I read recently that by looking at company’s checkbook and at their daily schedule you can determine whether the company will be successful. Why? Because when you know where a company is spending its earnings and the kinds of daily activities (nature of meetings, etc) that consumes its time, you can determine a company’s priorities. And priorities are the best predictable measures of success. I think the same can be said for an individual, and for the purpose of this article what we are really looking at is one and the same, because an at home business entrepreneur essentially is an individual, a sole proprietor.
So my question to you is this? What does your check book register look like? Are you investing in your business by budgeting some of your income to advertising, to learning about your business, and to getting other people involved in your business? Or does most of your money go toward other personal interests? Most importantly, is working your home based business a part of your daily schedule or is it a hit and miss proposition, where you spend a few hours one day, then don’t do anything for several days, then catch up on your business emails and spend a little more time on your business, then return to other personal interests before spending more quality time on your business. Since you started your home based business have your priorities significantly changed or are you still doing everything you used to do and trying to find time somewhere to devote to you business?
It cannot be overstated. Your priorities will determine your success. It’s like the old axiom, “if we keep doing what we’ve always been doing we’ll keep getting what we’ve always gotten.”
About three years ago my doctor informed that I was pre-diabetic. He explained to me that this is a hereditary condition and that I would most likely have to start taking insulin in a year or two to maintain an acceptable glucose level. But there was one caveat. He said if you exercise regularly, eat three meals a day but eat less than you do now, stay away from starchy food, eat only green vegetables, quit drinking soda, start eating more fruit, and quit snacking before you go to bed the effect of your diabetic condition can be prolonged almost indefinitely. He also said I needed to lose at least 30 pounds. I purchased a glucose monitor and began checking my blood sugar regularly.
After six months, and 30 pounds lighter I returned to my doctor for a checkup. He said I had made remarkable progress, but as a precaution he kept me on some diabetic medication. After six more months I once again returned to my doctor for another checkup. To my surprise, he called all the nurses into a room with and said, “here’s the guy I was telling you about. He’s the only diabetic patient I’ve ever had who did what I told him to do.” Two days later he called and said, “your labs look so good I’m taking you off the medication. I’m convinced you have made a permanent change in your lifestyle. I’ll see you in a year.”
It is incomprehensible to me that most people who are diagnosed with a treatable medical condition are not able or willing to change their priorities. I did. I started exercising regularly. I have not eaten potatoes in three years (well I have fudged on this a little, but not more than two or three); I quit eating popcorn and ice cream or other sweets. I haven’t had a sip of any kind of soft drink in over three years. I changed my priorities. The result is that I feel much better, I have more endurance, and I have even saved money by not getting my regular milk shake fix that used to be part of my daily routine.
I learned an important principle through this experience and it has everything to do with operating a home based business. The principle is this. Let’s call it the inflexible priorities principle. Most people are unwilling to change their priorities, even when they know that doing so will improve their life. That’s why by some counts 97% of home based business owners quit after less than six months. That’s unfortunate because it takes about that much time for most of us to start to realize our earnings potential. And regardless of the rationale they come up with, the reason these people quit is due to their application of the inflexible priorities principle. Like all the other diabetic patients my doctor treats, though they may have good intentions they can never discipline themselves to a permanent change in their priorities.
As Stephen Covey stated in his popular book Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, “the key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule. The key is to schedule your priorities.” H.L. Hunt put it this way. “Decide what you want, decide what you are willing to exchange for it. Establish your priorities and go to work.”
For a pre-diabetic patient, there’s no such thing as an immediate cure. It takes time, it takes discipline, and it takes a determination to change one’s priorities in life, and to make this change a part of one’s daily routine. It’s the same way for a home business entrepreneur. There’s no get-rich-quick formula in existence. It takes time, determination, and most importantly, a willingness to change ones priorities permanently. As pre-diabetic I have learned to be creative in coming up with different kinds of food combinations for my meals. I’ve had to refrain from drinking soda on those hot summer days. Instead I drink a lot of water now. As a home based business entrepreneur I’ve had to discipline myself to spending some time on my business almost every day. But I look forward to activating my creative energies in ways that will help my business achieve success. I’ve once again reprioritized some things in my life. And once again, I’m finding it fulfilling and I’m finding that is leading me to an improved lifestyle.
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