The simple act of creating a Life Portfolio can be enlightening. For me, having a single visual representation of everything I am doing currently in my life makes me more aware that I am doing what I truly want and/or need to be doing.

But you can also use your Life Portfolio to:

• Remove Lower Value Activities
  Remove lower value activities from your life by either stopping them (if they’re optional) or giving them to someone else (if they need to be done). Even when there’s an upfront cost, the long-term benefit often outweighs the cost.
• Make Deliberate Trade-Offs
  When saying yes to someone or deciding to do a new activity, look at your portfolio and determine what you’re going to reduce or eliminate to make room for the new activity. If the new activity is lower value than your existing activities, consider staying no.
• Refine Your Time
  Periodically keep a time log to track where you are actually spending your time versus where you think you do. Use the same categories in your time log as your Life Portfolio to make it easier to integrate.
• Appreciate Your Current Life
  Use your Life Portfolio to appreciate how much you have already have in your life. When doing high value activities, use the awareness created by your Life Portfolio to appreciate the value these activities bring you.
• Revisit It
  Did you notice the date on the top of the example Life Portfolio at the beginning of this lesson? Write today’s date on the top of yours. Then periodically go through this exercise again and watch how your Life Portfolio changes over time.

Finally, your Life Portfolio provides a structure you can use with other planning tools to gain a more holistic understanding of your life, your paths and your future.