Written By: Shawn Price
Staying busy is easy. Being productive, that’s the hard part. We can all stay busy all day but that doesn’t mean we’re making progress. That’s not a reassurance that we’re being productive.
It’s not just about doing something. Rather, it’s about doing something that will lead to results.
Oftentimes, people jump to a busy schedule without even thinking about whether it’s going to bring them results. They think that the sooner they get many things done, the sooner they’ll get to their desired goal. Well, it doesn’t really work that way.
Even big companies have trouble trying to stay productive. They have thousands of employees doing all the work for them. Yet, it doesn’t assure them productivity. They have to be hands-on while the staffs are doing the work. That’s because one has to know the leverage points when working. One has to know what he should be working on in order for any productivity to take place.
It doesn’t matter how much or how little you have to do. The first thing you need to look for is a leverage point. But what is a leverage point? A leverage point is that one aspect of a business plan that will result in a positive change. It’s that one aspect that you have to tick in order for your efforts to result in productivity.
The leverage point technique doesn’t only work for big companies. It works for start-up businesses as well. Having a small business doesn’t mean that you’ll have less work to do. On the contrary, it’s much more difficult to be productive when you’re only a start-up entrepreneur. Since you’re still working to strengthen your base, then you have lots more things to do than big companies. There are loads of things you have to catch up to. Here are some tips on how to locate the leverage points for your start-up business productivity:
Prioritize
You’re looking to make something out of your business. With that, you have to focus on things that work. Don’t just choose to do something for the sake of crossing it out on your to-do list.
You have to scrutinize the tasks. Figure out the things that are the most important, and focus on doing them. Since you’re new to the whole business world, you might be excited to do everything all at once, but that just won’t do the trick. You have to focus on your goals. Do the things that will bring you closer to those goals.
Don’t prioritize everything
The worst thing you can possibly do is to mark everything as important. Why? You’ll never get anything done. You’ll end up not finishing anything. You’ll just shift from one task to another, and by the end of the day, it’s like you never did anything. You’ll have nothing to show for your busy day.
The best thing to do is to pick three important tasks each working day and make sure that you do all of them. Repeat the cycle the following day. Make it a routine.
Clarify your goals
Leveraging your tasks is the best way for you to be productive, but before you even get there, your goals should be vivid.
If you have vague goals, then you’ll never figure out eh steps that you need to do in order to succeed.
Create and manage your tasks
Remember that you’re not running a business for fun. You’re not beating yourself up or productivity for the sake of fun either. You’re looking for results, positive results. With that, you should monitor the tasks that are already done, and the tasks that are yet to be done.
Create a separate to-do list: one long to-do list, where you’ll be listing all the things you need to do and another to-do list where you only list the tasks that you should be doing for the entire day.
Don’t just create a to-do list you also have to monitor your tasks. Update your to-do list whenever you make progress.
If it’s not on your to-do list, then don’t do it
You’ll get distracted at some point.
As you’re quietly doing your tasks for the day, a sudden thought will disturb your peace, a though telling you to do something else.
Don’t do it. No matter how good the idea may seem. It’s never a good idea to ruin your system. The systematic approach is always the best approach. It’s the one thing that will bring you closer to your goals.
I’m not talking about procrastination. I know you won’t do such thing. I’m talking about a brand new idea that will suddenly come across your mind, signaling you to try it out first before you finish your tasks. Tell yourself this: you have a job to do, and that’s to finish your tasks for the day. Don’t do anything that will keep from doing that.
Take care of yourself
It’s not only your business that you should be taking good care of. You should also take care of yourself. After all, you are doing this business for yourself. If your business ends up successful, with you on the wheelchair, then all your efforts will be for nothing. You still won’t be enjoying your victory.
Don’t skip meals. Don’t starve yourself. Keeping a business is pretty exhausting. So, you should take care of your body. Get enough sleep. You already outdid when you were back at the office, and now that you are home, you should at least reward your body by giving it the rest that it truly deserves. Besides, you’ll need to be productive the next day.
Reward yourself
It’s not about fulfilling a few of your goals. Rather, it’s about getting to the end goal. To do that, you have to stay motivated, and trust me there will definitely be times when you’ll lose interest tiny our business.
How does one stay motivated? You have to appreciate yourself. Nobody else is going to do it for you. Whenever you accomplish a goal, you should treat yourself out to a cup of coffee or ice cream, watch a movie, or just do whatever it is that can help you relax and have fun.
Author Bio: I am Shawn and I am a professional blogger. I wasn’t always a writer. I just found myself suddenly in love with writing when I first read about Edgar Allan Poe’s works. I thought I could write short stories like him and so began my journey as a writer and blogger. I also love singing when I am in the bathroom from which no one can hear me. You will find most of my works at essayspark.com.
