Blog: How to master your work routines and create purpose in life

Choosing to do the task of the most vital priority every day; mostly as the first thing – In our tasks meant to be accomplished on a particular day, there are a few who take precedence when it comes to priority. While making the plan for the next day it is important to do so according to priorities or significance they have in your scheme of functioning. Sometimes there are certain tasks that would take just 5 minutes of your time; for e.g., sending an email refusing an offer. Due to the sensitivity involved in the matter, you keep putting it off. Our brains are wired to do ‘what feels good’ more often than ‘what feels right’. Simply because its easier. When you write down a task whether it is a slow and boring one or short and sensitive one, you get an impetus to do it simply to see it knocked off your list.

Planning for the week ahead by the end of the running week – The planning exercise need not be just done the previous day. Planning can be done and should be ideally done for a month, broken down into the four or five weeks it consists of. Every week and every night you can give a brief relook at the tasks, arrange them or re-prioritise as per the changes that have happened since you made your initial plan. The feeling will be, yet again, of a sense of control. If the plan is made after careful thought, you end up automatically having a picture of your course in mind and you would be functioning on autopilot mode through most parts of it. This increases your productivity and success.

Identifying the vital priorities for the week during the weekly plan exercise– Life throws at us a stream of uncertainties and if there is one thing that we can be sure of, it is that we can’t be sure of anything. The only thing we can do however is to mitigate that uncertainty by controlling the controllable factors. So, while factoring for the curve balls coming our way is a pragmatic thing to do, prioritizing the existing tasks on our list, gives us flexibility to accommodate the surprises coming our way.

Writing down the goals – Our daily tasks and priorities are but just a part of the bigger goals. A clarity as to why we do what we do on a daily and hourly basis is what our written down goals give us. Goals are what gives our day-to-day tasks a direction. Writing them down in a place you can see gives us the necessary focus. It might sound like too archaic a method in the world spinning around us at a pace of a million times a minute. But these are tried and tested practices that have made the most successful people what they are. They do not bother about perceptions created in people’s minds and if a method of functioning has proven to be effective, they just go ahead and follow it, even if others consider it to be a method belonging to the stone age.

Getting back home on time after work – ‘I am a workaholic’ is a statement we hear so often now from people; like it is a virtue worth emulating. Work is work and it cannot be allowed to be the all-consuming thing in your life that takes precedence over every other aspect of life. For e.g. family and friends, your health- mental, emotional and physical are all way more important than your work. No doubt work is an integral link in the chain of life. Moderation and working smart are more key to success than being obsessed about work. Eventually it could feel like driving a car without a brake in place. You would go in full throttle to just hit a tree or a wall and then getting back is harder if not impossible. Having a productive, time-bound day at work with focus on getting back home on time is also a measure of your personal success.

Checking for and reviewing potential for financial growth in business/career for the coming year and for a 10-year vista – One of the most tangible proofs of success at work or business is the financial growth that it attracts. If something doesn’t grow financially or shows potential for growth, all other parameters of success are quite pointless. Sustainability is only ensured by financial growth. All good intentions for yourself, your employees, family and society become meaningless and impossible to achieve without a sound financial advancement. If that aspect is seen lagging it is time to relook at your decisions, goals and the meaning of continuing with it even. The scope of all good things you intend to do gets diluted without the economic growth to support it.

Monitoring if the business/career makes an impact in the lives of others – The biggest motivator for most of the successful people is not just making their bank balances fatter or having offshore investments. It is the sense of satisfaction that comes from making a positive impact in the lives of people around them. How your business and way of life impacts your family, friends and community at large is where the real essence of your happiness rests. A larger purpose in life that exists in a realm much above your personal needs and ego is what sets your business apart.

I run multiple successful businesses but it is with my dream to ‘change 10 million minds’ that I get the sense of satisfaction of making an impact in the lives of others. Read more about it here.

If you are looking for coaching help or mentorship in understanding the purpose of life or broadening your vision and being successful in every sense of the word, do write to us at harish@harishrao.world and get to know how we can help you with it. We would love to work with you on this or any other business coaching needs you may have!