What is one thing you make sure to accomplish every day?
The following answers are provided by Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched StartupCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.
1. Identify the Victories
At the end of each work day, I always find time to identify three things that went well that day. Once I identify them, I ask the critical question, “Why did ‘x’ go well?” From there I can identify behaviors and actions that can be replicated for ongoing success for my company. – Antonio Neves, THINQACTION
2. Update My Contacts
At the end of every day I add new contacts to my contact list, connect with them on LinkedIn and Twitter, then review my calendar and make notes for following up. Building and maintaining relationships is very important to me, so this helps me to stay on top of it. It also helps me start the next day fresh. So taking the time to review and record my most recent contacts is a nice way to end the day. – David Ehrenberg, Early Growth Financial Services
3. Share My Company
Sharing my company with a new person each day keeps me in touch with our product. It reminds me to continue improving our product’s pitch and cater the message to each individual. Whether it’s my Uber driver or the person sitting next to me on the plane, I find opportunities to introduce our company to people and hear their feedback. – Nanxi Liu, Enplug
4. Tell People I Appreciate Them
Stopping and saying that you appreciate someone who is on your team, in your mentor network, part of your family or even a random stranger who buys you coffee or opens the door for you helps keeps things positive even in the toughest times. It’s nice to feel loved, so I make sure I share that same feeling. – Kenny Nguyen, Big Fish Presentations
5. Show Gratitude
Success is never singular, it’s always a group effort. Make it a daily habit to express your gratitude and thank someone for their support. Whether in the office or at home — those people are the reason you’re a success, or on your way to being one! – Parker Powers, Millionaire Network
6. Meditate
I practice mindful meditation, and make sure to set aside 20 minutes for it every day — usually in the late morning or early afternoon. It re-sets my mental state, and gives me a burst of focus for the rest of the day. It also helps me put stresses and pressure in perspective. As a result, I’m calmer, happier and able to focus more on the most important things every day. – Joshua March, Conversocial
7. Move Something Forward
You can’t always achieve an Adrian Peterson-like 200 yard running game, because unexpected client issues pop up, meetings run over and your kids get sick. So rather than beating yourself up when you’re having an unproductive day, just try to focus on advancing the ball down the field as far as you can. By making the best of each play, you’ll win the game in the long run. –Grant Gordon, Solomon Consulting Group
8. Mentally Prepare for Tomorrow
Before signing off for the night, I look at my calendar for the next day. Doing this allows me to mentally prepare for what’s to come, to grapple with key questions overnight and to reduce surprises. – Chris Cancialosi, GothamCulture
9. Acknowledge Failure
Every day I make a point to find a failure or a problem and acknowledge it in a positive way. Looking for failures and problems is critical to establishing a transparent culture and building open lines of communication about taking responsibility. Problems and failures are OK, regardless of what industry you are in. Try to embrace them. – Matt Ames, MN Pro Paintball
10. Give Meaningful Feedback
Something I try to do every day is provide feedback to my employees. It’s important to recognize that as an executive, I am indebted to them and they deserve to get a positive reaction when they’re doing a great job. Constructive criticism can be just as valuable, but it’s always good for morale and productivity when you can recognize someone for a job well done. – Shane Adams, Sagacious Consultants
11. Hit the Gym
You need to take care of yourself. It is easy to get caught up in the day-to-day stress of running a company and forget what life is all about. I get some of my best ideas while working out, so I actually bring pen and paper with me. – Joseph DiTomaso, AllTheRooms
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