What are the things that are non-negotiable for you?

There are two things that I do every day and rarely skip either of those (except when I’m travelling or on a plane etc.). These are my MUST Dos. Non-negotiable.

1) Working out - I start the day with this ritual. I’m in the gym at 5 AM no matter how cold or hot it is, no matter how hard the rain is pouring.

Five days a week. This puts me in MACH 5 and the day has already provided something for me (earned). It’s like a positive wave of energy that lasts throughout the day.

It has a cascading effect on every thing else I do, in my business, at work and in relationship at home and so forth.

2) micro manage the 1st hour after waking up, and the last 1 hour before bed. I review what I need to execute on before the phone calls, the emails, the texts and other distractions (client firefights etc.) get in the way.

And before I go to bed, I review what I had set out to do that day, what I can check off the list, and what I have to carry over.

Rituals are where the power is. We are our rituals.

How can I ensure my meetings have a productive outcome?

The answer to this question seems to be surprisingly simple (not easy though).

Do these five things:

• Have decision makers in the meeting - the buck “stops with me” guys and gals

• Always ask this question as many times as needed before & during the meeting “what are we solving for”

• Do not end the meeting before you have achieved your “outcomes” you had planned prior to the meeting. This means, you do the best you can to end the meeting ON TIME, but if the outcome isn’t in sight, you extend the meeting for as long as you need to, so you can achieve the outcomes you wanted to get out of it (clarity)

• And finally, if you are the one leading / driving those meetings, be the LAST one to speak. This gives your meeting attendees the satisfaction that they have been heard, and gives you the advantage of knowing “where they’re coming from and why they’re saying what they’re saying”

• Encourage productive conflict (also referred to as “Conflict Mining”) while making the space safe for such activity, and learn the skills to “hold this space as a leader”

10 Things to Improve Your Productivity and Appreciation Quotient

1. Have a NOT-TO-DO list along with your To-Dos

2. Once in a quarter, take the public transportation if you haven't done so. This will keep the acuity of your surroundings sharp. Let this be a busy work day

3. Nourish the mind. Read at least 10 pages of a book upon waking 1st thing 

4 .Fast for an entire day, every month. Live on just water 

5. Hand your phone to a friend, and ask him to NOT give it to you for an entire day (this one will be tough). Better yet, let it be on a Saturday

6.Plant at least 1 tree every 3 months. This is huge. 

7 .Work out 1st thing (after #3) - Make it  part of your life - you only have ONE place to live. Keep it optimally running. 

8. If you have a backyard, pull out the weeds before sunset (it's meditative in its own way). 

9. Ask "who's life can I help make easier today" as you get dressed for work 

10. Ask if you have a dream. Go deeper - ask what the source of this dream was. Was it really truly yours? If not, you could be destroyed trying to fulfill it