It’s Monday. What did you get accomplished today? I spent most of the day on a ferry. But on a typical Monday I’ve not been accomplishing as much as I’d like! So here’s where I go in search of information to help ME, and share it with YOU. :)
Do you ever get that Monday brain fog? Where you know you need to get back to work and get productive but you can’t quite figure out where to start or what to do first?
The article below from Sandra Martini offer some great tips on how to overcome that brain fog and get things done — not just on Monday but every day in your business.
Productivity Buster – Mistaking Activity For Accomplishment
By Sandra Martini
A former client recently contacted me about working together again and, in asking a few questions about what she’s been up to, etc., I realized that for all the work she’s been doing (and she works a lot), she hasn’t been “done-ing” anything.
Now while “done-ing” certainly isn’t a word (yet), it does speak to the difference between working on a project so that you’re forever “doing” it and actually getting it “done”.
As small business owners and entrepreneurs dedicated to making our businesses a success, we need to be focused a lot more on the “done-ing” than the doing.
I was discussing this concept with a team member the other day and described it as the difference between “activity” and “accomplishment”:
Activity is where you’re busily doing things all day, doing, doing, doing, busy as a bee, flitting from one project to another.
Accomplishment, however, is where you’re laser-focused on a task or project either until it’s done or until you’ve spent your allotted time on it for that day (as in writing a book where it’s not your intent to finish it in one day).
You see “activity” everywhere in the corporate world: meetings, for example, are a hive of activity.
“Accomplishment” is a little more rare — those who accomplish stand head and shoulders above the crowd and, in the world of small businesses, to put it frankly, those who accomplish succeed.
Those who work a lot in their businesses and yet never seem to finish anything are destined for failure or, at best, mediocrity.
And even worse, what truly makes my heart break, are those who are trying and actually accomplishing things, but are done-ing the wrong things at the wrong time and so see no forward momentum, no increase in profits in their business.
Make It Real: My Request to You
While “done-ing” sounds as simple as “doing”, it actually takes several support mechanisms to keep it happening again and again.
Here are a few things I do to ensure more “done-ing” (and of the right things) and less continuous doing (which is essentially a version of procrastination):
- Start off by creating a strategic marketing plan which is designed to take me to my goal (do in the timeframe which makes sense for you — for me, it’s an annual goal broken into quarterly mini-goals broken into monthly objectives broken into weekly targets broken into daily success actions).
- Select a few items (actual number depends on size of project/task) and put them on my “Success Action List” for the day, then schedule a time to do them on my calendar — this allows for coaching calls and other appointments and ensures I don’t over schedule myself.
- At the end of each day, prepare for the next day and review what actually got done versus what was planned to be completed — I run around 85% of plan depending on the day.
- Each month, compare the number of “Done” items with the previous month and then compare the profit for both months — an increase in the “Dones” usually results in an increase in the profit.
And for those who think, I don’t have time to do this. . .truth is you don’t have time to NOT do it. The success of your business is at stake. What’s it worth to you?
Helping you figure this out in a way which resonates with you while reaching your goal is what I do best. To learn more about my current programs or for a no obligation Get Acquainted Strategy Session, .
For the past 5 years, Sandra Martini has been showing self-employed business owners how to get more clients consistently by implementing processes and systems to put their marketing on autopilot. Visit Sandra at http://www.SandraMartini.com for details, compelling client testimonials and her free audio series ‘5 Simple and Easy Steps to Put Your Marketing on Autopilot’.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sandra_Martini
“Monday” Photo Credit: Marinini/StockFresh
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I like #4… adding up all the done-ings each month. New spin on an old idea. Great share, Michelle!
you hit a nerve! So many people confuse being busy with progress. I am by nature a ‘get it done’ kind of person so it drives me nuts when people are content to just circle around forever. Thanks for this post.
Wow….hit the nail on the head with this one. I see people doing all the time, including myself. But done-ing is something much more rare. I’ve had some things on my plate for quite a while and now I’m done-ing them. 2 completed last week. 2 this week and hopefully continue at that rate for the month of July. Anyone can be busy….but very few people actually accomplish anything!
The last thing I want to be is living in the land of mediocrity. I’ve been there before where you’re constantly busy but accomplishments are far and few between. I’ve found that using the tactic of writing out a list of projects that will or could lead to income is the way to go. I need to make sure I’m moving forward every day and not sideways.
Hi Sandra and Michelle,
What we do isn’t nearly as important has how we do it.
The feelings behind your acts mean everything. I like to stop and ask myself: “Why am I doing what I’m doing?”
If I’m being honest, I answer the question and immediately know if I am doing stuff – i.e. “activity” – or if I’m engage in effective, goal achieving acts in alignment with my definite major purpose in life. How I feel when I act: anxious, worried, or upset….or calm, confident and poised….tells me if what I’m doing is focused, and in alignment with my purpose, or if it isn’t. Your feelings are the best guide I know of.
We see so many posts on productivity and managing time, and how to direct your focus, but life becomes quite simple, and we never have a problem with any of these things, when we live according to our values. When we live according to our definite major purpose, and make sure most if not all of our acts are in alignment with this purpose.
Awesome tips here guys. I know you are helping scores of folks to focus their mind on what they should be focusing on. Thanks for sharing with us.
Ryan
My most favorite phrase – TA-Done! I guess that comes after To-Done-ing.
Love that. “TA-Done!”
Awesome and informative post and it inspired my first quarter goal, get it done already!
Having read this post, I’m now going to make a clear action plan for the month ahead and break that down into daily tasks. Thanks for sharing the simplicity of getting things that count towards the bottom line ‘done-ing’
Great post, thanks for sharing.
Lynn Baillie