Want More Freedom? Track Your Consistency

I sat at the dinner table and told my family I'd had a 10-point day.

My kids looked at me like I was a madman.

Which I am when it comes to productivity.

You see, I started using my Honest Habits tracker again.

To keep myself honest.

10 Tasks each day for 20 Days means 200 points available to win.

And I'm nothing if not competitive.

One of the challenges that comes with the freedom of running your own business is accountability. If you have nobody to answer to, then you might not answer at all.

But my spreadsheet knows.

It's got a mix of everything I need for sustainable and consistent performance. Every day, I have to take care of the following:

1. Body

2. Mind

3. Business

Every solo entrepreneur already knows what to do.

If they are honest, they also know whether they are doing it.

I slack off during the summer (and I don't care because I designed it that way.) The downside is that I must reestablish habits that may have waned.

The Honest Habits tracker does that for me. Each of the 10 habits has the following attributes:

1. It is within my control and not dependent on anyone else

2. It is SMART or binary, meaning it is either done or not

3. It is allocated the same time and place every day - consistency

4. Output comes before input: That means no social media or emails until I create something of value. For me, that might be writing. For others, it could be a video, a project plan or a proposal.?

Finally, the hard stuff is done by noon. My circadian rhythm dictates that afternoons are easy work I know I will easily do. I don't have to track those.

Obviously, it's only Day 2, and don't we always start well with these things? A fresh slate and all that. But the aim is consistency, not perfection. If you offered me an average of 8, I'd take it. Many people would average lower. Not because they don't know what to do. They just don't know how to be consistent in doing it.

If you want to be predictable, then be, well... predictable.

Rule 1: Same task, same time, same place - every day.

Rule 2: Important things first.

Your calendar reveals your priorities.

Freedom has a price of entry.

That price is consistent work.

This doesn't have to be hard. On the contrary, once you get up and running, it is easier. It also prepares you for delegating the work to others if that's the goal. First, you need to do it yourself.

So remember, ritual is your friend.

Same time, same place, same routine. Boring consistency over time until 'overnight success'.

Here's wishing you a 10-point day.