Of course you’re productive!
But tell me what’s the biggest challenge to executing all the great plans and goals you have?
Very often isn’t it all the minor everyday interruptions that distract your thoughts, rob your focus and soak up your valuable time?
If you can relate, here are 3 keys to overcoming the Busy vs Productive trap.
Focus – Don’t set more than 1 or 2 major accomplishments at a time. Multitasking sounds great but it just wastes your energy and divides your focused attention.
The human mind is designed to respond better to quick sprints rather than long mental marathons. So split up larger projects into smaller slices and tackle them individually. As a suggestion why not block 60-90mins in the calendar every other day. In this way you can complete big projects whilst dealing with all the regular day to day activities.
Consistency – In many complex and technical environments like hospital operating theatres or flying hi-spec fighter jets these highly trained professionals are required to use checklists!
Why? It dramatically reduces errors. How much time and money does your company lose when mistakes are made? What impact does inconsistent service have on customer loyalty?
Why not make a checklist of all the critical daily, weekly and monthly actions to ensure you minimise mistakes personally and across your team. It will save you hours in fire fighting and resolving complaints.
Codification – Do you find it difficult to delegate tasks to others in the team? Or do you find yourself spending time reinventing the wheel on tasks you do regularly?
Classic examples are hours spent writing client proposals or creating sales presentations.
If so, why not think about codifying your method and process? By mapping out a clear step by step process you can delegate effectively, enabling you to reinvested that time on more vital tasks.
In creating sales presentations and proposals, often there are elements that will be included every time. Therefore these can be prepared and stored centrally for use by the entire team, saving hours of individual time and effort. Additionally you will also improve the quality and consistency of your communication to prospective clients.
A few small daily adjustments you can see your productivity soar.
