EP: 56 - Want To Kick Start Your Productivity?

“Replace excuses with effort, replace laziness with determination, and everything else will fall into place.”
 

Welcome to Episode 56:Want To Kick Start Your Productivity?

 This week’s “untangling” episode is a compliment to last week’s where I broke down how to become a #GoalDigger into simple steps such as: the art of making affective and achievable lists, creating and implementing an action plan in order to use your time wisely for maximum impact, and how to gauge your success realistically and effectively. Keep those things in mind to now kick start your productivity!

I’m going to make this short n’ sweet today since productivity goes hand-in-hand with everything I shared with you last week, and due to the fact that the handful of episodes coming out over the next few weeks compliment the next one, and the next one, and the next one …
 
Here's what we will be untangling in this episode ...

• How to get your priorities straight and not get “lost in the weeds”
• How I personally plan and schedule my days (with passion)
• How to kill your virtual distractions and get things done
• How to become the master of your own time
   

Are you ready?
Pop in your awesome earbuds and let's dive in!

Transcript

This week’s “untangling” episode is a compliment to last week’s where I broke down how to become a #GoalDigger into simple steps such as: the art of making effective and achievable lists, creating and implementing an action plan in order to use your time wisely for maximum impact, and how to gauge your success realistically and effectively. Keep those things in mind to now kick start your productivity!

I’m going to make this short n’ sweet today since productivity goes hand-in-hand with everything I shared with you last week, and due to the fact that the handful of episodes coming out over the next few weeks compliment the next one, and the next one, and the next one …

As you all know I'm a keener when it comes to organization and productivity (putting my "secret sauce" of creativity on the sidelines for a few moments). Especially with all the distractions in our busy lives, it can be nearly impossible to focus on what's most important in our businesses. 

But trust me, you can do it if you get your priorities straight.

This is something I see frequently in my line of business. People do not finish the day feeling accomplished then they end up judging themselves for all the things they did not get accomplished that they wanted to, myself included from time-to-time. The pressure is on to be as productive as possible in order to get where we want to go. My team and I feel that if you truly want to increase your level of productivity, you have to make a conscious choice to do so. You have to want to do it and want to want it. If you just tell yourself, it’s something you need to do … it’s honestly never going to happen!

I hate to admit this out loud -- but there are a lot of “time wasters” in our daily lives which can sometimes have a negative impact on what we’re trying to accomplish. That’s why it’s so important to understand the low-down on time management as well -- which in reality can also be viewed in partnership with project management therefore making productivity well rounded. 

We don’t want you getting burnt out, so the key word here is PLANNING. You want to work more efficiently, not work more. You want that life of freedom. You want your big dreams to become reality. So, for that to all happen you’ll want to plan things out according to your daily tasks, projects, and goals. Feel free to listen back to last week’s episode for a refresher on creating lists and action plans to achieve your goals.
 
Realistically, if you work too hard you may lose sight of your bigger picture. And we most certainly don’t want that to happen as that’s what we’ve been working so hard to build up to and work towards in order to gain more lifestyle freedom. Research actually suggests that as we burn out, we have a greater tendency to get “lost in the weeds” -- since that’s the last thing you want.

Which brings me back to the bones of today’s episode; how to kick start your productivity. And whom else to better quote due to the scope of this lifestyle other than the great himself, Chris Bailey, CEO of a Life of Productivity.
 
For Chris, it all boiled down to dozens of productivity experiments that he has done over the entire span of his productivity project -- which you can read more about on his website at: alifeofproductivity.com. I’ll admit I’m a huge nerd follower of his work and experiments and just can’t seem to get enough!

So, how exactly do you live a life of productivity?

By preparing yourself for each and every business day. It’s all about creating a process to save yourself time, effort and making room for massive growth. It’s all about manipulating your time because we only have 24-hours in each day and unfortunately do not have the power to slow down time.
 
And with that being said, here’s a bit of insight into how I schedule my days …

First off, for those who don’t know me too well (yet), I’m a HUGE PLANNER in all aspects of my life. Not just business. Honestly, it probably drives my other half and friend’s crazy most days.

Everything in my schedule, whether business or personal, has a time and a place. 
 But honestly, that’s just how I like it. It makes me thrive and keeps things in an orderly fashion when running from meeting to meeting and project to project. This way I don’t have to worry about the “small stuff” and I’m never late for anything because I can’t find my keys.

So, being meticulous and strategic about how I schedule my time is essential to me. It helps me effectivity grow my business while utilizing the least amount of time and maintaining a healthy mental lifestyle. (Aka. I’m not going crazy -- yet, haha!) 
 
I like to schedule my days for maximum productivity in the simplest ways possible.

So, here’s what a day-in-the-life of ME looks like …

I wake up early, but I don’t roll out of bed right away. I lay there and relax while taking some time to check my personal email and messages (without answering any) before I dive on into business-land. I do this because I like my day to start off peaceful by reading whatever positivity subscriptions (blogs, podcasts, motivational quotes, etc.) I have myself signed up for. Instead of worrying right off the hop about what I have to tackle first, second, third … and so on. Quick side note, I never check my business emails until I’ve done the rest of my morning routine first.

Then I get up, stretch, and go feed my little fur baby gremlins. Yes, all 3 of my annoyingly cute kitties. My oldest, Maxxwell, was recently diagnosed with a kidney disease (after his Diabetes went into remission) so his morning schedule is now mine as I want to make sure he stays healthy, eats enough, and gets his meds on time.

Once they’re all fed and happily bouncing around the house, I begin my routine … tidy up, making lunch for my other half before he heads out the door, get laundry started, make the bed, shower, make-up, eat breakfast … all that good stuff. Then I head to my virtual space, set-up my desktop tabs (as I close them all the night before to minimize evening distractions), open my email, my productivity platforms, design programs, check in on my Toggl reports for the week (per client) and dive right on in!

I start off by answering any “urgent” client emails then go off into social media-land and do whatever posting needs to be done for the week (if it hasn’t been done already), both for my business as well as for any clients if that’s something on my plate at that time. And yes, I schedule each week at a time with an amazing pre-scheduling app called PromoRepublic. However, for Virtually Untangled, it’s 30 days at a time as I have myself on quite a strict rotation of creation.

Then once those items are all taken care of, I review my daily to-do list, my weekly to-do list, and my meeting schedule for the week so I can plan my time accordingly in between all these items, whether meetings, projects or smaller to-do list tasks. 
 
Once my mind has been refreshed with the tasks at hand, I then dive into my Asana task lists, which by the way is set up in chronological order by due date, repetition level, and sectioned by client. Even if they don’t use this platform, I place all the projects planned with them into Asana for my team and I’s own scheduling (and piece of mind) purposes.

As you can see, my entire routine revolves around a plan.

At the end of each week – on Friday’s I work on VU’s virtual goodies list and pre-plan how I want to spend my time, energy, and days for the rest of the month. I spend at least an hour planning out my to-do lists and Asana schedule (yes, I even have a tabbed section for Virtually Untangled projects and goals) for the next month. Adjusting timelines as necessary. Even planning in time for second week to work on my social media and marketing plans since I prepare in monthly intervals in order to not be scrambling the day before or day of.
 
One of my business friends actually told me once that I plan too much. And she didn’t understand why I always had non-promotional email campaigns going out and social media posts on the daily. She told me I should slow down because nobody would miss it if I didn’t post for one single day, which quite offended me. She clearly didn’t understand my personality, business goals, or why I do things the way I do. She still doesn’t. In case you’re wondering, I do this for those “just in case” business (and life) days or weeks where tech issues go berserk, and things get extra bonkers. This way I’m never stressed about it, always planning my strategy ahead, and nothing gets missed. Which we all know tends to happen from time to time. 

For this type of pre-planning, I need bittersweet quiet time. For me, nothing kills productivity and my laser focused mind than becoming distracted. I highly value every single moment I have and am ruthless about killing any and all distractions! You’re probably wondering what I mean here …

This means doing things like:

• Having my email, Slack, and social media notifications on silent all day (even though my phone is always within reach).
• Not leaving 5 million tabs open at one time, I close each as I’m done with them.
• Only checking social media posts during certain times of the day (unless a client needs me to otherwise do so).
• Doing my best to not let my mind wander over to my email (whether business or personal) throughout the day making me distracted from the tasks at hand.

You think I’m an over-the-top nerd, I know it! 

But you know what? I’m okay with that!

 Want to know how you can become a master of your time like me?

1. Set a time limit to each task. Don’t forget to add buffers in between in case you don’t complete a task on time and so you don’t take time away from whatever is next on your schedule.
2. Use a to-do list, which you’ve heard me talk about many, many times. Creating one of these for yourself will keep you laser focused and will also motivate you as you see what you’ve already achieved, and what remains.
3. Plan ahead and spend your mornings on your most important tasks. If you have the most amount of energy in the morning don’t waste it fiddling around!
4. Eliminate any and all distractions.
5. Change your schedule but don’t “half-work” your routines. And by “half-work” I mean, don’t stop randomly to check your phone for no reason or pop onto social media to cruise. A wandering mind never gets things done on time.
6. Follow the 1-3-5 rule, which again is, mapping out one big thing, three medium things and five smaller things you want to get done daily (and yes, those are what we like to call a reasonable number of items for your to-do list).
7. Purge your lists on a daily basis and be realistic with your goals.
8. Utilize the Eisenhower method in all decisions. (Which is something I shared with you in last week’s #GoalDigger episode.)
9. Stop trying to be “perfect” because (1) there’s no such thing; and (2) when you’re trying to be a perfectionist, nothing will ever be good enough which means nothing will ever get done and you will be in “rinse n’ repeat” mode for what feels like an honest to goodness lifetime.
10. Do less and make every action count. As a result, in the long run, you will be creating more value.

Success in the business world -- whether virtual or in an office setting, as a solo-preneur, mom-preneur, or part of a larger team -- requires training, self-discipline, and a heck of a lot of planning and hard work. So, if you’re not frightened by these things, the opportunities are just as great today as they ever were. 

I am a firm believer in every single time, organization, and project management tip I share with you. I truly wouldn’t share them if I didn’t do them myself first -- and felt that they actually saved time. (And in some cases, money too!) This information isn’t fluff. It’s not a sales tactic. I’m not trying to sell you a way to get you to like me. I share these things because I follow them faithfully and know they really do work. I share them because my true passion is to help anyone and everyone on this similar adventure in any way I can … even if you’re not a paying client. That’s how much I love what I do!

I am also a firm believer that you don’t need to spend a bazillion dollars in order to run a successful business. You should just believe in yourself, embrace your quirks, hone in on your unique talents and strengths, plan ahead with every opportunity you’re given, and give the world something unique. All the while being excited to officially and passionately be living your dream -- and adding some cashflow to your wallet!

I truly feel that the difference between those who live a full life and those who are always procrastinating or perhaps even barely getting by is the measure of their productivity. Those who work hard and stay productive find they lead a fuller life than those who settle for mediocrity. So, if you have found yourself in this space of struggle … please take advantage of these great pointers and make the necessary changes in your life in order to kick start your productivity and move forward!