$25,000 Idea

I want to tell you a story that comes from Earl Nightingale’s tape series, Lead the Field.  The story tells that the President of a big steel company was contacted by Ivy Lee, an efficiency expert, who earned an interview after promising the executive a program to increase his efficiency by 50% within 20 minutes.

During the meeting, Lee suggested that at the close of each day, the executive list on paper the 6 most important things he would need to accomplish the next day and that he number them in order of importance.  Lee said, “Put the paper in your pocket and, the first thing each morning, take it out and look at item number one.  Don’t look at the others – just number one – and start working on it.  If you can, stay with it until it is done; then, repeat the process with numbers 2, 3 and so on.  Don’t worry if you can’t finish all the items.”  Lee then instructed the executive to repeat the procedure each day and explained that, without this method, it could take as much as ten times longer to complete the same tasks.  He left that day telling the executive to evaluate the value of his system for a few weeks and then send him a check for whatever he found the advice to be worth

The story continues that a few weeks later, Ivy Lee received a check in the mail for $25,000 in payment for his 20-minute visit.  It is said that this plan was the foundation that turned a little-known steel company into one of the world’s largest independent steel producers

If you haven’t tested this $25,000 idea, try it for the next 12 weeks.  See if you can enjoy its benefits.  If you do, don’t send me a check for $25,000; just pass this idea on to your downline and reap the rewards of a more efficient and stress-free life!