How to be more efficient

How many of you out there are having a difficult time juggling EVERYTHING it is that you have to do?  Sometimes, days get so crazy that I forget to eat. It is hard work balancing a family, a career either full time, work from home, part time, etc, and having a life outside of home. We all have 24 hours in our day.  Where are those hours going?  What are we filling them with?  Are they productive?  I know mine weren’t.

Then, I met Belinda Ellsworth.  Long story short, she is a direct sales guru.  I heard her speak at a conference and what she said changed my life. Belinda introduced me to the Power Hour. What I took away was that business and life can be broken down into 15 minute increments.

I was always saying that I didn’t have enough time. How can others be rocking their business and keeping their family together and having a life?  I barely had time to shower.  Belinda suggested getting one of those 15-minute increment planners and for three days writing down EVERYTHING you do.  At the end of those three days, see how much “time” you have wasted.  For me, I didn’t have to write it down.  As soon as I actually thought about it, I realised that this was an organisation and follow through problem, not a time problem.  I started to look at my list from a different point of view.  Instead of looking at the giant pile of follow-ups I had to do and thinking, “There is NO way I will get this done right now.  It’ll take forever. I’ll do it tomorrow.”, now I think of where in my day I have 15 minutes to separate  my follow-ups into groups: email, text, call.   Then in another 15 minute increment, I take one of those stacks and I get to work. It is pretty simple once you start.  So simple, you will think to yourself ‘Why haven’t I done this before?”

STEP 1: MAKE A LIST OF EVERYTHING YOU CAN DO IN 15 MINUTES.

OFFICE

1. Clean desk.
2. File paperwork
3. Organise one section of specific paperwork
4. Clean out your email
5. Declutter magazines and books

WORK

1. Send/check emails
2. Schedule social media time
3. Phone calls
4. Write “thank yous” or notes
5. To do list for next day.

If you are working from home and need to add ‘home” items to your list, do that too!  Do you know you can clean a bathroom in 15 minutes if you just commit?  I do it while the kids are getting dressed for school. Toss a load of laundry in while you are making those follow-up calls.  Just make sure to schedule putting it in the dryer too.

STEP 2:  MAKE A LIST OF YOUR BIG PROJECTS 

I keep an ongoing projects list on my board in my office AND in the monthly section of my planner.  Why?  Well, sometimes, I have more than 15 minutes.  Or better yet, there may be a part of a project that I can complete in 15 minutes. By keeping this list out in the open where I can see it, tasks are more likely to be completed and scratched off the list.

STEP 3:  MAKE A SCHEDULE.

In step 1, one of our 15-minute activities is to make a list of things to do for the following day.  Do this BEFORE you go to bed at night.  This is something that extremely successful people do daily (or nightly).  Seriously, Google it. When you make your list, use two columns.  One for MUST DO and one for IF THERE’S TIME.  Prioritise your Must Do list and DO IT.  If you look at your day in 15-minute increments, it is easy to schedule.

The whole point is baby steps.  I know that my biggest problem was wanting to do everything right now.  I would start a project or a task and get side tracked.  We’ve all been there right?  You get a Facebook message for business and the next thing you know you have watched 30 minutes of cat videos. How does this happen?  Schedule time for social media.  I know that A LOT of us use social media for business,, but it can be a HUGE time sucker.  Don’t get sucked in.

It all comes down to planning.  Make a plan and schedule.  BUT, be flexible too.  Life happens.  Kids get sick, YOU get sick, cars break down.  Following your schedule 80% of the time will increase your success.  Even better, the more you practice the Power Hour, the better you will become.  You will start to notice your “time suckers” and can plan accordingly. You will notice what times of the day YOU are more productive and schedule accordingly.  Are you a night owl who gets it done from midnight – 3am?  Figure out what works best and go from there.

*After seven years of teaching full time, Jessica Lynch was able to quit teaching and work full time from home.  She now helps others create their own strong  economy allowing them to work from home, pay off debt and follow their dreams through fragrance business Pink Zebra of which she is a director. If you are interested in learning more,  go to SprinkleTheCity.com.

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