Sometimes just a little bit more, over time, can make a big difference.  Say, you’re working in the yard and your body and mind are telling yourself it’s time to quit for the day.  Instead of quitting right then, tell yourself, “Just fifteen more minutes.”  Getting yourself into the habit of doing just a little bit more can be extremely effective and rewarding.

As Americans we’ve become too enamored by the big win and the long pass for the winning score.  Japanese students spend a half day more per week in school than U.S. students.  A half day isn’t much.  By the end of the year it adds up to a whole month. By the time they’ve graduated from high school they have had a whole year more education than U.S. students.  If you will work just 5 minutes more than your competition every day by the end of the year you will be 26 hours ahead (assuming a 6 day work week).  If you have the type of job that gets paid by tips then staying just a little bit longer to get an extra 2 dollars in tips will put you $624 ahead by the end of the year.  If you can get $5 per day you’ll be a whopping $1,560 ahead (assuming a 6 day work week).

I realize that there comes a point of diminishing returns, that point where you are too tired or too bored to do a good job.  However, the principle stays the same, and can be applied to any area of your life that is important to you.  If you’re running a marathon and you can increase your step rate by just one step per minute you will be 150 yards ahead by the end (assuming 2.5 foot stride and a run of 3 hours).

So, the next time you’re tempted to give up or give in try talking yourself into doing just a little bit more.

This entry was posted on Friday, April 18th, 2008 at 5:14 pm and is filed under Life Tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.