Beware of "Fillers"

Have you ever eaten at a buffet? Have you noticed how the buffet is set up? Well, you find the salad first and in the middle of the buffet you find a variety of other foods like vegetables, fruits, breads, pasta, potatoes, etc. At the end of the buffet are usually the meats like roast beef, chicken, shrimp, ham and/or fish - the high quality and more expensive items found in the buffet.

The owners of the buffet are smart and strategically place the quality/expensive foods at the end of the buffet line and the "fillers" (fillers of your stomach and plate) at the beginning. This is in hopes that by the time you near the end of the line; you don't have enough room on your plate. And, this strategy works! As you near the end of the line (the meat section) with a full plate, you think to yourself, "I will eat what I have and then come back for the good stuff." But, by the time you finish what is on your plate, you are near being full and have just enough room for the dessert.

Most people approach their day the same way they approach the buffet line. They fill their plates up with a bunch of "filler" activities and don't save room for the "meat" - the things that will truly make a difference. "If I have time, I will come back and focus on the meat...the things that are most important." But the day fills up with with less important activities and by the end; they are tired and just have enough time for some dessert.

Beware of filling your daily plate with items that are not important. Start with the meat and then come back to your "things to do" list and add the "filler" activities.

Be sure to always save room for dessert!

Get Some Sleep

I am one who likes to pull "all nighters". There is something about being focused with the lack of distraction that allows me to resolve an issue or get a lot of stuff done - or so I think. On occassion, working late into the night can be productive but sleep deprivation can reduce your effectiveness short term and long term.

Your body and mind need rest. It is vital to get enough sleep. I find the quote by John Steinbeck to be true, "It is a common experience that a problem difficult at night is resolved in the morning after the committee of sleep has worked on it." Sometimes, it might just be better to go to bed, get some rest, let your mind reset and approach a problem in the morning with a fresh outlook.

Your Waistline Proves It Too

Charles Courtemanche, a researcher at the University of North Carolina, found that a rise in gas prices contributes to a shrinking waistline. The primary reasons-people walk more, and eating out less because they have less expendable income for such things.

In the same way, we have to realize that our limited time and energy resources require us to make the best choices of how we spend them. The higher the cost, the more critical it becomes that we make the right choice. In fact, Courtemanche theorizes that 8% of the rise in obesity between 1979 and 2004 can be contributed to a drop in real gas prices. When the cost of something is low, we aren't as intentional in how we use it.

As you plan your lineup today, reflect more intensely on the cost of not using your time and energy resources well. You just might find yourself "starving" some of those less important things so you can focus on the ones that will really "feed" your purpose.

Evaluate Every Influence

Here's an earth shattering statistic: According to researchers at the University of North Carolina and Rhodes College, the increase in Wal-Mart Super Centers accounts for 10.5% of the rise in obesity in the United States since the late 1980s. The study is published in the Journal of Urban Economics. Their research found that it was due to the low cost of food sold at these super centers. In other words, since it's highly convenient and accessible, people eat more. Talk about stating the obvious.

In Juggling Elephants we talk so much about focusing on your purpose and not being distracted by emotion, laziness, convenience or other factors. There will always be negative influences (like inexpensive, highly processed food) around you that can take you off course (i.e. add to your waistline). The flip side of the Wal-Mart effect is that they offer healthy food at lower costs as well-people just tend not to buy them in the same volume.

The key is to evaluate every influence and determine whether it is helpful in moving you toward your desired outcome or pushing you further away from it. If you can't remove yourself from a negative influence, at least minimize your exposure to it. In other words, don't stand in the candy or snack aisle and say, "I can resist the urge to buy that 3 pound bag of chips." Spend more time in the fruit and vegetable area admiring the oranges and apples-and then buy some.