Military Family Separation Allowance (FSA)

Military Family Separation Allowance (FSA)Military Family Separation Allowance (FSA)Family Separation Allowance (FSA) is payable when a military member is separated due to military orders from their dependents for more than 30 days. In order to be payable, the staffelung must be involuntary, i.e., the dependent is not allowed to accompany the member at government expense. The rationale for FSA entitlement is that forced family separation results in added household expenses when the member is absent for a period greater than 30 days. Family separation allowance rates have not changed for several years. Types of FSA Therbeie are three schriftarts of Family Separation Allowance FSA-R - This type of family separation allowance is payable when a member is assigned to a permanent duty station (either overseas or in the states), where the members dependents are not allowed to travel at government expense. Payment begins once the member has been separated from their dependent(s) for more than 30 days.FSA-S - This type of FSA is payable when a military member is stationed on a ship, and the ship is away from the homeport continuously for more than 30 days. Prior to February 9, 1996, dependents were required to live in the vicinity of the homeport in order for the member to continue to receive this type of FSA. Effective February 10, 1996, the dependents were no longer required to reside in the vicinity of the homeport. FSA-T - This type of FSA is payable when the member is on temporary duty (TDY) (or temporary additional duty) away from the permanent station continuously for more than 30 days, and the members dependents are not residing at or near the TDY station. Prior to February 9, 1996, dependents were required to live in the vicinity of the permanent duty station in order for the member to continue to receive this type of FSA. Effective February 10, 1996, the dependents were no longer required to reside in the vicinity of the permanent duty station. A member c an only be paid for one type of FSA at a time. For example, if a member is receiving FSA-R because he/she is stationed at a dependent-restricted base, and the member then performs temporary duty (TDY) away from their home station for more than 30 days (FSA-T), then the member cannot receive double payment. FSA is payable for temporary duty/training even before proceeding to the initial duty assignment. This means that new recruits who attend basic training and/or job training when they first join the military, receive FSA, once they have been separated from their dependent(s) for more than 30 days. Amount Payable Separation Requirements FSA is payable at the amount of $250 per month. FSA is not subject to federal income tax. FSA is not authorized unless the separation is involuntary due to military orders. In other words, the dependent(s) must not be entitled to travel to the new duty station at government expense. For example, if a military member receives an overseas assignme nt to Germany, and is given the option of serving an accompanied tour, but elects to take a shorter, unaccompanied tour instead, FSA is not payable because the member had the option of being accompanied by dependents, but voluntarily elected to be unaccompanied. There is one exception to this rule if transportation of dependents is authorized at government expense, but member elects an unaccompanied tour of duty because a dependent cannot accompany the member to or at that homeport/permanent station due to certified medical reasons, FSA is payable. FSA cannot be paid when a military member is legally separated from his/her spouseunless there are other qualifying dependents. FSA can also not be paid for separation from dependent childrenif the children are in the legal custody of another. The lone exception occurs when the member has joint physical and legal custody of the child(ren) and the child(ren) otherwise would reside with the member but for the current assignment. Family sepa ration allowance does not accrue to a member if all of the dependents reside at or near the duty station. If some (but not all) of the dependents voluntarily reside near the duty station, FSA may accrue on behalf of those dependents who do not reside at or near the duty station. The military considers dependents as residing near a duty station if the member actually commutes daily, regardless of distance. Dependents are also considered as residing near a duty station if they live within a reasonable commuting distance of that station, whether or not the member commutes daily. A distance of 50 miles, one way, is normally considered to be within reasonable commuting distance of a station, but the 50-mile rule is not inflexible. Commanders make the decision, based on the individual circumstances. Military Couples Not many years ago, a military member who welches separated from their military spouse due to military orders was not entitled to FSA unless he/she was also separated from his/her minor dependents. This has now changed, but not more than one monthly allowance may be paid with respect to a married military couple for any month. Each member may be entitled to FSA within the same month, but only one can receive payment. Payment is usually made to the member whose orders resulted in the separation. If both members receive orders requiring departure on the same day, then payment goes to the senior member. Temporary Social Visits For FSA-R, a member can continue to receive FSA if the dependents visit him/her for no longer than three months. Facts clearly must show that the dependents merely are visiting (not changing residence) and that the visit is temporary and not intended to exceed 3 months. For FSA-S (when the ship is in a port), and FSA-T, social visits cannot exceed 30 daysor entitlement to FSA is lost.

Toxic workplaces How to spot on e and what to do about it

Toxic workplaces How to spot on e and what to do about itToxic workplaces How to spot on e and what to do about itIssues with the cultures of big companies, including Uber and Google, have recently been in the news, turning the spotlight onto the subject of toxic workplaces. But few are talking about the causes.What are the indicators that a companys culture or workplace could quickly turn toxic?The roots of a company culture include rules, expectations, and policies. If these are subjective - left open to interpretation - the company invites differing opinions, which causes conflict, which results in toxicity. Subjective work processes and systems are the sources of most toxic company cultures.How you can spot a potential problemIf you are on the outside of a company looking in, there are some indicators that should encourage you to explore further. Using whatever access you have to people in the company and/or company materials such as job descriptions, policies, and procedures, look for subjectivity.Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and moreFor example, if a job description consists of vague phrases such as must be a team player, have strong communication skills, or be a power user of authorware, how are you going to be evaluated on your wertzuwachs in that job? Someone will be making subjective decisions about your performance.When you ask people in the company, even if you are asking during an interview, how to qualify for pay raises or promotions and the responses are subjective descriptions such as excel in your job, go the extra mile, stay out of trouble, or keep your quality scores up, you will probably face that same subjectivity when it comes pay raise and promotion time.The more objective the job descriptions, policies, procedures, and processes in a company, the less chance there is for conflict and the workplace turning toxic.What to do if you are al ready in a toxic situationIf you realize that your workplace, like most workplaces, is already toxic, you may be able to do some damage control - even if you arent the boss. You can make the attempt to bring objectivity to at least your realm of the workplace.Start with your job description. The ideal, objective job description defines thePrimary tasks you accomplish in your jobConditions under which you perform those tasksObjective standards by which your performance on each task is evaluatedTake whichever parts of that formula are lacking to your boss with the humble, sincere intent to turn the subjectivity into objectivity. You do this by taking the fuzzy language out of the job description.Fuzzies can be squeezed out of job descriptions, policies, and processes through a relatively simple process taught by philanthropisch performance guru, Dr. Robert Mager. He calls it Goal Analysis, but he describes it as defuzzifying fuzzies.Once a fuzzy is discovered, it must be translated t o observable performances. If done in conversation it sounds something like thisBoss You have to be a team playerEmployee Well said, Boss. When you observe me being a team player, (or whatever the fuzzy is) what actions are you observing?Boss Well, first of all you show up to team meetings on time.Employee Fair enough. What else?Boss You should be volunteering for assignments on the team.Employee Got it. What else?The what else questions continue until the boss decides the list of observable performances describes a team player.Calling this a simple process does not mean this conversation or the efforts to review and revise work processes to rid them of subjectivity are easy. It takes a lot of effort, but the process is not complex.In plus-rechnen to the job description, some of the processes that you want to be objective, includeYour performance evaluation processHow your pay raises are determinedHow promotion opportunities are evaluatedHow your work is scheduled and assignedHow yo u are recognized for the work you do and the innovations you introduceIf any of these are open to interpretation, they are open to the possibility that the interpretation may not be in your favor.The problem with having fuzzies in these processes is that it puts bosses in the tenuous position of being the judge. Yes, you want bosses to have good judgment, but you dont want work processes to cause them to interpret subjective guidance on what should be done, how it should be done, and how it should be evaluated. That opens each situation to conflict, which is a tremendous obstacle to performance in the workplace.When you strenge ausbildung down to the root of most workplace conflict, you will find the disagreement is over a work process that is subjective. Even a good boss will find it difficult to be good when they are trying to defend subjective work processes and systems. As W. Edwards Deming, the acknowledged Father of the Quality Movement, put it, A bad process will beat a good person every time.Rex Conner is the lead partner and owner of Mager Consortium and the author of What if Common Sense Was Common Practice in Business?You might also enjoyNew neuroscience reveals 4 rituals that will make you happyStrangers know your social class in the first seven words you say, study finds10 lessons from Benjamin Franklins daily schedule that will double your productivityThe worst mistakes you can make in an interview, according to 12 CEOs10 habits of mentally strong people

Want to become a multi-millionaire Do these 15 things now

Want to become a multi-millionaire Do these 15 things nowWant to become a multi-millionaire Do these 15 things nowThe greatest reward in becoming a millionaire is notlage the amount of money that you earn. It is the kind of rolle that you have to become to become a millionaire. - Jim RohnMost people wish their circumstances would magically change for them. They dont have the desire to become better themselves so they can proactively improve their own circumstances.Unlike fruchtwein people, who simply wait and wish for luck, you can seek to become the kind of rolle equipped with the skills and abilities to do brilliant things.You can become the kind of person who does highly influential work. Your work can solve pressing problems, improve peoples lives, and get noticed by important people who share your work not for your sake, but for theirs Sharing your work makes them look good because of how great it is.The quality of who you are as a person, and the work you do, is completely with in your control. But you cant wish for it to happen. You must become the kind of person who naturally attracts the success you seek.Heres how1. Invest at least 10% of your income in yourselfIf you dont pay for something, you rarely pay attention.Most people want stuff thats free. But if you get something for free, you rarely prize that thing. You rarely take it seriously.How much do you invest in yourself?How committed are you to yourself?If you arent investing in yourself, than you dont have any skin in the game of your own life.Ladders is now on SmartNewsDownload the SmartNews app and add the Ladders channel to read the latest career news and advice wherever you go.If you arent invested in your geschftliches miteinander, you probably wont do high quality work.If youre not invested in your relationships, youre probably mora focused on what you can get than what you can give.When it comes to self-improvement, investing 10% of your income on yourself will yield a 100X or mora return on that investment. For every dollar you spend on your education, skills, and relationships, youll get at least 100 dollars back in returns.If you want to do something extremely well, you need to surround yourself with the right mentors. Anything that youll ever do well will be the result of high quality mentoring. If you suck at something, its because you havent received quality mentoring in that thing.The best mentorships are the ones where you pay your mentor. Often, the mora you pay the better, because youll take the relationship far more seriously. You wont solely be taking in that relationship. You wont purely be a consumer. Instead, youll be invested, and as such, youll listen more carefully. Youll care more. Youll be more thoughtful and engaged. There will be higher consequences for not succeeding.I invested $3,000 to get help writing my first book proposal from a highly successful writer. That $3,000 got me maybe 4 or 5 hours of his time. But in those 4 or 5 hours, he taugh t me what I needed to know to create an amazing book proposal. He provided me resources that dramatically enhanced and sped up my process. With his help, I welches able to get a literary agent and eventually a multi, six-figure book contract.Had I been overly concerned about the $3,000, Im confident that to this day, Id still not have written a book proposal. At the very most, Id have written a terrible one. I would not have been as motivated or invested, so I would have been far more likely to procrastinate needed action.If you dont have much money, surely you can afford to buy a book. How much money and time do you spend on entertainment, clothes, or food? Its a matter of priority.Its only when you invest in something that you have the motivation to make it happen.Beyond mentorships, you should invest in education programs such as online courses, books, quality products such as food and sleep.Your level of success can generally be directly measured by your level of investment. If youre not getting the results you want, its because you havent invested enough to get those results.Your number 1 investment must be yourself.Who you are determinesthe quality of marriage youll havethe quality of parent you becomethe quality of work you producethe level of happiness you haveHeres what youll find when you financially invest yourself in something. You become very committed to that thing. Economists call this sunk cost bias. But you can leverage this to your benefit. If you want to escalate your personal commitment to something, invest heavily in that thing.Eventually, it will become a point of no return.Youll become so fiercely committed that withdrawing will seem ridiculous.Hence, youll need to truly know WHAT you want and WHY (see 14 below). If you dont know these things, then over-committing could be a huge and irrational problem.However, if you are certain about WHO you are/want to be, WHAT you want, and WHY, then you need to invest yourself.2. Invest at least 80% of your off time into learningMost people are consumers rather than creators.They are at work to get their paycheck, not to make a difference.When left to their own devices, most people consume their time as well. It is only by investing your time that you get a return on that time.Nearly every second spent on social media is consumed time. You cant have that time back. Rather than making your future better, it actually made your future worse. Just like eating bad food, every consumed moment leaves you worse off. Every invested moment leaves you better off.Entertainment is all well and good. But only when that entertainment is an investment in your relationships or yourself. Youll know if it was an investment if that entertainment continues to yield returns over and over in your future. That may include positive memories, transformational learning, or deepened relationships.Even still, life isnt purely about being entertained. Education and learning is also key. And although both a re essential, education will provide far greater returns in your future.The worlds most successful people are intense learners. They are hard readers. They know that what they know determines how well they see the world. They know that what they know determines the quality of relationships they can have and the quality of work they can do.If you are constantly consuming junk media, how can you possibly expect to create high value work? Your input directly translates to your output. Garbage in, garbage out.3. Dont work for money, work to learnWhen you are young, work to learn, not to earn. - Robert KiyosakiJust as a large majority of your downtime should be spent learning, so should a great deal of your working time.Wealthy and happy people work to learn. Unsuccessful and unhappy people work primarily for money.Only 20% of your energy should be spent doing your actual work. The rest should be spent learning, improving yourself, and resting.It is by sharpening your saw that youll cont inue to become a better and more capable person. Thus, as you dedicate large portions of time becoming a better thinker, communicator, and better at your craft, the quality of your work will continue to increase. Eventually, youll be able to charge VERY VERY high fees for your work, because no one else can do it like you.When you prioritize learning and recovery, then during the hours you are actually working, youll be in a deep flow state. You wont be distracted like most people are when they work. Youre either 100% on or 100% off. While working, you can get more done in a few hours than most people get done in a number of days.Your time is spent well because your priorities are clear, youre well-rested, and your mind is stimulated.4. Dont learn for entertainment, learn to create more valueThe key secret to success is not excessive expertise, but the ability to use it. Knowledge is worthless unless it is applied. - Max LukominskyiIn our media and information age, there are a millio n things you could learn. But if you dont put that learning into immediate practice, it becomes shallow information.Information and knowledge are two very different things.Knowledge and wisdom are also two very different things.It takes wisdom to determine what you should learn, why you should learn it, and when you should learn it.Unless youre invested, you probably wont learn with the intensity needed to maximize that knowledge.Unless you understand the value of your time, you probably wont have the discernment to ignore almost everything while learning that which will bring the highest return.When you learn something, you should get a return on that learning. Far too many people read books now just to say theyve read lots of books. If youre not applying what youre learning, your consuming and wasting your time.5. Invest at least 10% of your income into vehicles that will generate more moneyVery few people create true wealth.Even those who have high incomes are not truly wealthy. Most peoples lifestyles match their incomes. When they make more, they consume more. In fact, most people make money solely to consume.Very few people make money to invest that money.Its best to think of your business as only 1/2 of your income equation. You have your business which brings income. Then, you have your investment entity to turn your income into even more money.Like anything, how well you manage your money is determined by how well mentored you are. If you want to become brilliant with money, invest in education and mentoring.The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The best time to start investing was also in the past. If you havent started yet, dont sit and wallow in regret. Tomorrow doesnt exist for people who dont do something today.departure today. Get yourself educated. Create a vehicle, or several vehicles, where you put at least 10% of your income. Eventually, your investment vehicle may even start producing more profits for you than your actual business .Compound interest is a real thing. If you put 10% of your income into your investments over a long enough period of time, youll be set. Unlike the majority of high earners out there, youll be able to STOP WORKING whenever you want, because your money is making more than enough money for you to comfortably live with.6. Shift your motivation from getting to givingThe world gives to the givers and takes from the takers. - Joe PolishMost people are only focused on what they can get out of life.Me, me, me.However, once you become more consciously awake to the world, your desire will shift from merely receiving to giving.Youll realize that its actually far more satisfying to give than to get.Moreover, youll be driven by a cause you fully believe in.The truth is, you really only have 1 of 2 orientations towards people (and life).Either you are in relationships as TRANSACTIONS, or as TRANSFORMATIONS.Most people have transactional relationships. Theyre focused only on what they get out of t he relationship. Its all about furthering their own agenda. Its rooted in scarcity. Its selfish.This isnt how you get far in relationships and life.Its also how you get stuck in your own small-mindedness.Transformational relationships, on the other hand, are completely focused on giving and gratitude - the hallmarks of abundance. In these relationships, the whole becomes more than the sum of parts. Both parties, in vulnerability and trust, transcend their own small-mindedness and become something more.At the core, this requires being a giver, not a taker. As Adam Grant has explained in his book, Give and Take, when two givers come together, the results are astronomical.Heres a pro-tip dont surround yourself with takers.When your motivation is to give, youll often get insights about how you can improve your relationships. Random thoughts will pop into you head to send Thank you texts to various people.Youll have more ideas about how you can improve other peoples lives and businesses .Youll start contributing more, which will lead to far more opportunities and deeper relationships. People will come to love and trust you. Your work will be motivated by a higher cause and thus will be far more inspired and impactful.7. Openly acknowledge how dependent you are on other peopleJust because your primary motivation is to give, doesnt mean you dont also seek a lot of help.Actually, you are constantly seeking and receiving help.The truth is, everyone is highly dependent on other people to do what they do. But it takes wisdom and humility to openly acknowledge that dependence. Rather than seeing it as a weakness, realize that its a strength.Beyond acknowledging your dependence, constantly express your appreciation to the people in your life. That which you appreciate, appreciates. Relationships are assets that can and should grow bigger and better over time. As the brilliant entrepreneur Michael Fishman has said, Self-made is an illusion. There are many people who played divine roles in you having the life that you have today. Be sure to let them know how grateful you are.If you dont appreciate and give to your relationships, your relationships will suffer. All relationships are like bank accounts, and if one person is constantly depositing and the other person is constantly withdrawing, eventually all of the resources become depleted.In such relationships, 1+1=less than 2.Conversely, in synergistic and healthy relationships, 1+1= far more than 2. When two people are continually giving and receiving, the relational bank account continues to grow and expand, providing several intended and unintended benefits.For example, I was recently at the gym with my brother. At the beginning of the workout, he was struggling mentally. He wasnt adding to my energy and helping my workout become better than if I was alone, but instead, he was sucking my energy and requiring me to exert more energy and effort than if I was alone.I made him aware of what was happenin g, and he immediately shifted his emotional posture. He realized how dramatically his mood was impacting me. His motivation shifted from consuming an experience to creating something great.Our shared mental state heightened, taking us into group flow. Our workout become far superior to anything I could create on my own. notlage only that, but we began to engage in inspired conversation. This led to brilliant insights and connections that were relevant to the book Im writing.The amazing workout was the intended outcome of our synergy. The insights for my book were unintended benefits. This can only happen when both parties are actively giving and receiving from the relationship. Where both are focusing on creating rather than consuming. Where both have the primary motivation of helping the other person succeed.8. Create win-win strategic partnerships to achieve 10x or 100x goalsAll failed companies are the saatkorn they failed to escape competition. - Peter ThielMost people are in a state of competition rather than collaboration.Collaboration is a much higher level than competition.Competition is focused on the self. Its also very low level thinking, because what you can do on your own is very limited.People who are competing are grinding. Theyre more focused on winning than creating real solutions.However, when your thinking becomes expanded, you realize you could do so much more with other people. Collaboration creates unique connections working by yourself never could.You have skills and knowledge that are awesome in your field. There are other people in different fields who have skills and knowledge completely outside of your current awareness. These people also have assets you dont have.If you want to get 10X or 100X the results of other people in your field, you need to develop strategic win-win partnerships. This generally happens when you devise a plan where your skill sets and assets merge with the skill sets and assets of someone else.What you can do well, someone else may struggle with. What you struggle with, others can do extremely well.Who can you partner with that could speed your process?Who has assets and resources you dont?How could you help these people?What types of partnerships could you develop, that would allow you to more quickly achieve your goals and help them more quickly achieve theirs?When you collaborate with other people, 1+1=more than 2. The whole becomes DIFFERENT from the sum of its parts.This is how TRANSFORMATION occurs. Only those who engage in collaboration actually experience true transformation. People who only work well by themselves are stuck in their own narrow worldview and agendas.When you merge with others, your ideas and goals change. They become bigger and better. They become DIFFERENT from what you could ever create on your own.The only way to have these types of partnerships is to think long-term. You must be invested and have skin in the game. It cant be transactional. Its cant be this fo r that. It must be about something a lot deeper. When it is, youll have far more integrity in the work you do. Youll express greater appreciation. Youll consistently do the right thing, even if that right thing is difficult and uncomfortable.Dont seek transactional relationships. Only seek long-term TRANSFORMATIONAL relationships.9. Set 10x goals and face your fearsLook at your current goals.Why is that your metric for success?Why is that your target?What would happen if, in all seriousness, you 10Xd that target?What if rather than earning $3,000/month, you pursued $30,000/month?Is that even possible?Of course its possible. Theres several people doing it.The only difference between them and you is their education, relationships, and strategy.When you set a 10X goal, youre required to think very differently about your daily behaviors. Youre required to be more serious in all aspects of your life. Youre required to eliminate limiting thinking and consumptive distractions.Setting a 10X goal will be one of the best things youve ever done for yourself. This goal should be created while you are in a peak state. You get into a peak state by doing something powerful, whether that be exercising, learning, or being in a unique environment, such as a foreign country. You can even get into a peak state by being around certain types of people, the ones who inspire you to be the best version of yourself.Only you know what gets you into a peak and passionate state. So, do whatever it is that gets you there, and then write down your goals. Declare what youre going to do. Then write that goal down and visualize its achievement every single day until it becomes your reality.When you think about this goal, dont deviate from the natural flow of ideas that follow.You cant 10X your results by engaging in the saatkorn thinking and behaviors youre currently performing. Consequently, while thinking about your goal, youll also get ideas about what you need to do, realistically, to achi eve that goal.Chances are, you dont know what you dont know. So youll need to start really educating yourself about how you could conceivably achieve your goal.Youll need to get bolder about the work youre doing. Youll need to create more, and fail more. Over and over, in fact. Quantity is often the fastest path to quality.Not only that, but when you think about your 10X goal, youll probably have ideas that scare you. When you do work that scares you, you cross a boundary that most people never cross. Scary work is often highly profitable and valuable work.10. Get really really good at marketingMarketing is nothing more than applied psychology.Its about connecting with people, persuading them, and helping them.Many people think marketing is a nasty or immoral thing.Many artists dont learn marketing because they dont want to sell out. They want their work to be pure.Academics are not better. Their work is not accessible to the common man.Marketing is nothing more than making your wor k easier and better to find and use.People arent magically going to appear and buy your stuff.People arent going to magically appear and read your stuff.Even right now How did you land on this page? Look at the title of this article. I could have just as easily called it, Advice for becoming successful.But would you have clicked on that article?Probably not.But you clicked on this one.Why did you click on this one?How did you get this far down?Think about the experience.Marketing is the HOW to whatever it is you do.The reason most people arent successful is because they either fear or avoid marketing. For the same reason, most people are bad teachers. Theyre more focused on content than the delivery and design of that content.But the delivery - the HOW - is just as important IF NOT MORE IMPORTANT than WHAT youre doing or WHY youre doing it.You could have the cure for cancer. But if you dont market it well, youll never get your cure out there.You could have the worlds most importan t message, or greatest story, but no one will see it if you dont promote and package it intelligently.11. Dont focus on time and effort, focus on results insteadFounder of the exclusive entrepreneurial coaching platform, Strategic Coach, Dan Sullivan distinguishes between those who are in the Time-and-Effort Economy with those who are in the Results Economy.If youre in the time and effort economy, you are focused on being busy. You actually believe the amount of time and energy you put into something merits praise. Conversely, when you are in the results economy, you are only focused on achieving a specific result.The bottom line is what matters, and thus, it becomes very important to find the most effective way to get there. This is a key difference between entrepreneurs and employees. As Sullivan saysEntrepreneurs have crossed the risk line from the Time-and-Effort Economy to the Results Economy. For them, theres no guaranteed income, no one writing them a paycheck every two weeks . They live by their ability to generate opportunity by creating value for their clientele. Sometimes, they - and you - will put in a lot of time and effort and get no result. Other times, they dont put in much time and effort and get a big result. The focus for entrepreneurs always has to be on results or theres no revenue coming in. If you work for an entrepreneur, guess what This is true for you, too. Though you probably have a guaranteed income, its important to understand that the business you work in exists inside The Results Economy, even if youre sheltered somewhat from seeing that. I say this not to make you feel insecure, but to show you how to succeed in this environment by maximizing your results while minimizing the time and effort it takes to get them.Most people dont think in terms of results because their security is in a paycheck. However, when you shift your focus from how little you can do to how much you can do, you change how you work.You start learning ways t o accomplish more faster. You take on greater responsibility. You change your environment. And you also realize just how important sleep and rest are to achieving the highest possible results. Hence, you begin to take more and more time off and rest.When you dedicate 80 percent of your energy to rest and self-improvement, then you have a lot of fodder and a very sharp saw to use during the time youre actually working.Youre thinking 10X bigger than everyone else. Youre operating under short timelines and high pressure. You can tax yourself to extremes while you work because you spend lots and lots of time resting and preparing.12. Shift your environments regularlyThe environments you work in should reflect the work youre doing.Doing several types of work in the same environment is ineffective. But people do it all the time. They sit in the same seat and mentally shift from one task to another.A far better approach is to BATCH your activities and to do those activities in a relevant e nvironment.For example, when I write a blog post, I work in a quiet library where I have no distractions. Because my environment facilitates quality writing, and because I knew Id be writing that day, I write a lot. Its easier to write 25 blog posts in one sitting than to try writing one post at a time.Ari Meisel, author and entrepreneur, batches his activities and alternates his environments to match the work hes doing. On days he is recording podcasts, he goes to a senderaum and records about 5 podcast episodes in a single session.On other days, he spends his whole day in meetings or on calls. He does this work at his friends apartment because its a much more engaging environment.He also does a lot of writing, and does that at the SOHO HOUSE in New York City, because its a quiet environment with poor internet connection. The lack of connection stops him from surfing the web and even using his phone, because he has bad reception.13. Define wealth and success for yourselfSuccess and wealth are not all about money.There are a lot of people who have money and have little capital in the other key areas of their lives.Money, obviously, is very important. It solves a lot of problems. Its speeds processes.But money is a tool. Its a means to an end. For those engaging in work they truly believe in, money is simply a tool for doing more work.14. Know and operate from your deepest whyWhat is your WHY for what youre doing or pursuing?How could you possibly know your why?More importantly, how could you know your REAL WHY?Its actually quite simple.But it takes some radical honestly.Theres an exercise Ill walk you through to get to your WHY. And more importantly, once you know your deepest WHY for what youre doing, you should operate FROM THAT STATE, not from your lower and base-level reasons.When trying to understand why you do something, its better to ask What questions then Why questions, because Why questions tend to put people on the defensive.Heres a solid question y ou could ask yourself to understand your WHY.What about ______________ is important to you?Lets say you want to start a business, or get a new cellphone, or go to the gym It could be big or small.But put that thing in there.What about going to the gym is important to you?Then, you just write the first thing that comes to your mind because I like feeling good.Then you take your answer, and put it in the same question What about ______________ is important to you?So, given the previous answer What about feeling good is important to you?A simple way to structure this exercise is shown in the images just below. So, you want to try to go 7-layers deep. Once you get to layers 5, 6, and 7, youre going to have to be really honest with yourself.Usually, you can answer layers 14 with your head. However, if youre being really honest with yourself, and I mean REALLY HONEST, youll need to come from your heart to answer layers 57.Its at the deepest levels that youll discover your TRUE WHY for wha t youre doing. Even if that something is as simple as getting a new cellphone or going to the gym.But you want to remind yourself of your DEEPEST WHY when youre doing something. And you want to operate from THAT LEVEL, because at your deepest level, youll be operating from your heart, not your head. Thus, your performance will be much deeper, more authentic, and powerful.The stakes will be higher.Suddenly, youre not just going to the gym to feel good, but because you have a higher calling to perform and need to be as healthy as possible to make it happen (or whatever your deepest WHY is).Your DEEPEST why will almost always expose something very personal about you, and about your fundamental beliefs about life.You want to be aware of these things, and how/why they drive you to do what youre doing.If you truly go through this exercise in a genuine way, you should get some mental and emotional breakthroughs.You should discover something about yourself, and why you are the way you are, and why youre pursuing the specific things you are.Know your why.Then act from the DEEPEST and most powerful WHY you have.Youll be far more brilliant at what you do.15. Have a firm stand, it becomes your brandIn order to be successful, you must believe in something.You must have a stand.All successful people and brands have a clear WHY. As Simon Sinek explains in his book, Start With Why, people dont buy what you sell, they buy why you sell it.Apple is a great example. In all of their marketing, they dont explain the technicalities of their products, they define and share their core values. They believe technology should be both easy to use and cool.If you want to be compelling and interesting, you must truly believe in something. You must have a clear stand. That stand becomes your brand. It becomes your trademark. It becomes how you distinguish yourself from others.When you have a clear stand and brand, you stand out. You are no longer neutral. You believe in something, and are fi ghting to make a specific change.As a result, people will either love you or hate you. Thats what you want. Lukewarm means you have nothing to say. Lukewarm means youre trying to appeal to everyone.The riches are in the niches. Your niche is your audience. They are a small group of people who agree with the stand youre trying to make. They are your evangelists.If you try to appeal to everyone, your message, marketing, and products will be terrible. You wont be clear on your why, and neither will anyone else. Thus, youll be average like everyone else and your work wont stand out.Only people with firm stands get really really good at marketing. They care enough about their message to get it out there. They realize that the HOW is just as important as the WHAT and WHY.ConclusionAre you doing these 15 things?How aggressively are you doing them?Do you want to become a multi-millionaire?Are you ready to think and act bigger?Youve got this.Thisarticleoriginally appeared on Medium.