After spending 16 months living on my own in Cape Town, South Africa, I came to a stage where I really felt like it was the right time to leave and return to England. I was having an amazing time in the country and had tons of friends, but I really wanted more time to focus on my own projects instead of renting my mind to a boss (as my friend Jonathan likes to call it).

In my very last night in the country, I was hanging out with my “girlfriend” and one of my best friends who basically told me how jealous he was of my opportunity but how much he looked up to me even though I was 4 years younger. I remember saying to him before we said our goodbyes that “I really, really hope I make the most of my chance and don’t waste it or take things for granted.”

Assembly time wasn’t really something that I looked forward too when I was in middle school. After lunch, every student would have to go to the main hall and sit down, cross-legged, before singing hymns that were projected onto the walls.

On the odd occasion, our head master would stand up and give a speech, usually a story from his life. Now, around 7 years later, I’m going to share one of his fictional stories that contains the greatest productivity tip I had ever heard.

Did you know that over 100,000 people every single month go to one of the major search engines, like Google, for help on how to stop procrastinating? Hundreds of thousands of people need help in order to just do something.

Procrastination isn’t even about not knowing what to do next; it’s simply putting off what we have to do and leaving it till later. I used to put things off on a daily basis, but now that I’m working from home I simply make a plan, look at what I have to do and get to work. It hasn’t always been this easy though…

We all have our weaknesses. Whether it’s doing the dishes, ironing our clothes, cooking dinner or even visiting the mother in-law, there are certain things we rather wouldn’t do. When I started renting an apartment and lived on my own for the first time, I had to start doing a lot of tasks that I really couldn’t stand.

Just to wash the dishes – besides letting them pile up so I could do them all at once – I would put on some music and time myself to see how quickly I could do them. Now? I wouldn’t say I love doing them, but I certainly don’t dislike it, simply because of two tactics I’ve applied.

I’ve never been one for new years resolutions. In fact, in the 19 years of my life I’ve never made any resolutions for the start of a new year that I plan on sticking to. This isn’t because I don’t like setting goals, it’s just that I’ve always tended to know in my mind where I want to go and what I’m working on.

This year is different, and not because it has just turned 2009. No, this year is different because I’m not getting a job (I leave my current job in 4 weeks), I’m not going back to college and I’m not staying in South Africa. I’m going to the UK to see if I can make a full-time income with blogging and affiliate marketing.

One way or another, you are reading this site because at some point in time you came across an interesting perspective or helpful content piece that made you think about life in different ways. Very recently, I’ve made a number of changes to my life such as restarting to read books, realising my true passion, almost quitting alcohol and more.

I’ve spent a lot of time trying to implement and remember the things I’ve learned (and share them with others) but I do have other methods for keeping track of my personal growth that I want to share with you all.