- “You must have a block of time and you must have a deadline. Without those things, you won’t have a consistent practice and you won’t know when something is due.”
- Our calendars are often filled with numerous commitments and distractions, but in this episode, Brendon explores practical strategies to help you regain control and create a schedule that aligns with your priorities.
- “I just need you to fill your blocks of time better. Know what you’re working on, what matters.”
- If you’re looking for tips on how to take control of your calendar and life, this episode is for you!
- Watch the video to get the full teaching!
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FULL TRANSCRIPT
[The following is the full transcript of this episode of Motivation With Brendon Burchard. Please note that this episode, like all episodes, features Brendon speaking extemporaneously–he is unscripted and unedited. Filmed in one take, Motivation With Brendon Burchard has become one of the most viewed unscripted, direct-to-camera self-help series in the history of YouTube. It has also been the #1 Podcast in all of iTunes and is regularly in the top podcasts in the Self-Help and Health categories around the globe. Subscribe to the free motivational podcast on iTunes or Stitcher.)
You must have a block of time and you must have a deadline. And without those two things, when are you going to do this as a consistent practice? And when is something due? Without those two elements, everything else we’re about to talk about is so silly.
1. Friday Finishers
So for those who don’t know, we just call that block time and we call it weekly deadlines. I know it’s so simple. We call them Friday Finishers in GrowthDay. The idea is that you should open up GrowthDay, then go to the plan section, type in “Friday Finishers”, and set up a list of things that you will deliver or complete by the end of the week no matter what. That’s the battle for that week. I don’t care if you have to change the schedule, move the calendar around, or move blocks — those things get delivered or you die. Friday finishers. That way, when you finish by Friday, you actually get to have a Saturday and Sunday because you finished the most important things, you knew what they were. If you don’t know the most important things to finish by the end of the day Friday, now it’s your Saturday, now it’s your Sunday. Now it’s on the plate of next Monday and you’re overwhelmed because Monday after Monday after Monday, they stack and they stack and they stack because you never planned and planned and plan. And now you say, “Oh, I’m so overwhelmed. Why even try?” And you’re back in the cage every time. It’s so predictable.
So I need to block it. When is it going to happen on a consistent basis and what are the deadlines every week? If we can just get that just that rhythm down, just that rhythm down, we’ve got you three months back. Who wants three months back? It’s so easy. My most common complaint of all, my executives are like, “I had to learn how to fill the time again.” I’m like, “Earn.” I don’t know what to do with the time—lead. I don’t know what to do with time — talk to the customers. I don’t do the time — to go on the yoga retreat. I don’t know what to do at the time — go on that vacation. You wanted to go out. I don’t know what to do with the time — go to Montana. It’s awesome. Please go to Montana is the best place ever. Every Montanan in the room is like, “You jerk. Don’t tell them to come here.”
2. Block Time & Deadlines
So can we agree? Block time is important and deadlines are important. Okay? If I can’t find them in your personal calendar, you are absolutely not going to stay high performing. You might stay interested, but you won’t be impactful. You might say “I’m inspired”, but you won’t be high performing over the period of time because we just can’t will ourselves into doing it. The distractions that they have built for us are so effing good. Do you know? These things right here they’ve built for you, these will dominate your psyche. The world’s best engineers are hired and paid hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to make sure you add these distractions in. They made sure those distractions feel similar to celebration, enjoyment, pleasure, and satiation — like they’re working against you. They’re working against you.
3. Don’t Let Distractions Control You
So your block time is you taking life back, which you must do when you decide, “I’m going to own my dream.” Turn the person left, to right and shake them. Say “You own your dream. “
So you need me to get my calendar figured out? I’m like, “Yes.” Do you need to minimize distractions? I’m like, “Yes.” Does anyone feel like this is common sense? Raise your hand. Actually, stand up. If you can do better in these categories, be honest. Stand up, Look around. This room ratifies for honesty. Look around the room, Check them again. Say “I own my dream.” All right, have a seat. We’re doing the work. We’re doing the work. Have a seat. Basic block and tackling basic offense. Fill that calendar up. But you’re like, “Brendon, where’s the time for fun?” This is my old joke, right?
So, like, I have that I had this person in one of my groups who’s like the third most famous YouTuber in the world for yoga. And she’s like, “I’m just so frustrated because I’m so overwhelmed and there’s so much work in everything.” She’s been talking about all her creative time and her freedom time and everything now she’s trying to build that in. But now the business is getting bigger and she’s got responsibilities and she’s like, “Now I don’t have time for my yoga retreat. I used to go on rugged retreats and it filled me up and I never do.” I would go, “Why don’t you do them?” And she goes, “Well I don’t have any time. I have so much going on.” I said, “Well, let me look at your calendar.”
4. Make Time For Things You Care About
We look at her calendars for all this unscheduled time. I go, “Oh, undisciplined yoga teacher. I have no time for a yoga retreat.” It ain’t hard, folks. You just have to decide who’s going to win the battle. The distraction engineers or your soul and your dreams? You got to decide who wins every day. It is a battle. It really is a battle.
The average person picks up their phone more than 100 times. It’s so opposite if you go to my house. 100 times in my house, we go, “You know where my phone is?” We leave it around for hours at a time. Literally ask, my team. Like we’re like hours at a time, I have no idea where it is. I find my phone in the weirdest places. You find it in the closet next to the shoes sometimes.
It’s such an unimportant item that we lose it all the time because we said that’s not going to define our lives. That’s not going to fill our box.
5. Separate ‘Work Time’ From ‘Relax Time’
When it’s time to work, we work. I have separate stations at my house for things that happen at the stations. This is in my office. This is the podcast table. This is the work/create and you know, regular, everyday office computer. This computer over here, it’s just for Zoom and broadcasts. That’s it. And the different little stations. And I know how much of my day is being spent on those little different stations. And it’s that simple.
As we get so caught up, I just need you to fill your blocks of time better. Know what you’re working on, what matters.
