How to Be Effective and Get More Done

Are you an employee who feels that you will never see the bottom of your in-box?

Or perhaps you manage a team and there never seems to be enough time to do your job because you’re always putting out fires for other people.

Or are you a solopreneur – in business for yourself and doing pretty much everything that needs to be done? Marketing, keeping up with the latest trends in social media, blogging, getting new clients, customer service, billing and accounting, speaking, training, creating new programs, webinars…

It’s exhausting, isn’t it?

There is a myth out there that you need to do everything yourself if you work alone or that you shouldn’t ask for help, and the pressure to perform well is immense. You might even subscribe to the belief, “if it’s going to be done right, I have to do it myself.” While that may sound like a good way to get things done the way you want them, it’s a recipe for burnout.

Meet Mindy

Mindy came to me for help with her productivity – or lack thereof. She was frustrated with the feeling that no matter how hard she tried, she felt she could never get ahead. Between the responsibilities of her job, managing others and the “emergency meetings” that came up on what seemed an hourly basis, she felt discouraged and ineffective and was on the verge of collapse.

Sound familiar?

It doesn’t have to be like this.

Are you ready to take control of your schedule and the tasks at hand?

Would you like to gain control of your calendar instead of your calendar controlling you? You need to create a container for all the things that you do on a daily, weekly, monthly and yearly basis. Time blocking is the answer.

Time Block:

1. Personal: vacations, medical appointments, birthdays, anniversaries, exercise, date nights, etc. Record all your personal items on your calendar first, so you make sure they are scheduled. You have to take care of yourself first.
2. Daily personal time: Think of this as “me time”, which can include meditation, walks, writing in a gratitude journal, etc. I’ve been practicing my morning ritual for over 13 years and it’s made a profound difference in how I approach my day. It helps keep me grounded so I can handle anything that comes up. (My kids know how effective it’s been and if I miss a day, they send me back to my room!)
3. Work “in” or “on” your business: It’s important to distinguish between working “in” your business – training, attending meetings, working on projects – and working “on” your business – blogging, creating new programs, answering emails. Separating your tasks into each category and blocking time for each enables you to see how much time you’re spending, enabling you to make adjustments as necessary.
4. Work in blocks of time: Interruptions happen frequently and can derail your productivity if you allow them. To avoid them, close your door, close out all open windows (yes that means Twitter, Facebook and anything else that will divert your attention, including your cell phone) and get to work. Feel free to change your voicemail greeting to say you’ll be checking messages at 10 minutes to the hour. Being proactive and setting the boundary will give callers a heads up as to your schedule. Set a timer for 50 minutes and commit to being laser-focused on the task at hand. When the timer goes off, take a 10- minute break to get check your voicemail, grab a coffee or walk around – just be sure to get up from your desk.

While this sounds good and is very effective, there is a catch. In order for this to work, you have to do one very important thing.

Honor the time you block.

I have coached hundreds of clients on how to get control of their schedules and have seen this time and time again. They get all excited, create a color-coded calendar with all their commitments on it – and then don’t follow through.

It’s imperative that you honor what you have scheduled and don’t let things get in the way of what you want and need to accomplish.

Remember, “No” is a complete sentence. Some may want to make their emergency yours – don’t let them. Setting boundaries around your time may be a challenge at first, especially if you’ve never done it, and will pay dividends in the long run.

Mindy was very excited about the tools I taught her and put them into practice right away. And as happens when we start to set boundaries, she was met with resistance – from co-workers and herself. Many in her office pushed back and tested her resolve and she experienced some discomfort when she started to hold firm on managing her time. It didn’t take long before I received an email from her, “I never knew how much I let other people impact my productivity on a daily basis. It wasn’t easy, but standing my ground and managing my time has made a huge difference in what I can accomplish. I feel so much lighter!”

Now, there will be times that you will need to be flexible – that’s just the way the world works. If you find that you have to make a change, make sure you reschedule that item later in the week. Remember this phrase, “if you erase, you must replace.”

A recent Gallup poll states that the average work week is now 46.5 hours. How do you want to spend it?

I invite you to use these tools and notice the difference they make in your daily work life.

For more information on how I can help you be more productive, email me at barbara@barbarachurchill.com

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