Tips: The three questions that will improve your productivity
As your to-do list grows, what are you doing to become more efficient?
We all have too much to do. We scurry about, running from one area to the next crossing things off our lists like a pro. Even if you completed every one of the tasks on your list, were you efficient in doing so?
Whether you are a small business owner or a leader of a $500 Million organization, your productivity could be improved. Many of you are managed by your task list instead of the other way around.
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Get out your iPad or Moleskin
The notebook's purpose is not to write down new to-do's but to write down every task you started to work on. Don't worry for now if you completed it or not; just write down everything. I would suggest that at the end of every hour simply add anything new you started to the running list.
I have had clients create the list for as long as a month before reviewing it. I suggest you wait at least a week before you begin to review the list to give you enough data. When you sit down to look at the list, one item at a time, add 4-columns to the list as you can see in the picture below—Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Annually. For each task, simply mark how often you are working on these tasks.
Don’t try to tackle the entire list, look at the daily tasks first. You will have more of them, and you may see a repeating pattern. Now think about each of those items you started and put on this list and ask yourself these three key questions:
Can the task be automated?
Can the task be delegated?
If the answer is no to the above two questions, can the task be batched?
There are many tools available for repetitive tasks. Start looking at the daily tasks first. What can you do to automate logging in sales receipts or handling your banking? Is there an app? A macro you can create in Excel? If you can invest in the automation and it is cheaper than your current cost, do it!
Too expensive to automate? Then ask if it is possible to be delegated. As a leader, you must push many of these tasks down to others in the organization. Delegating has several advantages; mainly it frees up your time to do more important projects, and increases your team members' value. The team members become empowered with these new responsibilities. Yes, they may be a bit slower at first than you are, but they will improve over time.
Can’t be automated or delegated? Is there any way they can be batched? We know that there are switching costs moving from task to task. As you move from an accounting task that only took 10 minutes to a marketing task that will only take 30 minutes, it takes you a few moments to get in the groove. That 30-minute marketing task may only be a 15-minute one if you did three or four in a row.
For instance, let's look at social media postings. I can sit down on a Monday afternoon and schedule all my social media posts at one time for the entire week. My marketing plan may require posting three times a day to get my messages across, but that doesn't mean you have to hit send three times a day. You can batch all of that work.
Yes, some things we do are one of a kind, or important projects that don’t fall into this matrix. But if we start automating, delegating, or batching, we will have much more time of those important projects. You’ll get the same amount of work completed in less time - that means higher productivity.
Pro tip #2 for leaders & managers:
Before you leave, let's look at your to-do list or the actions list that you are now keeping. Ask yourself these questions:
Is there anyone on my team that is trained for this?
If so, ask yourself why it is on your to-do list in the first place, then delegate it
Are you the only person in the organization that can do this?
If so, can you train someone to do this?
Train them and then delegate it
I've heard many clients say, 'it will take me twice as long to train them than to get it done myself’. These people are short-term thinkers. A leader's job is to increase the team's value. Empowerment is one of the keys to doing this.
If you are not reaching your strategic goals, it may be because you don't have enough time to work on them. So these are some quick tips on how you can improve your efficiency. It's hard work today, but it will lead to a better tomorrow!
Have issues still? Give Kole Performance Group a call!