As a business owner, you’re probably always looking for ways to get more done in less time. After all, if you work less while making even more money, then you’ve given yourself a nice pay raise.
But it turns out that cloning yourself is not an option, right? And that means that you’ll need to employ other methods to get more done in less time, starting with these tips…
Keep these tips in mind:
A few days ago I ran for seven hours and eleven minutes without a break. Let that sink in for just a moment to realize the magnitude of it. That’s not a typo. I ran all day. In extreme conditions.
When I woke up that morning, that’s what I intended to do. I drove to the ultra race start zone. Waited around with the other runners. And then took off. It was fully planned.
Here’s how I did it: I took a step. Then another step. And then another step.
If I had gotten up that morning and said out loud, “I’m gonna run for over seven hours today”, I probably wouldn’t have done it. That’s insanely daunting.
One of the tools that I use which really enables meet to be productive is a set of checklists that I have developed.
I think every important project should have a highly-detailed checklist. This helps in a variety of ways ranging from helping you to stay on track, preventing overlooked details, energizing you as things are checked off, etc.
The question is: how do you create the “perfect” checklist? Or any checklist at all for that matter? I routinely use three stages of development for mine…
Stage One: Objectivize. It begins very simply with stating the primary object of the project. In other words, what is it that I want to achieve?
Objective: Qualify for the Boston Marathon
Objective: Earn an extra $100,000 this year
Objective: Teach my daughter to play piano by spring recital
Quick question: What does it take to make every day your ideal day in terms of productivity?
Here’s a hint:
It doesn’t involve getting up early.
It doesn’t involve using the latest productivity tool.
It doesn’t even have anything to do with how many hours you work a day.
Procrastination is something we all experience. Trouble is, it’s something that can quickly become a habit. And it’s a habit that will derail your business success. People who are successful are people who have learned to tame that particular monster.
Here are twenty-one ways to help you boot it out the door.
(part 2 of this report)
If your To-Do list instills strong feelings of shame, guilt and doom that send you plummeting down the cliff of procrastination, get rid of that list completely! It’s not doing you any good—just reinforcing feelings of inadequacy and anxiety, and reinforcing procrastination.
Find a different way to prioritize. (One that matches your learning style and doesn’t trigger anxiety.)