationship be enhanced if you did make a rule to listen first? How would your negotiations be enhanced if you learned to visualize first.

4. Draw up a plan (or several) step-by-step on how you will integrate this concept into your life.
My whole purpose is to keep my clients out of the whirlwind syndrome, and the best way to do that is with a plan or framework. Think of it as a menu of action steps that you choose from to integrate concepts into your life. For example, exercise daily is a wonderful axiom, but create options and flexibility when you schedule a basketball game, walk in the park, or just push-ups during Jerry Springer.

5. Set up reminders everywhere.
This one is fun because you have the right to do anything from skywriting "pay yourself first" or more interesting ideas such as wearing a rubber band on your wrist that you pull back and let go when you want a chocolate bar (Pavlov would be so proud). I recommend that my clients either sign up with a reminder system online or off to make sure that the strategy is top of mind at all times. You can create an email message to be sent to you everyday with a reminder of what you are committed to. You can leave post-it notes on your car visor and across the house. This short circuits the "I didn't remember system." I specifically have my exercise clothes out in the open so I have to look at them and think about my commitment to exercise rather than rationalizing it away. Go through your planner and block out on every Friday that you owe yourself x dollars in big red letters. You are only limited by your imagination.

6. Think of ways to combine areas of focus to accomplish the strategy.
For example, to learn about stock investing and exercise daily you can listen to Warren Buffet while you are running or on a bike ride. One word of warning. Don't get too carried away with this by talking to your old friend on the phone while you are running 10 miles and call it effectiveness. Invite them out for the run.

7. Automate the process.
In addition to reminders automation or delegation is the key to real results. However, it can be kind of a challenge to initiate at first. One idea is to set up with your bank that you want x dollars taken out automatically or donate all of your leftover ho-hos and twinkies to a food pantry to remove the temptation. The idea here is that you don't have to think about the situation and it happens automatically.

I hope these strategies have helped you learn more ways to implement what you know into what you live. I have listed more resources below as well from our corner of the cyber-universe. Please contact me at coachandy@nextlevelcoaching.com to reprint this article (with full credit) with your requests.

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About the Author

Coach Andy, Certified Strategist helps professionals, entrepreneurs, and regular people develop Next Level strategies for marketing, balance, and increased fulfillment in their lives. You can learn more by visiting our virtual sandbox at nextlevelcoaching.com or join a FREE e-seminar "Creating the Next Level of your life" at results@activelists.com or by claiming your two free coaching sessions at mailto: nextlevelcoaching.com or our bi-weekly newsletter "results toolbox" at reachyournextlevel-subscribe@listbot.com

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