Two years ago, in Uncommon Sense Issue #298 (published on December 31, 2023) I wrote a piece in this very column titled “Explode to Greatness!” As we are now in a new year, I think some of the points I brought up two years ago bear repeating. Let’s review.
First, you must regain control of your schedule. This starts with shutting off the day at a reasonable hour, getting to bed on time so you can get 8 hours of sleep and then consistently getting up at a reasonable hour to start the day and hit the ground running. I went to bed an hour earlier than normal last night, but I also woke up this morning at 4:00 AM, an hour before my alarm clock was set to go off. Got to the office at 5:00 AM – an hour earlier than planned. Even with two early morning interruptions from two different people, I maintained my momentum and here it is at 7:07 AM as I type this and I’ve already gotten several very important tasks completed. That’s me exploding to greatness! And that can be you as well.
It’s hard to explode to greatness if you are tired, worn out, burned out, etc. There’s an easy fix for that: exercise regularly. I must confess I got out of the habit of regular exercise in Q4 last year. But on December 31st I went to the local high school and ran 1 mile on the track, using a timer to time each lap as well as time the 1 mile run. It was a terrible time – so embarrassing I won’t even tell you how many minutes it took me to complete. But a few days later, I went back to that same track and ran another 1 mile run – this time shaving about 47 seconds off the previous time. I’ve also been back in the gym consistently, lifting weights, getting stronger, getting more limber, running on the treadmill, practicing the martial arts – and if feels great! It brings me a renewed burst of energy and capacity to remain focused. It’s another example of exploding to greatness!
Do you have a Wildly Important Goal (WIG) that you’ve committed to for 2025? If not, lock yourself in a room and don’t come out until you have landed on a key goal you will achieve this year. Having that goal will give you energy and purpose and something to strive for. As for me, since I just finished writing the manuscript of my first book, a 600-page masterpiece, my goal is to get that book published by a commercial publisher. Every week I will be feverishly working on a strategy to make that happen. It’s exciting. It causes me to explode to greatness! And you can (and should) do that as well.
Garbage In, Brilliance Out! Structure your life so that you are continually learning, continually getting inputs from many sources, whether they be books, magazines, trade journals, blogs, podcasts, courses, seminars, or mentoring from others who know more than you do. Continually throw “knowledge logs” on the fireplace of your mind. The more inputs you have, the better the outputs you can produce.
Explode to greatness! And make 2025 the best year you have experienced thus far!
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