Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/671344
52 May 2016 BestDriverJOBS www.bestdriverjobs.com Women In Trucking A uthor Laura Vanderkam has wri en numerous books about the traits of success- ful people. She claims the "key to making myself happy is NOT to be a perfec onist." In fact, she has researched the traits of successful women and how much me they devote to their careers. The author was surprised to discover that women who work an average of 35 hours per week earn about $37,000 per year. However, the women in her study who earned in excess of six figures annu- ally averaged 44 hours per week. That's only a nine-hour per week difference for an almost threefold increase in salary. She tracked these women in a typical day and found a few differences that the higher earning women had in common. Ninety percent of them made time for daily exercise, they watched less than five hours of TV each week (compared to the national average of 34 hours), and they didn't skimp on sleep, with an average of seven to eight hours of shut-eye each night. Where did these women find time for so much sleep and keep a consistent exercise schedule on top of a 44-hour work week? Vanderkam's suggestion is to remind ourselves that we have choices and in- stead focus on what she calls, "high value activities." In her book "What Successful People do Before Breakfast," the author suggests we make our routines start the minute we hop out of bed. "If it has to happen, then it has to hap- pen first," Vanderkam claims. Our will- power is much stronger in the morning, so we should focus on the activities that might not get accomplished otherwise. For example, don't schedule laundry or housecleaning, because these are duties that you can find time for later because they MUST get done. Vanderkam suggests devoting early morning time to nurturing your career, your relationships, or yourself. Her clients keep a time log of their daily ac- tivities and look for slots that allow them to be focused and to make the activity a habit. Whether it's exercising, spending time with your children, spouse, pet, or just using the time for meditation or reflec- tion, morning sessions allow you to start the day having accomplished something important to you and your self develop- ment. If you are interested in changing your morning routine, here are five steps Vanderkam suggests adopting. 1 Track your time. The only way to find out how you're spending your day is to write down your activities. The author suggests tracking an entire week to see where you are wasting your minutes or hours. By Ellen Voie, WIT President/CEO How you can find success before breakfast