Nature does not hurry and everything is accomplished – Lai Tzu
Yet another paradox we have to come to terms with. Internet, apps, tools, emails and speed seem to drive our business lives and how can, NOT hurrying help get more accomplished?
Welcome to the illusion of rush?
Take multi-tasking for an example. Without much questioning, we have accepted this as a way of being more productive. Studies repeatedly have proved this to be wrong!
Jordan Grafman, chief of cognitive neuroscience at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke and René Marois of Vanderbilt University, have used fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) to demonstrate the brain’s response to handling multiple tasks. In a nutshell what happens is we create a ‘multi-tasking bottle neck’ when our brain and attention is forced to respond to several stimuli at once. Further research suggests that multi-tasking helps produce stress hormones and adrenaline which can cause long term health problems and short-term loss of memory.
We are afraid!
We feel that unless we have our hands on many pies, we are going to miss out on many opportunities.. This fear of missing potential opportunities or gain keeps us juggling for ever!
The bottom line!
The bottom line is that we chase too many rabbits and catch hardly any! Some of us even take pride in being busy! I have also noticed that when a business person says he is busy with pride, he does not mean his business is doing okay. All he is saying is that the ‘busyness’ is giving him the illusion that he is doing okay!
How slow and steady conquers the world
Bamboo: At the beginning, bamboo plants hardly seem to grow. They need constant and regular nurturing for years. Then when you feel not a lot is going to happen, they start to grow exponentially.
Water erodes rocks: A trickle of water hits the rock. Such a small trickle seems harmless. What can a simple drip do to a solid rock? Drop after drop after drop, over the years can hollow out a stone, not by force but by persistence.
Compounding: Einstein called it the most powerful force in the universe. Like all other slow and steady items, compounding seem very slow at the beginning. But if continued compounding will produce exponential growth beyond our wildest dreams. It you are given 2 dollars and given the opportunity to double it everyday, on the 10th day you would have made $2048. However if you carry on with it in another 10 days that $2 would have turned in to $1048576.
Long term illness does not happen overnight: Our body is a powerful mechanism. It is designed to protect us and keep us healthy as long as possible. But most of us systematically abuse our body by poor eating, drinking and other dis-empowering habits such as lack of exercise and bad mental state. Our body copes with all this abuse most of the time but at some point will give up which will attract long-term illness.
Financial challenges: Poor saving and investing habits coupled with bigger spending habits to accumulate stuff eventually will attract financial challenges.
Old age does not suddenly creep up on us. It takes years and years until one day we are surprised that we cannot recognize the face in the mirror.
Nature keeps showing us again and again the power of little and often. Consistently doing little and often we can accomplish almost anything.
Here is a simple but powerful example of what you can achieve with little and often.
You decide to lose some weight or get fit. As a result you choose to do some running 3 times a week. Here some simple steps to get started:
- Block time in the week for running
- Get appropriate foot ware/clothing without spending too much time or money
- Simply start running/jogging
- Even if you did 1/4 mile – well done ! You got a starting point.
- Keep to your schedule without worrying about how far you are running, but make sure you are running as per schedule.
- Over time you will see your stamina increase and you able to run longer distance.
- Don’t compare yourself to others. Simply improve gradually.
- If you keep doing this, little and often you will notice this will become a habit.
- Once it becomes a habit, your fitness will go up and you will lose weight!
Here are some simple steps to achieve massive results by doing important stuff little and often.
Prioritize: At any point in time you can have only one priority. Block time to work on that priority.
Focus on one thing until you get it done. If it is priority, simply focus on it until you get it done. Don’t distract yourself by giving so called justifiable excuses to take your focus off that activity.
Place mighty focus on small chunks regularly. If the task is big, break it down to small chunks and work on those small chunks as if your life depended on it.
Don’t keep looking for immediate results. Take a long-term view. Accept that your desired results are not going to appear immediately. Focus on the activity and not the results.
Adjusting is part of the deal. Nothing in the universe works in a straight line. There are so many variable that you cannot control. So be prepared to adjust and course correct as and when needed.
Trust results will happen. Place immense trust in yourself, that your work (little and often) will get you there.
Keep going. Keep persevering. For how long? UNTIL!
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