1.    Make a List

First, write down everything you need to get done daily, both in your personal life and at work. Do yourself a favor and don’t worry about how you organize this list. This is not a to-do list it’s a task brain dump. Take 30 minutes with a notebook to jot down everything you have to do today; down to “brush my teeth.”

2. Structure your Day

Early birds do their best most productive work before lunchtime whereas night owls perform best in the evenings. Know yourself. Think about when you do your BEST work, have the most energy, and are the most creative. Group your tasks into that specific time frame when you know you’ll perform at your best.

Tweet us! What will you do better to schedule your day?

Mornings tend to be about getting out of the door and your day started. Make time to eat breakfast, let your pets out if you have pets, get your lunch packed for work, leave on time for work… once you’ve got all of that out of the way, take on the tasks the require the most critical thinking.

Midday is a tricky time of the day because this is where things start to slow down. You’ve had lunch and now all you want to do is take a nap. NOPE! Time to zap the energy levels. Be proactive and pack a snack, something to fuel your body for the afternoon. Do a recap of your task list and your schedule.

Ask yourself, “Am I on schedule for the day?”

Evenings are the most productive when you use them to proactively plan for the next day. Lay out your work clothes for tomorrow. Take a look at what you already have on the schedule for tomorrow. If you know you’re not going to want to make lunch in the morning pack what you can at night. Pre plan to plan.

3. Schedule in Time for Flexibility

In a perfect world, everything would all go to plan down to the second. Well this isn’t a perfect world and things AREN’T always going to go as planned. The point is to focus on what you can control and let go of the things that you can’t. Use your most productive times for your most challenging tasks and your least productive times for mundane tasks. There might be times when life gets in the way, but practicing the art of having a daily routine will help things to flow despite any “fires” that may pop up.

A schedule defends from chaos and whim. It is a net for catching days. It is a scaffolding on which a worker can stand and labor with both hands at sections of time.

Annie Dillard

4. Try it out!

Take it for a test drive. You wouldn’t buy a car without taking it for a ride first, right? Test drive your routine.. how does it feel? How is it working? How is it impacting your life? Do you like the way it feels? Do you need to adjust things? Tweak anything that ISN’T working one thing at a time. If you change too many things at once you won’t know what is and what isn’t working. Whenever you try something new you have to give it time to work.

Name: Wade Tillery
School/Major: Hampton University/ Music Recording Technology
Hometown: Atlanta, Georgia

Why did you start with the company?

I recently exited the United States Marine Corps with the intent to enter entrepreneurship and be around other A type personalities who seek success at the highest level.

What is your favorite part about working with the company?

The challenge to stay committed. Lack of commitment comes from lack of information and perspective. Whether it’s the morning meetings, business trips or time in the field, I’m reminded why people believe in this company everyday. They see the end goal as only a matter of time rather than something plausible. These alpha personalities and their individual “why’s” make it worth it on the worst days.

If you can travel anywhere in the world where would you go?

South Korea. My mother is there.

What are some of your favorite hobbies? How did you get into these hobbies?

Anything KAIZEN. Kaizen is continuous self-improvement. So my Christian Faith, reading, physical fitness, motivational speaking and mentoring African American youth.

Do you play any sports?

I never played sports growing up but I’m always competitive. With everything.

What is your advice for new leaders on the team?

My advice for new leaders at J.W. Business Acquisitions is to try to keep your team as tight as possible. Don’t ever believe you’re too senior to learn from someone.

What is your favorite book and why?

Probably the Bible. Close seconds would be Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki, Start With Why by Simon Sinek, and The 4 hour Work Week by Timothy Ferris.

Who is your favorite sports team and why?

Dallas Cowboys and Atlanta Falcons

Do you have a secret talent?

Kaizen.

Do you have a favorite color and why?

Purple. One of the greatest musicians made it awesome.

If you could be any animal in the world what would you be and why?

Gorilla. Amazingly strong, pack mindset, and extremely intelligent.

If you liked this interview with Wade check out our team page to learn more about J.W. Business Acquisitions’s star studded team!

What is Trust?

Trust is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as “assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something.”

Think about that for a second… let it sink in. Take driving for example. You’re on the highway with a thousand other cars. They’re racing past you, you’re racing past them. You’re trusting them and they’re trusting you to make good decisions – to not slam on the brakes and force you to crash into them or to not rapidly change lanes and cut you off so you swerve into the car next to you. That is utter and complete reliance on the ability of the OTHER person to do what they’re supposed to do. You rely on people to do the right thing. You believe in their strength to the extent that you’re able to put yourself out there on the line, with the potential of risk to yourself.

Why is Trust Important?

Trust is essential to building an effective and strong team because it provides a safety net.

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Trust is essential to building an effective and strong team because it provides a safety net. When you feel safe and valued you feel comfortable enough to share your opinions and express your ideas. You’re able to take more risks and express new ideas or thoughts you’re unsure about than you would if you DIDN’T feel safe. Without that trust there is no innovation or team collaboration. People will spend their time worrying about what others think or whether or not what they’re saying is right or wrong. When, in a trusting environment, that time could be used to create, build, and grow.

How do we Build Trust?

• Lead by Example

Don’t expect people to do things you wouldn’t do. Set the Standard and Perform. Keep in mind that your team members are always watching and taking notes from you. Take that opportunity to show them how it’s done Every. Single. Day. Show them what real trust looks like.

• Get to Know Your Team Members Personally

Connect with your coworkers, share personal stories, get to know their hobbies and what they enjoy. Start by sharing something of your own and then let the conversation flow. Be careful not to pry. People trust people that they know so get to know your team and let them get to know you.

• Don’t Look Down on People

We’ve all been in that situation with a friend or a coworker who acts like a completely different person based on the social groups setting… plain and simple: don’t be that person.

Make sure your behavior matches who you are and what you believe in.

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Looking down on others will get you nowhere and has the ability to crumble trust in an instant.

• Don’t Play the Blame Game

Naturally in all environments, personal and professional, mistakes are going to be made. Don’t play the blame game. It’s easy to point fingers to get the pressure off your back, but what that does is create an unpleasant environment where people feel judged. Encourage people to be solution oriented. Where did we go wrong? What could we have done better? How can we be proactive in making sure this mistake doesn’t happen again?

• Make Your Team Members Look Good

Typically, in order to obtain a position of leadership, you’ve shown in some way that you’re able to perform at a high level. While it’s great to share personal wins with your team, it’s important to showcase their wins and their achievements MORE than you do your own. You want people to feel proud of themselves and valued. You don’t want your people to feel like they’re always just trying to measure up to you. The more you can do that for your team the more they’ll trust you and in turn will achieve higher levels of performance.

Meet the J.W.B.A. team by clicking here!

Trust is essential to building strong productive teams. Without it, you’re unlikely to get very far, but with it you can accomplish anything. So set the example, create great relationships, build your team up, and show them what real trust looks like.

We communicate all day long, with coworkers, family members, friends, the grocery store clerk, the Starbucks drive-thru employee, in person and online.  Here at J.W. Business Acquisitions it is our job to communicate clearly with co-workers and customers.   There are times that communication comes off great and clear and then there are also times that the communication is not so effective.  Here are some tips the J.W.B.A. team has come up with to help make your conversations more effective!