Boy, it seems like you learn, and you learn,
and you learn, and still it’s like you’re no closer to your goals. Why can't you succeed and go further? Well, it turns out there are “recipes for
success” that winners use, and you can too! For one thing, it just may be that you just
haven't applied the 5-hour rule! The five-hour rule is one of the most effective
techniques of learning created by the founder of Empact, Michael Simmons. This concept goes back to Ben Franklin who
spent time every day setting goals, learning new things, and experimenting. This strategy is used by Bill Gates, Mark
Zuckerberg, Oprah Winfrey and Elon Musk, who have all reached, shall we say, a very high
level of achievement, right? So to be like these folks, do what they do
– invest regular time on deliberate learning! There are three main steps: reading, reflecting,
and experimenting. Harry Truman said “Not all readers are leaders
but all leaders are readers.” Bill Gates reads one book every week, Elon
Musk is sure that reading makes him learn faster than anything else, and Warren Buffett
spends 5-6 hours a day reading. So read at least one hour a day. Read during breaks, before bed, or get into
audio books. This will really push you towards the result
you seek. The next step is reflection. Take time to reflect on what you read. How can you absorb and use it in life or work? Can it give you outstanding results? Analyze, take notes, ask questions. Jeff Weiner, LinkedIn CEO, spends two hours
every day to think about the day's activities. So review your week and take a fresh look
at all your work and personal decisions. Did you make any mistakes? What did you learn, and what can you do to
be even more effective? Finally, experiment! If you’ve read new information, test it
and see whether it works for you. Have courage to try new unconventional approaches
in your work. Should you follow someone else's footsteps,
or can you can blaze your own trail? Every product or service you know and love
today is the result of a thought someone else had, so go out and create your own! Of course, this 5-hour rule isn't the only
technique the rich and successful follow. Here are some other ones that can help you
succeed: The Eisenhower Matrix This simple method was created by General
Dwight Eisenhower and is mentioned in multiple productivity books, including the 7 Habits
of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey. At the beginning of your work day, take some
paper (or use your work journal), draw a big box and then divide it into 4 squares. Write “important” and “not important”
next to boxes down the left side and “urgent” and “not urgent” above the boxes across
the top. And then fill these squares by assigning the
tasks you might need to do, according to importance and urgency! Your focus should be on activities in the
“important and not urgent” category (like, learning, exercise,personal growth, etc. That’s where your most important activities
live, but they get easily pushed aside by urgent and not important stuff. You goal is to spend your day only doing the
top 2 “important” boxes, and to eliminate the activities in the bottom two “not important”
boxes (like surfing the net, watching tv, stuff that wastes your time, etc.) 90-minute intervals Researchers from Florida State discovered
an interesting pattern – top performers from any field who focus on one thing for
90 minutes are much more productive than others who grind out hour after hour behind the desk. So here's an idea for you – try to concentrate
for 90 minutes straight on something important and then give yourself a 15 minute break. Watch Bright Side, do a little workout, take
a walk in the park, and then start another 90-minute focus block. This time will allow you to recharge and get
back in the game with new exciting ideas! X method The X method is something you know very well
already – you put up a calendar above your desk, set a goal for yourself, and put a big
X for every day you stuck to it. This technique can help you achieve anything
you put your mind to, thanks to one little detail that you lack – consistency. The chain of Xs in your calendar reminds you
how far you've come and motivates you to keep going. Your goal here is to not break the chain. Comedian Jerry Seinfeld credits this for much
of his massive success. His X was to write one new joke every day. Worked out pretty well huh? If you need some extra motivation, set a reward
for yourself once you hit the finish line. It can be anything – lunch at your favorite
place, a concert, or anything that floats your boat. Peak hours You can group the people in the world into
two types: early birds and night owls. And most people have certain times of the
day where their power is the highest, and they get a lot done! So to increase your productivity, you have
to make your own schedule and figure out your 2-3 peak hours. For example, I can't focus well in the afternoon
and evening – I’d rather just relax. But the next day when the clock strikes 9
am, I’m enthusiastic and excited and can easily do the hardest tasks 'till about noon. And that's the key to this method – find
these 2-3 peak hours when you're the most productive and perform the most important
and productive work during that time! You can do all the other stuff in the remainder
of the day. Energy levels Peak hours are best combined with your energy
levels! Your energy may depend on the day of the week
and affect your productivity. And everyone’s different. For example, let’s say on Mondays your energy
is high, thanks to an awesome weekend. It's a fine time to plan your week. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are your peak days
– brainstorm, get the most difficult tasks done, and experiment! On Thursdays your personal energy begins to
slow down, so it's better to organize a meeting with your team. And on Fridays you can't think of anything
else but the weekend, so leave it for long-term planning and easy tasks. Like I said it’s different for everyone,
so keep a log and see where your highest energy is, then plan around that. Four distractions It’s hard to get things done when you’re
distracted! And we live in the most distracted time in
history, so you’re not alone. There 4 main types:
• Mental distractions are thoughts that pop into your head that aren't connected to
your goal. If you notice this type of distraction coming,
just stop and ask yourself: what is my focus right now? This will snap you out of it. • Physical distractions are any objects
that draw your attention away from focus. To minimize them, clean your environment and
make sure there's nothing around that can sidetrack your mind. • The same thing goes for digital disruptions. Hide your phone, turn off the TV, and pack
away your PlayStation. • And finally, those pesky social distractions! Let people around you know you’re not available
at certain focus times, but you’ll be happy to talk at certain other times. These four steps will bring your concentration
back to work! 2-minute rule In his book Getting Things Done: The Art of
Stress-Free Productivity David Allen describes a simple rule. If your task can be done in just 2 minutes,
do it! You don't even have to put it in your to-do
list – do it right here on the spot. And if your goal takes way more than 2 minutes
to complete, at least start it. Just make sure you do the Eisenhower analysis
first to judge whether this task is vital, or even worth doing at all. If not, delete it. 80/20 rule This productivity rule (also know as the Pareto
Principle) is astounding, but true – roughly only 20 percent of what you do gives you 80
percent of the final results. Which means 80 percent of what you do only
leads to 20% of your results. Wow. Looking for more time in your day? Figure out what this most productive 20 percent
is! Then spend more time working the 20%, and
stop doing the 80%, or do less of it! Two pizzas rule – sounds yummy. Organizing a meeting to brainstorm with your
team can be a good idea. However, you probably know how it goes when
there are too many people there. Instead of shooting ideas one after the other,
you spend an hour on silly and irrelevant discussions and waste your precious time. So whenever you want to organize a meeting,
ask yourself one simple question: can you order just 2 pizzas to feed everyone there? If it's more than 2, then your meeting team
is way too big to be productive. Finally, learn to say “no” to all the
many attractive “shiny” things that call to you “Saying look at me, look at me”,
begging for your attention, but only distract you and are ultimately a waste of your time. Maybe twitter, facebook, TV, gossip, etc. All the fun stuff right? This may be the hardest one, and yet the most
effective one! Just say no. Do you have any productivity tricks of your
own? Tell me all about it in the comments below! Don't forget to give this video a “like,”
share it with your friends, and click “subscribe.” Stay with us on the Bright Side of life!
