Doing More By Doing Less

Have you ever ran into an old friend and asked how they were, only to hear the typical response, “I’ve been so busy”? Why is everyone so busy? Why does it always seem like there is not enough time in the day to finish everything we have on our plate?

The answer is simple. We do not prioritize well and we have no idea how to say, “No.” Any time someone asks us to do something we say yes. We don’t analyze how important each individual thing we do actual is. Most of us schedule our day based on other people’s priorities for us – not our own. Most of us do not proactively plan our day, we react to it. This creates stress, multi-tasking (which is not at all effective) and a constant feeling of overwhelm. So what is the cure to this ugly disease of busyness? Saying “No” to things that are not a top priority and doing less – consciously.

This goes against the programming of most of our brains, but we must identify our priorities for the following day by asking ourselves one simple question, “If I can only accomplish 2-3 things tomorrow, what are the most important?” Write them in order of importance. Multi-tasking must be abolished because it does not work. 100% of your energy needs to be focused on the first task on your list the second you get to work. Only when you finish that can you move on to task #2, and so on.

Nothing should detract your focus from accomplishing the 2-3 tasks on your list. Nothing should interrupt your focus. Checking email can wait. Your phone should be unplugged. Your email notifications should be shut off (permanently).

The only way to really be productive is to laser-focus your efforts on pre-determined tasks. This way you are dictating your day and you are ensuring that the most important tasks get accomplished. You are not allowing someone else’s email to dictate your schedule for the day. You are in command.

Becoming task-oriented, rather than time-oriented, ensures that you accomplish measurable items. An 8 hour day can easily pass without any clear accomplishments being fulfilled. When tasks are outlined, it forces you to carefully think of what is actually important, versus what seems to be important.

Once you have become task-oriented, you become better at telling people “No”. You become better at focusing on higher-margin activities and projects. You understand that most “work” is busy-work that really doesn’t contribute to the bottom-line. You start to see the bigger picture and create massive results without working harder. You become strategic. Like Abraham Lincoln used to say, “If I had 8 hours to chop down a tree, I would spend the first 4 sharpening my axe.”

Start sharpening your axe and taking control of your day. Watch your stress levels decrease and your meaningful results go through the roof. Keep your to-do list to 2-3 items. Any more than that will be defeating the purpose. Share your results with everybody below in the comments. I have seen huge results from these minor modification and am positive, you will too.