“The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson

There are no magic pills to make you instantly healthy, one does not get rich quick, losing 40 pounds doesn’t happen in a week, and  there are no overnight successes. Does this surprise you?

In his book, “The Slight Edge”, author Jeff Olson contends that it’s the little things we do on a daily basis that get us to where we want to be. It doesn’t matter whether we’re talking about health, wealth or career success, it works the same way.

He calls these little things daily disciplines. Small actions that we take that make no difference at all that day, or the next, or even the next, but when done daily over the course of time, make all the difference.

Take health, for instance. It’s pretty much been drilled into us that regular exercise and eating wholesome foods the way nature provided them are the only ways to really stay healthy. So, as Olson points out, if you eat a greasy cheese-laden hamburger with french fries and a milk shake today, you won’t necessarily die tomorrow. However, if that is your daily diet, over time, you will clog up your arteries and most likely suffer from a heart attack.

Likewise, if we do 15 minutes of exercise this morning and eat nothing but fresh vegetables and lean protein today, we won’t wake up lean and buff tomorrow. We need to keep at it day after day, making the right choice every day to get up and get on the treadmill instead of sleeping in and foregoing that piece of cheesecake and having a crisp, fresh apple instead.

Every day, we make little choices at work that affect whether we are on a path to success, or failure.  Maybe we consistently arrive 15 minutes late, thinking no one will notice. Maybe we text our friends under the desk while pretending to be hard at work. It’s only a few minutes, right?

What if, instead, we arrived 15 minutes early?  What if we took the time to go above and beyond expectations on every task that we were asked to complete, anticipating what our boss really wants? Launch the new year with the resolve to prioritize the little choices that have a big impact.

At EDSI, we have been resolving employee development, leadership, generational, professional presence, and personal effectiveness issues for over 30 years. Contact us to learn how we can help increase productivity and profits in your organization.

800-282-3374 www.employeedevelopmentsystems.com