Yes – there really is an “All or Nothing Day”!  Is approaching your life in an all or nothing way productive?  My thought is “no”.   I often try to see both sides of an issue – however, I’m struggling to see the “YES” part of this question.  (So if you are a proponent of All or Nothing Thinking – I urge you to post below!!)

Think back over the last few weeks, how often did you approach your day in a black or white, all or nothing manner?  You know what I mean . . .

  • “Oh well, I blew the diet today, I guess I’ll start over on Monday.” (or in January, or next week, or next month)
  • “I just spent an hour searching my files for X, now the day is shot, I might as well reorganize my files.”
  • “I just called 5 prospective hostesses and no one answered, so everyone must be busy – I’ll just make my calls on Monday.”  (or in January, or next week, or next month)

At the first sign of adversity – we can fall into this “all or nothing” thinking.

But, if you spilled a little bit of ketchup on your new white shirt would you think, “Oh well, the shirt is ruined, I might as well dump the entire bottle of ketchup on myself”?

Or, if you have a flat tire, would you say, “Well, since one tire is flat, I’ll just let the air out of the other three”?

“Successful people are simply those with successful habits” – Brian Tracy

Successful people identify their priorities – and restart themselves if they get off track.  They don’t allow themselves to go further and further down the winding road of unfocused, unimportant behavior.

  • If they become distracted, they center themselves, refocus, and continue to work on their number one priority.
  • If they book 10 parties, and they all cancel, they get back on the phone and book 20 more.  (Plus they trouble shoot their technique  . . . maybe it’s something they said, or didn’t say.)
  • If they get to the end of the workday and realize they didn’t accomplish the #1 most important task on their list, they create a plan for tomorrow – guaranteeing they will accomplish it.

Very seldom can we create a day or  a life that looks 100% the way we want it to.  Things happen, people are unpredictable, situations arise.  But one detour in our day does not need to lead to a full detour in our week.  When you can remain focused on your priorities – you can pull yourself out of the “all or nothing” thinking when distractions and obstacles appear.

I’d love to know your thoughts.  DO you believe there is a place for “all or nothing” thinking?  I value the chance to enlarge my perspective.