Carpe diem

How many times have we heard this statement? We have all at some point said it especially when we are attempting to undertake something outside our comfort zone. There are those, however, who dislike such statements as they believe people use them as rationale for making irresponsible or careless choices. Today, however, I'm going to root for this declaration not as an excuse to make foolhardy decisions, but to improve the quality of output in our careers, business and even our studies.
I can't count the number of times I have seen people working on a project and simultaneously fidgeting on their smartphone on something that is completely unrelated to the project. Do you always think of what else you have to do while working on an assignment. In fact, do you get so sidetracked by your future assignments that it affects your performance on your current ones?
This shows that we are unable to seize the moment, and we go through life grasping at everything and experiencing nothing! Whether you are aware of this or not it will affect your productivity in your career, business and school. It's therefore essential we learn to apply this principle of Carpe diem in our activities. Seize that assignment, seize that meeting, seize that conference call, seize that presentation! How do we do this? By committing our mind fully to each activity we undertake each day no matter how large or small. We have to be intentional about it, it will take more energy and investment but the results will be worthwhile.
If your going for a meeting, prep for it like it's the last meeting you will ever go to, during the meeting, nothing else exists, only that meeting.
If your working on an assignment, let nothing else steal your focus, eliminate distractions, be they your smartphone, that colleague who always has time for a chat, or television, separate yourself from them until your done. If you have hit the wall on a project, repackage it, allocate a different time slot to it, maybe a time when your energy and enthusiasm are at their peak and dedicate yourself to accomplishing it.
If your going to network it's essential you seize that moment, as a bad networking experience will not only dent your confidence, but also hurt your business. Therefore, be fully engaged with the person(s) your networking with, remember small details like their names no one likes to be asked their names over and over, research about them before you meet them, to create a common ground for your conversation and to show you want to create a genuine relationship with them and not to get them as another client in your business.
So as I close I ask, are you seizing your day?