![Photo courtesy of Majiscup - Drink for Design [Flickr]](http://www.thepracticalnerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/554922533_8aa8dc4a09.jpg "Photo courtesy of Majiscup - Drink for Design [Flickr]")
Most of you know that I am a huge fan of Dave Ramsey and The Total Money Makeover. My fiancé and I are currently going through his Financial Peace University course at my church, and I am proud to say that I recently announced on my personal Facebook account that she and I had successfully completed "Baby Step 1" of his program. WOO!
"Baby Step 2" in Dave’s program is to pay off your debts, except for your mortgage. There are a lot of different ways that you can pay off your debts. Some suggest attacking the highest interest rates first so that you save the most money. Dave’s idea is a little different: line up your debts from smallest-to-largest and pay them off in that order. Some disagree with the method, saying you waste money by not attacking the highest interest rates. Dave’s philosophy? "Dealing with money is 80% behavior and 20% math." In other words, the momentum you build by paying off smaller debts psychologically will help you stick to paying off debt, rather than the frustration of having to pay down a giant debt with a high interest rate and not seeing any noticeable progress.
I have to say, I’m with Dave on this one. Paying off a small debt really encourages me to keep going, as that’s a result I can see. But this philosophy can be applied elsewhere, which is why I would like to completely rip off Dave’s "Debt Snowball" and introduce to you the "Life Snowball".
Here’s how it works: write out all the goals you want to accomplish, from easiest-to-hardest. Then attack them. You can apply this to a day’s worth of to-do’s or a lifetime’s worth. Either way, the momentum you build by checking things off will propel you to work on the other stuff.
For example, here’s a typical "to-do" list for me on a day off from the office:
- Scoop cat litter
- Laundry
- Enter in receipts
- Blog post
- 10 Cold Calls
- Workout
- Grocery list
- Get groceries
- Vacuum
Now, what’s most important on that list? I would say either the blog post or the 10 cold calls. If I start with those, I might be a little sluggish to get going, waste all morning doing those things, and then have to cram a bunch of stuff in the afternoon. The vacuuming wouldn’t get done, and the receipts might sit until the next day.
But, typically, if I have that list, I’m starting with the litter. That takes 5 minutes. Then I check it off. I’ll move on to the workout. Then I vacuum. Then I build my grocery list. With that momentum, I fly through the rest of the list. I love checking things off, and then the list shrinks until it doesn’t look like much. All of a sudden, I’ve cleared it and it’s only 3:00 in the afternoon.
In fact, you could compare it to a workout. You don’t walk into a gym and hop onto the bench press. You stretch, you run a little, do some lighter reps. You have to get that blood moving first. You need to warm up. When you are attacking a list like this, you need to warm up first. Then your brain will say, "Hey, we’re getting a lot done! Let’s keep going!"
The key to getting things done isn’t a complicated system, it’s about motivation. Winning over your brain is 80% of the battle, because your brain will fight you tooth-and-nail. Think about your own goals – could you work them doing the "Life Snowball" method? Try it out and see what happens. It’s not like it will hurt anything!
Tom is an entrepreneur and freelance writer, working out of his apartment full-time, or wherever he feels like taking his laptop. He doesn't take long European vacations or blogs on the beach. He's an Average Joe that took control of his life. He wants you to do the same.
