20 Time & Energy Drains You Can Eliminate

Leo Babauta has been a reporter, editor, speech writer and freelance writer for the last 17 years. Leo writes for numerous blogs notably including LifeHack.org and his own blog about simple productivity, Zen Habits,net.

It’s amazing how we can while away our days by doing practically nothing, and feeling busy and stressed while doing it.

And then, at the end of the day, we are so tired we zone out in front of the television or Internet until we’re ready to drop off to sleep.

If any of this sounds familiar to you, it’s possible that you’re the victim of time and energy drains — things in your life that drain away your energy and your time without you really thinking about it. Eliminate those drains, and you’ll find yourself much more productive, much more energetic, much happier. In fact, even if you’re pretty productive already, it’s very likely that you still have time and energy drains that you could eliminate to improve your life.

What are your time and energy drains? It’s different for each person, of course. The best way to find out what your time drains are is to do a little time log. Now, before your eyes glaze over at this idea, I don’t recommend a detailed log, unless you’re good at doing that. For the rest of us, it’s easier to just keep a blank sheet of paper or notebook by your side and just jot down what you’re doing. You don’t need to write down the time or keep track of the minutes — just write down the activity. At the end of the day, look over your list and you’ll see the kind of things that are taking up a lot of your time without giving you much benefit in return.

Energy drains are a little tougher, but if you go over a list of the things in your life, and give it a little thought, you can probably identify some of the things that are draining you unnecessarily and find ways to change your life accordingly.

Some of the most common examples are listed below.

10 Signs You Should Drop a Client Like a Bad Habit

From this post of Leo, I’ve learned something essential things and every freelancer should know about that too. The 10 Signs You Should Drop a Client Like a Bad Habit. Enjoy

Markus Frind Made $1 million CAD from Google Adsense

Written & shared by Carson McComas, founder of WorkHappy.net — where you can learn about Killer resources for entrepreneurs.

It was a check for 2 months because the first check they sent was so big it was rejected by his bank. (I hate it when that happens.)

I asked Markus to share a few thoughts with us, and he was kind enough to oblige.

You’re a one-man show running a very successful dating site. Tell us how you got started.

Back in 2001 after my birthday someone in the office introduced me to online dating sites.  I went back to my desk and checked out udate.com and kiss.com and lavalife/web personals.    I was bored and I wanted to chat with people.  I was really annoyed when I found out you had to pay for everything, I ended up telling the girl who introduced me to the sites that I could do better and make them for free, so I went and registered Plentyoffish.com.    All I ever ended up doing was creating an index page and forgot about it. Fast forward to 2003… [Find the rest of Markus’ answer over on his blog]

Your site, if you’ll forgive me, isn’t terribly attractive, it isn’t “web 2.0” it isn’t even a terribly original idea. Many entrepreneurs today think that without those ingredients in the recipe, they’ll never make it. You’ve clearly proved otherwise. What’s your secret and what are your thoughts about what it takes to be successful?

Fire In Our University

FIRE on Our University, the experience was horrible. Around 40 students, we were inside the Class Room, sudden electricity gone and we waiting for electricity and luckily a student who informed us about FIRE, not our Security Guards (that’s pathetic). However, I was just in-front of the Door, so just hold the books, papers, pens and leave the class less then 5 seconds. When I was there, More then 1000+ students start to using the Stairs to exit ASAP. Start to running and found hundreds of Students, making different types of sounds, someone also crying (specially girls) and someone grabbing each others and with a Good speed we moving from one Floor to another Floor. Today I’m feeling the Stairs will not end ever. Through I’m not sure what’s going inside ground floor and suddenly I tracked from another building, few peoples start to giving us Command by using their HAND, down faster and we just extend the SPEED, the SPEED was Horrible, If you missed, you might be paste — because everyone holding a SPEED and everyone pressing from the Back Side, to Go Down. Go Go… Go… When I’m in ground floor and I found the Burning Smell and Black Airs – What to do? Everyone slowing them-self there and jump over the Black Smoke, same things I’ve done and lately I tracked, a Boy slipped there accidentally. Less then 8 min, the Fire Brigade comes here and Police blocked the Road and Cut off the Electricity and Gas. Possibly the fire comes from the BIG Generator. Now, it’s under control and Allahamdulliah, No one is injured. Instantly I left the Place but I figure out “AMM Jonota – Start to Crowing the Place with Great Speed” What a Sense? Oh, they are NON-SENSE, If you’re one of them too.

Obama Is the Key Example of Globalization

This post is written by Nury Vittachi at The Jakarta Post , 29 January 2009.

Security guards at the airport just made me take off my belt. Huh? How could my belt be a threat? Did I really look like I could subdue 300 people on a jumbo jet using only a 30-inch strap designed to stop my trousers falling down?

Instead of being irritated, I decided to interpret this as a compliment, which made me feel much better. (Yes, men are sad creatures.)

It’s been an odd week. I had lunch the other day in a restaurant that had previously always banned me. My earlier crime? Refusing to wear a tie.

I’ve disliked ties ever since someone told me ties were a type of noose: same knot, same level of tension, same ability to kill. (Why are ties not banned on aircraft?)

The opening up of fancy restaurants to the tie-less is due to globalization. It is no longer possible to exclude people like me on the grounds of our not wearing Western clothes.