Brian Tracy Quotes

Do one thing at a time. Start the day with a list of things you have to do, and do the most important things first. Even if you don't get the list done, you've gotten the most important things done. So many people spend so much time on things that aren't important.

Your ability to select your most important task at each moment, and then to get started on that task and to get it done both quickly and well, will probably have more of an impact on your success than any other quality or skill you can develop.

One of the secrets of getting more done is to make a TO DO List every day, keep it visible, and use it as a guide to action as you go through the day.

The real key is time management and being able to focus on what you need to, on using every available minute to accomplish something that needs to be done.

The thing is to try to do as much as you can in the time that you have.

If you don't have time, the truth is, you don't have priorities. Think harder; don't work harder.

People who can focus, get things done. People who can prioritize, get the right things done.

You do the things that need to be done according to priority.

The key to having more time is doing less, and there are two paths to get there, both of which should be used together: (1) Define a short to-do list and (2) define a not-to-do list.

I have always lived my life by making lists: lists of people to call, lists of ideas, lists of companies to set up, lists of people who can make things happen. Each day I work through these lists, and that sequence of calls propels me forward.

When you make a to-do list, you should also make a to-not-do list. Warren Buffet was asked about the secret to success, and he said that it was saying no to almost everything. Some of those little tasks won't matter as long as you get the big tasks done.

From a productivity perspective, prioritization is key. And it's very easy to focus on clearing the decks of minutia, especially when one's very busy.

Time management is really important.

Focusing on the right priorities can help you do more faster.

You're actually making the rest of your day productive by spending 30 minutes reviewing your to-do's, prioritizing them, and ruthlessly removing things that shouldn't be there.

Perhaps the very best question that you can memorize and repeat, over and over, is, 'what is the most valuable use of my time right now?'

An average person who develops the habit of setting clear priorities and getting important tasks completed quickly will run circles around a genius who talks a lot and makes wonderful plans but gets very little done.

When first things are put first, second things are not suppressed but increased.

Never confuse activity with productivity.

As in all things, it is terribly important to have a sense of priorities in what you do. And to make certain that priorities do not clash.

Organize and execute around priorities.

Do each day all that can be done that day. You don't need to overwork or to rush blindly into your work trying to do the greatest possible number of things in the shortest possible time. Don't try to do tomorrow's or next week's work today. It's not the number of things you do, but the quality, the efficiency of each separate action that count. To achieve this "habit of success," you need only to focus on the most important tasks and succeed in each small task of each day.

If there is any one secret of effectiveness, it is concentration. Effective executives do first things first and they do one thing at a time.

What is the thing that matters most to making progress right now?

The more you have to do, the more you have only NOW to get it done. That's why busy people get the most done.