The Modern Observer Group

It’s a common response. How are things going? Busy. It comes out of our mouths almost by itself. The truth of the matter is we shouldn’t be busy. Even if we have a lot going on, we should be striving to be productive, not busy. What’s the difference? Busy is things are happening. Productive is things are getting done. So how can we more productive?

• Write things down: Have a place where you write everything down. It doesn’t matter if it is in a document, a spreadsheet, a pad, or post-its. What does matter is that you are putting everything a single place that you look at frequently. It doesn’t help to write yourself a note if that note is buried under a stack on your desk. Write it down and check where you wrote it often.
• Create a schedule: Schedule time to get everything done. Include items like your kid’s play as well as business projects. When you create the schedule, code items by priority. Something that has to be done at a specific time are high priority. Things that are more flexible are lower priority.
• Lie to yourself: When scheduling time to do projects, lie to yourself about the deadline. Set it several days before it is actually due. Treat that new decline as absolutely real. This gives you a little flexibility to handle fires as they come up and keeps you from procrastinating. If something is due on a specific day, schedule the deadline for the beginning of the day, not the end.

Stay productive, not busy by taking control of your schedule. To find out how a Modern Observer Group coach can help increase the productivity of yourself and your team, schedule a call here.