What should I focus on next? How to prioritize in your business.
One of the most valuable skills you can develop as an entrepreneur is learning to prioritize in your business.
“The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.”
~Stephen Covey
Do you ever get the feeling you’re running around your business with the vague idea that there are tons of important things to do? Maybe you work a little here and there on this and that, but never really making any noticeable progress.
You're not alone.
This is a fairly common issue for entrepreneurs. Handling the day to day operations of running a business can feel like we're trying to keep up with a moving train. If we dare to stop or slow down to think, it feels like the whole thing might just run away without us and we’ll never get caught up again.
That may be how it feels, but what if we did stop for a moment? Surely it's possible to take the time to really assess what’s going on and what needs to happen next. What if I told you that you can make huge strides in your business if you're willing to focus on a few simple steps?
Slowing down and prioritizing, figuring out what will really help your business and what you need to focus on will save you so much time and energy in the long run. You're smart. I know you know this. I also know how hard it is to actually DO this.
Let’s make it easy. I’ll walk you through it.
First of all, breathe in. Go ahead, make it a deep one that gets your attention. Now let it go.
Next, grab a notebook and set a timer for fives minutes. Yep, just five minutes.
Ask yourself these questions:
What action will move my business forward?
Often, just asking this question will clarify things. You might realize you need to focus on cold calling to get more clients. Maybe you really need to start building your email list so you can successfully launch that info product you’re working on. Maybe you need to find a VA to take some tasks off your hands so you can focus on working with more clients or offering your current clients a VIP day.
You need two things in business: a priority and a plan. Click To Tweet
Write down anything that comes to mind. Take a moment to look at the list. You might be writing down a billion things. What's your next best step? Look at your list and see which task needs to happen first to set off that domino effect. Circle it and focus on that for now. Write it down and keep it in your desk where you can see it every day.
If you’re still overwhelmed, ask yourself this follow up question:
What would free up the most time for me? What’s keeping me stuck?
Maybe you have a huge client project that’s eating up your brainspace so you can’t focus on anything else. Buckle down and get that done first. Maybe you just don’t know what to do next and need to get some education. Figure out what it is you need to know and find a course, a mentor, or anything else that would remove that block.
Write down whatever comes to mind and circle the one thing that jumps out at you. Again, look for the first domino.
Now that you know what to prioritize, break it down.
Make a plan to get that task done and knock that domino over. List everything you need to complete the task. Do you need help with that task? Information? A system or program? Where can you get these things?
Break the task down into steps, especially if just thinking about it makes you want to build a blanket fort and hide. Break it down into doable, non-scary steps, then figure out when you’ll accomplish each of those steps and schedule them.
Now you have a priority AND an action plan for getting it done. Now you know what task you need to focus on right now. When you’re done with that task, you’re free to move onto something else!
Share your first domino below!
If just thinking about this feels overwhelming, click here to schedule a call and I'll help you sorry it out. Let's Talk!
