Do you ever feel you’re not doing enough? You know, that feeling that you aren’t working hard enough. You aren’t as far as you should have been by now. You aren’t giving it enough of your energy.

The truth is you are not alone! In fact, almost everyone feels what they call the “imposter” feeling. The feeling that if people actually knew the real you they would be shocked. They would be let down because they would find out you don’t have it all together. Everyone battles this gremlin that haunts our thoughts. It’s a monster that growls within saying, “If you worked harder you could change everything.”

The problem with this gremlin is that it sounds almost right. I mean everyone could stand to probably work a little harder. But working harder is not always the issue. People can work harder than anyone else and still fall short. The greatest enemy of doing something great is trying to do everything great. It is a myth to believe that if you just added more to your schedule everything would be better. Or if you just stayed up longer and worked harder you would be more productive. You see, highly successful people, contrary to popular belief, are not the busiest people. Actually, they have more margin in their life than most. And not because they are successful, but because that is what made them successful. Holocaust surviver Corrie Ten Boom said, “If the Devil can’t make you bad, he’ll make you busy.” The temptation to add more for success is sometimes the opposite of what we need. It is by subtraction that we actually add more value to our life.

So here are some thoughts on subtracting from your life…

1) Only Do What Brings The Most Return

Take inventory of what brings the most value in your life. What is actually producing the results you want? When you make that list, the bottom feeders, or the last few “things” on that list need to go. Here are some questions to ask yourself…

• What is bringing you the most connection with your spouse?
• What is bringing you the most value with your time?
• What is making the biggest impact in others when you do it?
• What do you do that makes you feel most alive when you’re finished doing it?
• What investment is bringing you the greatest return?

Basically you have to know what brings the most value in order to know how to move forward. If you keep trying to do everything as though it is all valuable you really haven’t identified what is actually the most valuable. You can’t keep adding to your list, you have to focus on the top things that make the biggest difference. Be willing to let go of your bottom feeders so you can give more time to the things that are making the most impact.

2) Quit Focusing On So Many Projects/Tasks/Problems

You can only focus on one thing at a time. Multi-tasking is a scientific myth. In fact, studies show us that you can only consciously be aware of one thing at a time. Now that can switch very quickly, but it is only one thing at a time. Try to focus your eyes on an object to the left of you and an object to the right of you…you can’t. You might be able to see them in your peripheral vision, but you can’t truly focus on the details. You have to tackle one thing at a time and only that thing. You can’t try to pick the 5 things you are going to accomplish…you need to narrow it down to the ONE THING you are going to accomplish and focus on that if you truly want to maximize your productivity. You will burnout when you try to take on too many things. Rather than giving 4 things 25% of your energy (because it is impossible to give all of them 100%) pick one thing and give it 100% of your energy. Here is a great poem by William H. Hinson:

He who seeks one thing, and but one,
May hope to achieve it before life is done.
But he who seeks all things wherever he goes
Must reap around him in whatever he sows
A harvest of barren regret.

3) Quit Working Harder And Start Working Smarter

Always evaluate your systems and the way you go about doing things. Simply reassessing how you are going about getting things done can lead to better and more efficient ways. Don’t overextend your energy and focus by going overboard. Follow the 212 principle. Water reaches boiling point at 212 degrees, anything over 212 degrees is simply wasted energy. You have to figure out how to get to 212 and make sure you don’t over do it by turning things up to 620 degrees. This is why successful people are successful, they have figured out the fastest way to reach 212 degrees and they move on. Make sure that you are maximizing your productivity by working smart. Working smart takes time to plan right. Brian Tracy said, “Every minute you spend in planning saves 10 minutes in execution; this gives you a 1,000 percent return on energy.” Unplanned time is unproductive time. Make sure you are intentional about what you are doing, why you are doing it, and how you are going to do it.