Always sort out the simple things first

Quick Wins or Low Hanging Fruit...

Some people call them “Quick Wins” or “Low Hanging Fruit”, it doesn't matter what you call it what matters is what you do with it. Do what you can do quickly and easily to modify, change or ameliorate your business now. Procrastination is the thief of time!

Ignoring the low-hanging fruit means it will drop and spoil if you don’t take the opportunity now. Plus it is very important to look for what is “Ripe and ready” as you move through your marketplace.

Planning is essential, and timing is important in the implementation process of what you have planned. However, it is often fun in business to make spontaneous decisions on speculating for something that is a “Now or never” opportunity

Two of the best cars I have ever purchased fit right into this category. One we have had now for nearly 20 years and it is the best car we have ever owned. We still love it and plan to keep it till it doesn’t go anymore.

Another decision was to buy an investment property that had a minimal deposit and was positively geared from the time we bought it. That same year, my wife and I started mission work in Russia supporting orphan kids. We did not know it at the time but this work became an integral part of our lives for ten years. We would share with kids at the orphanage about hope and faith, making the right choices and encouraging them to not live accidentally but to “Planalife they want to live in.” Yes, they were in the orphanage due to the decisions of others but they still had the opportunity to decide for themselves where they would end up in life after they left the orphanage.

Most of the kids were there because they were surrendered to the orphanage not because their parents had died. They were from very poor or very broken homes and dysfunctional families. Many traditionally had ended up in crime or prostitution. One shared with me originally that she had no dreams because she had no one in her life that cared for her and would help her make a dream come true. They were victims of others' choices now but did not have to live with a victim mentality. Where they would be in the future would be a product of their choices. We told her that we believed in her and would support her and the most amazing thing happened. She went on and became a nurse. Several others went on to a life transformed from despair to a destiny of their own choosing.

Several of the kids grew in their life to learn how to make some very dynamic decisions which have allowed them to reinvent their own lives and change the lives of many others around them.

For nearly ten years while we were investing in the kids in Russia our own investment in property was maturing as well. Our property investment rose by nearly $100,000.
When we sold the Investment property the capital gain on the investment wiped out the cost and commitment we had made into the children over those ten years. We recovered nearly all the expenses we had incurred over this very precious time.

Action is important for opportunities

Many good ideas and great opportunities are never acted on. Planning is essential for the majority of our business and life. But, sometimes great unplanned ideas may present themselves, that weren't there when you had that planning meeting and it is now a great opportunity for you to act on.
So, here are a couple of tips for you to consider when life is presenting you with those unplanned opportunities, to see if they are a good fit for planning a life you want to live in.

Stop reading for 3 minutes - set the timer on your watch or phone and have a 3-minute “blast off” and write down all the ideas, opportunities and things that come into your mind that you can do right now that would improve your life or business.
Idea 1
Idea 2
Idea 3
More??? See you soon

Okay, welcome back. Now, remember that a “good idea remains just that until it has a strategy attached to it.” Even if it is a spontaneous idea it is still going to need an action plan to make it happen.

Ask yourself these questions...

• Will this idea/opportunity mature you and augment your life?
• Is it an idea or opportunity parallel with a passion?
• Is it something that is similar to an idea that is in your “Attain, Action and Acquire list”?
• Does it affect someone in your inner circle by advantage or adversely?
• Can you afford it without placing unbalanced stress on your finances?
• Is it a great idea/opportunity premature for its time or an idea/ opportunity ready to be birthed and acted on now?
• Now the next four questions are
• What is holding you up?
• What is holding you back?
• What is draining your motivation and energy when you think about moving forward?
• When will you be ready to do something about it?

Honest answers to these very simple questions will start your examination of your current position and start your imagination to help you “Planalife you want to live in.”

If you need some support please email or call me. I would love to hear from you.

Until next week…Cheers Ian