#14 Get Sh*T Done
These 3 tips will impact the way you work, how you feel while you’re working, and how you feel when you’re done for the day. My fellow procrastinators + perfectionists, you’re gonna love this.
Over the last few years of my life, I would describe the way I worked as a glamorized hustle. Working 12+ hour days, barely taking a break, and being busy all the time somehow was an accolade or a badge of honor to prove I deserved the success I experienced and wanted to experience. I got into the habit of always being in a rush, never having enough time, and always being on a deadline with work it started bleeding into my life outside of work.
I didn’t realize how much I’d bought into this story of not having enough time until one Saturday morning I was at Kroger doing my grocery shopping, with absolutely no plans for the rest of the day and there I was rushing through the aisles, feeling anxiety and pressure to get done so I could move onto the next thing… except there wasn’t one.
I remember being in the cereal aisle telling myself, “You need to calm the hell down”.
Right then I knew I couldn’t keep going through my life like this, feeling like there’s never enough time or the worlds gonna end if I don’t get every little thing done isn’t a fun way to feel.
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I’m going to share 3 tips I learned from Brian Tracy’s bestseller, ‘Eat that Frog’ that have helped me be focused and efficient, so I actually get more done in less time without feeling like a hot mess who’s always in a rush.
#1 Do your highest-value task first.
Or the task that would have the greatest impact on your day if you were to complete it.
Typically, we check our email, go through our tasks for the day and knock out the easiest ones first.
I use to tell myself I did this to give my mind time to ‘wake up’. But really, that’s just a pretty way to say I was procrastinating on the big thing I knew I had to get done that day.
Before you sit down to start your day ask yourself these 2 questions and you’ll be amazed at how much it helps you manage your time and your ability to stay focused on big tasks.
What’s one thing I and only I can do that when it’s done, it’ll make a big difference?
What is the most valuable use of my time right now?
#2 Say No.
A huge reason why we feel like we never have enough time to get it all done is that every time we say Yes to something, we’re saying No to something else.
It’s also one of those sneaky things that cause resentment. We say yes to so many things, that little by little our plate is full of things we’re doing for other people. We push things to the side and sacrifice our self-care and personal time to get it all done, and then before we know it we’re the cranky, crazy lady who loses her shit at the smallest thing …ask me how I know ;)
If you’re a people pleaser like me you know how good it feels to say yes to everything and anything that’s asked of you, so saying no might feel uncomfortable at first.
Warren Buffet is quoted to have said his secret to success is,
“I just say no to everything that is not absolutely vital to me at the moment”.
Remind yourself that you’re not doing anyone a favor, including yourself when you’re working from a place of overwhelm and exhaustion. It’s okay to say no and to be picky about what you say yes to.
#3 Run It Up A Flag Pole.
What the hell does that mean? Take the first step. Don’t wait until something is perfect to start taking action or to put something into motion.
I’m such a perfectionist, I would delay executing anything until it was just the way I wanted it or I knew the exact steps I needed to take to get the job done. The problem with that is, half the time I have no idea what the steps were so I end up not even starting and that meant not getting a result at all.
In his book, Brian Tracy says,
“Run it up a flag pole and see if anyone salutes”.
This was such a powerful reminder for me that B+ work is better than no work at all and we don’t have to have everything figured out to perfection in order to take the first step. Get it 80% done and make it better later.
I’ve found taking the first step usually leads to the next step, and the next step, and the next step - and it gets to be easy when you trust that the process will reveal itself with every action you take.