I'm sure most of you are familiar with the "80/20 Rule":

We wear 20% of our wardrobe 80% of the time.
80% or our revenues come from 20% or our clients/customers.

The same is true of working. 80% of our results come from 20% of our effort. Let me repeat that: 80% of our results come from 20% of our work. Which is good news...and bad.

The bad news is that most of us are overworking by a substantial margin. Matter of fact overworking impedes our results. Why? Because we are so busy running around we are not stopping to consider whether this work is getting us the results we want. Because we produce poor quality work that needs to be redone, or make errors that require additional time to correct. In other words, we are working hard but not necessarily productively. Which causes us to work much longer than if we slowed down and focused on our work and used our energy efficiently.

The good news is that we can work less and still see the same results. Actually, we may produce even BETTER results. Two studies on athletic performance illustrate that working hard does not generate the best results. In both studies athletes were divided into several groups. The members of each group were instructed to allocate their time in a particular way. For example, some groups were instructed to spend all their time practicing their sport. Other groups were instructed to divide their time between practicing the sport and visualizing the movements and outcomes they wanted from their performance. In one of the studies the group that improved the least was the one whose members spent all of their time training. In both studies the groups that spent more time visualizing outperformed the groups that spent more time working. So, why ARE we working so hard?!

The challenge for us is to adopt a new belief system and change long standing habits. The puritan work ethic is deeply embedded in our culture and psyche. "You have to work hard to get ahead" and "hard work pays off" are just two of the many work related "truisms" that have been drilled into us since childhood. In contrast it is interesting to note that the Chinese symbol for the word "busy" is composed of two symbols: heart and killing. That's a rather sobering image.

In the course of coaching, my clients improve their work-life balance. The more we slow down the more we can see and assess the virtue of our efforts, hear our hearts, tap our intuition and tune in to what really matters.

Women's Success Coach, Minna Keller, empowers successful professional women with demanding schedules, to achieve better business results faster, AND have more time more fun and less stress. Learn more about Minna and how to achieve "Better Results, Less Effort" on her website http://www.findmomentum.com

This article may be reprinted provided the author's bio is included.

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T-shirts are a very hot item right now and there are many online businesses that have become very successful in producing their own t-shirts and selling them. The reason the t-shirt industry is so profitable is because almost everyone around the world wears t-shirts. You can find virtually any kind of t-shirt you want to fit whatever kind of mood you are in and whatever kind of message or fashion statement you are trying to get across. T-shirts are made to appeal to everyone and they do, it's one of the very few markets that have that universal appeal.

One of the hottest t-shirts on the market today is the vintage style t-shirt. People like to re-live a time in their past that they really enjoyed and feel very nostalgic about. They often go looking for retro or vintage designs and t-shirts that they might have worn back when they were a kid. Many times it can be a reminder of a simpler, better time in their life when they weren't dealing with the difficult events of current everyday life.

There are t-shirt companies that are actually reproducing old designs from the past and making new shirts from these designs. This is great for people looking for these vintage t-shirts because it makes it easier for them to track down that perfect design they have been looking for all this time. Since they are being reprinted, finding a size is often not an issue as well. Many online websites even offer customization to the shirt including adding a graphic you like on almost any color. You can make it the perfect shirt that you have either always wanted or have been looking for forever.

If you find a design that you love, a lot of the online shops also have the option of putting them on other objects and gifts as well. You can put it on objects like hats, mouse pads, coffee mugs, tote bags, ties, hoodies, sweatshirts, teddy bears, key chains and many other things. If it has the ability to be printed on, there should be no problem in customizing it to fit your needs.

Vintage t-shirts and gifts are not only great for you, but can be the perfect thing to give another person. If you know that a person is very nostalgic and likes to talk about "the good old days", finding a design that they remember and giving it to them as a gift on a t-shirt or another object can bring a smile to their face. Everyone likes being reminded of a cherished time in their lives, and getting them a vintage style t-shirt is a one way to help them do that. Now not only will they think about the good old days when wearing or using the gift, but they will think about the person who gave the gift to them as well.

Ruth Lanham is a T-shirt designer who authors several websites and writes on various topics relating to t-shirt design, the internet and Christianity.

For more information or to contact Ruth please visit one of her sites below.

http://www.topteedesigns.com
http://www.cafepress.com/topteedesigns
http://www.zazzle.com/topteevintage

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