This is a great question. I have run across many people in my life that seem to be very busy and stressed out. Even though they have a super busy schedule, unfortunately, they are not being productive. In many cases, they are flying by the seat of their pants running from place to place. They are doing all kinds of things, but they do not have a plan. People like this can look or feel busy without actually accomplishing much. When someone is just busy, it means they are not allowing themselves much free time because they are constantly working on too many things whether they are productive or not.
It is important to understand that we need to focus on being productive instead of being busy. The reality is that being busy is a lot of time spent on meaningless actions. Being busy is a way of keeping oneself in their comfort zone by doing a lot of small, unproductive tasks. It’s a lot easier to do that rather than conquering the few big uncomfortable tasks that we know we should.
Now keep in mind, we all have the same amount of time every day. What we do with that time is going to determine the level of our success and peace. You will find the most successful people focus on using their time towards being productive; every second counts. Winners opt not to waste time being busy and unproductive. If you want to be at a higher level of success, it is important that you choose to master your time management and become extremely productive and results driven. Being productive as opposed to being busy will be the reason you achieve your goals. Here are a few tips to help you focus more on being productive.
1) Have a daily calendar
The night before, map out and review what your schedule is going to be like the following day. You will find that this takes away the stress. Know exactly what you’re going to do when you wake up in the morning, whether it’s 30 minutes for exercising, 30 minutes for devotion, when to eat breakfast, and what to eat for breakfast. If you’re in direct sales like me, know exactly what time you are leaving, where you are going, and have a roadmap for success.
Throughout the day start noting how you spend your time. You will be amazed at how much time has been wasted on just being busy rather than being productive. Create a roadmap for success.
2) Get rid of the distractions
There are so many distractions out there and by falling into the trap of paying too much attention to them, it will take you away from being productive.
Stay focused on the task you have at hand. Don’t spread yourself too thin. Give full attention to what you are currently working on, and be present in the moment.
3) Start small
It’s important to have long-term goals but in order to achieve them, we have to understand that it is a marathon and not a sprint. And we also have to have small, short-term goals. Set daily intentions that will help you achieve your big goals. By having these daily objectives that we know we can attain, it’s going to help us stay focused and keep us on track. Doing this will also keep you encouraged and take away the feeling of being overwhelmed.
4) Stay focused
Focus on one thing at a time, and do what is going to deliver you the most results first. Take a look at your goals and find out what that is. This will allow you to stay focused on one topic instead of bouncing around all over the place and not accomplishing anything.
Remember this is a process. If you have found yourself just being busy instead of productive, the first step is to recognize it. This is something that you certainly can change and will improve as time goes on.
Make every second count. This is the way you will achieve your goals. Focus on being less busy and more productive each and every day.
Repeat after me……
TODAY IS GOING TO BE A PRODUCTIVE DAY!
Have a super fantastic week!
RICH NORTON
Regional Sales Manager RMS
Image by StartupStockPhotos from Pixabay
