Source: www.TurfMagazine.com
Driving home in the after-work rush is sometimes the most stressful part of the day. For many people the sound of the radio or a podcast is a welcome, calming distraction.
That extra noise, however, may be counterproductive. Silence is actually golden sometimes.
Alec McClennan, the owner of Good Nature Organic Lawn Care in Cleveland, Ohio, has had to learn to embrace the silence. McClennan explains why you should consider turning off the radio, especially on your Friday drive home.
Prevents you from wasting work hours
McClennan’s Fridays have always strongly affected his Mondays, but the time was not always there on Fridays for him to fully prepare for the next week. McClennan had to figure out when to carve out some time during his already busy Friday. He soon realized that some valuable time existed if he simply gave up one daily habit.
“I’ve stopped listening to the radio, and I’ve found that I don’t get enough quiet time to think in my life, and the time that I did get that was quiet I would waste it listening to sports talk,” McClennan says.
Makes you more focused and organized
After graduating college, McClennan worked at a landscape company for just a year before opening Good Nature. McClennan quickly went from employee to founder and had to learn how to manage himself and a team of employees. Sixteen years into running his business, and McClennan has been able to more clearly organize his plans and his business since halting his radio routine.
“I jot down my areas of focus, and I can come into the next week with a clear plan. I feel a lot better,” McClennan explains the changes he has seen since he started driving quietly.
Helps you achieve the big picture
McClennan’s driving sessions have especially helped him break down big picture ideas into smaller tasks. McClennan was thinking of the big picture when he first created Good Nature. He wanted to bring safer, organic methods to lawn care and landscaping, and he did just that. McClennan has seen the positive impact this method has made on his Cleveland, Columbus and Akron, Ohio clients, and he wants to bring these cleaner techniques to a broader market. Thankfully, a little quiet time has helped him think of how to execute this broad idea: franchising.
“That’s my goal, is to franchise it and be in 20 markets in five years,” McClennan says.
Next time you are driving, consider embracing some quiet.
What’s your Monday motivation?