Work smarter not Harder
Being proactive is a vital skill set that can set us in a position to work smarter and not harder. Co-heirs, I know that if you are reading this then you are all about eliminating the messiness in your lives to become more productive and less busy. Trust me when I say “The clutter is real!” Whether it is physical or mental clutter the results are all the same—underperformance.
I began this journey to planning and creating One Heiress Lane literally 6 months prior to my launch date. I spent countless hours gathering information and researching the key components to launching with success. I was in every way trying to be proactive.
By definition proactive means serving to prepare for, intervene in, or control an expected occurrence or situation. A proactive person tends to initiate change rather than react to events. In this book “7 habits of highly effective people” a business and self-help book written by Stephen Covey.—have you read it, Habit #1 is BE PROACTIVE.
Reactive Living
When we live a reactive lifestyle we are constantly reacting to a situation, rather than creating or controlling it. Reactive people take notice of upcoming dates a week or few days before hand with the mind set that “I will just deal with it when it comes up.” When situations and opportunities present themselves, reactive people will react and immediately move forward without knowing all the details.
To add icing on the cake, what about when we have left the situation alone, in attempts to ignore it, until we are forced to get involved…this sounds like 8 months ago for me when it came time to pay my car taxes. I don’t want this to be you and you should not want it for yourself.
I heard a quote once before “Those that fail to plan, plan to fail.” This is very true on so many levels. Although, it is true that many of us can still plan, but fail at planning—this is another blog for another day.
“Those that fail to plan, plan to fail.”
Change the way you think
Want to see a harvest manifest in your area of focus? You first must plant the seeds. Becoming proactive is a constant state of mind. Daily you have to “prepare your mind of action” 1Peter 1:13. We must be in a constant state of preparation—it goes back to the definition of proactive, serving to prepare for.
What are you preparing for in your life? Is it better health? Then eat healthier, exercise more. Is it a better career? Begin learning a new skill, and take advantage of more leadership roles. Is it to be a better spouse, a better parent? Listen more and talk less. Before you can begin seeing the fruitfulness of your labor you first must plant the seeds within your mind. Remember being proactive is a state of mind.
Proverbs 24:27 reads “Establish your work outside and get your fields ready; afterward build your house.” Because we live in a technological advanced country we are so use to having everything at our finger tips. If the shipping is not 2 days or less, we might think twice about that order. Our need for things to happen faster than their natural course has pushed patience out the door, down the street, onto the plane, in a distant country, out of this world—do you get my drift? We want the house before the preparation.
There’s levels to this
If you want to be proactive then you understand the natural process of seed, time, and harvest. I believe we all want our “house” to be stable and durable to weather the storms of life, recessions, bankrupt, slow growth, etc. The key is to first establish your work outside, and secondly get your fields ready.
Put in the work behind planning for success, get your ducks in a row, put the horse before the cart, and stay organized. Once your fields are cleared, tidied, and thought out in advance to deal with difficulty you can speak success over your field and build your empire.
No regrets, no looking back now. Until next time, live in purpose.
Xoxo,
J.Renee’
