LeadershipProductivity

Why It Pays to Invest in Greater Productivity

How to Flip Your Tasks to Accomplish More of What Creates Wealth and Drives Revenue

We all have things we do really well. In our businesses, these are usually the tasks that drive revenue. But if you’re like most entrepreneurs and executives, you probably only spend 20 percent of your time on these tasks.

The rest goes to solving other people’s problems, wading through oceans of email, attending inefficient meetings, putting out countless fires, and addressing draining operational issues. Been there, done that.

Stealing Our Ideas and Energy

I’ve moved in and out of both the corporate and entrepreneurial worlds throughout my career. One constant has been the challenge to stay productive amid all the interruptions and distractions.

This is the norm for most leaders. We reach the c-suite or start our businesses because we deliver new ideas and great results. But before long, the business of business steals our best thinking and energy. There’s just no time.

In the c-suite or coffee shop, the reality is the same: It’s easy to spend 80 percent of our time on nonproductive, low-leverage activities and just 20 percent on what moves the needle.

But what if we could flip that?

The Right Side of 80/20

Imagine spending 80 percent of your time on the projects that drive your business forward instead of just keeping it going? That’s a 300 percent increase in your ability to focus on the projects and priorities that generate cash now and in the future.

If you could give your business 300 percent more of your best thinking and creativity, what would that do to your revenue? Would it double it or maybe even triple it?

What about your personal income? What if it grew by 50 percent or more?

What Doesn’t Work

You’re probably thinking, Sure, that would be amazing. But how in the world could I ever spend the majority of my time on high-leverage projects? I can barely get to any of them now because I’m constantly interrupted and distracted by the day to day needs of my business.

One thing we all know: The old productivity systems are never going to get you there. They deals in the small potatoes of getting more done at a faster speed. But speed is never enough.

After all, leaders are measured by the results we produce, not the number of tasks we accomplish any given day or week.

Achieve More by Doing Less

Productivity 2.0 is more about significant achievement than speed. This new approach to productivity has the power not only to bring balance and margin back into your personal life, but to dramatically increase the financial results you create for your business.

If spending time on big-picture, creative, revenue-generating work feels like a luxury, you can be sure you’re not reaching your professional potential. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

There are at least three reasons it pays to invest in greater productivity:

  1. You can focus on revenue-generating activities again. Peter Drucker famously said, “Good executives focus on opportunities rather than problems.” Investing in the right kind of productivity would empower you to focus on what builds your business. Instead of spinning plates and putting out fires, you could:
    • nurture key business relationships
    • develop new products
    • expand into new markets
    • dial in your marketing efforts
    • close lucrative deals
    • develop a category-killing innovation
  2. You can eliminate interruptions and distractions. In the regular business of business, the urgent often masquerades as the important. But the right productivity system will not only help you spot the difference, it will help you eliminate activities that drain your time and energy.

  3. You can punt tasks you shouldn’t be doing in the first place. Flipping the 80/20 split in your favor means focusing on where you make your most profitable contribution and clearing the rest off your desk. Investing in the right productivity system will enable you not only to identify what you need to eliminate or delegate, but also stack your tasks for effective execution.

Are You Free to Focus?

Imagine what it would feel like to finally have the freedom to focus on the most important priorities in your business every day instead of every once in a while. That’s exactly why I built my new online course, Free to Focus. Lesson by lesson, it equips you to:

  • Cut your to-do list by 85 percent and focus only on a few truly important tasks each day.
  • Identify which tasks are in your Desire Zone and which are your Drudgery Zone, plus the other two places you can easily go off track if you’re not careful.
  • Leverage the multiplying power of elimination, automation, and delegation to get rid of your most draining tasks and projects.
  • Design your ideal week to ensure the majority of your time is spent making your greatest contribution.
  • Create a blueprint for a highly productive day that will set the stage for success and achievement day in and day out.

Right now your business is running on 20 percent of your best efforts. Free to Focus will enable you to flip that so you can contribute 80 percent of your unique skills and abilities to what drives revenue and accelerates growth.

Registration is open now. Click here to find out more.

Learn More About Free to Focus

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, we will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, we only recommend products or services we use and believe will add value to our readers. We are disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

More In Leadership
Become a Full Focus Insider

Subscribe to the Full Focus newsletter for the latest insights, strategies, and tools from our CEO to keep you winning at work and succeeding at life!

Sign Up Now