When I stepped on the scale this summer after the lockdowns, I was absolutely shocked! My shock soon turned into disappointment. I had added an extra 10 pounds. Considering some people calling it the Quarantine 15, I guess I should be ok with it. That's if you are grading on the curve.

?Apparently, 10 pounds is the tipping point. Do I buy new fat clothes or get aggressive in attacking the weight?

?Fat clothes?

Uggg, no way!

?Instead, I decided to get one of those fancy scales. You know the kind. The ones that give you way more data than ever thought a scale could generate. This scale tells me % body fat, muscle mass, protein, bone mass, etc. I'm very proud of my metabolic age only because I happen to be 3 years younger than my birth certificate.

?Anyway, the new scale was supposed to confirm that I was gaining muscle instead of fat. Unfortunately, that didn’t work out as well as I had planned. The pounds were still there, and so was the fat.

?Frustrating!

?Who wants to buy new fat clothes? I dread shopping on most days. And shopping for fat clothes? Well, I would rather go to the dentist.

?Then to make it worse, I ran into a friend at the store, and she looked fabulous—her secret ….intermittent fasting. So I jumped on that bandwagon and am about 5 pounds down. It’s a slow burn, but progress is progress. If you are interested in learning more and trying it, I highly recommend the fastic app. The free version works great for me.

?Anyhoo, I mention all this for two reasons. First, you may be struggling with the weight too.

?But more importantly, this pattern is very similar to what I see with business owners and leaders right now.

Let me explain.

?What happens when you consume too much food? You get fat.

?But what happens when you consume too many webinars, podcasts, and virtual summits?

?Your brain gets stuffed full of information. You keep stuffing more information in there, and eventually, instead of becoming overweight, you become overwhelmed.

?And your wallet? Well, it might just get thinner. It definitely isn’t getting fatter. Attending webinars doesn’t add cash to your bank account.

?I love learning. But learning without implementation, well, it's academic.

?Knowledge without application is fruitless. I believe we are called to bear fruit. We have an obligation to use what we have learned to help others and make the world a better place. I am constantly reminding myself of this. It’s not easy.

?Here are three strategies I use:

?1. This web-based timer uses the Pomodoro technique to end procrastination and get more done in 25-minute time chunks. Use the chunks to implement what you’ve learned.

?2. Schedule implementation time following training time. When you put any training or education on your calendar, be regimented enough to block the same amount of time to implement what you just learned.

?3. Don’t sign up for your competitor’s webinars. I know you want to keep tabs on what they are doing. Just stop it. This not only keeps you from being the unique person you are, but it also stifles your creative genius.

?What have you implemented today? 

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