Find your Life Hack

Have you thought you needed to do something for a while but just haven’t known where to start?  

Then one day you just say enough is enough and you do what Nike says, and just do it?  

You stop thinking about the end result, just get comfortable with the path, and get the help you need to be successful. You just actually take that first step or make that first call. And sometimes, it feels like nothing short of a miracle.

For the last year, I have been on a journey to be healthier. Note, I did not say to lose weight or go on a diet. In January 2014, my first step was going to the doctor to be evaluated, at which point she told me, “Don’t change your eating until you get a sleep study. Chances are your poor sleep is preventing you from being healthy.”

Now, who doesn’t like a doctor who tells you to wait, to not start changing your bad eating habits just yet?

The New Year is always a time of resolutions. But maybe it’s the time you’ve given yourself to think about what you want to do or change this year with your firm. Maybe you have decided you want to explore the cloud or social media or learn more about how to price differently. Maybe you have decided that you want to create a succession plan or execute a merger or acquire a firm for the first time.

But you’re not sure what the end result will look like.

Of course, there are many “experts” who say begin with the end in mind.

I call it B.S.

I believe that in today’s ever-changing, fast-paced world, you need to start walking and the journey will take you where you need to be. Sometimes, it’s the plans we overthink that ultimately creates the inaction - especially when it comes to our firms. 

Perfection can be paralyzing.

A "life hack" is any shortcut, skill, or novelty method that increases productivity and efficiency in all walks of life. You will never find the firm life hack in a plan on your laptop.

My New Year’s call to action for you is just start somewhere. Pick up the phone. Call a cloud vendor for a demo. Signup for a CPE class on something you want to explore further. Reach out to a merger and acquisitions specialist. Just start. The resource may just have a quicker, better life hack than you ever thought. That life hack could change your journey or your “best made plan.”

Last year, I started down the path to be healthier thinking it would be all about losing weight. But my doctor was smarter than me. She got me sleeping, which in turn made me lose weight faster, easier, and almost painlessly. The doctor had the weight-loss hack. To date, I have lost 45 pounds and feel great.  

What is the practice management life hack we are all searching for? Let me know when you find yours as you begin your journeys. Look around and just do it!

Originally posted on AccountingToday.com on January 12, 2015