“Success Procedure: Run your day by the clock and your life with a vision.” (Zig Ziglar)

There is something oddly ironic about my initial inability to write about this quote today. My regular routine with these quotes is to read them the night before, then again as soon as I get up. After that I go through some of my morning routine, I sit and write. This is my second time sitting to write on this one. The first time nothing was working for me, and the reason is ironic.

I have written a lot so far this year about time management, having a vision, setting goals, and so on. On my first glance at this one I was dry because I couldn’t think of anything new to say, but more so because I had something else I really wanted to do this morning. We have guests coming for lunch, and I had a little mini project that I wanted to accomplish by noon. The clock was pressing on me to be sure. Add to that the fact that the mini-project is related to something in my longer term vision, and you have the ingredients for an ironic inability to write about today’s quote.

The weekend mornings are for me a time to work on things that are longer range in scope. In the past two Saturdays I have launched new blogs – www.bobby-c-outdoors.com and www.bobby-c-health.com.  (I will not be launching a new one today in case you were wondering.) Each of the two I have launched relate to something my long term vision. One was to create a blog that would become generally accepted as a source of information on camping and the outdoors, and the other to chronicle my journey toward being a healthier me.

This morning I rose with the intent of writing some great posts for each of my new blogs; that was my vision calling to me. But, I have this commitment to writing my daily reflections; that is the clock calling me.

I understand what Zig Ziglar is suggesting in this quote. In order to be successful I must first have a vision, then I must set up my day so that as I manage the clock, I am always working toward that vision. It is definitely part of a formula for success. What is interesting today is how those two worlds have collided, and that is a lesson for me at work as well.

When I am at work, as I have written in the past, there are parts of my day dedicated to long term successes, and parts of my day dedicated to solving short term issues. I must be effective at both to succeed in my job. If I spend too much time on my vision, then small problems become big ones and failure looms. If I spend too much time problem solving, then I never get to work on the things that contribute to long term sustainability and success. In Zig’s mini-formula for success, I must use the clock effectively to run my day, so that my life vision is well served.

One thing I know from my weekend mornings is that I am far better at working on the long term vision when the day is fresh. At work, I usually start my day solving the problems that have cropped up over night (part of the joy of working on a project that never sleeps). My weekend experience tells me that this is the prime time for me to work on long term vision. I am going to think about how to divide up my mornings more effectively at work.

Today I am in the home office, and I am using the same idea to divide up my time. Once I have cleared my head, and published this post, I can get back to working on my long term vision. Our lunch guests will arrive later, and I will feel good about having a productive morning. All because I took the time to be intentional and consider what is important!