Shotgun approach??

Last time I discussed getting lost in the details. Now I want to discuss using a "SHOTGUN APPROACH" i.e. do a little bit of everything and see what works. However, I need a caution statement (somewhat like a legal disclaimer) before I start - and that is this:

Self-Control is the ability to say no, in the face of temptation, and to take sustained action, despite the difficulty of a given challenge. At its heart, self-control requires (DEMANDS) the ability to delay gratification. More commonly, its called discipline, or will power. Without self-control, we can't ever accomplish almost anything of enduring value. Yet most of us choose to not pay very much attention to this skill.

My wife frequently asks me "Did you accomplish what you wanted to get done today?" I must just as frequently reply, "Not really," and that is just before she starts to laugh, or at least smile.

You see, some people are just naturally pre-disposed to being very highly productive. They start their day with a clear and reasonable intention of what they plan to do, then they work diligently throughout the day, sticking to their plan, focused on accomplishing their most important priorities, until the day ends and they've accomplished their most important priorities and almost exactly what they had expected. EACH and EVERY day moves them one day closer to what it was they planned and intended to accomplish for the week, and month, and year!

Unfortunately, I am not one of "THOSE" people. Left to my own devices, I rarely start my day with the satisfaction of a plan that is well developed to be easily executed into consistent actions as the plan calls for. My natural inclination is to start my morning, sometimes late due to my intense dislike for rushing (because I CAUSE myself to rush so often), with a long and very overly ambitious list of what I remember that I hope to accomplish and then have to push myself by sheer will power to attempt to accomplish what I can of the list. Many times (OK, most of the time) I remember something that I forgot to put on that list, that absolutely needs to be accomplished right now, and my entire plan is thrown to the winds while I play catch-up.

Oh yea, I'm also prone to be so very busy, answering emails, multitasking, taking phone calls, running small errands, that without intervention, I get very little of REAL IMPORTANCE done during my day. Oh yea, and I'm still late, and now exhausted. Now, unsatisfied by how little of the important items I've accomplished, I further hurt myself by doing something that will make me feel better in that moment, like browsing the Internet or eating something I shouldn't be eating.

So here is my point in all of this, the odds are against us in getting our most important priorities accomplished unless we purposely utilize our Self-Control and discipline or willpower. Our instincts most often drive us towards instant gratification and it seems the world conspires against us to drive us off task also.
For me personally, the allure of accomplishing lots of little details will often override my focus on the BIG THINGS that I value most and want to accomplish most. Each morning I must change my natural tendency by exerting my self-control. I must focus and psych myself up to have that productive day, commit to myself to have a written plan, not get distracted or do "FUN" things until the important work is done.

I need to climb out of this pit the exact same way I climbed in: with new rituals and new habits.
1. I absolutely need to spend 5 minutes at the end of each day reviewing what I intended to accomplish and then making a written list of the most important tasks that I have to accomplish the next day.
2. I have to look at what worked during the day and do more of that the next day, as well as look at what didn't work and stop doing that.
3. It seems to always work out that I discover daily that I need to stop being scattered and ineffective and intentionally focus on more productive activities in an organized and methodical way that leaves very little "WIGGLE" room for me to go astray.

Now I try to spend 5 minutes first thing in the morning working thru my calendar, adding those critical most important tasks that I review from the night before list, and then work my schedule. I try to answer emails in chunks at predetermined times during the day instead of whenever the computer dings (Actually I turned the dings off so I'm not distracted), and I try to never allow anything important do stay on my to do list more than 3 days without either accomplishing it or scheduling it onto my calendar. Unfortunately, some items just get deleted, and that also helps me to determine the value of what I choose.

My biggest challenge now is twofold: Staying productive, and staying consistent. I just can't stop or overlook either one of these two critical rituals. I absolutely MUST maintain these two daily, forever more, or I will fall back into the poor habits that kept me from being a productive person and just "Shotgunning" my day.

I've always been a big believer in using results as the differentiators between success and failure. You either achieve your goals or you don't. PERIOD. However I gave myself backsliding room on the timing issue of WHEN I was able to achieve my goals. No longer. I now know that you don't create value unless timely results are achieved.

These are my thoughts, what are yours?
Steve