Let’s get you less overwhelmed with that to-do list! In fact, let’s crush it!
As business owners, you and I are always putting out fires—but we don’t have to! There is a better way to run a business—and a better way to look at your to-do list(s).
If you can organize all of your sticky notes, lists, whiteboard notes, and everything else into one place—and I seriously mean ONE PLACE—you can evaluate the list, and pick the top 20% of things to do that will produce 80% of your results. In fact, these top 20% will probably make a lot of the other things you had on your list irrelevant or unnecessary. Here’s me talking about this subject in a short video:
https://www.facebook.com/1492001847736027/videos/2551885858380123
Get your team members to do this too, and weigh in on what the most important 20% is for them. You will be blown away by how much more effective you all become.
Now, this is important: the top 20% must include WORKING ON THE BUSINESS, not in it! It must include building systems, policies, processes, procedures, job descriptions, and KPIs for your team. It must include training your team properly. It must include building and following a financial plan, then reviewing your numbers each month to see how you can do even better. It must include reading the marketing stats each month to see what is working and what is not so that we can increase our marketing effectiveness.
And I highly recommend that you put the top 20% IN YOUR CALENDAR ON REPEAT. You knew that was coming, didn’t you?
The top 20% that will get you the 80% of your best results WILL BE WORKING ON YOUR BUSINESS, not in it. This is the work that PREVENTS the fires that we are constantly running around putting out! The more you do the important 20% and work ON your business, not in it, the more your to-do lists will shrink and the fewer fires you’ll have to put out.
For some more ideas, here’s a great article about how to cut your to-do lists down to size.
If you need more help on prioritizing your to-do list, contact TMH Business Coaching and Consulting today for a confidential, free, no-obligation consultation to propel you forward. Also, please feel free to add yourself to our weekly coaching tips email!
