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Lessons from Mike Collins
I made a vow to profile other people’s blogs I follow on the 3rd day of each month. Today is the 3rd of June and the blog is The Perfect Workday.
One of the things on my list of new adventures in retirement is to attend or complete personal enrichment seminars or courses. On May 24, 2018 I attended Robeson Community College “Lunch and Learn” series at Pier 41 Seafood that is well organized by Bob Moore-Director of Small Business Center. The seminar is free you just purchase lunch.
The “Lunch and Learn Series” is a set of six seminars that primarily focus on small business but many of the topics are universal and apply to living. If you live near Lumberton NC here is how you can register for future seminars that run every Thursday up until June 28, 2018.
The seminar I attended was done by Mike Collins and focused on stress. It was titled “How to Run a Small Business and Not Let It Make You Crazy”.
Mike shown below presenting at Pier 41 in Lumberton NC.
Mike Collins grew up in Lumberton, NC and attended UNC Chapel Hill. I became connected to him thru my co-blogger and Mike’s fraternity brother John Rancke.
(l-r) John Rancke and Mike Collins
Mike also has a blog called the The Perfect Workday
Mike is the President of the Perfect Workday Company, an information company based in The Research Triangle Region of North Carolina. He presents 100+ programs a year for organizations such as IBM, American Express, Novo Nordisk Pharmaceuticals and The John F. Kennedy Special Warfare School and Center.
So here is what I learned about stress and steps to address it.
Not all stress is bad. In fact after the seminar I shared a story with Mike to illustrate that very point. The story is about how the presence of some stress can keep you fresh. I learned that lesson from Japanese Fisherman and how they keep tuna fresh.
We have five resources to combat stress
- Time
- Energy
- Ego-Confidence-Self Image-Our Habits
- Investing in Yourself
- Luck-which is an ACRONYM for Laboring Under Correct Knowledge
Mike very succinctly gave us strategies to take advantage of each of these five resources. I loved the quote he gave us about these strategies.
“Knowing the path is different than walking the path”
Some of what he shared with us reminded me of the choices we have with each item that produces stress in our lives:
Accept – What we cannot change
Alter-What we can change
Avoid-Things that cause stress that don’t have to be part of your life
Mike also reinforced that things I have been doing for the past 30 years are sound. I keep a master list of goals and review that on a yearly, monthly, and daily schedule to create my daily task list. One habit Mike did emphasize that I do not possess is keep your daily task list small. He also pointed out that every item on that daily list should go thru a set of questions:
- CAN I DELAY IT?
- CAN I DELEGATE IT?
- CAN I JUST TAKE IT OFF LIST?
- WHAT IS LEFT-DO IT TODAY-EVEN IF IT IS BITE SIZE PIECES-DIMINISH THE SIZE OR SCOPE
Two other gems that Mike shared I believe will increase everyone’s productivity.
- The 5-5-3 Method
- Make FIVE Marketing Calls about your business every day
- Mail or Email FIVE Marketing Pieces about your business every day
- Make THREE Personal Contacts each day about your business
- Parkinson Law
- A job will expand to the time it is given
Mike Collins thanks for a great presentation and hope our readers will consider following Perfect Workday.
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